| John Lackey, P, Los Angeles Angels | Sunday 5/4, 10:09 PM CT |
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| John Lackey worked four innings for High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Sunday. He allowed four hits and two runs, walked one, struck out four, threw a wild pitch, and hit two batters. "It's all about pitch count now," Lackey tells MLB.com. "My arm felt fine. My location was better today, and I had a good heater." The ace has been out all season due to a strained right triceps. He threw 68 pitches on Sunday. |
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| Howie Kendrick will rejoin the Angels in Kansas City on Monday and come off the DL, MLB.com reports. The second baseman has been out due to a strained left hamstring, and he proved he was ready with a fine rehab showing at High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Sunday. |
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| The Red Sox will called up reliever Craig Hansen on Monday, the Providence Journal confirms. He will replace outfielder Brandon Moss, who underwent an appendectomy on Saturday. |
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| Manager Jim Leyland plans to shake up the Tigers lineup on Monday, although he hasn't given out any details. "Same pieces, but quite a bit different (in the order they hit)," Leyland tells the Detroit Free Press. "I think you’ll find it pretty drastic." |
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| Eric Chavez, 3B, Oakland Athletics | Sunday 5/4, 8:14 PM CT |
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| Eric Chavez doesn't expect to be activated when he becomes available on May 27. He is on the 60-day DL due to back problems. Chavez is able to swing without pain, but he can't handle third base duties, MLB.com reports. The club is not prepared to bring him back as a DH. |
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| The Twins have called Kevin Slowey their probable starter for Thursday's game against the White Sox, the AP reports. Slowey is on the DL due to a strained right biceps. He made just one start (April 3) in the majors this year but boasts a 2.08 ERA through three minor league outings. |
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| Huston Street picked up his ninth save by tossing a scoreless inning against the Rangers on Sunday. The closer has allowed only one run over his last 10 appearances (10.2 innings). |
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| Ian Gac, 1B, Texas Rangers | Sunday 5/4, 7:00 PM CT |
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| Ian Gac hit his 10th and 11th home runs of the season for Low-A Clinton on Sunday. |
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| Rookie infielder German Duran provided the only fireworks in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the A's. Duran hit his first career home run in the third inning. It was also his first career extra-base hit. |
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| Danny Graves picked up a win on Sunday out of the pen for Double-A New Britain to improve his record to 2-0. |
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| Jack Cust, LF, Oakland Athletics | Sunday 5/4, 6:52 PM CT |
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| Jack Cust is on a roll. The DH/outfielder went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer in Sunday's win over the Rangers. It was his third long ball over the last four games, and he is up to .244 after hitting .176 in April. |
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| Vladimir Guerrero went 1-for-4 against the Orioles on Sunday and was able to snap a 0-for-15 streak. His average is down to .256. |
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| Greg Smith, P, Oakland Athletics | Sunday 5/4, 6:47 PM CT |
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| Greg Smith didn't pick up a win on Sunday, but he was impressive nonetheless. The rookie struck out 10 Rangers over six innings. Smith allowed only three hits and one run but took a no-decision. |
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| Torii Hunter had only one hit on Sunday, but it was a three-run homer in the 6-5 win over the Orioles. |
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| Melvin Mora, 3B, Baltimore Orioles | Sunday 5/4, 6:43 PM CT |
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| Melvin Mora went 3-for-5 with a solo homer and three runs in Sunday's loss to the Angels. |
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| Joe Saunders can thank his teammates on Sunday. The southpaw improved to 6-0 despite serving up 12 hits over five innings. Saunders allowed four runs, walked none, and struck out one. |
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| Joe Nathan, P, Minnesota Twins | Sunday 5/4, 5:09 PM CT |
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| Yawn. Joe Nathan calmly picked up his 11th save of the season on Sunday. He pitched a scoreless inning against the Tigers, and his ERA dipped to 0.69. |
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| Placido Polanco went 2-for-4 with a double and a run against the Twins on Sunday. He is 16-for-42 (.381) over the last nine games. |
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| Joe Mauer, C, Minnesota Twins | Sunday 5/4, 5:01 PM CT |
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| Joe Mauer went 2-for-4 with a double, one run, and two RBI in Sunday's win over the Tigers. The catcher went 7-for-11 in the series and is up to .333. |
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| Curtis Granderson flexed his muscles again on Sunday. He swatted a leadoff homer against the Twins. He later added a single and swiped his first bag of the year. |
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| Jacoby Ellsbury went 1-for-4 with two runs and two steals in Sunday's win over the Rays. He is up to 25 runs and 11 stolen bases through 28 games. |
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| Carlos Pena's all-or-nothing approach was evident on Sunday. The first baseman went 1-for-4 with a solo homer and three strikeouts against the Rays. |
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| Jon Lester, P, Boston Red Sox | Sunday 5/4, 4:52 PM CT |
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| What's gotten into Jon Lester? The southpaw held the Rays to four hits and one run on Sunday and improved to 2-2. Lester has been excellent in his last two outings after a rough start to his 2008 campaign. Following his work on Sunday, he now owns more strikeouts (27) than walks (26) this year. |
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| Scott Kazmir's season debut didn't go as hoped. He allowed six hits and four runs (three earned) over four innings against the Red Sox. Kazmir walked three, struck out five, threw a wild pitch, and needed 90 pitches. He has been out all season due to a left elbow strain. |
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| Kevin Youkilis hammered the Rays on Sunday. He went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a homer, two runs, and four RBI. As a result, his batting average jumped back up to .307. |
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| Darrell Rasner nailed down the win in his first start of the season against Seattle on Sunday, as he only allowed two runs on five hits over six innings, with no walks and four strikeouts. Most of the damage came off a two-run homer by Adrian Beltre. |
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| Carlos Silva suffered his first loss of the season on Sunday, as the Mariners fell to the Yankees 8-2. Silva got rocked for eight runs on 11 hits over a mere three innings of work, with no walks and one strikeout. |
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| Jhonny Peralta had a tough day at the plate in Sunday's 2-0 loss to Kansas City, as he went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts. |
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| Miguel Olivo went 2-for-4 with one RBI and crushed his fourth homer of the season in Sunday's 2-0 win over Cleveland. |
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| Aaron Laffey pitched very well despite taking a loss to the Royals on Sunday. He only allowed one run on four hits over seven innings, with two walks and five strikeouts. Cleveland was shut out 2-0 in the loss. |
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| Gil Meche, P, Kansas City Royals | Sunday 5/4, 3:17 PM CT |
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| Gil Meche threw seven scoreless innings and only allowed four hits in Sunday's 2-0 win over Cleveland. He had no walks and four strikeouts. |
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| Jermaine Dye had a tough day at the plate in Sunday's 4-3 loss to Toronto. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, while leaving two men on base. |
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| Matt Stairs, DH, Toronto Blue Jays | Sunday 5/4, 2:40 PM CT |
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| Matt Stairs went 2-for-3 with two RBI in Sunday's 4-3 win over the White Sox. |
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| Roy Halladay improved his record to 3-4 in Sunday's 4-3 win over the White Sox. Halladay only allowed three runs on three hits over 7.1 innings, with seven strikeouts and no walks. |
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| Sean Rodriguez has been recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake, according to the OC Register. The team placed pitcher Dustin Moseley on the DL due to right forearm stiffness. |
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| Chone Figgins will have his injured hamstring re-evaluated on Monday but said he was feeling a lot better, according to the OC Register. He said, "It’s not pulled. It’s just a slight strain."
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| Dustin Moseley has been placed on the DL due to stiffness in his right forearm, according to the OC Register. The Angels also recalled infielder Sean Rodriguez from Triple-A Salt Lake. |
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| The Tigers stated that Dontrelle Willis has tweaked his right knee while fielding a ball during Friday night's rehab start in Toledo, according to MLive.com. Willis went through conditioning drills this morning, but it was then determined that he won't be ready to start another game this week. Instead of pitching for Toledo on Wednesday, as originally scheduled, Willis will remain with the Tigers and try to throw a bullpen session on Thursday or Friday. The Tigers have recalled his rehab assignment, therefore stopping the clock.
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| Scott Baker will have an MRI exam on his strained right groin muscle on Monday, according to the Star Tribune. The team will have a better idea of how to proceed with the injury at that point. |
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| Carlos Gomez has returned to the Twins' lineup in center field today, according to the Star Tribune. He was nursing a head injury, but the team is off on Monday, and he can rest tomorrow. |
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| Joe Saunders will be looking to remain unbeaten when the Angels host the Orioles tonight, according to MLB.com. Saunders is 5-0 with a 2.08 ERA and excellent 0.95 WHIP this season, and was 2-0 against Baltimore with a 4.91 ERA in 2007. |
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| Justin Ruggiano has been optioned back to Triple-A Durham, according to the Tampa Tribune. The team needed to free up a roster spot for ace pitcher Scott Kazmir's return to the rotation, and Ruggiano was seen as expendable. |
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| Scott Kazmir has been activated from the DL and made his scheduled start against Boston on Sunday, according to the Tampa Tribune. He said, "It feels like it's been forever. Fenway, you're definitely going to have the adrenaline going. The atmosphere's always going to be there. So you're going to have to harness it a little bit, the adrenalin and everything, but I'm just going to try and stay within myself like I try to do every start." Outfielder Justin Ruggiano was optioned back to Triple-A to clear a roster spot for Kazmir.
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| Jacoby Ellsbury is starting in left field for the Red Sox today, according to the Boston Herald. David Ortiz is out of action to rest his knee, and Manny Ramirez moved from left field to DH in place of Ortiz. Ellsbury covered Manny's spot in left. |
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| David Ortiz was a late scratch for Sunday action due to tightness in his right knee, according to the Boston Herald. This is the same knee that was surgically repaired in the offseason and has been sore off and on this season. Manny Ramirez was switched from left field to DH, and Jacoby Ellsbury covered the spot in left field. |
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| John Bale, P, Kansas City Royals | Sunday 5/4, 11:54 AM CT |
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| John Bale has sustained a broken hand after punching the door at the team hotel on Friday, according to the Kansas City Star. Bale punched the door out of frustration for his slow recovery from a fatigued left shoulder. Manager Trey Hillman said, "I’m not pleased, obviously. Players have to think before they do things. They’ve got to think about how it’s going to affect the rest of their team, how it’s going to affect their ability to perform and how it’s going to affect the whole group. I’m hopeful that there’s something salvageable for him. We’ll just have to wait to see where it goes."
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| Darrell Rasner has been recalled from Triple-A Scranton to start today's game against Seattle, according to the AP. The struggling Ian Kennedy has been optioned to Triple-A Scranton. |
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| Ian Kennedy, P, New York Yankees | Sunday 5/4, 11:25 AM CT |
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| Ian Kennedy has been optioned to Triple-A Scranton on Sunday, according to the AP. Darrell Rasner has been recalled from Scranton to start today's game against Seattle. They also transferred Brian Bruney to the 60-day DL. |
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| Carlos Gomez wants to return to the Twins' lineup today after getting hit in the head with a pitch on Friday, according to the Star Tribune. Gomez said he wants to play in today's game against Detroit, but Twins third base coach Scott Ullger said Gomez might sit again. The Twins are off Monday, which would give Gomez a full three-day break before they open a series in Chicago on Tuesday.
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| Sean Casey, 1B, Boston Red Sox | Sunday 5/4, 10:35 AM CT |
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| Sean Casey stated he is fully recovered from his right hip strain and likely will be coming off the DL on the first day he is eligible in one week, according to the Boston Herald. He is also scheduled to start a two-game rehab stint with Pawtuckett on Thursday. |
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| Placido Polanco's back ailment has subsided and he is playing without pain (for the first time since spring training), according to MLB.com. He said, "It's good. It's the best that I've felt in a while, including spring training. Without a doubt. The way I'm moving, right, left, running, mood-wise, everything is better."
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| Chone Figgins left Saturday's game in the eighth inning because of an apparent right hamstring injury, according to the OC Register. Figgins seemed to limp as he walked away from the plate and was replaced defensively after that inning. Figgins left the stadium immediately after the game to undergo an MRI exam. Manager Mike Sciosca commented, "With hamstrings, you're always concerned. We don't know what degree this is. We'll wait and see. Obviously we'll be cautious."
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| Jordan Brown has been placed on the 15-day DL at Triple-A, according to the Buffalo News. He sustained a knee injury, and has been replaced by Cleveland's former top draft pick Michael Aubrey. |
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| The Yankees are reportedly talking about the future of Ian Kennedy in their rotation, according to the NY Post. Manager Joe Girardi stated, "We will have some more discussions. We don't need a fifth starter until May 10, so we have some time." Kennedy is struggling as he is 0-2 with a 8.37 ERA and 2.03 WHIP over 23.2 innings, with 20 walks.
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