1. Outdueled–again: Roger Clemens hasn’t had much luck in his first two starts. On June 22 he took a loss to the Twins even though he pitched decently. Last night he pitched six innings, allowing only 2 runs (1 earned), but took the loss again in a 4-0 defeat to Detroit. That pushed his record on the year to 0-2 despite a fantastic 2.38 ERA. This is rather reminiscent of last season, when the Rocket led the majors in ERA but was just 13-8. This time Clemens was outdone by the Tigers’ Nate Robertson, who is having a quiet yet awesome season. Robertson is 8-3 with a 3.14 ERA (3rd in the AL) after his 7 inning, shutout performance against the Astros. Though teammate Justin Verlander gets more attention, Robertson has bested him so far in most statistical categories. The Tigers are on a roll, with 15 wins in their last 17 games and a 10-1 record against the National League. The `Stros, meanwhile, have fallen behind Milwaukee in the NL Central.
2. Burnett is back: Toronto’s AJ Burnett, in his second start after a long time on the DL, finally showed the Blue Jays why they signed him for $55 million. He pitched an efficient complete-game shutout of the Washington Nationals, throwing only 92 pitches. It was the most successful by far of four total Burnett starts this season, and it lowered his ERA almost 2 full points to 3.24. Jays outfielder Alex Rios, who had struggled mildly after exploding to a .360 average through May, got back on track with a 3-4, 2 RBI performance. For the Nationals, Alfonso Soriano continued his June struggles, going 1-4 in the loss. He is hitting just .224 on the month and has lowered his OPS from .950 to .888.
3. The stuggling Bucs: The Pirates are bad enough against the National League. But against the American League, they suck even more. They have lost 12 games in a row, 10 of those coming against AL teams. They even got swept by the Royals, who they are now tied with for the honor of “worst major league team.” Yesterday they lost in Game 1 of a three game set against the White Sox. Next, they’ll face Detroit, meaning the Pirates could go 0-for-the American League very easily. In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising if they lose 24 games in a row, as they travel to New York and Philadelphia when they return to NL play. And even more bad news: starter Oliver Perez, once thought to be one of the brightest young pitchers in the game, has performed so poorly he was demoted to the bullpen. At least you Pirates fans can go to the All Star game at your beautiful new ballpark. Other than that, there’s not much hope.
4. The other New York-Boston rivalry: The Red Sox sure hate those Yankees, and this week the other New York team, the Mets, travel to town. We’re not sure if the hatred exactly carries over, but anyway, it’s still a very good matchup. Boston took game one of the 3-game set, as rookie Jon Lester picked up the win. In 4 career starts Lester has performed well, with a 3-0 record and a 2.95 ERA in his limited action. Manny Ramirez, Jason Varitek, and Alex Gonzalez drove in 2 runs each for Boston in the 9-4 romp. For the Mets, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado each hit their 21st homer of the year. The next two games in the series will each feature great pitching matchups: Martinez vs. Beckett in Game 2 and Glavine vs. Shilling in Game 3.
5. Mr. Baseball: Peter Gammons has probably been the most influential reporter in baseball history, with stints at the Boston Globe, Sports Illustrated, and currently ESPN. But now the world’s brightest baseball mind will be in the hospital for a while, as Gammons suffered a brain aneurysm on Tuesday. He is currently in the intensive care unit and will hopefully be alright. No exact details have been released about the problem, but it must have been sudden as Gammons worked Sunday Night Baseball a few days ago. In a sports world that is filled with mindless talking heads, Gammons is one of the few who stand out and is an insightful and interesting reporter. Again, we hope he’s alright.
