What's the Buzz? 6/7/06
Well first off, a heartfelt goodbye to Jeff Nelson. Apparently, he will have surgery on a nerve in his elbow that, according to him, will probably end his career. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for him from back when he and Mike Stanton made up a very formidable Yankees bullpen during the championship runs in the 90's.
in other news today...
Well, not that he was going to last up here in the majors anyway, but Royals starter Bob Keppel took his first major league shutout into the ninth only to watch Ambiorix Burgos blow the game for him. While it's a shame to watch a rookie lose what could be his first win, we all should've known it was coming. Typical Royals. Burgos sucks.
The Mets expect SS Jose Reyes to return on Thursday after being day to day with a sprained wrist, and rumor has it that Cliff Floyd could be back in time for the weekend from his sprained ankle.
While he's nailed down 2 saves recently, there is no word out of Texas that Francisco Cordero is returning to the closer's role. His saves were situational and Akinori Otsuka still remains as the team's primary closer.
Due to tonight's rainout, the Yankees will wait and activate Shawn Chacon from the DL to start Sunday's game instead of Friday's. Chacon should be a nice option against the A's.
Just a few days after his return, Eric Gagne will have to be shut down for now due to an inflamed nerve in his surgically repaired elbow. The MRI showed nothing structurally wrong, so it looks like a day to day thing. The Dodgers will need to tread lightly in the beginning with Gagne. Takashi Saito should receive the save opportunities for now.
The Tigers are calling OF Craig Monroe day to day after he sprained his ankle crashing into the wall while trying to make a leaping catch. He did not come down with the ball.
The Devil Rays got back lefty Casey Fossum today from the DL and sent Doug Waechter to the minors to make room on the roster. Fossum will get the Royals this weekend for his first game back so that's a good start.
The Marlins are calling OF (and catcher in most leagues) Josh Willingham day to day with back stiffness. Joe Borchard will get more starts if Willingham misses any additional time.
Catcher controversy brewing in the Angels clubhouse as Mike Napoli has started 4 of the last 6 games now. He definitely will hit for more power than Jose Molina and if he can maintain a respectable batting average and continue his solid defense, he could supplant Molina as the primary backstop.
In support of my predictions, Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba hit a grand slam today for his first home run of the season. If only he could play every day against the Pirates in Colorado....only then will he make my pre-season sleeper prediction valid.
C'mon.....Dan Uggla....2 HR today....that's one studly owl.
The shoulder stiffness that has temporarily shelved Kerry Wood again is apparently serious enough to send him to Cincinnati to be examined by Dr. Tim Kremcheck, the doctor who performed the last arthroscopic surgery on Wood's shoulder. Wood is not claiming any pain, just stiffness. Regardless, this is not good, once again.
Barry Bonds is day to day again after claiming that he injured his side during the Mets series this past weekend. There are really no details, but if I were a betting man, I would say that maybe Bonds keeps his ego in his side. Maybe that's what hurts so much.
And speaking of the Giants, they activated reliever Tim Worrell from the DL today, but probably won't use him in any tight games just yet. He will need to get back into a decent groove, as he was horrendous before goin on the disabled list.
The White Sox ended up putting reliever Cliff Politte on the 15 day DL today and called up righty Sean Tracey to take his place in the bullpen for now. Politte looked good to start the year, but has definitely fallen out of Ozzie Guillen's good graces the past few weeks anyway. Maybe the time off will do him some good.
The Diamondback swere forced to put Juan Cruz on the 15 day DL with a right shoulder strain. We'll know more after his examination on Wednesday. A shame really, as he was looking pretty solid in the Arizona rotation.
It looks like the Astros will be without the services of Chris Burke for a littlewhile. He left today's game in the third inning after separating his shoulder swinging the bat. He hasn't been put on the DL just yet, but if/when he does, Willy Taveras and Jason Lane should see a little extra time.
Anyone care that Pirates OF Jody Gerut will miss the reaminder of the season with his 74th knee operation? Yeah, me neither.
And finally, according to the Blue Jays, A.J. Burnett will pitch a simulated game on Wednesday and then make his first rehab start in the minors on June 12. The team says that if all goes well, he will be back in time to start an interleague game against the Braves on June 22, but we'll see about that.
Catch you next time...
in other news today...
Well, not that he was going to last up here in the majors anyway, but Royals starter Bob Keppel took his first major league shutout into the ninth only to watch Ambiorix Burgos blow the game for him. While it's a shame to watch a rookie lose what could be his first win, we all should've known it was coming. Typical Royals. Burgos sucks.
The Mets expect SS Jose Reyes to return on Thursday after being day to day with a sprained wrist, and rumor has it that Cliff Floyd could be back in time for the weekend from his sprained ankle.
While he's nailed down 2 saves recently, there is no word out of Texas that Francisco Cordero is returning to the closer's role. His saves were situational and Akinori Otsuka still remains as the team's primary closer.
Due to tonight's rainout, the Yankees will wait and activate Shawn Chacon from the DL to start Sunday's game instead of Friday's. Chacon should be a nice option against the A's.
Just a few days after his return, Eric Gagne will have to be shut down for now due to an inflamed nerve in his surgically repaired elbow. The MRI showed nothing structurally wrong, so it looks like a day to day thing. The Dodgers will need to tread lightly in the beginning with Gagne. Takashi Saito should receive the save opportunities for now.
The Tigers are calling OF Craig Monroe day to day after he sprained his ankle crashing into the wall while trying to make a leaping catch. He did not come down with the ball.
The Devil Rays got back lefty Casey Fossum today from the DL and sent Doug Waechter to the minors to make room on the roster. Fossum will get the Royals this weekend for his first game back so that's a good start.
The Marlins are calling OF (and catcher in most leagues) Josh Willingham day to day with back stiffness. Joe Borchard will get more starts if Willingham misses any additional time.
Catcher controversy brewing in the Angels clubhouse as Mike Napoli has started 4 of the last 6 games now. He definitely will hit for more power than Jose Molina and if he can maintain a respectable batting average and continue his solid defense, he could supplant Molina as the primary backstop.
In support of my predictions, Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba hit a grand slam today for his first home run of the season. If only he could play every day against the Pirates in Colorado....only then will he make my pre-season sleeper prediction valid.
C'mon.....Dan Uggla....2 HR today....that's one studly owl.
The shoulder stiffness that has temporarily shelved Kerry Wood again is apparently serious enough to send him to Cincinnati to be examined by Dr. Tim Kremcheck, the doctor who performed the last arthroscopic surgery on Wood's shoulder. Wood is not claiming any pain, just stiffness. Regardless, this is not good, once again.
Barry Bonds is day to day again after claiming that he injured his side during the Mets series this past weekend. There are really no details, but if I were a betting man, I would say that maybe Bonds keeps his ego in his side. Maybe that's what hurts so much.
And speaking of the Giants, they activated reliever Tim Worrell from the DL today, but probably won't use him in any tight games just yet. He will need to get back into a decent groove, as he was horrendous before goin on the disabled list.
The White Sox ended up putting reliever Cliff Politte on the 15 day DL today and called up righty Sean Tracey to take his place in the bullpen for now. Politte looked good to start the year, but has definitely fallen out of Ozzie Guillen's good graces the past few weeks anyway. Maybe the time off will do him some good.
The Diamondback swere forced to put Juan Cruz on the 15 day DL with a right shoulder strain. We'll know more after his examination on Wednesday. A shame really, as he was looking pretty solid in the Arizona rotation.
It looks like the Astros will be without the services of Chris Burke for a littlewhile. He left today's game in the third inning after separating his shoulder swinging the bat. He hasn't been put on the DL just yet, but if/when he does, Willy Taveras and Jason Lane should see a little extra time.
Anyone care that Pirates OF Jody Gerut will miss the reaminder of the season with his 74th knee operation? Yeah, me neither.
And finally, according to the Blue Jays, A.J. Burnett will pitch a simulated game on Wednesday and then make his first rehab start in the minors on June 12. The team says that if all goes well, he will be back in time to start an interleague game against the Braves on June 22, but we'll see about that.
Catch you next time...
posted by Howard Bender at
10:45 PM
