Thursday Afternoon Hot Stove

We would love to sit around the hot stove right now. It's cold, it's grey, snow flurries are headed this way. Ah if only Spring Training were already starting.

The World Champion Phillies, of course, would rather not rush things. Especially their All-Star second baseman Chase Utley, who may miss the beginning of the 2009 season after undergoing hip surgery.

Here's some Hot Stove News from Jayson Stark:

The Mets aren't looking to sign a replacement closer for Billy Wagner to a contract that is longer than 3 years. That could quickly eliminate K-Rod. The Mets may look to Brian Fuentes.

Shooting down rumors to the contrary, Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi said his club will not be pursuing Manny Ramirez.

The Angels, despite their low key approach on the matter, are the favorites to land Jake Peavy. They also have an excellent shot at re-signing Mark Teixeira, but will not be pressured by agent Scott Boras' time table. John Lackey is confident that he will sign a 1-year extension prior to the start of the season.

As far as the Yankees are concerned:

Once the Yankees get their free-agent menu sorted out, they'll look to make a deal to upgrade in center field. But one player they probably won't be reeling in is Brewers center fielder Mike Cameron. The Brewers are contemplating trading Cameron for pitching if they can't re-sign Sabathia. But as GM Doug Melvin's quotes this past weekend about how the Yankees "overbid" on CC would indicate, the Brewers aren't big fans of the Yankees these days. So clubs that have spoken with the Brewers are suggesting the Bronx is about the last place they'd like to deal Cameron, if they deal him at all.

And this news from a scout about Phil Hughes' performance in the AZ Fall League:
Yankees pitcher Phil Hughes (1-0, 3.60 ERA, 28 K's, 25 IP): "Saw him two games, and he cruised. He dominated, and he should. His curveball was very sharp. All those people who think he's lost his luster -- no way. Hell, he'd be our No. 2 starter right now."

Aaron Heilman wants to move into the starting rotation or be traded. That according to the Daily News. Heilman makes this complaint every year. After how poorly he's pitched out of the pen the last 2 seasons, the Mets should probably take him up on it.

The Giants are expected to make a big push for CC Sabathia, despite the huge money they have already wasted on Barry Zito.

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Line Drive in the Paper Lifts Phils

It wasn't pretty, but the Phillies will take it. Tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth, the Phillies didn't hit one ball out of the infield - actually they only put one ball into play - in scoring the winning run to take a 2 games to 1 advantage in the World Series. Last night's game ended about 1:47 a.m. EDT after a one hour-thirty one minute rain delay caused the first pitch to be thrown at 10:14 p.m., the latest start in World Series history.

The Rays had rallied from a 4-1 deficit, tying the game with a run in the eighth inning. But Rays reliver J.P. Howell hit Eric Bruntlett to start the home half of the ninth inning. Grant Balfour replaced Howell, and with Shane Victorino batting, immediately threw a wild pitch. Catcher Dioner Navarro quickly retrieved the ball and fired to second to try to gun down Bruntlett, but his throw sailed wide to the right side of second base and into center field, allowing Bruntlett to reach third base. Victorino was intentionally walked and Joe Maddon came out to discuss strategy with his pitcher and infielders.

Those infielders were increased by one when right fielder Ben Zobrist, a natural infielder, moved behind second base to give the Rays a 5-man infield. An intentional walk to Gary Dobbs loaded the bases for catcher Carlos Ruiz. With the infield and outfield playing in, Ruiz chopped a high Balfour fastball that a charging Evan Longoria could only whip home with an underhand, off-balance throw. The ball sailed high and wide and the Phillies had themselves a victory.

Though the game came down to the bottom of the ninth Jamie Moyer was the story of this game. The 45-yr old had struggled in his first two post-season starts, allowing 8 runs in 5.1 innings pitched. But his manager Charlie Manuel stuck by him, saying in his Friday news conference that Moyer had earned his World Series start. Now he's earned a second one, which would be a deciding seventh game if necessary.

Moyer pitch into the seventh inning, leaving with a 4-2 lead and one out. A third run was charged to him after an inherited runners scored on a ground out, but this was clearly Moyer's night. He kept the Rays off balance with his mixture of slow, slower, and slowest pitches. He quickly gave up a 1-0 lead in the second inning and Phillies fans had to be concerned. But after Ruiz's solo home run off Matt Garza in the bottom of the second gave the Phillies the lead back, Moyer took control. He allowed just two more hits through the sixth inning.

Moyer's counterpart, Garza, had been dominant in the first two rounds of the post-season, but struggled last night. Maddon had to come out in the first inning to settle him down after allowing a lead off single to Jimmy Rollins, a walk to Jayson Werth, and a wild pitch that moved both runners into scoring position. He allowed just one run, but was tagged for three solo home runs on the night.

Meanwhile the Phillies extended their lead when their two big men, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard hit back to back home runs in the bottom of the sixth for a 4-1 lead. The Rays big men continued not to deliver. Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria, who has to endure the asinine chant of "Eva" from the Phillies faithful, both went hitless last night and are hitless for the series. Their teammates did pick them up last night though.

Carl Crawford began the seventh with a bunt single and Navarro followed with a double to left to bring the tying run to the plate. The Rays seem to be specializing on RBI ground outs in the series and that trend continued when Gabe Gross' bouncer to Howard to cut the lead to 4-2 and moved Navarro to third. Chad Durbin replaced Moyer and got Jason Bartlett to bounce into another run scoring ground out that made it a 4-3 game, but prevented a bigger inning.

In the eighth, with Ryan Madson on the mound, B.J. Upton stroked a lead off single and stole second base with one away. The Rays aggressive play on the basepaths paid off when Upton stole third and scored on Ruiz's throwing error. But Ruiz would have the last laugh.


News and Notes

Pena and Longoria are now a combined 0-22 in the series.

Ruiz's game winner made the Phillies 2-33 with runners in scoring position.

Steve Carlton threw out the first pitch, which was made ironic since Moyer beat him for his major league win in 1986.

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Rays Shields from Philly Sweep

The World Series resumes in Philadelphia tonight, and thanks to James Shields and the Rays pen, the series is all even at a game apiece after Tampa's 4-2 win. Shields picked up the win in great part because of the Phillies failure to produce with runners in scoring position.

The Phillies had runners on first and second with no one out in the second inning, a lead off man on second in the third, men on the corners with one out in both the fourth and fifth innings, and two on with two outs in both the six and seventh innings. And they left them all on base. The Phillies are now 1-28 with runners in scoring position in the series.

Tampa got a quick jump on Brett Myers in the first inning, taking advantage of Jayson's Werth's error. Aki Iwamura led the game off with a walk and B.J. Upton shook off his game 1 woes with a single to right field. Werth then misplayed the ball allowing both runners to move up a spot. Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria brought both runners home with a pair of RBI ground outs.

Upton came through again in the second with a bases loaded single to increase the Rays lead to 3-0. Werth tried to make up for his error by throwing out Rocco Baldelli at home plate to end the inning. The Rays added another big insurance run in the fourth when Jason Bartlett squeezed home Cliff Floyd.

The rest of the game was about the Phillies failures. They finally got on the board in eighth inning on Eric Bruntlett's home run and made the game interesting in the ninth against David Price. The prized rookie has been shown a lot of confidence by manager Joe Maddon, who brought him in the game in the seventh inning. He walked the first batter he faced, but then struck out Ryan Howard to strand two runners. In the ninth he faced the tying run after an Evan Longoria error allowed a run to score and cut the lead in half. But Price struck out Chase Utley and retired Howard on a game ending ground out.

News and Notes

Game 3 this evening matches up veteran Jamie Moyer against the playoffs hottest pitcher, Matt Garza.

Chase Utley and Ryan Howard are a combined 4-17 through the first two games and Jimmy Rollins is hitless.

There is a possibility that tonight's game could be rained out.

Big League Stew's David Brown discusses the merits and dislikes of the Buck-McCarver duo.

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Hamels the Hero Again

If game 1 is any indication, the 2008 World Series should be a good one. But the Rays won't win it unless they can either solve Cole Hamels or beat up on the rest of the Phillies rotation. Hamels put in another masterful post-season performance, holding the Rays to 5 hits over 7 innings, as the Phillies edged the Rays 3-2 to take a 1-0 lead in the series.

Hamels is now 4-0, 1.55 in four post-season appearances. He's limited hitters to a .178 average and struck out 27 batters in 29 innings. He got an immediate boost in last night's game when Chase Utley followed Jayson Werth's first inning walk with a 2-run home run to right field off of Scott Kazmir.

The Rays biggest threat came in the third inning when they loaded the bases on singles by Ben Zobrist and Aki Iwamura sandwiched around a Jason Bartlett walk. The Rays had their hottest hitter up in B.J. Upton, and Upton did hit a scorcher. But it was right at third baseman Pedro Feliz who started an inning ending 5-4-3 double play.

The Phillies added a run in the fourth inning that would be the difference in the ball game. Shane Victorino and Feliz stroked back to back singles off of Kazmir to start the inning, and moved up a base on Chris Coste's ground out. With the infield playing back to stop a big inning, Carlos Ruiz grounded to Bartlett for an RBI ground out. Kazmir got out of further trouble by striking out Jimmy Rollins to end the threat.

Carl Crawford got the Rays back in the ball game when he went yard against Hamels in the bottom of the fourth to cut the Phillies lead to 3-1. One inning later the Rays mounted a 2-out threat after Bartlett walked and stole second base. Iwamura came through with a big 2-out hit, doubling to left-center field to cut the margin to 3-2. But Hamels got Upton to foul out to end the inning.

The Phillies had a chance to increase their lead in a wild seventh inning. J.P. Howell came on to replace Kazmir and struck out Werth to start the inning. Chase Utley then singled, stole second base, and moved to third on Howell's wild pitch. But Howell bounced back and struck out Ryan Howard before issuing an unintentional intentional walk to Pat Burell. Joe Maddon sent for Grant Balfour, who made the move pay off by striking out Victorino to end the inning.

Ryan Madson was overpowering out of the Phils pen in the eighth, striking out Upton to punctuate a 1-2-3 inning. Then it was up to Brad Lidge who was perfect in 46 save chances during the regular season. No problem. He K'd Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria and then retired Crawford on a foul out to end the game.


News and Notes

The heart of the Rays order, Evan Longoria, Carlos Pena, and B.J. Upton, went a combined 0-12. Upton hit into two double plays in addition to a strike out and foul out.

Chase Utley joined a litany of players to homer in their first World Series at-bat.

Aki Iwamura had 3 of the 5 hits allowed by Cole Hamels.

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The Pennant Race - 8/11

The Rays just keep on trucking. They squashed the Mariners, 11-3, on Sunday to set a franchise record with their 71st win. They also moved 4.5 games ahead of the Red Sox in the AL East after Boston lost to the White Sox, 6-5 on Sunday. The Yankees dropped back to 8.5 out.

The AL Central will be a fight to the finish with the Twins continuing to breathe down the White Sox' necks. Just a half-game separates the two teams. The Twins are also just 1.5 back of the Red Sox for the Wild Card.

The Angels, of course, are racing to the finish line in the AL West.

The Phillies continue to cling to the lead in the NL East, 2 games ahead of the Mets and 2.5 ahead of the Marlins. The Cubs have a healthy 4 game lead over the Brewers, while the Cardinals continue to fade, 7 games back, though just 3 out of the Wild Card.

And in the not so wild West, the Diamondbacks lead Manny and the Dodgers by 1.5 games.

The Diamondbacks got a big time performance on Sunday from their ace, Brandon Webb, who went out and became the majors' first 17-game winner. Bad news too though for AZ, as second baseman Orlando Hudson was lost for the year with a dislocated wrist.

The Diamondbacks go on the road to face the Rockies and Astros this week.

The Dodgers and Giants have always crushed each other's hopes no matter who was better, and that continued this weekend as the Giants took two walk-off wins in their three games. The Dodgers led 2-1 in the 10th on Saturday, but after the Giants tied the game on an error, Aaron Roward sent the Giants home as winners with a single.

A two run rally in the 9th on Sunday gave the Giants another come-from-behind win. With the score tied 4-4, light hitting Eugenio Velez provided the game-winning hit.

Manny is still doing his part though, hitting .459, 4-11 in 9 games. Tough week ahead for the Dodgers though, as they host the Phillies and Brewers.

The Mets were hoping to get a sweep over the Marlins, but Josh Johnson again showed how much Florida has missed him. He allowed 2 runs and 5 hits over 7 innings to improve to 3-0, 3.19, in his 6 starts this season. After establishing himself as the most consistent Mets starter after Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey has gotten pounded in two of his last three starts.

The schedule is favorable for the Mets this week as they go on the road to face the Nationals and Pirates.

The Phillies dropped the first game of their series with the Pirates on Friday, but got a huge start from Brett Myers (7.2, 1 ER, 5 H) on Saturday and came from behind on Sunday when Chase Utley belted a 2-run home run. It was Utley's first home run at home in over a month.

The Phillies go west for the Padres and Dodgers before returning home for a big 8-game homestand.

The Cubs took 2 of 3 from the Cards with a big outing from Ryan Dempster on Sunday. Dempster recorded 85 saves over the last three seasons, but has really stepped up in his return to the rotation, recording his 13th win in a 6-2 Cubs victory.

The Cubs visit the southeast this week to take on the Braves and Marlins.

CC Sabathia's reps must be drooling all over themselves. They had to be concerned when their big left-hander was slow out of the gate, but after turning things around in Cleveland, he has been dominating National League hitters with the Brewers. Sabathia tossed a complete game shutout of the Nationals on Friday. It was his fourth complete game in seven starts since the trade to the NL, and he now has seven complete games on the season. That total in today's game is like completing 35 games back in the 1970's.

Another pending free agent, Ben Sheets, gave the Brewers another lift on Saturday, when he tossed a complete game shutout of his own. Ned Yost finally relented and used the pen on Sunday in a 10 inning Milwaukee win. It came on a Gabe Kapler walk-off home run. Yost does have a concern now though: Ryan Braun's lower back. The stud second-year player injured it on Saturday and missed yesterday's game.

The Brewers visit SoCal this week to face the Padres and Dodgers.

Wait a minute. Are we imagining things? Well, not in this case. That really was Rocco Baldelli in Tampa's lineup on Sunday. The injury-prone outfielder went 1-4 with an RBI in his first major league game since May 15, 2007. His timing was perfect with Carl Crawford landing on the DL with a hand injury. Crawford felt something pop in Saturday's game and its been diagnosed as a tendon problem.

Tampa managed just a split of the four game series after blowing a lead in Saturday's game, but they still extended their lead with the Red Sox losing 2 of 3 over the weekend. Boston and Chicago go at it for a fourth time tonight.

The Rays travel to Oakland and Texas this week.

Much has been made of Clay Buccholz in Boston, especially after his September no-hitter, but the right-hander has struggled in his first full season in Beantown. Yesterday's loss dropped him to 2-8, 6.32 this season. The Red Sox also lost Tim Wakefield to the DL with a sore shoulder and Bartolo Colon has been slow in rehabbing an injured back. The Red Sox may turn to David Pauley or could pull Justin Masterson back out of the bullpen to take Wakefield's spot in the rotation.

The Red Sox start a 6-game homestand on Tuesday with Texas and Toronto coming to town.

The White Sox have hit five home runs in the first three games of their series with the Red Sox, and have belted a major league-leading 165 for the season. They have seven players in double figures, with Carlos Quentin leading the team with 31. Jermaine Dye and Jim Thome are both closing in on the 30-mark while Nick Swisher and Joe Crede are approaching the 20 home run level.

The White Sox host KC for a 3-game series and then go out west to face the slumping A's for 3 games.

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Around the Horn - 7/31

The Phillies and Mets continue to play leap frog in the NL East. The Phils took a half game lead last night with an 8-5 win over the Nationals. Chase Utley and Shane Victorino both went deep to help Jamie Moyer pick up his 240th win, 12th best (tied with Frank Tanana) among left-handers.

The Mets meanwhile couldn't hold an early lead and red hot Mike Pelfrey was cooled off by the Marlins 7-5. The Marlins sit just 1.5 games back.

Garret Anderson put up a 4-hit, 4 RBI night as the Angels beat the Red Sox 9-2. It was LA's second three game sweep of the Red Sox this month. The Rays gained a game on Boston with a 3-2 win over the Blue Jays.

Colorado still can't make up its collective mind as to buy or sell today. Had they lost three straight to the Pirates they probably would have been sellers. But the Rockies snapped the 2-game losing streak last night, 7-4, as Aaron Cook won his 14th game.

Dan Haren won his 11th game of the season in the Diamondbacks 7-3 win over the Padres. That kept them one game ahead of the Dodgers, who got a complete game shutout from Chad Billingsley in a 4-0 win over the Giants.

The Diamondbacks have to wonder what their offense would be like had they kept Carlos Quentin. The White Sox outfielder continued his breakout season with his 28th home run and drove in 4 runs in the Chisox 8-3 win over the Twins. Quentin has 83 RBI for the season.

The Cubs beat the Brewers for the third straight night, this time 7-2, behind a strong outing by Ryan Dempster, who picked up his 12th win. The Brewers will try to salvage the finale of the series, but they're up against Rich Harden.

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Around the Horn - 6/4

There was a huge impact felt by a New York pitcher's start last night and it wasn't Joba Chamberlain. Pedro Martinez made his return to the Mets starting rotation and immediately gave them a lift, putting in a quality efforts in the Mets 9-6 win over the Giants. Pedro stepped on the mound for the first time since April 1, allowing 3 runs in 6 innings for his first won of the year and the 210th of his career.

The Cubbies ran wild in their come from behind 9-6 win over the Padres. Alfonso Soriano hit a 3-run home run and had one of the 6 Cubs stolen bases. The win was Chicago's 9th straight, their longest streak since 2001.

The Rockies snapped an 8-game losing streak and a 13-game road losing streak by beating the Dodgers 3-0. Jeff Francis turned in 7 stellar innings to pick up his 2nd win. The game also featured a brawl between Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp and Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba. Kemp struck out on a pitch that he chased in the dirt. When Torrealba tagged him, Kemp shoved him, and Torrealba shoved back. Kemp admitted afterwards that it was his fault.

“I’m not used to acting in that way. It’s not in my character. It was out of frustration,” Kemp said. “We were losing the game and it was stupid— really stupid. It was not a good decision on my part. But it happened, and we have to deal with whatever happens after it.

You can catch a video of the fight at the bottom of the thread.

Wandy Rodriguez and 3 relievers combined on a 5-hit shutout in the Astros 2-0 win over the Pirates. Lance Berkman drove in his 48th run.

Greg Norton's 2-run double in the 8th lifted the Braves over the Marlins 5-4. Chipper Jones hit his 399th career home run in the game, while the Marlins Dan Uggla had a pair to give him 18 this season.

Randy Johnson passed Roger Clemens for 2nd place on the all-time strike out list, but took the loss as the Diamondbacks fell to the Brewers 7-1. Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, and J.J. Hardy homered for the Brewers. Fielder has hit one out in 4 of the last 5 games.

Yadier Molina belted a 3-run home run to lift Kyle Lohse and the Cardinals over the Nationals 6-1. Albert Pujols was forced to leave the game with a strained calf.

Pat Burrell smacked a 2-run home run and Chase Utley drove in his 53rd run to help the Phillies hold off the Reds 3-2.

The Indians lost for the 13th time in 17 games when the Rangers pasted them last night 12-7. Josh Hamilton, Milton Bradley, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and David Murphy all went deep. Ian Kinsler (18 games) and Michael Young (19 games) each extended their hitting streaks.

Justin Masterson has struggled in the minors this season, but he's 2-0, 2.95 in 3 major league starts for the Red Sox. Last night Boston beat the Tampa Rays 7-4. Coco Crisp's 2-run double highlighted a 4-run 6th inning.

Carlos Quentin, A.J. Pierzynski, and Alexi Ramirez homered to help lift the White Sox over the Royals 9-5. Gavin Floyd won his 6th game as the White Sox moved 5 games over .500.

Radhames Liz won his first major league in the Orioles 5-3 victory over the Twins. Melvin Mora and Kevin Millar homered for the O's.

The A's rallied to beat the Tigers 5-4 in 11 innings. Newly recalled Travis Buck singled in the tying run in the 8th before Jack Cust's single sent everyone home happy in extras. Dontrelle Willis returned to the starting rotation for Detroit and tossed 4 shutout innings. He gave up 2 hits, walked 5, and struck out 3.

Maecir Izturis drove in 3 runs and the Angels held off the Mariners 5-4. Francisco Rodriguez notched his major league leading 23rd save to preserve the win for Joe Saunders (9-2). The loss left the Mariners 17 games under .500. Vlad Guerrero missed his 2nd straight game with hyperflexion in his right knee, but may return to the lineup tonight.

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Around the Horn - 6/3

The Red Sox received shocking news when it was learned that David Ortiz will miss at least a month with a torn tendon in his hand. For now he's got his wrist immobilized in a cast for the next 2 weeks. According to the Boston Globe, it is unlikely that he'll need surgery.

Boston's first game without their big slugger didn't go to well due a rare blow up by Hideki Okajima. The Orioles reached him for 4 runs in the 8th inning for a 6-3 win. Jim Johnson won his first major league game.

Bobby Crosby's 9th inning single gave the A's a 3-2 win over the Tigers, sending Detroit to 9 games below .500. Rich Harden and Kenny Rogers both pitched well in their starts, but neither figured in the outcome. Harden has made 5 consecutive starts without interruption for the first time in over 2 years.

Casey Blake had the kind of night that hitters dream of. Two home runs, a 3-run double, and 7 RBI. The Indians out scored the Rangers 13-9, though not before blowing an 8-3 lead. Josh Hamilton celebrated his choice as AL Player of the Month for May with a home run in 3 consecutive games.

Jeff Mathis slugged a 2-run home run and Ervin Santana won his 8th game in the Angels 4-2 victory over the Mariners. Vlad Guerrero missed the game with a sore knee.

Brian Horwitz hit his first major league home run, and along with Ray Durham, drove in 3 runs as the Giants bombed the Mets 10-2. Mets starter Oliver Perez only retired one batter before being pulled in the 1st inning. Bengie Molina also picked up his 1,000th hit in the game.

John Smoltz's return from the DL to the closer role was an unsuccessful one, but the Braves beat the Marlins 7-5 in 10 innings. Smoltz allowed 2 runs in the top of the 9th, but Jeff Francoeur scored on a wild pitch to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th, and Yuniel Escobar hit a walk-off 2-run shot in extras.

Carlos Zambrano is doing it all these days. He went 3-3 yesterday to raise his average to .366 and pitched 5 innings for his 8th win. Zambrano's won his last 7 decisions. The Cubbies are now 15-2 against the NL West.

The Rockies (20-38) rocky season continued last night as the Dodgers pounded them 8-2. Matt Kemp had 3 hits and one of the Dodgers 3 hits to help Derek Lowe earn his 3rd win.

The Pirates came back from a 4-0 deficit to beat the Cardinals 5-4. Jason Michaels hit a game tying grand slam in the 7th and Jason Bay drove in the go ahead run in the 8th.

Prince Fielder homered for the 3rd time in 4 games to give the Brewers a much needed 4-3 win over the Diamondbacks. Doug Davis allowed just 1 earned in 6 innings for AZ.

Chase Utley hit his major league leading 21st home run and the Phillies held off the Reds 5-4. Pedro Feliz and Chris Coste each added home runs for the Phillies. Jay Bruce hit his 3rd home run for the Reds and went to 2-4 to "drop" his average to .577.

The Nationals have lost 3B Ryan Zimmerman indefinitely with a partial tear of the labrum in his left shoulder.

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Around the Horn - 4/24

We can visualize the TV ads. Texas Rangers owner Tom Hicks sitting atop a bull with a cowboy hat perched upon his head. The dialogue would be something like, "Having trouble with your offense? Can't hit the ball out of the park? Leaving runners stranded? C'mon down to Tom Hicks' Texas Rangers Offensive Outlet in Arlington. We've got all the pitchers you can hit. Lefties, righties, it don't matter. Your offense will spring back to life."

The Detroit Tigers took Hicks up on his offer last night. Though their offense had already been steadily improving since that 0-7 start, they used an 11-run 6th inning last night to paste the Rangers, 19-6. A score like that sends fantasy enthusiasts scrambling for a box score. The big winner was whomever has Carlos Guillen. The new 3rd Baseman drove in 5 runs, while is switcheroo counterpart Miguel Cabrera cracked a 3-run homer. The Rangers have allowed 59 runs during their current 6-game losing streak.

The Angels got over their Fenway hex to snap the Red Sox 6-game winning streak, 6-4. Gary Matthews Jr. slugged a pair of solo home runs and Casey Kotchman added his 6th of the year. Dice-K was the lastest Red Sox hit by the flu and was scratched from his start in favor of Jon Lester. Big Papi continued to break out of his slump (9 for his last 22) with his 3rd home run, raising his average to .188.

The Rays dropped the Blue Jays into the AL East basement with a 5-3 win. Jason Hammel outpitched Roy Halliday who threw his 3rd straight complete game. When Halladay breaks down, will John Gibbons finally get the message not to overuse his ace?

Mike Sweeney homered and drove in 2 runs, and Chad Gaudin threw 7 scoreless innings in the A's 3-0 shutout of the Twins. It was Sweeney's first home run not in a Kansas City uniform.

The Orioles rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat the Mariners 3-2. Nick Markakis' ground out tied the game in the 6th and his home run in the 8th was the game winner. Daniel Cabrera was on his game, allowing 5 hits and no walks in 8 innings.

The Indians and Royals were rained out and will be playing a twinbill today.

The Atlanta Braves had a 5-game winning streak. Then they hosted the Florida Marlins. The NL East leaders dropped the Braves for the second straight game, 7-2. Mike Jacobs and Hanley Ramirez each hit their 7th home runs of the season, and Adam Miller won his first game as a Marlin.

The Cubs and Rockies played a see-saw match in Colorado. The Cubs blew a 3-0 lead, rallied from a 5-4 deficit, blew a 6-5 lead, and then finally won in 10 on Ryan Theriot's 2nd hit of the game. The Cubs offense is out of control. The Rangers should be glad they aren't playing them. Just take a look at the averages of the starting eight.

CF Reed Johnson .311
SS Ryan Theriot .338
1B Derek Lee .378
3B Aramis Ramirez .280
RF Kosuke Fukudome .351
LF Mark DeRosa .292
C Geovany Soto .353
2B Ronny Cedeno .375

The Pirates came back from a 4-0 deficit to beat the Cardinals 7-4. Doug Mientkiewicz delivered a pinch-hit 2-run single in the game winning 3-run rally in the 8th inning.

Bengie Molina homered off Trevor Hoffman to tie the game in the 9th and the Giants went on to beat the Padres 3-2 in13 innings. Fred Lewis and Aaron Rowand each singled in a run in the winning inning (nice rhyme).

The Mets had the anecdote for a 3-game losing streak, Johan Santana on the mound. The Mets ace went 7 innings to earn the win in a 7-2 Mets victory over the Nationals.

The Brewers blew a 3-0 lead, but Prince Fielder saved the day with his second 2-run home run of the day as the Brew Crew beat the Phillies 5-4. Chase Utley homered for the 6th time in 7 games for the Phillies and hot starting Pat Burrell added his 8th.

Dan Haren had his first poor outing in a Diamondbacks uniform as the Dodgers beat the Diamondbacks 8-3. James Loney and Chin-Lung Hu drove in 2 runs each.

News and Notes

Curtis Granderson made a fine return to the Detroit lineup yesterday. The centerfielder went 2-4 with 2 RBI, 2 walks, and 3 runs scored.

There was a rumor yesterday that Frank Thomas had returned to the Oakland A's whom he played for in 2006. But the Big Hurt put a halt to things when he received interest from an unnamed second team.

UPDATE 4/24 2:07 PM EDT - Frank Thomas has indeed returned to the A's. No word on who the mystery team was that supposedly came into play. Does this mean Mike Sweeney's days in Oakland are numbered?

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Around the Horn - 4/22

Short schedule in the AL with just 2 games being played. The Red Sox completed a 4-game sweep of the Rangers with an 8-3 Patriots Day win. Former Red Sox Kason Gabbard threw 2 scoreless frames for the Rangers, but had to leave with back spasms and the Sox lineup jumped all over the Rangers pen. David Ortiz continued to come out of his slump with a pair of doubles and RBI. Clay Buchholz tossed 6 shutout innings for his first win of the year.

Armando Galaraga improved to 2-0 in the Tigers 5-1 win over the Blue Jays and Shaun Marcum. Hot hitting Edgar Renteria homered.

Big series at Wrigley in the NL, Mets vs. Cubs. It started out with a good pitching match up as well, John Maine against Carlos Zambrano. Z's Cubs lead 2-1 in the 8th when the North siders blew the game open against a struggling Aaron Heilmann. Felix Pie capped the inning off with his first major league home run off of Jorge Sosa. Harry Caray would have been yelling CUBS WIN...7-1.

The Marlins still sit atop the NL East after a 10-4 win over the Pirates. The fish banged out 16 hits, including 2 by light hitting pitcher (redundant?) Mark Hendrickson. Hanley Ramirez, Josh Willingham, and Dan Uggla each went deep.

The Dodgers pounded the Reds 9-3. Rafael Furcal lead the game off with a home run and LA rolled from there. Nomar Garciaparra and James Loney knocked in 3 runs each.

The Braves won again, their fifth straight, 7-3 over the struggling Nationals. Tim Hudson picked up the win and drove in 2 runs.

The Cardinals blew 2-0 and 3-2 leads, but Skip Shumaker's single in the 9th gave them a 4-3 win over the Brewers.

The Astros pounded the Padres 10-3. Miguel Tejada may be older, but he's also heating up. A 4-hit, 3 RBI, 3 run scored game put him at .342.

Micah Owings joined teammate Brandon Webb at 4-0 when the Diamondbacks topped the Giants 4-2. Orlando Hudson, Eric Byrnes, and Mark Reynolds each homered.

Chase Utley homered for the 5th straight game and also thwarted a Rockies rally with his glove in the Phillies 9-5 win. Pat Burrell and Jayson Werth also went deep for Philly.

News and Notes - UPDATED 2:05 p.m. EDT

ESPN the Magazine has an intriguing story on a big time family feud between Edgar Renteria and Orlando Cabrera. (Gracias to the The Big Lead for that one)

The Indians placed Jake Westbrook on the 15-day DL with a strained intercostal muscle (that has nothing to do with the Panama Canal) and called up outfielder Ben Francisco.

Mark Mulder's rehab process is getting slower than expected, pushing the Cards' left-hander timetable back further.

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Around the Horn - 4/21

The Boston Red Sox exposed the Texas Rangers bullpen time and time again this weekend. On Sunday, the Sox rallied from a 5-0 deficit for a 6-5 win. Rangers closer C.J. Wilson didn't retire any of the 5 batters he faced in the 8th inning and let an inherited runner score as well. This was on the heels of Saturday's blown game when Manny Ramirez capped a 3-run 8th inning rally with a 2-run game winning home run. The two teams are at it again right now as part of the Patriots Day celebration in Beantown.

Dustin McGown pitched the Blue Jays to a 3-2 win over the Tigers on Saturday. On Sunday it was light hitting shortstop David Eckstein taking the Tigers down with a 3-run home run. And the Jays released disgruntled and slumping DH, Frank Thomas.

Andy Sonnastine pitched a complete game shut out of the White Sox on Saturday and the White Sox avenged it with a shutout of their own on Sunday. John Danks allowed just 3 hits over 7 innings and struck out 8 to pick up his 2nd win. Jim Thome had 4 hits, including career home run #512, tying him with Ed Mathews and Ernie Banks for 19th on the all-time list.

Twins pitching dominated the Indians over the weekend. Nick Blackburn lead a 3-0 shutout on Saturday, helped by a Justin Morneau home run. Morneau played the hero on Sunday when he singled in the game winner in the 10th inning of a 2-1 game.

Ervin Santana's trade value was near zilch after the 2007 season. Right now the Angels have to be ecstatic that they kept him He tossed 8 innings of 3-hit, 8 K ball on Saturday as the Angels beat the Mariners, 4-1. Santana improved to 3-0 with a 2.67 ERA. The Mariners salvaged the final game of the series with a 4-2 win on Sunday. Miguel Batista pitched 7+ shutout innings and Richie Sexson stayed hot with a home run.

The Mets beat the Phils for the 4th straight time on Saturday, but Chase Utley and the Phillies snapped that streak on Sunday Night Baseball. Utley's two home runs, giving him 3 in 2 days, gave the Phillies a 4-0 lead. The Mets rallied to tie it before Pedro Feliz won the 'Pedro' battle over Pedro Feliciano with a solo home run in the 7th. Perhaps Pedro Martinez should have intervened.

The Braves swept the Dodgers in a 3-game set behind Mark Teixeira's 5 RBI in the two weekend games. Andruw Jones finally hit his first home run as a Dodger in Saturday's loss. The once 4-2 Dodgers have lost 9 of 12.

The Marlins put two more in the Nationals loss column. After Kevin Gregg blew a 2-run lead in the 9th on Saturday, Wes Helms got him off the hook with a walk-off RBI single in the Marlins half of the frame. On Sunday, Scott Olsen dominated the Nats over 7 innings to improve to 3-0 in Florida's 6-1 win.

The Pirates pitching staff is hurting this morning after allowing 13 runs in both weekend games to the Cubs. On Saturday Derek Lee and Daryl Ward pounded 2-run home runs in a 13-1 win. Sunday's 13-6 rout saw Aramis Ramirez and Ryan Theriot get 4 hits each and combine for 6 RBI.

Aaron Cook pitched the Rockies back above .500 with a 3-2 win over the Astros. But the Rockies pen quickly dropped them back on Sunday, blowing a 4-3 lead late. Kaz Matsui and the fast aging Miguel Tejada combined for 3 RBI in the 8th inning.

The Brewers and Reds played back-to-back 10 inning games. Bill Hall's 2-run double won it for the Brew Crew on Saturday, but Eric Gagne blew a 2-run lead in the bottom of the 10th on Sunday. Ken Griffey Jr. singled in the game winner as the Reds took the finale of the 3-game series.

The Giants took two of three from the Cardinals with a weekend sweep. Tim Lincecum and the bullpen shut the Cards out 3-0 on Saturday and the Giants bats came alive on Sunday in an 8-2 win. Bengie Molina drove in 3 runs and Jonathan Sanchez tossed 5 shutout innings. The Cards finally scored 2 in the 9th to avoid back-to-back shutouts.

The Diamondbacks followed up their 9-0 drubbing of the Padres on Friday with a 10-3 drubbing on Sunday. The Dbacks scored 6 runs in the 8th inning to put the game out of reach. The Padres finally came back with some offense on Sunday in a 9-4 win. Justin Huber hit his first major league home run, a 3-run shot off of Randy Johnson.

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Around the Horn (8/28)

Chase Utley had an immediate impact for the Phillies in his return from the DL. Playing his 1st game since July 26, when he suffered a broken hand, the All-Star 2nd Baseman had 3 hits, including a home run, and 2 RBI in the Phillie 9-2 win over the Mets.

Not so good news for Utley's teammate Freddy Garcia. The right-hander, who has not pitched since June 8, because of a shoulder strain, may need surgery.

Gary Sheffield's shoulder has been acting up again and it landed him on the 15-day DL on Monday. Why the Tigers waited, when they knew he couldn't play this weekend, is beyond anyone's guess. Perhaps they were afraid of being charged with racism.

Steroid Sammy Sosa has decided he wants to come back for at least 1 more season. It's not likely to happen in Texas, but perhaps Mets GM Omar Minaya will finally land his man.

Hearst newspapers argued in court yesterday that names revealed to George Mitchell from steroid user/abuser/stoolie Kirk Radomski, should be made public. Read more.

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Phillies Acquire Iguchi

With Chase Utley out 4-6 weeks with a broken hand, the Phillies have acquired second baseman Tadahito Iguchi from the White Sox for RHP Michael Dubee.

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