Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That Matt Garza might be hearing from the league office soon. The Rays right-hander admitted that he threw intentionally at Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira during Tampa Bay's 6-2 loss to New York Wednesday night.
Yankees starter Joba Chamberlain, as he has been wont to do during his brief career, threw up and in to Evan Longoria, this after the star third baseman was plunked in the series opener Monday.
"I just kind of got tired of people brushing him back," Garza said. "It's about time someone made a statement. They did it on Monday night and we didn't do anything, they didn't do it too much [Tuesday] and [Chamberlain] did it again tonight.
When Aramis Ramirez takes the field Monday night in Wrigley Field, the Cubs will see themselves in the exact same position as the day he fell injured. They are 2 1/2 games out of first place, just like when their best offensive player badly injured his shoulder diving for a liner in Milwaukee.
The reality of the situation, though, is that you can attribute the Cubs' ability to hang in the race more to the futility of their division foes than to the Cubs playing well. They haven't played well at all, yet they sit right in the thick of the race. Adding Ramirez is almost akin to a huge trade here in early July. But, the interesting wrinkle in the whole situation is the roster shakeup which will accompany Ramirez's triumphant return.
Earlier this week, I joined up with Andrew Johnson and Will Brinson on the inaugural BaseCast to discuss the Cubs' unbelievably disappointing start to the 2009 season. To conclude the segment, I was asked if the Cubs can get things straightened out and win the division. I said that was an easy answer because of the word choice. Of course they can. Had the question been "will they?" I would have said no.
Just two days later, there are plenty of reasons on the horizon to believe they can head into the All-Star break not only in thick of things in the NL Central, but atop it. Wouldn't that be a weird sight -- seeing the Cubs in first place after such a disastrous first half.
Through the first 36 games of the season, it's been quite the bumpy ride for the Cubs. They've gone through as much adversity as they faced during the entire 97-win campaign that was the 2008 regular season. There have been myriad injuries, a suspension, many players suffering through extended slumps, excessive booing by the fans, bullpen meltdowns, and a much, much tougher division.
And yet, Lou Piniella's troops are 21-15. You know what their record was after 36 games in 2008? An identical 21-15.
When the Rockies received Huston Street in a trade from Oakland they felt they were getting a relief pitcher with more closing experience than anyone on their roster. That much is true. Street entered the season with 94 career saves versus 24 for Manny Corpas, who was Street's competition for the closer role in Spring Training. It's looking, however, that experience isn't enough.
Street, last night against Chicago, allowed a Derrek Lee home run, a Mike Fontenot walk and gave up a single to Reed Johnson in the ninth before Clint Hurdle yanked him, and more importantly, before Street recorded an out.
Sunday night, Milton Bradley pulled up lame on his way to third base after a Ryan Theriot base knock. He clutched his groin and the Cubs immediately removed him from the game -- said to be a precautionary measure. In the short term, the tweaked groin ended up being a blessing in disguise for the Cubs. Reed Johnson was inserted into Bradley's spot, and he made an unbelievable grand-slam-saving catch just a few minutes later.
Moving forward, though, Bradley's injury during the first week of the season is sure to draw the ire of the Cubbie-hating public and many Cubs fans alike. We know about his injury history, after all, and the Chicago media had a feeding frenzy on Jim Hendry when he granted Bradley with a three-year, $30 million contract this past offseason.
FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Chicago Cubs.
A magical regular season that yielded the most victories for the Cubs franchise since 1935 sent them to the postseason for the fourth time in a 11-season span. Unfortunately, 2008 ended the same way 1998, 2003 and 2007 did -- in disappointment. The Cubs head into 2009 hoping to wipe the slate clean and get over any fake curses they are allegedly saddled with.
Though his team won the World Baseball Classic again, Kosuke Fukudome is likely now behind the proverbial 8-ball a bit when it comes to having a successful offensive season with the Chicago Cubs. The left-handed hitting, smooth-fielding outfielder fell almost completely out of favor in Chicago late in the 2008 season. He got off to a scorching start, but got progressively worse as the season continued.
This spring, he's been away from the Cubs for the past several weeks, pursuing said world championship with his home country. There's certainly nothing wrong with that. His offensive production in the Classic, however, is a cause for concern in Wrigleyville.
From now until the regular season begins, Fantasy Flings is where you'll find interesting story lines about your favorite teams from Spring Training. If there is a position battle, a nagging injury, a comeback story or a youngster making a surge for the "big club" we'll let you know the fantasy implications.
Chicago Cubs Sean Marshall is the favorite to win the job as the Cubs 5th starter in the rotation, but he's going to have to fight off a slew of others including Chad Gaudin, Ken Kadokura and Jeff Samardzija. Marshall went a long way towards proving he's the right choice on Tuesday as he threw three perfect innings. In five spring innings he's given up one run, four hits, struck out two and walked none. With the addition of Milton Bradley, Kosuke Fukudome only has one option in the outfield; center field. He'll be competing with Reed Johnson for that job. Johnson is the only one in camp as Fukudome is participating in the World Baseball Classic.
Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through every major player on each team. Fantasy FanHouse is here to help with a quick once-over.
Meet the ... Team who decided 97 wins wasn't enough. Seriously, why would you go out and intentionally make your team worse? Sorry, I'll spare you the huge homeristic rant right now. Instead, I'll just say that you can find good fantasy options at nearly every turn with this team, even though you shouldn't be taking any in the first few rounds.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action with a quick nod to what is ahead.
When 
Earlier this week, I 
When the Rockies received 
Sunday night, 
Though his team won the World Baseball Classic again, 
From now until the regular season begins, 
Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through 
