Monthly ArchiveMay 2006
Posted on May 24, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 24th - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 2nd Place, 78 points, 12.5 out of First Cover Zero 90.5 / AARR / GOK! 77.5 / X 68 / Pi 66.5 / 10PK 66 / SJ 60.5 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 77 .2626 302 288 47 29 4.10 1.370 276 9 3RD 8TH 1ST T-2 1ST T-2 4TH 5TH 6 9TH BOX SCORE FOR 05.23 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 4 2 2 2 | 0 1 .315 Ronny Paulino Pit C 3 0 1 0 | 1 1 .283 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 0 2 3 | 0 0 .327 Jeff Kent LAD 2B 2 0 0 1 | 1 0 .243 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 3 0 0 0 | 0 1 .257 Jose Reyes NYM SS 7 1 1 2 | 1 2 .246 Adrian Gonzalez SD 1B 3 0 1 0 | 0 1 .233 Khalil Greene SD SS 3 0 0 0 | 0 0 .224 Adam Dunn Cin OF 3 0 0 0 | 1 2 .226 Dave Roberts SD OF 3 0 0 0 | 1 1 .281 Jeff DaVanon Ari OF 4 0 0 0 | 0 1 .284 Joe Borchard Fla OF 0 0 0 0 | 1 0 .194 Damian Jackson Was 2B 3 1 1 1 | 0 0 .275 Rich Aurilia Cin 2B 3 0 1 2 | 1 1 .269 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 45 4 9 11 | 7 11 .200 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: JEstrada 2(31), PFielder 3(27), JKent 1(30), JReyes 2(22), DJackson 1(7), RAurilia 2(16) 2B: PFielder 1(13) HR: JEstrada 1(4), JReyes 1(4), DJackson 1(4) SB: JReyes 1(18) ERRORS: RPaulino 1(5) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Aaron Heilman 1.0 1 2 2 2 0 3 6 18.00 3.00 Kerry Wood 5.0 2 3 3 5 0 3 22 5.40 1.40 Danys Baez Ho(2) 2.0 1 0 0 0 0 3 7 0.00 0.50 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 8.0 4 5 5 7 0 9 35 5.62 1.38 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on May 24, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From Rotoworld:
Kerry Wood, who was trying to earn his first win since July 15 of last season, wasn’t involved in the decision after yielding three runs in five innings of work against the Marlins tonight. Wood didn’t have as much velocity tonight after failing to bounce back as well as hoped from his season debut on Thursday. His command was also off. He gave up just two hits and struck out three, but he walked five and threw just 49-of-86 pitches for strikes. Wood is scheduled to make his next start Sunday against the Braves, but the Cubs might want to give him an extra day or two, which they can afford since they have Thursday off.
Prince Fielder went 2-for-4 with three RBI against the Reds on Tuesday. Fielder’s bases-loaded double in the third accounted for all three of the Brewers’ runs tonight. He’s batting .326 with eight homers and 27 RBI in 45 games played. Fielder is capable of maintaining those rates in the power department, but it will be difficult for him to hit over .300 while striking out almost once per game.
Damian Jackson, starting in center field, homered for the second straight day when he delivered a solo shot off Astros starter Fernando Nieve on Tuesday. Jackson has homered in each of his last three starts, so he’ll probably get a few more starts in center field with Alex Escobar on the DL. Marlon Byrd should get the majority of at-bats in center once Jackson cools off.
Reds activated outfielder Cody Ross from the 15-day disabled list. The return of Ross bumps Mike Burns from the roster, putting the Reds at 11 pitches for now. If they go back to 12 when Kent Mercker is activated on Friday, it should be Quinton McCracken who is sent down. Ross probably won’t have any fantasy value while the Reds’ regular outfielders are healthy.
Posted on May 23, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
The Kerry Wood Overnight Dispatch
Kerry Wood tested his arm on Monday and pronounced himself ready to go on Tuesday. “He wants to go [Tuesday],” Cubs manager Dusty Baker said. “It’s a good sign for him and us. He was a little cranky after his last start, but right now he’s a go.” He’ll be OK to use for one week anyway. (via Rotoworld).
The Cubs waited a long time for Kerry Wood and he’s already sore again. Wood insists this is normal post-start soreness exacerbated by the fact that he’s still working himself into shape, but the team panicked and held him out of a side session. A decision will be made on Monday if his scheduled Tuesday start will be pushed back. I don’t belive this is serious or that Wood will miss his start. (via Baseball Prospectus UTK)
Posted on May 23, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 23rd - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 79 points - 11 out of first Cover Zero 90 / GOK 80 / AARR / Pi 68 / X 66.5 / SJ 62.5 / 10PK 62 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 74 .2641 291 284 46 29 4.07 1.370 267 9 3RD 7TH 1ST 2ND 1ST T-2 3RD 4TH T-8 9TH BOX SCORE FOR 05.22 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 3 0 0 0 | 0 0 .308 Ronny Paulino Pit C 2 0 0 0 | 2 0 .281 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 1 3 0 | 0 1 .323 Jeff Kent LAD 2B 3 0 1 1 | 2 0 .247 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 4 0 0 0 | 0 3 .262 Adrian Gonzalez SD 1B 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .231 Khalil Greene SD SS 4 0 1 0 | 0 2 .228 Adam Dunn Cin OF 3 2 1 3 | 1 1 .231 Dave Roberts SD OF 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .287 Joe Borchard Fla OF 1 0 0 0 | 0 0 .194 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 32 3 8 4 | 5 9 .250 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: JKent 1(29), ADunn 3(31) 2B: PFielder 1(12), JKent 1(8) HR: ADunn 1(16) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Armando Benitez 1.0 2 1 1 1 0 0 6 9.00 3.00 Mark Mulder L(5-2) 6.3 5 3 3 4 0 2 29 4.29 1.43 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 7.3 7 4 4 5 0 2 35 4.93 1.64 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE HITTING ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Jason Ellison SF OF 0 1 0 0 | 0 0 .263 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 0 1 0 0 | 0 0 .263 --------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Dan Wheeler 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0.00 0.00 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0.00 0.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on May 22, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From RotoWorld:
Kerry Wood might miss his scheduled start Tuesday, despite Wood saying that he is fine, manager Dusty Baker and pitching coach Larry Rothschild are concerned that he was still sore Sunday from his first start of the season on Thursday. Wood’s bullpen session Sunday was cancelled, but he is expected to throw tomorrow and make his next start on Tuesday. “I’m assuming he’s going to start until I hear differently,” Rothschild said. “This is not an unusual process. I don’t want to make more of it than it is. It’s just something we’re going to watch and see how he reacts the next day and then make a decision. If we take the Cubs’ word for it, Wood apparently hasn’t had a significant setback. It’s just that he’s going to need more than four days in between starts. He might be pushed back to the weekend. “It’s possible,” pitching coach Rothschild said. “But we’ll have to see. It may not be even that (long). It may be quicker than that. He may be ready to go, so we’ll see.” The Cubs may bring Glendon Rusch out of the pen to start Tuesday.
Taylor Buchholz threw a complete-game shutout against the Rangers on Sunday to record his third win of the season. Buchholz struck out six and didn’t walk a batter while yielding five hits. That he was roughed up by both the Giants and Dodgers in his last two outings means his owners probably benched him for the outing. However, since he rebounded nicely he’ll be worth using against the Pirates next time out.
Dave Roberts homered and walked twice to score three times against the Mariners on Sunday. The Padres scored eight times despite putting just 11 men on base, but they still lost a 10-8 game. Roberts’ two-run shot off Mariners starter Felix Hernandez was his first of the season. He’s hitting .288 with 14 steals in 37 games this season.
Juan Cruz held the Braves to two runs in six innings of work on Sunday but still took the loss in a 2-1 game. Cruz gave up just two hits and struck out seven. He walked Tim Hudson to start the sixth, and the Braves managed to score three runs on a double and another walk in the inning. Cruz has pitched very well in three starts, poorly in one outing, and was rocked last time out against the Padres. He’ll have a tougher task against the Reds later this week, but NL-only leaguers will probably want to use him.
Adam Dunn went 1-for-3 with a sacrifice against the Tigers as the Reds’ No. 6 hitter on Sunday. Dunn bunted Austin Kearns over to second base with nobody out and right-hander Todd Jones on the mound in the ninth inning of a 1-0 game. We’re not fans of that decision, but the batting order that saw Dunn hit sixth both yesterday and today with the Tigers throwing left-handers made some sense. Rich Aurillia hit cleanup, with Austin Kearns batting fifth and Edwin Encarnacion in the No. 7 slot. It’s unlikely Dunn will hit that low against left-handers when back in NL parks.
Mike Lieberthal (knee) hit in the batting cage prior to Saturday’s game. Lieberthal will run in the outfield the next few days and then the Phillies will reevaluate his situation. An early June return isn’t out of the question.
Posted on May 22, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 22nd - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 76.5 points - 15.5 out of first Cover Zero 92 / GOK 82 / AARR / Pi 67 / X 66.5 / 10PK 65.5 / SJ 61 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 73 .2643 287 281 46 29 4.05 1.365 265 9 3RD 7TH 2ND 2ND 1ST T-2 4TH 5TH 8TH 9TH BOX SCORE FOR 05.21 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 1 0 0 0 | 0 0 .316 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 0 2 0 | 0 1 .313 Jeff Kent LAD 2B 3 1 1 0 | 1 0 .245 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 3 0 1 0 | 1 0 .268 Jose Reyes NYM SS 4 0 1 0 | 0 2 .250 Adrian Gonzalez SD 1B 4 1 1 0 | 0 1 .231 Khalil Greene SD SS 4 0 0 0 | 0 2 .228 Adam Dunn Cin OF 3 0 1 0 | 0 1 .229 Dave Roberts SD OF 3 3 1 2 | 2 0 .288 Jeff DaVanon Ari OF 1 0 0 0 | 0 0 .298 Joe Borchard Fla OF 3 0 0 0 | 0 2 .197 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 33 5 8 2 | 4 9 .242 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: DRoberts 2(12) HR: DRoberts 1(1) SB: JReyes 1(17) ERRORS: JBorchard 1(1) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Aaron Heilman Ho(8) 1.0 1 0 0 2 0 0 6 0.00 3.00 Matt Wise Ho(6) 1.0 0 0 0 2 0 1 5 0.00 2.00 Juan Cruz L(1-3) 6.0 2 2 2 3 0 7 23 3.00 0.83 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 8.0 3 2 2 7 0 8 34 2.25 1.25 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE HITTING ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Rich Aurilia Cin 2B 4 0 0 0 | 0 1 .267 Jason Ellison SF OF 1 0 0 0 | 0 1 .263 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 5 0 0 0 | 0 2 .000 --------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Taylor Buchholz W(3-3) 9.0 5 0 0 0 0 6 31 0.00 0.56 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 9.0 5 0 0 0 0 6 31 0.00 0.56 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on May 21, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From Rotoworld:
J.J. Hardy (sprained ankle) has already stopped using crutches. The Brewers expected him to miss around six weeks, but Hardy thinks he will be back before then. “It looks like it’s going to be sooner than later,” said Hardy. “I got off crutches a little sooner than I expected.” Hardy hopes to begin baseball activities on June 2.
Clay Hensley took the loss after surrendering six runs in six-plus innings versus the Mariners on Saturday. Hensley didn’t walk a batter and struck out three, but the Mariners bunched their nine hits at the right times to score six runs. We expected better given that Hensley had three quality starts in his last four tries. We like his chances of being a valuable NL-only leaguer this season, but he’ll have a rough task with the Cardinals ahead next week.
Brandon Webb threw a complete-game, four-hit shutout against the Braves on Saturday. He also walked just one and struck out eight in the dominant outing. At 7-0, Webb leads the National League in wins. He’s also third in ERA with a 2.44. We wouldn’t bet against him remaining one of the NL’s best pitchers for the remainder of the season.
Armando Benitez was charged with his second blown save Saturday agaisnt the A’s, but he improved to 3-0 after pitching 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Benitez replaced Jason Schmidt with a one-run lead, runners on the corners and one out in the ninth inning. A Jay Payton single tied it up, but Benitez got out of the inning without further damage. After the Giants scored twice in the top of the 10th, Benitez stayed in to finish the game. While Benitez has just two saves since coming off the DL a month ago, he has won three times and he still hasn’t allowed a run in 8 1/3 innings.
Posted on May 21, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 21st - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 81 points - 9.5 out of first Cover Zero 90.5 / GOK 82 / AARR / X 69 / Pi 68.5 / 10PK 63 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 72 .2647 285 276 45 29 4.09 1.367 257 9 3RD 7TH 1ST 2ND 1ST T-1 4TH 4TH 7TH T-8 BOX SCORE FOR 05.20 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 4 2 2 1 | 0 0 .319 Ronny Paulino Pit C 4 1 1 0 | 0 0 .287 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 1 1 0 | 0 1 .308 Jeff Kent LAD 2B 4 1 1 1 | 0 2 .243 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 4 2 2 0 | 1 0 .267 Jose Reyes NYM SS 5 1 0 0 | 0 0 .250 Adrian Gonzalez SD 1B 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .230 Khalil Greene SD SS 4 1 1 1 | 0 2 .234 Adam Dunn Cin OF 4 1 1 1 | 1 0 .227 Dave Roberts SD OF 4 0 1 1 | 0 2 .287 Joe Borchard Fla OF 4 0 0 0 | 0 0 .206 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 45 10 11 5 | 2 8 .244 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: JEstrada 1(29), JKent 1(28), KGreene 1(31), ADunn 1(28), DRoberts 1(10) 2B: JEstrada 1(12), RPaulino 1(5), RZimmerman 1(8) HR: KGreene 1(9), ADunn 1(15) GIDP: RZimmerman 1(3) SB: JReyes 1(16) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Armando Benitez W(3-0)BS(2) 1.7 2 0 0 1 0 1 7 0.00 1.76 Brandon Webb W(7-0) 9.0 4 0 0 1 0 8 31 0.00 0.56 Clay Hensley L(2-3) 6.0 9 6 6 0 0 3 27 9.00 1.50 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 16.7 15 6 6 2 0 12 65 3.23 1.02 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE HITTING ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Rich Aurilia Cin 2B 4 0 0 0 | 1 1 .279 Jason Ellison SF OF 3 0 1 0 | 0 0 .278 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 7 0 1 0 | 1 1 .143 --------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Danys Baez Ho(1) 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.00 0.00 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.00 0.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on May 20, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From RotoWorld:
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Mike Lieberthal hit in a batting cage yesterday. He’s on the disabled list with a small fracture in his left knee. “He’ll try to run in a couple of days, and then we’ll see where he’s at,” manager Charlie Manuel said.
Kerry Wood said he experienced only normal soreness the day after making his season debut on Thursday, according to the Daily Southtown. “He told me he felt like he was hit by a truck,” manager Dusty Baker said. “He was sore everywhere, which was understandable. He had a lot more adrenaline going into his muscles than he did in Arizona. He said it was a good general soreness.
The Reds activated Rich Aurilia from the DL Friday, according to the AP. He had been out since May 4 with a strained right groin. Prior to the injury, Aurilia had seen action at first, second and third base, and shortstop.
Despite a banged up rotation and three shutout innings of relief from Aaron Heilman Friday, the Mets plan to keep Heilman in the bullpen. Heilman has said he wants to start and he’d certainly be better than Jose Lima or Jeremi Gonzalez. “I like to sleep at night knowing we have a good bullpen,” general manager Omar Minaya said. Idiot.
Jeff Kent returned to action on Friday and went 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Kent missed Wednesday’s game with lower back stiffness.
Jeff DaVanon went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer and a walk Friday against the Braves. It had been exactly a month since DaVanon’s previous multihit game. He’s lost at-bats because of Eric Byrnes’ hot streak, and since Byrnes is still producing, it will take more than one strong game to change that.
Tom Gorzelanny allowed three hits over eight scoreless innings in a victory for Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday. He’s pitched 16 shutout innings over his last two starts. Gorzelanny will likely move into the Pirates’ rotation pretty soon. He’s 3-2 with a 2.56 ERA in the International League.
Posted on May 20, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 20th - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 77 points - 14 out of first Cover Zero 91 / GOK 83.5 / AARR / X 68.5 / Pi 68.5 / 10PK 64 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 70 .2652 280 266 44 27 4.12 1.383 245 9 2ND 7TH 1ST 2ND 1ST T-2 5TH 6TH 8TH T-8 BOX SCORE FOR 05.19 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 3 0 1 2 | 1 0 .312 Ronny Paulino Pit C 3 0 0 0 | 0 1 .289 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .310 Jeff Kent LAD 2B 3 2 2 2 | 1 0 .243 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .261 Jose Reyes NYM SS 3 1 1 0 | 2 0 .257 Khalil Greene SD SS 4 0 1 0 | 0 2 .233 Adam Dunn Cin OF 5 1 2 1 | 0 1 .226 Jeff DaVanon Ari OF 4 3 2 3 | 1 0 .301 Joe Borchard Fla OF 4 0 1 2 | 0 0 .219 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 37 7 12 10 | 5 6 .324 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: JEstrada 2(28), JKent 2(27), ADunn 1(27), JDaVanon 3(18), JBorchard 2(9) 2B: PFielder 1(11), KGreene 1(9), ADunn 1(6) HR: ADunn 1(14), JDaVanon 1(2) GIDP: RPaulino 1(2) SB: JReyes 1(15) CS: JReyes 1(5) ERRORS: RZimmerman 1(5), KGreene 1(4) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Doug Davis L(2-3) 7.0 7 4 4 2 0 3 30 5.14 1.29 Aaron Heilman 3.0 0 0 0 0 0 3 9 0.00 0.00 Aaron Cook W(5-3) 5.3 7 2 2 3 0 2 26 3.40 1.89 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 15.3 14 6 6 5 0 8 65 3.53 1.24 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE HITTING ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Rich Aurilia Cin 2B 4 1 1 1 | 0 0 .293 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 4 1 1 1 | 0 0 .250 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: RAurilia 1(14) HR: RAurilia 1(6)
Posted on May 19, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From RotoWorld:
Juan Cruz is expected to start Sunday’s game against the Braves on three days’ rest. Cruz lasted just two-thirds of an inning in his Wednesday start against the Pirates. He threw just 46 pitches before being chased from the game.
Kerry Wood, making his first start in the big leagues since July 20 of last year, surrendered four runs in five innings versus the Nationals today. Wood didn’t walk a batter and struck out six, but the Nationals scored four times on three homers. The right-hander threw just 71 pitches tonight and the club has said they’re going to avoid high pitch counts with Wood this season, so maybe he has a chance to stay healthy for the remainder of the campaign. He’ll have a nice matchup to build some confidence against the Marlins next time out. It’s fine to activate him.
Reds activated infielder Rich Aurilia from the 15-day disabled list. Although Scott Hatteberg has handled lefties better than righties to date, Aurilia will return to his role as the first baseman against southpaws. He’ll also receive the occasional start at second and third.
Adam Dunn hit second against the Pirates on Thursday and had a double and a walk in five plate appearances. Manager Jerry Narron decided to shake up the lineup as a result of the Reds’ recent slump. Dunn in the second spot has always been a good idea, though no manager has had the guts to stick him there for the long-term. It probably won’t happen this time, either.
Posted on May 19, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 19th - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 73.5 points - 18.5 out of first Cover Zero 91 / GOK 86.5 / AARR / X 71.5 / Pi 71.5 / 10PK 61 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 68 .2640 270 259 43 26 4.15 1.389 237 9 T-2 7TH 1ST 2ND 1ST T-2 5TH 8TH 9TH T-8 BOX SCORE FOR 05.18 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Ronny Paulino Pit C 5 1 1 0 | 0 0 .300 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 4 0 0 0 | 0 1 .311 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 4 1 1 1 | 0 1 .261 Jose Reyes NYM SS 4 0 0 0 | 0 0 .256 Adam Dunn Cin OF 4 0 1 0 | 1 2 .220 Joe Borchard Fla OF 4 0 0 0 | 0 0 .217 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 25 2 3 1 | 1 4 .120 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: RZimmerman 1(22) 2B: RPaulino 1(4), ADunn 1(5) HR: RZimmerman 1(7) GIDP: ADunn 1(3) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kerry Wood L(0-1) 5.0 5 4 4 0 0 6 19 7.20 1.00 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 5.0 5 4 4 0 0 6 19 7.20 1.00 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on May 18, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
UTK Update
Will Carroll from Baseball Prospectus updates Moises Alou and J.J. Hardy’s injuries in Under the Knife:
We’ll have to wait for his TV show to know what Barry Bonds thinks about it–is that show still on?–but the Giants are excited to see Moises Alou hitting in the cage. His sprained ankle has been slightly ahead of schedule throughout his rehab, a testament to the medical staff and to Alou’s penchant for dealing with injury. It’s not expected that he’d need a rehab assignment, so Alou could be back as soon as early next week. His game isn’t predicated on movement, so he could play a step slower.
J.J. Hardy got stuffed at the plate on Wednesday night, doing a full-stop when Sal Fasano dropped his tree-trunk leg down in front of the plate. The legal but dangerous maneuver cranked Hardy’s ankle around and he left the field with assistance. (Nice picture here of Roger Caplinger and Dan Wright, though I’m sure they’d rather have done without the face time.) Hardy thought he’d broken his ankle. Instead, it’s a severe sprain that will keep him out six weeks, but he won’t need any surgical intervention. Bill Hall will fill in while Hardy is on the DL. As with most ankle sprains, there shouldn’t be much in the way of any long-term problems and Hardy has a decent shot of beating that projection back.
One way to tell how much trouble a pitcher is in is to watch the minor leagues. Teams will often “pair” a major league and minor league pitcher’s schedule to make sure that if the two have to swap places, they’ll be available on the same day, keeping the rotation in order. The Pirates have had Oliver Perez and Tom Gorzelanny on the same day for a while, adjusting the Triple-A rotation a couple times through rainouts to do so. Perez will be on a very short leash on Thursday and if his results aren’t better, they’ll swap temporarily. The Pirates are hoping that the move would go better than their last one. Chris Duffy, the opening day CF, was sent down to Triple-A but chose not to report.
Posted on May 18, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
Overnight Dispatches
From RotoWorld:
After working out yesterday, Rich Aurilia plans to rest today and hopes to be activated from the disabled list on Friday, according to the Cincinnati Post. “I think I’m well enough to play, so I don’t see why not,” said Aurilia. “We’ll see how I feel (today) when I come in after running (Wednesday). I did some harder running and I kind of did some turns around first. It went well.” Aurilia has been sidelined by a strained groin.
The Cubs confirmed yesterday that Kerry Wood will make his season debut on Thursday, according to the Daily Southtown. Wood has been rehabbing the injured shoulder for over eight months and is ready to go. “Mechanically, he is back closer to where he was in ‘03,” pitching coach Larry Rothschild said. “I hope we see some velocity and the slider the way it was before the injury occurred.”
Cody Ross (finger) is nearing the 20 day maximum for minor league rehab assignments. Ross is out of options so the Reds will either need to make bring him back to the major league roster or risk losing him by sending him to Triple-A. He has hit .297 with three home runs in 11 games for Triple-A Louisville.
Juan Cruz lasted just two-thirds of an inning against the Padres on Wednesday and gave up nine runs. Brutal. Cruz gave up five hits, walked three and hit two batters. He had a 3.60 ERA in his first three starts, so this alone shouldn’t get him pulled from the rotation. One more bad start might, however. Since he’ll be going against the Pirates, NL-only leaguers can still risk using him next week.
Adrian Gonzalez homered, walked and was hit by a pitch in Wednesday’s win over the Diamondbacks. With three homers in his last six starts, Gonzalez should be regaining a little job security. He was losing quite a bit of time to Mark Bellhorn earlier this month, but he’s playing regularly against right-handers now.
Mark Mulder tossed 8 1/3 shutout innings to outduel Steve Trachsel in the Cardinals’ 1-0 win over the Mets on Wednesday night. The Mets loaded the bases with just one out in the ninth against Mulder, but Jason Isringhausen came on and struck out David Wright before Cliff Floyd grounded out to end it. Mulder improved to 5-1 with a 3.69 ERA. He’ll face the Giants and the Padres next week.
Danys Baez got five outs Wednesday against the Rockies to earn his first save since April 29. Baez entered a 3-2 game with runners on first and second and one out in the eighth and got Miguel Ojeda to ground into a double play. The Rockies did threaten in the ninth, putting two men on with two outs, but Baez got Todd Helton to fly out to end it. Baez, who had blown his last four save opps, should be back as the favorite for saves until Eric Gagne returns. Takashi Saito might also see opportunities.
Brewers placed shortstop J.J. Hardy on 15-day disabled list with a severe sprain of the distal ligament in his right ankle. The Brewers said that Hardy could miss anywhere from two weeks to six weeks. Bill Hall will be the Brewers’ everyday shortstop until Hardy comes back, giving him plenty of value in mixed leagues. Corey Hart replaced Hardy on the active roster and will serve as a backup in the outfield and the infield corners.
The Dodgers’ expect to have Jeff Kent (lower back) in the starting lineup until Friday. Kent will sit out Wednesday’s game to rest his back. Oscar Robles or Ramon Martinez will fill in at second while he is out. Ramon Martinez started at second base in Kent’s place on Wednesday.
Posted on May 18, 2006 by Andrew Flynn
May 18th - Standings and Statistics
Standings: 3rd - 75 points - 14.5 out of first Cover Zero 89.5 / GOK 86.5 / AARR / Pi 73 / X 69.5 HR AVG RBI R SB W ERA WHIP K'S S -- --- --- --- --- --- ---- ----- --- --- 67 .2661 269 257 43 26 4.11 1.394 231 9 2ND 7TH 1ST 2ND 1ST T-2 5TH 7TH 9TH T-8 BOX SCORE FOR 05.17 Atomic Roadrunners ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Johnny Estrada Ari C 4 1 1 1 | 0 0 .312 Ronny Paulino Pit C 4 1 2 0 | 0 1 .307 Prince Fielder Mil 1B 3 1 1 2 | 1 0 .320 Ryan Zimmerman Was 3B 2 0 0 0 | 1 1 .262 Jose Reyes NYM SS 4 0 1 0 | 0 1 .262 Adrian Gonzalez SD 1B 2 3 1 2 | 1 0 .230 Khalil Greene SD SS 5 1 2 2 | 1 2 .233 Adam Dunn Cin OF 2 0 0 0 | 3 1 .219 Dave Roberts SD OF 5 2 2 0 | 1 0 .288 Jeff DaVanon Ari OF 0 0 0 0 | 1 0 .291 Joe Borchard Fla OF 1 1 1 0 | 2 0 .232 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 32 10 11 7 | 11 6 .344 --------------------------------------------------------- RBI: JEstrada 1(26), PFielder 2(24), AGonzalez 2(19), KGreene 2(30) 2B: JEstrada 1(11), RPaulino 1(3), PFielder 1(10), JReyes 1(8), KGreene 1(8), DRoberts 1(5) HR: AGonzalez 1(4) SB: RZimmerman 1(3) ERRORS: RPaulino 1(4), RZimmerman 1(4), KGreene 1(3) PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Mulder W(5-1) 8.3 4 0 0 2 0 5 31 0.00 0.72 Juan Cruz L(1-2) 0.7 5 9 9 3 0 1 12 115.71 11.43 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 9.0 9 9 9 5 0 6 43 9.00 1.56 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE HITTING ab r h bi | bb so avg --------------------------------------------------------- Jason Ellison SF OF 0 1 0 0 | 0 0 .267 --------------------------------------------------------- Totals 0 1 0 0 | 0 0 .267 --------------------------------------------------------- RESERVE PITCHING ip h r er bb ibb so bf era whip ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Danys Baez S(9) 1.7 1 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.00 0.59 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Totals 1.7 1 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.00 0.59 ----------------------------------------------------------------------