What's the Buzz? 5/31/06
I guess we can start of with those bogus denials from Houston GM Tim Purpura. The Astros officially signed Roger Clemens to a 1 year contract. They're hoping to have him by June 22, but apparently that's just up to Roger. If he's available, he'll be worth picking up. He may not be the lights out guy we saw last year, but he's definitely going to produce.
Well, we knew it was bound to happen. 2 more casualties in the world of closers...
After picking up his second save of the season, Todd Coffey was named the team's closer by Cincinnati Reds manager Jerry Narron. Coffey has a 1.26 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 28 2/3 innings so far. He may not keep this up but he is still a better option than David Weathers.
And Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin has decided that Jorge Julio will take over for Jose Valverde. Melvin thinks Valverde just needs the mental rest right now. What's Melvin going to say for himself after watching Julio try to close out games in Arizona?
in other news...
Giants starter Jason Schmidt left his start after just 5 2/3 innings due to a leg cramp. He was cruising with 10 K's and had only given up 5 hits and 1 ER. He will be fine for his next start and looks to be returning to the Schmidt of old.
Also for the Giants, catcher Mike Matheny is being considered day to day after getting hit in the head with a foul tip. Todd Greene will get the starts behind the plate and Matheny should be getting some sort of scan done which will tell us more.
The Yankees could be without OF Gary Sheffield again as he has not fully recovered from his wrist injury. More information will come as test results come in, but it doesn't sound too promising right now. He will probably return to the DL....for how long, we don't know yet.
The Padres are considering skipping Jake Peavy in the rotation this week as he is still suffering from a sore shoulder, which apparently has been bothering him the last 4 or 5 starts. Keep an eye on this as his next start could be his ticket to Dr. James Andrews; and that's never good.
Red Sox 3B Mike Lowell is day to day with a mild hamstring strain. They'll probably move Kevin Youkilis over to third and start J.T. Snow at first, which might not be that bad if Lowell misses any significant time.
Cubs 1B Derrek Lee had his cast removed today and is probably about 2 weeks away from resuming baseball activities. The Cubs are hoping to have him back by the end of June, but that might just be the management trying to stave off the hordes of disappointed fans.
And speaking of the Cubs, today they traded Jerry Hairston, Jr. to the Texas Rangers for 1B/DH Phill Nevin. They may platoon Nevin with Todd Walker right now, but once the real Tony Womack shows up, they will probably move Walker over to second and leave Nevin at first until Lee comes back. Either way, Nevin's value remains suspect at best with his new situation. Hairston will find minimal utility time with the Rangers.
Apparently Jeff Kent's hand/wrist are still bothering him enough that he will have an MRI done to help determine the source of the problem. He may need a stint on the DL which would bring back Oscar Robles to the majors.
Keep your eyes on Jose Vidro right now if you own him. He says his knee is fine, but Frank Robinson says otherwise.
Jim Edmonds owners are breathing a sigh of relief as he was diagnosed with a mild to moderate abdominal wall strain. So much better than hearing the words sports and hernia!!! He's still listed as day to day, but he may need to go on the DL. The move would be retroactive, so he may technically only be on it for a week.
Uh oh!!! Just one night removed from his 3 HR performance, Vernon Wells sat tonight and is complaining of shoulder pain.
Once again, Red Sox pitcher David Wells finds his way to the 15 day DL with a bruised knee. It's his third trip of the season. Do we even care if he'll be out longer than that?
The timetable for Devil rays 2B Jorge Cantu was for a return next week, but it may be bumped up to the weekend depending on how much more successful he is at AA-Montgomery.
Oakland A's second baseman Mark Ellis will be out for 3 to 6 weeks with a broken thumb. Marco Scutaro will probably take over for much of the time with Antonio Perez spelling him once in a while.
Well there you go...kudos to the anti-Bonds....Jason Kendall hit his first home run in 962 at bats today. Mark it on the calendar, kids!!!
And finally, the Allard Baird era is over in Kansas City finally!!! They replaced him with Braves assistant GM Dayton Moore which will take effect June 8th. So Royals fans have to be happy. Going from one of the worst GMs in history to an up and comer from a solid organization like Atlanta has to be inspiring. Now if they can make that translate into the team itself, wouldn't the Royals be something?
Catch you next time...
Well, we knew it was bound to happen. 2 more casualties in the world of closers...
After picking up his second save of the season, Todd Coffey was named the team's closer by Cincinnati Reds manager Jerry Narron. Coffey has a 1.26 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 28 2/3 innings so far. He may not keep this up but he is still a better option than David Weathers.
And Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin has decided that Jorge Julio will take over for Jose Valverde. Melvin thinks Valverde just needs the mental rest right now. What's Melvin going to say for himself after watching Julio try to close out games in Arizona?
in other news...
Giants starter Jason Schmidt left his start after just 5 2/3 innings due to a leg cramp. He was cruising with 10 K's and had only given up 5 hits and 1 ER. He will be fine for his next start and looks to be returning to the Schmidt of old.
Also for the Giants, catcher Mike Matheny is being considered day to day after getting hit in the head with a foul tip. Todd Greene will get the starts behind the plate and Matheny should be getting some sort of scan done which will tell us more.
The Yankees could be without OF Gary Sheffield again as he has not fully recovered from his wrist injury. More information will come as test results come in, but it doesn't sound too promising right now. He will probably return to the DL....for how long, we don't know yet.
The Padres are considering skipping Jake Peavy in the rotation this week as he is still suffering from a sore shoulder, which apparently has been bothering him the last 4 or 5 starts. Keep an eye on this as his next start could be his ticket to Dr. James Andrews; and that's never good.
Red Sox 3B Mike Lowell is day to day with a mild hamstring strain. They'll probably move Kevin Youkilis over to third and start J.T. Snow at first, which might not be that bad if Lowell misses any significant time.
Cubs 1B Derrek Lee had his cast removed today and is probably about 2 weeks away from resuming baseball activities. The Cubs are hoping to have him back by the end of June, but that might just be the management trying to stave off the hordes of disappointed fans.
And speaking of the Cubs, today they traded Jerry Hairston, Jr. to the Texas Rangers for 1B/DH Phill Nevin. They may platoon Nevin with Todd Walker right now, but once the real Tony Womack shows up, they will probably move Walker over to second and leave Nevin at first until Lee comes back. Either way, Nevin's value remains suspect at best with his new situation. Hairston will find minimal utility time with the Rangers.
Apparently Jeff Kent's hand/wrist are still bothering him enough that he will have an MRI done to help determine the source of the problem. He may need a stint on the DL which would bring back Oscar Robles to the majors.
Keep your eyes on Jose Vidro right now if you own him. He says his knee is fine, but Frank Robinson says otherwise.
Jim Edmonds owners are breathing a sigh of relief as he was diagnosed with a mild to moderate abdominal wall strain. So much better than hearing the words sports and hernia!!! He's still listed as day to day, but he may need to go on the DL. The move would be retroactive, so he may technically only be on it for a week.
Uh oh!!! Just one night removed from his 3 HR performance, Vernon Wells sat tonight and is complaining of shoulder pain.
Once again, Red Sox pitcher David Wells finds his way to the 15 day DL with a bruised knee. It's his third trip of the season. Do we even care if he'll be out longer than that?
The timetable for Devil rays 2B Jorge Cantu was for a return next week, but it may be bumped up to the weekend depending on how much more successful he is at AA-Montgomery.
Oakland A's second baseman Mark Ellis will be out for 3 to 6 weeks with a broken thumb. Marco Scutaro will probably take over for much of the time with Antonio Perez spelling him once in a while.
Well there you go...kudos to the anti-Bonds....Jason Kendall hit his first home run in 962 at bats today. Mark it on the calendar, kids!!!
And finally, the Allard Baird era is over in Kansas City finally!!! They replaced him with Braves assistant GM Dayton Moore which will take effect June 8th. So Royals fans have to be happy. Going from one of the worst GMs in history to an up and comer from a solid organization like Atlanta has to be inspiring. Now if they can make that translate into the team itself, wouldn't the Royals be something?
Catch you next time...
posted by Howard Bender at
10:43 PM
