AL East Roundup - 5/25/09 trough 5/31/09

New York Yankees - By Joseph Pawlikowski

For the first time in over two years, the Yankees reached the top of the AL East standings. It started as a tie with the Red Sox on Wednesday. They lost the lead when the Sox won on Thursday, but retook the lead over the weekend. The Yanks currently sit a half game up on the Red Sox. While the standings on May 31 count for absolutely nothing in the long run, it’s a relief for Yanks fans to see their team back atop the standings, rather than ending May in third place as they’ve done for the past few years.

The offense put up monstrous numbers every other game for the Yanks, as they scored 11 on Monday, nine on Wednesday, and 10 on Saturday. They mixed those with three-run showings on Tuesday and Friday, and a four-run affair in Sunday’s walk-off loss to the Indians. The pitching turned in a solid week as well, with the only poor showing coming on Tuesday in the team’s 7-3 loss in Texas. Joba Chamberlain had a sub-par start, and after the Yankees tied the game the bullpen blew it open. While the bullpen remains a concern, the continued quality starts from the rotation helps keep the relievers’ exposure limited.

Once again, Mark Teixeira was the offensive player of the week. He put up a .357/.400/.786 line in the last seven days (1.186 OPS), smacking three homers and three doubles in 28 at bats. Alex Rodriguez did his part, posting a .417/.517/.542 line on the week. Surprisingly, he hit no home runs, but he did have three doubles and five walks to go along with just one strikeout. It seems like his defense (-27.8 UZR/150) will be the last thing to come around following surgery to fix a torn hip labrum.

On the pitching end, it was a mixed bag. Phil Hughes had a stellar start on Monday in Texas but his struggles in the third inning of Sunday’s start in Cleveland tainted that start. CC Sabathia had just one start, in which he was more than good enough to give the Yanks a W. A.J. Burnett lasted just six innings in his start, though they were of the scoreless variety, and came with seven strikeouts. Chien-Ming Wang, however, tossed five scoreless innings in relief. These innings have given the Yanks a bit more confidence in him. If he can return to the rotation and go back to throwing seven, eight quality innings per start he could give the Yanks a big boost.

Week’s record: 4-2

Season record: 29-21

Injuries: Melky Cabrera (shoulder, day to day)

This week: Mon @Cleveland; Tue - Thu TEXAS; Fri - Sun TAMPA BAY


Boston Red Sox — Surviving Grady

The Red Sox hit the road for their longest trip of the season on Monday. First stop: Minnesota. Game one in the series should have been a laugher as the Sox piled up 16 hits against the Twins pitchers. Unfortunately only six of those baserunners crossed the plate, and a two-run homer off Paps in the ninth made it a 6-5 game. That’s all the Twins would get but it certainly put a question mark next to Papelbon’s name after the fiasco against the Mets.

The Sox would drop the next two, having completely lost the ability to score runs away from home. They lost 5-2 on Tuesday as Lester continued his “one bad inning” theme, giving up all five earned in the fifth. Wednesday they went quietly 4-2, with Dice-K laboring through just five innings. Thanks to Josh Beckett and Cap’n Tek the Sox worked a split, taking Thursday’s day-game 3-1 behind seven strong innings by Beckett and two homers off the bat off Varitek. That’s his second two-homerun game of the season giving him a total of 10. For a 37 year-old catcher who has only hit more than 15 homers three times in his career to have 10 by the end of May…well… [ed. note: Thanks to reader Zach for pointing out that Tek has hit more than 15 homers five times in his career, not three.]

The Red Sox average 6.3 runs per game at Fenway but just barely over 4 runs per game on the road. The next stop was Toronto and it seemed like a good place to get your mojo back. The Sox had put the Jays on a nine-game tailspin after the sweep at Fenway. But the Jays had other ideas. A wild Tim Wakefield and the inability for the Sox to get the clutch hit (they used to have a guy that did that for them) combined for a 6-3 loss in the first of three.

Saturday would only get worse as the Sox could only manage four hits in the 5-2 loss. It was up to Lester on Sunday, and the way he pitched he knew it. Six innings, just three hits and a career-high 12 K’s for young Jon. The bats finally came to life with Bay and Pedroia homering as well as two dingers from Youk. Even Ortiz had a hit! When the dust settled it was 8-2 in favor of the good guys, and hopefully the runs will keep coming. The Sox will take Monday off before finishing up the road trip in the Motor City.

Week’s record: 3-4

Season record: 29-22

Injuries: Rocco Baldelli (knee, day-to-day)

This week: Tue - Thu @Detroit; Fri - Sun TEXAS

Toronto Blue Jays - Blue Jays Daze

It seems that the lack of pop has been hurting the Jays over the course of their latest losses. By lack of pop I mean that the Jays have had to score runs the hard way this season. Instead of the odd HR to clear the bases, they’ve needed to have consecutive hits - many of which have come with 2 outs - to drive in runs. My best example was when I looked at the scorecard of the 2nd game they played against the Red Sox. The Jays had 10 hits in their 6 innings against Penny and 3 runs to show for them, while the Red Sox had 3 hits and 3 runs. When I noticed this I went back over the course of their slump and found that this is what has hurt the Jays the most. The proof is that they’ve only managed 3 HRs over their last 11 games. Ouch.

Back to the week that was, the Jays turned out a disastrous start to the week that even Doc Halladay couldn’t resolve. It all started in Baltimore, where the Jays were swept despite decent starts by Brian Tallet (6 IP, 2 ER, 5 Ks) and Doc (7 IP, 3 ER, 5 Ks) in games 1 and 3. The pen lost the handle on Doc’s start with Brian Wolfe having a breakdown 3 ER 11th inning after BJ Ryan had already proven ineffective. Romero had a rough start for the second game, a game in which the Jays offense was shut down by O’s starter Jason Berken which was a little embarrassing. At least they managed 10 runs the following game, maybe as a result of that embarrassment. Of note offensively for the Jays in that series was Marco Scutaro, who is second in SS All-Star voting for the AL by the way, who went 7 for 15, with 3 doubles, a walk, and a stolen base. Despite his efforts most of the other Jays were fairly silent until the 3rd game of the series.

I’m not sure what Cito told the guys during the day off, but one thing is certain, he’s keeping the roster as is. Some managers may have panicked, switched guys in the lineup and called up half of AAA after 9 straight losses, but not Cito. The lineup was the same and he put the trust in the guys to change their own fortunes, and boy did they ever. Janssen kicked it off with an edgy win even after allowing 11 hits and 2 walks. He managed to weasel his way out of jams and allowed 3 runs overall. Offensively, the Jays finally learned how to hit the knuckle ball and Scutaro and Rolen led the way with 2 hits a piece. In the end, they managed to manufacture enough consecutive hits in the 5th inning to win it 6-3. The second game ended the same way as the first, with League and Downs shutting the door with small leads. Rios was on fire that game, going 4 for 4 and Lind chipped in with a much needed HR. Rios hit one of his own in the 3rd game, but Romero was roughed up for the second time this week and the Jays ended the week with a loss, but a series win versus the Red Sox (we’ll take it!). Overall, an up-and-down week, with the hope that the series win leads to a new winning streak to build on.

Week’s Record: 2-4

Season Record: 29-24

Injuries: New - Robert Ray on 15-day May 30th (Strained right shoulder), Michael Barrett (Shoulder-hitting off tee), Jesse Litsch (Right Forearm), Shaun Marcum (Elbow-resting), Dustin McGowan (Labrum-threw from 120 feet for the first time 23rd May).

This Week: Tue- Thur ANAHEIM ; Fri - Sun KANSAS CITY

Tampa Bay Rays - Rise of the Rays

By most accounts, the Rays had a bad week. To begin the week, after losing 2B Akinori Iwamura to a season-ending injury, they had to place SS Jason Bartlett and left-handed reliever Brian Shouse on the disabled list. Then, they went on to be swept by the Cleveland Indians in a four-game series in Cleveland. To end the week, the came back to the Trop to beat Minnesota 2 out of 3 to close the week.

In Cleveland, it was obvious that the recent rash of injuries were taking their toll. Not to mention the fact that the Rays were nearing the end of a stretch in the schedule that had them playing 40 games in 41 days. On Monday, the Rays ran out to a 10-0 lead in the fourth. Unfortunately, the Indians tallied 11 in the final five innings, capped by a 7-run ninth inning, marking the largest lead that the Rays have blown in the history of the team.

After the Cleveland sweep, the Rays came home to take on the Minnesota Twins in a three-game series. The Twins came to the Trop with the worst road record in the AL. And, the Rays took advantage of that, winning the first two games of the series, before dropping game three on Sunday.

The highlight of the week had to be the impressive starting performance of LHP David Price. He rebounded from a shaky first outing by striking out 11 in 5 2/3 innings. In the start, he allowed just one run on five hits and two walks, on his way to his first career win.

At the plate, the Rays were led by Carl Crawford, who finished the week 10-27 with two HR and two stolen bases. Carlos Pena also hit a pair of home runs for the Rays. And, Matt Joyce returned to the roster to hit a home run on Sunday.

Week’s Record: 2-5

Season Record: 25-28

Injuries: Akinori Iwamura, season-ending torn ACL, Jason Bartlett, sprained ankle, Brian Shouse, left elbow strain, Scott Kazmir, right quadriceps strain, Troy Percival, right shoulder tendinitis, Pat Burrell, stiff neck.

This week: Tue - Thu KANSAS CITY; Fri - Sun @New York

Baltimore Orioles - Dempsey’s Army

A very eventful week in Birdland!

First, let’s take care of the elephant in the room. Matt Wieters, Christ in a Catcher’s Mask, made his major league debut on Friday. Matt went an uneventful 2 for 11 over the weekend but his first major league hit was a triple crushed off the centerfield fence. More impressive was his work behind the plate. He called his games, fielded his position well and seemed more veteran than rookie when the catcher’s gear was on. The power is there, it’ll be interesting to see how he develops over the next month or so.

But while Wieters was the big story this week, he was not the only rookie making an impact this. LF Nolan Reimold has hit 5 home runs over his last 11 games and is posting a .279/.340/.651 line over the past two weeks putting a stranglehold on the left field job. SP Brad Bergesen went 8 innings giving up only two runs in beating the Tigers on Friday night. SP David Hernandez made a spot start for the injured Koji Uehara, winning his major league debut and SP Jason Berken made two starts this week, winning his debut and posting a 2.25 ERA. Wieters is big but there are several rookies helping to improve the club and erasing the bad memories of Adam Eaton and his ilk.

DH Luke Scott came off the DL and homered in 4 straight games this week with 6 total homers for the week.

Now to bring this whole thing down a notch…it was a nice week but the O’s still have a long way to go. Yes, they went 5-2 with Adam Jones and Nick Markakis slumping but the bottom line is that the rookies will have their growing pains, the bullpen is suspect and the starting rotation is still very shaky. The lineup is decent but it can’t carry the team by itself. Getting the record up above .500 is still a pipe dream at this point.

But with Seattle and Oakland on the schedule for this week, Baltimore has a fair chance of having another winning week.

Down on the Farm:
21 year old SP Chris Tillman is 5-0 with 44 Ks, 13 BB and a tiny 2.13 ERA in 8 starts for AAA Norfolk. He tweaked a hammy last week but should be back in the rotation this week. Unlike some of the rookies called upon to pitch this week, Tillman is a legit top prospect who may be in Baltimore before the All-Star break.

Speaking of top pitching prospects, 2008 first round pick Brian Matusz has lowered his ERA to 2.37 and has struck out 69 in 60.2 innings for A+ Frederick. He could be promoted to AA Bowie anyday.

Previously disappointing 1B prospect Brandon Snyder has put up a stellar .342/.418/.595 line at AA Bowie so far. Still only 22, Snyder should be in Norfolk soon and could play into the O’s plans for 2010.

Week’s Record: 5-2

Season Record: 23-28

Injuries: SP Koji Uehara (hamstring, 15-day DL), RP Dennis Sarfate (hand numbness, 15-day DL, out until July), OF Lou Montanez (Right thumb surgery, 15-Day DL, out 6-8 weeks)

This Week: Mon-Wed @Seattle, Fri-Sun @Oakland

AL East Roundup: 18/05/09 - 24/05/09

Boston Red Sox - Surviving Grady

The Red Sox started the week three games out of first place, looking up at the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays had just won six out of their last eight games...then they came to Fenway. Tim Wakefield welcomed them with a dominating performance: eight innings giving up only five hits and one run - a homer to old pal Kevin Millar. Papelbon shut the door in the ninth, edging the Sox a game closer to the top. Wednesday night, the Beard of Wonder and Amazement returned to the line-up and had three of the Sox fifteen hits. Boston's offense exploded, seemingly inspired by Big Papi's first homer of the season. Jason Varitek had two dingers in the game (officially starting the "Captain is on the juice" talk), his second coming in the fifth - the first of four in that inning. Brad Penny pitched well, going six-and-two-thirds, before turning it over to the pen for mop-up. In the series finale, Jon Lester held the Jays down and the bats jumped on Toronto early, scoring three in the first. It would prove to be enough and the sweep was complete.

Friday night the abortion we call interleague play began as the Mets came to town. Johan Santana battled the Sox as Dice-K returned from the DL. The Dice-man was shaky, giving up four runs in just five innings. The floodgates were opened courtesy of Julio Lugo and his inability to turn a double play. The non-error led to two runs that never should have crossed the plate. Boston rallied in the bottom of the inning cutting the deficit to 4-3 but that was as close as they would come. Saturday night baseball in Fenway was outstanding...Josh Beckett was vintage, going eight strong and allowing just one unearned run. The stage was set for Papelbon in the ninth, but the ending didn't go as written. Paps gave up an instant-replay-confirmed homer giving the Mets a 3-2 lead. Two stellar defensive plays in the bottom of the inning sealed the win. The Sox would take no chances in Sunday's game, piling on 12 runs on 16 hits - including six doubles and a pair of three-run homers by Youk and Lowell.

The Blue Jays were swept by the Braves over the weekend, putting the Sox on top of the AL East by a half-game. The Red Sox start the week in Minnesota for four games, then head north-of-the-border to face the Jays next weekend.

Week's record: 4-2

Season record: 26-18

Injuries: None

This week: Mon - Thu @Minnesota; Fri - Sun @Toronto

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Toronto Blue Jays - Blue Jays Daze

Shhh, the Jays bats are sleeping. What started out as a very promising week with the end of a 4-game sweep over the White Sox fizzled into one major return to earth after 6 straight losses. The result has been the return of many younger players in exchange for familiar faces such as Casey Janssen and Joe Inglett. The Jays scored only 10 runs over the last 6 games of the week, a far cry from the performances they put up at the beginning of the season. However, when you delve into the numbers the situation is not as bad as it may seem. First, the Jays were getting on base very well with a decent amount of hits and walks. In the second and third games against the Sox, the Jays had 14 and 11 hits to go with 5 walks but only drove in 4 runs. The Jays were horrible in key hitting situations this week and it's something that they need if they are going to turn this around.

Overall, the Jays pitching did very well this week. Doc had another great start, but Cecil and Ray both showed their youth and inexperience in their starts while still showing their great overall potential. Now they know what has to get done and can work on it in AAA. Janssen and Romero have been called up to replace them, as well as Joe Inglett, who takes the roster spot of the ice cold Travis Snider. While I entirely agree with the demotion due to the lack of playing time Snider has gotten, I entirely disagree with the way he was being used by Cito. Snider should have hit ahead of Overbay and Barajas, just behind Rolen, and on a much more consistent basis. For a guy who has been called "the franchise" by most Jays players and is used to 100% playing time, sitting on the bench just doesn't seem right regardless of the troubles he may have.

If the Jays are going to turn it around this week they need continued success from their starting pitching with much better run support and better pen performances. Sunday's game provides the best example of an implosion of the Jays with 8 earned runs given up after a decent start by Scott Richmond. The Jays are still in a better position than most of us expected them to be in at this point. With 2 series against division rivals coming up, the Jays can regain their strut if they simply get some timely hitting and learn how to hit a knuckle ball.

Week's Record: 1-6

Season Record: 27-20

Injuries: Michael Barrett (Shoulder-hitting off tee), Jesse Litsch (Right Forearm), Shaun Marcum (Elbow-resting), Dustin McGowan (Labrum-threw from 120 feet for the first time 23rd May).

This Week: Mon- Wed @Baltimore ; Fri - Sun BOSTON

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New York Yankees - River Ave. Blues

After a weekend of walk-offs, the Yanks were ready to keep on rolling. They wouldn't dispose of the Twins in a similar manner in their series finale on Monday, but rather hit them hard and early, plating six runs in the first off Glen Perkins, who hit the DL after the game with elbow inflammation. The Twins almost came back, but Phil Coke ultimately succeeded in his first ninth-inning save opportunity. For Yankees fans, perhaps the sweetest part of the game came when Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez went back to back, hopefully the first of many over the next eight years.

Entering the Baltimore series the Yankees had been winners in eight of their previous 10 games, and continued rolling. They decimated the Orioles in a three-game sweep, slamming seven homers in the effort. Adam Eaton got beaten so badly on Thursday that the Orioles released him on Friday*. The World Champion Phillies were next to come to town. Unfortunately, they are a bit better than the Orioles.

As expected, when the AL- and NL-leaders in home runs square off in a park tailor-made for lefties, balls will fly out of the park. That they did over the weekend, combining for 12 homers over the three games. These weren't just New Stadium Specials, though. Raul Ibanez, Jason Werth, and Mark Teixeira hit absolute bombs on Friday night, Teixeira's hitting the third deck, Ibanez's going halfway up the right field bleachers, and Werth's hitting the second deck in left. Rookie John Mayberry hit his first career homer on Saturday and Ibanez repeated, but the biggest homer of the game belonged to Alex Rodriguez, who forced one out the opposite way to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth. After Robinson Cano singled and stole second, Charlie Manuel decided to pitch to Melky Cabrera, who repaid him with a walk-off single.

The series wouldn't end as well. The Yankees, trailing all game, tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, but couldn't plate a man in scoring position. Then, in the 10th, they put men on first and second with none out but couldn't muster a walk-off hit. That led to Brett Tomko's entrance, and the Phillies capitalized, with Carlos Ruiz yet again driving in a run. Just after Rob Neyer chastized Manuel for playing Ruiz regularly, he came through big time over the weekend.

* Yes, I know it wasn't that single start wasn't the cause of his release, but it's funny to think about it that way.

Week's record: 5-2

Season record: 25-19

Injuries: Brian Bruney (elbow, day to day)

This week: Mon - Wed @Texas; Fri - Sun @Cleveland

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Tampa Bay Rays - Rise of the Rays

NOTE: Say hello to our new Rays contributor, Rise of the Rays.

The Rays have improved their record to .500 after going 5 and 3 this week. A pretty good week overall, taking 2 from Oakland and 2 from the Marlins as well as 1 from the Indians on Sunday. The Rays wasted a great start from James Shields on Monday, losing a 0-0 game in extras by 4 runs allowed by Joe Nelson and Dan Wheeler, as the bullpen that is normally good blew it. The Rays got great starts from their 2 mediocre guys so far this year. Andy Sonnanstine had 2 great starts this week and Jeff Niemann had one against the Marlins. Sonnanstine, the Rays best hitting pitcher, got his wishes of wanting to hit this week, since he batted in three different games this week. He batted third last Sunday due to the lineup snafu, he batted on Friday because it was in an NL park, and he pinch-hit Saturday in the later parts of the game.

Jason Bartlett, who twisted his ankle in yesterday's game and will probably miss Monday's game, had a monsterous week this week, gathering 2 more homers to get to 7 and improving his average to .373 on the season. He also had 14 RBI's this week.

The most notable injury from the week has to be Aki. As said by Carlos Pena on Akinori Iwamura's presence: "We're going to miss him greatly even if it’s just one day. ... You can't replace Aki. He's Aki. There’s only one of him around."

The Rays will send him back to St. Pete to get a MRI, we hope this is not too serious. Aki is so important. The Rays also placed Troy Percival on the DL, whick is a relief for most Rays fans. They also placed Scott Kazmir on the DL for no other reason than he was struggling, since he came out and said he was not injured. The Rays are likely to get Pat Burrell back this week, which will give us a bat in the middle of the lineup.

This week, the Rays head to Cleveland to face the Indians who have our head after the benches clearing incident last week. They are a better team than their record show, so hopefully the Rays can take 2 of 4 with David Price, the Rays highly touted top prospect who got the final out in the ALCS for the Rays, getting the start tonight. The Rays then head home for three with the Twins this weekend, which could be a very tough series for the Rays. They will get their three best starters for that series, with James Shields, Price, and Matt Garza all going for the weekend.

Record: 23-23

Week's Record: 4-3

Injuries: Akinori Iwamura, who could be out for a while, Troy Percival, who is contemplating retirement, and Scott Kazmir, who is really not hurt, but needs to get things figured out.

This week: Mon - Thu @Cleveland; Fri - Sun MINNESOTA

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Baltimore Orioles - Dempsey's Army

The Orioles go 2-4 for the week with most of the damage coming from an unholy ass kicking at the hands of the Yankee steamroller. New York swept Baltimore out of the new Yankee Stadium outscoring them 27-9 in the three game set.

Baltimore bounced back to take two out of three from the Nationals over the weekend but even Baltimore should be expected to win a series like that.

A silver lining exists though as The Warehouse finally saw enough of Adam Eaton and released him after the he got lit up by the Yanks on Thursday. Thanks to the New York team for putting us O's fans out of our misery. Adam Eaton, Mark Hendrickson and Alfredo Simon were all in the starting rotation to begin the year. Now Eaton is released, Simon is out for the year (and didn't pitch well before he got hurt) and Hendrickson finds himself in the bullpen....for now. I never understood these guys in the rotation anyway, there were AAAA guys in the Oriole system who could have pitched just as well with a small chance to improve. Oh well, what's done is done.

Someone will have to be recalled from Norfolk to pitch on Tuesday and the club is tight lipped about the choice. The smart money is on journeyman Chris Waters or 25 year old Jason Berken, a Clemson product who is tearing up the International League.

LF Nolan Reimold has arrived in Baltimore ahead of schedule and is putting a stranglehold on the left field position. The .256/.293/.436 line he has posted so far is not altogether impressive but has been better than the combined efforts of Felix Pie and Lou Montanez and is fairly encouraging considering Reimold had not played a game above AA before this season.

RP Chris Ray was supposed to be wresting the closer spot back from George Sherrill by now. Instead, Ray took the loss in Sunday's game against Washington and now has an 10.12 ERA on the season. Sherrill, by contrast, has lowered his ERA to 2.89. Ray hasn't trusted his fastball since he came back from Tommy John surgery and looks to be optioned to Norfolk on Tuesday to work it out. Sherrill remains an excellent piece on trade bait for a contender come July.

Wieters Watch: Wieters has a .284/.359/.485 line for AAA Norfolk. I still predict we'll see him in mid-June barring injury to Gregg Zaun.

When your team is a loser for as many years as Baltimore has been, you look for great individual performances to get you through the year. Adam Jones is that guy this year. The rest of the AL can eat their hearts out as out 23 year old center fielder is hitting .359/.414/.654. 10 home runs in 38 games. Baltimore has many problems but we have a center fielder that the rest of the league can be envious of.

Week's Record: 2-4

Season Record: 18-26


Injuries: Koji Uehara (hamstring, day to day), Luke Scott (shoulder strain, 15-day DL), Dennis Sarfate (hand numbness, 15-day DL, out until July)

This Week: Mon-Wed TORONTO, Thu-Sun DETROIT

AL East Roundup: 5/11/09 through 5/17/09

Boston Red Sox - Surviving Grady

A dismal week for the Boston Red Sox on the west coast. Not only did they drop two-out-of-three to the Angels and Mariners, but the Sox were forced to bench David Ortiz after a horrendous appearance on Thursday. Papi went 0-for-7 with three K's and left an astounding 12 runners on base. After the game, Ortiz told reporters "Papi stinks."

Things started out OK in LA. Afetr being shut down for seven innings by Jered Weaver, the Sox got to the Angel bullpen in the 8th and 9th innings, capped by a run-scoring double off the bat of Captain Tek. The next night, "The Big A" continued to be a personal house of horrors for Tim Wakefield. Wake is 0-6 with a 9.3 ERA in his last six starts there. Wednesday was no different: Wakefield couldn't get out of the 5th inning, giving up seven earned. The Angels' Matt Palmer went the distance in the 8-4 rout. Thursday was one of the worst games of the 2009 season for the Red Sox bats. Brad Penny turned in a decent start and the bullpen was phenomenal, going scoreless innings before Manny Delcarmen gave up the game-winner in the 12th. The Red Sox had countless opportunities to steal a win, putting seven runners on in the last four frames but scoring none.

The next stop was Seattle and a chance to make the road trip a success. The Mariners were struggling, winning just once in their last ten games. But Jon Lester fell victim once again to "the bad inning" syndrome. After cruising through five, Lester melted in the 6th, giving up four earned, two on Ichiro's second homer of the game. The bullpen was again the highlight, shutting down the M's, but the Sox couldn't plate the tying run. Josh Beckett returned to a more Beckett-like form on Saturday, going seven strong and giving up just two earned runs. Bay cranked his 11th homer on the way to a 5-3 win. Sunday's attempt to grab a .500 record on the road trip went awry in the bottom of the 9th when a Nick Green error led to the winning run.

The bullpen remains the one constant strength for the Red Sox. Beckett's strong outing was a silver lining to the week's cloudy pattern: the return of the ace is much-needed. As is the return of the Beard. Youk's bat in the line-up might have been enough grab a couple more wins on this trip. Next week the Sox will battle the Jays, needing a sweep to tie for the lead in the East. Then the first bite of the shit sandwich that is interleague play against the Mets. Finally, the Sox spend Memorial Day weekend in the Homerdome battling the Twins and the Hefty bag. Can the three-day mental health break be enough to get Papi's bat on track? It better be.

Week's record: 2-4

Season record: 22-16

Injuries: Kevin Youkilis (15-day DL retroactive to May 5, oblique strain)

This week: Tue - Thu TORONTO; Fri - Sun NEW YORK METS

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New York Yankees - River Ave. Blues

After back-to-back sweeps at the hands of AL East opponents two weeks ago, the Yanks could have used a boost against the Jays last week. Unfortunately, the series began with Roy Halladay taking the mound for the birds. The Yanks hadn't beaten Halladay since Opening Day 2008, and Tuesday night would be no different. They mustered just one run off Doc, an A-Rod grounder through the hole that scored on of the scant runners they put in scoring position. This made the Yanks 3-7 over their previous 10.

As we've seen in at least on recent May, the Yankees then decided to go on a tear. They turned to Andy Pettitte, who has a history of stanching the Yanks' bleeding. That he did, though it wasn't the prettiest of starts. The difference was the offense, which was powered by Brett Gardner's first career home run. The Yanks recorded eight extra base hits in the game, chasing Jays starter Scott Richmond after just 1.2 IP. The next night, CC Sabathia was CC Sabathia, going eight innings and laying his own bridge to Mariano Rivera, who picked up his seventh save of the year and giving the Yanks a second straight series victory.

The weekend proved to be one of the most exciting in recent memory. After blowing several opportunities to close a 4-1 deficit against the Twins, Brett Gardner came through with his second career home run, this one an inside the parker that reignited the fans at Yankee Stadium Friday night. He then led off the bottom of the ninth, Yanks down 4-2, with a triple. Mark Teixeira followed with an RBI single to bring the Yanks within one. Then, with runners on second and third with two outs, Cito Gaston walked Robinson Cano to get to Melky Cabrera. With the crowd chanting "Mel-ky, Mel-ky," the center fielder lined a single to left center, plating the winning run.

After leading for most of Saturday's affair, the bullpen coughed up the lead late. But Mark Teixeira helped out, tying the game while registering his fourth hit of the day. This led to extra innings. With Teixeira on first after a walk to lead off the 11th, Alex Rodriguez stepped to the plate. Lefty Craig Breslow tried to sneak a slider inside, but A-Rod turned on it and deposited it into the left field stands for a second-straight walk-off. Sunday was more a pitcher's duel, with both A.J. Burnett and Kevin Slowey holding their opponents scoreless through sixth. Burnett allowed two in the top of the seventh, and Slowey allowed two in the bottom half. The score remained tied until the bottom of the 10th, when Johnny Damon hit a walk-off homer to right, giving the Yanks three straight victories in dramatic fashion.

Week's record: 5-1

Season record: 20-17

Injuries: None new

This week: Mon MINNESOTA; Tue - Thu BALTIMORE; Fri - Sun PHILADELPHIA

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Tampa Bay Rays

NOTE: Looks like the Rays blogger bailed. Thankfully, we have a new one lined up for next week. Hopefully we've got the early-season kinks out and this will proceed as normal starting next week.

The week for the Rays began and ended with blunders related to Andy Sonnanstine. The first blunder was the pitcher himself, as he allowed seven runs over two innings on Tuesday, putting his team in poor position against the Orioles. Worst of all, O's stater Mark Hendrickson allowed five runs of his own in the second inning. Sonnanstine, who had allowed one in the first, matched Hendrickson's frame, handing the Orioles the lead right back. A final run in the third would comprise all the scoring for the game, and the O's won 7-5.

On Sunday, Joe Maddon had a brain fart when filling out his lineup card, penciling in both Ben Zobrist and Evan Longoria for third base. The intent was to DH Longoria, so when Zobrist took the field for the top of the first, Longoria and his DH spot were removed from the game. It's not an instance which arises often, but it put the Rays in a tough position, having to bat the pitcher third. Sonnanstine again didn't pitch particularly well, allowing five runs over 5.1 innings. He did aid his own cause, though, smacking an RBI double. The Rays overcame their handicap and took the game 7-5.

Sandwiched between the blunders was a 3-1 week which featured the Rays taking three of four from the reeling Indians. I wish I could go into greater detail, but I'd just be repeating the box scores. Thankfully, we'll have a real live Rays blogger next week to give us the proper insight. Until then, the results can do the talking.

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Baltimore Orioles - Dempsey's Army

A week of treading water but we call that progress in Baltimore.

The Orioles gained splits in a two game set with the Rays and a four game series at Kansas City and with the injuries and the arms we were sending to the mound, we’ll take it.

Injury update: Luke Scott eventually had to go on the DL with an injury to his rotator cuff. Scott’s injury hurts in the short term but is giving a good opportunity to top prospect OF Nolan Reimold who was recalled from Norfolk. Reimold struggled in his first week but will be trotted out there everyday, at least until Scott gets healthy. (On a side note, since the departure of B.J. Surhoff, the Orioles were unable to find a left fielder who could even hit for league average for several years. It was pretty unforgivable. One of the reasons Baltimore fans love Scott is that he finally filled that need last season…but I digress.)

Adam Jones tweaked his hamstring legging out an infield hit and hasn’t played since Tuesday. Another big blow to the Oriole offense but helps to extend the Felix Pie experiment. Pie was terrible in April but has hit .286/.355/.536 in May, more than enough to buy him some time when everyone gets healthy.

Debuts: I’ve already talked about Reimold who hit .235/.235/.294 in his first week in the bigs. SP Rich Hill came off the DL to make his Oriole debut and go 5.2 IP, striking out 6 and scaterring 7 hits, giving up 2 earned and getting the win versus Kansas City. It speaks volumes about the Oriole pitching staff that Hill is a massive upgrade over many of our rotation candidates. Adam Eaton cannot be long for the rotation..we just need to find one more arm.

Living proof that hitting in between Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis alone will not improve your bat: Cesar Izturis. Izturis is hitting .190 in the 2 spot. Manager Dave Trembley seems to like his basestealing ability at the top of the order but Izturis is a really bad choice to bat second. Melvin Mora would be a better choice until Jones returns.

Week's Record: 3-3

Season Record: 16-22

Injuries: RP Dennis Sarfate (numbness in hand, 15-day DL, out until July), DH/LF Luke Scott (strained shoulder, 15-day DL), CF Adam Jones (day to day, strained hamstring)

This Week: Tue-Thur @New York; Fri-Sun @Washington

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Toronto Blue Jays - Blue Jays Daze

Any week that has Doc Halladay pitching twice is a week Jays fans look forward to for good reason. Doc didn't disappoint while setting the tone against the Yankees against AJ, his old team mate and newest Blue Jay nemesis. Doc pitched a complete game gem against a somewhat diminished Yankee lineup that was missing Jeter, Swisher, and Posada, but still took care of business. He only needed 103 pitches to complete his outing. While Doc's performance was to be expected, the fact that Burnett was booed every single time he threw a strike and jeered more than Arod surprised many of us. While it is true that Burnett became just another player chasing the money he supposedly deserves in New York, he deserves to be made aware that he sold out.

Back to the Jays week, I have to admit the Yankee pitching surprised me after the first game of the series. CC and Andy threw some very strong games supplemented by some stellar pen innings I had no idea the Yanks relievers could deliver. I expected the Jays hitters to have some struggles this season, but hoped they would come against other opponents. For the Jays, Richmond obviously looked shell shocked and definitely had no faith in his stuff for the first time this season. I'm not really sure why it happened, but I hope that he learns from the experience and works on his tenacity. His rough outing was followed by yet another surprising start by Tallet who held his own over 6 innings allowing only 2 runs. Either way, he wasn't beating CC and the Jays hitters took the 2 games off, leaving Richmond and Tallet to fend for themselves.

As the weekend series versus the White Sox started, the Jays has hungry hitters on the prowl and did they delivered enough to sweep the weekend. Friday's game had Bret Cecil throwing a great game to go along with 8 runs of support, resulting in Bret's second win in a row. Lind and Bautista delivered the two required RBIs in the 8th inning on Saturday in support of Robert Ray, who lasted 8 innings with no earned runs. Scott Downs got the save and seems to have a good hold on the role. And finally the Jays supported their Doc with another 8 run effort led by none other than Aaron Hill. I'd like to advertise for Aaron for very good reason. As we begin to vote for the All-Star game, I would suggest that Aaron's stats deserve to be compared to Utley's and Kinsler's to prove just how special he has been this season. I hope all voters will give him the thumbs up, he deserves it.

Week's Record: 4-2

Season Record: 26-14

Injuries: Michael Barrett (Shoulder), Jesse Litsch (Right Forearm - cleared to resume throwing), Shaun Marcum (Elbow), Dustin McGowan (Labrum), Ricky Romero (Threw in AAA May 13th), Casey Janssen (made 3 starts in HiA Dunedin).

This Week: Mon CHICAGO; Tue-Thu @Boston; Fri-Sun @Atlanta

AL East Roundup: 4/27/09 through 5/3/09

In a collaborative effort, the following AL East bloggers and I are publishing weekly roundups of our respective teams. Make sure to check out their blogs!

Boston Red Sox - Surviving Grady

The Red Sox started the week in the same fashion they ended the previous week: winning. Tim Wakefield battled Cliff Lee through 8 scoreless innings on Monday before Jason Bay crushed a three-run homer to win it. On Tuesday, Tito forgot the mantra of "respect the streak" and inserted Julio Lugo into the line-up for the first time. Lugo fumbled a double-play ball that eventually led to three runs, and Lopez dropped a ball covering first to let in the winning run. Streak over. The Red Sox bounced back with a tenth-inning win on Wednesday from an unlikely hero" Jonathan Van Every. Then the Sox headed to Tampa and things fell apart.

The Rays are like the kid in high school that used to get picked on, then had a huge growth spurt over a summer, and came back to school wreaking havoc on those that tormented him. Matt Garza shut the Sox down on Thursday, taking a no-hitter into the seventh. The result was a 13-0 laugher that saw the Red Sox finish the game with just an infield single and two walks, and a lot of questions about Josh Beckett. Beckett gave up seven earned in four-and-two-thirds. Evan Longoria's grand slam on Friday night was enough to power the Rays past Justin Masterson and Boston's anemic offense.

It took Tim Wakefield to stop the losing streak just like he did in against Oakland a couple of weeks ago. It wasn't a great outing but he kept them in the game and the bats were finally able to make something happen against Jeff Niemann and the Rays' bullpen. The bats went back into hibernation on Sunday and the Rays end up taking three-out-of-four to climb out of the basement and knock the Sox back into second place. Onto the House That Roids Built. (ed note: RAB does not approve of this line)

Week's record:

Season record: 15-10

Injuries: None

This week: Mon - Tue @New York; Wed - Thu CLEVELAND; Fri - Sun TAMPA BAY

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New York Yankees - River Ave. Blues

After losing three straight to the Red Sox, Yankeeland was in a bit of a tizzy this past week. Not helping matters was Justin Verlander, who spun his best game of the young season on Monday night, out-dueling CC Sabathia to hand the Bombers their fourth straight loss. The losing would end right there, though. Phil Hughes, making his 2009 debut after a disappointing 2008, tossed six scoreless innings as the Yanks put up a 10-spot in the 7th inning to give Hughes his first victory since 2007.

The Yaks rose that offensive tidal wave for the next few games, toppling the Tigers the next day on the strength of Joba Chamberlain's best outing of the season. Chamberlain threw just 88 pitches through seven innings, which has helped quell fears of his efficiency as a starter. He struck out six along the way, allowing just three hits, though he did walk three. That win gave the Yanks the series. Next up were the LA Angels, the Yanks' Achilles Heel during the Torre years.

A.J. Burnett didn't bring his A game, but still managed to get through seven innings while allowing four earned runs. That left the game tied in the bottom of the eighth, when the Yanks rallied for three runs against Justin Speier. Mo locked down his fifth save of the season and the Yanks opened strong against their rivals. They opened the next game strong, scoring four runs in the first, but Andy Pettitte couldn't hang on, as he allowed the Angels a big sixth inning. The bullpen coughed up three more, but the Yanks offense powered back, scoring four in the bottom of the eighth on the strength of a pair of RBI from Ramiro Pena, and finally finished the game in the bottom of the ninth on a bases loaded walk-off hit by Jorge Posada. Unfortunately the offense couldn't muster much against 30-year-old Matt Palmer on Saturday, and dropped the affair despite a ninth-inning rally.

Week's record: 4-2

Season record: 13-11

Injuries: OF Nick Swisher (elbow, day to day), LHP Damaso Marte (shoulder, 15-day DL)

This week: Mon - Tue BOSTON; Wed - Thu TAMPA BAY; Fri - Sun @Baltimore

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Tampa Bay Rays - Rays of Light

This week started looking like it was going to be another disappointing stanza in what has been a pretty depressing song for the Rays so far in 2009, but thanks to a tremendous weekend series against the Red Sox, the Rays look like they might finally be turning the corner. The big story for Rays fans (and fantasy owners!) was, of course, Carl Crawford going insane against the BoSox on Sunday, swiping 6 bags as the Rays closed out a series with against the Beantowners. That was 3-out-of-4 for those of you keeping track, and though the Rays still find themselves 6 1/2 games back in the AL East, they've moved out of the cellar and are pointed in the right direction.

Most encouraging for the Rays has to be the way the starting pitching performed over the weekend. Matt Garza was brilliant against the Red Sox in the Rays' 13-0 romp on Thursday, nearly throwing a perfect game. Andy Sonnanstine was his usual good-but-not-great self, and James Shields worked into the 8th inning in allowing just a pair of runs on Sunday. It's the pitching that's going to carry the Rays this season if they are going to win again, and if this past weekend is any indication, the Rays' arms are primed and ready for a dogfight.

Week's record: 4-3

Season record: 11-15

Injuries: Shawn Riggans (shoulder tendonitis, 15-day DL), Jason Isringhausen (moved to AAA for continued rehab, 15-day-DL)

This week: Mon - Tues BALTIMORE; Wed- Thur @New York; Fri-Sun @Boston

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Baltimore Orioles - Dempsey's Army

Owwww! Quit it!

0-6 this week makes for a painful recap. I'm not sure if it's better or worse that the O's were competitive in every game save for a loss to Roy Halladay. Three losses by a lone run, two by two runs. 22 men left in scoring position in the losses. Baltimore had their chances but failed to capitalize.

So, what are the bright spots? Adam Jones came back from a minor injury to continue his torrid hitting posting a .435/.458/.739 line this week. (one note to Adam Jones: you should quit blowing bubbles with your gum and looking so casual as you run down balls and make amazing plays look routine. It's going to hurt your chances for a Gold Glove. Slow up every now and then and make an unnecessary basket catch like B.J. Upton.) Adam Jones and Nick Markakis are the two top runs corers in the American League. Melvin Mora came back from his hamstring injury, relegating Ty Wigginton to the bench. That's really about it.

Meanwhile, down on the farm, LF Nolan Reimold continues to rake, posting a .390/.469/.756 line for the season. He hit 8 homers in April. He's knocking on the door. Matt Wieters has raised his average to .270 but is only slugging .365 thus far. 21-year old Chris Tillman has posted a 2.37 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 19 innings at AAA Norfolk. There is hope.

Notes: RP Dennis Sarfate was placed on the 15-day DL and reliever Bob McCrory was recalled from Norfolk. McCrory can flat out bring it, hitting 95-96 on the gun when I saw him pitch in Gwinnett earlier this month...2B Brian Roberts was 0-14 during the Toronto series...Nick Markakis had his hitting streak broken at 17 games in Toronto. The streak tied the longest of his career....Top pick from the 2008 draft, LHP Brian Matusz, has a 3.67 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 27.0 IP in A+ Frederick.

Week's Record: 0-6

Season Record: 9-16

Injuries: RHP Dennis Sarfate (15-day DL, numbness, right hand), Rich Hill (15-day DL, elbow, out until mid-May), UT Ryan Freel (15-day DL, concussion)

This Week: Mon-Tue @Tampa Bay; Wed-Thur MINNESOTA; Fri-Sun YANKEES


Toronto Blue Jays - Blue Jays Daze

If Baseball was the board game "Clue", the first half of the past week Jays murderers would have been described like this: it was the Butler, in Kauffman Stadium, with a big bad stick and a hell of a pitching staff! The Jays lost their first series of the season while losing 3 of 4 against the Royals. Billy Butler, the newest Jays killer, took his average from .193 to .262 over the last 2 games of the series while going 6 of 8 with 2 homers, 2 doubles, 5 RBI and 6 runs scored. The KC pitching staff helped him out with stellar performances from Bannister, Greinke, and Davies, although the Jays offense did become the only team able to score runs against Greinke this season. The Jays were also able to make a partial comeback Thursday, making the final 8-6 after being down 8-2 after the 5th inning. Other positives for the Jays include Scott Richmond's strong start during an 8-1 victory on Tuesday (the one game Butler sat out), as well as strong performances from the bullpen, aside from RHP Bryan Bullington who has since been demoted to AAA. He will be joined by starter LHP Brian Burres who thankfully takes his ugly 14.21 ERA with him and should not be back with the Jays as long as better options exist.

The second half of the week was critical to the Jays ending their mini-slump, and was much kinder to the Jays offense and pitching. While Doc Halladay didn't have one of his best starts on Friday, he did last 8 innings that allowed the pen some time to rest and the offense took the lead with 8 runs scored. Saturday's extra innings 5-4 win was even more encouraging. It included Robert Ray's first career start, which was solid, and was followed with the usual shut down performance of the Jays elite bullpen who shut out the Orioles over the last 5.1 innings of the game. The only run the O's scored was unearned due to an Aaron Hill miscue, but he more than made up for it with a game tying HR in the same inning followed by a game winning single in the 11th. The opposite things occurred to Travis Snider this week, who made 3 key defensive plays but struggled at the plate and now sports a .229 average. The bullpen was effective as usual and deserves the praise it get. Carlson and Downs shut down the end of the week and the O's on Sunday, which allowed Richmond's great 7 inning performance to result in his 4th win of the season. Overall, the series against the Orioles was a much needed return to winning for the Jays who took 3 of 3 from their division rivals.

Week's Record: 4-3

Season Record: 18-9

Injuries: Nil

This Week: Mon - Wed CLEVELAND; Thur - Sun @Anaheim

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