Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 15

SCOREBOARD
Brewers (35-29) 14 at Indians (29-37) 12
W: Coffey (2-1) L: Perez (1-2) S: Hoffman (16)

Angels (33-29) 9 at Giants (34-29) 7
W: Lackey (2-2) L: Zito (3-7) S: Fuentes (17)

HR LIST
Pablo Sandoval 2 (8)
Prince Fielder (16)
Ryan Braun (14)
Mark DeRosa (12)
Victor Martinez (11)
Shin-Soo Choo (9)
Juan Rivera (9)
Travis Hafner (6)
Bobby Abreu (3)
Andres Torres (2)
Erick Aybar (2)
Sean Rodriguez (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 14

SCOREBOARD
Astros (29-32) 8 at Diamondbacks (27-37) 3
W: Moehler (3-4) L: Buckner (2-3)

Red Sox (38-25) 6 at Phillies (36-25) 11
W: Park (3-1) L: Beckett (7-3)

Mets (32-29) 0 at Yankees (36-27) 15
W: Burnett (5-3) L: Santana (8-4)

Tigers (34-29) 3 at Pirates (30-33) 6
W: Ohlendorf (6-5) L: Willis (1-4) S: Capps (16)

Marlins (32-33) 11 at Blue Jays (34-31) 3
W: Johnson (6-1) L: Tallet (4-4)

White Sox (30-34) 5 at Brewers (34-29) 4
W: Thornton (4-1) L: Hoffman (0-1) S: Jenks (14)

Braves (30-32) 2 at Orioles (27-36) 11
W: Bergesen (4-2) L: Lowe (7-4)

Twins (32-33) 2 at Cubs (30-30) 3
W: Marmol (2-1) L: Crain (2-3)

Nationals (16-45) 4 at Rays (34-31) 5
W: Wheeler (2-1) L: Villone (3-3) S: Howell (3)

Mariners (30-33) 1 at Rockies (31-32) 7
W: Hammel (4-3) L: Vargas (2-2)

Reds (31-31) 1 at Royals (28-34) 7
W: Bannister (5-3) L: Cueto (6-4)

Athletics (27-35) 1 at Giants (34-28) 7
W: Cain (9-1) L: Anderson (3-7)

Dodgers (42-22) 6 at Rangers (35-27) 3
W: Billingsley (9-3) L: Holland (1-4) S: Broxton (16)

Padres (28-34) 0 at Angels (32-29) 6
W: Weaver (7-2) L: Young (4-6)

Cardinals (34-30) 0 at Indians (29-36) 3
W: Lee (4-6) L: Carpenter (4-1)

HR LIST
Corey Hart 2 (8)
Juan Rivera 2 (8)
Ty Wiggington 2 (5)
David Ross 2 (5)
Ronny Paulino 2 (3)
Mark Reynolds (17)
Lance Berkman (13)
Robinson Cano (11)
Jack Cust (11)
Mark DeRosa (11)
Hideki Matsui (10)
Casey Blake (10)
Alex Rios (9)
Miguel Olivo (9)
Hunter Pence (8)
Andruw Jones (7)
Pablo Sandoval (6)
Jimmy Rollins (5)
Kelly Shoppach (5)
Stephen Drew (4)
Kevin Millar (4)
Rocco Baldelli (3)
Nick Green (3)
Gabe Kapler (3)
Josh Beckett (1)
Mark Buehrle (1)
Casey McGehee (1)
Carlos Gomez (1)
Nate Schierholtz (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 13

SCOREBOARD
Astros (28-32) 6 at Diamondbacks (27-36) 4
W: Oswalt (3-3) L: Garland (4-7) S: Hawkins (9)

Twins (32-32) 2 at Cubs (29-30) 0
W: Swarzak (2-2) L: Harden (4-3) S: Nathan (15)

Cardinals (34-29) 3 at Indians (28-36) 1
W: Thompson (1-2) L: Ohka (0-1) S: Franklina (15)

White Sox (29-34) 7 at Brewers (34-28) 1
W: Contreras (2-5) L: Parra (3-8)

Marlins (31-33) 6 at Blue Jays (34-30) 5
W: West (2-1) L: Janssen (2-3) S: Lindstrom (12)

Red Sox (38-24) 11 at Phillies (35-25) 6
W: Okajima (3-0) L: Bastardo (2-1)

Mets (32-28) 6 at Yankees (35-27) 2
W: Nieve (1-0) L: Pettitte (6-3)

Tigers (34-28) 3 at Pirates (29-33) 9
W: Duke (7-4) L: Galarraga (3-7)

Nationals (16-44) 3 at Rays (33-31) 8
W: Sonnanstine (5-6) L: Bergmann (0-1)

Mariners (30-32) 3 at Rockies (30-32) 5
W: Corpas (1-3) L: Lowe (0-4) S: Street (13)

Braves (30-31) 4 at Orioles (26-36) 8
W: Bass (4-1) L: O'Flaherty (1-1)

Athletics (27-34) 2 at Giants (33-28) 5
W: Johnson (6-5) L: Outman (4-1) S: Wilson (17)

Reds (31-30) 4 at Royals (27-34) 7
W: Davies (3-6) L: Arroyo (7-5)

Dodgers (41-22) 3 at Rangers (35-26) 1
W: Wade (2-3) L: Grilli (0-1) S: Broxton (15)

Padres (28-33) 1 at Angels (31-29) 9
W: Saunders (7-4) S: Geer (1-2)

HR LIST
Torii Hunter 3 (16)
Albert Pujols 2 (22)
Raul Ibanez (22)
Carlos Pena (20)
Jason Bay (17)
Ben Zobrist (13)
Lance Berkman (12)
Ryan Zimmerman (12)
Adam Jones (12)
Jason Kubel (11)
Cody Ross (10)
Bengie Molina (10)
Kendry Morales (10)
Jayson Werth (9)
Alex Rodriguez (9)
Jose Lopez (9)
Jeremy Hermida (8)
Lyle Overbay (8)
Alex Rios (8)
Adam LaRoche (8)
Mark Teahen (8)
Matt Kemp (8)
Gary Sheffield (7)
Kevin Koumanoff (7)
Chris Young (6)
Andruw Jones (6)
Freddy Sanchez (5)
Ramon Hernandez (5)
Omir Santos (4)
Ryan Raburn (4)
Gabe Gross (4)
Pedro Feliz (3)
Kurt Suzuki (3)
Jacoby Ellsbury (2)
Marcus Thames (2)
Ramon Castro (1)
Jeff Mathis (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 12

SCOREBOARD
Astros (27-32) 1 at Diamondbacks (27-35) 8
W: Haren (5-4) L: Hampton (4-5)

Twins (31-32) 7 at Cubs (29-29) 4
W: Slowey (9-2) L: Wells (0-3) S: Nathan (14)

Cardinals (33-29) 3 at Indians (28-35) 7
W: Huff (2-2) L: Pineiro (5-7)

Red Sox (37-24) 5 at Phillies (35-24) - F/13
W: Saito (2-0) L: Kendrick (0-1) S: Bard (1)

Braves (30-30) 7 at Orioles (25-36) 2
W: Hanson (1-0) L: Berken (1-3)

Tigers (34-27) 3 at Pirates (28-33) 1
W: Porcello (7-4) L: Snell (1-7) S: Rodney (12)

Mets (31-28) 8 at Yankees (35-26) 9
W: Rivera (1-2) L: Rodriguez (1-1)

White Sox (28-34) 2 at Brewers (34-27) 7
W: Suppan (5-4) L: Dotel (1-2)

Marlins (30-33) 7 at Blue Jays (34-29) 3
W: Meyer (1-0) L: League (1-3)

Mariners (30-31) 4 at Rockies (29-32) 6
W: Jimenez (5-6) L: Washburn (3-5)

Nationals (16-43) 3 at Rays (32-31) 4
W: Howell (2-2) L: Villlone (3-2)

Athletics (27-33) 0 at Giants (32-28) 3
W: Lincecum (6-1) L: Mazzaro (2-1)

Dodgers (40-22) 0 at Rangers (35-25) 6
W: Padilla (5-3) L: Kuroda (1-2)

Reds (31-29) 1 at Royals (26-34) 4
W: Hochevar (2-2) L: Maloney (0-1)

Padres (28-32) 6 at Angels (30-29) 11
W: Palmer (6-0) L: Gaudin (2-5)

HR LIST
Albert Pujols (20)
Mark Teixeira (20)
Ryan Howard (19)
Mark Reynolds (16)
Russell Branyan (15)
Brandon Inge (14)
Joe Mauer (13)
Hank Blalock (13)
Torii Hunter (13)
Carlos Lee (11)
Kevin Youkilis (11)
Jason Kubel (10)
Robinson Cano (10)
JD Drew (9)
Derek Jeter (9)
Hideki Matsui (9)
Cody Ross (9)
Kendry Morales (9)
Troy Tulowitzki (8)
Yunel Escobar (6)
Gary Sheffield (6)
Kevin Kouzmanoff (6)
Chris Young (5)
Billy Butler (5)
Alberto Callaspo (4)
Martin Prado (3)
Gerardo Parra (2)
Gabe Kapler (2)
Jonny Gomes (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 11

SCOREBOARD
Tigers (33-27) 3 at White Sox (28-33) 4
W: Jenks (1-2) L: Zumaya (3-1)

Cardinals (33-28) 6 at Marlins (29-33) 5
W: Miller (2-0) L: Nunez (2-3) S: Franklin (14)

Twinns (30-32) 3 at Athletics (27-32) 4
W: Ziegler (1-1) L: Henn (0-2)

Pirates (28-32) 3 at Braves (29-30) 1
W: Jackson (2-1) L: Soriano (1-1) S: Capps (15)

Mariners (30-30) 6 at Orioles (25-35) 3
W: Olson (1-1) L: Uehara (2-4) S: Aardsma (11)

Rockies (28-32) 5 at Brewers (33-27) 4
W: Cook (5-3) L: Gallardo (6-3) S: Street (12)

Royals (25-34) 3 at Indians (27-35) 4 - F/10
W: Herges (2-0) L: Farnsworth (1-4)

Cubs (29-28) 1 at Astros (27-31) 2 - F/13
W: Fulchino (2-1) L: Ascanio (0-1)

Angels (29-29) 1 at Rays (31-31) 11
W: Balfour (3-1) L: Santana (1-3)

Giants (31-28) 1 at Diamondbacks (26-35) 2
W: Scherzer (3-4) L: Sanchez (2-6) S: Qualls (13)

Yankees (34-26) 3 at Red Sox (36-24) 4
W: Saito (1-0) L: Sabathia (5-4) S: Papelbon (16)

Reds (31-28) 2 at Nationals (16-42) 3
W: Tavarez (2-4) L: Herrera (0-2) S: Beimel (1)

Blue Jays (34-28) 0 at Rangers (34-25) 1
W: Millwood (6-4) L: Romero (3-3) S: Wilson (6)

Phillies (35-23) 6 at Mets (31-27) 3 - F/10
W: Eyre (1-1) L: Parnell (2-2) S: Madson (4)

HR LIST
Ross Gload 2 (3)
Raul Ibanez (21)
Albert Pujols (19)
Carlos Pena (19)
Curtis Granderson (14)
Russell Branyan (14)
Luke Scott (14)
Evan Longoria (14)
Ryan Braun (13)
Jim Thome (12)
Ian Stewart (12)
Justin Upton (12)
Joe Crede (10)
Miguel Olivo (8)
Derrek Lee (7)
AJ Pierzynski (6)
Adam Kennedy (5)
Carl Crawford (5)
Ramon Santiago (4)
Dioner Navarro (4)
David Ortiz (4)
Delwyn Young (1)

Tony LaRussa adds to his puzzling moves

St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa added to his career of puzzling moves with today's getaway day lineup in Florida. After the Cardinals finally broke out of their slump with the bats by scoring 12 runs (almost matching what they had scored in the whole month of June). LaRussa elected to bench rookie CF Colby Rasmus. I definitely understand this move...NOT!!! Rasmus has a 9 game hitting streak going, plus he went 2 for 4 on Tuesday night and 2 for 5 last night with a 3 run homerun. He has been the hottest hitter in that lineup ever since going into the clean up role behind Albert Pujols.

You know how baseball experts always say umpires should not be noticed and I think we all agree this would be the same about managers. But I honestly believe that Tony wants to make sure he is in the news even if it is done to hurt his team at times. I know he has won a ton of games, but I honestly believe LaRussa has caused many more losses in his career than he has wins. I am begging GM John Mozeliak to hire Jose Oquendo at the end of the year and let one of the biggest egos in managerial baseball history to head back to the Bay and enjoy his cats.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 10

SCOREBOARD
Mariners (29-30) 4 at Orioles (25-34) 1
W: Hernandez (6-3) L: Guthrie (4-6) S: Aardsma (10)

Cardinals (32-28) 13 at Marlins (29-32) 4
W: Wainwright (6-4) L: Volstad (4-6)

Royals (25-33) 9 at Indians (26-35) 0
W: Meche (3-5) L: Pavano (6-5)

Pirates (27-32) 3 at Braves (29-29) 2
W: Karstens (3-4) L: Jurrjens (5-4) S: Capps (14)

Angels (29-28) 5 at Rays (30-31) 9
W: Cormier (1-1) L: Lackey (1-2)

Reds (31-27) 4 at Nationals (15-42) 2 - F/12
W: Masset (4-0) L: Villone (3-1) S: Weathers (1)

Yankees (34-25) 5 at Red Sox (35-24) 6
W: Wakefield (8-3) L: Wang (0-4) S: Papelbon (15)

Phillies (34-23) 5 at Mets (31-26) 4 - F/11
W: Park (2-1) L: Parnell (2-1) S: Madson (3)

Blue Jays (34-27) at Rangers (33-25) - POSTPONED

Rockies (27-32) 4 at Brewers (33-26) 2
W: De La Rosa (2-6) L: Bush (3-3) S: Street (11)

Tigers (33-26) 2 at White Sox (27-33) 1
W: Verlander (7-2) L: Danks (4-5)

Cubs (29-27) 1 at Astros (26-31) 2
W: Sampson (3-0) L: Guzman (2-1)

Twins (30-31) 6 at Athletics (26-32) 3
W: Guerrier (3-0) L: Bailey (4-1) S: Nathan (13)

Giants (31-27) 6 at Diamondbacks (25-35) 4
W: Zito (3-6) L: Davis (3-7) S: Wilson (16)

Padres (28-31) 3 at Dodgers (40-21) 1
W: Correia (3-4) L: Kershaw (3-5) S: Bell (18)

HR LIST
Chase Utley 2 (15)
Jose Lopez 2 (8)
Mark Teixeira (19)
Carlos Pena (18)
Jay Bruce (15)
Johnny Damon (13)
Jim Thome (11)
Mike Lowell (10)
Kevin Youkilis (10)
Jorge Posada (9)
Brad Hawpe (9)
Jason Kubel (9)
Bengie Molina (9)
Colby Rasmus (7)
Jeremy Hermida (7)
Guillen (7)
Miguel Olivo (7)
Troy Tulowitzki (7)
Willy Aybar (5)
Rick Ankiel (4)
Alberto Callaspo (3)
Garret Anderson (3)
Geovany Soto (3)
Everett (2)

Boras has all the power in the Strasburg negotiations? Don't think so!!

As expected, the Washington Nationals drafted the best amateur prospect in the history of Major League Baseball, pitcher Stephen Strasburg. Strasburg went 13-1 with a 1.32 ERA in 15 starts this season at San Diego State and was named a Golden Spikes Award finalist. He struck out 195 batters with just 19 walks in 109 innings pitched. Signability. That is the word that you hear at every amateur draft in all sports. It sounds like a bad Bud Light marketing campaign. Now everyone says Scott Boras has all the cards in these negotiations. The Nats need to boost attendance. The Nats need a face for a very, very bad franchise. The Nats need everything. Strasburg has become a national icon before he has even pitched in the majors. But I think the Nats hold all the cards. If the Nationals are unable to sign Strasburg, they would get the 2nd pick overall in next year's draft because they could not come to an agreement. Plus, the Nats are on pace to have the #1 overall pick in the 2010 amateur draft as well. So they would hold the #1 and #2 picks.

So if I am the owner, president and GM of the Nats - I am telling Boras, look - we own his rights - and this is a fair offer....just a thought...5 years at $35 million. If the Boras would say that is ludicrous, just tell Scott that is our final offer and we will re-draft him at #2 overall next year. So that way, Strasburg has been out of baseball for over a year and now he has slipped from #1 to a #2 overall pick, which hurts the negotiations for Boras even more.

Furthermore, and even funnier - as bad as the Nationals are overall as a franchise from the majors to rookie ball - this could be the same scenario in the 2011 draft. I'll tell you what - if this does happen and contiunes down the same path after the 2010 draft - Strasburg will fire Boras sooner than later.

Stephen - advise Boras to get a deal done...you have no leverage here!

Baseball Lock for June 10th

Chad Billingsley and the Dodgers beat the Padres 6-4 last night to send my Lock of the Day overall record to 31-19 and I now have a little 2 game winning streak going...

Baseball Lock for June 10th

I will back Justin Verlander (6-2, 3.26) and the Detroti Tigers to beat John Danks (4-4, 5.10) and the Chicago White Sox. Verlander won the AL pitcher of the month for May and started June with 8 shutout innings. In his last 8 starts, his ERA is a Bob Gibson like 1.12 ERA. Danks has never been a guy that can shut a team down - he does keep the White Sox in games, but never dominant...back the Tigers!!

2009 Baseball Lock of the Day Record...31-19

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 9

SCOREBOARD
Mariners (28-30) 1 at Orioles (25-33) 3
W: Bergesen (3-2) L: Vargas (2-1) S: Sherrill (12)

Cardinals (31-28) 3 at Marlins (29-31) 4
W: Lindstrom (2-1) L: Motte (2-2)

Royals (24-33) 4 at Indians (26-34) 8
W: Perez (1-1) L: Cruz (3-2)

Pirates (26-32) 3 at Braves (29-28) 4
W: Lowe (7-3) L: Burnett (1-2) S: Soriano (5)

Angels (29-27) 4 at Rays (29-31) 3
W: Weaver (6-2) L: Shields (5-5) S: Fuentes (16)

Reds (30-27) 3 at Nationals (15-41) 2
W: Cueto (6-3) L: Detwiler (0-3) L: Cordero (15)

Yankees (34-24) 0 at Red Sox (34-24) 7
W: Beckett (7-2) L: Burnett (4-3)

Phillies (33-23) 5 at Mets (31-25) 6
W: Santana (8-3) L: Condrey (4-1) S: Rodriguez (16)

Blue Jays (34-27) 9 at Rangers (33-25) 0
W: Tallet (4-3) L: Mathis (0-1)

Rockies (26-32) 3 at Brewers (33-25) 2
W: Hammel (3-3) L: Coffey (1-1) S: Street (10)

Tigers (32-26) 7 at White Sox (27-32) 6 - F/10
W: Lyon (2-3) L: Linebrink (2-4)

Cubs (29-26) 7 at Astros (25-31) 1
W: Lilly (7-4) L: Moehler (2-4)

Twins (29-31) 10 at Athletics (26-31) 5
W: Baker (4-6) L: Anderson (3-6) S: Nathan (12)

Giants (30-27) 9 at Diamondbacks (25-34) 4
W: Cain (8-1) L: Buckner (2-2)

Padres (27-31) 4 at Dodgers (40-20) 6
W: Billingsley (8-3) L: Young (4-5) S: Broxton (14)

HR LIST
Andre Ethier 2 (11)
Raul Ibanez (20)
Ryan Howard (18)
Justin Morneau (16)
Mark Reynolds (15)
Aaron Hill (14)
Chase Utley (13)
Brandon Inge (13)
Ben Zobrist (12)
Adam Lind (12)
Miguel Cabrera (11)
Lance Berkman (11)
Mark DeRosa (10)
Carlos Beltran (8)
Jason Kubel (8)
Nolan Reimold (7)
Matt Kemp (7)
Jeremy Hermida (6)
Miguel Olivo (6)
Elijah Dukes (6)
Mike Fontenot (6)
Pablo Sandoval (5)
Jimmy Rollins (4)
David Wright (4)
Orlando Hudson (4)
Cristian Guzman (3)
David Ortiz (3)
Stephen Drew (3)
Nick Green (2)
Ryan Church (2)
Mat Gamel (2)
Brian Anderson (2)
Juan Uribe (1)

Cards/Marlins Preview

The St. Louis Cardinals travel to south Florida to play a 3 game set against the Florida Marlins starting tonight. The Cardinals are 2-7 in their last 9 and they have been outscored 55-26 during that span. They are a very bad offensive team right now...and unfortunately the organization is finding out what all the Redbirds fans thought, they needed to get a bat in the offseason to add to the best player in baseball, Albert Pujols. The only good news for the Cardinals right now is starter Chris Carpenter. Carp is 4-0 with a 0.71 ERA and he will be on the mound to open the series tonight. The bad news for the Birds, Josh Johnson is on the mound for the Fish tonight - he is 5-1, 2.63 ERA. And truth be told, the Marlins could put me on the mound - and I would probably be able to throw 7 scoreless innings against this pathetic Cardinals offense.

It would not surprise me at all if the Cardinals would go out and trade for shortstop Erick Aybar of the Angels since the $6.5 million dollar gamble on Khalil Greene was a huge failure since he couldn't accept failure. But they still need to acquire a big bat...Matt Holliday possibly? Why Aybar you say? Because highly touted Angels prospect Brandon Wood (this is who I wish the Cards would trade for) is continuing to tear up Triple A. Plus, the Cardinals need to quit babying their top prospects and call up 3B Brett Wallace - we need a stick - and rumor has it - Wallace's is the best stick in the minors. No matter what - the Cards need to do something and soon!!

Rays/Angels Preview

The LA Angels will travel to Tampa to take on the Rays in a 3 game series starting tonight. Jered Weaver (5-2, 2.26) will open the series on the mound for the Angels and James Shields (5-4, 3.40) will toe the rubber for the Rays. The Rays also have All-Star 3rd Baseman Evan Longoria back in the middle of the lineup after tweaking a hammy last week. Should be a good series, but I think the Rays will take 2 out of 3 before the Washington Nationals come to Tampa for an interleague matchup this weekend.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 8

SCOREBOARD
Tigers (31-25) 5 at White Sox (26-31) 4
W: Zumaya (3-0) L: Linebrink (2-3) S: Rodney (11)

Rockies (25-32) 5 at Cardinals (31-27) 2
W: Marquis (8-4) L: Thompson (0-2) S: Street (9)

Rays (29-30) 3 at Yankees (34-23) 5
W: Pettitte (6-2) L: Sonnanstine (4-6) S: Rivera (14)

Pirates (26-31) 6 at Braves (28-28) 7 - F/15
W: Medlen (2-2) L: Karstens (2-4)

Blue Jays (33-27) 6 at Rangers (33-24) 3
W: Janssen (2-2) L: Feldman (5-1) S: Downs (8)

Giants (29-27) 0 at Marlins (28-31) 4
W: West (1-1) L: Johnson (5-5)

Tigers (31-26) 1 at White Sox (27-31) 6
W: Contreras (1-5) L: Bonderman (0-1)

Diamondbacks (25-33) 3 at Padres (27-30) 6
W: Peavy (6-6) L: Garland (4-6) S: Bell (17)

Twins (28-31) 3 at Athletics (26-30) 4
W: Outman (4-0) L: Ayala (1-2) S: Bailey (5)

HR LIST
Adam Lind 2 (11)
Mark Teixeira (18)
Jermaine Dye (15)
Johnny Damon (12)
Nick Swisher (12)
Nate McLouth (10)
Jim Thome (10)
Jack Cust (10)
Paul Konerko (8)
Derek Jeter (8)
Chipper Jones (8)
Troy Tulowitzki (6)
Brian McCann (6)
Alexei Ramirez (5)
Gabe Kapler (1)
Brett Carroll (1)
Marcus Thames (1)
Scott Podsednik (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 7

SCOREBOARD
Angels (28-27) 6 at Tigers (30-25) 9
W: Zumaya (2-0) L: Arredondo (1-3)

Rays (29-29) 3 at Yankees (33-23) 4
W: Aceves (4-1) L: Balfour (2-1) S: Rivera (13)

Royals (24-32) 0 at Blue Jays (32-27) 4
W: Hallady (10-1) L: Davies (2-6)

Cubs (28-26) 6 at Reds (29-27) 3 - F/14
W: Patton (2-1) L: Lincoln (1-1) S: Guzman (1)

Brewers (33-24) 7 at Braves (27-28) 8
W: O'Flaherty (1-0) L: Villanueva (2-4) S: Gonzalez (8)

Rangers (33-23) 6 at Red Sox (33-24) 3
W: PAdilla (4-3) L: Matsuzaka (1-4) S: Wilson (5)

Mets (30-25) 7 at Nationals (15-40) 0
W: Hernandez (5-1) L: Stammen (0-2)

Indians (25-34) 8 at White Sox (26-30) 4
W: Huff (1-2) L: Colon (3-6)

Pirates (26-30) 4 at Astros (25-30) 6
W: Fulchino (1-1) L: Jackson (1-1) S: Hawkins (8)

Rockies (24-32) 7 at Cardinals (31-26) 2
W: Jimenez (4-6) L: Pineiro (5-6)

Orioles (24-33) 0 at Athletics (25-30) 3
W: Mazzaro (2-0) L: Hill (2-0) S: Bailey (4)

Diamondbacks (25-32) 9 at Padres (26-30) 6 - F/18
W: L:

Twins (28-30) 2 at Mariners (28-29) 4
W: Bedard (5-2) L: Slowey (8-2) S: White (1)

Giants (29-26) 3 at Marlins (27-31) 2
W: Lincecum (5-1) L: Nolsaco (2-6) S: Wilson (15)

Phillies (33-22) 7 at Dodgers (39-20) 2
W: Bastardo (2-0) L: Wolf (3-2)

HR LIST
Ryan Braun 2 (12)
Chipper Jones 2 (7)
Nelson Cruz (17)
Ryan Howard (17)
Alfonso Soriano (14)
Mark Reynolds (14)
Aaron Hill (13)
Russel Branyan (13)
Mike Cameron (12)
Nick Swisher (11)
Victor Martinez (10)
Michael Young (8)
Shin-Soo Choo (8)
Lyle Overbay (7)
Juan Rivera (6)
Ryan Theriot (6)
Jose Lopez (6)
Kevin Kouzmanoff (5)
Shane Victorino (5)
Clete Thomas (4)
Alexei Ramirez (4)
Carlos Ruiz (3)
Chris Gimenez (2)
Chris Coghlan (2)
Chone Figgins (1)
Mark Kotsay (1)
Paul Phillips (1)
Luis Valbuena (1)
David Eckstein (1)
Jamie Burke (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 6

SCOREBOARD
Rays (29-28) 9 at Yankees (32-23) 7
W: Howell (1-2) L: Rivera (0-2) S: Choate (3)

Royals (24-31) 6 at Blue Jays (31-27) 2
W: Hochevar (1-2) L: Richmond (4-3)

Phillies (32-22) 2 at Dodgers (39-19) 3 - F/12
W: Wade (1-3) L: Durbin (1-2)

Indians (24-34) 2 at White Sox (26-29) 4
W: Floyd (4-5) L: Sowers (1-3) S: Jenks (13)

Twins (28-29) 1 at Mariners (27-29) 2
W: Jakubauskas (4-5) L: Henn (0-1) S: Aardsma (9)

Giants (28-26) 4 at Marlins (27-30) 5
W: Miller (2-2) L: Sanchez (2-5) S: Nunez (2)

Brewers (33-23) 3 at Braves (26-28) 0
W: Suppan (4-4) L: Vazquez (4-5) S: Hoffman (15)

Angels (28-26) 1 at Tigers (29-25) 2
W: Jackson (6-3) L: Escobar (0-1)

Pirates (26-29) 6 at Astros (24-30) 4
W: Maholm (4-2) L: Oswalt (2-3) S: Capps (13)

Mets (29-25) 1 at Nationals (15-39) 7
W: Lannan (3-5) L: Maine (5-4)

Rangers (32-23) 1 at Red Sox (33-23) 8
W: Lester (5-5) L: Holland (1-3)

Cubs (27-26) 3 at Reds (29-26) 4 - F/11
W: Masset (3-0) L: Marshall (3-5)

Rockies (23-32) 10 at Cardinals (31-25) 1
W: Cook (4-3) L: Wellemeyer (5-6)

Orioles (24-32) 4 at Athletics (24-30) 9
W: Cahill (3-5) L: Berken (1-2)

Diamondbacks (24-32) 4 at Padres (26-29) 6
W: Correia (2-4) L: Schlereth (0-2) S: Bell (16)

HR LIST
Prince Fielder 2 (15)
Ian Stewart 2 (11)
Andre Etheir 2 (9)
Mark Teixeira (17)
Adam Dunn (17)
Ben Zobrist (11)
Justin Upton (11)
Mike Lowell (9)
Alex Rodriguez (8)
Mark Teahen (7)
Hunter Pence (7)
Clint Barmes (6)
Nolan Reimold (6)
Nick Johnson (5)
Elijah Dukes (5)
Willy Aybar (4)
Ramon Hernandez (4)
Rick Ankiel (3)
Josh Fields (3)
Bobby Scales (3)
Rafael Furcal (2)
David Ortiz (2)
Geovany Soto (2)
Raul Chavez (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 5

SCOREBOARD
Angels (28-25) 2 at Tigers (28-25) 1
W: Santana (1-2) L: Rodney (0-1) S: Fuentes (15)

Mets (29-24) 3 at Nationals (14-39) 1 - F/10
W: Green (1-2) L: Hanrahan (0-3) S: Rodriguez (15)

Rays (28-28) at Yankees (32-22) - POSTPONED

Royals (23-31) 3 at Blue Jays (31-26) 9
W: Romero (3-2) L: Greinke (8-2)

Cubs (27-25) 2 at Reds (28-26) 1
W: Zambrano (4-2) L: Owings (3-7) S: Gregg (10)

Rangers (32-22) 5 at Red Sox (32-23) 1
W: Millwood (5-4) L: Penny (5-2)

Giants (28-25) 2 at Marlins (26-30) 1
W: Zito (2-6) L: Volstad (4-5) S: Wilson (14)

Brewers (32-23) 4 at Braves (26-27) 0
W: Gallardo (6-2) L: Jurrjens (5-3)

Pirates (25-29) 1 at Astros (24-29) 9
W: Hampton (4-4) L: Karstens (2-3)

Indians (24-33) 6 at White Sox (25-29) 0
W: Pavano (6-4) L: Danks (4-4)

Rockies (22-32) 11 at Cardinals (31-24) 4
W: De La Rosa (1-6) L: Wainwright (5-4)

Orioles (24-31) 1 at Athletics (23-30) 9
W: Braden (5-5) L: Guthrie (4-5)

Diamondbacks (24-31) 8 at Padres (25-29) 0
W: Davis (3-6) L: Gaudin (2-4)

Twins (28-28) 2 at Mariners (26-29) 1 - F/10
W: Guerrier (2-0) L: Lowe (0-3) S: Nathan (11)

Phillies (32-21) 3 at Dodgers (38-19) 4
W: Broxton (6-0) L: Lidge (0-3)

HR LIST
Albert Pujols (18)
Ian Kinsler (15)
Luke Scott (13)
Mike Jacobs (10)
Carlos Lee (10)
Ian Stewart (9)
Ryan Ludwick (9)
Adam Lind (9)
Mark DeRosa (9)
Jack Cust (9)
Matt Holliday (8)
Jose Guillen (6)
Lyle Overbay (6)
Ryan Garko (6)
Travis Hafner (5)
Yadier Molina (4)
Rod Barajas (4)
Pablo Sandoval (4)
Chris Young (4)
Dexter Fowler (3)
Mike Sweeney (3)
Carlos Zambrano (2)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 4

SCOREBOARD
Mets (28-24) 6 at Pirates (25-28) 11
W: Jackson (1-0) L: Pelfrey (4-2)

Angels (27-25) 6 at Blue Jays (30-26) 5
W: Speier (2-1) L: League (1-2) S: Fuentes (14)

Red Sox (32-22) 6 at Tigers (28-24) 3
W: Wakefield (7-3) L: Willis (1-3) S: Papelbon (14)

Rangers (31-22) 6 at Yankees (32-22) 8
W: Robertson (1-0) L: Wilson (3-3) S: Rivera (12)

Indians (23-33) 3 at Twins (27-28) 11
W: Baker (3-6) L: Carmona (2-6)

Athletics (22-30) 7 at White Sox (25-28) 0
W: Anderson (3-5) L: Buehrle (6-2)

Royals (23-30) 2 at Rays (28-28) 3
W: Shields (5-4) L: Wright (0-2) S: Howell (2)

Cubs (25-24) at Braves (25-25) - POSTPONED

Giants (26-25) 5 at Nationals (14-37) 1
W: Johnson (5-4) L: Zimmerman (2-3) S: Wilson (13)

Brewers (31-23) 3 at Marlins (26-29) 4
W: Johnson (5-1) L: Bush (3-2) S: Lindstrom (11)

Giants (27-25) 4 at Nationals (14-38) 1
W: Cain (7-1) L: Detwiler (0-2)

Rockies (21-32) 10 at Astros (23-29) 3
W: Hammel (2-3) L: Rodriguez (5-5)

Reds (28-25) 1 at Cardinals (31-23) 3
W: Carpenter (4-0) L: Harand (5-6)

Phillies (32-20) 3 at Dodgers (37-19) 0
W: Hamels (4-2) L: Kershaw (3-4)

HR LIST
Jason Kubel 2 (7)
Garrett Atkins 2 (5)
Albert Pujols (17)
Nelson Cruz (16)
Justin Morneau (15)
Ian Kinsler (14)
Prince Fielder (13)
Johnny Damon (11)
Mike Napoli (8)
Jason Giambi (8)
Brad Hawpe (8)
Laynce Nix (7)
Carlos Beltran (7)
Melky Cabrera (6)
Ryan Spilborghs (5)
Denard Span (4)
Carl Crawford (4)
BJ Upton (3)
Chris Gimenez (1)
Aaron Cunningham (1)
Josh Johnson (1)

Rays/Bronx Bombers Preview

The Tampa Bay Rays travel to New York to play the Yankees in a 4game wrap around weekend series starting Friday night. And what a pitching matchup we have to get the series kicked off on Friday night. One of the best southpaws in baseball, CC Sabathia (5-3, 3.46) will be opposed by one of the best young pitching prospects in baseball, David Price (1-0, 3.00). Sabathia is 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA in his last 5 starts and he has not lost since May 2. Price is coming off his first win of the year over Minnesota. Price went 5 2/3 innings and struck out 11. The big question for the series is about Evan Longoria. Longoria tweaked a hamstring earlier in the week and hasn't played since. But, BJ Upton looks like he might finally have gotten going. Upton went 5 for 11 in helping finish the sweep over the Kansas City Royals today, including a game winning 2 run homerun in the bottom of the 8th today to propel the Rays to a 3-2 win and the sweep. It should be a great series...I think it will be a split.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 3

SCOREBOARD
Cubs (26-25) 3 at Braves (26-26) 2 - F/11
W: Guzman (2-0) L: Bennett (2-3) S: Gregg (9)

Red Sox (31-22) 10 at Tigers (28-23) 5
W: Beckett (6-2) L: Galarraga (3-6)

Rangers (31-21) 4 at Yankees (31-22) 2
W: Feldman (5-0) L: Pettitte (5-2) S: Francisco (12)

Giants (25-24) at Nationals (13-36) - POSTPONED

Mets (28-21) at Pirates (22-28) - POSTPONED

Angels (26-25) 8 at Blue Jays (30-25) 1
W: Weaver (5-2) L: Janssen (1-2)

Royals (23-29) 0 at Rays (27-28) 9
W: Niemann (5-4) L: Bannister (4-3)

Brewers (31-22) 9 at Marlins (25-29) 6
W: McClung (3-1) L: West (0-1) S: Hoffman (14)

Rockies (20-32) 4 at Astros (23-28) 6
W: Byrdak (1-1) L: Marquis (7-4) S: Sampson (3)

Indians (23-32) 10 at Twins (26-28) 1
W: Lee (3-6) L: Swarzak (1-2)

Athletics (21-30) 5 at White Sox (25-27) 3
W: Outman (3-0) L: Richard (2-1) S: Bailey (3)

Phillies (31-20) 5 at Padres (25-28) 1
W: Happ (4-0) L: Young (4-4)

Orioles (24-30) 2 at Mariners (26-28) 3
W: Aardsma (2-2) L: Johnson (2-3)

Diamondbacks (23-31) 0 at Dodgers (37-18) 1
W: Billingsley (7-3) L: Garland (4-5) S: Broxton (13)

HR LIST
Laynce Nix 2 (6)
Ryan Howard (16)
Jermaine Dye (14)
Luke Scott (12)
Dan Uggla (11)
Brandon Phillips (10)
Ben Zobrist (10)
Ryan Bruan (10)
Jorge Cantu (9)
JD Drew (8)
Jorge Posada (8)
Ian Stewart (8)
Jason Giambi (7)
Hunter Pence (6)
Adrian Beltre (4)
Dioner Navarro (3)
Bobby Abreu (2)
Jhonny Peralta (2)
Bobby Crosby (2)
Landon Powell (2)

Pirates trade Nate McLouth to Braves

Nate McLouth is no longer a Pirate. Nate was a 2008 All-Star and won a Rawling's Gold Glove Award last year.

McLouth, who enjoyed a breakout year last season, was traded to the Atlanta Braves for prospects, Jeff Locke (SP), Charlie Morton (SP), and Gorkys Hernandez (OF).

Nate was batting was batting .256 with 9 HR and 34 RBI this year, so his production has fallen a bit from his career year in 2008. He's still hitting homers at a decent rate, but that is about it.

Now for the guys we got:

Jeff Locke - A 21 year old lefty starter who will be assigned to Lynchburg. Locke was the Braves' 2006 2nd round pick and is rated as their 7th best prospect. He's got good strikeout numbers and his control has been superb before this year. Locke is most likely our #3 pitching prospect now behind Brad Lincoln and Bryan Morris. Huntington: "An intriguing young left-handed starter with the frame, athleticism and stuff to become a quality major-league starting pitcher."

Charlie Morton - A 25 year old righty starter who will be assigned to Indianapolis. Morton was the Braves' 3rd round pick in 2002. He made 15 starts last year for Atlanta and got roughed up a bit, but his numbers have been superb in the minors. He was 5-2 with a 2.05 ERA last year in AAA and is currently 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA in 10 starts this year. I would not be surprised to see Morton making some starts in the majors soon. He now instantly becomes our 6th starter.

Gorkys Hernandez - A 21 year old outfielder who will be assigned to Altoona. Hernandez, teamed up with Jose Tabata will give the Curve two very good outfield prospects. He's rated as Atlanta's #4 prospect. Also, he is young for his level and is definitely excelling in AA this year batting .315 with 11 doubles. It also looks like he has good discipline at the plate as he doesn't strike out too much and he draws a decent amount of walks. One thing lacking for Hernandez is power, but hopefully that will come with age. He is still very young. He also stole 54 bases in 2007 and has swiped 10 bags so far this year.

Alright, now that we got the facts straightened out, now here is my take on the trade:

First off let me start by saying this is a complete shocker. I never in my life would have thought that Huntington had the you-know-whats to do this. McLouth is loved and adored by Pirate fans and trading him is sure to rattle them up. That right there is one reason why I have to like this trade. If this were not a good trade for the Pirates, Huntington would have never agreed to this deal. These three guys must be 3 GOOD guys in order for NH to muster up the courage to do this.

Second, let me say that I really liked Nate McLouth. But guys, look at him closely. The guy isn't THAT good. He's good, but the fact McLouth got three prospects of this caliber is an absolute steal. Nate was an All-Star last year and had a decent year. But that is really all it was...a decent year. It was his first decent year of his career and he doesn't really look like he is going to repeat it. Face it, Nate McLouth is simply an above-average Major League outfielder. Looking at this trade, objectively, I think the Bucs got a lot for him.

I like Morton, a lot more than I like Virgil Vazquez or Tom Gorzelanny or whoever else we would call up to make a start (or starts). He is a guy who has just dominated the minors and is still young enough to translate that into Major League success. Morton reminds me of the type of player Ross Ohlendorf was last year when we traded for him. And I like how Ross panned out.

As far as Locke goes, the Bucs are desperate for quality pitching prospects. Locke is a good one and should be one of those pitchers that fans should look and see how he's doing in the box scores (or North Side Notch's 'Minor Matters!') every fifth day.

Hernandez looks like Jose Tabata or Andrew McCutchen, just without the power. Which is fine by me. And who knows, the power may come. He's only 21 and playing (and excelling) in AA, which is awesome.

Obviously, we really won't know if this trade will be a success for a few years. Face it, the Pirates are operating as if what is going on right now is not as important as what is going on 4-5 years from now. Which, by looking at the state of this organization, is what they should be doing. All three of these guys are held in higher regard that when McLouth was in A, AA, and AAA.

Basically, for the skeptics out there on this trade...give it time. We were going to lose 90+ games this year with McLouth. We can lose 90+ games without him...and add 3 quality guys to our organization.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 2

SCOREBOARD
Cubs (25-25) 5 at Braves (26-25) 6 - F/12
W: Soriano (1-0) L: Heilman (2-3)

Red Sox (30-22) 5 at Tigers (28-22) 1
W: Matsuzaka (1-3) L: Porcello (6-4)

Rangers (30-21) 3 at Yankees (31-21) 12
W: Burnett (4-2) L: Padilla (3-3)

Giants (25-25) 6 at Nationals (14-36) 10
W: Villone (3-0) L: Howry (0-3)

Mets (28-23) 1 at Pirates (24-28) 3
W: Duke (6-4) L: Santana (7-3) S: Capps (12)

Angels (25-25) 4 at Blue Jays (30-24) 6
W: Halladay (9-1) L: Saunders (6-4)

Royals (23-28) 2 at Rays (26-28) 6
W: Sonnanstine (4-5) L: Davies (2-5)

Brewers (30-22) 3 at Marlins (25-28) 10
W: Badenhop (4-2) L: Parra (3-7)

Rockies (20-31) 2 at Astros (22-28) 3 - F/11
W: Ortiz (3-2) L: Fogg (0-1)

Indians (22-32) 3 at Twins (26-27) 4
W: Slowey (8-1) L: Huff (0-2) S: Nathan (10)

Athletics (20-30) 5 at White Sox (25-26) 0
W: Mazzaro (1-0) L: Colon (3-5)

Reds (27-24) 2 at Cardinals (30-22) 5
W: Motte (2-1) L: Arroyo (7-4) S: Franklin (13)

Phillies (30-20) 10 at Padres (25-27) 5
W: Bastardo (1-0) L: Peavy (5-6) S: Madson (2)

Orioles (24-29) 2 at Mariners (25-28) 8
W: Bedard (4-2) L: Hernandez (1-1)

Diamondbacks (23-30) 5 at Dodgers (36-18) 6
W: Weaver (3-1) L: Schlereth (0-1) S: Broxton (12)

HR LIST
Raul Ibanez 2 (19)
Adrian Gonzalez (22)
Jason Bay (16)
Nelson Cruz (15)
Alfonso Soriano (13)
Joe Mauer (12)
Russell Branyan (12)
Dan Uggla (10)
Justin Upton (10)
Ben Zobrist (9)
Victor Martinez (9)
Hideki Matsui (8)
Cody Ross (8)
Jack Cust (8)
Jorge Posada (7)
Alex Rios (7)
Andre Ethier (7)
Derrek Lee (6)
Aaron Rowand (6)
Corey Hart (6)
Miguel Tejada (6)
Ken Griffey Jr. (6)
Jose Guillen (5)
Miguel Olivo (5)
Jeff Francouer (4)
Matt Joyce (3)
Garrett Anderson (2)
Greg Dobbs (2)
Josh Bard (1)
Jason Jaramillo (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard June 1

SCOREBOARD
Yankees (30-21) 5 at Indians (22-31) 2
W: Chamberlain (3-1) L: Aquino (1-1) S: Rivera (11)

Mets (28-22) 5 at Pirates (23-28) 8
W: Gorzelanny (3-1) L: Putz (1-4) S: Capps (11)

Brewers (30-21) 4 at Marlins (24-28) 7
W: Martinez (1-1) L: Julio (1-1) S: Lindstrom (10)

Rockies (20-30) 1 at Astros (21-28) 4
W: Oswalt (2-2) L: Cook (3-3) S: Hawkins (7)

Athletics (19-30) 2 at White Sox (25-25) 6
W: Thornton (3-1) L: Breslow (1-4)

Reds (27-23) 5 at Cardinals (29-22) 3
W: Lincoln (1-0) L: Wellemeyer (5-5) S: Cordero (14)

Phillies (29-20) 5 at Padres (25-26) 3
W: Blanton (4-3) L: Correia (1-4) S: Lidge (13)

Orioles (24-28) 1 at Mariners (24-28) 0
W: Hill (2-0) L: Washburn (3-4) S: Sherrill (11)

Diamondbacks (23-29) 3 at Dodgers (35-18) 2
W: Buckner (2-1) L: Kuroda (1-1) S: Pena (1)

HR LIST
Adrian Gonzalez (21)
Ryan Howard (15)
Chase Utley (12)
Jim Thome (9)
Carlos Lee (9)
Victor Martinez (8)
Scott Hairston (8)
Matt Holliday (7)
Todd Helton (7)
Colby Rasmus (6)
AJ Pierzynski (5)

Cardinals/Reds Preview

The St. Louis Cardinals open an 8 game home stand tonight at Busch Stadium - the Cardinals will play the Cincinnati Reds in the 1st 4 game series and then wrap up the home stand with a 4 game series against the Colorado Rockies. The Reds come in with a 26-23 record, but they have lost 12 of their last 14 played at Busch Stadium. The Reds were swept in Milwaukee over the weekend, plus future star 1B Joey Votto went on the 15 day DL...lots of negatives going on in that clubhouse right now. The Cardinals come home after losing 2 out of 3 in San Francisco to the Giants, but they have been a different team since Chris Carpenter has come back off the DL. Ryan Ludwick and Rick Ankiel have both returned to the lineup from the DL as well and since that happened - Albert Pujols has started to break out of his slump. With Votto out, as well as Edwin Encarnacion, look for the Cardinals to continue to add to the Reds slump at Busch Stadium.


Jun 1, 2009 CIN (Volquez)@ STL (Wellemeyer)
Jun 2, 2009 CIN (Arroyo) @ STL (Thompson)
Jun 3, 2009 CIN (Cueto) @ STL (Pineiro)
Jun 4, 2009 CIN (Harang) @ STL (Carpenter)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 31

SCOREBOARD
Yankees (29-21) 4 at Indians (22-30) 5
W: Wood (2-2) L: Coke (1-3)

Red Sox (29-22) 8 at Blue Jays (29-24) 2
W: Lester (4-5) L: Romero (2-2)

Marlins (23-28) 2 at Mets (28-21) 3
W: Maine (5-3) L: Volstad (4-4) S: Rodriguez (14)

Tigers (28-21) 3 at Orioles (23-28) 0
W: Jackson (5-3) L: Berken (1-1) S: Rodney (10)

Nationals (13-36) 2 at Phillies (28-20) 4
W: Moyer (4-5) L: Lannan (2-5) S: Lidge (12)

Astros (20-28) 2 at Pirates (22-28) 1
W: Hampton (3-4) L: Maholm (3-2) S: Hawkins (6)

Twins (25-27) 3 at Rays (25-28) 2
W: Blackburn (5-2) L: Garza (4-4) S: Nathan (9)

Reds (26-23) 2 at Brewers (30-20) 5
W: Gallardo (5-2) L: Owings (3-6) S: Hoffman (13)

White Sox (24-25) 7 at Royals (23-27) 4
W: Thornton (2-1) L: Bale (0-1) S: Jenks (12)

Athletics (19-29) 5 at Rangers (30-20) 4
W: Bailey (4-0) L: Francisco (1-1)

Padres (25-25) 5 at Rockies (20-29) 2
W: Gaudin (2-3) L: De La Rosa (0-6) S: Bell (15)

Mariners (24-27) 8 at Angels (25-24) 9
W: Speier (1-1) L: Aardsma (1-2)

Cardinals (29-21) 3 at Giants (25-24) 5
W: Valdez (2-0) L: Wainwright (5-3) S: Wilson (12)

Braves (25-25) 9 at Diamondbacks (22-29) 3
W: Medlen (1-2) L: Scherzer (2-4)

Dodgers (35-17) 8 at Cubs (25-24) 2
W: Milton (2-0) L: Marshall (3-4)

HR LIST
Kevin Youkilis 2 (9)
Josh Willingham 2 (9)
Adam Kennedy 2 (4)
Adrian Gonzalez (20)
Carlos Pena (17)
Mark Teixeira (16)
Jason Bay (15)
Curtis Granderson (13)
Torii Hunter (12)
Mike Cameron (11)
Nate McLouth (9)
Brandon Phillips (9)
Scott Hairston (7)
Mike Napoli (7)
Alex Rios (6)
Jason Giambi (6)
Matt Kemp (6)
Ichiro Suzuki (5)
Chipper Jones (5)
Brendan Harris (3)
Dustin Pedroia (2)
Chris Coste (2)
Matt Joyce (2)
Endy Chavez (2)
Rich Aurilia (1)
Garret Anderson (1)

Pittsburgh Pirates May Awards

For April's awards, click here.

Hitter of the Month: Andy LaRoche
LaRoche had a pathetic April due to a very, very slow start. But since then he has been hitting the cover off the ball. After batting .254 in April, LaRoche has rebounded to bat .330 in May and has raised his BA to .299.

Andy also has put together 2 11-game hitting streaks this year and his .411 OBP in May led the team. He also has slugged .457 for the month, which is 2nd on the team.

LaRoche hit 6 doubles, 2 homers, and drove in 14 batters in 28 games.

Pitcher of the Month: Zach Duke
Duke become's North Side Notch's first repeat winner of this award as he had yet another stellar month. Duke posted a 2-3 record and a 2.98 ERA in 6 starts over the month of May. He also picked up his 2nd complete game of the year.

Duke walked just 11 batters as opposed to his 26 strikeouts in 42.1 innings.

He also was the only Pirates' starter to finish the month with an ERA under 4.00.

Minor League Hitter of the Month: Miles Durham
Durham, 26, was the Pirates' 22nd round pick in the 2006 draft. He is currently playing in Lynchburg. Durham had a spectacular month batting .333 with 6 HR and 21 RBI. He posted an OPS of .948. Durham gets most of his playing time in right field. If he can continue to put numbers up that are close to the ones he put up in May, you can expect him to move to Altoona soon.

Minor League Pitcher of the Month: Brad Lincoln
This one's a no-brainer, and Pirates' fans should be happy about that. Lincoln, 24, was the Bucs' 1st round pick in 2006 out of Houston. After missing all of 2007 and some of 2008 due to arm surgery, Lincoln looks to have returned to the prospect he was when the Bucs picked him 4th overall in '06. Lincoln has started 5 games in May and has allowed runs in only 2 of them. He is 1-1 with a 0.80 ERA in 33.2 innings over that span. He struck out 29 batters while only walking 6. On May 21st, Lincoln hurled a 2-hit, complete game shutout against Bowie. He hasn't allowed a run since May 15th. Look for Lincoln to keep this up and move to AAA soon. He is looking like a very strong candidate to be called up in September for a few starts as well.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 30

SCOREBOARD
Red Sox (28-22) 3 at Blue Jays (29-23) 5
W: Tallet (3-3) L: Ramirez (4-2) S: Downs (7)

Marlins (23-27) 7 at Mets (27-21) 3
W: Johnson (4-1) L: Redding (0-2) S: Nunez (1)

Twins (24-27) 2 at Rays (25-27) 5
W: Price (1-0) L: Liriano (2-7) S: Choate (2)

Dodgers (34-17) 0 at Cubs (25-23) 7
W: Dempster (4-3) L: Stults (4-2)

Braves (24-25) 2 at Diamondbacks (22-28) 3 - F/11
W: Pena (5-2) L: Bennett (2-2)

Tigers (27-21) 6 at Orioles (23-27) 3
W: Verlander (6-2) L: Albers (0-2) S: Rodney (9)

Yankees (29-20) 10 at Indians (21-30) 5
W: Sabathia (5-3) L: Carmona (2-5)

Reds (26-22) 5 at Brewers (29-20) 9
W: McClung (2-1) L: Harang (5-5)

Nationals (13-35) 6 at Phillies (27-20) 9
W: Hamels (3-2) L: Martis (5-1) S: Lidge (11)

Astros (19-28) 4 at Pirates (22-27) 7
W: Karstens (2-2) L: Rodriguez (5-4) S: Capps (10)

White Sox (23-25) 5 at Royals (23-26) 3
W: Linebrink (2-2) L: Cruz (3-1) S: Jenks (11)

Athletics (18-29) 1 at Rangers (30-19) 14
W: McCarthy (5-2) L: Anderson (2-5)

Padres (24-25) 7 at Rockies (20-28) 8
W: Street (1-1) L: Bell (2-1)

Mariners (24-26) 4 at Angels (24-24) 3 - F/10
W: Batista (3-1) L: Arredondo (1-2) S: Aardsma (8)

Cardinals (29-20) 6 at Giants (24-24) 2
W: Carpenter (3-0) L: Zito (1-6)

HR LIST
Albert Pujols 2 (16)
Ryan Howard 2 (14)
Clete Thomas 2 (3)
Adrian Gonzalez (19)
Nelson Cruz (14)
Curtis Granderson (12)
Prince Fielder (12)
Hank Blalock (12)
Luke Scott (11)
Nick Swisher (10)
Mike Cameron (10)
Grady Sizemore (9)
Ryan Braun (9)
Adam Lind (8)
Brandon Phillips (8)
Shin-Soo Choo (7)
Jerry Hairston Jr. (7)
Brad Hawpe (7)
Jorge Posada (6)
Scott Hairston (6)
Jeremy Hermida (5)
Jose Lopez (5)
Miguel Olivo (4)
Marlon Byrd (4)
Carl Crawford (3)
Reed Johnson (3)
Rocco Baldelli (2)
Ronnie Belliard (2)
Joe Dillon (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 29

SCOREBOARD
Dodgers (34-16) 1 at Cubs (24-23) 2
W: Lilly (6-4) L: Billingsley (6-3) S: Gregg (8)

Athletics (18-27) 3 at Rangers (28-19) 6
W: Wilson (3-2) L: Casilla (1-2) S: Francisco (11)

Tigers (26-21) 2 at Orioles (23-26) 7
W: Bergesen (2-2) L: Willis (1-2)

Nationals (13-34) 4 at Phillies (26-20) 5
W: Happ (3-0) L: Detwiler (0-1) S: Lidge (10)

Yankees (28-20) 3 at Indians (21-29) 1
W: Pettitte (5-1) L: Lee (2-6) S: Rivera (10)

Astros (19-27) 6 at Pirates (21-27) 1
W: Moehler (2-3) L: Ohlendorf (5-5)

Red Sox (28-21) 3 at Blue Jays (28-23) 6
W: Janssen (1-1) L: Wakefield (6-3) S: Downs (6)

Marlins (22-27) 1 at Mets (27-20) 2 - F/11
W: Feliciano (2-1) L: Sanches (1-1)

Twins (24-26) 3 at Rays (24-27) 5
W: Shields (4-4) L: Baker (2-6) S: Choate (1)

Athletics (18-28) 2 at Rangers (29-19) 5
W: Feldman (4-0) L: Gonzalez (0-1)

Reds (26-21) 2 at Brewers (28-20) 3
W: Looper (5-3) L: Cueto (4-3) S: Hoffman (12)

White Sox (22-25) 11 at Royals (23-25) 2
W: Richard (2-0) L: Bannister (4-2)

Padres (24-24) 0 at Rockies (19-28) 3
W: Marquis (7-3) L: Young (4-3) S: Street (8)

Braves (24-24) 10 at Diamondbacks (21-28) 6
W: Jurrjens (5-2) L: Garland (4-4)

Mariners (23-26) 5 at Angels (24-23) 2
W: Vargas (2-0) L: Lackey (1-1) S: Aardsma (7)

Cardinals (28-20) 2 at Giants (24-23) 4
W: Cain (6-1) L: Pineiro (5-5) S: Wilson (11)

HR LIST
Luke Scott 2 (10)
Nelson Cruz (13)
Evan Longoria (13)
Jermaine Dye (13)
Prince Fielder (11)
Michael Cuddyer (9)
Josh Willingham (7)
JD Drew (7)
Andruw Jones (5)
Matt Kemp (5)
Corey Hart (5)
Yunel Escobar (5)
Juan Rivera (5)
Billy Butler (4)
Chad Tracy (4)
Jose Lopez (4)
Travis Buck (3)
Marlon Byrd (3)
Omir Santos (3)
Ramon Hernandez (3)
Koyie Hill (2)
Carl Crawford (2)
Edwin Maysonet (1)

Kansas City At It Again

Well as usual, when something in KC seems too good to be true, it usually is. I haven't posted much on here mostly because of work, but also because I've just been too bummed lately and couldn't find much to be positive about. If one thing goes wrong, so does everything else, and there really is no explanation for it. Our major positive of the beginning of the year (pitching) has dried up and left for who knows where. Adding insult to injury, it seems our offense has never really arrived fully. I'm writing this just after a whopping 11-2 loss against the White Sox. I mean come on there isn't a real reason why the floor has dropped out, but I can't honestly tell if we'll ever see it again. The boys in blue need to hurry up and find their rythm, or it's gonna be a long road to September. We need to make it to the All-Star break and quick at that. There are 2 more games left against the ChiSox, then it's on to the Rays.

Game 2
Saturday May 30, 2009 at 6:10pm CT vs. Chicago White Sox
KAN Gil Meche (2-5), vs. CHW Mark Buehrle(6-1)

Game 3
Sunday May 31, 2009 at 1:10pm CT vs. Chicago White Sox
KAN Zack Greinke (8-1), vs. CHW John Danks (4-3)

The only positive is the obvious Zack Greinke. If you don't get run support though, then you don't get the win.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 28

SCOREBOARD
Rays (23-27) 1 at Indians (21-28) 2
W: Herges (1-0) L: Niemann (4-4) S: Wood (8)

Red Sox (28-20) 3 at Twins (24-25) 1
W: Beckett (5-2) L: Swarzak (1-1) S: Papelbon (13)

Tigers (26-20) 1 at Orioles (22-26) 5
W: Hernandez (1-0) L: Galarraga (3-5)

Dodgers (34-15) 2 at Cubs (23-23) 1
W: Wolf (3-1) L: Wells (0-2) S: Troncoso (3)

Braves (23-24) 2 at Diamondbacks (21-27) 5
W: Haren (4-4) L: Lowe (6-3) S: Qualls (12)

HR LIST
Jason Varitek 2 (10)
Luke Scott 2 (8)
Joe Crede (9)
Nolan Reimold (5)
Willy Aybar (3)
Bobby Scales (2)

Rays/Twins Preview & Isringhausen is a BUM!!

The Tampa Bay Rays come home after being on the road the last 7 days, but things really got bad after being swept in Cleveland in a 4 game series that finished up with a 2-1 loss today. But that doesn't tell the half of it. The Rays were 7-3 coming into the series against Cleveland and were starting to resemble the 2008 AL Champions that they were. But management is a reason why this season has probably turned to the dark side for this up and coming Rays team. Huh?? What?? Oooohhh - Why is the question? Three words...JASON DERIK ISRINGHAUSEN!!! Any team with this guy on their roster - THEIR ACTIVE ROSTER NO LESS - is a team of destiny - destined for the cellar!! Isringhausen is well known in Cardinal Country. He is known for a couple things in St. Louis. He is known for helping the Cardinals win the World Series in 2006 - he got injured in mid-late August and that allowed Adam Wainwright to take over the closers role...which in turn meant that Izzy couldn't pitch...and ironically the Cards were able to finish off games in the 9th and the rest is history. The other thing Izzy is known for is helping the Cardinals set a Major League Baseball Record for blown saves in a season. So I am really trying to understand this.

Why?

Why would management go out and sign a 36 year old bum that couldn't pitch a 1-2-3 inning against a bunch of high schoolers. I understand if you are a....wait a minute...no I don't!!! There is no reason for this guy to be pitching in the majors or the minors anymore. Izzy helped the Rays blow a 10-0 lead on Monday in Cleveland. But truth be told - Izzy had a pretty good stat line by his standards...0.0 innings pitched, 1 hit, 2 runs, 2 earned runs, 3 BB, 0 K - 23 pitches and 9 for strikes...ARE YOU SURE!!!! He needs to be arrested for impersonating a Major League Pitcher.

And I'm serious - it is those kind of losses that will stick with your team for a month or 2 - look - it is already happening. They went on to lose the remaining 3 games of the series against the lowly Indians.

Now the Rays need to regroup and will look to do so starting Friday night in Tampa against the Minnesota Twins and MVP candidates Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau. The Rays are 11-10 at home, while the Twins have been dreadful on the road, 5-14. Pitching Probables

Scott Baker will be on the mound in the opener for the Twins against James Shields.

Saturday's game will be a matchup of future southpaw aces Francisco Liriano going against Rays phenom David Price.

Sunday's Matinee will be Nick Blackburn for the Twins against the Rays Matt Garza.

Cardinals/Giants Preview

The schedule makers didn't do the St. Louis Cardinals any favors this week - they traveled to Milwaukee and played the Brewers for 3 games (the Birds won the last 2 games of the series to win the series) and now they travel for a 3 game series in San Francisco starting Friday night. After the game Sunday - the Redbirds fly home for an 8 game home stand. Usually when the Cards travel out to the West Coast, they get to play another series against the Dodgers or the Diamondbacks - but not this time. In a way it is a good thing - the Cardinals have traditionally been a bad team on the West Coast. The Cardinals are 7-2 in their last 9 games even though they are only batting .228 as a team and averaging only 3.4 runs a game. Their pitching over that span of games is almost historic - 81.2 innings pitched, allowing 8 earned runs - 0.81 ERA...mmmm wonder why they are 7-2. I was always taught by my Father and coaches while growing up playing baseball that if the other team didn't score - we wouldn't lose...and that is still true to this day!! Pitching Probables for the series

Friday night, Joel Pineiro will toe the rubber for the Cardinals against Matt Cain. I am telling all gamblers out there...BET THE OVER in this game. In 2 career starts against the Giants, Pineiro is 0-2 with a 8.10 ERA. Cain against the Cardinals, 2 career starts, 0-1, 9.58 ERA...OVER!!!

Carpenter vs. Zito on Saturday

Wainwright vs. Sanchez on Sunday

The Cards should take the final 2 games of this series...and if they can win the 12-11 game on Friday night - they may sweep the series in San Fran.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 27

SCOREBOARD
Cardinals (28-19) 3 at Brewers (27-20) 2
W: Wellemeyer (5-4) L: Parra (3-6) S: Franklin (12)

Blue Jays (27-23) 10 at Orioles (21-26) 12 - F/11
W: Baez (4-1) L: Wolfe (1-1)

Tigers (26-19) 8 at Royals (23-24) 3
W: Porcello (6-3) L: Davies (2-4)

Pirates (21-26) 2 at Cubs (23-22) 5
W: Marmol (1-1) L: Chavez (0-2) S: Gregg (7)

Dodgers (33-15) 8 at Rockies (18-28) 6
W: Kershaw (3-3) L: Jimenez (3-6)

Mariners (22-26) 6 at Athletics (18-26)
W: Bedard (3-2) L: Cahill (2-5)

Rays (23-26) 7 at Indians (20-28) 12
W: Aquino (1-0) L: Sonnanstine (3-5) S: Vizcaino (1)

Marlins (22-26) 6 at Phillies (25-20) 2
W: Badenhop (3-2) L: Myers (4-3)

Astros (18-27) 1 at Reds (26-20) 6
W: Arroyo (7-3) L: Paulino (1-4)

Nationals (13-33) 4 at Mets (26-20) 7
W: Santana (7-2) L: Zimmerman (2-2)

Yankees (27-20) 9 at Rangers (27-19)
W: Burnett (3-2) L: Holland (1-2)

Red Sox (27-20) 2 at Twins (24-24) 4
W: Slowey (7-1) L: Matsuzaka (0-3) S: Nathan (8)

Padres (24-23) 8 at Diamondbacks (20-27) 5
W: Peavy (5-5) L: Buckner (1-1) S: Bell (14)

White Sox (21-25) 1 at Angels (24-22) 3
W: Weaver (4-2) L: Floyd (3-5) S: Fuentes (13)

Braves (23-23) 3 at Giants (23-23) 6
W: Johnson (4-4) L: Kawakami (3-6) S: Wilson (10)

HR LIST
Jay Bruce 2 (14)
Hideki Matsui 2 (7)
Adrian Gonzalez (18)
Adam Dunn (16)
Mark Teixeira (15)
Jason Bay (14)
Ian Kinsler (13)
Aaron Hill (12)
Evan Longoria (12)
Russell Branyan (11)
Miguel Cabrera (10)
Dan Uggla (9)
Robinson Cano (9)
Cody Ross (7)
Luke Scott (6)
Mark Teahen (6)
Shin-Soo Choo (6)
Jerry Hairston Jr. (6)
Ben Francisco (5)
Nolan Reimold (4)
Ryan Spilborghs (4)
Daniel Murphy (4)
Matt Stairs (3)
Reed Johnson (2)
Carlos Ruiz (2)
Placido Polanco (1)
Bobby Crosby (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 26

SCOREBOARD
Blue Jays (27-22) 2 at Orioles (20-26) 7
W: Berken (1-0) L: Romero (2-1) S: Johnson (1)

Rays (23-25) 1 at Indians (19-28) 5
W: Pavano (5-4) L: Garza (4-3)

Marlins (21-26) 3 at Phillies (25-19) 5
W: Blanton (3-3) L: Miller (1-2) S: Lidge (9)

Astros (18-26) 4 at Reds (25-20) 6
W: Masset (2-0) L: Byrdak (0-1) S: Cordero (13)

Nationals (13-32) 1 at Mets (25-20) 6
W: Hernandez (4-1) L: Stammen (0-1)

Cardinals (27-19) 8 at Brewers (27-19) 1
W: Wainwright (5-2) L: Suppan (3-4)

Yankees (26-20) 3 at Rangers (27-18) 7
W: Jennings (2-1) L: Aceves (3-1)

Pirates (21-25) 1 at Cubs (22-22) 6
W: Marshall (3-3) L: Snell (1-6)

Tigers (25-19) 1 at Royals (23-23) 6
W: Greinke (8-1) L: Jackson (4-3)

Red Sox (27-19) 2 at Twins (23-24) 5
W: Blackburn (4-2) L: Lester (3-5) S: Nathan (7)

Dodgers (32-15) 7 at Rockies (18-27) 1
W: Milton (1-0) L: Cook (3-2)

Padres (23-23) 5 at Diamondbacks (20-26) 6
W: Scherzer (2-3) L: Correia (1-3) S: Gutierrez (1)

White Sox (21-24) 4 at Angels (23-22) 2
W: Colon (3-4) L: Saunder (6-3) S: Linebrink (1)

Mariners (21-26) 3 at Athletics (18-25) 4
W: Braden (4-5) L: Batista (2-1) S: Bailey (2)

Braves (23-22) 0 at Giants (22-23) 4
W: Lincecum (4-1) L: Medlen (0-2)

HR LIST
Chris Davis 2 (12)
Jayson Nix 2 (4)
Carlos Pena (16)
Adam Dunn (15)
Mark Teixeira (14)
Justin Morneau (14)
Mark Reynolds (13)
Adam Jones (11)
Torii Hunter (11)
Aubrey Huff (8)
Mark DeRosa (8)
Joey Votto (8)
Colby Rasmus (5)
Ryan Garko (5)
Gary Sheffield (5)
Kosuke Fukudome (5)
Clint Barmes (5)
Chris Duncan (4)
Kelly Shoppach (4)
Laynce Nix (4)
Jose Guillen (4)
Nolan Reimold (3)
Asdrubal Cabrera (2)
Jeff Keppinger (2)
Adam Wainwright (1)
Nick Stavinoha (1)
Bobby Abreu (1)
Chris Burke (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 25

SCOREBOARD
Astros (18-25) 5 at Reds (24-20) 8
W: Harand (5-4) L: Rodriguez (5-3) S: Cordero (12)

Blue Jays (27-21) 1 at Orioles (19-26) 4
W: Guthrie (4-4) L: Tallet (2-3) S: Sherrill (10)

Cardinals (26-19) 0 at Brewers (27-18) 1 - F/10
W: Villanueva (2-3) L: McClellan (2-2)

Yankees (26-19) 11 at Rangers (26-18) 1
W: Hughes (3-2) L: Harrison (4-4)

Tigers (25-18) 13 at Royals (22-23) 1
W: Verlander (5-2) L: Meche (2-5)

Red Sox (27-18) 6 at Twins (22-24) 5
W: Penny (5-1) L: Liriano (2-6) S: Papelbon (12)

Dodgers (31-15) 16 at Rockies (18-26) 6
W: Ohman (1-0) L: De La Rosa (0-5)

Padres (23-22) 9 at Diamondbacks (19-26) 7 - F/10
W: Mujica (2-1) L: Pena (4-2) S: Bell (13)

Mariners (21-25) 1 at Athletics (17-25) 6
W: Anderson (2-4) L: Jakubauskas (3-5) S: Cameron (1)

Braves (23-21) 2 at Giants (21-23) 8
W: Sanchez (2-4) L: Vazquez (4-4)

Rays (23-24) 10 at Indians (18-28) 11
W: Sowers (1-2) L: Isringhausen (0-1)

Marlins (21-25) 5 at Phillies (24-19) 3
W: Volstad (4-3) L: Moyer (3-5) S: Lindstrom (9)

Nationals (13-31) 2 at Mets (24-20) 5
W: Maine (4-3) L: Lannan (2-4) S: Rodriguez (13)

Pirates (21-24) 10 at Cubs (21-22) 8
W: Gorzelanny (2-1) L: Cotts (0-2) S: Burnett (1)

White Sox (20-24) 17 at Angels (23-21) 3
W: Danks (4-3) L: Santana (0-2)

HR LIST
Ryan Howard 2 (12)
Ryan Garko 2 (4)
Adrian Gonzalez (17)
Nelson Cruz (12)
Jermaine Dye (12)
Joe Mauer (11)
Lance Berkman (10)
Michael Cuddyer (8)
Jim Thome (8)
Nate McLouth (8)
Paul Konerko (7)
Chris Snyder (5)
Milton Bradley (5)
Chase Headley (4)
Gary Sheffield (4)
Freddy Sanchez (4)
Jeff Bailey (3)
Kenji Johjima (3)
Gabe Gross (3)
Gerald Laird (2)
Travis Buck (2)
Travis Ishikawa (1)
Wes Helms (1)

Rays/Indians Preview

Happy Memorial day to all our active troops, our retired veterans and obviously God Bless to all that died fighting for our country. Baseball is a huge part of the Memorial Holiday....so let's get to the preview.


The Tampa Bay Rays will travel to Cleveland to play the Indians in a 4 game series starting tonight. The Rays come in at 23-23 for the season - but they are 7-3 in their last 10 and have finally shown flashes of the 2008 team that was AL East Champs. Even though the Rays are at an even .500 - they are only 4 games back of the division leading Boston Red Sox. About 10 days ago - these two teams played a 4 game series in Tampa - and the Rays took 3 out of 4...and that was the start of this impressive run. And now - the biggest, smartest move the Rays have made all season...David Price is been called back up to the big club - and he will make his season debut tonight to open the series. Price was the closer for the Rays in the playoffs in 2008, and he was, how do you say it - what's the word I'm looking for...oh yeah...MONEY!! He was surprisingly sent down to AAA during spring training - and management has obviously swallowed its pride and admitted they were wrong...who are we kidding? Scott Kazmir was put on the 15 day DL and that opened a spot in the rotation. Management admitting they were wrong - like that would ever happen!!

The Indians are headed in the other direction going 4-6 in their last 10 games and sit in last place in the AL Central at 17-28, 8.5 games back of the division leading Detroit Tigers. Look for a similar result in this series from 10 days ago - the Rays taking 3 of 4. Pitching Probables

Mon, May 25 TPA Price (0-0) vs. CLE Carmona (2-4)

Tue, May 26 TPA Garza (4-2) vs. CLE Pavano (4-4)

Wed, May 27 TPA Sonnanstine (3-4) vs. TBA

Thu, May 28 TPA Niemann (4-3) vs. CLE Huff (0-1)

Cardinals/Brewers Preview

Happy Memorial day to all our active troops, our retired veterans and obviously God Bless to all that died fighting for our country. Baseball is a huge part of the Memorial Holiday....so let's get to the preview.

The St. Louis Cardinals travel to Milwaukee to start a 3 game series today against the Brewers. The Cards allowed a late run to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, otherwise they had a chance to have back to back 3 game series sweeps. The Birds swept the Chicago Cubs in the previous series and took 2 out of 3 from the Royals. This turnaround started when Cris Carpenter came off the disabled list - prior to that - the Cardinals were 3-7 in their previous 10 games. The Cardinals and the Brewers played a 3 game series in St. Louis about 10 days ago - and the Brewers swept the Cardinals - so their is a little bit of a revenge factor for the Cards going into this series.

It looks like the Cardinals have the edge in pitching matchups in this series with Carpenter and Adam Wainwright pitching in the 1st 2 games of this series...Probable Starters

Mon, May 25 STL Carpenter (2-0) vs. MLW Gallardo (4-2)

Tue, May 26 STL Wainwright (4-2) vs. Suppan (3-3) - can be seen on ESPN

Wed, May 27 STL Wellemeyer (4-4) vs. Parra (3-5)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 24

SCOREBOARD
Rockies (18-25) 3 at Tigers (24-18) 1
W: Hammel (1-3) L: Willis (1-1) S: Street (7)

Phillies (24-18) 4 at Yankees (25-19) 3 - F/11
W: Condrey (4-0) L: Tomko (0-1)

Indians (17-28) 3 at Reds (23-20) 4 - F/11
W: Fisher (1-0) L: Vizcaino (1-2)

Rays (23-23) 4 at Marlins (20-25) 5 - F/11
W: Sanches (1-0) L: Cormier (0-1)

Blue Jays (27-20) 2 at Braves (23-20) 10
W: Bennett (2-1) L: Camp (0-2)

Mets (23-20) 5 at Red Sox (26-18) 12
W: Wakefield (6-2) L: Redding (0-1)

Orioles (18-26) 5 at Nationals (13-30) 8
W: Villone (2-0) L: Ray (0-1) S: Hanrahan (5)

Pirates (20-24) 4 at White Sox (19-24) 3
W: Grabow (3-0) L: Jenks (0-2) S: Capps (9)

Rangers (26-17) 5 at Astros (18-24) 0
W: McCarthy (4-2) L: Hampton (2-4)

Royals (22-22) 3 at Cardinals (26-18) 2
W: Bannister (4-1) L: Pineiro (5-4) S: Cruz (2)

Cubs (21-21) 2 at Padres (22-22) 7
W: Young (4-2) L: Lilly (5-4)

Diamondbacks (19-25) 2 at Athletics (16-25) 6
W: Outman (2-0) L: Garland (4-3)

Giants (20-23) 4 at Mariners (21-24) 5
W: Hernandez (5-3) L: Zito (1-5) S: Aardsma (6)

Angels (23-20) 10 at Dodgers (30-15) 7
W: Bulger (2-1) L: Billingsley (6-2)

Brewers (26-18) 3 at Twins (22-23) 6
W: Baker (2-5) L: Bush (3-1)

HR LIST
Adam Dunn 2 (14)
Brian McCann 2 (5)
Mark Teixeira (13)
Justin Morneau (13)
Ian Kinsler (12)
Adam Jones (10)
Prince Fielder (10)
Joe Mauer (10)
Mike Cameron (9)
Mike Lowell (8)
Joe Crede (8)
Chad Bartlett (7)
Kevin Youkilis (7)
John Baker (6)
Josh Hamilton (6)
Jerry Hairston Jr. (5)
Kelly Johnson (5)
Jason Giambi (5)
Jarrod Saltalamacchia (5)
Ken Griffey Jr. (5)
Kevin Kouzmanoff (4)
Ramon Castro (3)
Fred Lewis (3)
Adrian Beltre (3)
Reed Johnson (1)
Eric Hinske (1)
Jack Wilson (1)
Brian Anderson (1)
Landon Powell (1)
Jamie Hoffmann (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 23

SCOREBOARD
Royals (21-22) 0 at Cardinals (26-17) 5
W: Lohse (4-3) L: Hochevar (0-2)

Phillies (23-18) 4 at Yankees (25-18) 5
W: Veras (3-1) L: Lidge (0-2)

Rangers (25-17) 6 at Astros (18-23) 3
W: Feldman (3-0) L: Moehler (1-3)

Blue Jays (27-19) 3 at Braves (22-20) 4
W: Lowe (6-2) L: Janssen (0-1) S: Soriano (4)

Rockies (17-25) 4 at Tigers (24-17) 3
W: Marquis (6-3) L: Galarraga (3-4) S: Street (6)

Orioles (18-25) 2 at Nationals (12-30) 1
W: Bass (3-1) L: Tavarez (1-4) S: Sherrill (9)

Pirates (19-24) 0 at White Sox (19-23) 4
W: Richard (1-0) L: Ohlendorf (5-4)

Mets (23-19) 3 at Red Sox (25-18) 2
W: Feliciano (1-1) L: Papelbon (0-1) S: Putz (2)

Indians (17-27) 7 at Reds (22-20) 6
W: Vizcaino (1-1) L: Weathers (0-1) S: Wood (7)

Brewers (26-17) 2 at Twins (21-23) 6
W: Swarzak (1-0) L: Looper (4-3)

Rays (23-22) 10 at Marlins (19-25) 3
W: Balfour (2-0) L: Nunez (2-2)

Diamondbacks (19-24) 8 at Athletics (15-25) 7 - F/11
W: Pena (4-1) L: Breslow (1-3) S: Qualls (11)

Cubs (21-20) 1 at Padres (21-22) 3
W: Geer (1-1) L: Wells (0-1) S: Mujica (1)

Angels (22-20) 4 at Dodgers (30-14) 5 - F/10
W: Broxton (5-0) L: Arredondo (1-1)

Giants (20-22) 5 at Mariners (20-24) 1
W: Cain (5-1) L: Lowe (0-2)

HR LIST
Nelson Cruz 2 (11)
Joey Votto 2 (7)
Raul Ibanez (17)
Hank Blalock (11)
Jermaine Dye (11)
Torii Hunter (10)
Miguel Cabrera (9)
Joe Mauer (9)
Chris Iannetta (8)
Dan Uggla (8)
Alex Rodriguez (7)
Derek Jeter (7)
Mark DeRosa (7)
Joe Crede (7)
Jack Cust (7)
Todd Helton (6)
Derrek Lee (5)
Miguel Tejada (5)
Kelly Johnson (4)
Jason Giambi (4)
Juan Rivera (4)
Skip Schumaker (3)
Alexei Ramirez (3)
Cristian Guzman (2)
Omir Santos (2)
Ramon Hernandez (2)
Nomar Garciaparra (2)
Adam Kennedy (2)
Fred Lewis (2)
John Mayberry Jr. (1)
Geoff Blum (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 22

SCOREBOARD
Orioles (17-25) 4 at Nationals (12-29) 2 - F/12
W: Reimold (2) L: Sherrill (8)

Rockies (16-25) 3 at Tigers (24-16) 4
W: Porcello (5-3) L: Jimenez (3-5) S: Zumaya (1)

Phillies (23-17) 7 at Yankees (24-18) 3
W: Myers (4-2) L: Burnett (2-2)

Indians (16-27) 1 at Reds (22-19) 3
W: Arroyo (6-3) L: Laffey (3-1) S: Cordero (11)

Rays (22-22) 15 at Marlins (19-24) 2
W: Sonnanstine (3-4) L: Nolasco (2-5) S: Thayer (1)

Mets (22-19) 5 at Red Sox (25-17) 3
W: Santana (6-2) L: Matsuzaka (0-2) S: Rodriguez (12)

Blue Jays (27-18) 0 at Braves (21-20) 1
W: Kawakami (3-5) L: Carlson (1-3) S: Gonzalez (7)

Rangers (24-17) 6 at Astros (18-22) 5 - F/10
W: O'Day (2-0) L: Hawkins (1-2) S: Francisco (10)

Brewers (26-16) 3 at Twins (20-23) 11
W: Slowey (6-1) L: Parra (3-5)

Pirates (19-23) 0 at White Sox (18-23) 2
W: Floyd (3-4) L: Duke (5-4) S: Jenks (10)

Royals (21-21) 0 at Cardinals (25-17) 5
W: Wellemeyer (4-4) L: Davies (2-3)

Diamondbacks (18-24) 2 at Athletics (15-24) 1
W: Buckner (1-0) L: Cahill (2-4) S: Rauch (2)

Cubs (21-19) 0 at Padres (20-22) 4
W: Peavy (4-5) L: Zambrano (3-2) S: Bell (12)

Angels (22-19) 3 at Dodgers (29-14) 1
W: Oliver (1-0) L: Wade (0-3) S: Fuentes (12)

Giants (19-22) 1 at Mariners (20-23) 2 - F/12
W: White (1-0) L: Miller (1-1)

HR LIST
Adrian Gonzalez (16)
Raul Ibanez (16)
Carlos Pena (15)
Brandon Inge (12)
Mark Teixeira (12)
Ryan Zimmerman (11)
Nelson Cruz (9)
Lance Berkman (9)
Jayson Werth (8)
Jason Varitek (8)
Grady Sizemore (8)
Hanley Ramirez (8)
Michael Cuddyer (7)
Alex Rodriguez (6)
Derek Jeter (6)
Matt Holliday (6)
Aaron Rowand (5)
Seth Smith (4)
Jarrod Saltalamacchia (4)
Jimmy Rollins (3)
Gary Sheffield (3)
Denard Span (3)
Chris Young (3)
Elvis Andrus (3)
Nolan Reimold (2)
Tyler Greene (2)
Gabe Gross (2)
Alexei Ramirez (2)
Dioner Navarro (2)
Carlos Ruiz (1)

The Battle of Florida Preview

The Tampa Bay Rays and the Florida Marlins will battle it out to see who reigns supreme in the state of Florida. The games will be played at Land Shark Stadium in Miami. The Rays have won 6 of their last 9 games coming into the weekend, and are starting to resemble the team they were in 2008, AL Champions. The Rays started the season 11-1, but have went 8-22 since that torrid start. The Rays will send Andy Sonnanstine (2-4, 7.36) to the mound in the series opener tonight against Ricky Nolasco (2-4, 7.78). Jeff Niemann (4-3, 4.97) will start Saturday's game against TBA. TBA has always been a tough pitcher to face for every team in the league...okay - bad joke...the Marlins pitcher at this point is to be announced. Sunday's finale might be the best pitching matchup in all of baseball that day. James Shields (3-4, 3.43) will toe the rubber for the Rays against Marlins ace Josh Johnson (3-1, 2.54).
This should be a great series, with the Marlins expecting a total crowd of 8 people for the weekend series...sorry - couldn't resist a little more bad humor before the 3 day weekend begins.

Royals/Cards Preview

The St. Louis Cardinals will start a 3 game series against the Kansas City Royals tonight at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals just finished sweeping the Chicago Cubs in a 3 game series, winning the last game of the series last night 3-1. The Cardinals pitching staff only allowed 2 runs in the series and better yet, the Birds got a boost from getting ace Cris Carpenter back, as he pitched 5 shutout innings on Wednesday night. Before the Cubs series, the Cardinals were 3-7 in their last 10 games...so yes, Albert Pujols is the MVP of the team, if not the league, but Carpenter is just as important to this organization. The Cardinals are lucky enough to miss Zack Greinke during this 3 game series, although Greinke has started to look human the last outing or two. If the Cards can win the 1st game of the series - I think they will sweep the weekend I-70 series. The probable pitching mathcups for the series are:

Fri, May 22 KC Davies (2-2, 5.01) vs. STL Wellemeyer (3-4, 5.87)

Sat, May 23 KC Hochevar (0-1, 16.88) vs. STL Lohse (3-3, 4.66)

Sun, May 24 KC Bannister (3-1, 2.75) vs. STL Pineiro (5-3, 3.48)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 21

SCOREBOARD
Phillies (22-17) 12 at Reds (21-19) 5
W: Blanton (2-3) L: Owings (3-5)

Rangers (23-17) 3 at Tigers (23-16) 4
W: Jackson (4-2) L: Millwood (4-4) S: Rodney (8)

Twins (19-23) 20 at White Sox (17-23) 1
W: Blackburn (3-2) L: Colon (2-4)

Indians (16-26) 8 at Royals (21-20) 3
W: Pavano (4-4) L: Ramirez (0-2) S: Betancourt (1)

Athletics (15-23) 5 at Rays (21-22) 6
W: Nelson (1-0) L: Ziegler (0-1)

Rockies (16-24) 9 at Braves (20-20) 0
W: Cook (3-1) L: Medlen (0-1)

Pirates (19-22) 4 at Nationals (12-28) 5
W: Tavarez (1-3) L: Gorzelanny (1-1) S: Hanrahan (4)

Orioles (16-25) 4 at Yankees (24-17) 7
W: Aceves (3-0) L: Eaton (2-5) S: Rivera (9)

Diamondbacks (17-24) 4 at Marlins (19-23) 3
W: Zavada (1-0) L: Martinez (0-1) S: Qualls (10)

Blue Jays (27-17) 1 at Red Sox (25-16) 5
W: Lester (3-4) L: Ray (1-2)

Brewers (26-15) 4 at Astros (18-21) 3
W: McClung (1-1) L: Fulchino (0-1) S: Hoffman (11)

Cubs (21-18) 1 at Cardinals (24-17) 3
W: Wainwright (4-2) L: Marshall (2-3) S: Franklin (11)

Giants (19-21) 2 at Padres (19-22) 3
W: Bell (2-0) L: Wilson (2-3)

Angels (21-19) 3 at Mariners (19-23) 0
W: Saunders (6-2) L: Bedard (2-2) S: Fuentes (11)

HR LIST
Raul Ibanez (15)
Albert Pujols (14)
Jason Bay (13)
Mark Reynolds (12)
Curtis Granderson (11)
Chase Utley (11)
Ryan Howard (10)
Joe Mauer (8)
Ben Zobrist (8)
Robinson Cano (8)
Brandon Phillips (7)
Adam LaRoche (7)
Nick Markakis (7)
Dan Uggla (7)
Joe Crede (6)
Michael Cuddyer (6)
Jason Bartlett (6)
Brian Roberts (6)
Todd Helton (5)
Hideki Matsui (5)
Hunter Pence (5)
Brian Barden (4)
Chris Snyder (4)
Miguel Tejada (4)
Howie Kendrick (4)
Aaron Rowand (4)
Juan Rivera (3)
David Murphy (2)
Clete Thomas (1)
Matt Tolbert (1)
Greg Dobbs (1)
Gary Matthews Jr. (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 20

SCOREBOARD
Rockies (15-24) 4 at Braves (20-19) 12
W: Vazquez (4-3) L: De La Rosa (0-4)

Rangers (23-16) 3 at Tigers (22-16) 5
W: Verlander (4-2) L: Harrison (4-3) S: Rodney (7)

Diamondbacks (15-24) 6 at Marlins (19-21) 8
W: Volstad (3-3) L: Davis (2-6) S: Lindstrom (8)

Orioles (16-24) 4 at Yankees (23-17) 11
W: Hughes (2-2) L: Guthrie (3-4) S: Rivera (8)

Pirates (19-21) 2 at Nationals (11-28) 1
W: Grabow (2-0) L: Hanrahan (0-2) S: Capps (8)

Athletics (15-22) 7 at Rays (20-22) 6
W: Anderson (1-4) L: Kazmir (4-4) S: Ziegler (5)

Phillies (21-17) 1 at Reds (21-18) 5
W: Harang (4-4) L: Moyer (3-4)

Blue Jays (27-16) 3 at Red Sox (24-16) 8
W: Penny (4-1) L: Cecil (2-1)

Diamondbacks (16-24) 11 at Marlins (19-22) 9 - F/13
W: Qualls L: Nunez S: Rauch

Cubs (21-17) 1 at Cardinals (23-17) 2
W: Carpenter (2-0) L: Dempster (3-3) S: Franklin (10)

Brewers (25-15) 4 at Astros (18-20) 6
W: Rodriguez (5-2) L: Gallardo (4-2) S: Sampson (2)

Indians (15-26) 6 at Royals (21-19) 5
W: Laffey (3-0) L: Ponson (1-5) S: Wood (6)

Twins (18-23) 4 at White Sox (17-22) 7
W: Danks (3-3) L: Liriano (2-5) S: Jenks (9)

Giants (19-20) 1 at Padres (18-22) 2
W: Gaudin (1-3) L: Sanchez (1-4) S: Bell (11)

Angels (20-19) 0 at Mariners (19-22) 1
W: Jakubauskas (3-4) L: Santana (0-1) S: Aardsma (5)

Mets (21-19) 1 at Dodgers (29-13) 2
W: Leach (1-0) L: Putz (1-3) S: Broxton (11)

HR LIST
Jason Varitek 2 (7)
Carlos Pena (14)
Raul Ibanez (14)
Jason Bay (12)
Brandon Inge (11)
Jermaine Dye (10)
Adam Jones (9)
Nick Swisher (9)
Nelson Cruz (8)
Mike Cameron (8)
Robinson Cano (7)
Mike Lowell (7)
Paul Konerko (6)
Dan Uggla (5)
Melky Cabrera (5)
Michael Cuddyer (5)
Yunel Escobar (4)
Ryan Raburn (3)
Chad Tracy (3)
Chris Snyder (3)
Ty Wigginton (3)
Miguel Tejada (3)
Kevin Kouzmanoff (3)
Willy Aybar (2)
Wilkin Ramirez (1)
Nolan Reimold (1)
David Ortiz (1)
Ryan Hanigan (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 19

SCOREBOARD
Rockies (15-23) 1 at Braves (19-19) 8
W: Jurrjens (4-2) L: Hammel (0-3)

Rangers (23-15) 0 at Tigers (21-16) 4
W: Willis (1-0) L: McCarthy (3-2)

Orioles (16-23) 1 at Yankees (22-17) 9
W: Sabathia (4-3) L: Bergesen (1-2)

Pirates (18-21) 8 at Nationals (11-27) 5 - F/10
W: Gorzelanny (1-0) L: Beimel (0-3)

Athletics (14-22) 4 at Rays (20-21) 1 - F/11
W: Casilla (1-1) L: Wheeler (1-1)

Phillies (21-16) 4 at Reds (20-18) 3
W: Hamels (2-2) L: Cueto (4-2) S: Lidge (8)

Blue Jays (27-15) 1 at Red Sox (23-16) 2
W: Wakefield (5-2) L: Tallet (2-2) S: Papelbon (11)

Diamondbacks (15-23) 5 at Marlins (18-21) 3
W: Garland (4-2) L: Johnson (3-1) S: Qualls (9)

Brewers (25-14) 4 at Astros (17-20) 2
W: Bush (3-0) L: Ortiz (2-2) S: Hoffman (10)

Indians (14-26) 5 at Royals (21-18) 6
W: Farnsworth (1-3) L: Wood (1-2)

Twins (18-22) 2 at White Sox (16-22) 6
W: Buehrle (6-1) L: Baker (1-5)

Cubs (21-16) 0 at Cardinals (22-17) 3
W: Pineiro (5-3) L: Lilly (5-3)

Giants (19-19) 1 at Padres (17-22) 2
W: Young (3-2) L: Zito (1-4) S: Bell (10)

Angels (20-18) 6 at Mariners (18-22) 5
W: Palmer (5-0) L: Hernandez (4-3) S: Fuentes (10)

Mets (21-18) 3 at Dodgers (28-13) 5
W: Billingsley (6-1) L: Maine (3-3) S: Broxton (10)

HR LIST
Adam Dunn (12)
Jay Bruce (12)
Mark Teixeira (11)
Ryan Howard (9)
Mike Jacobs (9)
Mark Reynolds (9)
Jermaine Dye (9)
James Blake (9)
Hanley Ramirez (7)
Joe Mauer (7)
Alex Rodriguez (5)
Matt Holliday (5)
Mark Teahan (5)
Paul Konerko (5)
Scott Hairston (5)
Colby Rasmus (4)
Jerry Hairston Jr. (4)
Ken Griffey Jr. (4)
Kevin Millar (3)
Kelly Shoppach (3)
Chase Hundley (3)
Andy LaRoche (2)
Ronny Cedeno (2)
Willy Aybar (1)
Russ Ortiz (1)

Cards/Cubs Preview

The St. Louis Cardinals welcome the Chicago Cubs to St. Louis with a 3 game series starting tonight at Busch Stadium. The last time these two teams met was a series near the end of April - the Cardinals were sitting in 1st place and getting great pitching and some timely hitting and took 2 out of 3 from the Cubs that weekend. Now - the Cardinals are 4-10 in their last 14, have dropped to 3rd in the NL Central and were swept at home by the Milwaukee Brewers this past weekend and their manager, Tony LaRussa admitted after the game Sunday that his team is struggling.

The Cubs come in winning 5 out of their last 6 games and are starting to look like the team everyone thought they would be at the beginning of the season. And they have been doing this without All Star 3rd Baseman Aramis Ramirez who is out at least 4 more weeks with a dislocated shoulder. When healthy, the Cubs are the class of the NL Central - and should runaway with the division in the 2nd half.

Pitching Probables for the Series

Tues May 19, 2009 CHC (Lilly) @ STL (Pineiro)
Wed May 20, 2009 CHC (Dempster) @ STL (Carpenter)
Thurs May 21, 2009 CHC (Marshall) @ STL (Wainwright)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 18

SCOREBOARD
White Sox (15-22) 2 at Blue Jays (27-14) 3
W: Carlson (2-1) L: Dotel (1-1) S: Downs (5)

Rockies (15-22) 5 at Braves (18-19) 1
W: Marquis (5-3) L: Lowe (5-3)

Twins (18-21) 6 at Yankees (21-17) 7
W: Pettitte (4-1) L: Perkins (1-3) S: Coke (1)

Pirates (17-21) 12 at Nationals (11-26) 7
W: Ohlendorf (5-3) L: Mock (0-2)

Athletics (13-22) 4 at Rays (20-20) 13
W: Niemann (5-3) L: Gallager (1-2)

Diamondbacks (14-23) at Marlins (18-20) - POSTPONED

Brewers (24-14) 8 at Cardinals (21-17) 4
W: Looper (4-2) L: Lohse (3-3)

Angels (19-18) 10 at Mariners (18-21) 6
W: Lackey (1-0) L: Washburn (3-3)

Mets (21-17) 2 at Dodgers (27-13) 3 - F/11
W: Troncoso (1-0) L: Stokes (1-2)

HR LIST
Mark Teixeira 2 (10)
Kendry Morales 2 (8)
Ryan Zimmerman (10)
Russell Branyan (10)
Jim Thome (7)
Jack Cust (6)
Michael Cuddyer (4)
Alex Rodriguez (4)
Nick Johnson (4)
Colby Rasmus (3)
Craig Monroe (3)
Kevin Millar (2)
Skip Schumaker (2)
Denard Span (2)
Orlando Cabrera (2)
Juan Rivera (2)
Mat Gamel (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 17

SCOREBOARD
Athletics (13-21) 7 at Tigers (20-16) 11
W: Miner (3-1) L: Cahill (2-3)

Brewers (23-14) 8 at Cardinals (21-16) 2
W: Parra (3-4) L: Wellemeyer (3-4)

Twins (18-20) 2 at Yankees (20-17) 3 - F/10
W: Aceves (2-0) L: Crain (2-2)

Dodgers (26-13) 12 at Marlins (18-20) 5
W: Kershaw (2-3) L: Koronka (0-2)

White Sox (15-21) 2 at Blue Jays (26-14) 8
W: Halladay (8-1) L: Floyd (2-4)

Indians (14-25) 5 at Rays (19-20) 7
W: Sonnanstine (2-4) L: Huff (0-1) S: Percival (6)

Phillies (20-16) 8 at Nationals (11-25) 6
W: Escalona (1-0) L: Tavarez (0-3) S: Lidge (7)

Angels (18-18) 0 at Rangers (23-14) 3
W: Jennings (1-1) L: Weaver (3-2) S: O'Day (1)

Rockies (14-22) 4 at Pirates (16-21) 11
W: Duke (5-3) L: Embree (1-2)

Astros (17-19) 6 at Cubs (21-15) 5
W: Moehler (1-2) L: Harden (4-2) S: Sampson (1)

Orioles (16-22) 4 at Royals (20-18) 7
W: Cruz (3-0) L: Johnson (2-2)

Reds (20-17) 1 at Padres (16-22) 3
W: Peavy (3-5) L: Arroyo (5-3)

Red Soc (22-16) 2 at Mariners (18-20) 3
W: Aardsma (1-1) L: Ramirez (4-1)

Mets (21-16) 0 at Giants (19-18) 2
W: Cain (4-1) L: Pelfrey (4-1) S: Wilson (9)

Diamondbacks (14-23) at Braves (18-18) - POSTPONED

HR LIST
Ben Francisco 2 (4)
Alfonso Soriano (12)
Aaron Hill (11)
Curtis Granderson (10)
Johnny Damon (10)
Prince Fielder (9)
Russell Branyan (9)
Adam Lind (7)
Nate McLouth (7)
Cody Ross (6)
JD Drew (6)
Alex Rios (5)
Ivan Rodriguez (5) - 300th career HR
Derrek Lee (4)
Ramon Santiago (3)
Alex Rodriguez (3)
Chris Dickerson (2)
Kevin Kouzmanofff (2)
Orlando Cabrera (1)
Adam Kennedy (1)
Juan Castro (1)

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 16

Interesting stat of the day, yesterday was the first day of the season that at least one player did not hit their first home run of the season.

SCOREBOARD
Brewers (22-14) 1 at Cardinals (21-15) 0
W: Suppan (3-3) L: Wainwright (3-2) S: Hoffman (9)

Twins (18-19) 4 at Yankees (19-17) 6 - F/11
W: Aceves (1-0) L: Breslow (1-2)

White Sox (15-20) 1 at Blue Jays (25-14) 2
W: Ray (1-1) L: Linebrink (1-2) S: Downs (4)

Indians (14-24) 2 at Rays (18-20) 4
W: Garza (4-2) L: Pavano (3-4) S: Nelson (2)

Astros (16-19) 4 at Cubs (21-14) 5
W: Marshall (2-2) L: Hawkins (1-1)

Angels (18-17) 3 at Rangers (22-14) 5
W: Padilla (3-2) L: Loux (2-3) S: Wilson (2)

Phillies (18-16) 8 at Nationals (11-23) 5
W: Myers (3-2) L: Olsen (1-4) S: Lidge (6)

Athletics (13-20) 1 at Tigers (19-16) 9
W: Porcello (4-3) L: Braden (3-5)

Mets (21-15) 9 at Giants (18-18) 6
W: Santana (5-2) L: Johnson (3-4) S: Putz (1)

Orioles (16-21) 3 at Royals (19-18) 2
W: Hill (1-0) L: Davies (2-2) S: Sherrill (7)

Dodgers (25-13) 3 at Marlins (18-19) 6
W: Miller (1-1) L: Weaver (2-1) S: Lindstrom (7)

Red Sox (22-15) 5 at Mariners (17-20) 3
W: Beckett (4-2) L: Olson (0-1) S: Papelbon (10)

Diamondbacks (14-23) 12 at Braves (18-18) 0
W: Scherzer (1-3) L: Kawakami (2-5)

Rockies (14-21) 4 at Pirates (15-21) 7
W: Burnett (1-1) L: Belisle (1-1) S: Capps (7)

Phillies (19-16) 7 at Nationals (11-24) 5
W: Carpenter (1-0) L: Cabrera (0-5) S: Condrey (1)

Reds (20-16) 5 at Padres (15-22) 6 - F/16
W: Perdomo (1-0) L: Owings (3-4)

HR LIST
Raul Ibanez 3 (13) - 2 HR in Game 1, 1 HR in Game 2
Justin Morneau (12)
Jay Bruce (11)
Jason Bay (11)
Ryan Zimmerman (9)
Mark Teixeira (8)
Carlos Lee (8)
Lance Berkman (8)
Ryan Howard (8)
Jayson Werth (7)
Joe Mauer (6)
Josh Willingham (6)
Nate McLouth (6)
Jason Varitek (5)
John Baker (5)
Corey Hart (4)
Micah Hoffpauir (4)
Clint Barmes (4)
Laynce Nix (3)
Edgar Gonzalez (3)
Aaron Rowand (3)
Alex Rodriguez (2)
Brian Giles (2)
BJ Upton (2)
Ryan Raburn (2)
Jeff Bailey (2)
Yuniesky Betancourt (2)
Chris Snyder (2)
Nick Hundley (2)

Kansas City Royals Preview

Well I'm back after studying for finals. There has not been much to be happy about for the Royals as of late. I'm writing this in the middle of a four game series against the Orioles where KC took lost the first one Thursday, and then won the game last night. Before that win the KC was 6-6 out the last 12, with a 6 game win streak to begin and a 6 game losing streak to end. Pitching was the main problem in the losses, minus Zack Greinke only giving up one where the offense decided to sit the game out. Speaking of Zack, he is up to 7-1 and his ERA has only jumped to a whopping .60. Mike Jacobs just keeps launching the ball over the fence, and last night saw the Royals finally pick up the offensive pace. While Detroit is technically tied with us now in the Central division, Kansas City looks to win more in these next few games. On a Bullpen update, because Joakim Soria was put on the DL, Luke Hochevar has come back from Triple-A Omaha and his first start was, well, horrendous. He was only in 2 innings and gave up 8 earned runs. The Royals lost 3-12 after keeping the previous 3 losses very close (including Greinke's 0-1 game). Now on to the rest of the series at Kauffman Stadium.

Game 3
Saturday May 16, 2009 at 6:10pm CT vs. Baltimore Orioles
KAN Kyle Davies (2-1), vs. BAL Rich Hill (1-0)

Game 4
Sunday May 17, 2009 at 1:10pm CT vs. Baltimore Orioles
KAN Luke Hochevar (0-1), vs. BAL Koji Uehara (2-3)


Hopefully Hochevar can regain his confidence after his last start, and the Royals can again start a multiple game win streak. After this series Kansas City will be up against the Indians who are last in the division but always seem to be a tough team to play. Then on to our National League rivals the St. Louis Cardinals on the 22nd to start some inter-league play.

Major League Baseball Scoreboard May 15

SCOREBOARD
Athletics (13-19) 1 at Tigers (18-16) 14
W: Jackson (3-2) L: Anderson (0-4)

Twins (18-18) 4 at Yankees (18-17) 5
W: Veras (2-1) L: Nathan (1-1)

Phillies (17-16) 10 at Nationals (11-22) 6 - F/12
W: Happ (2-0) L: Wells (0-1)

White Sox (15-19) 3 at Blue Jays (24-14) 8
W: Cecil (2-0) L: Danks (2-3)

Rockies (14-20) 3 at Pirates (14-21) 1
W: Embree (1-1) L: Capps (0-3) S: Street (5)

Indians (14-23) 7 at Rays (17-20) 8
W: Wheeler (1-0) L: Vizcaino (0-1)

Dodgers (25-12) 6 at Marlins (17-19) 4
W: Weaver (2-0) L: Volstad (2-3) S: Broxton (9)

Angels (18-16) 8 at Rangers (21-14) 10
W: Millwood (4-3) L: Saunders (5-2)

Diamondbacks (13-23) 3 at Braves (18-17) 4
W: Gonzalez (2-0) L :Pena (3-1)

Mets (20-15) 8 at Giants (18-17) 6
W: Stokes (1-1) L: Wilson (2-2) S: Rodriguez (11)

Reds (20-15) 3 at Padres (14-22) 5
W: Correia (1-2) L: Harang (3-4) S: Bell (9)

Red Sox (21-15) 4 at Mariners (17-19) 5
W: Jakubauskas (2-4) L: Lester (2-4) S: Aardsma (4)

Orioles (15-21) 1 at Royals (19-17) 8
W: Greinke (7-1) L: Eaton (2-4)

Brewers (21-14) at Cardinals (21-14) - POSTPONED (Rescheduled for Monday)

Astros (16-18) at Cubs (20-14) - POSTPONED (Rescheduled for July 30)

HR LIST
Justin Morneau 2 (11)
Ian Kinsler 2 (11)
Ichiro Suzuki 2 (4)
Adrian Gonzalez (15)
Brandon Inge (10)
Aaron Hill (10)
Jermaine Dye (8)
James Blake (8)
Mike Jacobs (8)
Ryan Howard (7)
Grady Sizemore (7)
Ben Zobrist (7)
Brad Hawpe (6)
Kendry Morales (6)
Joe Mauer (5)
Derek Jeter (5)
Shin-Soo Choo (5)
Cody Ross (5)
Josh Hamilton (5)
Joey Votto (5)
Paul Konerko (4)
Andruw Jones (4)
Chipper Jones (4)
Miguel Olivo (3)
Brett Gardner (2)
Stephen Drew (2)
Ryan Raburn (1)
BJ Upton (1)
Xavier Paul (1)
Erick Aybar (1)
Fred Lewis (1)