Archives › 2009 › July

* Assuming that he doesn’t go missing again, Bartolo Colon looks ready to rejoin the White Sox’s rotation after racking up eight strikeouts over seven innings of two-run ball in his latest Triple-A start. * Citi Field in New York has reportedly been chosen to host the All-Star game in 2013. Anaheim, Arizona, and Kansas…

Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News says it’s time to cut $126-million man Barry Zito loose: So there’s a test coming up for new owner Bill Neukom and General Manager Brian Sabean. A big one. And it could come in a matter of days (Zito is slated to start Saturday in Pittsburgh) or, at the…

Taken from Beyond the Box Score. 1) Neftali Feliz (Rangers) – 99.42) Francisco Samuel (Cardinals) – 97.03) Mat Latos (Padres) – 96.44) Jarrod Parker (Diamondbacks) – 96.45) Kyle Drabek (Phillies) – 95.96) Leyson Septimo (Diamondbacks) – 95.67) Brad Lincoln (Pirates) – 94.78) Chris Tillman (Orioles) – 94.79) Brian Matusz (Orioles) – 94.410) Casey Kelly (Red…

“It bothers me. A lot of Hall of Famers are very offended by this. I am starting to get affected and I am hoping that those guys that get caught don’t get into the Hall of Fame.” A day after Bob Gibson told ESPN’s “Mike & Mike” how conflicted he and many other players would…

The Marlins are in town to face the Red Sox, and you know what that means: It’s a bittersweet sight to see the Florida Marlins arrive in Boston. On one hand, seeing those turquoise and black uniforms trotting out onto the Fenway grass is a reminder of the talent the Marlins’ organization has fed into…

As much as SportsNet New York tried to stoke emotion by airing Pedro Martinez’s presser with the Phillies on Wednesday, he might as well of been Steve Trachsel up there. Okay, maybe that’s a little harsh, but hear me out. Martinez has this almost mythic quality among Mets fans for “turning the franchise around,” but…

While the baseball world pauses for the All-Star break, here are a dozen players with more second-half upside than their under-the-radar status suggests … John Bowker – Getting a much-deserved second chance in San Francisco after hitting .322/.416/.550 at Triple-A and .307/.363/.523 at Double-A. He’s not going to smack 30 homers and at 25 years…

Fortunately, this one is going to be a lot easier to figure out than the AL ballot. Let’s start with the NL’s top position players according to VORP: 1. Albert Pujols – 62.62. Hanley Ramirez – 46.63. Chase Utley – 46.04. Prince Fielder – 43.45. Pablo Sandoval – 37.86. Raul Ibanez – 34.07. Ryan Braun…

I went with Zack Greinke as AL MVP one-third of the way through the season, but he’s fallen back to the pack by posting a 3.97 ERA since the beginning of June. The focus will return to the position players this time around. Here’s the top 16, according to VORP: 1. Joe Mauer – 46.22.…

As mentioned a few weeks ago, I participate in a fantasy contest over at ESPN, named Baseball Challenge. The game gets broken up into first- and second-half segments, so if you want to join in the fun, I’ve created a public group called “Circling the Bases.” You can join the group anytime, but if you…

Chico Harlan of the Washington Post reports that Manny Acta was fired by the Nationals in large part because he was too easygoing, particularly when it came to disciplining players like Lastings Milledge: As the season dragged on and the losses accumulated, players appreciated Acta’s even temperament and easygoing nature. But all the while, they…

Former big leaguer Billy Koch was arrested over the weekend on criminal mischief and battery charges after getting into a wild incident with his neighbor in Florida. Details on how the whole thing got started seem somewhat sketchy, but apparently 48-year-old Luis Camacho “pushed” Koch’s stepson while they were both in the street at 2:00…

T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com tells the amusing story of Chone Figgins being a last-minute addition to the All-Star game when Evan Longoria was scratched with an infected finger literally hours before the first pitch: Chone Figgins was asleep at his Southern California home in Newport Beach. He was peacefully oblivious to the fact that the…

* Billy Wagner, on his chances of coming back from Tommy John elbow surgery to have a prominent role in the Mets’ bullpen this season: “I can’t see it. I think that would be foolhardy to even insinuate something like that. I think what I would be is a Brian Stokes-type player. I might pitch…

Guys have always been cheating. Period. It just takes a little different form today. I’m just glad they didn’t have steroids when I was playing. I don’t know what I would have done. It’s very difficult to go out and perform when you know the guy next to you is taking steroids or some kind…

Justin Morneau is a bit miffed at last night’s pregame protocol which had Sheryl Crow singing the United States’ national anthem, but merely a pre-recorded instrumental version of “O Canada”: “I wasn’t very impressed with that to tell you the truth. You figure they could find somebody to come and sing the song. They have…

Via Ken Davidoff, word, from Larry King of all people, that Mets owner Fred Wilpon’s losses to scamster Bernie Madoff were way bigger than most of us speculated: “There was a time when we were almost going to give him everything,” says King. “In fact, Morgan Stanley, who I invest with, those guys used to…

That sound you hear is either the Nats screwing up the most important thing in the history of their franchise or Scott Boras screwing up Stephen Strasburg’s career. Hard to tell which it is, really. Tom Boswell, who caught up with Strasburg in St. Louis yesterday, has the scoop: Strasburg said that “I haven’t heard…

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Dave O’Brien mentions — and then almost immediately scotches — rumors of a Yunel Escobar for Matt Holliday trade: While the Braves have made it known they are taking calls from teams interested in potential Yunel Escobar trades, I’m told that three’s nothing to the report out of Oakland of discussions between…

Pedro Martinez will once again be contributing to the Mets’ playoff push: Martinez has agreed to a $1 million, one-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was in town for a physical, and the Phillies planned to…

If you followed along with our liveblog last night some of this may be redundant for you, but I kept a quasi-running diary of the All-Star game and here are some of my random observations: Pregame – I really enjoyed all of the presidents talking during the Everyday All-Stars thing. Obama looks like he’s growing…

While the baseball world pauses for the All-Star break, here are a dozen players who fantasy owners should be looking to acquire with their value low … Scott Baker – Baker got off to a homerific start as he battled shoulder soreness and inconsistent mechanics, going 0-4 with a 9.15 ERA and eight long balls…

It was the easiest call of all of the awards when we looked back one-third of the way through the year, but things have tightened up a bit since, as Zack Greinke is no longer sporting a 1.10 ERA. Here’s the top 10 in ERA: 1. Zack Greinke – 2.12 ERA in 127 1/3 IP2.…

The NL Rookie of the Year race has changed little since we checked in one-third of the way through the season. Randy Wells and J.A. Happ were neck-and-neck then, and I gave the nod to Wells, even though I expected more from Happ the rest of the way. At least a few hitters have started…

* Victor Martinez, who figures to be behind the plate tonight if Tim Wakefield pitches in the All-Star game, admitted yesterday that he’s never caught a knuckleball “in my life.” Good luck with that, Vic. He can always follow Bob Uecker’s advice: “Wait until it stops rolling, then go to the backstop and pick it…