Sorry for the slow reply, I was on vacation. The gear spacing could vary by what type of transmission you have. download a manual from http://hondatech.info/downloads/Auto/Manuals/ and check out the specs for your exact transmission.

So the three balls were just knocking around in the housing? They could be loose ones from a bad bearing. The only other balls I can think of are related to the shift arm.(pics 3+4 in post 2)