RANGERS CHI CHI GONZALEZ STARS IN DEBUT

May 31,2015

Texas rookie CHI CHI GONZALEZ started his major league debut with five hit-less, scoreless  innings against Boston on Saturday. The rookie right hander looked pretty seasoned before he was lifted with two outs in the sixth.

Along the way he did give up five walks and threw 105 pitches, but Rangers players and coaches had nothing but praise for the youngster, who had made a case to make the team out of spring training. Rodriguez stated he knew he had a no-hitter going after five and he acknowledged that he was very amped up.

The Red Sox never did score, and the Rangers went on to win 8-0.

PADRES WIN ON WALK OFF GRAND SLAM

May 30,2015

Walk offs are exciting, a walk off grand slam is really exciting. Last night the Padres beat the Pirates 6-2. The unlikely hero was DEREK NORRIS the Padres Catcher who went 1 for 5 in the game, the other four at bats....all strikeouts. So when Norris came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, with the winning run on third base, the crowd was a little pessimistic. Norris changed everyone's mind though as he rocked a fastball over the fence in between left and center fields.

This was the first walk off victory for the Padres in 2015 and puts them just two games below 500 in their quest to get back into the mix in the National League West race.

RED SOX ROOKIE SPOILS HAMILTON'S HOMECOMING

May 29,2015

Red Sox rookie starter EDUARDO RODRIGUEZ made his major league debut in Texas last night, which also happened to be the first home game for JOSH HAMILTON in his return to the Rangers.

The home crowd gave Hamilton several long ovations and he responded well, going 2 for 4 with 2 doubles and an RBI.

But the rookie was baffling, going 7 2/3 scoreless innings and leaving the game with a 5-0 lead. Rodriguez struck out seven allowing only three hits and two walks. The Red Sox hope he can perform at this level and give them the good problem of having six starters in the Major Leagues.

The Red Sox held on to win the game 5-1.

SYNDERGAARD HOMERS IN SHUTOUT

May 28,2015

   NOAH SYNDERGAARD helped himself out in the NY Mets 7-0 win over the Phillies at CitiField. Besides throwing 7 1/3  scoreless innings on Wednesday with six strikeouts, Syndergaard also lit it up from the other side, batting 3 for 3 with a mammoth homerun.

    Only this type of performance could overshadow the day LUCAS DUDA had going 3 for 4 with a double and two long balls.

    Syndergaard received his second consecutive standing ovation as he left the CitiField mound in the eighth. The Mets completed the three game sweep of the Phillies and are off on Thursday before traveling to Florida to take on the Marlins

DONALDSON GOES ON A TEAR

May 27,2015

JOSH DONALDSON had a pretty good night at the plate. The Toronto slugger went 4 for 4 with a walk, highlighted  with 2 homeruns, and four RBIs, he also scored five runs. Oh, and by the way the second homer was a walk off in the bottom of the ninth to win the game for the BlueJays 10-9 against the WhiteSox.

WEEK 7 UPDATE

STANDINGS

NL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
WSH	26	18	0
NYM	24	21	2.5
ATL	22	21	3.5
PHL	19	27	8
MIA	18	27	8.5

NL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
STL	28	16	0
CHC	24	19	3.5
PIT	21	22	6.5
CIN	18	25	9.5
MIL	16	29	12.5

NL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
LAD	26	17	0
SF	25	20	2
ARI	21	22	5
SD	21	24	6
COL	17	25	8.5

____________________________________________________________________

AL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
TB	24	21	0
NYY	22	22	1.5
BOS	21	23	25
BAL	19	22	3
TOR	20	26	4.5

AL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
KC	28	15	0
MIN	25	18	3
DET	26	19	3
CLE	20	23	8
CHW	19	22	8

AL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
HOU	29	16	0
LAA	22	22	6.5
TEX	21	23	7.5
SEA	20	23	8
OAK	16	30	13.5

_________________________________________________________________________________

AL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

MIKE NAPOLI  - 1B -  BOS                                    9/21 - 5 HR -  10 RBI  - 6 RUNS

NL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

ANDREW MCCUTCHEN  - OF -  PIT                      9/20  - 3 HR  - 5 RBI  - 5 RUNS

AL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

COREY KLUBER   -  CLE                                      1-0  -  1.96 ERA  -  19 K

NL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

COLE HAMMELS  - PHL                                         2-0  - 1.17 ERA  -  12 K


TRADE/INURY/MILESTONE NOTABLES
Cardinals MICHAEL WACHA is first to 7 wins.
Cubs trade C Wellington Castillo for RHP Yoervis Medina of Seattle

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HOUSTON"S TRIPLE PLAY SNAGS THE WIN

May 24,2015

The fifth inning turned out to be crucial for Astros rookie pitcher LANCE MCCULLERS who was in a jam. With no outs and runners on first and second, Detroits IAN KINSLER hit a sharp grounder to third. Utility infielder JONATHAN VILLAR snagged the grounder, made a strong throw to JOSE ALTUVE covering second who avoided a take out slide by ANTHONY GOSE and fired to CHRIS CARTER at first beating Kinsler and recording Houstons first triple play since 2004.

McCullers was able to notch his first major league win, thanks to the fifth inning ending triple play.

METS' WRIGHT SUFFERS ANOTHER SETBACK

May 23,2015

Mets all-star third baseman DAVID WRIGHT has suffered another setback in his attempt to come off the disabled List. Wright who has been on the DL since April 15 with hamstring tightness, has neen diagnosed with spinal stenosis, a tightening of the spinal column. The diagnosis comes after Wright suffered lower back pain that kept his rehabilitation from proceeding as scheduled.

The Mets released a statement that the condition does not appear to be degenerative and they will change their rehab to introduce strengthening exercises for the lower back to alleviate the problem. Needless to say, Wright will not be with the club anytime soon.

ACE HOMERS OFF ACE

May 21,2015

MADISON BUMGARER became the first major league pitcher to homer off CLAYTON KERSHAW.

In the third inning Bumgarner jumped on the first pitch and pulled it into the left field stands. The homer put the Giants up 1-0 and then Bumgarner never looked back as the GIants pitching staff combined to shut out the Dodgers 4-0.

ASTROS STAY HOT BEHIND KEUCHEL

May 21,2015

The unexpected early season success of the Houston Astros can partly be explained by the success of the young guns on the starting rotation. DALLAS KEUCHEL contributed to that in last nights victory over the Oakland A's 6-1.

Keuchel moves to 6-0 on the year bouncing back from no decisions in his previous two outings.

 The Astros continued their hot start, the best in club history and stay on top of  the AL West with a 2 game lead over the Angels. The surprising Astros are 27-14, close to the best record in the MLB, following only the St Louis Cardinals who are  27-13.

ALVAREZ HOMER LANDS IN BOAT

May 20,2015

Pittsburgh's PEDRO ALVAREZ blasted a homerun out of PNC Park in Pittsburgh, which landed in a boat docked on the Alleghany river.

The Pirates ended up losing 8-5 to the Minnesota Twins despite the long ball.

Alvarez is only the 36th player to launch a ball into the river since the ballpark opened in 2001, but only the third to hit the river (or a boat) on the fly!

WEEK 6 UPDATE (a day late)

STANDINGS

NL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYM	23	16	0
WSH	22	17	1
ATL	18	19	3.5
PHL	17	23	6.5
MIA	16	23	7

NL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
STL	25	13	0
CHC	21	16	3.5
CIN	18	20	7
PIT	18	20	7
MIL	14	25	11.5

NL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
LAD	24	13	0
SF	20	18	4.5
SD	19	20	6
ARI	16	21	8
COL	13	22	10

____________________________________________________________________

AL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYY	22	17	0
TB	21	18	1
BOS	18	20	3.5
BAL	16	19	4
TOR	18	22	4.5

AL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
KC	24	14	0
DET	23	16	1.5
MIN	21	17	3
CHW	18	17	4.5
CLE	14	23	11.5

AL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
HOU	25	14	0
LAA	19	19	5.5
SEA	17	20	7
TEX	16	22	8.5
OAK	14	26	11.5

_________________________________________________________________________________

AL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

IAN KINSLER  - 2B -  TEX                                    11/29 - 5 rbi - 3 SB - 6 runs

NL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

BRYCE HARPER  - RF -  WSH                              11/19  - 3 hr - 8 rbi - 2sb - 9 runs

AL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

COREY KLUBER   -  NYY                                      1-0  -  0.53 era  -  30k

NL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

COLE HAMMELS  - PHL                                         2-0  - 1.88 era  - 16 k


TRADE/INURY/MILESTONE NOTABLES

Marlins fire manager Mike Redmond
Manager Joe Madden of the Cubs gets his 800th career win

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MARLINS FIRE MANAGER

May 18,2015

After a rough start to the 2015 season (16-22) the Marlins have fired Manager MIKE REDMOND. The Marlins named General Manager DAN JENNINGS as the replacement manager, but its not clear at this time if that is a permanent replacement or just a stop gap measure til a new Manager is hired. Ironically Jennings will be the third Manager on the Marlins current payroll. They are still paying Ozzie Guillan, Mike Redmond and now Dan Jennings  for contracts in the 2015 season.

In 2003, in an eerily similar start, the Marlins fired Manager Jeff Torborg after starting the season at 16-22. They then hired former GM Jack McKeon who went on to manage the Marlins to a 2003 World Series Title. Sounds like they are sticking to that playbook in 2015.

PENCE FRESH OFF DL, HAS BIG NIGHT

May 17,2015

HUNTER PENCE returned from the disabled list last night. He started the season on the DL after breaking his arm in spring training. The Giants have started the season at 19-18 have been missing the offensive power and spark usually provided by Pence. In his debut back, he provided just that. Pence went 2 for 3 with a double and a walk and scored 3 runs. Leading the Giants to an 11-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati.

BELTRE BLASTS #400

May 16,2015

Last night Rangers Third-baseman ADRIAN BELTRE joined the 400 home-run club. Beltre remained humble in the post game interview when asked about his milestone, he stated that he was more concerned that the Rangers fell to the Indians 8-3 at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

 Beltre becomes just the fourth third-baseman to hit 400 (with more than 75% of games at third base), joining hall of famers MIKE SCHMIDT, EDDIE MATTHEWS and future Hall of Famer CHIPPER JONES. He is currently fourth among active players, only behind ALEX RODRIGUEZ, ALBERT PUJOLS and DAVID ORTIZ.

MADDEN GETS 800th WIN IN SWEEP OF METS

May 15,2015

Excitement is building in Chicago. Manager JOE MADDEN notched his 800th career win in Thursday Afternoon's 6-5 win over the NY Mets. The Cubs swept the three game series, exciting the fan base who have high expectations after ownership brought in Madden to manage the blue chip young batters on the Cubs roster.
With number 800 Madden ranks 8th among active Major League managers.

KLUBER Ks EIGHTEEN

May 14, 2015

Last Year's American League Cy Young winner CORY KLUBER has his first win of the season.
After a slow start Kluber quieted all doubters last night, taking a no hitter into the seventh inning. He finished with an eight inning, eighteen strikeout, shutout performance. The Indians held on to win the gem 2-0. Kluber tied the Cleveland franchise strikeout record in a regulation game, Bob Feller also stuck out eighteen in 1938.

STANTON LEAVES THE PARK

GIANCARLO STANTON blasted one out of Dodger Stadium, literally last night. The estimatated distance of 478ft is one of the longest homeruns hit this year. The Homerun was only the fifth ever to be blasted out of Dodger Stadium. Despite the homer the Marlins lost to the Dodgers 11-1.

OLIVERA GRANTED VISA

MAY 12,2015

Cuban phenom, infielder HECTOR OLIVERA has been granted a visa to travel to California to take a physical to complete the contract he signed with the Dodgers in March. The Offensive Cuban All-star, will then report to the Dodgers minor league training facility to work out. It's not clear how much minor league time Olivera will need before making his MLB debut. The current Dodger infield has been performing well but three of the four starters only are signed through 2015.
The Dodgers were selected by Olivera after a competitive bidding process signing a six year $60+ million dollar deal, despite having a slight ucl tear in his throwing elbow.

WEEK 5 UPDATE

STANDINGS

NL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYM	20	11	0
WSH	17	15	3.5
MIA	15	17	5.5
ATL	14	17	6
PHL	11	21	9.5

NL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
STL	22	9	0
CHC	15	15	6.5
CIN	15	16	7
PIT	15	16	7
MIL	11	21	11.5

NL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
LAD	20	10	0
SD	17	16	4.5
SF	16	16	5
ARI	14	16	6
COL	11	17	8

____________________________________________________________________

AL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYY	20	12	0
TB	17	15	3
TOR	16	16	4
BOS	14	17	5.5
BAL	13	16	5.5

AL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
KC	20	11	0
DET	19	13	1.5
MIN	18	14	2.5
CHW	12	16	6.5
CLE	11	19	8.5

AL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
HOU	20	12	0
LAA	15	17	5
SEA	14	17	5.5
TEX	13	18	6.5
OAK	12	21	8.5

_________________________________________________________________________________

AL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

TORY HUNTER  - RF -  MIN                                  11/29 - 3 hr - 9 rbi - 9 runs

NL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

BRYCE HARPER  - RF -  WSH                              10/22  - 6 hr - 13 rbi 

AL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

MICHAEL PINEDA   -  NYY                                    2-0  -  0.60 era  -  22k

NL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

BARTOLO COLON   - NYM                                     2-0  - 3.29 era  - 15 k


TRADE/INURY/MILESTONE NOTABLES

Alex Rodriguez passes Willie Mays on the all time HR list and moves into 4th place.
Felix Hernandez strikes out his 2000th batter.

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KING FELIX NOTCHES 2000TH STRIKEOUT

May 10, 2015

FELIX HERNANDEZ recorded his 2,000th career strikeout, whiffing Oakland's Sam Fuld in the fifth inning of Sunday's game.

"From afar, when I was on the other side, I knew he was good, but I didn't know he was this great of a competitor," Manager Lloyd McClendon said. "Even a better teammate, so the accolades just keep coming and coming with this guy.
"He's a delight to watch every fifth day and I think we're all blessed. I'm not sure if everybody realizes what he's actually doing, but this guy's real, real good."

The crowd at Safeco Field gave Hernandez a standing ovation as he tossed the baseball to the dugout to keep as a souvenir and then walked around the mound. He finished with six strikeouts in seven innings in the Mariners 4-3 win to improve to 6-0 on the season.

METS CALL UP TOP PROSPECT SYNDERGAARD

The New York Mets will call up top pitching prospect, their number 1 prospect and the overall number 11 prospect in the major leagues, on Tuesday. Syndergaard will make a spot start on Tuesday at Wrigley field in Chicago. Dillon Gee was placed on the 15 day disabled list, retroactive to his last start, with a groin injury. Syndergaard is not expected to remain with the team after Gee comes back from the DL.

MLB HOMERUN LEADERS

AMERICAN LEAGUE LEADERS

NELSON CRUZ             SEA            14

HANLEY RAMIREZ      BOS           10

MARK TEXIERA           NYY           10 

NATIONAL LEAGUE LEADERS

TODD FRAZIER                  CIN             10

ADRIAN GONZALEZ         LAD              9

JOC PEDERSON                  LAD             9 

A-Rod's Blast Ties Mays and More

From MLB.com

A-Rod accomplishes a first with milestone home run

When Alex Rodriguez hit his milestone 660th home run Friday, it was unlike any of the previous 659 he had hit previously in one significant way. The solo shot, which tied A-Rod with Willie Mays for fourth on the all-time home run list, was Rodriguez's first as a pinch-hitter. He was just 1-for-16 as a pinch-hitter prior to the milestone homer, with the one hit being a single back on Aug. 25, 2013. Rodriguez's 660th homer also came on a 3-0 pitch, marking just the third time in his 21-year career that he's homered when facing a 3-0 count.

Harper Blasts Three

BRYCE HARPER went 3 for 4 including three homeruns in his first three at bats in today's game.
The Nationals beat the Marlns 7-5 in Miami.
Harper had a chance to tie the Major League record of four homeruns in a regulation game, but  ended with a ground ball out in the seventh inning.
Sixteen major leaguers are tied with four homeruns in a game, including LOU GHERIG,WILLIE MAYS and most recently JOSH HAMILTON in 2012

WEEK 4 UPDATE

STANDINGS

NL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYM	16	10	0
ATL	12	13	3.5
MIA	12	13	3.5
WSH	12	14	4
PHL	9	17	7

NL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
STL	18	6	0
CHC	13	10	4.5
PIT	12	13	6.5
CIN	12	13	6.5
MIL	7	18	11.5

NL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
LAD	16	8	0
SD	14	12	3
SF	12	13	4.5
COL	11	13	5
ARI	10	14	6

____________________________________________________________________

AL EAST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
NYY	16	9	0
BAL	12	11	3
TB	13	12	3
BOS	12	13	4
TOR	12	14	4.5

AL CENTRAL

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
DET	17	9	0
KC	16	9	0.5
MIN	13	12	3.5
CLE	9	15	7
CHW	8	14	7

AL WEST

TEAM	WINS	LOSS	GB
HOU	18	7	0
LAA	11	14	7
OAK	11	15	7.5
SEA	10	15	8
TEX	8	16	9.5

_________________________________________________________________________________

AL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

EVAN GATTIS - DH - HOU                                  7/22 - 5 hr - 12 rbi 

NL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

PAUL GOLDSCHMIDT - 1B -  ARI                        15/27  - 1 hr - 6 rbi - 2 sb

AL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

SONNY GRAY   -  OAK                                          2-0  -  1.23 era  -  16k

NL PITCHER OF THE WEEK

JASON HAMMEL  - CHC                                         1-0  - 1.92 era  - 11 k


TRADE/INURY NOTABLES

Milwaukee fires Manager Ron Roenicke

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Brewers Fire Manager Roenicke

Despite winning back to back games for the first time this season, the Milwaukee Brewers front office fired Manager Ron Roenicke after Sundays game.

The Brewers have the Major leagues worst record 7-18.
The front office has not stated who would be the interim manager as of late Sunday night.

10 Best April Moments from MLB.com

MLB.com has the best 10 moments from April, that every baseball fan should see.

http://m.mlb.com/cutfour/2015/05/01/121088000/the-10-best-moments-from-april-that-remind-us-that-baseball-is-great

Mets First Loss at Home

4/30/15

On the opening night of their second home-stand of the season, the NY Mets were beaten 8-2 by the Washington Nationals. The Mets first home-stand of the season was a stellar 10-0 run. Including sweeps of the Phillies, Marlins and Braves.

Jacob Degrom was on the mound vs Stephen Strasburg for the Nationals. The Mets jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the third inning. The Nationals capitalized on a Wilmur Flores error on a tailor made double play ball with two on and no outs in the fourth. Degrom was visibly upset after being lifted in the sixth innning, he was pitching much better than his last performance against the NY Yankees where he was hit very hard and had trouble locating his pitches.

The four game series continues on Friday with the marquee piching matchup of Matt Harvey vs Max Scherzer.