Zack Greinke and John Buck Are Open to Negotiating, Is Kansas City?

The growing trend in baseball is for teams to sign their young players to contract extensions in hopes of locking them up before they become too expensive. While it's a smart financial move for all teams, it's generally a real good move for teams with lower payrolls. The Indians started it with Grady Sizemore a few years ago, then the Rockies followed suit with Troy Tulowitzki. This season it's been Evan Longoria and Hanley Ramirez reaping the rewards of baseball's new trend.

One smaller market team that is yet to adapt to this new philosophy is the Kansas City Royals...

Continue reading at FanHouse

Joakim Soria as a Starter?

Kansas City Royals closer Joakim Soria has been fantastic so far. I mean, ridiculously good. He's 8-for-8 in save situations, and has been damn near untouchable so far. In 13 innings of work, he's struck out 15 while allowing only one walk and three hits, all of which gives him an unbelievably low WHIP of 0.31.

He's even been garnering comparisons to a young Mariano Rivera already...

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John Bale Apologizes For Punching Door

On Sunday it was reported that Kansas City Royals reliever John Bale had broken his hand after punching a door at the team's hotel on Friday night. While punching doors with your pitching hand is never the smartest thing to do, it's even dumber when you're already on the disabled list and scheduled to come off in a few days.

Now Bale is going to be out even longer, obviously, and on Monday he faced the media to apologize for his stupidity...

Continue reading at FanHouse

Morning Wood

Toronto Blue Jays 1 Chicago White Sox 0

Here's all you really need to know about this game. In the 3rd inning, the White Sox put runners on 2nd and 3rd with nobody out after a Juan Uribe single, and a Toby Hall double. Then the top of the lineup came to the plate, and the White Sox weren't able to manage a single run in the inning. Of course, a lot of that was Uribe's fault, as he should have scored on Orlando Cabrera's single to short, but instead stayed at third. Even though the shortstop was David Eckstein, and Eckstein generally needs a cut-off man to get the throw to first from deep in the hole. Then, in the 9th inning, Jays closer B.J. Ryan walked the bases loaded with one out, but Pablo Ozuna hit a weak ground ball back to Ryan that resulted in the wonderful 1-2-3 game-ending double play. All Javier Vazquez did for the Sox was pitch 8 innings, allowing only the one run, and striking out nine. Oh, and picking up the loss. The only good thing about this game was the tall blonde beer girl serving the fans behind home plate at the Rogers Centre. You, my darling, are the reason God invented HD television. I love you. If you're reading this, send me an email at tomfornelli@yahoo.com. Seriously, I don't care if you're Canadian.

Cincinnati Reds 5 Chicago Cubs 3

Do you see what happens when the Cubs don't score 19 runs everytime Ryan Dempster starts a game? His dream of having an undefeated season comes to an end. Dempster went 6 innings, and gave up 5 runs, but not a single one of them was earned thanks to a couple of errors by Mike Fontenot and Mark DeRosa. They did have a chance though, as Derrek Lee had a chance with the bases loaded and two outs in the 9th, but grounded out to first to end the game.

Los Angeles Angels 4 Kansas City Royals 0

I featured him in my On Deck yesterday, and I'd like to take this chance to thank Ervin Santana for making me look incredibly smart. Santana pitched a complete game shutout against the Royals, striking out nine along the way. The win improved his record to 6-0 after finishing last season 7-14. "He got a little frustrated last year because he was going out there at times without the tools he needed to do what he's doing now," said Angels manager Mike Scioscia. "He needed to work on his delivery and get back into his game. When he's out there on the mound and he has his mechanics together, it's a great combination. He got a little frustrated last year." You gotta feel bad for Brett Tomko, who pitched seven shutout innings himself, but got no support from his teammates.

AL

• Red Sox 6 Tigers 3
• Mariners 7 Rangers 3
• Athletics 2 Orioles 1 10 inn
  

NL

• Cardinals 6 Rockies 5
• Phillies 11 DBacks 4
• Dodgers 5 Mets 1

On Deck: Skipper, I Cannot Lose a Game

Who the hell needs John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar? It's a question that many Angels fans have probably been asking themselves a bit the last few weeks. I mean, those two were only the two best starters on the Angels staff last year, winning a combined 37 games.

Who needs those 37 wins when you have Joe Saunders and Ervin Santana? Those two have pitched back-to-back all season long, and neither have bothered to try losing a game yet. Yesterday Saunders improved to 6-0 on the year with a win over the Orioles, and today Ervin will try to join his teammate at 6-0...

Continue reading at FanHouse

John Bale Fights a Door, Door Wins

I remember one time as a kid, I think it was 12 or 13, I was home alone with my sister one night when the power went out in our house during a storm. My dad was just down the street, so I figured it would be best to go to him and let him know. So I took off running through the kitchen and down the hall to my bedroom, in complete darkness, to get my shoes and jacket.

Undeterred by the darkness, I ran full speed (like the wind!) down the hall until I...

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Morning Wood

Chicago Cubs 8 New York Mets 1

Well maybe I shouldn't get on Ronny Cedeno for talking World Series already, I mean, if he's going to keep hitting grand slams and driving in 5 runs a game, maybe they will get there (though it should be mentioned that Cedeno did manage to leave 7 runners on base as well). Ted Lilly also got his first win of the season, as he lasted 6 innings and gave up only one run. Though the 4 walks are still something he needs to work on. "You hear guys talking, whether they went 0-for-4 or whatever the case was, they're talking about us winning games," said Lilly. "That made it a little bit easier for me to swallow given the fact that I was going out there and not giving us quality outings. We were winning games that I wasn't pitching. That made my load a little bit easier to bear." The Cubs have now won 13 of their last 16.

New York Yankees 9 Chicago White Sox 5

Well, the Yankees didn't have Alex Rodriguez on Tuesday night, but that didn't stop them from slamming the White Sox. After Jose Contreras pitched a strong 6.1 innings, he walked Morgan Ensberg and gave up a bloop single to Melky Cabrera. The bullpen then came in, and they didn't do their job. Johnny Damon got an infield single to load the bases, and though Octavio Dotel struck out Derek Jeter, he followed that up by allowing a grand slam to Bobby Abreu. The Sox had a chance in their half of the 7th, loading the bases themselves, but Joba Chamberlain struck out Carlos Quentin and after walking Joe Crede, he got Juan Uribe to pop up to end the threat.

Cleveland Indians 15 Kansas City Royals 1

And C.C. Sabathia is finally on the board, as the Indians exploded for 15 runs on what was the American League's best pitching staff (numbers wise) going into the night. Though, it's not as if C.C. needed all that support, as he didnt' allow a single run in his 6 innings of work. "It definitely feels good to have a start like this," said Sabathia. "I just want to keep going out and keep building off this." Gil Meche, on the other hand, continued to struggle this season, allowing 8 runs in 3.1 innings of work. Casey Blake had quite the night as well, going 4-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, and 6 runs batted in.

AL

• Red Sox 7 Angels 6
• Tigers 10 Rangers 2
• Rays 6 Jays 4
• Twins 5 A's 4
• Mariners 4 Orioles 2

NL

• Brewers 9 Cardinals 8 12 inn
• Nats 6 Braves 0
• Pirates 3 Marlins 2
• Reds 8 Dodgers 1
• Astros 11 Padres 7
• Phillies 8 Rockies 6
• DBacks 5 Giants 4

Should the Royals Go After Frank Thomas?

The Kansas City Royals have gotten off to a decent start this season, going 9-10 in their first 19 games, but any success they've had on the young season should be solely credited to their pitching staff. It's guys like Brian Bannister and Zack Greinke who have been solid as starters, and Joakim Soria, Jimmy Gobble, and Leo Nunez who've yet to give up a run working out of the pen (a combined 18.1 innings between them) that's responsible for any wins the team has gotten.

It damn sure hasn't been the offense, which has managed to score a Major League worst 63 runs...

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David Glass Is Pleased With His Royals

To be honest with you, I'm not all that surprised that the Royals are off to a 6-3 start on the season. They have a lot of young talent on the roster, and a pitching staff that's pretty underrated. If this team finishes at or just below .500, I wouldn't be surprised.

What has surprised me, though, about Kansas City's start is the teams they're beating. So far the Royals have played six games against the Yankees and Tigers, the two highest payrolls in baseball...

Continue reading at FanHouse

Morning Wood

Chicago Cubs 7 Pittsburgh Pirates 3

Not even Rich Hill's sucking could stop the Cubs from winning their 5th straight game on Thursday night in Pittsburgh, completing a three-game sweep. The win also makes Chicago the first city in the country to have two teams win five games in a row, so that means we're going to have a Cubs-White Sox World Series. At least, that's what I think it means. If the two do meet in the Series, Geovany Soto would love to see the Sox trade for Matt Morris first, because Geo owned him last night. Soto went 4-for-5 with 2 doubles, a 2-run homer, and a single. His homer gave the Cubs a 4-3 lead during a 5-run 6th inning that blew this one open. As for Rich Hill and his sucking, he gave up 3 runs in 3 innings, while walking 4 Pirates. I'm not sure how much longer Lou Piniella is going to allow Rich to breathe at this rate, especially when considering how well Jon Lieber pitched in relief again.

New York Yankees 6 Kansas City Royals 3

The Sox may have been rained out on Thursday, but they still picked up a half-game on the Royals in the AL Central (Is April too early to start worrying about that kind of thing?) as the Yankees avoided being swept. Andy Pettite shot enough HGH before the game to go 6.2 innings, and allow only one hit, while both Melky Cabrera and Alex Rodriguez contributed with two-run homers. "Andy knows how to win big games," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "I don't know if I would call this a big game, but you don't want to be swept at the start of an eight-game road trip." Did a Yankee just consider a game against the Royals to be a "big game?" Jesus Christ this has been a weird start to the 2008 season.

Boston Red Sox 12 Detroit Tigers 5

The Red Sox showed the Tigers some mercy on Wednesday, allowing them to actually win a game, but that mercy was nowhere to be found on Thursday. The BoSox roughed up Nate Robertson for 4 runs and 8 hits in 5 innings. Sean Casey had 3RBIs against his former team, while Manny, Kevin Youkilis, and J.D. Drew each drove in 2 runs as well. The Tigers are now 1-8, and Jim Leyland isn't confused as to why his team sucks so much right now. "There isn't a bullpen in the history of baseball that could help a team when the starters can only muster five innings every night," Leyland said. "That's where you start, and we'll worry about the bullpen after we get that straightened out."

AL

• Rays 7 Mariners 0
• Rangers 3 Orioles 1
• Rangers 5 Orioles 4
• A's 3 Jays 2 12inn

NL

• Reds 4 Brewers 1
• Marlins 4 Nats 3
• Mets 4 Phillies 3 12inn
• Giants 5 Cardinals 1

Trey Hillman Would Like to Know if He Has a Left Fielder or Not

As spring training enters it's final days, teams are busy making the final decisions on which 25 players they plan on taking with them when the break camp, and who they're going to send to the minors. Who's the long man in the bullpen going to be? Who's the fifth outfielder and left-handed bat off the bench going to be? All very important decisions, to be sure.

Well new Royals manager Trey Hillman is going through the process for the very first time in the majors, and MLB is making it a little tough on him.

Continue reading at FanHouse

Foul Balls MLB Preview: AL Central

As the end of spring training draws near, I figure it's about time I got off my ass and started with the Foul Balls 2008 season previews. Each day I'll preview a separate division followed by individual previews for the White Sox and Cubs. Expect expert analysis bad jokes.

Today we look at the division I'm more familiar with than any other, the AL Central.

2007 Finish

1. Cleveland Indians 96-66
2. Detroit Tigers 88-74
3. Minnesota Twins 79-83
4. Chicago White Sox 72-90
5. Kansas City Royals 69-93

2008 Predictions

1. Detroit Tigers - Let me start this whole thing by saying that I don't think the AL Central is anywhere near as strong as everyone else seems to feel it is. I'm more along the line that the Tigers and Indians are pretty good, and everyone else is pretty average. Really, I don't even think the Tigers and Indians are that good this season. The Tigers lineup is fantastic, they already scored a ton of runs and now they've added Miguel Cabrera to the middle of the lineup. What worries me about this Tigers team though, and what I think will turn out to be the thing that bites them in the ass, is their pitching staff. Mostly the bullpen. This has to be the year where Todd Jones' luck finally runs out, right? I've no idea how he continues to be an effective closer in this league, and everybody else in the Tigers bullpen is hurt right now. In the starting rotation they have Justin Verlander and a whole bunch of questions afterward. Can Jeremy Bonderman finally have a complete season? Is Kenny Rogers too old? Will Dontrelle Willis be able to adjust to the American League? I'm picking the Tigers to win this division, but as you can tell, I'm not all that confident in the pick. INTERESTING FACT: Jim Leyland smokes in his sleep.
2. Cleveland Indians - The Indians won the division last year, and were only a victory away from the World Series before Boston came back from a 3 games to 1 deficit to knock them off. Cleveland can easily win the division again this year because even though they didn't really add anyone, they didn't lose anybody of real significance either. The offense should be fine because they were more than potent last season, and Travis Hafner had a down year. If he rebounds this season, the Tribe will be even more dangerous. Much like the Tigers, though, I worry about their pitching staff. C. C. Sabathia won the Cy Young last year, but I'm not convinced he can go two seasons without having to spend some time on the disabled list at some point. Plus, they still have Joe "Mouthbreather" Borowski closing their games, and that can't inspire confidence in anybody. INTERESTING FACT: Grady Sizemore is dreamy!!
3. Chicago White Sox - It's no secret that I haven't been very happy with what the White Sox did this offseason, but the closer we get to the season the more optimistic I get. At first I thought the Tigers and Indians would be invincible in this division, but I see cracks in their armor. It's not entirely impossible that the Sox could make a run at the division. I fully expect the offense to rebound after a horrible 2007 (to be fair, it couldn't get much worse) and if the pitching staff gives the team any kind of consistency, the White Sox will have a shot at this thing. INTERESTING FACT: A recent study showed that White Sox fans are not only smarter than other fans, but they're a lot better looking too and make better lovers.
4. Minnesota Twins - I'm always leery of predicting the Twins will finish this low in the division because it seems like everytime I do, they end up winning it. This year, however, I think it's finally safe to say the Twins are going to struggle to compete. They've lost Johan Santana and Torii Hunter, and they haven't really found anybody to replace them. Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Michael Cuddyer, and now Delmon Young will make sure that the Twins score some runs, but I've no confidence in anybody in the starting rotation. So Minnesota's strong bullpen is going to be taxed heavily this year, which will hurt them in the long run as well. INTERESTING FACT: Joe Mauer's sideburns cure cancer.
5. Kansas City Royals - The Royals started to show signs that they're turning things around last season, and though I expect them to continue improving this season, they're still the Royals. They're still going to finish in last place. Unlike previous seasons, though, they'll actually be worth watching this season. Alex Gordon should have a much better sophomore campaign, and other young hitters like Billy Butler and Mark Teahen should blossom as well. They also have a starting rotation that's largely unproven, but has the talent to surprise a lot of people this year if things go their way. The Royals aren't very far away from respectability. INTERESTING FACT: Mark Grudzielanek's eyes can see straight through to your soul.

Foul Balls All-Division Team

• Victor Martinez-CLE-C
• Justin Morneau-MIN-1B
• Mark Grudzielanek-KC-2B
• Miguel Cabrera-DET-3B
• Jhonny Peralta-CLE-SS
• Delmon Young-MIN-LF
• Curtis Granderson-DET-CF
• Magglio Ordonez-DET-RF
• Jim Thome-CWS-DH
• Justin Verlander-DET-SP
• Bobby Jenks-CWS-CP

Youngsters to Watch

• Alexei Ramirez-CWS-SS
• Asdrubal Cabrera-CLE-2B
• Alex Gordon-KC-3B
• Billy Butler-KC-DH
• Joakim Soria-KC-CP
• Carlos Gomez-MIN-OF

Guys Who Will Disappoint

• Jose Contreras-CWS-SP
• Jake Westbrook-CLE-SP
• Joe Borowski-CLE-CP
• Edgar Renteria-DET-SS
• Todd Jones-DET-CP
• Francisco Liriano-MIN-SP

Morning Wood - Losing Your Way To The Top

Florida Marlins 6 Chicago Cubs 4

Some things never change. The Marlins own the Cubs, and Steve Trachsel sucks. Put the two together, and what do you get? Another Cubs loss, and a Marlins sweep. Trachsel lasted only 4.1 innings and allowed five runs in his first start in two weeks. The way he's pitched since coming to the Cubs, let's up it's his last. So the Cubs were swept by the Marlins, but luckily...

San Diego Padres 9 Milwaukee Brewers 5

...the Brewers suck just as bad as the Cubs, and they lost to the Brewers on Thursday night. That means the magic number now sits at two as the Cubs get ready to play the final three games of the regular season.

Chicago White Sox 10 Kansas City Royals 0

You don't take fourth place from the White Sox! The White Sox take fourth place away from you!

Elsewhere...

AL

• Orioles 8 Blue Jays 5
• Twins 5 Red Sox 4
• Yankees 3 DRays 1
• Mariners 4 Indians 2

NL

• DBacks 8 Pirates 0
• Phillies 6 Braves 4
• Astros 4 Reds 3
• Cardinals 3 Mets 0
• Rockies 10 Dodgers 4

Morning Wood - Standing Still

Florida Marlins 7 Chicago Cubs 4

The Marlins beat the Cubs for the 9th straight time as the Cubs failed to put more distance between them and the Brewers. Jason Marquis lasted only five innings and allowed five runs to lose for the first time since August 26th. "Maybe we're pressing a little bit," said Mark DeRosa, who committed a throwing error in the Marlins' three-run second inning. "I'd like to think we're not playing tight, but maybe there are some circumstances where we are. We have to realize we're still in first place."

St. Louis Cardinals 7 Milwaukee Brewers 3

As weird as it may sound to say that the Cubs were in the clubhouse after their loss and rooting for the Cardinals as they watched this game, it's exactly what happened. Luckily Albert Pujols and the Cardinals were able to avoid a three game sweep by the Brewers. With his home run, Pujols once again reached the 30 home run and 100 RBI mark. The seventh straight season he's done so, becoming the first player in baseball history to do so in his first seven seasons.

Chicago White Sox 3 Kansas City Royals 0

Fourth place is ours, bitches!

Elsewhere...

AL

• Rangers 16 Angels 2
• Red Sox 11 Athletics 6
• Blue Jays 8 Orioles 5
• Tigers 9 Twins 4
• Indians 12 Mariners 4
• Yankees 12 DRays 4
• Mariners 3 Indians 2

NL

• Phillies 5 Braves 2
• Pirates 5 DBacks 1
• Astros 7 Reds 6
• Nationals 9 Mets 6
• Rockies 2 Dodgers 0
• Padres 11 Giants 3

Morning Wood - Fish Fried

Florida Marlins 4 Chicago Cubs 2

You mean the Cubs can lose? Dontrelle Willis dominated the team that traded him to Florida for 8 innings, allowing only three hits, as the Marlins beat the Cubs 4-2 on Tuesday night. The Marlins used a couple of bloop hits, a sac fly, and a two-run double in the second inning to score all four of their runs off of Ted Lilly, and Willis took over from there. "That's why we had a three-game lead when we came," Piniella said. "Now we squandered a piece of it. You can't win every day. You want to, but it just doesn't happen."

Kansas City Royals 9 Chicago White Sox 5

The White Sox had been playing a lot better lately, but last night they gave us all a reminder of what this season has been like. They scored five runs in the 1st inning to take a 5-1 lead, and then sat on their ass the rest of the night as the Royals kept playing. Oh well. Only five games to go.

Elsewhere...

AL

• Blue Jays 11 Orioles 4
• Red Sox 7 A's 3
• Tigers 8 Twins 0
• DRays 7 Yankees 6
• Rangers 3 Angels 1
• Indians 4 Mariners 3

NL

• Braves 10 Phillies 6
• Pirates 6 DBacks 5
• Astros 8 Reds 5
• Nationals 10 Mets 9
• Brewers 9 Cardinals 1
• Rockies 9 Dodgers 7
• Padres 6 Giants 4

Morning Wood - Back In Last

Kansas City Royals 3 Chicago White Sox 0

So the White Sox had their chance to take 4th place away from the evil Royals, but failed to do so. Really, after watching this team all season, should we have expected anything else? There is good news though, because the season ends in only nine days.

Atlanta Braves 3 Milwaukee Brewers 1

The Cubs had their first day off in nearly a month on Thursday, but that didn't mean they didn't get a small victory. The Braves beat Milwaukee last night to give the Cubs a 1.5 game lead in the NL Central. Jeff Bennett made his first of the season and lasted 5.2 innings allowing only a solo shot to Rickie Weeks in the third inning. Bennett's only previous Major League experience came back in 2004....as a Milwaukee Brewer. I was told by my dad as a child, "Don't fuck with Jeff Bennett." I had no idea at the time who the hell the old man was talking about, but as usual, he was right.

Florida Marlins 8 New York Mets 7

Seeing as how Foul Balls is a Chicago based sports blog, I haven't spent much time talking about other division races in baseball. I tend to save all my non-Chicago baseball thoughts for FanHouse, but I'll make an exception today. There's a race in the NL East, and apparently the Mets are trying to give it away. They blew two three-run leads in this game before Dan Uggla finished them off in the bottom of the 10th with an RBI double. "Things are not going our way," center fielder Carlos Beltran said. "It seems like every team comes back on us real easy." That's an understatement. With Philly's win the Mets lead in the East is back down to 1.5 games.

Elsewhere...

AL

• Orioles 6 Rangers 3
• Angels 9 Mariners 5

NL

• Rockies 9 Dodgers 4
• Padres 6 Pirates 3
• Phillies 7 Nationals 6
• Astros 18 Cardinals 1 <--Ass whooping
• Reds 4 Giants 2

Morning Wood - Back in First

Chicago Cubs 3 Cincinnati Reds 2

It feels like I'm writing the same thing here everyday. The Cubs either win and jump back in first, or they lose and fall back into a tie. Fortunately today is a first place day as the Cubs beat the Reds while the Brewers lost to Houston in extra innings. Ted Lilly held the Reds to two runs over 7 innings while Bob Howry came in and shut the door for the final two innings to get the win. Ryan Theriot scored after Adam Dunn trapped a fly ball off the bat of Matt Murton to give the Cubs the lead in the 8th inning and a very big win. Don't believe me? Ask Lou. "If ever there was a must-game for us this year, truthfully this was it," manager Lou Piniella said.

Chicago White Sox 7 Kansas City Royals 0

It feels like I'm writing the same thing here everyday. The Sox either really suck and lose, or they suck slightly less than their opponent and win. They moved back into 4th place with their shutout of the Royals last night. Jose Contreras gave up only five hits as he threw the third shutout of his career. "I spoke with my two daughters earlier today and tomorrow is my youngest daughter's birthday," Contreras said through an interpreter. "Then two days afterward, it is my oldest daughter's birthday. They asked me to throw a nine-inning shutout. I said, 'Don't you want another present? Can you ask for something else?" Thank God they didn't ask for a World Series trophy.

Elsewhere...

AL

• Indians 4 Tigers 2
• Angels 2 DRays 1
• Mariners 9 A's 5
• Yankees 2 Orioles 1
• Blue Jays 6 Red Sox 1
• Twins 4 Rangers 2

NL

• Mets 8 Nationals 4
• Braves 5 Marlins 1
• Astros 5 Brewers 4
• Cardinals 2 Phillies 1
• Rockies 6 Dodgers 5
• DBacks 6 Giants 4
• Padres 5 Pirates 3

Morning Wood - Separation Anxiety

Cincinnati Reds 5 Chicago Cubs 2

Aaron Harang is Carlos Zambrano's daddy. Harang improved to 3-0 against Zambrano this season as he shut down the Cubs for seven innings and allowed only two runs. Zambrano on the other hand only lasted 5.1 innings, giving up four runs and throwing 100 pitches. Though for some reason that didn't keep some people from giving him a standing ovation as he left. I guess Cubs fans are bi-polar, but I can't blame them. Having to watch this team everyday could drive anybody crazy.

Kansas City Royals 3 Chicago White Sox 2

The Royals jumped out to a 3-0 lead on the Sox in the first inning, and Gil Meche held the Sox offense down the rest of the way as the Royals moved back into fourth place. "We get three runs off the bat and it let me go out there and relax a little," Meche said. "It seemed like I got better as the game went along. In the seventh inning, I had the best stuff I had the whole game."

Elsewhere...

AL

• Indians 7 Tigers 4
• Yankees 12 Orioles 0
• Blue Jays 4 Red Sox 3
• Twins 4 Rangers 2
• Angels 2 DRays 1
• Mariners 8 A's 7

NL

• Rockies 3 Dodgers 1
• Rockies 9 Dodgers 8
• Nationals 9 Mets 8
• Braves 4 Marlins 3
• Brewers 9 Astros 1
• Phillies 7 Cardinals 4
• DBacks 5 Giants 0
• Padres 5 Pirates 3

Morning Wood - Cubs Keep Fighting

Chicago Cubs 7 Cincinnati Reds 6

Just when you thought the Cubs were about to fall back into a tie with Milwaukee, they go and score three runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to steal a win from Cincinnati. Aramis Ramirez's triple was just out of the diving Norris Hopper's reach, and it allowed Derrek Lee and Ryan Theriot to score the tying runs. Mark DeRosa then hit an infield single that brought Ramirez home for the Cubs win. In his last two games against the Reds, DeRosa is 10-for-10. "It was huge. You look at the scoreboard and see 6-0 Milwaukee, you can't quit in that situation. You got to keep fighting in front of your home fans," DeRosa said after Chicago's 7-6 victory.

Chicago White Sox 11 Kansas City Royals 3

Perhaps more important than anything the Cubs are doing right now, the White Sox got out of last place last night. Now the season is a success! The Sox exploded for 11 runs in the 5th inning, and Javier Vazquez dominated the Royals, striking out 13 in 8 innings of work. "My fastball was pretty good tonight and my off-speed pitches were good," Vazquez said. "The most important thing is to command your pitches, throw strikes and be aggressive, and I think I was doing that."

Elsewhere...

AL

• Indians 6 Tigers 5
• Yankees 8 Orioles 5
• Blue Jays 6 Red Sox 1
  
• Twins 5 Rangers 4
• Angels 10 DRays 7
• Mariners 4 A's 0

NL

• Braves 11 Marlins 6
• Nationals 12 Mets 4
• Brewers 6 Astros 0
• Phillies 13 Cardinals 11
• Giants 8 DBacks 5
• Padres 3 Pirates 0

Morning Wood - 30?!

Texas Rangers 30 Baltimore Orioles 3

How in the hell do you score 30 runs in a game? The Baltimore Ravens give up 30 points every three games, the Orioles are doing it in one?! Jared Saltalamacchia was 4-for-6 with two homers, five runs, and seven RBI. That's a week's worth of numbers. Ramon Vazquez had two homers of his own, while Marlon Byrd and Travis Metcalf chipped in with grand slams. Orioles starter Daniel Cabrera was responsible for 6 of the runs, and he had the best night of any Orioles pitcher. The greatest stat of all from this game though, belongs to Wes Littleton. Wes came out of the bullpen and pitched three solid innings of two hit baseball. Oh, and he also got a save in a game his team won by 27 runs. Way to protect the lead, Wes!!

Chicago Cubs 4 San Francisco Giants 2 10inn.

What's crazier? A team scoring 30 runs in a game, or the Cubs being in first place in August? A two-run double by Aramis Ramirez, a suicide squeeze by the just activated Henry Blanco, and seven solid innings from Rich Hill have put the Cubs a game up on the Brewers in the NL Central. For the second straight night, Cliff Floyd came through with the big hit. He sparked the two run rally in the 10th inning with a lead-off double.

Kansas City Royals 7 Chicago White Sox 6

And we're back in a tie for last place in the AL Central. It's truly been a season to cherish! Bears kickoff in 16 days!

Elsewhere...

AL

• A's 4 Blue Jays 1
• Twins 8 Mariners 4
• Indians 11 Tigers 8
• Devil Rays 2 Red Sox 1
• Rangers 9 Orioles 7
• Yankees 8 Angels 2

NL

• Dodgers 15 Phillies 3
• Padres 7 Mets 5
• Reds 4 Braves 2
• Astros 3 Nationals 2
• Cardinals 6 Marlins 4
• Pirates 11 Rockies 2
• DBacks 3 Brewers 2