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| Hank Blalock unexpectedly started at DH and not first base on Wednesday night but it was just done as a precaution and not because of any physical setback, according to MLB.com. "I made sure before I decided to come back that my hand was ready, and it hasn't given me any problems," Blalock said. |
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| Jim Edmonds, CF, Chicago Cubs | Wednesday 7/16, 11:00 PM CT |
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| Jim Edmonds was married to his long time girlfriend on Tuesday, according to the Chicago Tribune. Always the classy guy, Edmonds got married wearing a t-shirt and jeans. |
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| Joey Votto, 1B, Cincinnati Reds | Wednesday 7/16, 10:55 PM CT |
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| Joey Votto has a .279-13-40 line over the first half, though his numbers have fallen over the past 39 games leading to just three home runs, 11 RBI and a .262 average. |
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| Freddy Sanchez was held out of the lineup for the final two games before the All-Star break due to a slump that has seen his average dip all the way to .226, .084 points below the .310 mark he entered the season with, according to Yahoo Sports. |
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| Wandy Rodriguez has struggled of late with a 6.89 ERA and a 1.79 WHIP over his last three starts for the Astros. |
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| Carlos Pena, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays | Wednesday 7/16, 10:39 PM CT |
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| Carlos Pena begins the second half with 14 home runs and 47 RBI, a woeful pace for a guy who hit 46 home runs with 121 RBI last season. |
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| Kyle Farnsworth has settled into a setup role in the Yankees lineup quite well since Joba Chamberlain was placed in the rotation posting a 2.30 ERA and 1.15 WHIP over his last 17 appearances. |
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| Over his last seven starts Jarrod Washburn has only two wins but he has allowed more than three earned runs only once in that time for the Mariners. |
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| Kurt Suzuki, C, Oakland Athletics | Wednesday 7/16, 10:24 PM CT |
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| Kurt Suzuki hit only .213 in May causing many owners to panic, but since then he has rebounded in a big way hitting .325 over his last 36 games. |
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| Jesse Litsch, P, Toronto Blue Jays | Wednesday 7/16, 10:20 PM CT |
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| Jesse Litsch started the year on fire going 7-1 with a 3.18 ERA for the Jays, but since then he has fallen on tough times going just 1-5 with a 5.52 ERA, according to Yahoo Sports. “I’m going to sit down over the break and try to analyze it and figure stuff out." |
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| Delmon Young, LF, Minnesota Twins | Wednesday 7/16, 10:15 PM CT |
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| Delmon Young is hitting a solid .286 on the year, but the shocking lack of power, he has only 17 doubles and just three home runs, has marked him as one of the most disappointing hitters in the fantasy game. |
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| Justin Verlander still has a poor ERA (4.15) though his WHIP (1.27) is actually below his career mark of 1.29 as he is 3-0 with a 2.81 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over his last four starts. |
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| Mike Aviles, SS, Kansas City Royals | Wednesday 7/16, 10:05 PM CT |
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| Mike Aviles has more than ably replaced the struggling Tony Pena at the shortstop position as he has hit .317 in his 139 AB this season with 21 runs and 21 RBI in 35 games of action. |
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| Rafael Betancourt has been a huge disappointment for the Indians in the first half as he has failed to remotely approach his production of last season, according to The Plain Dealer. |
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| Orlando Hernandez (strained right foot tendon) will make a rehab start at Double-A Binghamton on Thursday, according to The Star Ledger. |
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| Jair Jurrjens may not be receiving as much publicity as some other young arms like Edinson Volquez of the Reds, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't had a great start to his major league career with the Braves, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. |
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| Hank Blalock, making what was hoped to be his third and final rehab appearance at Double-A Frisco, was in the lineup at DH and not first base as originally planned, according to the Star Telegram. |
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| Adrian Gonzalez is tied for fifth in the NL in home runs with 22 and he is fourth in RBI with 71, though that masks the fact that he has been terribly unproductive at the plate of late hitting just .175 with a single home runs over his last 63 AB. |
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| Speedster Willy Taveras could wind up on the disabled list due to a sore quadriceps muscle, according to the Associated Press. “Hopefully, he will be 100 percent (when the season resumes on Thursday) or we will have to think things through,” manager Clint Hurdle said. |
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| Hong-Chih Kuo has done a phenomenal job this season, and as a result he could be called upon to fill the setup role with the Dodgers now that former setup man Jonathan Broxton is in the closers role due to the injury to Takashi Saito, according to the Associated Press. |
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| Matt Brown, 3B, Los Angeles Angels | Wednesday 7/16, 7:23 PM CT |
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| Matt Brown and reliever Kevin Jepsen were both named to the Olympic team on Wednesday, according to the Orange County Register. |
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| Nomar Garciaparra is hitting only .276 over his last 10 games, but he has knocked in seven runs while playing a solid shortstop with no errors in eight games. |
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| Buster Posey, C, San Francisco Giants | Wednesday 7/16, 7:12 PM CT |
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| Catcher Buster Posey was named the recipient of the Golden Spikes Award on Wednesday, the trophy awarded to the outstanding college baseball players, according to MLB.com. |
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| Whether or not George Sherrill remains with the Orioles the rest of the year is in question, according to the Baltimore Sun. The Sun speculated that Sherrill could be moved, possibly to the Dodgers, now that Takashi Saito is out of action for at least six weeks. |
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| Cristian Guzman may not be anywhere near the ideal hitter, but given the extensive injuries the Nationals are dealing with, he has found himself in that spot more frequently of late, according to MLB.com. "He's not your ideal third hitter, but he's our best hitter," manager Manny Acta said. "It's the fact of trying to find guys on the top in front of Guzman and guys behind Guzman. We are trying to find a combination that will help us score some runs. It's tough." |
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| D.J. Carrasco does indeed have one option left meaning that he could be sent down when the team chooses to activate Bobby Jenks, according to the Chicago Tribune. |
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| The Brewers might be in the market to add a left handed bat if third baseman Russell Branyan continues to struggle at the plate, according to MLB.com. |
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| Carlos Delgado has been a streaky hitter this season with 54% of his 52 RBI coming in just 10% of his games played, according to MLB.com. This means that Delgado has all of 23 RBI in the other 82 games he has played this season. |
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| David Ortiz, DH, Boston Red Sox | Wednesday 7/16, 5:57 PM CT |
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| Updating a previous report, it now appears that David Ortiz (wrist) will play four games with the Pawtucket Sox starting tonight, according to the Providence Journal. |
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| Adam Wainwright continues to progress well in his comeback from and injured middle finger and hopes to return to the hill for the Cardinals the first week of August, according to MLB.com. "I think it's healed exactly like it's supposed to," Wainwright said. "...I have every confidence that as soon as I get into my brain that my finger is healthy, I'll be fine." |
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| Cody Ross, CF, Florida Marlins | Wednesday 7/16, 5:34 PM CT |
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| Cody Ross, Hanley Ramirez, Dan Uggla, Mike Jacobs and Jorge Cantu are all on pace to hit at least 25 home runs this season for the Marlins, according to MLB.com. "Because we have a lot of power guys, we are going to drive the ball," Jacobs said. "That's going to account for a lot of doubles and a lot of home runs. I just think by the way we are, we're going to have big power numbers, up and down our lineup |
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| Chad Tracy, 1B, Arizona Diamondbacks | Wednesday 7/16, 5:27 PM CT |
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| Chad Tracy appears to have settled into the D'backs every day lineup at first base, with former first baseman Conor Jackson spending even more time in the outfield, according to the East Valley Tribune. |
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| Brad Lidge, P, Philadelphia Phillies | Wednesday 7/16, 5:22 PM CT |
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| Tim Kurkjian of ESPN is reporting that the Phillies are very concerned that Brad Lidge threw nearly 100 pitches will warming up, multiple times, during the just completed All-Star Game last night. |
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| Matt LaPorta, OF, Cleveland Indians | Wednesday 7/16, 5:14 PM CT |
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| Matt LaPorta, recently involved in the big CC Sabathia deal, has been named to the United States Olympic baseball team, according to Baseball America. |
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| The Giants signed 16-year-old Dominican prospect Rafael Rodriguez to a $2.55 million bonus Tuesday, according to Baseball America. It is the largest bonus ever given to a Latin American hitter, excluding Cuban defectors. |
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| Colby Rasmus, OF, St. Louis Cardinals | Wednesday 7/16, 3:53 PM CT |
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| Outfielders Colby Rasmus, Dexter Fowler and Matt LaPorta were the headliners of Team USA that was announced on Wednesday. |
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| Francisco Liriano will be back with the Twins soon. The team just isn't sure yet what role he'll fill. Manager Ron Gardenhire has been adamant that when Liriano returns to Minnesota it will be as a starter, but assistant GM Rob Antony said the team will discuss the possibility of the lefty pitching out of the bullpen, according to the Pioneer Press. Liriano hasn't allowed a run in his past three starts for Triple-A Rochester. |
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| Johnny Damon, LF, New York Yankees | Wednesday 7/16, 12:46 PM CT |
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| Johnny Damon could hit off a tee on Friday and is hoping to rejoin the team sometime late next week, according to the AP. Damon is out with an injured left shoulder. "Friday could be a big day," Damon said. "It feels a lot better today. It feels much better not doing the drills." |
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| Manny Ramirez, LF, Los Angeles Dodgers | Wednesday 7/16, 12:41 PM CT |
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| Manny Ramirez wants to sit down with Red Sox ownership at the end of the season to find out what their intentions are for his future, according to the Boston Herald. The team has consecutive one-year, $20 million options on the slugger. "To be honest with you, I don't know, I want to stay in Boston, but I want to sit down after the season with ownership and see what my future is going to be in Boston," said Ramirez. "Let's see, but the ball is in my court. If they don't pick it up, I'm a free agent and I'll go play somewhere else. We'll see." |
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| Pablo Ozuna, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers | Wednesday 7/16, 12:17 PM CT |
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| Pablo Ozuna was officially released Wednesday after he cleared waivers and rejected an outright assignment to Triple-A Charlotte, according to the Chicago Tribune. Ozuna was designated for assignment last week. |
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| Russell Martin isn't interested in going the Ryan Braun and Troy Tulowitski route in having the Dodgers buy out his arbitration years, according to the LA Daily News. The Dodgers have approached Martin about an extension, but the catcher has rejected the overtures on the advice of his agent, Bob Garber. "I don't really even worry about stuff like that," Martin said. "It's not my concern. That's (the agent's) job." |
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| David Ortiz, DH, Boston Red Sox | Wednesday 7/16, 11:45 AM CT |
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| The original plan was for David Ortiz to play in two rehab games for Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday and Saturday before resting on Sunday. He would then go to Double-A Portland for three more games, according to the Providence Journal. But Big Papi has expressed a desire to play through the weekend, and manager Terry Francona said that could happen. |
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| Omar Vizquel, SS, San Francisco Giants | Wednesday 7/16, 11:38 AM CT |
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| A Red Sox official has shot down speculation that the team might be interested in Omar Vizquel with Julio Lugo out 4-6 weeks, according to the Boston Globe. The team in content with a combination of rookie Jed Lowrie and veteran Alex Cora while Lugo is out. |
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| The Tigers optioned Clete Thomas to Triple-A Toledo Wednesday. The move was made to clear a roster spot for Magglio Ordonez, who will be activated from the DL Thursday. |
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| Magglio Ordonez will be activated from the DL before Thursday's game against the Orioles, according to SportsTicker. Mags has been on the DL since June 29 with a pulled oblique. Clete Thomas was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to clear a roster spot. |
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| Roy Halladay, P, Toronto Blue Jays | Wednesday 7/16, 11:04 AM CT |
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| Roy Halladay told the Globe and Mail that Toronto fans don't have to worry about him leaving. "They [the fans] shouldn't be worried I'm leaving," he said. "There's no chance if I have anything to say about it that I'm going anywhere. I can understand maybe disappointment with the way we're going. But as long as it's up to me, I'm staying." Halladay is under contract through 2010 and would be interested to extend his deal over the offseason. |
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| Mark Ellis, 2B, Oakland Athletics | Wednesday 7/16, 10:56 AM CT |
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| San Francisco Chronicle writer Vlae Kershner believes the writing is on the wall for Mark Ellis' trade from Oakland. Ellis will be a free agent after the season, and the team has drafted second baseman Jemile Weeks and traded for second baseman/outfielder Eric Patterson. |
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| Troy Tulowitzki will begin a five-game rehab assignment Wednesday with Double-A Tulsa, according to the Rocky Mountain News. The shortstop, who is recovering from a 16-stitch cut on his right palm, could rejoin the Rox next Monday against the Dodgers if all goes well. |
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| Xavier Nady, RF, New York Yankees | Wednesday 7/16, 10:29 AM CT |
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| The asking price for Xavier Nady appears to be extraordinarily high right now, according to ESPN's Buster Olney. Rival executives have a sense that the Pirates are not going to lower their demands before the trade deadline. |
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| Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd is said to be quietly asking around about a potential trade involving Matt Holliday, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. One of the first calls O'Dowd made was reportedly to the Mets, with the deal also including Willy Taveras and involving Carlos Beltran and top prospect Fernando Martinez. Understandably, though, that deal was shot down by the Mets, and any trade between the two clubs seems like a longshot. |
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| Alfonso Soriano has circled July 24 on his calendar as his desired return date, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. He will go on a rehab assignment before returning from his broken hand. "I think I need it," Soriano said of the rehab assignment. "It's different than with my legs. It's my hands, so I have to test my hands and be confident with that. I have to go one or two games; three would be the most. I have to see some pitches and feel confident." |
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| David Ortiz, DH, Boston Red Sox | Wednesday 7/16, 9:33 AM CT |
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| David Ortiz took batting practice before the All-Star game and said he is ready to begin his rehab assignment, according to the Boston Herald. He will play for Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday. "I think we've been right on all the time how we feel (about Ortiz's diagnosis)," said manager Terry Francona. "If he does what he's supposed to, he's going to be fine. It's not to say he's not going to feel it because there's a difference between feeling it and hurting it." |
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| Joe Blanton, P, Philadelphia Phillies | Wednesday 7/16, 9:17 AM CT |
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| The Phillies have been taking a look at Oakland's Joe Blanton, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. Blanton has had a down year, going 5-12 with a 4.96 ERA and 1.42 WHIP in the first half. |
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| Hank Blalock 0-for-2 with two walks in his rehab game Tuesday with Double-A Frisco. This was the second of what is supposed to be three rehab games for Blalock, who is coming back from a wrist injury. |
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| With Takashi Saito sidelined for at least six weeks (and possibly the rest of the year), Jonathan Broxton will handle the ninth-inning duties for the Dodgers. |
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| Chris Young, P, San Diego Padres | Wednesday 7/16, 8:26 AM CT |
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| Chris Young will make his first rehab start tonight with Single-A Lake Elsinore, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. He underwent surgery on June 30 to repair a deviated septum and re-open his nasal passages. He's been out since May 21, when an Albert Pujols line drive nailed Young in the face. |
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| The Marlins have asked Detroit about the availability of Ivan Rodriguez, but the Tigers told them the veteran wasn't available, according to the Miami Herald. However, if the Tigers should fall out of contention, the pending free agent could be dealt. |
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| Takashi Saito has been diagnosed with a sprained ligament in his right elbow and will need to rehab for six weeks, according to the LA Daily News. The closer will be re-evaluated after that. "We'll get together with Joe and come up with a plan," GM Ned Colletti said. "Obviously, it is not easy replacing someone like him. As far as trading for a closer, its a lot like trying to acquire a shortstop - it's a premium position and most teams don't carry an excess. We also have candidates within the staff. Many times closers are discovered in times like this. We'll know more about what we'll do short-term in a couple of days. And we'll know more about Saito's status as the rehab develops." |
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| Former Mets clubhouse attendant and steroid distributor Kirk Radomski provided the government with shipping receipts for packages of HGH he sent to the home of Roger Clemens, according to the New York Daily News. "He found a receipt, and from what I'm told, he's turned it over to the feds. I don't think there's any question of its validity," said Richard Emery, the lawyer for former Clemens trainer Brian McNamee. |
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