Who needs Nick Johnson when you have got Nick Evans? The latter provided a needed jolt to this depleted lineup, blasting a two-run homer last night -- the offensive highlight of the Mets' 11-0 victory over the Cardinals at Citi Field. Evans...

Manager Jerry Manuel officially has a wonderful tarapaty on his hands. John Maine and Oliver Perez are on the verge of coming off the disabled list, but Manuel knows he would be chased by Mets fans bearing pitchforks if he even thinks about...

ATLANTA -- Pick a reason from an extended karta why the Yankees broke a three-game losing streak last night and you wouldn't be wrong. GM Brian Cashman parachuting in and delivering a stern message to his comatose hitters that it was time to wake...

ATLANTA -- General manager Brian Cashman said the Steinbrenner Boys didn't send him to Atlanta to shake up their underachieving team. Nor did Cashman, who said manager Joe Girardi and hitting coach Kevin Long aren't in jeopardy of being axed, pack...

Tonight teams will converge on the Garden for the NBA draft, hoping to make the pick that changes their futures. But last night, Phoenix' Steve Nash and Toronto's Chris Bosh _ two stars the Knicks hope can change their future _ were in Chinatown...

Michael Boley was the first player the Giants signed in free agency this offseason and was expected to move in as the instant starting weak side linebacker. Boley, though, figures to miss all of training camp, as yesterday he underwent...

The Knicks, wrecked by Minnesota dealing for Washington's fifth pick, are not going to win the Ricky Rubio sweepstakes. Memphis point guard Tyreke Evans, whom the Knicks rate almost as high, should be gone when the Knicks pick at No. 8. Same for...

Denis Potvin said he doesn't know whom the Islanders are going to take with the first overall pick in tomorrow night's NHL Draft in Montreal, but he doesn't think expectations should be set too high for him. "This guy, whoever he is, is not the...

ATLANTA -- CC Sabathia's stomach wasn't bubbling over how his left arm would come through his bullpen session. However, he understood others in the Yankees' universe were stressing. "Everybody else made it news," Sabathia said of the 27-pitch...

Michael Boley was the first player the Giants signed in free agency this offseason and was expected to move in as the starting weakside linebacker. Boley, though, figures to miss all of training camp after he underwent arthroscopic surgery today...

The Knicks hopes of trading up in the draft for Ricky Rubio -- always a longshot -- looked to be dashed last night when two NBA GMs told The Post that Minnesota was close to a deal with Washington, and possibly Memphis, to move up to the second...

MINNEAPOLIS -- Candice Wiggins' scoring struggles ended at the right time for the Minnesota Lynx. The second-year forward ended a four-game slump by scoring 18 of her season-high 25 points in the first half and the Minnesota Lynx snapped a...

His voice, even more than his words, told how much his long, long overdue election to the Hockey Hall of Fame means to Devils GM Lou Lamoriello. Lamoriello was selected yesterday for Nov. 9 induction as a drużyna builder, along with players Brian...

Lucas Glover may have become the surprising U.S. Open champion on Monday, but his whirlwind tour of the Big Apple yesterday is nothing new for him. The 29-year old Glover and his wife, Jennifer, had their honeymoon in New York in 2005, and said...

Brian Leetch could handle anything and everything that was thrown at him on the ice. But the phone call yesterday from Toronto in which No. 2 was informed of his election to the Hockey Hall of Fame? Not so much. "I was out driving when I saw the...

Tyler Hansbrough did everything expected, even more. He wowed them with his jumper, showing not just accuracy but impressive lift. He ran the floor. He played as hard yesterday as anyone has played in any workout at the Nets' practice facility...

As resilient as the Mets have been, there will be nights when they are what they are -- a ekipa with nine important pieces on the disabled list. Last night was one of those nights. Despite facing a pitcher who had lost eight of his previous...

NBA Draft cliches are so overrated. They have no upside. They don't improve your hoops IQ. Do they have great length? Some are actually quite brief. Are any of them a can't-miss? More like must-miss, Mike Freeman says as he lists 50 of the most overused.

ATLANTA -- Forget the blather about the Yankees struggling against pitchers they aren't familiar with. These days they couldn't hit their fathers in the backyard hard enough to crack a window. On a sizzling Georgia night at Turner Field, "The...

Jerry Manuel said the Mets need Fernando Tatis to początek hitting, but maybe that isn't going to be possible. On Monday, Carlos Beltran went on the disabled list, forcing David Wright to bat third and someone else to bat fourth. Tatis has...

Jose Reyes was shaken up by his Monday car accident on the RFK (Triborough) Bridge, though no one was hurt. Reyes and Mets trainer Ray Ramirez were sitting in traffic on the bridge around noon when their car, which was being driven by Ramirez...

THE Mets' margin for error is even thinner than their fans' patience. They are missing three of their four best hitters and two middle-of-the-rotation starters, and are hoarding canned goods and bottled water, waiting for the "all clear." "We...

ATLANTA -- Rarely does a bullpen session between starts, one of baseball's most mundane exercises, create a full-blown buzz. It does, though, when it involves the staff ace who had to be removed from his last początek in the second inning with left...

ATLANTA -- Even after a full day of rest Johnny Damon's right calf wasn't strong enough to get him back in the lineup last night against the Braves at Turner Field. Damon, who experienced soreness in the leg when he lunged for a ball and missed...

It would be the worst hockey treason around here since Mike Keenan was caught talking about jumping from the Rangers during the 1994 playoffs, except that the guy who would feel most betrayed, Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello, says Brent...