FanHouse Jason Giambi

At some point this October, Tony La Russa or Charlie Manuel is going to want to bring in one of his top right-handed relief pitchers, but he's going to look in the other dugout and see Jim Thome or Jason Giambi holding a bat, and he may think twice.

And then maybe he'll think of Matt Stairs. With one rib-jarring swing last October, a pinch-hit two-run homer that led the Phillies to a victory over the Dodgers in Game 4 of the NLCS, Stairs left an impression that proved to the Dodgers and Rockies how important one at-bat can be.

"Even if you are only winning one or two games, that can be a difference," said Mark Sweeney, a Dodgers coach and one of baseball's all-time most successful pinch-hitters. "Obviously, what Matt Stairs did to us was huge. Even if it doesn't happen, there is that threat, and that definitely plays into a manager's head."

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 NL West is up for grabs.

With their seventh straight win, the Rockies closed within two games of the idle Dodgers for the division lead on Thursday.

Colorado downed Cincinnati 5-1 with a five-run third inning and six scoreless innings from its bullpen after starter Jose Contreras suffered a strained quadriceps running to first base.

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It's been rumored for about a day now, but the Colorado Rockies have made it official by announcing the signing of Jason Giambi to a minor-league contract on Monday. Giambi will report to the Rockies Triple-A affiliate in Colorado Springs where he'll be joined by Russ Ortiz, who also signed a minor-league deal with Colorado on Monday.

Giambi started the season with the Oakland Athletics and hit a robust .193 with 11 home runs and 40 RBI before being released by the Athletics on Aug. 7, when Billy Beane said the team wanted to give their younger players a chance. Now it seems the Rockies are hoping that the mile high air of Denver can restore some pop to Giambi's bat.

Jason Giambi, famous for his seven years with the New York Yankees, an AL MVP award with Oakland in 2000, and an older Dugout buddy icon that made him look like a goomba from Super Mario Bros., has agreed to a deal with the Colorado Rockies, according to multiple sources. Giambi is fresh from a release in Oakland, where he shocked statisticians by somehow getting his batting average into negative numbers.

The addition of Giambi to the playoff-hopeful Rockies gives them a powerful bat and %8000 more worthless fat in their lineup. Will this help them get to the promised land? Today's Dugout is after the jump.

From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.

Every Hot Stove season, each team reshapes its roster in an attempt to better themselves. After each transaction, whether a free agent acquisition, trade or something else, writers and bloggers everywhere provide knee-jerk reactions on each particular move. Though the majority of the analysis is educated, it's still just conjecture. Today, we'll take the long view and look back at some of the maneuvering this past offseason and see how it played out on the field.

After signing a free agent deal with the Oakland A's prior to the start of the 2009 season, Jason Giambi has endured a rough season. It just got a bit worse, as Giambi has been released by the A's. He had been on the disabled list with a quad injury since June 20, before which he had compiled a league-worst -- among qualifiers -- .193 batting average.

Giambi, 38, has 407 career home runs and a lifetime .282 batting average. In his eight seasons with the A's, Giambi put up numbers as solid as anyone in Oakland franchise history.

OAKLAND -- That Jason Giambi went on the disabled list on Monday was no great shock. Giambi is 38 years old, having played in the field more than he figured he would, so coming up with a sore quad was predictable.

The question that went unanswered, largely because it can't be answered now, is whether Giambi's career is over. In the literal sense, it almost certainly isn't. It's only a strained quad, and it's still July, so you would think that at some point Giambi will be activated and play again.

But is his career, as Jason Giambi over?

Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in Baseball Brunch.

The most remarkable thing about this season as we hit the not-halfway halfway point of the All-Star break isn't Albert Pujols' RBI total. Or Zack Greinke's ERA. Or the PED suspension of one of the game's biggest stars.

It's the standings. And they not only reflect the season so far, they give us a clue as to the weeks head leading up to the non-waiver trade deadline.

The Phillies and Dodgers are the only first-place team with a lead of more than 2 1/2 games. And 21 of the 30 teams are within 7 1/2 games of a playoff spot: nine of 14 in the AL and 12 of 16 in the NL.

So it turns out Sammy Sosa was a steroid freak.

Who'da thunk it?

When it comes to surprises, last week's revelation was like finding out Iran's elections were juiced for the incumbent. If you want shocking news, however, you've come to the right place.

We are ready to reveal all the players who failed baseball's 2003 drug test. The results were supposed to be kept confidential, but Alex Rodriguez's name was leaked to Sports Illustrated and Sosa was outed last week in the New York Times.

There are 102 names to go. This drip-drip-drip could go on for years, but we're not going to let it.

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

The Mets are beginning to look like the Patriots when it comes to injury information. Just a couple of weeks ago, I told you to be worried about Jose Reyes' bum leg when we found out he had a "calf strain." Thursday night, the team confirmed Reyes has a torn right hamstring tendon and this is believed to be something new. Excuse me for being cynical, but this is the latest in a long line of sketchy diagnoses. Let's take a look at what else New York bungled, shall we ...