Tag: MLB

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MLB General

The Full Count: Tigers stay on top


1. Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood: The Tigers were about to lose the division lead they had worked so hard to obtain. They had lost two in a row in their pivotal series against the White Sox, but Kenny Rogers wasn’t about to let them get swept. Rogers allowed a Paul Konerko homerun in the first but shut down the White Sox the rest of the way, going seven innings and striking out 5. He improved his record to 8-3 on the year, as the Detroit offense gave him plenty of support. Placido Polanco and Marcus Thames each homered in the Tigers’ 6-2 victory, and Detroit stayed atop the division standings. Chicago will take on divisional foe Cleveland next, while Detroit plays an under-the-radar Blue Jays squad.

2. That’s crazy: The Kansas City Royals, as usual, are the worst team in baseball, but yesterday they defeated a divisional leader in the least likely way possible. Facing the Rangers, the Royals came back from an 11-4 deficit to win 16-12. The game marked the highest-scoring effort in the majors this season, and featured 12 combined runs by both teams in the 3rd inning. Both starters pitched awfully, as Texas’ Kameron Loe allowed 8 runs and KC’s first-time starter Kyle Snyder allowed 9. For the Royals, David DeJesus had 3 RBIs, 3 runs and a homer. Mark Teahen went 4-4, and Doug Meintkiewicz and Matt Stairs each had 3 RBIs. Everyone in the Royals lineup got a hit and a run, and all but one drove in a run. The Rangers might have won had they not stranded 17 baserunners over the course of the game. They still have control of the AL West by 3.5.

3. El Duque returns: Orlando Hernandez was a Diamondback this time a month ago, and on Thursday he gave the team some second thoughts about trading him. El Duque, now with the Mets, pitched a complete game and allowed just 1 run against his former squad. This was Hernandez’s first good start of the year, as even afterwards he still has a 4-5 record and a 5.48 ERA. Anyway, the Mets’ 7-1 win featured offense too, as Carlos Beltran hit his 15th homer of the year. Beltran, after vastly underperforming last year, is proving why the Mets signed him to that huge contract. He is on pace for 47 homers, 127 RBIs, and 31 steals. The Diamondbacks have now lost four games in a row, and they hold a narrow 1-game lead in the tough NL West.

4. Red tide: Watch out National League, as the Cincinnati Reds are on a tear. The club won their 8th game in a row after a 7-1 blasting of the Chicago Cubs. Reds ace Bronson Arroyo improved to 8-2 after allowing just 1 run in seven innings. Arroyo is a top candidate for the NL Cy Young this year, as so far he has a 2.31 ERA and 68 strikeouts. The Reds offense was led by Ryan Freel and Brandon Phillips homeruns, and the club took an outright lead in the Central. Meanwhile, the pitiful Cubs are only two games ahead of the Pirates.

5. The Sheff stops cookin’: What started out as bad news for the Yankees has gotten worse, as Gary Sheffield’s injury is actually more severe than expected. Sheffield, who tore a ligament in his wrist after an April 29 collision, will undergo surgery. He is not expected to return until September, which means the Yankees will be without him and Hideki Matsui for most of the regular season. Sheffield will be replaced by Melky Cabrera, who has hit .277 in limited action this year.

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MLB General

The Grimsley fallout

You knew it was only a matter of time before someone in baseball was caught with steroids and started squealing. While everyone is trying to figure out what names were blacked out on the affidavit, Jeff Nelson spoke out. Clearly, Grimsley is persona non grata in any clubhouse in the country.

You just take care of your own back yard and go about your ways,” said Nelson, who predicted Grimsley’s fate would be similar to that of Rafael Palmeiro, who hasn’t returned to baseball since testing positive for steroids last summer.

“I don’t worry about guys in the past. I just worry about what I have to do on the field. If everyone else would do that, none of this stuff would have happened, and Jason Grimsley naming guys wouldn’t have happened either.

Why he did it, I don’t know. Maybe he was facing a bunch of criminal chargers and tried to protect his own [rear]. That’s all I can see.

Jason Grimsley was also the guy who climbed through a duct to retrieve Albert Belle’s corked bat from the umpires’ room. Hmmmm… would that make Albert Belle a “close acquaintance”?

Links:
[ChicagoSports.com]: Guillen, Nelson enraged by Grimsley’s revelations

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MLB General

The Full Count: Going Going Gone

1. A Grim Goodbye: Jason Grimsley, who has pitched 17 major league seasons, now finds his career over after the huge drug bust yesterday. Grimsley was released by the Diamondbacks a day after authorities searched his home and found evidence of drug use. Grimsley’s admitted drug use includes human growth hormone, amphetamines, and steroids. While the MLB bans all three, they don’t test for HGH, which according to Grimsley is widely used across the MLB. You need a blood test to find evidence of HGH, while the MLB only uses a urine test. We think it’s time to do both.

2. Tied up: Anyone who expected the Reds and the Cardinals to be tied 59 games into the season would have been thought crazy before the year started. But now, that is just where the teams stand after a dominant Reds sweep. They won the series by a combined score of 22-11, including a 7-4 win last night. Ryan Freel had two hits and two runs, Felipe Lopez stole his first base in almost a month, and Rich Aurilia went 4-5 with 5 RBIs. St. Louis starter Sidney Ponson had his worst start of the year with 5 runs allowed in five innings pitched. The Cardinals lost despite 2 RBIs and 2 hits each by Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen. Rolen’s average on the year now stands at an impressive .343. Both teams face weak divisional opponents in their upcoming series; the Cardinals play the Brewers while the Reds try to take first place outright against the Cubs.

3. We’re here: The White Sox have been trying to catch up to the division-leading Tigers for almost a month, and now they have finally arrived. The Sox won last night 4-3, an identical score to the night before. Jim Thome and the red-hot Jermaine Dye each homered for the Sox, while Game 1 hero Alex Cintron stole 2 bases and drove in a run. Starter Jose Contreras, after his worst start of the season, pitched well and earned the victory. Tigers starter Justin Verlander pitched his second straight bad start, allowing all four Sox runs in a loss. The Tigers only lead by a half-game over Chicago now, with a slight 37-22 to 36-22 advantage. But with a win tonight the White Sox can take the outright division lead for the first time in a long time.

4. Coming back: While the LA Angels still stand at last place in the AL West, they have been playing better recently and have won 6 out of 9 games. Last night they defeated the Devil Rays 6-2, and will look for a series sweep tonight. Though MVP candidate Vladimir Guerrero went 0-5, the Angels offense still put up 2 homers and 6 runs. Stud 23-year-old Jered Weaver continued his dominance and earned his third straight victory, allowing 2 runs in six innings. Carl Crawford homered for the Devil Rays, but it simply wasn’t enough for the victory in front of the 9,517 fans at Tropicana Field. The Angels stand at 27-32, improved considering they were once 21-29, but they are still 5.5 out in the West.

5. What happened to him?: Remember when Pirates starter Olivier Perez was dominant? In 2004 Perez had a 2.98 ERA and allowed a .207 average against. This year he has a 7.18 ERA and .308 average against, both among the worst totals in the majors. Last night he was torn apart in a loss to the Rockies, allowing 9 runs in only two innings. Colorado starter Josh Fogg did not do much better in a crazy game, as he allowed 8 runs of his own. But the Rockies still won 16-9, in one of the majors’ highest scoring games of the year. The Rockies had 4 players with multi-RBI games, and 5 who had multi-hit games. They scored in six of the eight innings that they hit in as well. However, both teams are still in last place in their respective divisions.

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MLB General

Jason Grimsley spills the beans

Jason Grimsley is going to be the most hated man in baseball. The 15-year veteran not only admitted to using steroids but also started naming names of current players he suspects are on steroids or HGH, including some “close acquaintances”.

Among his disclosures were:


* Until last year, major league clubhouses had coffee pots labeled “leaded” and “unleaded” for the players, indicating coffee with amphetamines and without.

* Latin players are a major source for the amphetamines within baseball.

* Amphetamines also come from players on California teams that could easily go into Mexico and get them.

Amphetamines in baseball is nothing new. There have been countless books indicating that “greenies” have been part of baseball for the past 40 years and, of course, owners and managers have looked the other way. However, this is the first time we’ve heard of the “leaded” coffee.

Links:
[Arizona Republic]: D-Back admits steroid use

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MLB General

The Full Count: Steroids don’t always work

1. The Grimsley Reaper: There was a huge steroid bust on Tuesday, from one of the least likely sources. Arizona reliever Jason Grimsley, after admitting the use of performance enhancing drugs, had his home searched by federal authorities. They did not say what they found, but they were looking for all evidence of contact with other people about the use of these drugs. The most important thing coming from this will be the list of players, according to Grimsley, that have used or distributed these drugs. The list has not been made public yet, but it will likely be extensive as Grimsley has played with 7 total teams dating back to 1989. He has used steroids, human growth horomone, and amphetamines, and is scheduled to be sentenced in August. Despite the use of these drugs, Grimsley is a marginal player at best, with a 4.77 career ERA.

2. The Battle Begins: The White Sox and the Tigers have played once before this season, but that was in early April before we knew that the Tigers were for real. Now they have started a three-game set, and in Game 1 the White Sox barely prevailed. After three solo Tigers homeruns, including one by the suddenly quiet Chris Shelton, the Tigers were up 3-1 entering the eighth inning. But then Alex Cintron, the former Diamondback, stepped up to the plate for the White Sox. With two runners on, Cintron hit a game-winning three-run shot to right, his first homer of the year. Chicago escaped with the victory, but they still trail the Tigers by two games in the AL Central division.

3. About Schmidt: San Francisco starter Jason Schmidt looks well on his way to another great season after a marginal 2005. Schmidt is 6-2 this year with a 2.53 ERA and a .204 opponent’s average. Last night he pitched his best game of the season, with 16 strikeouts and one run allowed in a complete game. The strikeouts tied the all-time Giants record and the major-league season high. Schmidt was named the NL pitcher of the month for May, and has now reeled off 6 straight wins. The Giants defeated the Marlins 2-1 and passed San Diego for 3rd in the NL West.

4. The league’s quietest good team: They are one game back from their division leader, have scored the 4th-most runs in the NL, have one of the highest win totals in the majors, yet they still get no respect. Who are they? The Cincinnati Reds, who beat the Cardinals again last night and have earned the title of the majors’ most disrespected team. Yesterday Eric Milton pitched strong and their offense knocked out Chris Carpenter after five innings. Adam Dunn hit his 18th homer and drove in 3, and the Reds lineup featured six players with multi-hit games. The 7-0 shutout proved once again how valuable Albert Pujols is to the Cardinals, who featured several no-names in their lineup. If the Reds can complete their sweep of the Cards today, than the once-invincible Cardinals will be tied with the Reds in the Central.

5. Rocket takeoff: Roger Clemens pitched his first in a series of minor-league rehab starts on Tuesday, and the results were just alright. Clemens gave up a homer in the first inning, but didn’t allow a run the rest of his three innings pitched. He struck out six, threw 62 pitches, and allowed three hits for the Lexington Legends. Next he’ll go to double-A until he arrives June 22 in what will be the most anticipated mid-season free agent debut in history.

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MLB General

The Full Count: No no-no

1. Denied again: Chris Young was twice denied a no-hitter in two excellent opportunities last week, and on Monday it was Carlos Zambrano’s turn. Zambrano, one of the majors’ most underrated pitchers, allowed no hits to the Houston Astros through seven innings. Then Preston Wilson broke up the chance at history, but the Cubs still won 8-0. The Cubs haven’t had a no-hitter since 1972, and this was likely the closest shot they’ll get in a while. Zambrano not only pitched excellently, but also homered and drove in four runs. The Cubs used two other homers to complete their rout of Houston.

2. Blasted away: The first game of the Red Sox-Yankees series could have developed into a pitcher’s duel, with Beckett vs. Mussina being the matchup. But the Yankees offense didn’t let that happen, scoring 8 runs in the first two innings and 13 in the first three. Beckett was removed after allowing 8 runs and only recording 4 outs. Jason Giambi and Andy Phillips both hit three-run shots in the second off Beckett to break the game open. Despite Derek Jeter not playing and sluggers Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield being on the DL, the Yankees offense rolled to their 12th straight game with at least 10 hits. That breaks their former franchise record. New York starter Mike Mussina didn’t have his best performance, allowing 4 runs in six innings, but he did strike out 8 and improved his record to 8-1 on the season. The two teams are virtually tied for first place now.

3. Around the world: Ken Griffey has been a great power hitter for a long time, and on Monday night he set another record. Griffey tied Fred McGriff for the most stadiums to homer in with 43. He has rounded the bases in every active major league park now. But that wasn’t even Griffey’s most memorable homerun of the night. That came when he hit a game-winning shot off of Jason Isringhausen. The 9th-inning homerun gave Cincinnati an 8-7 win, snapping a 5-game losing streak. St. Louis is now only two games ahead of the Reds in the NL Central.

4. Ready to roll: Roger Clemens is pitching again, but it’s not for a major league team. Clemens, who will take a few rehab starts before his return to the Houston Astros, will pitch tonight for the Lexington Legends. His son, Koby, will play third base for the Legends as the take on the Lake County Captains. This will obviously be the most anticipated game in Legends history, as seats were sold out hours after becoming available. Clemens will make two more minor league starts before his anticipated return on June 22.

5. On the clock: The Kansas City Royals need all the help they can get, and they will have an opportunity to nab a top prospect in tonight’s draft. The Royals, who have the number 1 pick, are projected to take pitcher Luke Hochevar in this mock draft. North Carolina standout starter Andrew Miller is considered the top talent in the draft, but the Royals won’t be able to afford his contract. Not many other teams could either, as Miller is projected to #11 (Arizona). The baseball draft is always a hit-or-miss extravaganza, as some #1 picks never make the majors while others become superstars.

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MLB General

The Full Count: Is it too early to talk playoffs?

1. One will miss out: Out of the following four teams, one will not make the playoffs in the AL: the Tigers, White Sox, Yankees, or Red Sox. Each of these teams has at least 31 wins, and all are significantly better than the AL West-leading Rangers. It’s very early to speculate, but our money will go to the Detroit Tigers as of now. They only have four wins against playoff-caliber teams, and three of those are against those Rangers. We’ll see how it plays out, but no matter what, one of these teams will be complaining by the year’s end.

3. Eye of the Tiger: After dropping three games in a row to the Yankees, the Detroit Tigers weren’t going to let another game just slip by. Trailing 6-5 heading into the ninth inning, the Tigers scored two runs off Yankees reliever Kyle Farnsworth to win the game. Why wasn’t Mariano Rivera in there, you might ask? He injured his back before the game putting on his cleats, making usual setup man Farnsworth the closer. Earlier in the game, Tigers starter Justin Verlander pitched his worst start of the year, allowing 6 runs in 5 innings, including a homerun to Jason Giambi. The Tigers are now up 2.5 on the White Sox in the AL Central. The Yankees fell a half game behind Boston, who had an off day.

3. Who’s #1?: Before last night’s start against the Cleveland Indians, there was no question about who the best starter in the AL was this year–Jose Contreras. He was 5-0 and had never allowed more than 4 runs in a start–until yesterday, when the Indians gouged him for 6 runs in 5 innings pitched. But that was just half of the Indians’ scoring in their crazy 12-8 victory. Though Cleveland trailed 8-7 heading into the seventh inning, Ronnie Belliard and Ben Broussard homeruns helped them get the win. Belliard had 4 RBIs on the night, while Broussard went 4-5 and Grady Sizemore drove in two. The White Sox lost despite three Jim Thome RBIs and two homers and five driven in by Jermaine Dye. (By the way, the answer to the question would be Mike Mussina, who has a 2.42 ERA and 7 wins.)

4. Simply offensive: Coming into last night’s game against the Braves, the Diamondbacks hadn’t scored in 24 innings, which resulted mainly from no runs in 13 innings on Wednesday. They finally got on the scoreboard in the eighth, with a two-run single. The Braves answered next inning with Andruw Jones’ 14th homerun of the year, but it wasn’t enough and the D-Backs prevailed 2-1. Arizona starter Juan Cruz had the best start of his career, pitching 7 shutout innings. The Braves’ Horacio Ramirez was charged with the loss, though both of his runs allowed were unearned. The D-Backs are still clinging to a slight division lead over the LA Dodgers.

5. The DL’s favorite team: The Dodgers, despite being second in the NL West, have probably had some of the worst luck of any MLB team this season. Jeff Kent was placed on the disabled list Thursday, becoming one of many Dodgers who have missed time this season. Shotrtstop Cesar Izturis hasn’t played this season, and neither has stud closer Eric Gagne (though he was taken off the DL yesterday). Nomar Garciaparra and Kenny Lofton are among the other Dodgers who have missed time this season. In other DL news, Tigers starter Mike Maroth will have elbow surgery, though there hasn’t been an announcement of how much time he will miss.

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New York Yankees

Odds and Ends (06.1.06): Randy Johnson love child fund



I am reluctantly your father

Can we start a fund for Randy Johnson’s love child? Maybe then she can afford to finally meet her father who won’t even return her phone calls. An Arizona couple won a charity auction to have dinner with Randy Johnson, his wife Lisa, and 20 of their friends. Ironically, the auction was to benefit the notMYkid organization. (You couldn’t make this stuff up.)

It’s too bad we didn’t know about this sooner. I’m sure all the sports bloggers could’ve raised more than $7,000, won the auction, and then invite Randy’s love child to dinner. That, friends, would be high comedy. (via The Hater Nation / Photo from Boston Dirt Dogs)

In other news…

[Yahoo]: Shocking! Sean Taylor gets special treatment and cops a plea

[ESPN]: Avery Johnson’s wife could be charged with assault for mixing it up with Suns fans

[Fire Dusty Baker]: Bad groundskeeping reason for Cubs losing

[Mr. Mack]: The All-Rotten Hall of Fame

[Off Wing Opinion]: Goalie scores all the way across the pitch

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MLB General

The Full Count: Roger Clemens makes up his mind

1. He’s coming back: After denying contacting the Astros on Tuesday, Roger Clemens signed a huge contract with the team yesterday. The deal would be worth an outrageous $22,000,022 over the whole season, but because Clemens won’t be coming back until June 22 at best, he’ll get a prorated portion that comes out to over $12 million. Not bad for a 43-year-old entering his 23rd major league season. But before Clemens can join the major league roster, he’ll have to make at least 3 minor league starts. The first will be with single-A Lexington, where his son Koby plays. Then he’ll start with the Double and Triple-A Astros teams, and then make his return as early as June 22.

2. Happy to be a Royal: Not many people in the world of baseball want to be a Kansas City Royal, as the team has absolutely no hope for about the next decade or so. But former Atlanta assistant Dayton Moore is, as he will be replacing fired Allard Baird as Royals GM. Moore said he is “looking forward to joining the team and becoming part of the Kansas City community.” Whatever. He has a lot of work to do, as the Royals have been the worst team in the majors for two years running now. Through their first 50 games they are 13-37.

3. Duel of the Year: Anybody who didn’t think that the Pedro Martinez-Brandon Webb matchup wouldn’t live up to the hype was proved wrong on Wednesday night. Neither pitcher allowed a run in a game that didn’t see a score until the 13th inning. Webb pitched seven innings and allowed just four hits and one walk. His scoreless inning streak is now at 25 after two complete-game shutouts last week. But Pedro was even better, going eight innings, striking out eight, and allowing five hits. No runs were put on the board in regulation, but in extras the Mets’ Endy Chavez won the game on a bloop single. The Diamondbacks took the hard loss and are virtually tied with the Dodgers for their division lead. The Mets lead the NL East by 4.5 over the Braves.

4. Carrying his team: Jason Bay, playing in Pittsburgh where he never gets any media attention, is having a flat-out spectacular season. Last night he hit another homerun in the Pirates’ 6-1 win over the Brewers. He finished May with 12 homers and 35 RBIs on the month, which makes up most of his 17 and 46 on the year. Bay has also hit .302 and has been one of the only positives on a 19-34 team that altogether lacks pitching. If Bay ever gets traded to a contender, he will become an absolute superstar.

5. Are they really the best?: The Tigers have played some bad competition for the majority of this season, which diminishes their 35-18 record. But now that they will begin to face some playoff-caliber teams, we’ll see if they’re for real. Well, so far in their murderous upcoming stretch they’ve proved the doubters right, as they are down 3-0 in their series against the Yankees. Last night they lost 6-1 to New York, who featured a complete-game shutout from Mike Mussina. Alex Rodriguez got three hits and drove in two for the Yankees, who are still tied with the Red Sox for the division lead. Meanwhile, the Tigers are still leading the White Sox in their division, though they probably won’t be after facing Boston, Toronto, and new rival Chicago in their next three series.

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MLB General

The Full Count: Waiting on the Rocket

1. Still waiting: After reports that Roger Clemens was once again going to become an Astro, the deal is not officially done yet. Clemens’ agent, Randy Hendricks, denied even speaking with the Astros but said Clemens is “very close with a final decision.” Of course, this means that he probably has spoken with them and they’re likely very close to a deal. But nothing is official yet. The Astros do need the powerhouse pitcher as soon as they can get him–they’re 27-26. St. Louis, who they beat last year in the NLCS, leads the NL Central by 6.5 over them. Clemens won the Cy Young in 2004 and came very close in 2005.

2. Power surge: The Red Sox’s Josh Beckett had been excellent so far this season, but he was no match for the Blue Jays offense on Tuesday. Both of Toronto’s big power hitters, Troy Glaus and Vernon Wells, had huge games. Wells highlighted the effort with 3 homeruns, two of them coming off Beckett. Glaus added two of his own, increasing his total to a team-high 17. Wells (15) became the third player this year to have a three-homer game, joining Albert Pujols and Alfonso Soriano. Beckett gave his worst effort of the year, allowing 7 runs and 4 homers in less than five innings. Toronto starter Gustavo Chacin allowed no runs in five innings, upping his record to 6-1. Closer BJ Ryan picked up his 12th save, and his ERA stands at an incredible .69.

3. An 11-inning blowout: It’s not often a game goes into extras and still results in a one-sided victory. But that happened in the Yankees-Tigers game yesterday, with the game tied at 6 going into extras but the Yankees emerging 11-6 victors. New York scored five runs in the 11th, including Jason Giambi’s first homer since May 10. Giambi started the scoring with a solo shot, his 13th of the year, and three singles scored the other runs. Mariano Rivera pitched a season-high three innings, allowing no runs in the process. For the Tigers, Ivan Rodriguez drove in three runs and fell a homer short of the cycle. The Yankees win combined with the Red Sox loss results in a tie for the AL East lead.

4. Reversal of fortune: The Rockies shut out the Padres 5-0 on Monday, but on Tuesday it went the other way. Padres starter Chris Young, in his best effort of the season, allowed no runs in 8 innings and took a no-hitter into the eighth. Young’s effort for the first no-no in Padres history was ended when Brad Hawpe hit a leadoff double, but the Padres still won 2-0. Trevor Hoffman came on for the save, his 10th in 10 tries. Both teams now have identical 27-25 records.

5. At last: After a 5-0 April, Greg Maddux had been waiting all of May for another win. Though he wasn’t perfect last night, allowing three runs in 5.1, he was able to get the W as the Cubs topped the Reds 8-3. Jacque Jones hit his eighth homerun of the year and drove in 4 Cubs runners. Maddux (6-4, 1-4 in May) is now tied with Nolan Ryan and Don Sutton on the career wins list with 324. Cincinnati is still in second in the NL Central division.