The Padres won the last-minute sweepstakes for Wells, acquiring the veteran left-hander from the Red Sox on Thursday in exchange for a player to be named or cash. The player is Class AAA catcher George Kottaras, FOXSports.com has confirmed. The trade, completed just hours before the deadline for setting postseason rosters, gives the Padres a proven big-game pitcher at a time when they are competing for both the NL West title and wild card.

Charlie Wagner, who pitched for the Boston Red Sox during the 1930s and '40s and worked for the organization for 70 years, died early Thursday of an apparent heart attack. He was 93. Wagner was stricken after attending a minor-league game in his hometown of Reading, Pa. Reading Police Capt. Francis Drexler said Wagner was found in the passenger seat of his car in the parking lot at FirstEnergy Stadium, where he was a fixture and participated in an awards ceremony at the Reading-New Britain game. He was pronounced dead of natural causes.

Slugger David Ortiz was discharged from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on Thursday after he underwent tests on his heart. Ortiz said he has been cleared of any heart abnormalities. "It's not my heart," Ortiz said. "The doctors ran all sorts of tests on me and my heart was not the problem at all. It was the lower part of my right pectoral muscle that, for some reason, was shaking. It scared me because I had never felt anything like that in my chest. But after all the tests, they said my heart was fine."

David Wells was scratched from his scheduled start Thursday night amid indications that the Boston Red Sox were close to trading the left-hander to a contender. Wells' locker was nearly empty and four cartons were stacked in front of it before the game against the Toronto Blue Jays. Reliever Julian Tavarez was picked to start in his place. Wells has been told he's been traded and to wait by the phone. No team was specified, but the primary candidates remain the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Greg Maddux earned his 330th win to move into 10th place on the career list, which he acknowledged was "kind of cool." Pitching for a contender puts things in an entirely different perspective. Maddux worked seven solid innings, and the Dodgers beat the Reds 7-3 Wednesday night to complete one of the most successful months since the franchise moved to Los Angeles in 1958.

Brian Cashman said he could not rule out the possibility that the Yankees would explore voiding Pavano?s contract. But it is unlikely they would have grounds to do that. Asked if he believed the Yankees would have to pay Pavano for the rest of his contract, Cashman said, ?At this point, there?s no reason to believe we wouldn?t.?

Mariano Rivera has experienced inflammation in his right elbow and will have a precautionary M.R.I. on the elbow soon, perhaps on Thursday. After working two innings for a save on Aug. 20, Rivera did not pitch for six days, until another two-inning outing on Sunday. There was only one save opportunity in that stretch, and Rivera said yesterday that he felt good and that he had enjoyed the rest. Asked if the innings add up this time of year, Rivera smiled and said, ?They do, they do.?

General manager Jim Hendry expressed frustration during the Cubs? 10-9, 11-inning loss to the Pirates over speculation that he would go back on his word and fire Dusty Baker before the season was over. ?I said that a month ago, didn?t I?? Hendry said about Baker?s job being safe for the rest of the season. Hendry announced on July 27 that Baker would manage the Cubs for the remainder of the season and that he?d act quickly after that to decide Baker?s future. Baker angered Hendry last weekend when, in interviews with St. Louis and Chicago reporters, he made comments about being ?wanted only sometimes.? Despite speculation to the contrary in the Chicago media this week, Hendry insisted he never considered going back on his July 27 announcement. The best guess is that Hendry and Baker will agree to a parting of the ways come October, ending Baker?s four-year tenure in Chicago.

Multiple sources confirm that Theo Epstein is prepared to trade David Wells back to his native San Diego unless another potential trading partner, the Los Angeles Dodgers, is willing to trade one of its top three prospects: outfielder Matt Kemp, third baseman Andy LaRoche, or first baseman James Loney, all three of whom are tearing up the Triple A Pacific Coast League. Loney was batting .383, Kemp .356, and LaRoche .319 for the Las Vegas 51s. Epstein is likely to send Wells to the Padres for a lefthanded-hitting catcher, George Kottaras, who came into this season ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the Padres organization by Baseball America.

Jon Lester has been undergoing an array of exams in Boston for internal medical issues, including cancer. The tests have prompted serious concern within the organization. Other than citing Lester?s ongoing back problems, Sox general manager Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona have declined to address any matters concerning the health of one of their brightest prospects. However, on Wednesday Lester was diagnosed with enlarged lymph nodes, according to sources. Such a symptom can be caused by an array of issues, from infections to cancer.