Interesting Baseball News Items That Do Not Warrant Their Own Thread

[tdel23]

Lidge loses his closer job to Wheeler.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2830954

[chanman7483]

Anyone see John Kruk w/ his new jerri curl / perm???

[yanksphan]

Matt Cain.... hmm....

[CoyoteYankee]

Matt Cain.... hmm....

Through 6.

Edit: So much for that. Promptly gives up a lead off double in the 7th.

[yanksphan]

Through 6.

Edit: So much for that. Promptly gives up a lead off double in the 7th.

and takes the tough luck 1-0 loss.

Kid will be a star.

[CoyoteYankee]

and takes the tough luck 1-0 loss.

Kid will be a star.

Yeah...that stinks. From a no-hitter to a loss just like that.

[groovitude]

And you guys hated on Pavano; Pavano looks like a Damon-style gamer next to Mike Hampton, who's now out for the season... again.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2831135

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Matt Cain.... hmm....

For future reference, I think it serves the common good (especially those of us with access to MLBEI ) if we start a thread for ongoing no-hitters so that anytime one is in progress the thread will go to the top of the page. We can check the thread, and, hopefully tune in to watch.

Yes, this really is about me, and my habit of always having baseball on at the house, but I really think that there are others who would like to know, so that they too could tune in.

BTW, there is no such thing as a jinx (someone somewhere discussed every no-hitter ever thrown before it was completed).

[mitchrock]

Anyone see John Kruk w/ his new jerri curl / perm???

Post is worthless without pics.

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Matt Holliday's profile continues to grow, but don't look for the Rockies to secure him with a multiyear deal anytime soon. Agent Scott Boras said Monday there will be "no negotiations" during the season.
Holliday makes $4.4 million, a salary that could jump by another $3 million in arbitration if he approaches last year's numbers. Holliday will not be a free agent until after the 2009 season.

http://www.denverpost.com/rockies/ci_5630727

SAN DIEGO ---- Chris Young showcased his skills on Monday night. And it's a display the Padres hope to see for at least the next four years.

According to a source close to the team, the Padres will announce a four-year contract extension for Young today at a 10:30 a.m. press conference at Petco Park. The deal replaces Young's current contract and includes a team option for 2011, Young's first year of free agency. Terms of the deal were not available.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007...8_294_9_07.txt

Outfielder Andre Ethier was contemplating his fate as a platoon player before the 6-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies, even uttering the familiar mantra of a disgruntled player — "There are other teams out there" — before taking it back and saying, "We're winning, so I can't complain."

He didn't start for the fourth time in seven games, despite going into the season under the assumption that he would be the everyday right fielder. The left-handed-hitting Ethier led the Dodgers with a .308 batting average as a rookie last season.

But right-handed hitting Matt Kemp got the nod against four opposing left-handed starters and is batting .429. The Dodgers are scheduled to face only one left-hander in the next nine games, so it would seem Ethier would get more playing time.

Maybe not.

"We aren't in a platoon situation," Manager Grady Little said. "The players will dictate their playing time."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

Mark Prior and Kerry Wood are so far behind that the Cubs would rather not discuss their progress in extended spring training. Hendry said Prior might get his first start in Arizona on Wednesday, which suggests he'll be placed on the seven-day disabled list at Triple-A Iowa for a second time. Hendry had no update on Wood. …

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune....home-headlines

Apparently knowing what's comming isn't all that helpful.

Santana tips pitches?
Twins lefthander Johan Santana has heard claims that he tips his pitches, although outings such as Sunday's -- during which he held the White Sox to one hit over seven innings -- suggest otherwise.
Then again, hitters might know what's coming, but still can't hit him.
"A lot of guys say I tip my pitches, and I don't try to do anything different," said Santana (2-0). "We work on it and we make sure everything looks the same. If that's what they are seeing, take advantage of it."
Actually, the Twins occasionally have noticed Santana tipping off a pitch or two and continue to work with him on it.

http://www.startribune.com/509/story/1110518.html

[swityak11]

Josh Hamilton's first major league hit was a HR yesterday.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_yl...yhoo&type=lgns

I thought that was a mildly interesting fact to add to his comeback story.

[Mr. Mxylsplk]

Josh Hamilton's first major league hit was a HR yesterday.

Wonder how he celebrated.

[swityak11]

Wonder how he celebrated.

An eightball obv.

[CallOfTheCrow]

Jaret Wright left his last start due to tightness in his shoulder. He was saying it just kept feeling tighter & tighter like when he missed significant time in '05.

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Brandon Inge, 0-for-20 in the Tigers' first six games, is on pace for a career year. How do we know? Because, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, two of the previous three players to go 0-fer after six games were Hall of Famers - Willie Stargell, 0-for-21 in 1970, and Ozzie Smith, 0-for-26 in 1979. ...

http://www.denverpost.com/nuggets/ci_5637257

Jered Weaver's anticipated return against the Boston Red Sox on Monday in Fenway Park, a game that would match Weaver against Japanese right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, is looking a little iffy.

Weaver, slowed this spring by shoulder tendinitis, is scheduled to throw 90 pitches for Class-A Rancho Cucamonga tonight, but the right-hander could need one more rehab start, probably for triple-A Salt Lake, before being activated.

"It's penciled in," Angels Manager Mike Scioscia said of Weaver's possible start in Boston. "It will depend on how he feels [today]. If he can pitch a little deeper into the game and get his pitch count where it needs to be and maintain his velocity, we'll certainly look at doing that. But there's a chance he could need one more rehab start."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

But Willie Mays' excellence and
performance in the field transcends generations: he is the top vote-getter
in early fan balloting for the All-Time Rawlings Gold Glove Team.
Rawlings today released the first returns of worldwide voting for the
All- Time Rawlings Gold Glove Team. One week into the regular season, about
50,000 ballots and 500,000 votes already have been cast to select the 50
greatest Rawlings Glove Glovers of all time. Mays leads the outfield
position and all vote-getters with 34,995 votes. (See complete voting
results below.)
Brooks Robinson, the "Human Vacuum" at third base, is second in overall
votes with 30,969, good for a four-fold lead at the hot corner. Outfielder
Roberto Clemente has 30,511 votes - third overall and second to Mays in the
outfield. Johnny Bench (29,454), Ozzie Smith (28,960), and Greg Maddux
(25,342) are also among the fan favorites and early leaders at their

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...2007,+09:59+AM

Vanden Hurk's room in Holland resembles a baseball shrine, filled with jerseys, bats and balls. Growing up, the right-hander often slept with his cleats on one side of the pillow and his glove on the other side.
Vanden Hurk is the fifth player born in the Netherlands to play in an MLB game in the modern era, or since 1900.
The most famous is Bert Blyleven (1970-92). Win Remmerswaal (1979-80), Rikkert Faneyte (1993-96) and Robert Eenhoorn (1994-97) are the others.

http://florida.marlins.mlb.com/news/...=.jsp&c_id=fla

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Johan Santana on Wednesday vehemently denied a Sports Illustrated report that he has broken off contract talks with the Twins, saying, "It doesn't make any sense."

http://www.startribune.com/509/story/1115219.html

Banks joked that he wished he could turn the clock back so he could become a player/owner with the Cubs. He did not dismiss the notion of becoming part of any group that might purchase the Cubs.

"I never thought that Tribune Co. or the Cubs would be sold," Banks said. "The Cubs, to me, are like the Vatican." …

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune....s-home-utility
No truth to the rumor that the Vatican is exploring the possibility of pressing slander charges against Banks for being compared to the Cubs.

Reds manager Jerry Narron did not see Edwin Encarnacion stand in the batter’s box while his popup sailed to shallow right field Wednesday night.“You know something I was not watching Eddie,” Narron said. “I was watching the ball. I saw Eddie come in here with his bat. I came down here and looked it (on video). He did not run.”
So Narron did something you rarely see in the big leagues: He sent Juan Castro out to replace Encarnacion in the bottom of the second.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.d...20010/1071/SPT

"We're going to talk to him about it before his next start," Scioscia said. "His home record is exceptional, and his road record is not what you'd expect. Is it the mound? His comfort level? Is there too much [down] time before the start of the game? We may have him warm up later and go from the bullpen to the mound."

It's worth a try. After winning his first game of 2007 at home, giving up two runs and four hits in seven innings of a 5-3 victory over Texas on April 4, Santana was rocked for six runs and seven hits, including two home runs, in 4 1/3 innings of his first road start, a 7-6 loss to the Cleveland Indians at Milwaukee's Miller Park on Tuesday night.

Santana is only 24, but he has pitched the equivalent of a full major league season at home and close to a full season on the road, and the results are extreme: He is 20-5 with a 3.07 earned-run average in 32 starts at home and 9-12 with a 6.65 ERA in 26 starts on the road.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

The Phillies claimed infielder Michael Garciaparra, a supplemental first-round pick in 2001, off waivers from Seattle. Garciaparra is the brother of Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Nomar Garciaparra. Michael, 24, hit .316 with one homer and 10 RBIs in 136 at-bats last season for triple-A Tacoma. In five seasons in the minors, he is a .267 hitter. The Phillies have a history of acquiring the less famous of baseball brothers: Ken Brett instead of George, Vince DiMaggio instead of Joe or Dom, Juan Bell instead of George, Mike Maddux instead of Greg, Mark Leiter instead of Al, Jeremy Giambi instead of Jason, and Frank Torre instead of Joe.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sport..._rotation.html

46
The number of walks and strikeouts for the Nationals' pitching staff. Washington is the only team in team in the majors that doesn't have more strikeouts than walks.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...041102505.html

[swityak11]

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune....s-home-utility
No truth to the rumor that the Vatican is exploring the possibility of pressing slander charges against Banks for being compared to the Cubs.

Awesome

[SoCal Pinstriper]

San Diego has a contingency fund that will permit general manager Kevin Towers to make a deal for Ichiro Suzuki, Andruw Jones or Torii Hunter if the Padres are in the National League West race and one of the three potential free agents is available in a trade. • Boston, Florida and Cleveland have interest in right-handed closer Akinori Otsuka if Texas becomes convinced Eric Gagne is healthy enough to handle the job.
• Minnesota closer Joe Nathan says his agents have had positive initial talks with the Twins about a contract extension.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drm...482233,00.html

Rafael Furcal prides himself on playing when he's tired or sore. About now, he's just tired of being sore.

The Dodgers shortstop has missed an average of only nine games each of the last five seasons. He's at eight games and counting this year because of a sprained left ankle that has taken longer than expected to heal.

Furcal made an early exit from Wednesday night's minor league game with the Inland Empire 66ers when he felt tightness in the ankle, leaving in the sixth inning after running from first to third. The game — his second with the 66ers — was supposed to be his last tuneup before being activated for tonight's game against the San Diego Padres.

Furcal reported no pain or swelling, but the tightness might prompt the Dodgers to err on the side of caution with their valuable leadoff hitter. He hasn't had any problems during his minor league at-bats, but the ankle bothered him on defense.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseba...rts-mlb-dodger

The Rangers plan to activate closer Eric Gagné today, and, barring a complete game by Kevin Millwood, he is expected to pitch against the Seattle Mariners tonight.
To make room for Gagné on the 25-man roster, the Rangers are expected to put Jamey Wright on the disabled list. Wright has had shoulder soreness in his past two starts, including one for Double A Frisco, and placing him on the DL would allow the Rangers to avoid releasing anyone or sending anyone to the minor leagues.

http://www.star-telegram.com/284/story/66964.html

The Phillies started the season 1-6. ESPN.com reported yesterday that just one team in the last 30 years started the season 1-6 and made the postseason: the 1995 Cincinnati Reds

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sport...imself_up.html

Marlins pen gets even stronger with Tankersly back.

Tankersley was 2-1 with a 2.85 ERA in 41 innings of relief last season. He could be a candidate to become the Marlins' closer, one of the team's weak spots.

With the exception of Julio, the bullpen has been one of the Marlins' biggest strengths -- even without Tankersley.
Julio has a 14.73 ERA, which is abysmal for a starter or reliever. The remainder of the bullpen -- Henry Owens, Kevin Gregg, Randy Messenger, Matt Lindstrom, Pinto and Gardner -- has a combined ERA of 1.10.

http://www.miamiherald.com/588/story/72235.html

[Cuban Connection]

The Indians' 5 starters all made their official 2007 debut against the White Sox.

The White Sox and Cubs gave up a combined 3 hits today and both lost.

[donniesrecordholdsup]

not sure where to put this so i'll say it in this thread. marco scutaro really milked that walk off yesterday. ive seen guys win postseason series with walk offs and not strut as much as this clown did yesterday. probbaly the only good moment of his career.

[BillBuckner]

not sure where to put this so i'll say it in this thread. marco scutaro really milked that walk off yesterday. ive seen guys win postseason series with walk offs and not strut as much as this clown did yesterday. probbaly the only good moment of his career.

April wins will do that to you.

[Cuban Connection]

White Sox minor leaguer Dewon Day so far this year: 5.2 IP, 16K's

Am I the only one who notices Ervin Santana doesn't stand a chance on the road?

[Yankeeah]

I'm sure someone will make a thread about this, but the Orioles had 3 errors on one play.

Upton reached on an error by Aubrey Huff, throwing error by Paul Bako, then another throwing error this time by Huff again.

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Alyssa Milano has a new line of licensed MLB apparel (SFW)

http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com...look-at-touch/

PHOENIX — Although struggling starter Jason Schmidt said he wasn't feeling pain, his lackluster fastball prompted the Dodgers to have him take an MRI to examine his entire arm Monday.

"We are exploring every area," Manager Grady Little said. "We've had coaches, players and his former coaches look at video of him, trying to reconstruct his mechanics from square one."

Schmidt, who lasted only two innings in his last start, postponed his bullpen session from Monday until today, raising the question of whether the Dodgers would push back his next start.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who, at an average age of 24.79, are the youngest team in Major League Baseball, and the youngest since the 1983 Minnesota Twins

http://tampabay.devilrays.mlb.com/ne...t=.jsp&c_id=tb

According to Elias Sports Bureau, the Tribe is the 10th team in the past 15 years to win a game with fewer than two hits and the fourth to do it without a home run.... It has been 55 years since a team won a game and got its only hit in the first inning. The St. Louis Browns did it against Cleveland on April 23, 1952.

http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjourna...s/17089842.htm

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Things getting testy in Philly:

But when WIP's Howard Eskin asked if it's time to pull a Lou Piniella and throw a fit and then challenged Manuel's answer, the skipper, feeling provoked, obliged like never before during his three seasons as Phillies manager.
“I can show you I can get angry,” said Manuel, who has been heavily criticized by Eskin for his managerial skills and southern slang. “Why don't you come on by my office?”
“OK, I'd be happy to,” Eskin responded with a smirk.
“I'll be waiting on you,” Manuel said.
“Maybe if you did that to a player,” Eskin countered.
“Come on in there ... I'll walk right now there right now,” Manuel said.
Manuel then left the podium and headed for his office, then hung out at his office door until seeing Eskin, who walked in.
The door slammed shut, then Manuel went off for almost five minutes. And when it ended, Manuel reappeared a few minutes later in the clubhouse and walked straight toward Eskin, who mocked Manuel by laughing.
“I've been listening to your [bleep] for three [bleeping] years,” Manuel shouted.
“Grow up,” Eskin responded.
“I've been grown up,” Manuel said. “I grew up a long [bleeping] time ago, you [bleep].”
“You shouldn't be mad at me, Charlie,” Eskin said. “You should be mad at [the players].”

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/ne...7-1332303.html

OAKLAND — Vladimir Guerrero's right wrist, hit by a Josh Beckett 96-mph fastball Monday in Fenway Park, is too swollen and sore for the Angels right fielder to play in this series against the Athletics.

And that was good news.

"I thought I broke it," Guerrero said Tuesday through an interpreter. "I feel a lot better, but it might need two or three days without playing to heal."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

Aaron will always be known and remembered as a home-run legend who belongs to Milwaukee.
On Tuesday, the Brewers burnished the legend by unveiling the spot where Aaron's last home run - his 755th - landed in Section 28 of old County Stadium. Marked for now with blue spray paint on the asphalt of Brewers Lot 1, just east of Helfaer Field, the spot was researched and identified by a UW-Milwaukee civil engineering professor and three of his students.
Aaron hit his home run on July 20, 1976, his 23rd year in the majors. Aaron, then a Milwaukee Brewer, hit it off California Angels pitcher Dick Drago in the seventh inning in a game the Brewers won, 6-2.
Alan J. Horowitz, professor and chairman of the UWM civil engineering and mechanics department, said he and the students relied on grainy but helpful video of the home run, a detailed County Stadium seating chart and the plans used to build Miller Park.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index....2&format=print

Never would have guessed that Jones and Rocker were that close.

John Rocker's former Braves teammates felt for him Monday when they heard the news that his father, Jake Rocker, had been killed in a car accident.
That was especially true for Andruw Jones, who knew Jake Rocker well. Jones lived with the Rockers in their Macon home for seven months during the 1995 season when he played for the Class A Macon Braves.

"He was always there," Jones said. "We ate together as a family. It was almost like a dad."
Jones turned 18 that spring and was in his first full season of professional baseball. He was adjusting to being away from his native Curaçao. The Rockers took in both Jones and Australian shortstop prospect Glenn Williams, which helped ease their transitions to this country and into minor league life.

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...ockerreax.html

[metalboy15]

Brett Myers moved to the bullpen:

The Phillies have decided to make Brett Myers into a setup man to make room for Jon Lieber in the rotation. He'll work in the seventh and eighth, as well as close when Tom Gordon is not available.
Incredible. This is perhaps the biggest overreaction to a lousy start that we've ever witnessed. Myers earned the Opening Day start for the Phillies after back-to-back fine seasons and had a great spring. He was coming off back-to-back poor starts, but he had struck out 19 in 15 1/3 innings. Short of turning Ryan Howard into a shortstop and benching Jimmy Rollins, we can't think of anything else the Phillies could have done to better sabotage their chances for this year. Myers needs to be held on to in mixed leagues, as the Phillies might figure out in a couple of weeks just how bad of an idea this is.
Source: FOXSports.com

[SoCal Pinstriper]

baseball has moved recently to put the kibosh on this draft dynamic, which is most publicly employed by Boras. The new Collective Bargaining Agreement, which was announced here in St. Louis during the World Series, calls for an Aug. 15 deadline for players to sign. (Even the threat of losing that high draft pick has been diminished by the new CBA, which promises a team a nearly identical pick in compensation for an unsigned draftee.) Coming just before the school year starts and late in the independent league season it is expected to lessen the leverage a drafted player has. Teams either sign the player by that deadline or not. No more dawdling. No more lengthy delays. No more signing with independent clubs to force the issue.

http://www.stltoday.com/blogs/sports...t-of-his-kind/

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Wednesday's game was the first in major-league history that featured a no-hitter, a grand slam (Jermaine Dye) and a multiple-homer game (Thome).

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune....tory?coll=cs-w

[wexy]

Met Fan Arrested and Jailed

http://www.1010wins.com/pages/375120...ntentId=429695

[ace]

Bonds hit #740 today.

[Clive]

Prior to have exploratory shoulder surgery:

"He's had some discomfort for a couple years," Hendry said. "It's finally gotten to a point where it's probably the right decision to let one of the best people in the world go and have a look around to see if anything can maybe be fixed, if it doesn't need something major. Dr. Andrews has the clearance if something needs to be fixed or tightened up."

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slu...v=ap&type=lgns

Doc Andrews + "discomfort for a couple of years" = not good

[SoCal Pinstriper]

Jeff Kent, off to a good start, is just as charming as ever:

A radio reporter thrust his microphone near Kent's mouth Sunday, reminded him the Dodgers face the San Francisco Giants in a series beginning today, and said, "Do you appreciate the history of this rivalry and get pumped up?"

Kent, a member of the Giants from 1997 to 2002, broke into his trademark sly grin.

"I was asked the same question for six years with the Giants, and now I've been asked the same question for three years with the Dodgers," he said.

"Big … deal. How about that one? Can you quote that one?"

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

Someone gave Jones a birthday piñata that occupied most of the locker adjacent to his in the visitors' clubhouse at Dolphin Stadium. That was the only outward indication that Monday was Jones' 30th birthday.
"I don't pay attention to my birthday," he said. "It doesn't matter."
For the record, he had 345 career home runs going into Monday, sixth-most by a player before age 30. This season he passed Hank Aaron and Mel Ott, who had 342 apiece.

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...avesnotes.html

[Brooklyn Yankee Fan]

http://http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2847416

Tori Hunter may be suspended for 3 years.

Yikes It all depends how Selig deals with this.

[CoyoteYankee]

http://http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2847416

Tori Hunter may be suspended for 3 years.

Yikes It all depends how Selig deals with this.

I doubt he gets suspended for 3 years, especially if the Royals return everything.

[Nick Day]

Ouch. Thats a harsh punishment for sending Champaign. Daamn

[tdel23]

Prior out for the year....

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2849094

[BillBuckner]

Prior out for the year....

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2849094

Damn. I never seen a player with so much potential fall so fast.

[swityak11]

Prior out for the year....

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2849094

Shocking

[26 and counting]

Ouch. Thats a harsh punishment for sending Champaign. Daamn

So let me set this straight. You get suspended for 50 games for taking steroids, and you get suspended 3 years for giving a gift. Yes, that's perfectly fair.

[yanksphan]

Jake Peavy throwing gas tonight.

9 straight Ks - 1 shy of Seaver's record - thru 4 innings

[Bob Saccomano]

Orioles' broadcaster Gary Thorne claims Curt Schilling's bloody sock was fake, and Doug Mirabelli told him so:

EDIT: Er, evidently, it did warrant its own thread.

[yanksphan]

Jake Peavy throwing gas tonight.

9 straight Ks - 1 shy of Seaver's record - thru 4 innings

Looks like Peavy was squeezed on #10. No call on an obvious check swing, then he grooves one knee high, Byrnes stares at it, and so does the ump - Ball 4.

He finished the game with 16Ks, tying his own Padres' record.

[BroadwayBomber55]

Mouth shot: Torii Hunter HBP...in the mouth.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6741972

[Mr. Mxylsplk]

Sandy Koufax taken with the last pick in the inaugural draft of the new Israeli baseball league by the Modi'in Miracle.

"His selection is a tribute to the esteem with which he is held by everyone associated with this league," said former big leaguer Art Shamsky, who will manage the Miracle. "It's been 41 years between starts for him. If he's rested and ready to take the mound again, we want him on our team."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2850886

[b-ball-lunachick]

Apparently Sheffield was involved in an incident vs Baltimore tonight:

DETROIT (AP) -- Gary Sheffield didn't get upset when Daniel Cabrera hit him with a pitch. When Cabrera started yelling at Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland, though, Sheffield got angry.


Sheffield homered off Cabrera moments after the pair had to be pulled apart, leading the Tigers to an 8-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Monday night.

"You back your manager," Sheffield said. "When Cabrera started chirping at him, that's when I said something."


Cabrera hit Sheffield in the third inning, and the pair tried to get each other during an argument between the teams in the top of the fifth.

I liked this quote :

"Danny was struggling with his control all night, but I guess they thought he was throwing at Sheff," Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo said. "I have the utmost respect for Gary, and if I was going to pick someone to get angry, it wouldn't be him."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=270430106

[SoCal Pinstriper]

The ''whiff'' count now numbers 263.
That's how many times the Marlins have struck out this season, keeping them on pace to challenge the major-league record of 1,399 set by the 2001 Milwaukee Brewers.
If the Marlins maintain their current rate, they will wind up with 1,420 K's.
''You saw how dominant he was,'' said Marlins outfielder Joe Borchard of San Diego Padres starter Jake Peavy, who struck out 10 on Sunday.
Borchard wore the ''golden sombrero'' on Sunday, whiffing in each of his four at-bats, the last one looking at a called third strike to end the game.
Miguel Cabrera and Mike Jacobs struck out three times each on Sunday

http://www.miamiherald.com/588/story/98578.html


.

[whalers]

I just heard on WFAN that the Drays are going to be playing a series at Disney World at the Braves minor league complex. How many people does that hold? Can't be more than 10,000.

[SoCal Pinstriper]

The catcher, who has played in 27 of the A's 30 games, is batting .170 with seven RBIs and, after a good start throwing out baserunners, he's having a tough time in that area as well. Opponents have been successful in their past 20 stolen-base attempts against him.
Kendall's .179 slugging percentage is the lowest in the majors and he hasn't had an extra-base hit over the past 25 games and 98 at-bats, the longest such streak of his career. He doubled in the second game of the season, at Seattle, and has picked up only singles since then.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...PG6VPLP2U1.DTL

He is about to break a baseball record many figured would never be broken — and may never be broken again. Do we celebrate it?
“No!” Bobby Cox said Monday.
Barry Bonds and home runs? No.
Bobby Cox and ejections?
“Yeah — is the commissioner coming?” he wondered.
No. John McGraw, the current record holder, won’t be there, either. Something about Cox’s numbers being artificially enhanced by caffeine and Red Man.
Do we stop the game? Recognize this moment on the scoreboard? Give the man a trophy — of a bronze thumb, perhaps?

“I think all of the umpires should get together and give him something,” John Smoltz said.
“He should get at least a plaque or a certificate,” said the former Brave, Greg Maddux. “Maybe something with his name, the date, the umpire.”
Three more and he ties the record. Four more and he breaks the record.
Twenty-eight more ejections and Bobby Cox will have been thrown out for an entire season. (Liberty Media will figure out some way that affects his retirement benefits.)

http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/sha...snt_proud.html

Entering last weekend, Orlando Cabrera led all major league shortstops with a defensive zone rating of .936, which put him ahead of the New York Mets' Jose Reyes (.924), San Francisco's Omar Vizquel (.920), Houston's Adam Everett (.904) and the Chicago White Sox's Juan Uribe (.896).

Not that Cabrera was impressed.

"Zone rating? What the heck is that?" Cabrera said. "They come up with some crazy stuff to make it more complicated. You never know if it's good or bad."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

The Yankees used their 10th different starting pitcher in 30 games, setting a major league record. Elias Sports Bureau says the Yankees are the first team to start six rookies in their first 30 games since the 1890 Pittsburgh Allegheneys.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/baseba...66_mbok08.html

• The Brewers opened a 5½-game lead over idle Chicago in the NL Central. The Brewers had not held a 5½-game lead since Aug. 29, 1982, when they topped the AL East en route to their only pennant.
• The Brewers have committed just one error in their last eight games.
• In their last 21 games, Brewers starters are 13-2 with a 2.86 earned run average.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=602085

Finally, in game No. 31, a Giants first baseman hit the ball over the wall.
Rich Aurilia's three-run home run Monday night was the first homer by a Giants first baseman this season. That counts as a position of power for most teams, but Aurilia and Ryan Klesko were collectively homer-less in the season's first 30 games.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...PG6VPLP9N1.DTL

Something's up Smoltz's sleeve
John Smoltz flashed a mischievous grin and said he planned something for Wednesday, when he'll start against friend and former teammate Greg Maddux for the first time since 1992.
"I've got something special for him that will make him laugh, just wait," Smoltz said. "I'll do it when he's at the plate, or when I'm at the plate."

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...avesnotes.html

[CallOfTheCrow]

hahaha that's a great comment from orlando cabrera.


"Zone rating? What the heck is that?"

[YASS]

I just heard on WFAN that the Drays are going to be playing a series at Disney World at the Braves minor league complex. How many people does that hold? Can't be more than 10,000.

It holds 9500. About right for a Rays game not featuring the Sox or Yanks.

[Eldee5]

I guess things must be boring in LA ...

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printe...ines-pe-sports

When the visiting clubhouse staff at Dolphin Stadium unloaded the Dodgers' gear early Monday they found a surprise waiting for them in Luis Gonzalez's equipment bag: a foot-long black plastic rat.

Gonzalez said the lifelike rodent was given to him years ago as a gag after teammates, noting his early arrivals and late departures, began referring to him as a "ballpark rat." Now, he says, he travels with the rat, keeping it in his locker and duffle bag partly to scare visiting clubbies.