MLB Power Rankings:Where MLB FanHouse's editors, writers and bloggers team up to break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world.
So, quick apology on my part: the Power Rankings were supposed to go live Wednesday, but things happened, I'm a jerkstore, excuses, etc., and here we are. It's not Wednesday! So please note that the records reflect Wednesday -- not Thursday, not Friday, not Saturday. Don't freak out in the comments and call me names. Please. I can't take that in my fragile emotional state right now. I might turn into Raul Ibanez, at which point I would yell at you and then strain my groin. And that wouldn't be good for anyone.
Here's how it works in baseball: Texas' Vicente Padilla throws at, and hits, the Yankees' Mark Teixeira twice and gets fined. A.J. Burnett tries to protect Teixeira with a pitch that doesn't hit Nelson Cruz and gets suspended.
All this happened Tuesday at Yankee Stadium, and the punishment was handed down Thursday by Major League Baseball.
"I pitch in all the time, but I can't complain about it," Burnett said before the Yanks hosted the Rangers at the new Yankee Stadium. "Obviously, a warning was issued and nothing else."
Still, he wasn't overly surprised by the decision.
"You kind of expect something to happen when ball comes that close," Burnett said. "It looked bad. Obviously, it was up tight."
Padilla hit Teixeira on the right biceps in Tuesday's second inning and on the rear end in the fourth, prompting Teixeira to stare down Padilla and then blast him as a headhunter after the game.
MLB Power Rankings:Where MLB FanHouse's editors, writers and bloggers team up to break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world.
Let me put this simply: you want no part of being No. 1 in the FanHouse MLB Power Rankings. It just brings discord, losing and possibly suspensions to your baseball team. Such was the case with the white-hot Dodgers and Manny Ramirez, who now have to deal with a 50 game-ban of their star slugger. Who's doomed this week? Let's just say that no one would be too shocked if they weren't there again next Wednesday.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, theRoto Rushis your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Every year in fantasy baseball there are a number of players whose hype exceeds reasonable expectations, because so many freaking people have them tagged as a "breakout." Peter Gammons may have been the first to tag Adam Jones with such a label, but it caught on quickly, and he was a popular fantasy draft selection. (Note that this also applies to my homie Chris Davis, who I think might hit 40 taters, but who was wickedly overvalued coming into drafts. More on this in a second.)
And the man that wants no part of being called "Pacman" -- for obvious reasons -- is suddenly flat-out destroying opposing pitching. Jones was always considered a "five-tool" prospect, with power and speed potential, not to mention just being a great baseball player.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... This A.J. Hinch thing has not yet worked for the Diamondbacks.
Hinch, who moved from the front office to the dugout to replace the fired Bob Melvin, is 1-3 as Arizona's manager. And the D'backs have allowed 28 runs in the four games.
Almost half of those came in Monday's 13-5 loss to the Reds, a game that got so out of hand that infielder Josh Wilson pitched the top of the ninth. Cincinnati set season highs in runs and hits (18).
It's not a terribly glorious week for two-start pitchers in week six (Monday, May 11th - Sunday May 17th) of the fantasy baseball season. With the light day of action on Monday there are only 34 total this week, and most of this week's pitchers are risky picks.
You won't need to set you lineups until 7:05 PM ET on Monday as the only four games are night starts
Must Start Johan Santana, Mets - Monday vs ATL (D. Lowe) and Saturday at SF (R. Johnson) Matt Cain , Giants - Tuesday vs WAS (J. Zimmermann) and Sunday vs NYM (M. Pelfrey) Jered Weaver , Angels - Tuesday vs BOS (J. Masterson) and Sunday at TEX (S. Feldman) Roy Halladay, Blue Jays - Tuesday vs NYY (A. Burnett) and Sunday vs CWS (G. Floyd)
There are a plethora of two-start pitchers hurling in week five (Monday, May 4th - Sunday May 10th) of the fantasy baseball season. There are 58 total this week and you late sleepers are luck that all of the Monday games are night games. You won't need to set you lineups until 7:05 PM ET.
[Update: 7:48 AM ET] : Two games were rained out yesterday. The Mets and Phillies did not play and the Angels and Yankees were rained out as well. Here is the fallout from those two postponed games as it relates to two-start pitchers.
NEW YORK -- This wasn't Carl Pavano's fault. Pavano was rightfully blamed for most every bizarre happening that occurred when he was a New York Yankee, but he returned to the Stadium Sunday and pitched exactly like he was expected to pitch when the Yankees were paying him gazillions of dollars, and still he failed to leave with the W.
"Stuff happens," Pavano said with a shrug, the scars of the Yankees' controversial 7-3 win over the Cleveland Indians still fresh. "Nothing I can do about it."
For once, Pavano's blasé attitude made perfect sense. For once, he didn't deserve to be affiliated with a messy aftermath shaped by controversy. Pavano had pitched a perfectly fine six innings for the Indians, allowing just one run while extricating himself nicely from the sort of jams that used to confound him when he wore the pinstripes.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a nod to what's ahead.
You Oughta Know ... Red Sox fans who stayed up past 2 AM in the east were not very happy with what they saw. The Sox lost, 6-5, to the A's in 12 innings, falling to 2-6. It is Boston's worst eight-game start since 1996. It's the first time the Sox have been four games under .500 at any point since the end of the 1997 season.
They lost this one despite scoring three runs in the top of the first. Daisuke Matsuzaka gave up five runs in the bottom of the first, leaving with arm fatigue.
A lot has gone wrong for the Red Sox in the early going, but among the biggest problems is that they are hitting .217 with runners in scoring position, and that actually went up from .180 on Tuesday night. David Ortiz is hitting .172, and he left four runners on base, including three in the 11th.
Looking ahead a little bit – like three-to-six days ahead – there's some interesting pitching match-ups for the four-game series that opens the new Yankee Stadium.
It's almost enough for the game on the field to steal the show from the official launch of the luxury cruiser U.S.S. One-and-a-half-billion. And almost worth a $2,600 ticket to see up close. (OK, maybe not.)
How the Indians and Yankees line up, after the jump:
MLB Power Rankings: Where MLB FanHouse's editors, writers and bloggers team up to break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world.
Here's how it works in baseball: Texas' 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the
Starting Five
NEW YORK -- This wasn't 
Starting Five
Looking ahead a little bit – like three-to-six days ahead – there's some interesting pitching match-ups for the four-game series that opens the new Yankee Stadium.
