Category: MLB

Another day, another ETA for Nationals pitching prospect Stephen Strasburg.

MLB.com, citing a team source, reports the Nats plan to have Strasburg debut during the club’s June 8-10 home series against the Pirates. The website reports the actual date will be announced less than a week in advance.

On Tuesday, reporters speculated Strasburg would make his first start June 4 at home against the Reds.

Strasburg is scheduled to start for Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday. Given the latest speculation, he would make one more start for Syracuse, at Buffalo on June 3, then be ready for the Pirates series.

WASHINGTON — Sammy Sosa will not face a perjury investigation for his remarks to Congress about performance-enhancing drugs.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said Wednesday the panel has decided not to have the Justice Department look into whether Sosa lied at a March 2005 hearing, when the longtime slugger stated: "I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs."

Last June, the chairman of the committee said he would look into the matter after Sosa’s name was reported to be on a list of baseball players who allegedly failed drug tests in 2003.

"After a review of the matter, we will not be taking any action," committee spokeswoman Jenny Thalheimer Rosenberg said.

Rosenberg had no further comment, but the committee might have been influenced by a five-year statute of limitations in such perjury cases. Under that time limit, the deadline to press charges expired in March.

Sosa therefore avoids the type of perjury investigation currently surrounding Roger Clemens, who told Congress in 2008 that he had not used steroids or human growth hormone. Clemens’ testimony was contradicted by his former personal trainer, and a grand jury has been hearing evidence for more than a year as it decides whether to indict the seven-time Cy Young Award winner.

Sosa, who hit 609 home runs over 18 major league seasons, was part of one of the most infamous sports-related Congressional hearings on March 17, 2005, when he testified alongside Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco and Rafael Palmeiro.

"Everything I have heard about steroids and human growth hormones is that they are very bad for you, even lethal," Sosa said in his prepared testimony that day. "I would never put anything dangerous like that in my body."

"To be clear," he added, "I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs. I have never injected myself or had anyone inject me with anything. "

Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Rangers creditors offered the team $40 million in financing today, a surprise move in bankruptcy court intended to in part remove Major League Baseball from the process.

The team needed financing in place by the end of the day Wednesday to meet payroll of $3.8 million, the team’s attorney, Martin Sosland of Weil Gotshal & Manges, told the court in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Rangers filed for bankruptcy Monday after reaching a stalemate with creditors that refused to allow the team’s sale to proceed because they think there is a higher offer. The Rangers’ parent company — Tom Hicks’ Hicks Sports Group — defaulted on its debt on March 31, 2009.

On Day 2 of the hearings in Fort Worth, which have lasted far longer than insiders expected, lawyers for the Rangers said they preferred debtor in possession financing offered from MLB, but the creditors, represented by Andy LeBlanc of Milbank Tweed, contested it by offering $40 million.

In response, MLB increased its financing from $11.5 million, which would have taken the club only through to August, to $21.5 million. And MLB agreed to lower its interest rate from 5.75 percent to around 1.5 percent, matching the creditors’ loan proposal.

The reason the creditors wish to lend the money is they believe MLB’s debtor in possession terms would facilitate the sale to Nolan Ryan and Chuck Greenberg, the buyers who have been trying to close on the team since January. Both men were in the courtroom. But the creditors told the court on Monday that they believe there are higher offers for the club, and want the auction re-opened.

In order to do that, they need time. The creditors’ financing would match the $21.5 million and the rate, plus buy out what MLB is owed for funding payroll last year, thus removing the league as a creditor, though not necessarily as a party to the proceedings.

"We upped the ante," LeBlanc told the court.

Rangers CFO Kellie Fischer testified that the team preferred MLB’s financing because the team was comfortable with the league. She also testified that commissioner Bud Selig has been intricately involved in the sales process. Selig’s No. 2 executive, COO Bob Dupuy, was in the courtroom.

The key difference between MLB’s and the creditors’ debtor in possession financing, once MLB matched, is that MLB would not consider it a default if the Rangers were unable to meet the commercial terms set out in the bankruptcy plan. That is a big issue for the lenders, who believe it would allow the Rangers to spurn higher offers.

The hearing dragged on through the day today before Judge D. Michael Lynn of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas, who was to make a decision on which debtor in possession financing is acceptable.

The next major hearing is scheduled for June 15.

This story first appeared in SportsBusiness Journal, a sister publication of Sporting News.

Last season, the Rockies were 20-29 heading into June; the Angels were 25-24. They each went 72-41 from June 1 on, resulting in a postseason berth for each. Only the Yankees (74-38) were better during that span.

Both Colorado and Los Angeles are off to similar starts this season, but which is more likely to get hot, make a 2009-like run and reach the postseason?

Ryan Fagan says the Rockies are primed to duplicate their 2009 success, while Chris Bahr makes his case for the Angels:

The Angels need Erick Aybar to get comfortable in the leadoff role.

The Angels, Sporting News‘ preseason pick to win the AL West for the sixth time in the past seven seasons, are struggling to reach .500. But that also was the case at this time last season, when they won the division by 10 games. Expect a similar turnaround this season, and expect it to happen soon. Starting Friday, the Angels play 10 consecutive games against the Mariners and Royals.

Three reasons to believe in the Angels’ ability to reverse their fortunes:

Transition: The Angels lost a trio of major contributors — Vladimir Guerrero, Chone Figgins, John Lackey — to free agency this past offseason, so some struggles should have been anticipated. The Lackey-less rotation, which goes five deep but lacks a true No. 1, finally has shown improvement recently. Now, the team needs Erick Aybar to get comfortable in the leadoff role and Maicer Izturis to step up at the hot corner. Expecting a seamless, overnight transition in each of the aforementioned situations was unrealistic. The season is 162 games long, not 50, and Los Angeles already has played its worst stretch of baseball.

Division: The Rangers and A’s have failed to capitalize on the Angels’ slow start. As poorly as Los Angeles has played, it is only five games behind Texas and two behind Oakland. Not exactly insurmountable deficits, especially given the questions about Oakland’s staying power and the Rangers’ late-season fade in 2009. Also worth noting: The Angels are 4-2 against the A’s and have 17 games remaining against the Rangers. The best way to make up ground is with head-to-head wins, and L.A. will have plenty of opportunities to do so.

Mike Scioscia: Nothing against Jim Tracy, who helped spark the Rockies’ amazing run last season after replacing Clint Hurdle, but Scioscia is a two-time AL Manager of the Year who has a World Series championship on his resume. He did arguably his best managerial job of his career last season, rallying the team after the tragic death of Nick Adenhart. There will be no panic this season, and Scioscia has shown the ability to push the right buttons.

Are there concerns? Of course. Scott Kazmir must find his form, Hideki Matsui has to prove his poor May is the result of a slump and not an overall decline, the third base situation must get settled (Brandon Wood was an absolute offensive mess before his convenient trip to the disabled list Tuesday — the same day Izturis was activated), and Brian Fuentes must put an end to his habit of turning the ninth-inning into an adventure. But the Angels still are the most talented team in the A.L. West, and they will prove it by October.

Chris Bahr is a senior editor for Sporting News. E-mail him at cbahr@sportingnews.com.

Last season, the Rockies were 20-29 heading into June; the Angels were 25-24. They each went 72-41 from June 1 on, resulting in a postseason berth for each. Only the Yankees (74-38) were better during that span.

Colorado and Los Angeles are off to similar starts this season, but which is more likely to get hot, make a 2009-like run and reach the postseason?

Chris Bahr explains why the Angels have a better opportunity to do so, while Ryan Fagan makes his case for the Rockies:

Troy Tulowitzki has found his power stroke.

The goal was to avoid a spring slumber.

Jim Tracy, the manager with the magic touch last summer, told Sporting News this past offseason that he was priming his squad for a hot start. "Let’s get busy and have people be aware of the fact that this is how we expect to play from Day 1 of the season and not wait until the middle of June or whatever it was (last year)," he said.

It isn’t mid-June yet and the Rockies aren’t as bad as they were at this point last season, but this wasn’t the start Tracy imagined. His team has been hanging around the .500 mark and hasn’t been more than two games above or below .500 all season.

But make no mistake, the talent is there — and it is starting to rouse from its slumber.

Troy Tulowitzki, the one Colorado hitter capable of carrying his team offensively for a long stretch, has found his power stroke. He wasn’t horrible through his first 38 games (.295 average, .362 on-base percentage), but the power wasn’t there. Tulowitzki, who has twice hit at least 24 homers and twice driven in at least 92 runs, had just one homer and 16 RBIs in those first 38 games. In his past five games, though, he has pounded four homers.

Veteran first baseman Todd Helton has raised his average from .250 to .283 in the past nine games. He no longer is the anchor of Colorado’s lineup, but he isn’t quite done yet, either.

Ace Ubaldo Jimenez has done his best Zack Greinke impression this year — vaulting to superstar status — and shows no signs of reverting to the inconsistency of his younger days. Jhoulys Chacin, a 22-year-old rookie, has a 3.19 ERA in his five starts.

A turnaround often requires a catalyst. Last season, it was the managerial change to Tracy. This season, it could be the return of Jeff Francis. The lefthander won 17 games during the Rockies’ improbable run to the 2007 World Series but hadn’t pitched in the majors since September 2008. His long and arduous journey back from shoulder issues ended on May 16, when he tossed seven strong innings against the Nationals. He followed that up with 6 1/3 shutout innings against the Royals. His two-start totals include a 0.68 ERA and 1.20 WHIP.

More help is on the horizon. Closer Huston Street is working his way back from a shoulder injury, and Jorge De La Rosa, the lefthander who won 16 of his last 19 decisions in 2009, is coming back from a finger injury. Both have started their individual rehab processes, which coincide with the rehab process the team is working on at the moment.

Ryan Fagan is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at rfagan@sportingnews.com.

Dodgers right fielder Andre Ethier could rejoin the lineup as soon as Sunday, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Ethier was projected to be sidelined up to six weeks by a broken pinkie finger, but his timetable has been advanced because of a splint he can wear while hitting.

Although manager Joe Torre hinted that a Sunday return might be optimistic, the team will make a decision after Ethier faces righthander Vicente Padilla in a simulated game Saturday, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Ethier, who has experienced no problems in live batting practice, leads the majors with a .392 average and ranks among the National League leaders with 11 homers and 38 RBIs, despite being sidelined since May 14.

Cubs righthander Carlos Zambrano is expected to return to the rotation next week in Pittsburgh, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The righthander went 1-2 with a 7.45 ERA in four starts before being moved to the bullpen, where he posted a 4.76 ERA in 11 relief appearances. He is expected to pitch in relief at least once more before starting Monday or Tuesday.

With Zambrano returning to the starting five, the newspaper speculated lefthander Tom Gorzelanny could be shifted from the rotation to the bullpen to make room for him. Gorzelanny, who will start tonight against the Dodgers, is 2-4 with a 3.09 ERA in eight starts this season.

Dan Lozano, the agent for Albert Pujols, is leaving Beverly Hills Sports Council to start his own agency, according to media reports.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports Pujols and the rest of Lozano’s clients are expected to stay with him. ESPN earlier reported Lozano’s departure.

The Pujols tie is signficant because Lozano has been negotiating with the Cardinals to keep the MVP first baseman in St. Louis long term. Pujols can become a free agent after this season if St. Louis declines his $16 million option for 2011. The Cardinals are expected to exercise the option.

Injured Dodgers right fielder Andre Ethier is healing quickly and could return to action as early as next week.

Ethier (broken finger) took batting practice Tuesday in Chicago and is scheduled to participate in a simulated game Saturday in Denver. MLB.com and the Los Angeles Times speculate that if Ethier does well in the simulated game, he could be activated on Sunday, when he’s eligible to come off the disabled list.

"As of right now, there’s no indication why not," Ethier told reporters.

Dodgers manager Joe Torre said a Sunday return might be too ambitious, but he sounded encouraged by Ethier’s recovery.

"He’s doing a lot of things we didn’t anticipate this early," Torre told reporters. "We want it to feel normal. The last thing we want is to get him into bad habits. If it’s uncomfortable, you know he’ll have trouble doing it."

Phillies fans are doing their part to get their favorite players to this year’s MLB All-Star Game.

The latest voting results show five Philadelphia regulars in position to start the game: second baseman Chase Utley (the NL’s leading vote-getter), injured shortstop Jimmy Rollins, third baseman Placido Polanco and outfielders Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino.

First baseman Ryan Howard is second to Albert Pujols, and catcher Carlos Ruiz is second to St. Louis’ Yadier Molina.

The only laggard is left fielder Raul Ibanez, who is eighth among outfielders.

The 2010 All-Star Game is scheduled for July 13 at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif.

National League All-Star voting

(Released Tuesday)

First Base
1. Albert Pujols, Cardinals, 647,666
2. Ryan Howard, Phillies, 329,673
3. Prince Fielder, Brewers, 200,395
4. James Loney, Dodgers, 116,850
5. Lance Berkman, Astros, 112,589

Second Base
1. Chase Utley, Phillies, 687,724
2. Rickie Weeks, Brewers, 169,941
3. Martin Prado, Braves, 134,993
4. Kelly Johnson, Diamondbacks, 118,342
5. Skip Schumaker, Cardinals, 112,365

Third Base
1. Placido Polanco, Phillies, 309,458
2. David Wright, Mets, 236,387
3. Casey McGehee, Brewers, 185,312
4. Pablo Sandoval, Giants, 160,179
5. Chipper Jones, Braves, 143,558

Shortstop
1. Jimmy Rollins, Phillies, 340,747
2. Hanley Ramirez, Marlins, 309,244
3. Alcides Escobar, Brewers, 151,710
4. Rafael Furcal, Dodgers, 144,209
5. Jose Reyes, Mets, 137,321

Catcher
1. Yadier Molina, Cardinals, 316,795
2. Carlos Ruiz, Phillies, 259,227
3. Ivan Rodriguez, Nationals, 247,998
4. Brian McCann, Braves, 203,377
5. Russell Martin, Dodgers, 160,698

Outfield
1. Ryan Braun, Brewers, 423,834
2. Jayson Werth, Phillies, 365,402
3. Shane Victorino, Phillies, 348,841
4. Andre Ethier, Dodgers, 316,383
5. Matt Holliday, Cardinals, 309,463
6. Jason Heyward, Braves, 304,547
7. Matt Kemp, Dodgers, 249,554
8. Raul Ibanez, Phillies, 248,450
9. Manny Ramirez, Dodgers, 217,694
10. Jason Bay, Mets, 191,181
11. Alfonso Soriano, Cubs, 177,061
12. Jim Edmonds, Brewers, 162,130
13. Justin Upton, Diamondbacks, 154,502
14. Carlos Gomez, Brewers, 140,145
15. Colby Rasmus, Cardinals, 139,519