The Pennant Race - 8/12

The Mets bullpen imploded once again yesterday afternoon. After building a 5-1 lead, the Mets frittered it away. The Pirates cut the deficit to 5-4 and then scored 3 runs in the ninth off of Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoenweis.

The Mets lost no ground though because the Phillies lost to the Dodgers 8-6 and the Marlins were beaten by the Cardinals 4-2. Manny Ramirez drove in another 2 runs and James Loney drove home 3 as the Dodgers built a 7-1 lead and then hung on for dear life. LA is now one back of Arizona in the NL West.

Joel Pineiro out pitched the Marlins' Anabel Sanchez and Yadier Molina and Joe Mather homered for the Cardinals.

The Brewers pasted the Nationals 7-1 to complete a four game sweep and picked up a half-game on the idle Cubs.

The Twins victory over the Yankees moved them into first place in the AL Central after the White Sox fell to the Red Sox 5-1. White Sox starter Joe Danks had a perfect game through five innings and still had a no-hitter going after hitting Jacoby Ellsbury in the sixth. But things fell apart in the seventh when he allowed a one out single to Kevin Youkilis to snap the no-no bid and then walked Mike Lowell. J.D. Drew then really ruined Danks' night with a 2-run double that put the Red Sox up for good. The Red Sox moved a half-game closer to idle Tampa Bay with the win.

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Red, White, and Boo

After the Yankees lackluster performance in Thursday's 7-0 loss to the Red Sox, the Yankees held a team meeting. Joe Girardi, Johnny Damon, and Derek Jeter laid it on the line. Get better soon or a lot of us could be elsewhere. The Yankees played with a lot more fire on Friday, but the results were no different. The Red Sox rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to beat the Yankees 6-4.

The game turned on a bizarre play in the 3rd inning. The Red Sox had pushed a run across and had two on with one out. Kevin Youkilis hit a deep drive to left field off of Darrell Rasner. Damon raced back to the wall, leaped, and had the ball in his glove. That was until he hit the wall and the ball popped out. But instead of going over the wall for a home run or falling immediately back into the field of the play, the ball laid precariously on top of the wall for a few moments. When it finally did roll back into play, it took the assistance of a fan to point out the ball to Damon, who was momentarily dazed and confused. Youkilis made it to 3rd base with a game tying triple and Damon had to leave the game with a sprained acromioclavicular joint in his left shoulder.

The Yankees had taken a quick lead against Josh Beckett in the 1st inning. Damon led off the game with a double and one batter later Bobby Abreu drew a walk. Alex Rodriguez then lashed a line drive to left field to score both runners as Abreu just beat the throw home. The relay enabled A-Rod to move to third and he scored easily on Jason Giambi's fly out to center field for a 3-0 lead. But the Yankees wouldn't do much against Beckett the rest of the day.

The Yankees did have a chance in the 4th, loading the bases with 2 outs, but Jose Molina grounded out to Mike Lowell to end the inning. Then Lowell took advantage in the top of the 5th against Rasner. Red hot Dustin Pedroia led off with a single and one out later Manny Ramirez followed suit. Then it was Lowell, the one-time Yankees prospect, belting a 3-run home run a few rows back in the left field seats for a 6-3 lead.

Boston set up man Hideki Okajima has not been lights out like he was last year and the Yankees built a rally against him in the 7th inning. Melky Cabrera singled and Molina followed with a base on balls. After Brett Gardner bounced into a force out, Derek Jeter walked to load the bases. But Okajima retired Abreu on a pop out and Manny DelCarmen came in to get A-Rod on an inning-ending ground out as the skies opened up with a torrential downpour.

The game resumed after an 88-minute rain delay and the Yankees would have one more shot after a botched call by the umpires. With a man on and 2 outs in the 9th, Jeter lined Jon Papelbon's pitch to center field. Coco Crisp made a diving back hand grab for the final out, only it wasn't. The catch was ruled a trap (TV replays would show otherwise) and Jeter had himself an RBI double. That gave Abreu a shot as the tying run and he nearly made it happen. But his deep drive to center field fell into Crisp's glove about five feet shy of the 408-ft sign in center field.


News and Notes

Mike Port, VP of Umpiring, said discussions would take place to figure out the proper rulings on Youkilis' ball.

“The guess is that if it had stayed there, it would have been a home run because it had broken the front plane, but we’ll discuss it with supervisors in the next few days,” he said. “The great thing about this game is that after 100 or more years, you still see things that may not have happened before.”

The Yankees and Red Sox wore alternate caps with the team's logos intertwined with red, white, and blue. It's thought to be the first time the Yankees have ever worn an alternate piece of clothing.

Jason Varitek wore a red, white, and blue chest protector that will be auctioned off for charity.

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Around the Horn - 5/6

Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis, and David Ortiz each homered as the Red Sox doubled up the Tigers, 6-3. Lowell's was his first blast of the year as well as his first RBI. It was an odd night for Dice-K (5-0) who allowed only 2 hits over 5 innings, but walked 8. It was the 4th straight win the Sox while the Tigers dropped their 4th straight.

Dustin McGowan and Javier Vazquez settled into a good pitcher's duel last night in the Blue Jays 1-0 win over the White Sox. A Matt Stairs home run in the 7th inning was the game's lone run as closer B.J. Ryan escaped a bases loaded jam in the 9th to preserve the victory for McGowan.

The Angels and Royals also hooked up in a pitcher's duel between the rejuvenated Ervin Santana and veteran Brett Tomko. Tomko only allowed 2 hits in 7 innings, but wouldn't be around for the finish. The Angels scored 4 times in the 9th with Garrett Anderson and Brandon Wood each hitting home runs. Santana went the distance on 97 pitches, allowing just 4 hits, while issuing no walks, and striking out 9.

Emil Brown singled in the game winner in the bottom of the 10th for Oakland as the A's beat the Orioles 2-1. The O's had tied the game in the 9th off of closer Huston Street after starter Dana Eveland (7 IP) and the A's set up men blanked the O's for the first 8 innings.

The Mariners snapped a 5-game losing streak when they beat the Rangers 7-3 last night. Wladimir Balentien belted a 3-run home run and Richie Sexson added a solo shot to back the quality start of Jarrod Washburn.

Johnny Cueto won his first game since April 3rd when the Reds beat the Cubs 5-3. Cueto struck out 8 in 6 innings and Adam Dunn belted a tape measure 2-run home run. Cubs rookie standout Geovany Soto continues to open eyes. He homered as part of a 3-3 day and is hitting .352.

The Dodgers Rafael Furcal homered off the Mets Oliver Perez to start the bottom of the 1st inning and it was all down hill for Perez after that. Blake DeWitt hit his first major league home run and Matt Kemp also went deep against Perez, who had his 3rd bad start in a row (and 4 out of 5). Chad Billingsley picked up the win in the Dodgers 5-1 victory.

The Cardinals blew 3 leads before Rick Ankiel's RBI ground out in the 9th finally beat the Rockies 6-5. Jason Isringhausen picked up his 11th save for the Cards who are now 21-12.

The Phillies rolled over the Diamondbacks 11-4 as Jamie Moyer beat AZ with his arm and his bat. Moyer became the 3rd pitcher in MLB history to record a multi-hit game at age 45 or over. The game was a contrast in styles and age, as Moyer, making his 558th appearance hit 78 mph for much of the night, while 23-yr old DBacks rookie Max Schuerzer, who threw as hard as 98 mph on the night, made his major league debut.

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Yankees vs. Red Sox - April 12

We have an afternoon affair in Fenway today, Mike Mussina (1-1, 3.09) going up against Josh Beckett (0-1, 9.64). Courtesy of Peter Abraham, here are this afternoon's lineups:

YANKEES
Johnny Damon LF
Melky Cabrera CF
Bobby Abreu RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jason Giambi 1B
Jorge Posada DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Jose Molina C
Alberto Gonzalez SS
Mike Mussina RHP

RED SOX
Jacoby Ellsbury CF
Dustin Pedroia 2B
David Ortiz DH
Manny Ramirez LF
Kevin Youkilis 3B
J.D. Drew RF
Jason Varitek C
Sean Casey 1B
Julio Lugo SS
Josh Beckett RHP

Even though you don't want to sit Damon 2 straight days, Matsui is swinging a pretty hot bat right now. We're not sure we would have left him out of the lineup, even though he's just 3-14 against Beckett.

Red Sox vs. Moose

Coco Crisp 8-24 1 RBI
J.D. Drew 0-7
Julio Lugo 8-30 1 HR 5 RBI
David Ortiz 14-54 (.259) 3 HR 7 RBI
Dustin Pedroia 3-8
Manny Ramirez 24-95 (.253) 6 HR 18 RBI
Jason Varitek 8-60 1 HR 3 RBI
Kevin Youkilis 4-15 2 RBI

Mussina has to be happy that Mike Lowell can't play. The Sox 3rd Baseman is 11-19 (.579) against Moose with 3 HR and 8 RBI.

Yankees vs. Beckett

Bobby Abreu 9-50 2 HR 4 RBI 18 BB 17 K
Wilson Betemit 0-5
Melky Cabrera 7-18 2 RBI
Robinson Cano 7-18 1 HR 4 RBI
Johnny Damon 5-21 4 RBI
Morgan Ensberg 1-6
Jason Giambi 5-15 2 HR 6 RBI
Hideki Matsui 3-14
Jose Molina 0-3
Jorge Posada 6-15 2 RBI
Alex Rodriguez 6-22 1 HR 5 RBI

The always obnoxious FOX broadcast begins at 3:55 EDT.

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But It's Only April

Seriously, it's not even tax date yet and we've already got a Yankees-Red Sox series. We're not ready for this. Of greater concern, we don't think the Yankees are either. To make matters worse, 2 of the 3 games are nationally televised. So we have to put up with Joe Buck's bullshit on Saturday and the not-so entertaining Miller-Morgan show on Sunday.

There's also a story out this morning that some moron Red Sox fan, working as a construction worker on the new Yankee Stadium, buried a Red Sox shirt while cement was being poured. It was his way of creating a new jinx. Burying Red Sox, sounds like a good idea.

Things get underway this evening with Chien-Ming Wang going up against rookie Clay Buchholz. Saturday's probably a good day to do something else- Mike Mussina vs. Josh Beckett. Sunday finishes the 3-game series off with Phil Hughes against Dice-K. Have we made it perfectly clear how much we hate Fenway and its neanderthal inhabitants?

The Red Sox, like the Yankees, are off to a bit of a slow start. They have an identical 5-5 record and just placed Mike Lowell on the DL with a sprained thumb. There's also no Curt Schilling (HALLELUJAH) for 4-6 months.

David Ortiz is just 3-36 with 1 HR and 3 RBI. Manny Ramirez drove in 5 runs in the 2-game series with the A's in Japan, but has driven in just 3 since. But J.D. Drew, Kevin Youkilis, Julio Lugo, and Jason Varitek are all off to good starts.

Dice-K pitched poorly in Japan, but has been lights out in his 2 starts back in the states. Josh Beckett suffered through back troubles in spring training and had a poor outing his in his first start off the DL last weekend. This will be just the second start of the season for Buchholz.


Red Sox vs. Wang

Sean Casey 1-10
Alex Cora 5-18 1 HR 4 RBI
Coco Crisp 6-23
J.D. Drew 1-11
Jacoby Ellsbury 1-1 1 RBI
Julio Lugo 6-31 1 RBI
David Ortiz 15-30 2 HR 10 RBI 6 BB
Manny Ramirez 13-22 2 HR 5 RBI
Jason Varitek 1-16
Kevin Youkilis 7-21 3 RBI 8 BB

This is Clay Buchholz's first appearance against the Yankees.

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Around the Horn - 4/11

Mad Dog Russo must be having a wet dream, the Giants have won 3 in a row. Kevin Correia gave them 7+ shutout innings last night in a 5-1 win over the Cardinals.

Rookie of the Year candidate Geovany Soto had 4 hits, including a home run in the Cubs 7-3 win over the Pirates. Jon Lieber threw 4.1 innings of scoreless baseball to pick up the win.

The Marlins sent the Nationals to their 7th straight loss, 4-3. Jorge Cantu enjoyed a 3-hit, 2 RBI night.

Aaron Heilman and the Mets blew a 3-0 lead, but Angel Pagan saved the day with the game winning single in the bottom of the 12th for a 4-3 win over the Phillies. Heilman has allowed 6 runs in 6 innings this season.

Edwin Encarnacion's 2-run HR snapped a 1-1 in the 7th to lead the Reds over the Brewers 4-1.

The Braves-Rockies game was rained out and will be made up at a later date. The Braves did place closer Rafael Soriano on the 15-day DL with elbow tendinitis.

The Orioles 6-game winning streak came to a screeching halt, as the Texas Rangers swept them in a twi-night doubleheader. Kevin Millwood improved to 1-2, 1.29 in helping the Rangers take game 1, 3-1. Michael Young homered, and C.J. Wilson completed a two-save night as the Ranger took the nightcap, 5-4.

Travis Buck drove in all 3 A's runs, including the game winning 2-run double in the 12th, as Oakland topped the Blue Jays 4-3. Keith Foulke gave up a run in the bottom of the 12th, but picked up his first save since 2005. The A's lost Rich Harden to the DL once again, this time with a strained back.

The Tigers got offense for the 2nd straight night- 6 runs- but their pitching got pummeled in a 12-6 loss to the Red Sox. Mike Lowell was put on the DL with a sprained left thumb, but his replacement, Sean Casey, knocked in 3 runs.

2-0, 0.64 ERA. Looking at those stats, you wouldn't think we would be taking about Rays starter Edwin Jackson, but that's exactly what his numbers are so far. The normally erratic right-hander went 8 innings in the Rays 7-0 pasting of the Mariners. Backup catcher Mike DeFelice knocked in 3 runs.

The Twins and White Sox were rained out and we'll make it up at a later date.

The Indians had the day off, but rewarded Fausto Carmona with a 4-year, $15 million deal.

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Around the Horn - 4/10

The city of Detroit is breathing a sigh of relief this morning. The Tigers won themselves a ball game last night, 7-2 over the defending champion (ugh) Boston Red Sox. The Tigers scored almost half their total for the entire season up to that point. Jeremy Bonderman got the much coveted victory.

Mike Lowell left the game in 2nd inning with a sprained thumb. Tigers catcher Ivan Rodriguez picked up his 2,500th career hit.

The Angels slugged 4 home runs, including Mike Napoli's 1st career grand slam, in their 9-5 win over the Indians.

The A's rallied for 4 runs in the 9th against Jeremy Accardo to beat the Blue Jays 6-3. Mark Ellis had himself a nice day- 4 hits, 1 RBI, 1 run scored, and 2 stolen bases. Oh, if Bobby Crosby can stay healthy. He's hitting .306 and drove in 3 runs last night.

The Mariners pounded the Rays 7-1. Jamie Burke's 3-run home run, the 2nd long ball of his career, put the game out of reach.

Jason Kubel hit a grand slam and drove in 6 in the Twins 12-5 pasting of the White Sox. Chisox starter John Danks gave up 7 runs in 2.1 innings pitched.

The Orioles and Rangers were rained out. They'll play a twi-night doubleheader today.

The Mets finally snapped the Phillies dominance, 9 straight wins, of them with an 8-2 win at Shea. 4 Phillies errors lead to 6 unearned runs and a Mike Pelfrey win.

Micah Owings improved to 2-0 in the Diamondbacks 4-3 win voer the Dodgers. Eric Byrnes had 3 hits, 2 RBI, and run scored.

Kerry Wood blew his first save, allowing a game tying home run to Jason Bay in the 9th, but the Cubs went on to beat the Pirates, 6-4 in 15 innings. The Cubs had a chance to win it in the 14th with a pair of runs, but Adam LaRoche hit a game tying home run off of Kevin Hart. Hart finally picked up the win on Felix Pie's 2-run single.

Youngsters Justin Germano and Jonathan Sanchez hooked up in a pitchers duel as the Padres and Giants put up goose eggs through 8 1/2 innings. Dan Ortmeier finally doubled in the game winner in the bottom of the 9th.

Mike Jacobs homered twice and drove in 4 in the Marlins 10-4 drubbing of the Nationals. Jorge Cantu hit his first home run in a Marlins uni. It was the 6th straight loss for the Nats.

Adam Dunn and Corey Patterson homered in the Reds 12-4 rout of the Brewers.

One more blow out- the Rockies handed one to the Braves, 12-6. Ryan Spilborghs and Yorvit Torrealba combined for 9 RBI.

The Cardinals beat the Astros 6-4 behind Albert Pujols' first two home runs of the year.

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Lowell to Get New High

Expanding on Buster Olney's earlier report, ESPN is reporting that Mike Lowell is close to inking a new 3 year, $37.5 million deal with the Red Sox. The Boston Herald had earlier stated the negotiations were going nowhere. Time to check who your sources are guys.

Source

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Highs and Lowells

WBZ-TV in Boston has put in their 2 cents on the proposed deal the Yankees have offered Mike Lowell. Their sources indicate the deal is for between $50 and $55 million, not the 56-60 range that others have reported.

The average per year is about the same that the Sox have offered Lowell for 3 years. We still see Lowell going back to Boston. The Sox may not give a guaranteed 4th year, but they could up the ante for 3 years. Source

Jorge Posada can rest assured that someone has his back, or in this case, his back up. The Daily News is reporting/confirming that the Yankees and Jose Molina have agreed on a 2 year, $4 million deal.

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27.5 Million Reasons

Alex Rodriguez stands to earn a guaranteed $27.5 million dollars in a new 10-year deal with the Yankees. That according to someone familiar with the negotiations. Hank Steinbrenner confirmed that is pretty much a done deal. Source

On another note, another Boston news outlet is reporting the Yankees have offered Mike Lowell a 4-year deal that could be worth up to $60 million. And we still don't like it. Source

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Thursday Hot Stove

The St. Louis Cardinals have categorically denied their part in story, reported last night by 7Sports in Boston, linking them to a 4 year contract offer to Mike Lowell. With Scott Rolen still under contract for 3 years, it really makes no sense for the Cards, even if they were to trade Rolen. Source

Mariano Rivera isn't the only closer looking for a 4 year deal. Brewers' closer Francisco Cordero is said to be seeking a 4 year deal in the neighborhood of $43 million. Source

Kenny Rogers has put out feelers to his old team, the Texas Rangers, about returning. But Rangers owner Tom Hicks has stated that Rogers can only come back if he first publicly apologizes for his actions during the 2005 sesason. Rogers grabbed much notoriety for shoving a Rangers' camera man. Source

Yorvit Torrealba has been one of the hot names this off-season as teams look to solidify the catching position. Torrealba isn't much of a hitter, but has a solid defensive presence. The Mets are among those interested. If the Rockies lose their man, they are reportedly going to go after Jason Kendall and Michael Barrett. Source

Jake Peavy, expected to win the NL Cy Young award later today, has already been the subject of trade rumors, but Pad's CEO Sandy Alderson said an extension is not out of the question. Source

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Yankees, Others offer Lowell 4 Year Deal

7Sports television in Boston is reporting that the Yankees, Braves, Cardinals, and Angels have all offered free agent Mike Lowell a 4 year deal. The contracts range from $55 -$60 million.

The last Red Sox offer on the table is believed to be 3 years, $36 million.

We repeat what we said before. Mike Lowell's bat would not be a good fit in Yankee Stadium.

Source

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Pursuing Lowell, a First

The Star-Ledger's Dan Graziano is reporting tonight that the Yankees are continuing their pursuit of free agent Mike Lowell - to play 1st Base. With the return of Alex Rodriguez appearing to be imminent, the Yankees front office is toying with the idea of signing Lowell and moving him across the diamond. Source

This doesn't make sense for a number of reasons. Lowell will not hit as well in Yankee Stadium, the money should be used to improve the pitching, and why would Lowell, a gold glover, want to move across the diamond. Maybe the Yankees are just trying to drive up his price for the Sox. The feeling here is that Lowell will accept his WS ring in a Red Sox uniform next season.

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Tuesday Hot Stove

With Jorge Posada sewn up, the Yankees are said to be close to a deal with Mariano Rivera. Something could get done within the next few days. The Yankees are also close to re-upping Jose Molina to a 2-year deal.

Here's what's going on around the rest of MLB:

The Twins are close to acquiring Craig Monroe from the Chicago Cubs. While not a star bat, Monroe has shown good power in the past. For now the rumor is a player to be named later in return. Source
UPDATE 2:27 - The Monroe deal has been completed.

The Marlins are contemplating moving Dan Uggla in a deal, especially if they can get Howie Kendrick from the Angels for Miguel Cabrera. The thinking is that Uggla could fetch players to fill more holes than just creating one at 2B. Source

The Red Sox and Mike Lowell couldn't get something done before the open market period, but its still hard to believe they won't get something done eventually. And we repeat, the Yankees would be making a big mistake signing Lowell. His swing is not cut out for the Stadium.

According to the NY Times, the Mets are seriously considering a family reunion. With El Duque already on board, Omar Minaya is giving though to bring in Livan Hernandez. The younger Hernandez is not the same pitcher he was 10 years ago, but he is still an innings eater. The Mets are also close to re-signing backup catcher Ramon Castro to a new 2 year deal. Source

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Friday Hot Stove

The Red Sox have reported offered Mike Lowell a 3 year deal at somewhere between 12 and 15 mill per season. You can bet the Red Sox are pushing hard to get something done before Lowell hits the open market. Source

The Marlins have been discussing Miguel Cabrera with the Angels, and are reportedly insisting that Howie Kendrick be included in any deal. Source

As expected, Jose Guillen turned down his part of his contract option and will be a free agent. One wonders if he'll be on the George Mitchell steroid list.

The Cubs are expected to make a 3 year offer to free agent 2nd Basemen Kaz Matsui. Talk about turning your career around after leaving New York. Source

The Rockies are expected to offer a contract extension to their star, Matt Holliday, somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 years and $60 million. Source

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