Notes from Tuesday's games
May 9, 2006
BOSTON: DH David Ortiz entered in a 1-for-20 slump since hitting a three-run homer off New York's Mike Myers in Boston's 7-3 win on May 1. ``I have 4 1/2 months to deal with it - same workout every day, swing, swing, swing until you get it. I either hit or I don't hit, that's it.'' He walked in his first at-bat, reached on Alex Rodriguez's error and hit an opposite-field double that chased Randy Johnson in the fourth. Ortiz was the only left-handed hitter in Boston's starting lineup. ... The Red Sox started CF Dustan Mohr for the first time since April 30. Wily Mo Pena moved from RF to CF in the fifth, and Trot Nixon played RF.
NEW YORK: Joe Torre received a cell phone message from George Steinbrenner, who wanted to congratulate him for his 1,000th win as Yankees manager, and anticipated he would speak with the owner later Tuesday. With Sunday's win at Texas, Torre joined Joe McCarthy (1,460), Casey Stengel (1,149) and Miller Huggins (1,067) as the only managers to win 1,000 games with the Yankees. ``1,000 wins didn't register until you realized who else had 1,000 wins,'' Torre said, ``and then all of a sudden it felt like, wow, to me.''
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DETROIT: After 1,914 major league games, Ivan Rodriguez played his first game at first base on Tuesday. Rodriguez has played no other position but catcher in his major league career, although he manned first base in winter ball. ``Every day, I've been taking ground balls in the infield. It's not really a day off,'' he said. ... Rodriguez played in place of the slumping Craig Shelton. Manager Jim Leyland decided to give Shelton, who has one home run in May after hitting nine homers in April, a rest following Monday's off day. Leyland doesn't anticipate Rodriguez playing much first base, but likes his potential there. ``He's our catcher. Pudge is a very good athlete,'' Leyland said. ... INF Placido Polanco missed his fourth straight game with a sore back. He was in Leyland's original lineup, but was scratched and replaced with Omar Infante about two hours before gametime. ... The Tigers outrighted outfielder Alexis Gomez after he cleared waivers.
BALTIMORE: The Orioles hope to have 2B Brian Roberts (strained groin) back from the 15-day DL Monday, but won't rush him back if he's not 100 percent. ``We need him, but we need to make sure he's ready,'' manager Sam Perlozzo said Tuesday. ``Obviously, we can't afford to lose him again.'' Orioles leadoff hitters were 4-for-35 in seven games since Roberts' departure. ... OF Luis Matos ended an 0-for-17 skid with a third-inning single. He came in batting .108. ... RHP Rodrigo Lopez, winless in six starts since opening day, will seek to end the streak Wednesday against Detroit.
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OAKLAND: 3B Eric Chavez was a late scratch from Tuesday's game. Antonio Perez replaced him in the lineup. Chavez is 11-for-21 (.524) with three home runs and seven RBIs in his career against Josh Towers, who started Tuesday's game. ... C Jeremy Brown became the latest player featured the book ``Moneyball'' to be called up to the majors. Brown hit .333 with three home runs and 11 RBI at Triple-Sacramento. Manager Ken Macha said he would only pinch hit if they were winning 10-0. ... 1B Dan Johnson played despite a sore knee. Johnson stumbled over a bullpen mound last Friday. ... RHP Esteban Loaiza will begin a throwing program on Thursday. Loaiza is on the 15-day DL with a strained muscle on his left side.
TORONTO: RHP Josh Towers went 0-6 with a 10.59 ERA in his first six starts. ``He's due. He's overdue,'' manager John Gibbons said. ... RHP Roy Halladay won't get a chance to pitch in his hometown of Denver next week during an interleague game, but he's OK with it. Halladay will pitch on his normal schedule and will start against the Los Angeles Angels on May 18 - the day before Toronto travels to Denver. Gibbons called over Halladay during his pregame media scrum and asked if he was OK not pitching at home. ``I'm with the manager. My parents can watch on TV,'' Halladay said with a smile.
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MINNESOTA: Manager Ron Gardenhire says his slumping hitters might be pressing because of how often the Twins must come back from early deficits. ``You start to try to do too much,'' Gardenhire said. ``You get behind and that happens.'' Minnesota entered Tuesday with 131 runs, tied for second from the bottom in the AL. ``We need more consistency up and down the lineup,'' Gardenhire said. ... With ground-ball pitcher Carlos Silva starting on Tuesday night, the Twins gave 3B Luis Rodriguez the start over Tony Batista for Rodriguez's defense.
TEXAS: LHP Brian Anderson threw in the bullpen prior to the game as he continues his comeback from elbow ligament replacement surgery 10 months ago. Anderson has been rehabbing at the team's minor league facility outside Phoenix. ... Manager Buck Showalter will give CF Gary Matthews Jr. a day off on Wednesday, starting Adrian Brown. With an off day on Thursday, Matthews will have two straight days to rest a slightly strained right quad.
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LOS ANGELES: First baseman Casey Kotchman, recovering from a virus, went on the 15-day DL and IF Dallas McPherson was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday. Kotchman is batting .152 with a home run and six RBIs in 29 games. McPherson was batting .235 with eight homers and 22 RBIs for Salt Lake. He batted .244 with eight homers for the Angels last season. ... The Angels were awaiting the results of an MRI on Darin Erstad's sore right ankle. Erstad went on the DL on Monday.
CHICAGO: Right-hander Jose Contreras went on the 15-day DL with a pinched nerve in his right leg on Tuesday. Arguably baseball's best pitcher this season at 5-0 with a major league-low 1.41 ERA, Contreras will miss at least two starts. The White Sox hope to have him back for the series against the crosstown rival Cubs beginning May 19. Contreras began experiencing pain in his lower back and right leg while throwing lightly on the side with Freddy Garcia on Sunday. Knuckleballer Charlie Haeger is expected to be called up from Triple-A Charlotte and start for Contreras against the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday. ... RF Jermaine Dye was back in the lineup for the first time since May 2, when he left the game at Cleveland with a tight left calf.
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ATLANTA: CF Andruw Jones was back in the lineup Tuesday for the first time since he came out of Saturday's game with back tightness. ... Free-swinging RF Jeff Francoeur began the week with no walks in 130 at-bats. ``He's an interesting hitter,'' Florida manager Joe Girardi said. ``He's fun to watch, because you never know what he's going to do.'' ... Braves manager Bobby Cox moved C Brian McCann (.345) up to fifth in the lineup for the first time Tuesday, and dropped Francoeur (.231) to sixth. ``Maybe it will help both of them,'' Cox said. ... LF Ryan Langerhans was held out of the lineup because he had a fever and sore throat. ... Cox on 250-pound RHP Chad Paronto, who joined the team in Miami from Triple-A Richmond: ``I thought he was a Miami Dolphin when he walked in. He's big.''
FLORIDA: 3B Miguel Cabrera began the week batting .377 at night and .257 in day games. ... Cabrera is on pace to finish with 117 walks. His career high is 68. ... 1B Mike Jacobs began the week batting .136 (6-for-44) at home.
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DIAMONDBACKS: SS Craig Counsell was back in the lineup Tuesday in Pittsburgh after not starting Sunday with a sore back. ... Brandon Webb goes for his sixth victory in as many starts Wednesday. He has pitched at least seven innings in each of his five consecutive wins. He is 2-0 in three career starts against the Pirates. The Diamondbacks average 5.7 runs per start for Webb, the most of any of their starters except for Miguel Batista.
PIRATES: 1B Sean Casey, out since April 14 with two fractures in his lower back, hopes to get the go-ahead Friday to resume baseball-related activities: running, throwing, fielding ground balls, taking batting practice. Right now, he can do some limited weightlifting and running on a treadmill, but not much else. Casey was told last month he would be out six to eight weeks, and it now seems likely it will be closer to eight weeks. ... SS Jack Wilson (hamstring) missed a second consecutive start Tuesday, with Freddy Sanchez starting at short. Wilson is listed as day to day. ... C Ryan Doumit remained out with a sore left hamstring, the same injury that sidelined him from April 12 until last Wednesday. However, manager Jim Tracy said this injury is not in the same location as the previous injury.
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NEW YORK: LHP Billy Wagner made his first trip to Philadelphia since blasting his former team over the weekend. The Mets closer expected to be booed by the Phillies fans and didn't expect much of a warm welcome from his former teammates either. Wagner said he was not well-liked in the Phillies clubhouse, his former teammates were waiting to see him fail and LF Pat Burrell called him a ``rat.'' ``I had no problems playing in Philadelphia,'' Wagner said. ``It was great. I had some of the best games of my career here.'' ... The Mets called up RHP Heath Bell from Triple-A Norfolk and optioned RHP Bartolome Fortunato to Norfolk.
PHILADELPHIA: C Carlos Ruiz singled to right in the second inning for his first big league hit. ... 2B Chase Utley was named the NL player of the week for May 1-7 after hitting .483 with nine runs scored. ... Wagner did say the Phillies should appreciate playing for manager Charlie Manuel. ``If you can't play for Charlie Manuel, you can't play for anybody,'' he said.
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WASHINGTON: RHP John Patterson rejoined the Nationals after being examined by Dr. James Andrews in Alabama on Monday and receiving an injection to treat what was diagnosed as tendinitis in his right forearm. ``We just want to get it calmed down,'' Patterson said. ``I should be able to start playing catch in four days and do a bullpen in 10 days.'' ... C Brian Schneider is nearly ready to return. He left Saturday's game with Pittsburgh with tightness in his left hamstring. ``He's 99 percent,'' manager Frank Robinson said. ``We expect him to play tomorrow, and he's available tonight.'' ... SS Cristian Guzman had season-ending surgery on his right shoulder Tuesday. He is expected to be ready for spring training in 2007.
CINCINNATI: OF Ken Griffey Jr. took extended batting practice and tried out the strained tendon in his right knee but remained on the 15-day DL. ``He looked like he was running today without holding anything back,'' manager Jerry Narron said. Griffey said he still felt a slight twinge in the knee, which has sidelined him since April 12. ``I feel like I'm turning the corner,'' Griffey said. ``I just need to feel comfortable going out there day in and day out.'' ... Cincinnati is 16-8 since that 4-1 loss to the Cubs in Chicago in Griffey's last game. ... Ryan Freel started in center field in place of Griffey, Freel's 21st start there.
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COLORADO: Matt Holliday had two-homer games in each of his last two road games. ... The Rockies' 11-5 start on the road was the best in franchise history, topping a 10-6 start in 1998. ... The Rockies' 4.08 ERA was the lowest for the franchise at any point after the first 10 games of a season. ... The Rockies had played eight games without an error, the longest streak since the team opened the 2004 season with nine straight.
ST. LOUIS: LF Larry Bigbie, who began the season on the DL with a stress fracture of his left foot, made his debut. He had been aiming for May 1 but the team felt he needed a full 20-day rehab since he missed most of spring training. ``I guess when you get hurt you don't take things into consideration, you're just anxious to get back,'' Bigbie said. ... The bullpen led the majors with a 2.59 ERA and with a .205 opponents' batting average. ... SS David Eckstein is the only player to start every game.
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Notes from Tuesday's games
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