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BaseCast: Manny Mania and Much More

Andrew Johnson — 2009-07-03T12:00:00 00:00

It's a baseball podcast. The math is easy, right? BaseCast. Let's rock.

He's baaaaaaack. Manny Ramirez rejoins the Dodgers Friday night in San Diego after a 50-game suspension for a violation of Major League Baseball's drug prevention program.

FanHouse's own Jeff Fletcher will be at Petco Park to see and report on Manny's return, so in preparation he joined Andrew Johnson (Prez) on the second edition of BaseCast to talk about what the media horde will be like, how, if at all, the slugger will address the media, what impact he'll have on the Dodgers on the field and how the road fans will react to him post-suspension.

And just for good measure, there's also Fletch's exclusive interview with Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson. Listen in after the jump.

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Feds Want Collection of Boras Clients to Pay Back Millions in Stanford Scam

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-29T16:01:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: MLB Police Blotter

Federal authorities have asked seven Major League Baseball players -- Greg Maddux, Bernie Williams, Johnny Damon, J.D. Drew, Andruw Jones, Carlos Pena and Jay Bell -- to return millions of dollars that they received from investor R. Allen Stanford as part of a payout in his alleged Ponzi scheme, according to a report in the Washington Times.

The players -- all clients of Scott Boras -- did not commit any wrongdoing, but, as early investors in the Stanford Financial Group, are believed to have received dividends from Stanford financed by investors that came after.

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Starting Five: Stealing Home All the Rage

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-29T06:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Angels, Blue Jays, Braves, Pirates, Rangers, Rays, White Sox, Minor Leagues, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That Sunday was a good day to steal home in the major leagues. With an assist from Carlos Zambrano, who airmailed a pitch to the backstop as Dewayne Wise attempted to suicide squeeze, Chris Getz was credited with a steal of home in the White Sox's 6-0 victory over the crosstown rival Cubs. Zambrano followed by plunking Wise, pushing the oft-heated interleague rivalry close to fisticuffs.

Later in the afternoon, the Angels' Gary Matthews Jr. pulled off a straight steal of home in Los Angeles' 12-8 win over the Diamondbacks.

"I got a good jump and pulled it off," Matthews said. "The key was getting a big lead. They're definitely not expecting it with two strikes. If there was a right-handed hitter up there, I wouldn't have even tried."

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Smoltz Takes Loss in '09 Debut, but Red Sox Still Plenty 'Encouraged'

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-25T23:58:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Red Sox, AL East

WASHINGTON - In his first full season as Atlanta's closer, 2002, John Smoltz was rocked before he ever recorded a save, surrendering eight runs in 2/3 of an inning against the Mets in his second appearance of the year. It took him two more games to record a save, but he ended up with 55 that year.

When Smoltz returned to starting three years later, he was knocked around again, surrendering seven runs in 1 2/3 innings in his 2005 debut. He finished the season 14-7 with a 3.06 ERA.

Sensing a theme?

The 42-year-old right-hander wasn't horrendous in his 2009 debut against the Nationals Thursday, his first outing for the Red Sox or any other major league team than the Braves for that matter. But he wasn't very good either, allowing five runs and seven hits over five innings in a 9-3 loss to lowly Washington.

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Smoltz Hungry Before First '09 Start

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-25T12:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Red Sox, MLB Injuries, MLB Transactions

WASHINGTON -- "We have too many Johns on this team," cracked a heard, but not seen, Red Sox player as a horde of media crowded around John Smoltz's locker the day before his first major league start of 2009.

There is (Jon) Lester, the once and future ace. There is (Jonathan) Papelbon, one of the best closers in the game. And Thursday evening in the nation's capital, for the first time there will be (John) Smoltz, the future Hall of Famer trying to reinvent himself one more time as he makes his 2009 debut.

"This is not the old, or the new, or the done," Smoltz said of his return to a major league pitching mound. "This is just a new chapter of which when I have a baseball in my hand, I feel like I can make a pitch and ... take the sting out of the bat."

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David Ortiz and the Long Road Back

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-25T01:33:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Red Sox, AL East

WASHINGTON -- No matter, how you slice it or where you put the starting and ending points, it's been a long road back for David Ortiz. He's overcome knee and wrist injuries, a mystifying slump last April and an even deeper and more bewildering two-month slump this year.

Heck, who's to even say he is all the way back?

Big Papi has had a good couple of weeks this June, but we've got a much larger sample of at-bats that say he's a significantly diminished hitter. (Of course, there's an even larger sample that makes what seemed like a sudden and sharp decline so difficult to comprehend.)

Terry Francona has slid him back up the order in interleague play, hitting him fifth in all but one of the games he has started since June 12, but he's not back in the three-hole yet, the customary spot from which he has terrorized American League pitchers since 2005.

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Report: Surgery 'Strong Possibility' for Diamondbacks Ace Brandon Webb

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-24T21:32:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Diamondbacks, MLB Injuries

If you've been following the travails of 2006 National League Cy Young winner Brandon Webb this season, the following news won't come as much of a shock. The Diamondbacks are strongly considering surgery as an option for the ace -- sidelined since Opening Day with a right shoulder injury -- after an MRI and a meeting with the team physician Tuesday, according to a report in the Arizona Republic.

Webb has been on the disabled list since April 7 with what the team has called shoulder bursitis, but he's experienced setback after setback in his attempts to return to the mound, most recently canceling a scheduled bullpen session at the end of last week because of pain in the area.

Now the team is hinting that Webb may have a torn labrum -- arguably the most ominous injury any pitcher can have -- while it waits for a second opinion on his shoulder. The injury that would require a surgical procedure and nine months of rehab, according to Nick Piecoro of the Republic.

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Starting Five: A Tale of Two Mannys

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-24T06:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Angels, Brewers, Cubs, Dodgers, Padres, Phillies, Rays, Tigers, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That on the right night the minor leagues can be awfully interesting, even for someone who doesn't care at all about minor league baseball. Manny Ramirez batted leadoff Tuesday night for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, playing four innings and going 0-for-2 in his first rehab game since being suspended 50 games for a violation of Major League Baseball's drug policy.

Ramirez faced former Brewers starting pitcher Manny Parra in both at-bats. Parra, now pitching for the Nashville Sounds, is trying to work his way back to the majors as well after a woeful couple of months in the Milwaukee rotation. He went 3-8 with a 7.52 ERA in 13 starts there before getting demoted, but he was the hard-luck loser against Albuquerque, tossing seven innings of one-run ball. The Brewers could use another effective starter, that much is certain.

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Starting Five: Rays-ing Their Game

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-22T06:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Angels, Cardinals, Marlins, Rays, Rockies, Twins, Yankees, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That the Rays seem to be putting it all together. The reigning American League champions left New York with a series victory over the Mets thanks to a big Sunday afternoon from B.J. Upton, who homered and had four hits. Tampa Bay is now 12-6 in the month of June and two games back of the Yankees in the AL wild-card race.

Upton has played a big part in the surge after slumping for the first two months of the season. The center fielder came into June hitting .204, but he's hitting .329 this month.

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Dice-K Placed on DL; Future Clear for Red Sox Rotation, Murky for Matsuzaka

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-21T20:16:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Red Sox, MLB Injuries

Turns out it's a good thing the Red Sox cultivated and collected pitchers like a squirrel hording acorns this past winter. Daisuke Matsuzaka (1-5, 8.23 ERA), who has never really seemed right all season, was placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday with what the team is calling "weakness in his shoulder."

The move takes a potentially awkward decision out of Boston's hands, clearing the way for John Smoltz to enter the rotation next week in Washington without the club having to either demote a healthy pitcher to the bullpen or convert to a potentially unwieldy six-man rotation.

It doesn't fully answer the question of what the club will do with Clay Buchholz and Michael Bowden -- both of whom are dominating in the minors right now and have little left to prove there -- but it does clear up the immediate future and officially pull Brad Penny off the trading block.

Starkly in contrast to that is Matsuzaka whose future is suddenly very murky two-plus years after Boston shelled out more than $51 million to the Seibu Lions for the right to negotiate with him and another $52 million to ink him to a major league contract.

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Fake Umps Phenomenon Hits Nationals Park to Great Delight of Fans

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-20T15:38:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Blue Jays, MLB Fans, FanHouse Exclusive

WASHINGTON -- If you've tuned into a Blue Jays game at the Rogers Centre this year, chances are you've seen Tim Williams and Joe Farrell. If those two names aren't ringing a bell -- and there's really no reason they should -- how about a description.

Williams and Farrell, both Jays season-ticket holders, often take their seats in the first row behind home plate dressed from head to toe as umpires. Their impersonation of the men in blue doesn't end there. For the entire game, Williams and Farrell mimic the calls of the umpires, raising their arms and bellowing out strike calls, sticking up their fingers to let fans behind them know the count and brushing one hand over the other emphatically to signal foul tips.

"There are 7 billion people on the planet. Do you know how many of them travel to another city to fake umpire a game? You're looking at 'em," Williams tells FanHouse Friday night at Nationals Park.

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Starting Five: Favorites Finding Form

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-20T06:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Angels, Cubs, Dodgers, Phillies, Red Sox, Rockies, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That the Angels and Cubs -- two overwhelming favorites to win their division entering 2009 -- finally seem to have their mojo back.

A day after Chicago rallied from four down in the eighth inning to beat the White Sox, they climbed out of a 7-0 fourth-inning hole to beat the Indians, thanks in part to another dramatic home run from Derrek Lee -- a drive that came off of longtime Cub Kerry Wood no less.

Not to be outdone, the Angels' Juan Rivera snapped a 4-all tie in the eighth inning of the Freeway Series opener with a decisive solo home run. The Halos have now reeled off seven straight wins, and, despite all the hard luck (and tragedy) they've had to deal with so far this season, are a 1/2 game behind the division-leading Rangers in the AL West.

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Starting Five: Torre in Rarefied Air

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-19T05:58:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Cubs, Dodgers, Indians, Red Sox, Royals, Tigers, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That Joe Torre can manage a little bit. Torre, who for a great part of his managing career was known as a loser, got his 2,195th managerial win Thursday night to pass Sparky Anderson and move into fifth on the all-time list.

Incredibly, Torre has taken his team to the postseason in 13 consecutive seasons, and given the Dodgers' ever-expanding lead in the NL West, he's likely to make it 14 in 2009. Even with the loss of Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles is 13-4-5 in 22 series this season, including taking two out of three from Oakland this week.

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Roy Halladay Bound for 15-Day DL

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-17T20:31:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Blue Jays, MLB Injuries

Already decimated by injuries, the Toronto pitching staff is adding its ace to the list of the walking wounded. The Blue Jays are set to put Roy Halladay (10-1, 2.53 ERA) on the disabled list after he felt more discomfort in his strained right groin during a throwing session Wednesday.

Halladay originally injured his groin Friday night in an abbreviated three-inning start against the Marlins, but until his most recent bullpen session, the Blue Jays were planning on starting him this Saturday against the Nationals.

Now Toronto will have to wait until at least June 28 to get its best pitcher back on the mound.

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Hanley, Boston and the Big What If?

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-17T08:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Marlins, Red Sox, MLB Transactions

The Red Sox and Marlins met Tuesday night for the first time since 2006. This was significant -- and only in a minor way -- not because it was the first time the two teams met since the fateful Josh Beckett-Hanley Ramirez (and other significant parts) trade, but because it was the first time where we could even begin to evaluate that swap with any historical perspective.

Back then, Ramirez was just a rookie shortstop with plenty of talent and two good months under his belt. Beckett, brought in as the presumptive ace, was struggling with the transition from the NL to the AL East and sported a bloated ERA hovering near 5.00 for a Boston team headed for a mighty fall in the second half.

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Sammy Sosa Reportedly Tested Positive For Banned Substance in 2003

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-16T16:27:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Cubs, MLB PEDs

Long suspected of using steroids, it appears there is finally a smoking gun linking former Cubs, White Sox, Orioles and Rangers slugger Sammy Sosa to performance-enhancing drugs.

Sosa, who is sixth on baseball's all-time home run list, was, along with Alex Rodriguez, one of the 104 players who tested positive for a banned substance in 2003, according to a report in the New York Times.

Sosa rose to national prominence in 1998 when he and Mark McGwire chased Roger Maris' single-season home run record. That chase is often credited with saving baseball after the 1994 player strike that resulted in the cancellation of the World Series, but in recent years Sosa, like most of the other cartoonish sluggers of the late 1990s and early 2000s, has fallen under suspicion of steroid use.

Fletcher: Sosa Still Has Hall Case | Mariotti: Sports' Greatest Scandal Grows

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Joe Buck Talks to FanHouse About His New HBO Show, Announcing Career

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-15T15:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: TV and Movies, Sports Media

Joe Buck has been announcing NFL games for FOX since 1994 and been the lead play-by-play MLB man since the network acquired the rights to broadcast baseball games for the 1996 season.

Monday night, Buck will break with his announcing past and become an emcee for the premier episode of his new talk show, Joe Buck Live on HBO (9PM ET/PT).

FanHouse caught up with Buck last week to talk about his new show and about his 15-year career announcing some of the most high-profile sporting events in the world. Read the interview after the jump.

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Let Tanking Talk Begin, Bryce Harper Will Be Draft Eligible in 2010

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-15T14:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Nationals, MLB Draft

Fire up the Bryce Harper hype machine. The 16-year-old baseball prodigy who was recently hailed as the "Chosen One" on the cover of Sports Illustrated is poised to accelerate his path to the big leagues.

Harper, who is a rising high school junior, plans to earn a GED later this year and will enroll at the College of Southern Nevada, a junior college in Las Vegas, this fall and play baseball for the Coyotes next spring, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The move - virtually unprecedented - will allow Harper to be eligible for the draft a year early, in 2010 instead of 2011.

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Starting Five: Subway Series Sizzles

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-15T06:00:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Angels, Giants, Mets, Rockies, Royals, Tigers, Yankees, Starting Five

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That the Subway Series is finally living up to the hype on the field that Big Apple seamheads give it off the field. Friday, Luis Castillo made one of the most memorable fielding gaffes lately to cost the battered and reeling Mets a win. Saturday, Yankees ~~walking injury~~ relief pitcher Brian Bruney ripped record-setting closer Francisco Rodriguez for his antics on the mound just prior to Castillo's flubbed popup.

The series finale had a bit of everything.

More Coverage: Scoreboard | Standings | Statistics

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Brandon Phillips on Cincinnati Offense: 'We're ... Not Good Enough'

Andrew Johnson — 2009-06-11T21:31:00 00:00

by Andrew Johnson

Filed under: Reds

WASHINGTON -- Reds manager Dusty Baker called his team's three-day visit to the nation's capital "taxing." Two rain delays and a 12-inning game -- even if it's a win -- have a way of leaving that impression.

So does blowing a 2-1 lead and a series sweep in the eighth inning of the finale on an error.

That's just what happened to Cincinnati Thursday evening. Second baseman Brandon Phillips compounded some spotty relief work by the soft underbelly of the Cincy bullpen by throwing the ball away on a double-play attempt in the eighth. The error wound up plating the decisive run for the Nationals in a 3-2 win and cost the Reds a chance to move within a 1/2 game of first place in the NL Central.

Phillips was unapologetic for the airmailed throw that went past first baseman Adam Rosales and scored Washington shortstop Cristian Guzman.

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