Happy Trade Deadline Day!

Depending on which team you're rooting for, anyway.

Some big names are switching colors as we speak. And the Yankees, in the middle of all this commotion, have made the grand trade of ... Scott Proctor for Wilson Betemit.

It's official as of around noon today. Pending a review of medical records, Proctor will be sent to the Dodgers for Betemit. ESPN reports are trying to sell this as an insurance policy if A-Rod decides to opt out of his contract at the end of the season. Trading Rodriguez for Betemit at third base is somewhat laughable, but who knows? The guy is only twenty-five. As of right now, I have no clue what they do with him. Granted, the Dodgers aren't exactly a team I perk up about watching. Reports are saying that Betemit has little-to-no experience at first base, so it seems that Andy Phillips should get through today without sweating. My guess would be that Chris Basak (who I didn't even realize was back on the major league roster) catches a shuttle down to S/WB and Betemit becomes a source of power on the bench.

I guess. Do they pinch-hit him for Phillips? Or use him at first and bring in Phillips as a late-innings replacement? I guess he provides a late-inning power option, but that will mean carrying Betemit, Cairo, and Duncan on the roster for the time being. Betemit has played third base for much of his major league career, but it isn't like A-Rod is going to need to be spelled much this year unless there's a blowout.

This all seems like overkill, and it's only going to become more convoluted when Giambi and Mientkiewicz are ready to go. But for now, I guess we'll wait and see how the cards fall.

Proctor, on the other hand, finds his career on a loop. He began in the Dodgers organization, was traded to the Yankees in the deal for Robin Ventura, and now has been traded back to the West Coast. Rough timing, given that his wife just gave birth to their third child one week ago. But there's no emotion in the business of baseball. Still, Proctor was one of the most fan-friendly guys on the team. Don't let the bonfires and near-brawls fool you. He was out on the right field wall before just about every game at the Stadium signing autographs for fans. His recent trend of control issues and giving up homeruns won't be missed, but he as a person will be. Best of luck from here on out.

As for today, there's baseball to be played!

RHP Mike Mussina (5-7, 4.77 ERA) vs. RHP Jose Contreras (5-13, 6.22 ERA)

The Yankees try to rebound from a series loss (or split, if you want to count that suspended game) against the Orioles with a series at the Stadium against the White Sox. Mussina is coming off of a decent outing in Kansas City on July 25th. He allowed one earned run and six hits over 5.2 innings to pick up the win.

Contreras, on the other hand, is coming off a rough outing against Detroit. He lasted 4.2 innings and gave up 9 earned runs on 12 hits, including two homeruns. Contreras has faced the Yankees twice this season. Both of those outings have been losses, though he didn't pitch particularly badly. In the first outing, May 16th, he lasted 6.2 innings and allowed two earned runs on five hits. In the second, June 7th, Contreras allowed 3 runs in 7.1 innings.

Other match-ups this evening:

LHP Erik Bedard (10-4, 3.05 ERA) and the Orioles travel to Fenway park to take on Josh Beckett and the Red Sox. No matter what you think of these two teams, this is going to be an outstanding pitching match-up.

LHP Matt Chico (4-6, 4.78 ERA) and the Nationals host lefty Bobby Livingston and the Reds at RFK. Right now, the Nationals are .5 games ahead of the Reds in the standings. It's a battle for pride in DC for this series.

LHP Tom Glavine (9-6, 4.51 ERA) goes for his 300th win tonight in Milwaukee as the Mets take on Jeff Suppan and the Brewers. Both teams are targetted at the top of their divisions. This series could do a lot to determine new leaders in the NL East or Central.

RHP Justin Germano (6-5, 4.20 ERA) and the Padres attempt to rebound in the NL West as they face last year's NL Cy Young winner Brandon Webb and the Diamondbacks.

Belated hiatus

I should have left this earlier, but rushing to make a flight on-time will do that to you. I'll be away until Monday or Tuesday. Visiting some family in Virginia. We're about to leave in an hour or so for Baltimore, and tomorrow we'll be infiltrating enemy territory with the interlocking NY. Today, we'll come in peace and sample some of the fine seafood Baltimore has to offer.

NYY: Game 2: Yankees def. Royals

Chien-Ming Wang pitched well enough to win last night, but he wasn't his usual dominating self. Given the trend of no run support earlier this season, I'm not sure Yankee pitchers know what to do when they're given a lead...

Final Score: Yankees 9, Royals 4
WP: Wang (11-5, 3.57 ERA)
LP: Elarton (2-4, 10.46 ERA)

Well, Elarton came as advertised. He only lasted 1.2 innings for the Royals, giving up seven earned runs on six hits with two walks. Kansas City attempted to nibble away, with two runs scored in the bottom of the 2nd and 5th, but Wang was able to minimize the damage through six innings. Myers, Farnsworth, and Bruney pitched a scoreless 7th, 8th, and 9th respectively.

The amusement of the night came from Robinson Cano, who walked a career-high three times in one game. He was jokingly given the line-up card by Joe Torre afterwards.

This was a looooong game, around four hours. The Yankees kept their recent line-up balance, with every Yankee except Melky Cabrera getting at least one hit and every Yankee except Andy Phillips and Melky Cabrera scoring at least one run. The hitter of the night was Derek Jeter, who went 4-for-6 and scored a run.

As for tonight?

RHP Mike Mussina (4-7, 4.97 ERA) vs. RHP Gil Meche (7-6, 3.63 ERA)

A real test for the Yankees tonight. In these previous games, the Yankees haven't been facing the most quality pitching. Gil Meche will be a challenge for them. The all-star is coming off of a nice outing at Detroit, recording a win after allowing only two runs in seven innings.

Mussina, on the other hand, struggled in his last start. He lasted only 4.2 innings, his shortest since going four innings in his first start of the season. In those 4.2 innings, Mussina allowed six earned runs on seven hits. The line-ups aren't up yet, but I assume they'll insert Jose Molina into the mix tonight to see if they can work up a rapport between Mussina and Molina in the same way they built one between Mussina and Nieves. Jorge has been catching 9 innings in blowout games lately. He could use the break.

Injury news: Jason Giambi will begin his minor league rehab assignment on Friday night with Class A Tampa, according to Peter Abraham. Brian Cashman has said that there's no timetable as of right now for Giambi's return. One would assume the earliest we would see him is mid-to-late August. The discussions have already begun as to what this will mean for the club as it currently stands now. Obviously, I think it means Shelley Duncan returns to the minor leagues unless he really makes himself a fixture over the next few weeks. We'll see him again in September, but Giambi fills that "guy with a ton of power who shouldn't be playing the field" role for the team.

Where Giambi fits in, with Johnny Damon currently occupying the DH role, is an interesting question. As much of an upgrade as Melky Cabrera is over Johnny Damon in the field, it's hard to imagine the Yankees permanently returning Damon to CF, Giambi to DH, and Cabrera to the bench. But money is also a factor in these decisions. If they choose to stick with Cabrera in CF, the person most affected by Giambi's return will be Andy Phillips. I assume they would either try to plug Damon or Giambi in at first base, with Phillips available to come off the bench as a late-inning replacement. Either that or Phillips could risk a demotion back to AAA, with Cairo standing as the first base replacement. But with Mientkiewicz not yet on rehab assignment, I don't think there's a chance of Phillips being shipped off entirely yet.

There's no easy answer here, because there are a lot of deserving people on the roster right now who will be affected by Giambi's return. Then again, if Giambi is healthy, who wouldn't want his bat in an already potent Yankee line-up? The Yankees will have to evaluate how Phillips and Cabrera are progressing as everyday players. They'll also have to evaluate whether Damon is healthy enough to play the field more than once or twice a week. Same with Giambi at first base. I can see them wanting to move Phillips to the bench before they move Cabrera, but that all depends on Giambi and Damon.

Down on the farm: S/WB was back to playing those familiar Louisville Bats last night. The Yankees beat Louisville 4-0. Phil Hughes, making a rehab start for Scranton, had a good night. Six innings, two hits, one walk, and seven strikeouts with no earned runs. It sounds like Hughes will make at least one more start for Scranton to raise his pitch count closer to 90-100 pitches. Then, the orgainzation will evaluate whether Hughes is ready to rejoin the rotation.

Steven White ate up the last three innings in the S/WB win with a nice performance: 30 pitches, no hits, no walks, one strikeout, no earned runs. He recorded his first save of the season.

Tonight, the Yankees are at home again to take on the Bats. Making the start for Scranton? It's the anticipated AAA debut of Joba Chamberlain. The orgainzation hasn't written off the idea of bringing Chamberlain up as late-inning bullpen help (ala Jonathan Papelbon), but for right now they want to see what he does on the AAA level.

Edit 7:24: So much for my assumptions. Jose Molina will not be starting tonight as part of the battery with Mike Mussina. Instead, it will be Jorge Posada yet again. Could that mean Molina tomorrow? With Igawa? I'm not sure if Molina has some numbers in his favor tomorrow, facing left-hander Jorge De La Rosa. But still, strange decision. Either that, or Molina won't see action at all until the weekend series in Baltimore.

Bad news

Some bad news for San Diego fans. On a positive note, the Padres ended a 4-game losing streak with a win last night over Colorado.

But Padres' fans are collectively holding their breath as one of their two young aces, Chris Young, was pulled from the game right before the bottom of the 3rd inning with an injury. It turns out that he has suffered a strained oblique muscle on his left side. Young has never been on the DL during his major league career. He is listed from day-to-day currently. As of right now, the Padres have not ruled out returning on regular rest for Young, but it will all depend on how he feels over the next few days.

The Padres must have been thrilled to have made the exchange between Royce Ring and Justin Hampson a short time ago. Hampson pitched a gem in relief and had earned the win that was eventually blown for him by the rest of the bullpen. Heath Bell, who was credited with the blown save, also picked up the victory when the Padres rallied in the top of the 8th inning.

Here's a peeve of mine: I hate when the pitcher who blows the save is able to record the win if the offense rallies late. It's like a reward for failure.

Does make for a funny Dugout though.

The big blow came in the first inning: a three-run homer from Mike Cameron. Adrian Gonzalez's RBI double and Khalil Greene's sac fly put the game away late.

Tomorrow, the Padres continue their series in Colorado. Justin Germano (6-4, 3.77 ERA) will aim to pick up another W for SD as he takes on Rockies starter Aaron Cook. That will air at 3:05pm ET. Not that many people on the East Coast will be watching that game.

Edit 3:58pm: RHP Clay Hensley has been recalled from the Padres' AAA-affiliate Portland, in exchange for OF Terrmel Sledge. With the Young injury and Hampson being used for three innings last night, I'm sure the Padres wanted to have an extra arm available in the bullpen. Hensley has not appeared in the major leagues since May 2nd, when he suffered a hamstring injury in a game against the Nationals. His spot in the rotation was claimed by Padres rookie Justin Germano. Hensley has struggled in the minor leagues with shoulder issues, which may have originated from blister problems early in the season.

Edit 5:00pm: Wow, that game turned ugly in a hurry.

Edit 7:27pm: After speculation that began long before this season, Scott Linebrink has finally been traded from the Padres. He has been acquired by the Brewers in exchange for left-handed reliever Joe Thatcher and prospects Will Inman and Steve Garrison. Probably a good deal for both organizations, if Linebrink is able to help stabilize that Milwaukee bullpen. Thatcher is only 25 years old, while Inman and Garrison are both 20 years old. MLB.com makes it sound like Thatcher will be going straight into the Padres' major league bullpen. No idea what level of the minor leagues Garrison and Inman will be assigned to yet.

Edit 7:37: That's what I get for not looking around first. According to Sign On San Diego, Garrison will report to AA-San Antonio and Inman will report to A-Lake Elsinore.

Assorted News

Here I was saying that Ronnie Belliard was the most likely of the Nats on the trading block to be shipped out. Oops. The Nationals announced today that they've signed Belliard to a two-year extension! I'm not sure about the details of that deal, such as how much he's being played. I wonder if this makes him the new everyday second baseman? (Not that he hasn't been there most of the time this season anyway, with the injury to Guzman moving Felipe Lopez over to SS).

I don't mind the move though. Belliard has really come through with his bat for the Nationals. He's a veteran presence on a team with a lot of younger guys, and he's been slick overall in the field. Still a surprising move, at least on my end.

Not at all surprising is Padres catcher Michael Barrett being suspended one day after his suspension in Philadelphia. No word yet on if Barrett will appeal. He might as well serve now and get it over with. Doesn't Josh Bard usually catch Chris Young anyway?

Good and bad news for the Orioles! (Isn't that always the case?) Miguel Tejada has been medically cleared for a return to baseball. Tejada has been on the DL since June, when he was hit by a pitch in a game against the Padres. The DL stint snapped Tejada's streak of playing in 1,152 straight games. There's a chance that Tejada could be reactivated from the DL as early as this weekend's series against the Yankees.

Now, the bad news. Orioles closer Chris Ray is hurting and it doesn't seem to be getting better. Ray has reportedly been pitching with an elbow spur for some time now. An MRI revealed inflammation of his elbow. He'll throw a side session on Wednesday, and depending on those results the team will make a decision whether or not to put Ray on the DL.

Given all the issues with the bullpen this year for the Orioles, it's just one thing after all the others.

Final thing, with the Yankees. As expected, Bobby Abreu will be back in the line-up against Kansas City tonight. Johnny Damon will be the DH, and Shelley Duncan will be available off the bench. I know that decision has upset some fans, who like the energy Shelley brings to the team. But let's face it, if your choice is between having Shelley Duncan in the line-up or a healthy & hitting Johnny Damon in the line-up? You have to take Damon. Simple as that.

Cool thing: I went to one of the Yankee clubhouse stores in the city today (the W 49th St/7th Ave location). It was relatively small, but still a nice stop-off. I got a tank top and a new Yankee cap for my trip to Baltimore for Sunday afternoon's game. When I arrived, it was pretty quiet. Just me, another shopper, and the employees. But within a few minutes, the store was filled with a group of young Taiwanese tourists. They were obviously excited. A few of the girls broke out their digital cameras and took pictures of each other wearing Yankee gear. The most popular item? Any and all Chien-Ming Wang attire. It's always neat to see proof that the love for this team is a worldwide phenomenon.

Odds n' Ends

Just a few things sandwiched into one, rather than making a whole post for each.

First, there won't be many times where you'll see a blog mainly dedicated to the Yankees rooting for the Red Sox. But there's no denying that Jon Lester coming back for the Red Sox with a victory is a great story. No matter where the line in the sand is, anyone can cheer for the successes of a guy coming back from a year-long battle with cancer.

Watch out! Even with a 2-2 split in DC this weekend, Colorado is lingering around the top like a bad habit in the NL West. And the previously dominant Padres are entering one of their first prolonged slumps of the season. With their loss last night, the Padres have lost four straight. This is in no way the fault of Greg Maddux, who was in line for a win after going six innings and giving up two earned runs. But the bullpen faltered. Scott Linebrink came into the bottom of the 8th inning and proceeded to cough up four runs, three of them on a homerun from Home Run Derby participant Matt Holliday. The fourth run charged to Linebrink followed after he'd been exchanged for Cla Meredith, on a two-run homer from Brad Hawpe.

The Padres haven't won since chris Young's 1-0 gem of a victory against the Phillies, so it makes sense that San Diego would have to turn to Young as the stopper for this losing streak. Young carries his league-leading 1.85 ERA into Colorado to face RHP Ubaldo Jimenez. Young's only start of the season against Colorado was a victory back on April 20th. He went seven innings and allowed only one earned run on four hits with seven strikeouts.

Control will be a fun thing to watch in Baltimore Tuesday night, as righty Daniel Cabrera takes on Scott Kazmir and the Devil Rays. Cabrera will be attempting to win his first game since June 22nd in Arizona. His last two starts have been no decisions. Cabrera allowed five earned runs in each. Cabrera's one start against the Devil Rays so far this season came on May 10th. He won that game despite giving up six earned runs (including two homers) over six innings.

Yes, in case you were wondering, Daniel Cabrera was the Orioles pitcher who no-hit the Yankees until the 9th inning last season. He has great stuff when it's located well, which unfortunately doesn't happen as frequently as Leo Mazzone must hope.

On the transaction front, the Padres recalled Justin Hampson from AAA-Portland in exchange for LHP Royce Ring.

NYY: Game 1: Yankees def. Royals

It was a family-friendly edition of Yankee baseball! Yankee coach Tony Pena had the opportunity to watch his son, Royals shortstop Tony Pena Jr., on the field. Rookie Shelley Duncan's father Dave and brother Chris were in the stands to root him on. And reliever Scott Proctor was on leave with his wife, celebrating the birth of their third child. Welcome to new baby Cooper Proctor, and congratulations to Scott and Carrie. Yes, that's "Cooper" like Cooperstown. The Proctors also have a son named Camden, after Camden Yards, along with daughter Mary Elizabeth. Clearly, Camden and Cooper must become baseball players.

In the middle of all the love, there was also some baseball to be played.

Final Score: Yankees 9, Royals 2
WP: Clemens (3-4, 3.72 ERA)
LP: Perez (5-9, 5.80 ERA)

My talking points pre-game centered on whether Clemens would be able to bounce back from previous less-than-stellar road outings this season. He did so nicely here. Seven innings, four hits, and two earned runs. One of those was on a Gload solo homer. Clemens was dominant early, not allowing his first hit until the third inning.

Perez, on the other hand, was shaky early. He gave up two runs in each of the first two innings before settling down and not allowing another run over the rest of his seven inning outing.

While Monday didn't see the onslaught of Sunday afternoon's game, there were more good signs for the offense. Every Yankee had at least one hit in this game, and every Yankee except Andy Phillips scored a run. Johnny Damon had another strong game, with three hits and two RBI. Could he finally be coming around? The Yankees sure hope so.

Jorge Posada hit a triple(!), his first of the season. You know the Yankees have to win a game when that happens. Intriguingly, Vizcaino was given the task of pitching the 8th inning of a 4-2 game over Kyle Farnsworth and passed the test with flying colors. A sign of more to come? We'll see.

Oh yeah, and that Alex Rodriguez guy (you might have heard of him?) became the first Yankee to drive in 100 runs in less than 100 games since Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio. Not bad.

As for tonight...

RHP Chien-Ming Wang (10-5, 3.44 ERA) vs. RHP Scott Elarton (2-3, 9.17 ERA)

Wang hopes to rebound from a disappointing 3-2 loss against Toronto, a game he let get away from him with a shaky 7th inning. He will be going for his 11th win of the season.

Elarton will be making his first major league start since June 19th, coming off the DL (sprained right foot). He was not good in his last outing, giving up five earned runs in 2.2 IP. In fact, Elarton has not done well all season, only having one outing where he allowed three runs or less. The Royals hope that some time away to heal will lead to improved performance.

With a righty on the mound, I would expect Bobby Abreu to be back in the line-up. And given Johnny Damon's improvements, it's likely that Shelley Duncan will sit this one out.

Down on the farm: Scranton's scheduled game was rained out yesterday, meaning Phil Hughes' rehab start will have to be pushed back a day. But the washout didn't stop some big news from coming out of the Yankees' minor league system. News broke last night that much-anticipated pitchers Joba Chamberlain and Ian Kennedy were promoted from Yankee AA-affiliate Trenton to AAA. I can't imagine this move is meant as a showcase for possible trades. Not with these two. If anything, the organization seems intent on seeing Kennedy and Chamberlain face some more refined bats at the AAA level. The plans for us to see Kennedy and Chamberlain in the Bronx seem to be for sooner rather than later. Not this year, hopefully, but maybe next year? Who knows at this point, but it's interesting.

To make room on the S/WB roster, pitchers Chase Wright and Tyler Clippard were demoted to AA. This is probably a good move for Wright, who was plucked from Trenton earlier this year and brought to the big leagues before he had refined his craft. For Clippard, I'm sure it's a disappointment given how highly he was touted before his big league struggles. Hopefully it won't be the end of the line for either.

DC: Game 4: Nats def. Rockies

I dare Baseball Tonight to air 15 seconds of highlights from a Nats-Rockies game in a one-hour broadcast. We didn't get any last night, but I suppose there were more important things to talk about. Like Barry Bonds, for half an hour.

It was a well-pitched game in DC Sunday afternoon, in any event.

Final Score: Nationals 3, Rockies 0
WP: Rauch (5-2, 3.76 ERA)
LP: Julio (0-3, 6.09 ERA)

Jorge Julio blows a game for an opposing team against the Nationals. Shocker.

Tim Redding has apparently forgotten that he was supposed to be terrible since being called up this season. Another strong performance here, going 6.2 innings with five hits and no earned runs. His ERA is now sub-3.00 this season. He was relieved by Chris Booker, who I didn't even know had been called up to the major leagues. Oops.

No harm done on my end. Sunday was the first game Booker has appeared in all season. Booker appears to have been recalled from Columbus on July 21st, in exchange for Jason Simontacchi, who was placed on the 15-day DL July 20th.

Rauch pitched a scoreless 8th inning, allowing one hit and one walk. With the score still knotted at 0-0, Austin Kearns hit the deciding blow in the bottom of the 8th inning against Julio. A three-run blast just past the foul pole in left field. Cordero came in to pitch a scoreless a scoreless 9th inning and pick up his 19th save of the season.

The Nationals are off on Monday but will return Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park for a series with NL East division rivals the Philadelphia Phillies.

RHP Jason Bergmann (2-5, 4.46 ERA) vs. RHP Kyle Kendrick (4-1, 4.40 ERA)

Bergmann has struggled since returning to the Nats' rotation. His last outing was another iffy one, though his four earned runs (including two homers) were good enough to earn him his first win since his DL stint.

Not that wins are an important stat when talking about Jason Bergmann. He didn't even win games when he had a sub-3.00 ERA.

One positive to take out of Bergmann's outing against Houston is that it was his longest since the DL: six innings. He'll hope to build on that Tuesday up in Pennsylvania.

Phillies' rookie Kyle Kendrick suffered the first loss of his major league career against the Dodgers on July 18th. In 5.1 innings, he allowed five earned runs on seven hits, including two homers. It is the first time since joining the major league club that Kendrick has given up five or more earned runs and lasted less than six innings. Tuesday will be Kendrick's first career start against the Nationals.

Trade news: Nothing concrete yet for the Nationals, though many teams continue to be interested according to Barry Svrluga's Nationals Journal blog. He names the usual Cordero, Rauch, Belliard, and Young as drawing trade interest, as well as OF Ryan Church.

Out of those, I'd say Belliard is the most likely to get moved. Bowden has a habit of asking for too much for Cordero. There are health concerns now with Young's foot, and he's not a great fielder, though I wouldn't be surprised to see him shipped as well. Rauch, as I've said before, would be a great pick-up for a team. But his number of innings logged this season might scare off potential buyers. Ryan Church is a good player, but I'm not sure he'd make a big difference for a contending ballclub unless they've had an injury and need an emergency outfielder with major league experience. Belliard, on the other hand, can field and can hit. He can play everyday, or he can come off the bench. And he got key hits in post-season play just last year.

Svrluga also reports that the Nationals may be interested in acquiring Adam Dunn from the Reds. Strange. I wonder how much Bowden would have to give up to get that deal done. And if it happened, I'd imagine Bowden would want to be sure that he could sign Dunn to a long-term deal in the off-season. The one thing Bowden has going for him is that former Reds Felipe Lopez and Austin Kearns are with the team so Dunn would make a good fit personality-wise. And I give Bowden credit: he managed a near-steal of a trade last year with Cincy. Maybe lightning strikes twice here. We'll see. No doubt, Austin Kearns and Felipe Lopez have been great pick-ups for the Nats.

NYY: Game 4: Yankees def. D-Rays

Wow, it's a little early for football, isn't it? So much for being tired after a high-scoring doubleheader.

Final Score: Yankees 21, Devil Rays 4
WP: Pettitte (6-6, 4.12 ERA)
LP: Shields (8-6, 4.44 ERA)

By the end of the 4th inning, the score was 13-3 Devil Rays. At this point, I said to myself, "Okay, if Andy Pettitte can't get the win in this game? We know there's some kind of voodoo." Luckily, the black magic held off. Pettitte wasn't great, but an offense that has struggled to score him runs all season finally picked him up when he wasn't his best. That isn't to say Pettitte was terrible. He went six innings, allowing three earned runs and striking out eight. It's less than expected for an Andy Pettitte outing, but on Sunday afternoon it was more than enough.

What can be said about the offense? Look at the score. 21 runs and 25 hits overall. Everyone sans pitchers who were a part of this game scored at least one run. Yes, that included late substitutions like Johnny Damon and Miguel Cairo. There were six homeruns in the game, two of them off the bat of newest Yankee Shelley Duncan. He received two curtain calls from the Stadium crowd. It's hard to know how long he'll be able to keep it up. Too many people have already jumped onto the "Hey, another Shane Spencer!!" bandwagon. But it's a great story, and the fans love him. Hopefully Shelley carries it out. He's helping the energy of the team, not to mention providing plenty of memorable moments. His reaction to a rookie water-drenching courtesy of Ron Villone and Scott Proctor after the game was priceless.

So what's the Yankee reward for having 20+ hit games two games in a row? Why, another four-game series, of course!

RHP Roger Clemens (2-4, 3.88 ERA) vs. LHP Odalis Perez (5-8, 5.84)

The Yankees begin their next road trip Monday with four games against the Royals. Clemens is coming off of a no decision at the Stadium against Toronto on July 18th, giving up one earned run over six innings of work. Since joining the Yankees on June 9th, Clemens has been noticeably better in New York. He has given up one earned run in each of his last three games at home and averaged 7.1 innings. In his last three road games, however, Clemens has averaged 4 1/3 runs in just over five innings. With the bats alive, it should be interesting to see if Clemens can break from that trend.

Perez is coming off of a rocky outing in Fenway on July 18th. Even though he took the win, Perez allowed 5 earned runs on 7 hits in 5 innings. It will be his first start against the Yankees this season.

A nice time for the Yankee coaching staff, as first base coach Tony Pena will be united with his son Tony Pena Jr. who plays for the Royals. Perhaps not so nice a time for Brian Cashman, who will have to witness first-hand what got away from him last season. Octavio Dotel was unable to provide anything in 2006 for the Yankees due to injury. But he's been a force for the Royals this season and may be traded by the deadline. His numbers would be a welcome addition to the bullpen, that's for sure, but he would probably cost the Yankees too much to make a deal worthwhile..

Trade news: Jose Molina, while not appearing in the Yankee game Sunday afternoon, was present for the start of the game. As soon as he arrived in New York, previous backup catcher Wil Nieves was designated for assignment.

The big rumor heading into the trade deadline on July 31st is Ty Wigginton from the Devil Rays in exchange for Scott Proctor. Nevermind the fact that, to me, picking up another bullpen arm is far more of a priority than picking up a bat. Wouldn't picking up Ty Wigginton be overkill? Does Miguel Cairo get DFA'd if Wiggy is brought in, since Ty would probably be in the backup role with more power in his bat? Does Wiggy become the first baseman?

Let's say, for discussion's sake, that Andy Phillips is pulling another flash-in-the-pan performance and won't be an adequate solution down the stretch. By mid- to late-August, the team should be getting Doug Mientkiewicz and Jason Giambi back. Even without Wiggy, the club is going to find themselves faced with a similar problem to what they had last September: too many bodies for spots. Does Mientkiewicz resume his position at first base? Do he and Phillips form the platoon originally meant for Mientkiewicz and Phelps? When Giambi is ready to go, does he resume his position as DH? Will that put Melky Cabrera back on the bench and Johnny Damon in centerfield? Does Damon attempt to play some first base, thus sitting both Mientkiewicz and Phillips?

Seems to me that most people are in support of this proposed trade because Scott Proctor has struggled lately. I'm not denying that Wigginton is a talent who can help a team. My question is, where do you play him? It's been suggested that he take over for Miguel Cairo, but let's face it: we've seen how often Cairo gets into games. Now that Phillips has entrenched himself at first base, it's not like Cano, Jeter, or A-Rod often need days off. And there's already a rest rotation in place for the outfield, with Damon going into the field while Abreu or Matsui DH.

Besides, other than the consistently inconsistent Kyle Farnsworth, this season has been a rotation of hot hands in the Yankee bullpen. First, it was Proctor. Then, it was Bruney. Then, Myers and Villone. Edwar Ramirez had his day in the sun. Now, it's Vizcaino. Either Cashman has a plan in mind for acquiring a replacement for Proctor or they're going to miss him when Vizcaino shows he's human again. That isn't to say Viz hasn't improved. He has, but he can't keep pitching at the rate he's been used over the last few weeks if he wants to have his right arm attached to his body iny October.

Down on the farm: Speaking of pitching and returning Yankees, some good news out of S/WB for Yankee fans. Jeff Karstens, on the road to recovery, pitched six stellar innings for their AAA-affiliate on Sunday. Karstens went six innings against the Charlotte Knights and allowed one earned run (a solo homer to Bourgeois in the 3rd inning) on three hits while striking out six. Chase Wright picked up his first save of the season with three innings of relief to complete Scranton's 7-2 victory. It was a big day for LF Kevin Reese, who hit a grand slam in the 3rd inning off Knights pitcher Nick Masset. He had 5 RBI in the game.

NYY: Games 2-3: Yankees def. D-Rays

With the hole the Yankees have to dig themselves out of, it would be unfair to bring up the horrific 12-2 loss they suffered to Baltimore last year right before the five game sweep of the Red Sox at Fenway. For one, in Saturday's day-night doubleheader they were facing the Devil Rays and not the Red Sox. Big difference. But man, that 14-4 disaster from Friday seemed like it happened a long time ago, didn't it?

Game 1

Final Score: Yankees 7, Devil Rays 3
WP: Vizcaino (7-2, 4.35 ERA)
LP: Ryu (1-2, 6.65 ERA)

Igawa continues to make it difficult to know what to make of his outings. If you just looked at his line from Saturday afternoon, you would think he had an acceptable outing for a fifth starter. 5 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 6 K. He gave up two solo homeruns, to BJ Upton and rumored Yankee target Ty Wigginton, but without allowing walks ahead of them it would appear that Igawa minimized his damage.

The problem is Igawa's unpredictability. He managed to wiggle out of jams Saturday, including bases loaded at one point, but it's hard to know whether to chalk his success up to Igawa's talent or to luck. The high number of strikeouts continues to suggest that Igawa has the stuff to be a successful pitcher eventually in the major leagues. His love of the high strike can work if mixed effectively with his change-up and his slider low in the zone. But right now, his problem (like much of the Yankee pitching staff...looking at you, bullpen) is consistency. At least Jaret Wright's outings last season were more predictable and easier to prepare for.

The offense appeared to be asleep for the first part of the game, until a 2-run homer from matsui in the 4th inning off Hammel. The Yankees remained knotted at 2-2 until the 6th inning, where the bottom of the order came through. Robinson Cano drove in Bobby Abreu, and Andy Phillips followed with a 2 RBI single.

But the highlight of the afternoon had to be Shelley Duncan, who followed Phillips with a 2-run homerun - the first of his major league career. He was greeted with a curtain call from the Stadium and laughter form his teammates following a few, shall we say, exuberant high fives from the obviously thrilled Duncan.

Andy Phillips about two seconds from having his bell rung by a helmet slap courtesy of Shelley Duncan - Photo credited to AP/Bill Kostroun

The score was then 7-2 and would remain that way until the 8th inning, when the struggling Scott Proctor surrendered a homerun to Raul Casanova. Proctor was relieved by Rivera in the 9th inning to secure the victory.

Game 2

Final Score: Yankees 17, Devil Rays 5
WP: Vizcaino (8-2, 4.24 ERA)
LP: Howell (1-4, 7.36 ERA)

It was too bad DeSalvo couldn't get through one more out to secure himself a win. He pitched well at the start, allowing two runs over four innings. But DeSalvo struggled with that final out in the fifth, and Torre chose to make the change to Bruney despite the team's 7-4 lead. With Bruney pitching through the first out of the 6th inning, that would become a 7-5 lead, but the Yankees broke the game open easily after that with five runs scored in both the bottom of the 6th and 7th.

Amusingly, the only Yankee starter without a run scored was the recent clutch-hitting hero for the team: Andy Phillips. But it wasn't for lack of trying, on a two hit night. Every Yankee starter had at least one hit in this game. In fact, every Yankee starter sans one had a multi-hit game. The exception was Hideki Matsui, but he made his hit count: a 3-run homerun off of Stokes in the 7th.

(Yes, that means Wil Nieves had a multi-hit game. More on him in a moment.)

There were some defensive gems as well. Johnny Damon, who has had a terrible month of July thus far, not only contributed to the cause with four RBI but with two sparkling catches in left field. Not to be left out, Melky Cabrera contributed his own - a diving catch in left-center in the 9th inning. But I give a lot of credit to Matsui, more for game one of this doubleheader than the second game. His homerun did a lot to wake the line-up from its funk. Between that jumpstart and the energy provided by Duncan's homer, the Yankees steamrolled right over Tampa Bay in game two.

For those keeping track, Luis Vizcaino now has eight total victories this season. Eight. That makes him second on the Yankee staff to only Chien-Ming Wang, with ten wins. Vizcaino has been lights out of late, but that he's second on the staff in wins at the end of July is mind-boggling.

As for tomorrow? It's a quick turnaround for the Yankees as they look to win this four-game series against the Devil Rays in a Sunday matinee.

LHP Andy Pettitte (5-6, 4.10 ERA) vs. RHP James Shields (8-5, 3.91 ERA)

Pettitte is certainly hoping to see some of the offense the Yankees unleashed on Saturday after picking up a no-decision in Toronto. He gave up one earned run over seven innings that outing and seemed to take a huge step towards the level of pitching he offered the Yankees earlier int he season.

In his last outing against the Angels, Shields picked up the win with seven innings and only two earned runs. His July 12th start against the Yankees, however, was less than stellar. Shields took the loss, giving up five earned runs over six innings - including three homeruns.

Trade News: It was announced during the Saturday night Yankee game that Brian Cashman had sealed a trade for a new backup catcher. Longtime Yankee AA pitcher Jeff Kennard will be dealt to the Angels for catcher Jose Molina. This will effectively end Wil Nieves' time in the Bronx. He is set to be designated for assignment as soon as Molina arrives. If Molina is unable to report tomorrow, Nieves will remain on for an extra day before being sent out.

Down on the farm: Scranton/WB took a 5-1 loss on Saturday night against the Charlotte Knights. Tyler Clippard was the losing pitcher on record, going five innings and giving up three runs on nine hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Brett Gardner recorded the lone S/WB RBI on a bases loaded force out at 2B in the bottom of the 5th, scoring Chris Basak. Justin Christian grounded out to end the Yankee threat.

Edit 12:07pm: I forgot to mention yesterday, RHP Matt DeSalvo was optioned back to AAA following his Saturday night start. He will be replaced by LHP Sean Henn.

O's: Game 1: O's def. A's

In case you haven't noticed yet? There's a pitcher down in Baltimore. His name is Erik Bedard. Because he doesn't have that sparkly 12 or 13 win total, you don't hear about him much. But take my word for it, he's pretty good. It looks like pushing Bedard's start back from Wednesday was a smart move.

Final Score: Orioles 6, Athletics 1
WP: Bedard (9-4, 3.12 ERA)
LP: Blanton (6-7, 3.53 ERA)

Erik Bedard continued his domination out in Oakland yesterday. He carried a no-hitter into the 6th inning, where he lost both the no-hitter and the shutout on a solo homerun to Mark Ellis with two outs. Over seven innings, that was the only hit Bedard allowed. More importantly, he struck out 11 As on 105 pitches. Bedard continues to lead the league handidly on strikeouts, with 167. The next closest on that list is Johan Santana, with 140 strikouts.

Paul Shuey and Chris Ray contributed an inning each, giving up no runs and striking out one each.

The offense was a team affair. Brian Roberts contributed two RBI, with Nick Markakis, Ramon Hernandez, and Kevin Millar each contributing one.

Tonight at 9:05pm ET, the Orioles continue with game 2 of their series against the A's. It's a tough order for the O's, as RHP Steve Trachsel (5-6, 4.95 ERA) takes on AL all-star starter Dan Haren.

Trachsel is making his return off the DL tonight, coming back from a strained gluteus muscle. Garrett Olsen was optioned back to AAA-Norfolk because the club would rather he gains regular work as a starter.

Game 2: Rockies def. Nationals

The Nationals climbed to 40 wins yesterday with a win over the Rockies, but we can't let them get too crazy with this whole winning thing.

Final Score: Rockies 3, Nationals 1
WP: Cook (6-6, 4.37 ERA)
LP: Traber (2-1, 4.20 ERA)

I guess you could call it a hard-luck loss for Traber. He gave the Nationals about what they expected as a bullpen guy sent to the mound for an emergency start. 56 pitches over four innings. One earned run (two overall) on three hits with only one walked batter. Possibly not wanting to push it with Traber, Acta did not allow to pitch into the fifth inning. Traber took the loss against a dominant Aaron Cook. Cook went seven innings and allowed no runs on four hits with eight strikeouts.

Tough luck for Brian Schneider too, who had a near homerun stolen from him at the yellow line by Spilborghs out in right field. Not sure if it had enough to get out of the park, but it was certainly extra bases if not snagged.

The lone Nationals run was driven in by the bat of Ryan Zimmerman from a Jorge Julio offering. Seems like no matter where that guy shows up, he's always giving the Nationals runs. With one out in the 8th, however, Zimmerman forgot the number of outs and was doubled off of second base after Austin Kearns hit a fly ball to Kaz Matsui. There were runners on second and third at the time.

After Traber and Schroeder, King, Rivera, and Rauch combined for no runs on only two hits. With that outing, Rauch upheld his MLB-leading number of game appearances by a pitcher with 52. He is trailed closely by fellow Nationals reliever Saul Rivera, tied with Scott Downs of the Blue Jays with 50.

For any curious, Scott Proctor of the Yankees is tied with eight others for third place with 49 relief appearances this season.

Believe it or not, the Nationals have secured a spot in the FOX line-up for Saturday afternoon with a 3:55 start time! Whether any market outside of Colorado or DC will actually air that game is another story.

LHP Mike Bacsik (2-6, 4.87 ERA) and the Nationals will try to secure a quick turnaround against former Oriole great Rodrigo Lopez and the Rockies. Bacsik has been fairly consistent for the Nationals since he was called up from the minors. He averages around 5 innings and three runs a start. Not the best stats in the world, but at least he's a predictable pitcher that a manager can pre-plan their bullpen use around. In his July 16th start, Bacsik allowed one earned run in 5.2 innings.

Game 1: D-Rays def. Yanks

So, when we drew up the plan for this series, it was just assumed that the Yankees would cruise to a win over 1-9 Edwin Jackson and the Devil Rays. Then, the fans could bite their nails off with a double-header of jitters with inconsistent starting pitching tomorrow. Friday was proof that things don't always go according to plan.

Final Score: Devil Rays 14, Yankees 4
WP: Edwin Jackson (2-9, 6.65 ERA)
LP: Mike Mussina (4-7, 4.97 ERA)

It's hard to know what went wrong in tonight's game.

Yes, the answer is "pitching." It's the why? that's puzzling. The Yankee offense failed to capitalize on opportunities in the first two innings against Jackson, who was wild from the start. Mussina, on the other hand, looked excellent through two innings. It appeared that the switch from Nieves to Posada behind the plate went without a hitch. If anything, Moose looked stronger than he's looked in his last few starts. He was spotting well, and there was some added life on the fastball.

In the third inning, maybe he lost some focus after Jeter was unable to get more than a glove on a ball back up the middle. Abreu then showed his trademark fear of the outfield wall eating him or whatever, missing a fly ball that should have been an out. Whatever the cause, Mussina imploded in the third, giving up four runs. Two were scored on a long homerun from BJ Upton that reached the first row of the upper deck in left field.

Mussina had a relatively easy fourth inning only to falter again in the 5th. Torre brought in Edwar Ramirez, the rookie, who had not been used in about two weeks. His rust was obvious. Ramirez had no hold on the strikezone. When he finally threw a strike, former Yankee farmhand Dioner Navarro hit a grand slam to make the score 9-0. Mike Myers ate 2 1/3 innings for the Yankees, but he and the rest of the 'pen (sans Villone) had their problems. Myers gave up one run, not terrible given the number of innings he pitched. Bruney was charged with three runs and had little control. Proctor pitched the 9th, giving up BJ Upton's second homerun before shutting down the rest of the side. Get it all out of your systems, I guess.

The big story of the evening was Shelley Duncan as the DH. He picked up his first major league hit and RBI in the 8th inning. What we've learned? Duncan takes huge cuts at fastballs. He also has one of the most amusing sprints down the first base line you'll ever see. Duncan exhibited much of what he did in the AAA All-Star game: he struggled to identify breaking pitches. He has a homerun swing, but it's also one that misses a lot. It's only one game and maybe unfair to judge so early. We'll see what he does tomorrow, if he's given the opportunity to play. Melky is supposed to be back in the line-up. Maybe Johnny or another player will be sat for one of the two games, opening up a spot for Duncan.

Blowout losses aren't the end of the world, but they make that Chien-Ming Wang loss from Thursday afternoon loom large. Had the Yankees picked up a victory tonight, they could have crossed their fingers for one victory out of two games tomorrow. Now, they have to cross everything crossable and hope there's some way Igawa and DeSalvo can pull out quality outings.

On an unrelated note, My9 here in the New York area has one of the worst news broadcasts I've ever seen. I left the television on following the Yankee game, and wow. The wrong graphics are shown for clips, there are awkward pauses between the lead-in and start of stories, the video jumps multiple times (including cutting off Joe Torre's postgame), and I just saw the anchor staff laugh over an earthquake in California as a carry-over into discussion about the weekend's weather. Brutal stuff.

As for tomorrow, it's a busy day for the Yankees as they continue this strange schedule of four-game series with a double-header against the D-Rays. Leading it off, a Saturday matinee:

LHP Kei Igawa (2-2, 6.97 ERA) vs. RHP Jason Hammel (1-0, 6.11 ERA)

MLB.com has DeSalvo listed to make this start, but everything else I've seen has Igawa starting. It makes more sense that way, so the Yankees can keep the extra pitcher until the evening. (Not that Joe will have much of a desire to call on Edwar Ramirez again.) If this schedule changes, I'll update, but for now it looks like Igawa. Hopefully the weather will be nice. Any chance for Igawa to break out those trademark shades is appreciated.

Jason Hammel has been working primarily out of relief. Ironically enough, his one outing this season that exceeded five innings was 6 2/3 innings of relief on June 13th. He was brought into the game to relieve Friday night's winner Edwin Jackson. In that outing, Jackson gave up five earned runs in 1/3 of an inning against Jake Peavy and the Padres. The Yankees have only seen Hammel sparingly: for 2/3 of an inning on July 12th and for 1/3 of an inning on July 14th. It's a big spot for Hammel, who was moved from being a starter in the Rays' AAA-affiliate to a reliever.

As for game two of the doubleheader:

RHP Matt DeSalvo (1-3, 5.87 ERA) vs. LHP J.P. Howell (1-3, 6.62 ERA)

DeSalvo will make his triumphant return to the Bronx for the third of this four-game series. When DeSalvo was first called up in May, he pitched well for the Yankees against the Mariners. He took a hard-luck no decision in his first outing with seven innings of one-run ball but won his second decision, with 6 2/3 innings and two earned runs. After those starts, DeSalvo never worked more that 4 2/3 innings. His last appearance for the Yankees was against the White Sox, in which he lasted just 1 1/3 innings. DeSalvo has pitched well enough in AAA to earn himself a chance, however. In his seven starts since returning to Scranton, DeSalvo has worked six innings or more all but twice. He took a hard luck loss against Louisville last weekend, lasting 7 1/3 innings and giving up just two earned runs. The Yankees hope they can catch lightning in a bottle for the second time with DeSalvo. As for me? I'll root for anyone caught reading The Legend of Sisyphus in a baseball clubhouse.

J.P. Howell has been the fifth starter for the D-Rays since June 3rd. He was sent down to AAA before the All-Star Break so he could continue to get regular work. His last major league outing came on July 5th against the Red Sox. It was a bad one for Howell, who lasted just 2/3 of an inning and surrendered six runs to Josh Beckett and the Red Sox. What Howell has going for him is that he's a left-hander who the Yankees haven't seen before. Both of these D-Ray pitchers saw Friday night that a starter with bad numbers can still stifle the New York Yankees.

Should be interesting, and possibly high scoring, affairs. Both games might come down to the bullpens.

The Yankee bullpen or the Devil Rays bullpen. Which is worse right now? Tough call, but the Yankees have Rivera. I'd take that edge any day.

Down on the Farm: S/WB kicked off their series at home against the Charlotte Knights, AAA-affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, with an 8-4 victory. On the Scranton side, this game appears to have been a bullpen affair. Colter Bean (remember him?) gave up four runs over three innings. That was all the Knights would get. Sean Henn contributed two innings, TJ Beam contributed three innings, and Charlie Manning chipped in with the 9th to keep the Knights off the board. TJ Beam picked up the victory and is now 2-2 with a 3.30 ERA. On offense, recent Yankee pickup Erubiel Durazo picked up an RBI, as did Kevin Reese. Chris Basak (it seems like he was never on the major league roster, doesn't it?) contributed with two RBI. But the big blow came from the bat of first baseman Eric Duncan, who hit a 3-run blast off of Jason Childers in the 7th inning.

Tomorrow, S/WB continues their series against Charlotte at PNC Field at 7pm ET. Tyler Clippard is scheduled to make the start. Clippard has struggled since being sent down to AAA. In his last outing at Indianapolis, he allowed four runs on six hits over 4 1/3 innings.

Lazy

The weekend is when everyone actually sits down to watch the serious sports anyway.

Big news of the day (other than that Bonds guy being two away from tying Hank Aaron's record) is that the contract of DH Shelley Duncan is being purchased from Yankees AAA-affiliate S/WB. As of the time of update, it's unclear who is being sent back down and who will be removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Duncan. The best guesses would be OF Kevin Thompson or RHP Edwar Ramirez, although they could pull a shocker and announce that Johnny Damon is going on the 15-day DL...

Nah, that won't happen.

The announcement comes at a strange time, given that the Yankees are scheduled to play a double-header against the Devil Rays on Saturday at the Stadium. With RHP Matt DeSalvo scheduled to be called up from AAA, the prevailing opinion was that Ramirez would be sent down after Igawa's start Saturday afternoon to make room on the 25-man. Ramirez being sent down one day early would be surprising, despite his lack of use over the last few weeks, because one would think the Yankees would want to have some depth in the bullpen on a day where two highly inconsistent starters are pitching. Igawa never goes long into ballgames, and DeSalvo was either very good or very bad in his appearances on the major league roster this season. He has, however, been more consistent for Scranton. And while offense is the strength of the Devil Rays club, facing Tampa Bay is not exactly the same thing as facing - say - the Red Sox or Tigers. Hopefully he can go at least five or six.

Sending down Thompson would be the logical choice, except for the fact that Duncan is known as a below average fielder. (Duncan can play some outfield and can also play some first base, but anyone thinking he would be a logical replacement for Andy Phillips is kidding themselves.) Removing Thompson makes Johnny Damon the team's backup outfielder (unless one wants to make an argument for using Cairo), and unfortunately Damon in the outfield has become a liability this season. I suppose they could send down Thompson today for Duncan, send out Ramirez for DeSalvo Saturday afternoon, and remove DeSalvo for someone like Kevin Reese on Sunday night. Thompson has more speed and is generally considered the better player of the AAA-Kevins, but Kevin Reese is a similar player who put in some time as a backup outfielder last year for the Yankees.

I'm interested in seeing what Duncan can do for the club. I'm also interested in seeing how much time he actually gets to play. It seems painful for the coaching staff to give a rookie pitcher out of the bullpen chances. I'd imagine a rookie DH will be an even harder pill to swallow, especially since it will mean sitting a name like Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, or Bobby Abreu out of the line-up for a day. Even Melky Cabrera or Andy Phillips, assuming Damon is able to play some first base. Duncan can play some first base, but from what I've heard and seen, Shelley Duncan at first for a long period of time might make Yankee fans long for the days of gold glover Josh Phelps.

On tab for tonight:

RHP Mike Mussina ((4-6, 4.61 ERA) vs. RHP Edwin Jackson (1-9, 7.14 ERA)

The Yankees begin another four-game series against the Devil Rays tonight, this time at Yankee Stadium. One could either choose to be encouraged by the fact that the Yankees took 3-of-4 from Tampa Bay in Florida last weekend or discouraged by the fact that Kei Igawa and Matt DeSalvo are part of this weekend's series - as opposed to Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, and Chien-Ming Wang, the three pitchers who preceeded Mussina last weekend.

Mussina was so-so on Sunday but is looking to improve in an important game for the team. Not only do the Yankees want to get back to winning after dropping their final game against the Blue Jays last night, but with Igawa and DeSalvo going Saturday this Friday night game is a crucial win if the Yankees want a good chance of winning this series.

Despite picking up the loss in his last outing against the Yankees, Jackson did a good job of matching Mussina until the latter half of the game, where some hard luck and mistakes caught up with him. The Yankees are hoping that he lives up to his numbers this time around.

Also on the schedule for tonight:

LHP Billy Traber (2-0, 4.50 ERA) makes an emergency start (his first of the season) tonight in RFK as the Nationals look to make it two in a row against right-hander Aaron Cook and the Rockies. Jason Simontacchi was scheduled to make this start but was scratched with elbow tendinitis. Traber has been used both in long-relief and as a lefty match-up out of the bullpen this season. I liked Traber's outings in Spring Training this season and thought he had an outside chance of making the Nationals' wide-open pitching staff. Since seeing him in the majors this year, I agree with Acta's assessment of him as more suited to a bullpen role. Of course, the way this season has gone, they might as well stock their bullpen with potential starters given how injury-plagued the starting rotation has been. Four or five innings would probably be on the high end of expectations for Traber tonight, but we'll see.

LHP Erik Bedard (8-4, 3.22 ERA) looks to continue his string of good performances as the Orioles travel out west to take on righty Joe Blanton and the Athletics. Bedard was scheduled for a Wednesday start but was pushed back to tonight with a stiff neck.

Intriguing match-up in San Diego tonight as former-Philly RHP Justin Germano (6-3, 3.55 ERA) takes on his old team, led by righty Adam Eaton. Germano was claimed off waivers by San Diego before the start of the 2007 season. Not much was expected of him for this year, but he has become an important addition since injury problems began for right-hander Clay Hensley. Germano has struggled of late, but his last outing against the Diamondbacks was impressive: a 6 1/3 inning shutout victory.

Following the insanity of last night's score-fest in LA, the Mets look to make it two in a row as they send LHP Oliver Perez (8-6, 3.13 ERA) to the mound against righty Brett Tomko and the Dodgers.

A lot of fun games yesterday. The Mets-Dodgers affair had a 13-9 final that saw Glavine exiting in the third inning. That's not the way to get to 300 wins...

The Yankees lost a 3-2 heartbreaker after Chien-Ming Wang faltered in the 7th inning, losing a 2-0 lead that the Yankees couldn't recover from. There was a group of fans keeping a ground ball count for Wang on the facing of the upper deck at the Stadium yesterday. You know, instead of a K-count? There are some creative fans out there. You have to give them credit.

Quite the pitchers' duel in San Diego last night as Chris Young bested the Phillies' Cole Hamels. Both pitchers went seven innings. Hamels allowed one run, Young allowed none, and that was the difference. Tough loss for Hamels, as Hoffman followed a good inning of relief from Heath Bell to close it out and pick up his 27th save. Young is now 9-3 with a 1.85 ERA, the best ERA in the majors. Were his record a little better, you'd be hearing a lot more about Young as a serious Cy Young candidate than you are. He's been just as dominant as Jake Peavy this season. I'm telling you, if only the Padres would go get a bat...

The Nationals beat the Rockies in extra innings last night on a pinch-hit RBI by one of the most unlikely heroes you could find: D'Angelo Jimenez. Matt Chico was okay, with four earned runs over six innings. He was in line for the loss until the Nationals rallied in the 8th inning against Kyle Farnsworth's best friend Jeremy Affeldt. The Nationals bullpen was brilliant, with four perfect innings from Ayala, Cordero, and Rauch. Rauch picked up the win after a hitless 10th inning, with two strikeouts.

I'm telling you, people are going to be talking about Chad Cordero as a trade chip for the Nationals this season as they always do, but you're going to have some teams really taking a hard look at Jon Rauch. Were the team not possibly scared off by the high number of appearances Rauch has logged so far this season, I'd suggest that the Yankees take a long look at him and see how much it would take to pick him up. Cordero is a bulldog, but there's a reason why he's picked up the nickname "Cardiac Kid" (affectionately, of course) from Nationals fans. When he's on, he's unhittable, but he's also inconsistent. If you're a team like the Yankees, the last thing you want is to give up too much for a pitcher who doesn't give you consistent 1-2-3s. Although Cordero wouldn't have the pressure of closing on his plate, with Rivera going nowhere in the 9th.

Rauch's 3.91 ERA is a bit misleading. He had his struggles a few weeks ago but has been untouchable lately. He's a big, intimidating presence on the mound, at 6'11" (the tallest pitcher in the major leagues), and he's known for pounding the strikezone. And because Rauch is less of a name than, say, Cordero or other prized targets out there like Eric Gagne, a team like the Yankees could be able to pull him from the Nationals for more of a bargain price than they would get for a star player.

So we're two away from Barry Bonds tying the most cherished record in all of baseball. One of the faces of the NFL is indicted for dog fighting. And now, today, an NBA official is accused of gambling on games and making calls that affected point spreads. It's an interesting time to be a sports fan in this country, that's for sure.

Edit 4:02pm: It's Kevin Thompson who was optioned back to AAA to make room for Shelley Duncan. Duncan is in the line-up tonight, according to Peter Abraham, and will be batting 9th as the DH. Melky gets the night off. No idea if this has anything to do with the pain Melky seemed to be experiencing in his side during his first at-bat Thursday. Johnny Damon leads off, as usual, and will be in CF. As expected, the pitcher-catcher combo of Mussina-Nieves has been broken up. It will be Jorge Posada back in the line-up tonight and catching Mussina.

Edit 5:47: Just saw Joe Torre on Mike & the Mad Dog. Melky is indeed sitting out because he felt sore today. The original plan with Shelley Duncan was to sit Johnny Damon down for a few days because he's been struggling so much.

Edit 6:29: Some word from Barry Svrluga's Nationals Journal blog on The Washington Post's website - Dmitri Young is a last minute scratch from the Nats' line-up tonight. He has a left heel bruise, apparently from stepping on a base wrong during the Houston series, and is listed as day-to-day. Robert Fick will take his place at first base.

I really should do a different post for each team on a given day. These things are getting ridiculously long.

Slacker

We're storing yesterday's results in the "to do" file. But if you missed that Yankee win yesterday afternoon? It was a wild one. Luis Vizcaino took the win after 1/3 of an inning of work. Derek Jeter homered, and Andy Phillips was the hero in the 8th inning with a fantastic line drive catch that maintained the 7-6 lead, and eventually the win.

As for today's action?

The Yankees are back in the Bronx for another four-game series, this time against the Toronto Blue Jays.

LHP Kei Igawa (2-2, 7.14 ERA) vs. RHIP Josh Towers (4-5, 5.07 ERA)

With Igawa pitching, let the rollercoaster ride begin. I've said before, I'm not ready to give up on Igawa in the long haul. It would take exceptional talent to be able to go down to the minor league level, change mechanics, and come back up to the major league level one month later without a hitch. That said, Igawa hasn't been given the luxury of the rest of the season to experiment with his new mechanics in the minors. With Hughes and Karstens on the horizon, Igawa probably isn't long for the big club this season. In tonight's game, the Yankees' best hope is to get Igawa through five innings with relatively little damage. He has been decent from the wind-up, but tends to fall apart in later innings when he is expected to work with men on base coming out of the stretch.

This will be the first look Yankees have at Towers as a starter this season. He made a 2 2/3 innings relief appearance against the Yankees on May 30th. In that outing, Towers allowed two hits, one run, no walks, and struck out three.

Should A-Rod expect one high and tight sometime tonight? Something to watch for.

In other Monday baseball:

LHP Mike Bacsik (2-6, 5.20 ERA) and the Nationals are back at RFK to face Woody Williams and the Astros. The Nats are hoping for a starter to give them a quality outing for the first time since the All-Star Break. Bacsik hasn't pitched since July 6th, when he took a loss against the Brewers after pitching five innings and allowing six earned runs.

LHP Brian Burres (4-3, 4.19 ERA) and the Orioles are out in Seattle for a 10:05pm ET start against left-hander Horacio Ramirez and the Mariners. The O's took 3-out of-4 from the White Sox and hope the winning carries over. Burres worked 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief against the White Sox on July 12th. His last start was in Chicago against the White Sox on July 5th. He took the loss in a terrible outing, lasting the same amount of time as he did in his relief appearance on the 12th and giving up seven earned runs on six hits.

RHP Jorge Sosa (7-3, 3.92 ERA) returns from the DL tonight, as he and the Mets travel out to San Diego to take on the suspension-appealling LHP David Wells (4-5, 4.31 ERA) and the Padres. Should be an interesting series, as the Mets come in with a 51-40 overall record to take on San Diego and their 50-40, with big implications in not only the National League East and West races but the wild card as well.

Down on the farm: Tough loss for Matt DeSalvo in S/WB's final game against the Louisville Bats. He held a shutout into the bottom of the 8th inning. Mark Bellhorn, the first batter DeSalvo faced in the 8th inning, hit a solo homerun to tie the game a 1-1. After recording one out, Ryan Hanigan singled and later scored after Sean Henn replaced DeSalvo. Louisville scored three in the inning, and S/WB was unable to recover in the top of the 9th, losing to the Bats 3-1. Tonight, Tyler Clippard is scheduled to make the start against Indianapolis.

Sunday's schedule

It's all about winning series for the Yankees at this point in the season. They will attempt to take 3-of-4 from the Devil Rays this afternoon when they face off in the final game of this series. The winner today will have all the bragging rights...until next weekend, when these two teams face each other in another four games.

Mike Mussina, RHP (4-6, 4.62 ERA) vs. Edwin Jackson, RHP (1-9, 7.23 ERA)

In his last start against the Twins, Moose was solid for the most part. But against Johan Santana, "solid" wasn't good enough to win. The difference was a two-run homer off the bat of Jason Kubel that broke the then 2-2 tie, culminating in a 6-2 victory for the Twins. That last outing for Moose was on Wednesday, July 4th. He is coming off of ten days rest after the All-Star Break, something the Yankees hope will not affect his performance in this game.

This will be Edwin Jackson's first start against the Yankees this season. His last start was on July 4th against the Red Sox at Fenway. Jackson took the loss in that outing, with seven earned runs in five innings.

Other match-ups:

RHP Jason Simontacchi (6-6, 6.11 ERA) tries to secure a series win for the Nationals as he faces Scott Olsen and the Marlins in Dolphin Stadium at 1:05pm.

LHP Oliver Perez (7-6, 3.14 ERA) and the Mets face off against Kyle Lohse and the Reds at 1:10pm. It will be Perez's first appearance since a stint on the DL for lower back issues.

LHP Garrett Olson (0-0, 4.15 ERA) makes the second start of his major league career, and his second start against the White Sox, as he faces Jose Contreras at 1:35pm in Baltimore. In his first major league appearance, 23-year old Olson was pulled with a lead two outs shy of qualifying for a win.

Finally, RHP Justin Germano (5-3, 3.90 ERA) attempts to return to the form he showed when he was first called into the Padres starting rotation as he faces 2006 NL Cy Young winner Brandon Webb and the Diamondbacks. The game has a 4:40pm ET start time at Chase Field.

Down on the farm: Ross Ohlendorf made his first appearance for the S/WB Yankees since May 11th. He went five innings, with three earned runs, one walk, and three strikeouts. It was good enough for a win against the Louisville Bats thanks in large part to good nights from Brett Gardner (2-for-4/3 runs scored/1 RBI), Kevin Reese (3-for-4/1 run scored/1 RBI), and Angel Chavez (3-for-5/1 RBI). Ben Kozlowski and Colter Bean each contributed two innings of scoreless relief to secure the S/WB victory. Tonight, Matt DeSalvo and S/WB face Louisville for the finale of their four-game series. The team then moves on to Indianapolis to face the Indians, AAA-affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, for four games.

Game 3: Yanks def. D-Rays

Photo credited to AP/Chris O'Meara

A five RBI night probably means a guy deserves to have his picture featured in a blog such as this one, wouldn't you say?

Final Score: Yankees 6, Devil Rays 4
WP: Chien-Ming Wang (10-4, 3.43 ERA)
LP: Andy Sonnanstine (1-4, 5.57 ERA)

It would be fair to say that a three-run outing for Chien-Ming Wang is below par, but that he lasted through six innings after giving up all three of those runs in the first inning is a testament to his ability to make in-game adjustments. I joked to a friend after the first inning that Wang needed to shake out the bad stuff early and he'd be good to go for the rest of the game. Until running into trouble with two outs in the 6th, that was the case. Without question, Wang is once again the most consistent pitcher on the Yankee staff this season. He faltered early this time, but the offense was there to pick him up late.

Sonnanstine's stuff was better than his 6 1/3 innings, five earned runs, and two homeruns would indicate. He ran into a hot bat in Bobby Abreu and made some young pitcher mistakes, but he threw strikes for the most part and changed arm angles and speeds to keep hitters off-balance. His breaking pitchers, when on, were nasty. Sonnanstine's problem was in hanging a few. Some trouble in this game, but he knows how to pitch.

The Positives: Bobby Abreu was slotted back in the three-hole for this game, as Melky Cabrera was under the weather. And if anyone could handle the three-hole better than a five RBI night, I'd like to see how. It's already been documented on many sites that Abreu is one of the driving forces of this team. Emphasis has been placed on Johnny Damon as the catalyst, but Abreu producing is an even greater necessity for this team in the second half. And not just because he gives a great postgame interview, though he does. The answer to every question is "That's good!" And really - as long as the Yankees win - that's the correct answer, isn't it?

Ron Villone must have pulled a Scott Proctor over the All-Star Break because he was on fire Saturday night. (Cue laugh track here) After the usual adventure with Kyle Farnsworth in the 8th, Mariano Rivera closed the door in the 9th to record his 425th career save. That makes him the sole holder of third place on the all-time list.

The Negatives: Robinson Cano had another rough night at the plate, the only Yankee with no hits. He went 0-for-4 with one strikeout and three left-on-base.

Talking Points: In Farnsworth's 8th inning, he gave up a solo homerun to Carlos Pena on a 3-2 count to pull the Devil Rays to within one. Upton walked later in the inning but was caught stealing by Posada to end the inning. I'm not as vehement about trading Farnsworth as others. More often than not, his 8th inning adventures lead to outs. But I would be in favor of Torre trying him out in the 7th inning with a bit more frequency. That 8th inning has been a point of contention all season, with no one appearing as a front runner to become that permanent set-up man to Mariano. With the way Vizcaino has been pitching, I wouldn't mind seeing him get more of a chance in the 8th inning now that he's working with greater consistency.

~~~

Here's what else you missed on a jam-packed Saturday night of baseball:

Final Score: Orioles 7, White Sox 6
WP: Ray (5-6, 4.65 ERA)
LP: Haeger (0-1, 13.50 ERA)

You can't help but feel for those relievers. One or two bad innings and their ERA looks like the cost of a movie ticket in Manhattan.

This was a wild one, as Daniel Cabrera outings tend to be. He was in line for the loss after going six innings with five earned runs against Vazquez's four. An eventful bottom of the 9th inning, which the O's entered down 6-4, saw Nick Markakis cross homeplate as the tying run. The game entered extras, ending in the bottom of the 10th inning as Markakis again stung the Sox - this time by driving in the winning RBI off Haeger.

At Dolphin Stadium, Chico made the mistake of paying too much attention to Jason Bergmann and his three homeruns on Friday. Oops.

Final Score: Marlins 5, Nationals 2
WP: Mitre (4-4, 2.81 ERA)
LP: Chico (4-6, 4.57 ERA)

How does a pitcher only have a 4-4 record with a 2.81 ERA? (I know the answer is "he plays for the Marlins." But it doesn't hurt to ask.) Mitre was solid as usual, pitching 7 2/3 innings with two earned runs on six hits. Chico, like Bergmann on Friday, struggled - giving up three homeruns, two of them in the first two innings. The two 2-run homers and one solo job were all the Marlins needed. Kearns and Belliard each chipped away with an RBI apiece, but the Nationals bats were largely silent. Understandably so. This team isn't used to scoring 14 runs.

You see what happens? I make fun of Glavine, and he shows me up by getting win #298.

Final Score: Mets 2, Reds 1
WP: Glavine (8-6, 4.15 ERA)
LP: Stanton (1-3, 4.31 ERA)

Other than a solo homerun allowed to Phillips in the 2nd inning, Glavine was stellar. 8 IP, 2 hits, 5 Ks. He lasted long enough to take the win, with Milledge's RBI. Wagner pitched a perfect 1-2-3 9th, giving him his 19th save of the year.

Now, how in the world did Chris Young go from pitching a no-hitter to taking a no decision?

Final Score: Diamondbacks 5, Padres 4
WP: Lyon (6-3, 2.25 ERA)
LP: Linebrink (2-2, 2.68 ERA)

Young carried a perfect game into the 5th inning, where he lost both the no-no and the shutout on a Tony Clark solo homerun. But that was all Young allowed. He went six innings with two hits, one earned run, no walks, and eight strikeouts before turning the game over to the bullpen. It seemed well in hand, with the Padres leading 4-1 heading into the 7th. But the bullpen faltered. Heath Bell was charged with three earned runs, but Cla Meredith picked up the blown save. He inherited a one out, bases loaded jam in the and allowed the tying run to score on a sac fly. Scott Linebrink gave up the winning run in the bottom of the 8th, and the Padres were unable to recover.

With his one-run outing, Young lowered his 2007 ERA to 1.97 - the lowest ERA in either league. But even that wasn't able to help San Diego make up ground in the tight NL West race.

Loose ends

That Padres game from last night? It finally ended.

Final Score: Diamondbacks 8, Padres 3
WP: Davis (6-10, 4.19 ERA)
LP: Maddux (7-7, 4.35 ERA)

Looked like it was going to get interesting in the 7th inning. Jose Cruz made a pinch-hitting appearance for Brocail and hit a solo homerun to make the score 4-3 Diamondbacks. But the Diamondbacks answered in the bottom of the inning with three runs and tacked on an extra in the bottom of the 8th to put the game out of reach.

It's an interesting time for Padres reliever Cla Meredith. He was one of the real success stories of the 2006 NL West winning Padres, but the league seems to have caught up with him this season. His ERA is still a decent 3.53, but he hasn't been nearly as bullet-proof as he was last season. It should be interesting to see if he's able to adjust to the changes.

But enough about Friday night's action. It's Saturday, which means afternoon baseball! Unless you're a fan of any of the teams covered in this blog. In which case, sorry. You get Saturday night baseball. Yay.

Once again coming from Tropicana Field, the third game of this four-game series between the Yankees and Devil Rays.

Chien-Ming Wang, RHP (9-4, 3.36 ERA) vs. Andy Sonnanstine, RHP (1-3, 5.36 ERA)

Wang, ugly nail issue and all, will be going for his tenth victory of the season. I have nothing much to say about Sonnanstine. He's never made a career start against the Yankees, so it's the first look I'm going to have at him. One thing he has going for him is the struggle this Yankee team seems to have against pitchers they're unfamiliar with the first time around.

Other Saturday match-ups:

The always exciting RHP Daniel Cabrera (6-10, 5.04 ERA) and the Orioles face Javier Vazquez and the White Sox at 7:05pm in Baltimore. I never find myself missing Sam Perlozzo as manager of the O's more than when Cabrera pitches. The height difference between those two when Perlozzo would go to take the ball from him alone made for entertaining television.

LHP Matt Chico (4-5, 4.39 ERA) and the Nationals try to make it two in a row at Dolphin Stadium as they go against the most consistent starter for the Marlins this season, Sergio Mitre. Chico is coming off a strong outing last week against the Cubs, pitching seven shutout innings. Given the track record of Chico this season, one would expect the good outing to be followed by a not-so-good one. But one thing Nats fans should love about the kid is his composure, whether he's fantastic or terrible. Acta stated at the beginning of the season that he wanted to have a rookie in his starting rotation who would have skin thick enough to handle the ups and downs of learning on the major league roster, and he certainly got that with Chico. I wonder if he expected Chico to be his most durable starter as well.

LHP Tom Glavine (7-6, 4.36 ERA) and the Mets face Matt Belisle and the Reds in Shea at 7:30. Man, is Glavine still stalled on 298 wins? I know he'll make 300 wins by the end of the season, but it feels like it's taking a lifetime?

Finally, RHP Chris Young (8-3, 2.00 ERA) is coming off of his first All-Star appearance, and a five-game suspension brilliantly served during the All-Star Break, to face former Nat Livan Hernandez and the Diamondbacks. His last regular season outing was seven scoreless innings against the Marlins. Young recorded a no-decision for his efforts. Welcome to the life of a Padres pitcher.

~~~

Down on the farm: S/WB topped the Louisville Bats 5-2 in ten innings. Justin Christian singled off of Calvin Medlock in the top of the 10th, scoring Jamal Strong from second. After a double steal (Brett Gardner to third, Christian to second) and a Kevin Reese strikeout, Shelley Duncan doubled in both runners to give Scranton a 3-run inning. Charlie Manning (2-1, 3.92 ERA) picked up the win, and Jim Brower pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the 10th for his 16th save.

Steven White had a strong outing - 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Ks. For those interested, injury-troubled former National Gary Majewski pitched 1.1 innings for the Bats, recording one hit and one strikeout with no walks and no earned runs. He has an ERA of 4.61 with Louisville.

Game 2: Devil Rays def. Yankees

It must be a fun life for Kevin Thompson. You get to play maybe once every two weeks. And when you do play, it's against Scott Kazmir on a good day. Or Johan Santana. Go get 'em, bench!

Final Score: Devil Rays 6, Yankees 4
WP: Kazmir (6-6, 4.18 ERA)
LP: Clemens (2-4, 4.20 ERA)

The Positives: Another evening with back-to-back homeruns. Posada and Matsui went yard on two consecutive pitches from Fossum, to bring the Yankees within two late. And whatever it is, chalk it up to the magic of Mariano or what have you, but Vizcaino continues to impress. Is he leading the front running for Torre's 8th inning guy, or is it still Farnsworth by default? This was a weird game in terms of the bullpen with a lot of mix and matching, but Vizcaino did his part. Bruney did let a run score in relief of Clemens, but with the bases loaded? Losing only one run seemed like a victory. Especially given some of Bruney's latest outings.

The Negatives: Imagine my surprise at seeing former Nat Josh Wilson again! Then, imgine my surprise when his 2-run, 2 out triple against Clemens was a big part of the Yankees' downfall in this game. There's a sense of humor to the way life works sometimes. Not a good outing for Clemens tonight. Pettitte was able to get away with a so-so effort last night. Clemens didn't have the same luxury this time.

~~~

In other baseball news: there's a pitcher named Erik Bedard in Baltimore. He's pretty good, if you haven't heard.

Final Score: Orioles 2, White Sox 0
WP: Bedard (8-4, 3.22 ERA)
LP: Buehrle (6-5, 2.98 ERA)

No complete game for Bedard this time around, but he did K seven White Sox batters over seven innings. Tough luck for Buehrle, whose two runs came on solo homeruns to Nick Markakis and Corey Patterson. Chris Ray picked up his 15th save of the season.

At least one of the pitchers duels I pictured materialized.

Final Score: Reds 8, Mets 4
WP: Harang (10-3, 3.70 ERA)
LP: Maine (10-5, 2.91 ERA)

Seven runs scored during Maine's time out there. Only four of them were earned, thanks to two errors from Ruben Gotay. Do we get to blame Valentin's hand for this? Harang had an okay outing, giving up three runs over six innings while striking out eight. Milledge knocked in a solo homerun against Stanton late, but it was too little too late. Especially with Brandon Phillips' 6 RBI night.

And then there was a wild one in Florda, which I'm sure excited the 50 people who showed up to watch! Unless they were Marlins fans. In which case, they were probably just annoyed.

Final Score: Nationals 14, Marlins 10
WP: Rivera (3-2, 3.68 ERA)
LP: Willis (7-8, 4.81 ERA)

Yes, the Nationals scored fourteen runs in one game. That's the highest score the Nats have had since moving to DC in 2005! This means, clearly, that they won't score another run for the remainder of the season. What's wild about it? There wasn't one homerun hit on the DC side. Dmitri Young had big, 4 RBI night. Kearns had a good night too, with 3 RBI. The biggest inning was a 6-run 4th.

But the story of this one was the pitching, or lack thereof. In 4 1/3 IP, Jason Bergmann allowed 8 earned runs, including two 3-run homers and a solo homer. His ERA spiked in this game up to 4.32. Willis, on the other hand, was only charged with 3 earned runs out of an 8-run outing of 3 2/3 IP.

As of the time of this update, the Diamondbacks are up on the Padres 4-2. Not the bounceback outing Maddux was hoping for, who lasted just four innings and gave up three runs in the first.

In other Padres news, Wells is going to appeal his seven game suspension handed down this past week: "They are changing the game of baseball," Wells told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "We should all put on skirts and throw underhand. If they're going to do that, call it softball. A seven-game suspension is absolutely crazy. I don't get it. I doubt I ever will."

I suppose women and fans of softball could choose to take offense, but I can't remember the last time anyone took one of Boomer's "controversial" quotes seriously. Sheffield seems to be going in the same direction.

Unfortunately, no longer having to hear about Barry Bonds every five minutes will take a little longer.

Ooooh.

Hey, did you know Alex Rodriguez might opt out after this season??? Because it's not like anyone ever talks about this possibility. Nope, I've got 'em scooped.

Nice to see a full slate of baseball games scheduled for tonight! Not that I'll have the chance to see many of them, but it's the thought that counts.

Roger Clemens, RHP (2-3, 3.63 ERA) vs. Scott Kazmir, LHP (5-6, 4.41 ERA)

Left-handed pitching? Run!! Kazmir has pitched twice against the Bombers so far this season. The first was Opening Day at Yankee Stadium. Remember those days, when this team was expected to score 1,000 runs? When Carl Pavano was the Opening Day starter and had turned a new page in his Yankee career?

Carl Pavano as the Yankees' Opening Day starter doesn't even seem real, does it? Maybe it was a dream? Who knows.

Kazmir gave up five runs in five innings that day, including a homerun to Jorge Posada. He had a no decision in his first start of the season.

A-Rod also hit his first homerun of the season in the 8th inning of that game. It was just the beginning.

Kazmir's start against the Yankees was back on April 24th, another no decision after 6 2/3 IP. He gave up one earned run that outing (three total), on a solo homerun to Matsui in the 2nd inning. The Devil Rays went on to win that game, thanks in large part to a grand slam hit by Carl Crawford off of lefty reliever Mike Myers.

With the Yankees swinging some hot bats lately, it should be interesting to see how the team handles lefty pitching, which has given them issues all season.

Other match-ups tonight:

LHP Erik Bedard (7-4, 3.40 ERA) is coming off of that 15 K complete game in Texas as he faces Mark Buehrle and the White Sox. Buehrle has been pitching well of late also, coming off eight shutout innings against the Twins. Should be a nice pitching match in Baltimore tonight.

I say that, and watch. It'll be a 20-15 final.

RHP Jason Bergmann (1-5, 3.47 ERA) and the Nationals are in Florida tonight to take on Dontrelle Willis and the Marlins. With those two teams playing, I'd imagine the atmosphere in Florida will be electric. And by electric, I mean hopefully 50 people will show up. I would say that Bergmann is trying to return to his winning ways after coming back from injury, but he didn't even win when he had a sub-3.00 ERA early in the season. Hooray hooray?

RHP John Maine (10-4, 2.71 ERA) is too good for the All-Star Game! He'll aim to prove that tonight as the Mets host Aaron Harang and the Reds at Shea. The Reds are terrible, but Harang has had a good season. Should be another nice pitching match-up tonight.

Finally, RHP Greg Maddux (7-6, 4.19 ERA) will attempt to lower that ERA tonight as he and the Padres face Doug Davis and the Diamondbacks in Arizona tonight. Maddux is coming off a rough outing against the Braves from last weekend's Sunday Night Baseball. That outing raised his ERA over 4.00 for the first time since May 31, when he lowered his ERA to 3.92 with a one-run game against the Pirates.

~~~

Quick bit from the farm: Chase Wright wasn't great against Louisville (Reds AAA-affiliate), giving up 4ER over six innings. But he was good enough to win, as Homer Bailey of the Reds struggled, giving up 6ER in 3 1/3 IP. Shelley Duncan, maybe inspired after not doing much in the AAA All-Star Game, came back with two homeruns in this game. Justin Christian (RF) also had a good night. 3-5, with a triple off of Bailey and 3 RBI. Jim Brower picked up his 15th save of the season with one inning of work, one hit and three strikeouts. Final score: S/WB 9, Louisville 6.

Tonight, Scranton is scheduled to continue their series against Louisville. Steven White (3-2, 4.13 ERA) will go for the Yankees against Thomas Shearn of the Bats.

Baseball, it's a beautiful thing.

Yankees def. D-Rays

Photo credited to Chris O'Meara

Three homeruns in an inning. Not a bad way to start the return from the All-Star Break.

Final Score: Yankees 7, Devil Rays 3
WP: Andy Pettitte (5-6, 4.27 ERA)
LP: James Shields (7-5, 3.98 ERA)

The Positives: Primarily, the offense. Everyone got a hit other than Cano, and many of the outs made were still productive outs. Not often you'll see a player (in this case, Bobby Abreu) clapping for himself for rolling a ball over to right field and moving a runner over to third on a groundout, but he was. And for a team that needs to win any way they can, it's a nice thing to see.

So is three homeruns in an inning from Jeter, A-Rod, and Abreu. But, you know, we in New York aren't picky.

Vizcaino and Rivera were great out of the bullpen. Farnsy was Farnsy. He made the blood pressure rise but, at the end of the day, he was striking a guy out with that nasty slider. All in an inning's work.

The Negatives: Can't call Pettitte's outing a "negative" per se. He didn't give up eight runs in this game. That's a positive in and of itself. It's just funny how the season's worked out so far. He pitches some amazing baseball and gets absolutely zero support from his offense and his bullpen. Now, he struggles and wins games. Getting out of that bases loaded jam in the 4th with only one run allowed was impressive. And no matter how the results come out, a 12-1 record against any team is pretty impressive.

Talking Points: Maybe I shouldn't be asking this on a 1-4 night where he left 3 men on base. But is first base really the position we need to be targetting as the trade deadline approaches? I can see going after a backup catcher or a reliever. Maybe a starting pitcher, though Hughes and Karstens should be well on their way to returning by the end of July. But it seems like wherever I look, people are still talking about first base as if we have a black hole over there. Last I checked, Andy Phillips is wielding a hot bat right now, and it's not like he embarasses himself in the field by any stretch. If you want to target someone long-term, fine. But I don't see why 1B continues to be a point of contention for the short-term. Phillips is fine. If he's not, you have Cairo. You'll have Mientkiewicz ready to go soon enough. And eventually, I assume, Giambi will return from whatever black hole he's fallen into since that whole mess with him started. Does that move Damon to first base? I can't see pulling Melky from the outfield, given how well he's playing both in CF and as the #2 hitter in the line-up.

At this point, you have something that's working. It's not an all-star at every position, but they're winning with this line-up. In a few weeks, it could become apparent that they need a change. But for right now? You're winning. Ride it out.

~~~

Shows you how little I pay attention. I see this headline on MLB.com: "Reds' win streak snapped." And my first thought is, the Reds had a win streak?

(I follow the Nationals. I'm allowed to tease gently.)

Final Score: Mets 3, Reds 2
WP: Orlando Hernandez (5-4, 3.20 ERA)
LP: Bronson Arroyo (3-10, 4.78 ERA)

Both New York teams had back-to-back homeruns in an inning. Huh.

Final Score: White Sox 9, Orioles 7
WP: Jon Garland (7-6, 3.85 ERA)
LP: Jeremy Guthrie (4-3, 3.07 ERA)

I'm not sure Guthrie will take comfort in the fact that he lost this game for himself instead of the team losing it for him. But hey, it's something. A 9th inning homerun for Kevin Millar didn't amount to much, as Bobby Jenks came in to close the door on an attempted Orioles comeback.

AAA All-Star Game

Just got through watching my DVR'd copy of the AAA All-Star Game. If I'd known ahead of time that the AA All-Star Game was going to be on SNY yesterday, I would have taped that too. Then again, with the amount of fog they said there was during that game, better that I stuck with sunny, easy to follow AAA play.

Funny, there felt like more homeruns during the start of this game than there were during the first round of the MLB Homerun Derby this year! (Then again, these kids weren't trying to hit the ball out of that stadium in San Francisco).

MiLB has the box score here. The International League All-Stars beat the Pacific Coast All-Stars 7-5. Intrigue in the 9th inning(~!) as the game ends on what seemed to be a make up call from the homeplate ump on a fastball on the outside corner from Cory Doyne, from the Orioles' AAA-affiliate in Norfolk. His previous pitch was a pretty curveball right on the outside corner that was called a ball. The final pitch, the aforementioned fastball, was further outside than the curveball.

Hey, it's baseball.

Took some quick notes on the game. Just on players whose teams I follow, nothing fancy:

Brandon Watson: (CF) - Columbus, Nationals

1. Groundout to SS
2. Double up LF line, RBI
3. Lineout to pitcher
4. Groundout to 2B

Shelley Duncan: (DH) - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Yankees

1. Walks
2. Strikeout swinging
3. Strikeout swinging

J.R. House: (C) - Norfolk, Orioles

1. Srikeout swinging
2. Groundout to pitcher

Jack Cassel: RHP - Portland, Padres

Pitched 2nd inning for PCL. 1st batter (Bixler) reaches on error from SS. 2nd batter (House) K's swining on 0-2 pitch. One out. 3rd batter (Watson) doubles on first pitch, scores Bixler from second (Bixler stole 2nd during House AB). 4th batter (Tolbert) soft grounder back to pitcher, Watson to 3rd. Two outs. 5th batter (Perez) grounds out to 2B. Three outs.

Pitched 3rd inning for PCL. 1st batter (Hessmen) HBP on 3-2 count. 2nd batter (Moss) flies out to CF. One out. Third batter (Duncan) K's swinging on 0-2 pitch. Two outs. Fourth batter (Votto) K's swinging on 2-2 pitch.

Chris Booker: RHP - Columbus, Nationals

Pitched 3rd inning for IL. 1st batter (Patterson) flies out to RF. Out out. 2nd batter (Romero) doubles up left field line. Romero moves to 3B on wild pitch during Jones AB. 3rd batter (Jones) strikes out swinging, but makes it to 1B on passed ball. Romero tagged out by Booker at home trying to score. Two outs. Jones moves to 2B. 4th batter (Pascucci) flies out to CF. Three outs.

Willie Collazo: LHP - New Orleans, Mets

Pitched 5th inning for PCL. 1st batter (Hessmen) K's swinging on 0-2 count. One out. 2nd batter (Moss) flies to RF. Two outs. 3rd batter (Duncan) K's swinging on 3-2 count.

Jim Brower: RHP - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Yankees

Came into 6th inning for IL with two outs. 1st batter flies out to LF. Three outs.

Cory Doyne: RHP - Norfolk, Orioles

Pitched 9th inning for IL. 1st batter (Patterson) K's swinging. One out. 2nd batter (Young) grounds out to 1B. Two outs. 3rd batter (Jones) infield single. 4th batter (Pascucci) K's looking on 2-2 count.

Brower had the pleasure of throwing a grand total of one pitch, which was a shame because I've seen very little of him and was looking forward to seeing him out there. But better a one-pitch out than a one-pitch homerun, I suppose.

One game is an extremely limited sample size, but Collazo of the Mets had some nasty stuff. Jack Cassel of the Padres has some sweet breaking pitches that batters were swinging right over. I don't follow Portland nearly as much as I do S/WB, but it should be interesting to see how he continues to develop. Obviously, they're in no real rush for starting pitching with Peavy, Young, Maddux, and Wells down in San Diego. Germano's struggling a bit more now that hitters are adapting to him, but he's been good for them too. Not sure what the projection rate is on Cassel, but it should be interesting to see how he does with some more time to develop.

Again, small sample size, but Duncan looked to be having some trouble reading off-speed pitches. Watson's double was nice. I know he's tasted some time with the Nationals this year and will be interested to see if and when he winds up with the main club for good.

Highlights for me were back-to-back homers in the first inning from Hessmen and Moss, and a nice catch out in left field from Delwyn Young. Six runs put up in the first inning. Not bad, not bad. The rest of the game was, for the most part, about the pitchers. But I like some good pitching so that was fine with me. And the 9th inning got interesting, which makes it better.

Semi-related (minor league news), Jeff Karstens pitched five strong innings for Staten Island this afternoon. Five innings, 8 strikeouts, no walks, four hits, and one earned run off a solo HR. Obviously, if he and Phil Hughes are ready at the same time, that fifth starter spot is going to go to Hughes. But won't it be nice to have a longer list of possible fifth starters than Kei Igawa and...Kei Igawa?

To Igawa's credit, I'm not ready to give up on him in the long haul. I'm about as far from being a pitchers as one can get, but it seems to be asking a lot to expect a guy to change all of his mechanics around in one month and suddenly be ready to return to the big league level. In a perfect world, he would have had the rest of the season to try to sort himself out in the minor leagues. But this hasn't been a perfect world for the Yankees this season, not even close.

Back to Karstens. Maybe, if Hughes is back at the same time, he'd get the position people assumed he'd have at the start of the season: long man out of the bullpen. Either way, it'll be good to see him 100% again. Karstens, Rasner, and Hughes had a near-ridiculous stretch of bad luck. Broken bone off a line drive for Karstens. Line drive off the hand for Rasner. Hammy for Hughes during a perfect game, and the ankle injury after that. Good to see them slowly working their way back.