Top News:
Chris De Luca / Chicago Sun Times:
Buehrle's shelled ... then ballistic — Buehrle takes out frustration on dugout heater — Mark Buehrle didn't wait for Ozzie Guillen to complete his walk to the mound, marching out to meet the White Sox manager and handing him the game ball. And that was just the beginning of one of Buehrle's …
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Kelly Thesier / MLB.com:
Gomez pulls off rare Twins cycle — Feat is the eighth in team history and first since Puckett in 1986 — CHICAGO — Twins manager Ron Gardenhire has said numerous times this season to never take your eyes off Carlos Gomez when he's at the plate, because you never know what the 22-year-old center fielder might do.
Steve Buckley / Boston Herald:
Julio Lugo lets it go — Questions about errors spark a Lugo outburst … DETROIT - Julio Lugo [stats] has been around the big leagues long enough to know how it works: When you make a ninth-inning error that sets up the winning rally for the opposing team, you're going to find …
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Rich Lederer / Baseball Analysts:
To THE Stadium and Back — I'm planning on putting up a follow-up post regarding our second day in Cooperstown, complete with photos and a few personal stories. However, for purposes of timeliness, I want to skip ahead to Wednesday night when Joe and I attended our first game at Yankee Stadium …
Discussion:
Associated Press, New York Post, Bronx Banter, Let's Go Tribe!, Bombers Beat and Dodger Thoughts
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Steve Phillips / ESPN:
TRICKS OF THE TRADE — How do you restore a once-proud franchise? Glad you asked. — The Reds haven't made the playoffs in 13 years, and a slow start this season cost GM Wayne Krivsky his job. So how can new boss Walt Jocketty build a new Big Red Machine?
ESPN.com:
A-Rod needs another MRI before returning to play — New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi wants third baseman Alex Rodriguez to have another MRI before he comes off the disabled list. — “He will not play a rehab game before he has the MRI,” Girardi told reporters, according to the New York Post.
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Jack Etkin / Rocky Mountain News:
Source: Reynolds to make Rockies debut Sunday — Greg Reynolds will make his major league debut Sunday at San Diego, according to a source close to the situation, replacing struggling Mark Redman as the Rockies seek to rectify their sagging rotation. — Reynolds started for Triple …
Discussion:
Up in the Rockies
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Kit Stier / MLB.com:
Yankees power their way past Tribe — Cano, Giambi break out of slump, hit two of team's four homers — NEW YORK — Robinson Cano and Jason Giambi, a couple of Yankees who have been struggling at the plate, found some life in their bats on Thursday and helped their team get out of town …
Discussion:
NJ.com
Joe Sheehan / Baseball Prospectus:
Prospectus Today — Applied Knowledge — On April 20, before their game with the Detroit Tigers, the Toronto Blue Jays released veteran designated hitter Frank Thomas. Just two days prior, Jays manager John Gibbons had announced that Thomas' playing time would be reduced, which inspired a petulant reaction by Thomas.
Discussion:
Detroit Tigers Thoughts
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Scot Gregor / Daily Herald:
Guillen still regrets A-Rod situation — Regrets? White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has less than a few. — Actually, the outspoken Guillen said he has only one. — “I don't feel guilty about anything,” Guillen said Wednesday. “The only regret I have was A-Rod (Yankees star Alex Rodriguez), making that kid suffer.”
Michael Milici / Bugs & Cranks:
Mr. Redlegs Loses His Head — While making his pre-game laps around Great American Ballpark with his trusty sidekick “Gapper” at the wheel, Mr. Redlegs* took a spill off the back of a golfcart and literally lost his head. — I feel bad for the poor kids in attendance who were under the impression Mr. Redlegs was real.
Discussion:
With Leather, Hot Foot, Red Sox Monster, Awful Announcing, Blue Collar Baseball, Walkoff Walk, FanHouse and SPORTSbyBROOKS
Childs Walker / Baltimore Sun:
Childs Walker: Make no mistake, Bonds could help plenty of teams — Despite absence, slugger carries value for any team that's in market to win — I hope some club signs Barry Bonds this summer. And I hope he leads that team to the playoffs with a fusillade of walks and 450-foot homers.
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
Jayson Stark / ESPN:
Offseason trades with plenty of teeth … Is there anything America loves more than a good old-fashioned baseball trade (OK, with the possible exception of a nationally televised Paula Abdul meltdown)? — Of course not. And never in recent memory have so many offseason trades left such a monumental imprint on a season.
Joe Frisaro / MLB.com:
Jacobs leaves in third with tight left quad — First baseman pulls up after double, might miss a day or two — MIAMI — Mike Jacobs is having a rough time while facing the Brewers. — The Marlins first baseman was removed in the third inning on Wednesday after he experienced tightness …
Discussion:
FishStripes
David Golebiewski / The Transaction Guy:
Pitch F/X Profile: Greg Smith — Lefthander Greg Smith has often taken a back seat to more prominent, “toolsy” prospects during his brief, successful career. Despite possessing a highly successful collegiate resume, the LSU product did not hear his name called until the 6th round of the 2005 amateur draft …