1. Royal Flush: The Kansas City Royals seemed destined to be one of the worst teams in the MLB from the time the season started. They fulfilled their destiny for a while, but now, they aren’t the worst team anymore! KC completed a sweep of the Indians on Wednesday, with a surprise offensive outburst of 10 runs and 12 hits. We didn’t know the Royals offense was capable of this kind of production, as they scored a combined 24 runs on the series. Kansas City was balanced throughout the lineup, as each starter had an RBI. Jake Westbrook was their main victim, allowing 8 runs in 5.2 innings. The Royals now own the Indians, as their season record against the team is 5-1. Their overall record is now a game better than the Marlins.
2. The 77 year old battle: The Yankees-Red Sox game last night featured some of the best oldie pitchers in the majors. Mike Mussina and Curt Shilling were the starters, but Shilling was clearly outpitched as the Yankees won 7-3. Shilling gave up six runs and fell to 5-2 on the year. Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, and Jorge Posada went yard off Shilling for the Yanks. And despite David Ortiz’s 4-4 with a homerun performance, Mussina (6-1) held the Sox to 3 runs in his 6 innings. Now the two teams are tied for the division lead again. Whoever wins tonight will take a one-game lead.
3. Un-der-rated!: Quick–name the best pitcher in the MLB so far this season. Martinez, Shilling, Maddux? No, it’s Arizona starter Brandon Webb, a Cy Young candidate who has established himself as one of the game’s best pitchers. He improved to 6-0 on the season last night, defeating Pittsburgh with six strong innings. His ERA is 2.30, and he is the league leader in innings pitched. In speaking of underrated, Arizona closer Jose Valverde earned his 10th save of the season. His ERA is 2.70. Oh yeah, Arizona got some offense too. Chad Tracy went 4-4, and the suddenly quiet Shawn Green drove in 3 runs. `Zona is in second place in the NL West.
4. Opposite directions: The Astros and the Cardinals were very close in the standings a week ago, but now the teams are on opposite streaks. While the Astros (19-15) have lost 6 in a row now, the Cards (22-13) have won 5 of their last 6. Last night Albert Pujols hit his 18th homer of the year for St. Louis, becoming the fastest to reach 18 homers since 1923. His 2 RBIs gave him 43 on the year, and he is on pace for over 200 in this category. The Cardinals defeated the Rockies, 7-4. Meanwhile, Houston fell to Los Angeles, 9-6. Lance Berkman (12) hit a three-run homerun, but the Dodgers got two round-trippers of their own from Rafeal Furcal and Jeff Kent. The Dodgers have won five in a row.
5. Moving backward: While the NFL’s labor situation received plenty of attention recently, the MLB’s labor situation could turn out to be just as improtant. If they cannot agree to a new labor contract by August, the MLB will scrap the 2006 drug policy and use the 2005 policy. This year’s drug policy mandates a 50 game suspension for the first offense, 100 for the second, and a lifetime ban for the third. The 2005 plan is much weaker: it gives 10/30/60 suspensions instead and doesn’t include testing for amphetamines. Of course, this doesn’t make Congress very happy. Government Reform Committee chairman Tom Davis sent a letter to commissioner Bud Selig stating that the issue raises “congressional concern.” This could get very, very interesting…
