What's the Buzz? 6/22/06
I guess we should start with today's most popular news; that being the return of Roger Clemens. After months of speculation (he said sarcastically) we finally got to see the Rocket make yet another return to the mound for his hometown Houston Astros. He pitched a fairly decent game, being allowed to throw 100 pitches, working 5 innings with 2 ER and 4 K's. It was a solid start for him as he consistently hit the low 90's with his fastball. Considering that this could very well have been a final rehab start, look for him to come out firing hard his next outing. He should provide your team with a very solid boost right now.
in other news...
More returns to the mound for some other guys as Blue Jays starter A.J. Burnett and Braves lefty Horacio Ramirez made their returns tonight; against each other. Burnett looked great allowing 2 runs in 6 innings with 7 K's. His velocity was fantastic and, truth be told, they would have been 6 scoreless innings if not for mistakes by 3B Shea Hillenbrand. You should activate Burnett immediately if you haven't don so already. Lord knows how long you'll have him for. Ramirez, back from a line drive to the noggin, went 6 2/3 allowing only 1 run. He would have received the win if not for a shaky Atlanta bullpen. On the downside though, he did give up 6 walks, one of which was intentional. Hopefully he can reduce that number his next time out, but for now, he looks good to activate again.
Back again from the minors, Anthony Reyes had quite the duel with Freddy Garcia and the White Sox tonight. He ended up on the losing end of a 1-0 game though as the only hit he gave up was a solo shot to Jim Thome. With Mark Mulder going on the DL today (shoulder strain) and Sidney Ponson being shaky at best, look for Reyes to stay up with the club for the year. If he's available, I recommend picking him up.
And speaking of Cardinals and returns, Albert Pujols was activated today. Sure he went 0 for 4 in his return, but did you hear me? Albert Pujols was activated today!!!
Francisco Liriano continues to pitch well for the Twins, as he outdueled Clemens tonight. With the victory tonight, he boasts a 7-1 record with a 2.17 ERA. If he doesn't wear down in the second half, he could become one of the AL's elite pitchers.
In Tampa, the flavor of the month for closing appears maybe to be Brian Meadows instead of Shawn Camp. Meadows received his second save opp in as many days today, but don't get too excited. No one in the Tampa pen is really worth picking up just yet.
The Kansas City pen might get a boost soon as Mike MacDougal made another rehab appearance today and looked pretty good. The Royals will want him to get in atleast 3 or 4 more appearances in the minors and definitely need to test him on back to back days. 2 weeks seems like a fair assessment.
The Cubs will probably have 1B Derrek Lee back early nex tweek as he should finish up his rehab in Triple-A this weekend. OF Matt Murton is a candidate to be sent down, although I would be surprised if it was him. The club can't be that sold on Frank Bynum....unless they just want to keep on losing.
And finally, keep your eyes on Giants' starter Noah Lowry. While he insists that he is healthy, the tema is concerned with the notable decrease in velocity he has shown his past few outings. You might want to try and deal him if you can, atleast before word gets out that he could be experiencing problems.
That's about all I've got for you today.
Catch you next time...
in other news...
More returns to the mound for some other guys as Blue Jays starter A.J. Burnett and Braves lefty Horacio Ramirez made their returns tonight; against each other. Burnett looked great allowing 2 runs in 6 innings with 7 K's. His velocity was fantastic and, truth be told, they would have been 6 scoreless innings if not for mistakes by 3B Shea Hillenbrand. You should activate Burnett immediately if you haven't don so already. Lord knows how long you'll have him for. Ramirez, back from a line drive to the noggin, went 6 2/3 allowing only 1 run. He would have received the win if not for a shaky Atlanta bullpen. On the downside though, he did give up 6 walks, one of which was intentional. Hopefully he can reduce that number his next time out, but for now, he looks good to activate again.
Back again from the minors, Anthony Reyes had quite the duel with Freddy Garcia and the White Sox tonight. He ended up on the losing end of a 1-0 game though as the only hit he gave up was a solo shot to Jim Thome. With Mark Mulder going on the DL today (shoulder strain) and Sidney Ponson being shaky at best, look for Reyes to stay up with the club for the year. If he's available, I recommend picking him up.
And speaking of Cardinals and returns, Albert Pujols was activated today. Sure he went 0 for 4 in his return, but did you hear me? Albert Pujols was activated today!!!
Francisco Liriano continues to pitch well for the Twins, as he outdueled Clemens tonight. With the victory tonight, he boasts a 7-1 record with a 2.17 ERA. If he doesn't wear down in the second half, he could become one of the AL's elite pitchers.
In Tampa, the flavor of the month for closing appears maybe to be Brian Meadows instead of Shawn Camp. Meadows received his second save opp in as many days today, but don't get too excited. No one in the Tampa pen is really worth picking up just yet.
The Kansas City pen might get a boost soon as Mike MacDougal made another rehab appearance today and looked pretty good. The Royals will want him to get in atleast 3 or 4 more appearances in the minors and definitely need to test him on back to back days. 2 weeks seems like a fair assessment.
The Cubs will probably have 1B Derrek Lee back early nex tweek as he should finish up his rehab in Triple-A this weekend. OF Matt Murton is a candidate to be sent down, although I would be surprised if it was him. The club can't be that sold on Frank Bynum....unless they just want to keep on losing.
And finally, keep your eyes on Giants' starter Noah Lowry. While he insists that he is healthy, the tema is concerned with the notable decrease in velocity he has shown his past few outings. You might want to try and deal him if you can, atleast before word gets out that he could be experiencing problems.
That's about all I've got for you today.
Catch you next time...
posted by Howard Bender at
10:54 PM
