Wednesday baseball

What you missed, in a nutshell:

- An ankle injury? Pfft. Like A-Rod would be slowed down by a little ankle injury. Yankees def. Mariners 10-2.

- Jake Peavy + short rest = Padres lose. Diamondbacks def. Padres 9-6.

- Good things don't happen when Jose Reyes sits. John Maine having an off day doesn't help either. Reds def. Mets 7-0.

- Watch out, it's another one of those crazy Nationals hot streaks! Nationals def. Marlins 6-4.

- I've run out of jokes about Baltimore pitching. Devil Rays def. Orioles 17-2.

Other results of note: Braves def. Phillies (9-8), Indians def. Twins (6-2), A's def. Angels (6-2), Tigers def. White Sox (2-1), Blue Jays def. Red Sox (6-4), Brewers def. Astros (14-2), Cubs def. Dodgers (8-2), Pirates def. Cardinals (8-2)

News: Luis Vizcaino has a shoulder issue of some kind and will be shut down until at least the Toronto series. ... Chien-Ming Wang will be starting in place of Roger Clemens on Sunday rather than being shut down until Tuesday because of the off-day. All we know about Roger Clemens at this point is that he has "inflammation of the right elbow" and was supposed to receive a cortisone shot today. It was assumed that Mike Mussina would slot into Clemens' place in the rotation until he was well-enough to pitch again. But with Wang filling in for Clemens on Sunday, when Clemens will pitch - and if Mike Mussina will be needed - have yet to be announced ... While attempting to field a ball in the third inning of Wednesday night's game, Nationals pitcher Tim Redding suffered an injury to his elbow. He will be out at least one week.

Thursday's action:

As if things aren't bad enough, now the O's have to host the Red Sox. LHP Garrett Olson (1-3, 7.22 ERA) looks to avoid once again being Chowdah Foddah as he takes on RHP Tim Wakefield (16-10, 4.16 ERA). Olson is coming off a loss against these Red Sox. He went 5.1 innings on September 1st and allowed four runs on seven hits with five walks and four strikeouts. Olson is 0-2 in his two starts against Boston this season.

Wakefield missed his last start against Baltimore, but he's coming off of an August 25th win against the White Sox. He was stellar in that one, throwing seven shutout innings with three hits, three walks, and six strikeouts. Wakefield won his one start against Baltimore this season, back on August 2nd. In that one, Wakefield went seven innings and allowed three runs on six hits with one walk and five strikeouts.

Other games of note:
White Sox @ Tigers (Buehrle vs. Durbin)
Pirates @ Cardinals (Bullington vs. Maroth)
Dodgers @ Cubs (Lowe vs. Marquis)
Indians @ Angels (Byrd vs. Escobar)

Not much on the table tomorrow. Dodgers-Cubs will be the game with the most impact in the postseason races, and the pitching match-up could be the best of the day. Escobar is quietly having a Cy Young-contending season, and the battle of AL first place teams separated by 1.0 game in the standings (Indians-Angels) will be interesting to watch as well. Over-under on the number of runs the Red Sox are going to put up against the Orioles?