Rangers’ I-Rod to Undergo Surgery

Ivan Rodriguez, the Texas Rangers’ perennial all-star, decided Wednesday to have surgery on his aching left knee after traveling to Los Angeles for an examination by orthopedist and Angel team doctor Lewis Yocum.

Rodriguez’s other option was rest and medication with hope that the patella tendon inflammation would subside. He will miss the rest of the season.

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New York Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter will be out until at least Monday because of a strained left hamstring.

Jeter said he hurt the hamstring going from second base to third in Monday’s game against Toronto.

Pedro Martinez, who a day earlier criticized Boston General Manager Dan Duquette for saying he was healthy, said he hopes to pitch again this season.

Martinez, who is scheduled to start Friday against New York at Yankee Stadium, threw in the outfield while the Red Sox took batting practice before playing Cleveland.

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The Seattle Mariners expect to be without starting shortstop Carlos Guillen for at least a week because of a sprained left ankle.

Guillen was injured in Tuesday night’s 8-3, 10-inning loss to Tampa Bay. He stepped on first baseman Steve Cox’s foot while running out an infield single.

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In the first step toward the start of talks for a new labor contract, baseball owners sent the players’ union a letter stating they would seek to make changes in the sport’s collective bargaining agreement.

Under the National Labor Relations Act, either side can notify the other within 60 days of a labor contract’s expiration that it seeks to make changes.

Baseball’s labor contract, agreed to in 1996, expires Oct. 31.

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Protests filed by San Diego and Philadelphia over losses last week were denied by the commissioner’s office.

The Padres protested their 16-14 loss to St. Louis on Aug. 29, claiming umpires should have called interference when Bobby Bonilla’s bat sailed down the third-base line on a strikeout with two runners trying to steal.

The Phillies protested their 5-1 loss to Montreal on Friday. They claimed Vladimir Guerrero should have been ejected for taking a few steps toward the mound after he was hit by a pitch in the first inning.

Detroit left-handed pitcher Mark Redman had surgery to repair a ligament tear in his left knee. The Tigers hope Redman will pitch before the season is over .... Oakland activated right-handed reliever Jim Mecir from the 15-day disabled list. Mecir spent much of August on the disabled list with a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery.