Category: MLB

Stan McNeal analyzes three hot topics in Major League Baseball:

Strike 1: The calm before the Strasburg

The Nationals have been one of baseball’s feel-good stories so far.

Stephen Strasburg is expected to make his major-league debut next month.

Their 38-year-old catcher, Pudge Rodriguez, is hitting .333 and earning accolades for his positive influence. Their who-knows-how-old bargain starter, Livan Hernandez, has been one of the NL’s best pitchers (1.46 in 49 1/3 innings). The defense, whose poor play resulted in 28 unearned runs at this point last season, has improved enough to allow only 10 unearned runs so far. And even after a five-game losing streak, Washington was 20-20 and owned the majors’ best turnaround from this point last season (when it was 12-28).

And Stephen Strasburg still is scheduled to arrive early next month.

Let’s hope he does. If he isn’t in the majors soon, the already "out of whack" expectations — as described by Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo — will be such that Strasburg will have to throw a no-hitter in his first game to live up to them. And if his debut comes against the Pirates, a no-no might not be enough.

The Strasburg hype is reaching LeBron James-to-the-NBA proportions. "Good comparison," Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman admits.

The Nationals are trying to temper the anticipation. They protect Strasburg from the media, and Rizzo insists they are thinking about the big picture. "I have developed players in the past and that’s why I got the job," Rizzo says. "I feel comfortable with his developmental schedule. It’s best for him long-term."

The club, meanwhile, goes about its business. Manager Jim Riggleman says "I never hear Stephen’s name come up" in the clubhouse "except when we get some reports when he pitches."

But when the Nationals hear the reports, it’s difficult even for them to not get excited. "You hear about guys who throw hard and all that and once they get here, it’s 91 to 93 and they’re a regular righthanded pitcher," Zimmerman says. "He’s definitely different. He’s really the first person I’ve ever seen who’s had a lot of hype and actually lives up to it."

That analysis was based on spring training and the minors. The countdown to the majors continues.

Strike 2: Early-season disappointments

With the season at the quarter mark, the biggest flops:

Aramis Ramirez has struggled at the plate.

Mariners’ offense. The pitching — third in the AL — is about as good as advertised. The offense — last in the AL — is even worse than expected. Six regulars were hitting .220 or lower before Wednesday night’s game against the Blue Jays. Ken Griffey Jr.’s bat shows no signs of waking up, either. He has one hit since the nap story broke.

Red Sox’s pitching. Having the AL’s worst ERA (4.94) isn’t what general manager Theo Epstein had in mind when he talked about an even greater emphasis on defense and pitching. He has to be wondering a bit about Josh Beckett’s contract extension, too. Beckett has been so bad (7.29 ERA) that the team actually had to be a bit relieved when an injury (back stiffness) was found.

Cubs. Their pitching hasn’t been terrible (4.27 ERA) and their offense ranks in the top five in the NL, but something isn’t right. Look no further than three of Chicago’s highest-paid players — Derrek Lee (.674 OPS), Aramis Ramirez (.527 OPS) and Carlos Zambrano, who has been a flop in the bullpen (5.59 ERA) and the rotation (7.45).

Matt Holliday’s hitting. His .289 average and .357 on-base percentage aren’t terrible, but Holliday is sixth on his own club in RBIs. That isn’t the kind of Albert Pujols protection the Cardinals were projecting when they re-signed Holliday for $121 million. He was moved into the 3 hole ahead of Pujols this week.

Andre Ethier’s broken pinkie. Ethier wasn’t likely to win the Triple Crown. But it would have been nice to see him healthy for a full season to give it a go.

Strike 3: Early-season surprises

The Rays. What should scare opponents about their major league-leading record: Their offense hasn’t clicked yet. Ben Zobrist (no homers after hitting 27 last season), Carlos Pena (.191 batting average) and B.J. Upton (.217) figure to get hot at some point.

Rangers lefthander C.J. Wilson as a starter. The converted reliever had a rough outing Tuesday when he allowed seven earned runs in 4 1/3 innings against the Angels. Until then, Wilson had given up only eight earned runs total in seven starts.

Justin Morneau, 1B, Twins. You know he loves seeing his name above Joe Mauer’s among the batting average leaders. What is really impressive: Morneau leads the AL in OBP (.482) and slugging (.694).

The Padres. Their pitching has been the best in the NL, and three scouts in the past week have told me it is legit. Too bad their offense isn’t.

Ubaldo Jimenez, SP, Rockies. A no-hitter, a 7-1 record and a 1.12 ERA. Memo to Tim Lincecum: You have more new competition than Roy Halladay for the NL Cy Young award.

Stan McNeal is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at smcneal@sportingnews.com.

Sporting News Audio is a weekly series of conversations with Sporting News experts during the MLB season. In this installment, Chris Bahr discusses the tough tests the Tampa Bay Rays and San Diego Padres will face this week as they try to prove they’re legitimate contenders.

MLB: It seems some BoSox fans are a little miffed that Theo Epstein took in a Pearl Jam concert rather than watching the Sox get beat by the Yankees on Monday. Fly’s with Globe staffer Nick Cafardo, who tells Boston fans to give it a rest. Cafardo writes, "For the past two weeks Epstein has been all over the country, watching amateur players the Sox might consider in the June draft. He had just returned to Boston Monday. He’s doing what executives do this time of the year — cross-checking prospects the scouting staff has recognized as the best players in the country. … According to a team source, Epstein has watched every pitch of every game while on the road. There’s nothing he isn’t up on. And if he had been in New York, what could he have done — tackle Alex Rodriguez so he couldn’t come to the plate and tie the game with a homer in the ninth?"

• It’s never a long ride from cheers to jeers in New York, and Joba Chamberlain is hearing it from the famously tough (some could say fickle) Yankees fans.

NBA: The Indiana Pacers are employing the old "if you don’t build us a new palace, we’re leaving" strategy in an effort to get public funding for running Canseco Fieldhouse. The Indianapolis Star asks some experts about how likely it is the Pacers would really move, and if so, where?

NASCAR: Tired of that ever-so-neutral female voice on your nav system? TomTom is introducing a new line of voices using NASCAR and IRL drivers Juan Pablo Montoya, Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, Fly’s sister publication SportsBusiness Journal reports. TomTom is an associate sponsor for all three drivers in their respective series. TomTom users can download a driver’s voice at tomtom.com/racevoices. Montoya’s turn-by-turn directions are available in either English or Spanish.

GOLF: The latest rumors on the Tiger Woods-Elin Nordegren divorce are all neatly packaged for you in one place on USAToday.com. The highlight is a Chicago Sun-Times report that Tiger wants a lifetime confidentiality clause, which would prevent Elin from doing a book or TV deal or giving any interviews about their marriage.

Yankees DH Nick Johnson had successful wrist surgery today, according to The Star Ledger in New Jersey.

Johnson, who is hitting just .167 with two homers and eight RBIs this season, isn’t expected to rejoin the Yankees’ lineup until at least mid-June.

In more encouraging injury news, center fielder Curtis Granderson (groin) shagged fly balls in the outfield without any pain earlier this week, according to the newspaper.

Granderson, who hasn’t played since May 1, is hitting .225 with two homers and seven RBIs this season. There is no official timetable for his return.

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers weren’t pointing fingers at each other at the end of April when a five-game losing streak put them six games out of first place. And now that they’re back within striking distance of the NL West lead, the only finger that concerns them is Andre Ethier’s broken right pinky.

Ethier was placed on the 15-disabled list Tuesday for the first time in his five-year career, four days after a freak mishap in the indoor batting cage at San Diego’s Petco Park left him with a fracture in the top knuckle of his finger after it slipped off the knob and shifted to the other side of the bat handle.

"It’s disappointing. I took pride in playing every day and playing through some of the nagging stuff," Ethier said. "This is a year that has challenged me more in terms of playing every day.

"There was the knee that held me out the last couple of games in spring training, and then there was the ankle thing in the second game of the season. Those are bigger things that you expect to hold you out, but a small little chip of a bone off your pinky, that was the last thing I thought about at this point."

The Dodgers made the move before their game against Houston, which happened to be Andre Either Bobblehead Night.

"Whenever you lose one of your beat hitters, obviously it’s something that you’ve got to figure out a way to make up for," general manager Ned Colletti said. "He’s a middle-of-the-order bat, and his ability to hit in the clutch is well above average."

Ethier has 11 walkoff hits since the end of the 2008 season, six of them home runs. His two game-ending hits this season were an RBI single on April 15 against Arizona and a grand slam on May 6 against Milwaukee.

"Individual performance is nice and definitely makes you feel a little bit better about yourself at the end of the night," Ethier said. "But when we’re sitting two games out at this point in time after being six out, that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, not to be out there and help keep this thing going."

Ethier entered Tuesday leading the majors with a .392 average and 38 RBIs, and also was tied for the league lead in home runs with 11.

"What makes it bad is the team part," Ethier said. "We’re really coming together as a team, and it’s been a long month and a half to get ourselves into the position we’ve gotten ourselves into right now. So to be missing time because of something like that is the tough part."

The Dodgers’ entered Tuesday on en eight-game winning streak, their longest since a nine-game stretch in 2006. The primary reason is a pitching staff that has fashioned a 1.75 ERA over the past eight games.

"We really haven’t skipped a beat because of the pitching, but you know long-term you’re going to miss Andre because of what he brings to the table," manager Joe Torre said. "We just thought the safest thing was to do was what we did with him. I think it could be anywhere from two to three weeks. If it’s longer, it’s longer. But we have to make sure we take care of it now. I’m just glad we have the bench we have."

The Dodgers recalled outfielder Xavier Paul from Triple-A Albuquerque. Paul played nine games for Los Angeles this season.

"We’re not going to go out and make a trade for somebody, because, what do we do with him when Ethier comes back? Right now we just have do get through this short-term," Colletti said. "Last year we lost Manny (Ramirez) for 50 games (because of a drug suspension), so things like that happen. Let’s see how it goes."

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

MIAMI — Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez defended his play Tuesday and took shots at his manager and teammates, a day after he was pulled from a game for not hustling.

Ramirez, a two-time All-Star and last year’s NL batting champion, wasn’t in manager Fredi Gonzalez’s starting lineup against Arizona. On Monday night, he accidentally kicked a ball and then lightly jogged after it, allowing two runs to score.

The controversial play came in the second inning.

"It’s his team. He can do whatever," Ramirez said, mixing in an expletive. "There’s nothing I can do about it."

"That’s OK. He doesn’t understand that. He never played in the big leagues," he said.

Responded Gonzalez: "He’s right, but I know how to play the game."

"I played six years in the minor leagues and I know what it takes to play this game and I know the effort it takes to play this game," he said.

It seemed unlikely Ramirez would say he was sorry.

"We got a lot of people dogging it after ground balls," he said. "They don’t apologize."

The trouble for Ramirez started in the first inning Monday night after he fouled a ball off his left shin and was tended to by a trainer. He grounded into a double play and did not run full speed down the line.

Ramirez’s costly misplay came the next inning after Tony Abreu’s looper fell near him in short left field. Ramirez booted the ball about 100 feet toward the left-field corner and slowly chased it.

"I wasn’t trying to give up," Ramirez said. "That was the hardest I could go after the ball."

Ramirez was replaced by Brian Barden an inning after the play. Gonzalez, in his fourth season at Florida’s manager, confirmed Ramirez was yanked for not hustling in the 5-1 loss.

Ramirez is hitting .293 with seven homers and 20 RBIs this year. He is the Marlins’ highest-paid player after signing a $70 million, six-year contract in 2008, and has become the face of a franchise that moves into a new ballpark in 2012.

For all his talent, however, there have been occasions in which some speculated Ramirez didn’t always hustle. Nothing ever reached this level, though.

Barden started in place of Ramirez on Tuesday and drove in two runs during an 8-0 win over Arizona. Ramirez, who was on the field for batting practice, didn’t comment after the game.

"It’s our team. I’m just the guy that makes the lineup," Gonzalez said. "I can’t control everybody going 4 for 4, but you can control the effort."

Ramirez said he lost some respect for Gonzalez for the episode.

"A little bit. We got 24 more guys out there," Ramirez said. "Hopefully they can do the same things I can do. They’re wearing the Marlins uniform."

Veteran infielder Wes Helms hopes Ramirez apologizes to his teammates.

"I can’t overlook it," Helms said. "I know people say that’s just the way he is, but you know what? That’s not the way it is. That’s not the way the game’s supposed to be played.

"And that’s what we want from Hanley. We want him to be that guy that goes out there every day … and busts his butt and does anything he can for his this team. That right there will earn the respect of not only his teammates, but everybody in the league."

Teammate Dan Uggla, a two-time All-Star second baseman, supported Gonzalez’s decision.

Last September in a game against the Atlanta Braves, Uggla and Ramirez got into a heated discussion after the star shortstop left a game early with a strained hamstring.

"I think Skip needed to do what he needed to do, which was take Hanley out of the game at that time," Uggla said. "Does that mean we love Hanley any less? No, we have all made mistakes. We’ve all done things like, ‘Oh, maybe I shouldn’t have done that.’ But you move on, you move forward you get past it."

Cameron Maybin, who hit a three-run homer Tuesday, also sided with Gonzalez.

"I think if it happened to anybody else in here, I think other teammates would feel the same way about it," Maybin said. "As long as you are playing hard nobody can really say anything bad about you. We definitely support Fredi’s decision and we thought it was the right decision."

Gonzalez, who did not want to discuss the Ramirez situation after Tuesday’s win, previously said he hoped the situation doesn’t draw focus from his team.

"If it’s handled the right way, I think it could be good," he said. "If it’s not, it could be distraction, it could grow into some ugly stuff. But let’s wait and see what happens. Let’s not make a mountain out of a molehill just yet."

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

White Sox general manager Ken Williams tried to assure manager Ozzie Guillen that he isn’t about to tear up the team’s roster.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that Williams told Guillen in a text message Sunday that it’s too early to trade anyone. Guillen then relayed that message to the players.

The text was in response to reports out of Chicago that Williams was talking with the Texas Rangers about catcher A.J. Pierzynski. With the White Sox starting slowly this season, local and national media have been speculating about who might be made available if Williams decides to make wholesale changes.

The Sun-Times reports any initial moves might involve the coaching staff. Hitting coach Greg Walker is a likely target as the White Sox struggle to score runs.

One player who wouldn’t like to see a fire sale is right-hander Jake Peavy. He waived his no-trade clause last year to join the White Sox in the belief the team could contend for a championship.

"At this point in my career, I certainly don’t want to be a part of any rebuilding process. I hope that would be understandable," Peavy told MLB.com on Monday before the Sox’s game in Detroit was rained out. "But I by no means have mailed it in on the 2010 White Sox."

Still, Peavy clearly understands what could happen if the situation doesn’t improve.

"I do understand how competitive Kenny is, as well as the rest of the front office. Then again, you have to evaluate things from a realistic standpoint," Peavy told MLB.com. "Kenny will do that, making moves for the betterment of the organization."

Peavy added: "You gotta do what you gotta do. Obviously those moves are directly determined by how well the team we have together plays. We haven’t played the way we thought we should."

Guillen said better performance is the best way to deal with the talk.

"Even if the rumors aren’t good, if you think you’re going to be traded, then play better," Guillen told reporters. "It’s easier for the guy that’s going to trade you, and it’s easier for the people that make the trade. You have to play good whether you’re staying or leaving. That’s all you have to do — play good for somebody."

Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez was pulled from tonight’s game after two innings.

Palm Beach Post reporter Joe Capozzi reports Florida manager Fredi Gonzalez had an animated discussion with Ramirez in the middle of the second inning. Ramirez then picked up his gear and went into the clubhouse.

Ramirez fouled a pitch off his left foot in his first at-bat. The next inning, on a bloop single by Arizona’s Tony Abreu, he jogged to retrieve the ball after kicking it toward the outfield. That led to Gonzalez’s talk with Ramirez between innings.

Brian Barden replaced Ramirez at shortstop.

Drew Storen was on the phone last fall, not long after he completed his dominating (2-0, 0.66 ERA, four saves) spin through the Arizona Fall League.

Drew Storen joins the Nats bullpen.

Storen, the 10th overall pick in the 2009 draft, talked about how he saw his Washington Nationals as a franchise on the rise, and he talked about building on his first professional season and the possibility of making his big-league debut at some point in 2010.

"Hoping to be an impact guy next year," he said. "That’s the one goal I do have. If I am able to pitch in the big leagues next year, that I’m going to be an impact guy and not just a guy who’s there for some coffee, just kind of hanging out. I want to be a guy that’s a factor."

Sponsored link: Nationals tickets available

He’s getting that wish.

Storen was called up from Triple-A Syracuse this weekend to join a Washington bullpen that has been very effective, but also heavily used. His powerful right arm—he’s expected to eventually take over as the team’s closer—will be a welcome boost for a Nationals team that is in the thick of the wild-card race after back-to-back 59-win seasons. Anyway, on to the poll (where the Nationals are 14th this week).

1. Rays (1). They enter the week 26-11—two full games better than any other team in baseball—despite the fact that four starters—catcher Dioner Navarro, first baseman Carlos Pena, shortstop Jason Bartlett and center fielder B.J. Upton—are batting .236 or worse. Pena, especially, is struggling. He has just three hits in his past 49 at-bats (.061)

2. Yankees (2). Nick Swisher is quietly putting up one of his most productive seasons. He has seven homers and 24 RBIs entering the week, and his .293 average, .537 slugging percentage and .915 OPS are all above his career bests.

3. Phillies (4). Philly’s finest are 11-3 in May. The Phillies are 9-1 against the NL Central so far this year, and the Pirates and Cubs are in town for series this week.

4. Twins (3). Despite ERAs that range from 2.63 to 4.93 and WHIPs that range from 1.101 to 1.564, all five Twins starters have four wins on the year. Yet another reason the big "W" is an overrated stat.

5. Blue Jays (8). Entering the week, Vernon Wells, Alex Gonzalez and Jose Bautista have identical home run and RBI totals (10 homers, 29 RBIs). Their averages—.298, .256, .241, respectively—aren’t too similar, though.

6. Padres (6). Odd week for the Padres. They went into San Francisco and swept the Giants—they’re now 6-0 against them this year—and then were swept at home by the surging Dodgers.

7. Reds (14). Seven wins in eight tries—including two of three against the Cardinals—vaulted the Reds to first place in the NL Central. The last time they were in first this late in the season was 2006, when they were tied for first place for one day after a win on Aug. 24.

8. Giants (7). Future star catcher Buster Posey is crushing the ball at Triple-A (.346 average, .985 OPS) but the Giants feel no need to rush him because starter Bengie Molina (.330) and backup Eli Whiteside (.324) are helping the parent club offensively.

9. Tigers (12). Bold moves by the front office this weekend, demoting starting pitcher Max Scherzer and second baseman Scott Sizemore to the minors to work out their struggles.

10. Dodgers (18). After his disastrous start against Milwaukee on May 4 (seven earned runs in 1 1/3 innings in an 11-6 loss), Clayton Kershaw has been dominant. In two starts since then, the young lefty has allowed just 10 baserunners and one earned run in 15 innings.

11. Marlins (19). The Marlins’ four-game series against the Mets started with a 2-1 pitchers’ duel and ended with a 10-8 slugfest, but all four games had the same outcome—a Marlins win. The sweep pushed Florida two games over .500 for the first time in three weeks.

Vlad Guerrero has been hitting like his old self.

12. Rangers (9). Hard to imagine where the Rangers would be without Vlad Guerrero and his .336 average and 31 RBIs this season.

13. Cardinals (5). Rough stretch for the Cardinals. They’ve lost nine times in their past 12 games; they’ve scored more than three runs just once in those nine losses.

14. Nationals (11). Since opening the season with a pair of bad outings, Scott Olsen is 2-0 with a 1.11 ERA in his past five starts. In his worst start of the stretch, he gave up two earned runs in 5 1/3 innings.

15. Rockies (16). Was there a more important start on Sunday than the one turned in by left-hander Jeff Francis? In his first game since 2008, the former ace gave up just one run in seven innings. Adding a healthy Francis—he won 17 games with a 4.22 ERA in 2007—to the rotation would be huge for the Rockies.

16. Red Sox (15). Still not time to panic, Red Sox fans. Lots of baseball left to play. Ignore this disconcerting fact: 24 of the other 29 teams in baseball enter the week closer to first place in their own division than the Red Sox, who are 7 1/2 games behind the Rays in the AL East.

17. Braves (23). Eric Hinske has taken over as the starter in left field, and he’s rewarding that decision—he’s 9-for-17 (.529 average) with eight RBIs in his past five games.

18. Angels (22). Angels pitchers allowed just three runs in the three-game sweep of the A’s last weekend. Joe Saunders and Joel Pineiro both fired complete-game shutouts.

19. A’s (10). Getting swept in Anaheim was the end of a nasty road trip for the A’s, who also lost two of three to the Rangers.

20. Mets (13). Since reaching a high-water mark of five games over .500 on the last day of April, the Mets have gone 4-11 and enter the week in last place in the NL East.

Andrew McCutchen has been a bright spot for the Pirates.

21. Pirates (20). Please, somebody notice Andrew McCutchen. Kid’s hitting .340—that’s 76 points higher than anyone else on the team—with a .915 OPS, five homers and 12 stolen bases.

22. Indians (28). Great googlymoogly. Austin Kearns is batting .330 and tied for the team lead with 20 RBIs.

23. Cubs (21). Just like the division rival Cardinals, the Cubs are 3-9 in their past 12 games. Of course, the Cardinals were 18-8 at the start of the skid; the Cubs were 13-13.

24. White Sox (25). It’s been a rough season for the White Sox, but Alex Rios has been a bright spot. After struggling horribly last year for the Pale Hose, Rios enters the week with a .318 batting average, seven homers and 12 stolen bases.

25. Brewers (17). Sure, Casey McGehee had a breakthrough rookie season for the Brewers last year, but who could have imagined he’d be leading the Brew Crew—with Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder healthy—in homers and RBIs 37 games into the season?

26. Diamondbacks (24). Yes, many players who come from the AL to the NL post better numbers in the Senior Circuit. Not Edwin Jackson, though. He was an AL All-Star last year; he has a 7.43 ERA through eight starts for the D-backs this year.

27. Mariners (26). How bad is the Seattle offense? Despite ERAs of 1.72, 2.08, 2.93 and 3.88 from their four top starters, the Mariners are nine games under .500 entering the week. The M’s are dead last in the AL in runs scored.

28. Royals (29). Well, Trey Hillman is gone. Let’s see if that works.

29. Astros (30). You’ve probably seen this by now, but it’s worth repeating. Bud Norris is 4-0 with an 0.35 ERA against the Cardinals, and 4-7 with a 7.03 ERA against everyone else. Amazing stuff.

30. Orioles (27). Well, Nolan Reimold and Rhyne Hughes were demoted. Let’s see if that works.

Ryan Fagan is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at rfagan@sportingnews.com, and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ryan_fagan.

The Mets are looking for another starting pitcher, but don’t look for a reunion between the club and free-agent right-hander Pedro Martinez.

The New York Daily News, citing an unnamed source "with direct knowledge of the Mets’ thinking," reports Martinez is not an attractive option to the club. The newspaper reports the Mets have the payroll flexibility to bolster the rotation and have held preliminary trade talks with other teams.

Martinez pitched four injury-filled seasons with the Mets, compiling a 32-23 record in 79 games.

In other Mets news, ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin reports general manager Omar Minaya will be in Atlanta to watch the team open a two-game series with Braves on Monday. A team official tells Rubin that Minaya is coming down just to lend support and might not be in Atlanta for long.