Either right-hander Jim Johnson, Trembley's original choice, who pitched two innings in Monday's 3-3 suspended game in Chicago, or right-hander Matt Albers will work the middle game of a three-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays.
"I originally said yesterday that it was going to be Johnson," Trembley said. "Now I'm saying Albers or Johnson, because we're doing what we've got to do to win the game tonight."
But the true reason for concern came when Smoltz spoke to the media after Sunday afternoon's 6-3 loss to the Mets at Shea Stadium. Instead of just saying his disappointing performance was a product of the cold weather or the tightness he's been experiencing in his upper back, the Braves' 40-year-old workhorse is wondering if he's battling a more serious injury than previously thought.
For the first time on Friday, Russell will take all that history he has with the Philadelphia club and add to it another first. Not including the five Spring Training games between the cross-state rivals, Russell will sit in the dugout managing against the Phillies.
In a matter of six games, dating back to April 19 against Washington, the Marlins' second baseman is 12-for-24 (.500) and he's basically hit for the cycle during that stretch. Included in his hot streak are four doubles, a triple, a home run, four RBIs and five runs scored.
Griffey launched a 2-0 pitch from Houston right-hander Chris Sampson into the right-field stands for career homer No. 597.
Griffey's solo homer, which traveled an estimated 424 feet, put the Reds ahead 1-0.
It was his 199th home run in a Reds uniform, moving him into sole possession of eighth place on the franchise's all-time home run list ahead of former shortstop Barry Larkin.
Sampson is the 381st different pitcher off which Griffey has homered.
Rodriguez left the club after Sunday's game to have his strained right quadriceps tested in New York, then flew to Miami, where his wife, Cynthia, gave birth to a 7-pound, 2-ounce baby girl on Monday evening.
"I'd be shocked if he played tomorrow," Girardi said on Wednesday. "If he comes in and says he's ready, believe me, I'm putting his name in there. There's no hesitation where I'm putting it, either. But we've got to make sure."
Rodriguez injured himself legging out a fielder's choice on Sunday in Baltimore and is listed as day-to-day. Girardi said that he expects Rodriguez to test the leg upon returning to the club but anticipates the slugger will be somewhat cautious with it. Shortstop Derek Jeter recently missed six games with a similar injury.
"You tell them to be smart, and inevitably, they're on first base and a guy hits the ball in the gap," Girardi said. "It always seems to happen to the guy you tell to be careful. We've just got to make sure he doesn't push it too much too early. He's going to want to play -- you know Alex."
In other injury updates, Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi was back in the lineup on Wednesday after he took a ground ball off his left thumb in the seventh inning of Tuesday's 9-5 victory over the White Sox.
Giambi batted in the eighth inning and was removed for defensive purposes that Girardi called precautionary. Giambi left U.S. Cellular Field with his hand wrapped in a soft bandage.
"It was just a little swollen," Giambi said on Tuesday. "[Girardi] just wanted me to take care of it. Hopefully, it should be fine."
Giambi was 1-for-4 with a solo home run on Tuesday and is batting .120 this season. With just four hits in his last 23 at-bats, Giambi said that his low batting average does not concern him at this time.
"I'm more worried about taking good at-bats and hitting the ball hard," Giambi said. "That's the only thing you can look at and concentrate on."
Few expected a change would happen this soon. But just 21 games into the 2008 season, Castellini ran out of patience and Krivsky suddenly ran out of time.
The Reds announced on Wednesday that Krivsky was out as GM and that Jocketty will take over as president of baseball operations and general manager.
"We had a lousy season last year, and we're starting this season not very well," Castellini told MLB.com. "We felt it was time for a change."
Krivsky was Castellini and the new ownership regime's first significant hire when he replaced Dan O'Brien on Feb. 8, 2006. Krivsky previously served as an assistant GM with the Twins for 11 years. He was in the last season of a three-year contract with Cincinnati.
The Reds went 80-82 in Krivsky's first season but slipped to 72-90 in 2007. This season, Cincinnati had a 9-12 record when Castellini informed Krivsky of his decision in his office on Wednesday morning.
"Completely shocked. I did not see this coming at all," a teary-eyed Krivsky said.
"He gave us 110 percent," Castellini said. "He is an outstanding baseball man, and it's difficult to lose somebody like him."
Krivsky drew praise quickly when he made shrewd acquisitions that brought in Brandon Phillips, Scott Hatteberg, Bronson Arroyo, David Ross and Josh Hamilton -- often for little or nothing in return. But other efforts to turn the team into a quick contender backfired.
The most notorious trade occurred on July 13, 2006, when the Reds sent Austin Kearns and Felipe Lopez to the Nationals in an eight-player deal that brought back Gary Majewski, Bill Bray, Royce Clayton, Brendan Harris and Daryl Thompson.
It was disclosed shortly after the trade that Majewski arrived with an injured shoulder, and he never fulfilled expectations. He and Bray are currently with Triple-A Louisville while Clayton and Harris are out of the organization. Thompson, with Double-A Chattanooga, is considered a rising prospect.
The signing of free-agent reliever Mike Stanton to a two-year contract last year also didn't pan out. Stanton was released before this season opened and will be paid $3.5 million this year. Infielder Juan Castro ($1.075 million) was designated for assignment on Monday.
The 2006 acquisition and eventual early 2007 season release of reliever Rheal Cormier with $2.1 million remaining on his contact was another move Krivsky took heat for. But it was learned this week that the A's assumed the cost of eating the contract as part of the Chris Denorfia trade last year.
Castellini said absorbing contracts wasn't ultimately what got Krivsky dismissed.
"Frankly, I blame it on my own impatience," Castellini said. "I wouldn't say that it was a particular thing. We're not going to bat 1.000 [on acquisitions]. The results were not there."
Castellini has now overhauled both the manager and GM positions since he took over the franchise in January 2006. In July, manager Jerry Narron was replaced by interim manager Pete Mackanin. In October, Dusty Baker was hired as the permanent manager.
Both Baker and Jocketty come from National League Central rivals -- Baker from the Cubs and Jocketty from St. Louis.
"Trust me, me and Dusty are very motivated. We're both guys who have a vendetta or a chip on our shoulders," Jocketty said. "Both Dusty and I hate losing. We're not going to stand for it."
When managers are dismissed, it's often done to stimulate improvement on the field. Results are less immediately tangible when there's change in the GM's chair. Jocketty likes what he has to work with already but has ideas of where to start putting his thumb print on the club.
"We need to change the culture and the mindset and have everybody believe we can win and will win," Jocketty said. "You have to take a very positive approach and can't look at all the negative things. You have to surround yourself with positive people. We'll evaluate that in the next weeks and months and make sure we have the right people here that want to win. There's a lot of talent here."
Don't expect any further shakeups immediately under Jocketty.
"I'm very impressed with the staff," Jocketty said. "I don't anticipate any changes at all going forward. If anything, we may add here and there."
Castellini said he and Jocketty had an understanding that he would remain through the 2011 season.
Jocketty spent the previous 13 seasons as the Cardinals GM. They went to the postseason seven times and won the 2006 World Series during that time. Jocketty was named Major League Baseball's executive of the year by The Sporting News in 2000 and 2004 and by Baseball America in 2000.
In October, Jocketty and St. Louis mutually decided to part ways after a tumultuous 78-win season. He maintained a personal friendship with Castellini, who used to be a minority shareholder of the Cardinals.
On Jan. 11, Jocketty was hired to be a special adviser who reported directly to Castellini. Although he made overtures that he wasn't interested in being a GM again right away because of family concerns, that's just what ended up happening on Wednesday.
"Bob came to me [Tuesday] night and asked if I was ready to do this for him," Jocketty said during a press conference at Great American Ball Park. "We talked about it for a while. It's been six months. It was a tough decision. I called my wife and talked to her about it. I talked to my kids. I knew this was important to Bob. It's tough replacing Wayne, because I know what it's like being replaced as I was in St. Louis."
The only thing consistent about the Reds in this decade has been change at the top. Counting interims, there have been five GMs in Jim Bowden, Brad Kullman/Leland Maddox, Dan O'Brien, Kullman again, Krivsky and now, Jocketty.
Castellini briefly took umbrage at suggestions of high turnover. But he did not waver from his high expectations.
"We've just come to a point where we're not going to lose anymore," Castellini said.
On Sunday morning, Thomas sat down with Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi to discuss the previous day's developments. Thomas had been informed that he would no longer be Toronto's primary designated hitter and the news understandably did not sit well with the aging slugger.
Thomas publicly vented frustration over the matter on Saturday, when he first was informed of the lineup change by Jays manager John Gibbons. One day later, Thomas' jersey still hung inside his locker in Toronto's clubhouse, but he was nowhere to be found after being granted his unconditional release.
"Out of respect for his career," Gibbons said, "it's not fair to him, sitting around and becoming a part-time player -- it's really not. I know he wasn't going to be happy with that and we can definitely understand that.
"He doesn't deserve hanging here and sitting around not being able to play. It's a privilege to be able to say you managed a Hall of Famer. I'll miss a lot of things about him."
The bottom line was that Thomas wasn't producing the way the Blue Jays had hoped he would out of the DH position. Toronto wants to do everything in its power to compete for a postseason berth in the American League this year, affording the club little time to allow Thomas to work through another early-season slump.
Through 16 games, Thomas was batting .167 with three home runs and 11 RBIs for the Blue Jays. Thomas had a similar start to last season, but he finished hitting .277 with a team-high 26 homers and 95 RBIs. With their offense struggling in the early going this year, patience wasn't on the Blue Jays' side this time around.
"This guy did lead our team in home runs and RBIs last year," Ricciardi said. "But it's just a situation where I don't know if we have the luxury of waiting two to three months for someone to kick in, because we can't let this league or this division get away from us."
That being the case, Gibbons met with Thomas on Saturday morning to inform the 39-year-old DH that he was being moved to the bench. Toronto was willing to offer Thomas two or three starts per week, but that provided no solace for Thomas, who has enjoyed a storied 19-year career.
"When I talked to Frank," Ricciardi said, "the one thing I mentioned to him was that, 'Your role will probably be diminished and, just knowing you, I don't think you're going to be happy in that role.' He said he wouldn't be happy in that role, so he thought the best bet was just to move on."
On Saturday, Thomas questioned whether the decision to reduce his playing time was simply a result of his statistics. Thomas, who turns 40 years old in May, said he believed there was more to the change that just his slow start, alluding to his contract situation.
Under the terms of the two-year deal Thomas inked with Toronto prior to last season, he could've been guaranteed a $10 million salary for 2009 by reaching 1,000 plate appearances between the 2007-08 campaigns. Thomas needed just 304 more trips to the plate this season for that option to vest.
"Basically, I've been told that I'm not going to be in that lineup," Thomas said on Saturday. "Gibby told me that this morning. I see it as something else is going on. We'll see how that plays out.
"You know what's going on and I know what's going on. We'll see how it plays out. I'm just a little frustrated right now. There are some things going on around here this year that I haven't been happy about."
With Thomas now out of the picture, the Jays don't have to worry about potentially owing him $10 million next year or an extra $1 million in performance bonuses this season. Toronto does have to provide Thomas with his full $8 million salary for this season, though.
Ricciardi indicated that the contract situation wasn't broached during his meeting with Thomas.
"That never came up," Ricciardi said. "Like I told Frank, our decision is based on performance and his decision is based on not being able to be in the lineup. It was a mutual agreement. Frank was very professional about it."
Ricciardi also didn't worry too much about Thomas' heated reaction after being told he was going to have a more diminished role with the Jays.
"I probably didn't put much stock into it as maybe some other people," Ricciardi said. "If you know Frank, he's an emotional guy. He wears his heart on his sleeve and I would be disappointed if a player didn't have a reaction where he cared."
Still, an unhappy Thomas could've made for an uncomfortable clubhouse, possibly leading to the Blue Jays' swift action. Toronto center fielder Vernon Wells, sitting in front of his locker prior to Saturday's game, couldn't say whether or not the matter would've become a distraction for the team.
"It might have," Wells said. "I don't know how frustrated he would've been with the situation. But it didn't get to that point. Frank, as well as our management, wanted to get this situation resolved as quick as possible and, obviously, it didn't take too long."
Without Thomas' bat in the fold, the Jays will rely more on Matt Stairs and catcher Rod Barajas to occupy the DH slot. Following Sunday's game against the Tigers, Toronto recalled catcher Robinzon Diaz from Triple-A Syracuse to take Thomas' spot on the roster. Diaz can help out behind the plate on days that Barajas is the DH.
A long-term solution would be outfielder Adam Lind, who is currently batting .360 with three homers and 13 RBIs in 16 games with Triple-A Syracuse this season. The only problem is that Lind, who spent time with the Jays in parts of the past two seasons, is currently nursing a stiff neck and might not be available for a few days.
Until the 24-year-old Lind is ready, Toronto will probably find a temporary solution to account for the loss of Thomas, who has hit .302 with 516 career home runs. It's not every day that a team needs to replace a two-time AL Most Valuable Player who appears destined for baseball's highest honor.
"He's had a Hall of Fame career," Wells said. "Some things happened this year that resulted in where we are today. It's an unfortunate situation for both sides and we need to move on. He's going to move on and we need to move on and concentrate on winning some ballgames.
"You'll remember the times that you got to play with a Hall of Famer, but after that it's time to concentrate on the bigger picture."
Rodriguez, who had struck out and hit a run-scoring double in his first two-at bats, reached on a fielder's choice in the sixth inning after Bobby Abreu hit a leadoff single. While Hideki Matsui was batting, Rodriguez appeared to feel some discomfort in his right leg.
After stepping off the base to lead off, Rodriguez called timeout and flexed his right leg a couple of times. One pitch later, he summoned the trainer out of the Yankees' dugout.
Assistant trainer Steve Donohue and manager Joe Girardi jogged toward first base and spoke briefly with Rodriguez before removing him for pinch-runner Morgan Ensberg.
Mark DeRosa had two hits, including a game-tying RBI single, and Hill gave up one run over five innings Friday to help the Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3-2.
Hill (1-0), making his first start since April 10, and first since spending the weekend in the bullpen, struck out four, walked three and gave up three hits. He and lefty Ted Lilly were winless in six starts prior to Friday's game.
Cubs manager Lou Piniella said it was too early to consider replacing the left-handers.
"Let's get these guys straightened out," Piniella said. "They all pitched well last year. A few of them have scuffled, but let's not panic and worry about making drastic moves. They're capable of pitching, and let them get their work in."
The Pirates tallied a run in the second when Jason Bay was safe on an infield single and stole second before scoring on Xavier Nady's single.
Kosuke Fukudome led off the Chicago fourth with his first Major League triple, and scored on DeRosa's single to tie the game. Geovany Soto doubled, and DeRosa tallied on Reed Johnson's infield single. Hill was safe on a fielder's choice, advancing Soto, who scored when Eric Patterson hit into a fielder's choice, opening a 3-1 lead. Patterson, called up to take injured Alfonso Soriano's spot on the roster, was making his first start, and picked up his first Major League RBI.
Nate McLouth made it 3-2 when he homered to open the Pirates' eighth, sending a 2-2 pitch from Carlos Marmol into the center-field seats.
Kerry Wood pitched the ninth for his fourth save in five tries.
The contract is "very humbling," Longoria said. "... It's awesome to know that Andrew [Friedman, executive vice president of baseball operations] and Stu [Sternberg], the owner of this club, have so much faith in me so early in my career. So I think it's definitely going to make me work a little harder, to get in that cage a little earlier."
On Friday afternoon at a news conference at Tropicana Field, the Rays and the rookie third baseman announced an agreement on a nine-year contract a week after Longoria was promoted from Triple-A Durham to the Rays.
"This is obviously fairly unique," Friedman said. "But it was something both sides had interest in really exploring and talking about. And both sides had to make some concessions along the way to get to this point.
"... We have to stay open minded. The economics of the game and us being a low-revenue team, we have to think differently and take chances such as this to keep our nucleus in place as long as we can."
The salaries for the first six years of the agreement are guaranteed, with the team holding a one-year option for 2014 season and a subsequent two-year option for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. The contract guarantees $17.5 million. If the Rays exercise both options, Longoria would earn more than $44 million over the life of the nine-year agreement.
Longoria, 22, will donate up to $725,000 during the span of the contract to the Rays Baseball Foundation, the team's charitable foundation that supports youth and education programs in the Tampa Bay region.
Longoria likes what is happening with the Rays' organization, he enjoys playing in Florida -- which he called "the next best thing" to his native California -- and he likes the security of having a long-term contract.
"And knowing now that I'm pretty much set for life, that's just very assuring to me," Longoria said. "The money is one thing. ... What I wanted was to be set and just worry about going out and playing the game and winning."
Longoria does not anticipate any problems trying to live up to the contract.
"I've played this game for a long time, obviously, and I don't think the game changes at all," Longoria said. "So if I keep that same approach and keep going about my business the same way I do every day, I don't think money, contract talks, anything like that has any weight on how I perform."
Longoria got the call to the Major Leagues on April 11 after the Rays placed third baseman Willy Aybar on the 15-day disabled list with a sore left hamstring, which prevented a really unique occurrence.
"What's ironic here, if Willy hadn't gotten hurt, there's a very real scenario in which we announce this about now and him still being in Durham," said Friedman, who noted that in his conversations with Longoria's agent, Paul Cohen, they spoke candidly about whether Longoria being in the Major Leagues, or not, would affect the long-term deal.
Longoria would not have been eligible for free agency until after the 2014 season. But Cohen has done long-term deals with young clients in the past, such as Colorado's Troy Tulowitzki's six-year, $31-million contract.
The Rays have already signed Carl Crawford, Rocco Baldelli, James Shields, Carlos Pena, and Dan Wheeler to long-term contracts, while they have yet to with the likes of Scott Kazmir and B.J. Upton. Friedman did not offer any clarity on where the club stood with the talented pair.
"I will not comment specifically on players, but I think it's safe to assume that we have other very deserving players and I expect those conversations to continue," Friedman said. "But it really is a personal preference [for each individual player]... Some guys prefer the year-to-year and actually are more motivated by the year-to-year, and perform better in the year-to-year. Some guys prefer that."
Friedman did not anticipate a backlash in the clubhouse.
"I think there's the on-field part and the business part," Friedman said. "Everybody in the clubhouse recognizes and appreciates that. That's why they have agents. We've had conversations with a number of guys and a number of them have signed long-term contracts."
Friedman said the Rays will always have to manage their roster "years and years in advance to be able to compete in this division."
"It's the way the economics of the game are right now," Friedman said. "And it's something, instead of feeling sorry for ourselves, we've got to be proactive in doing anything and everything we can to succeed."
NASA astronaut Dr. Garrett Reisman threw out a ceremonial first pitch from the International Space Station prior to the Yankees' game against the Red Sox on Wednesday, the first ceremonial first pitch thrown from space in Yankee Stadium's history.
It was, as you would only expect from a rivalry that once prominently featured Bill "Spaceman" Lee, out of this world. Reisman was displayed on the right-field video board, shown wearing a Yankees cap, a navy blue T-shirt bearing the "NY" insignia and jeans.
Floating in a walkway of the space station and introduced to cheers, Reisman said that he is enjoying his stay at the space station but looked forward to getting back with the Bleacher Creatures and cheering on his favorite Yankees like Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano.
"There are many nations and there is only one universe, and it's a Yankee universe," Reisman said, drawing more cheers before uncorking a pitch that floated past the camera.
Reisman, 40, docked at the International Space Station on March 12, carrying dirt from the Yankee Stadium pitcher's mound, a Yankees banner and a hat autographed by Yankees principal owner George M. Steinbrenner.
"Launching on the Space Shuttle and living aboard the International Space Station is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," Reisman said in a statement released through the club. "But as a lifelong Yankees fan, throwing out the first pitch at a Yankees-Red Sox game is also a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
"I am really honored to have this opportunity in such a historic season in the House that Ruth Built, and I would like to thank the Yankees for being so supportive of our mission up here in space. From earth's orbit, but still deep inside the Yankees universe, let me say, 'Go Yanks!'"
The first pitch from the International Space Station was actually not the first in Major League Baseball. The Red Sox set one up last year with NASA astronauts Michael Lopez-Alegria and Suni Williams live at Fenway Park for the Sept. 16 game against New York.
Yankees players reacted with amusement to the news that a Yankee Stadium ceremonial first pitch would actually be tossed from outer space.
"It'd have to be a pretty long throw, wouldn't it?" said infielder Morgan Ensberg, who attempted in vain to remember his physics schooling at the University of Southern California, trying to figure out how a baseball would react if tossed out of the space station itself.
Outfielder Johnny Damon grinned and said, "It would be cool if it ever happened," moments before he was informed that he would actually have the opportunity to watch one on the right-field video board Wednesday.
Damon makes his home in Orlando, Fla., and said that during night launches, he can see the Space Shuttle when it takes off from Cape Canaveral, leaving long fire streaks through the sky. Occasionally on re-entry, the Shuttle also creates a "sonic boom" heard miles away.
"I yelled at [my wife] Michelle the last time and said, 'Stop slamming the doors,'" Damon said.
A native of Parsippany, N.J., and a lifelong Yankees fan, Reisman is making his first trip into space as a member of the Expedition 16 and Expedition 17 crews. He is in the midst of a planned four-month stay aboard the International Space Station, which is located more than 200 miles away from the earth's surface.
Reisman conducted his first spacewalk on March 13 and is conducting numerous tasks with the International Space Station's robotic arm and robotic manipulator, Dextre. He was launched into space on March 11 aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour and is scheduled to return aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in June.
Reisman was originally selected by NASA as a mission specialist in 1998 when he began his astronaut training. In June 2003, Reisman was a crew member on NEEMO V, living on the bottom of the sea in the Aquarius habitat for two weeks.
President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush invited Lasorda to attend the White House ceremony on Wednesday morning honoring the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI on the South Lawn of the White House.
It was a little different than a World Series or a late-season matchup with the Giants, but the invitation touched Lasorda.
"I am truly honored to be invited to such a special occasion," said Lasorda. "It is humbling to be in such distinguished company. I just wish my parents could be alive to see this."
Lasorda was scheduled to go to a private dinner that President and Mrs. Bush will be hosting Wednesday night at the White House.
The former Dodgers manager has served in this capacity numerous times throughout his long career, several times for President Bush (a former owner of the Texas Rangers) and Major League Baseball. Lasorda also had met Pope John Paul I and Pope John Paul II, who celebrated Mass at Dodger Stadium on Sept. 16, 1987.
Meeting the Pope and the president once again just added to a long list of very important people Lasorda has broken bread with.
President Bush is the seventh president that Lasorda has met with. Lasorda was at the White House last season, along with former Dodgers pitching great Don Newcombe, to play with a group of Los Angeles Little Leaguers to play tee ball on the South Lawn of the White House.
The ceremony with the Pope took place on a sunny spring morning in Washington, just minutes away from Nationals Park. It included a wide variety of people, including Vice President Dick Cheney, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and many others.
Both President Bush and the Pope talked about something that Lasorda does often in his role -- helping others.
"Here in America, you'll find a nation of compassion. Americans believe that the measure of a free society is how we treat the weakest and most vulnerable among us," Bush said at the ceremony. "So each day, the citizens across America answer the universal call to feed the hungry and comfort the sick and care for the infirm. Each day across the world, the United States is working to eradicate disease, alleviate poverty, promote peace and bring the light of hope to places still mired in the darkness of tyranny and despair."
The Pope gave a similar message during his brief talk at the White House.
"I am confident that this concern for the greater human family will continue to find expression in support for the patient efforts of international diplomacy to resolve conflicts and promote progress," said the Pope. "In this way, coming generations will be able to live in a world where truth, freedom and justice can flourish."
"There are still some more tests that have to be run, but, obviously, his father is doing much better than he was a couple of days ago," Girardi said.
Chamberlain, 22, left the team after Sunday's game vs. the Red Sox to return home, where his father, Harlan, was listed in critical but stable condition at Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center in Lincoln, Neb. The Yankees placed the right-hander on the Major League bereavement list the following day, making him ineligible to play for a minimum of three games.
The elder Chamberlain, 55, has had a history of medical ailments, including a case of polio that left him partially paralyzed and forced him to rely on a motorized scooter for transportation. After collapsing at his Lincoln home on Sunday, he was admitted to the hospital, where doctors placed him on a ventilator to help him breathe.
Chamberlain and his father are quite close, and speak daily during the season.
"His father is progressing," Girardi said. "He's about 40 to 50 percent on the ventilator. He sat up a couple of times [on Wednesday] for like a half an hour, and Joba said he's getting a little bit antsy, so that's a good sign. He's doing much better."
Danks didn't wait, though, to share the joy of turning 23 with the 18,254 who watched the White Sox claim a 4-1 victory over Oakland during an afternoon contest at U.S. Cellular Field.
The southpaw, who was lit up by Minnesota to the tune of seven runs on seven hits over 2 1/3 innings during his start last Wednesday, held Oakland (9-6) scoreless for 7 2/3 innings in helping the White Sox (8-5) earn a two-game split. Danks fanned four and walked two, yielding five hits, while giving his stellar defense a chance to make play after play behind him.
Tuesday's performance ended a streak of 11 starts without a victory for Danks (1-1), marking the first time he ended up on the right side of the score since July 16, 2007.
"It's been a while, but I feel good," said Danks with a laugh, concerning his last victory. "I feel like a different pitcher this year. Nothing's really new anymore, and I expect good things the rest of the way out."
"Their guy was just hitting his spots," added Oakland manager Bob Geren of Danks, who threw 62 of his 97 pitches for strikes. "He had a nice little tail on one side of the plate, and a cutter on the other."
That cutter helped Danks retire 10 Oakland hitters via ground balls, with Joe Crede and Orlando Cabrera continuing to flash Gold Glove-caliber efforts on the left side of the diamond. As White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen pointed out, the No. 1 web gem actually came from Alexei Ramirez with the game scoreless in the second and Emil Brown at the plate.
Brown lined a Danks pitch toward the right-center-field gap, which Ramirez, who was making a rare start in center, cut off quickly. Without really looking at Cabrera, Ramirez fired a strike on the fly as he was fading away from the base to nail Brown at second for the inning's first out.
"I put my head down and took it for granted that it was going to be a double," said Crede of Ramirez's play. "I give credit to him. He threw a strike to second base."
"That shut it down right away," Guillen added. "That got the team a little pumped."
Oakland starter Dana Eveland (1-1) lost control for a bit to start the fourth, hitting Paul Konerko with a pitch and walking Crede on five pitches. Carlos Quentin then made him pay, blasting a three-run home run through the wind to left on a 1-0 count.
Eveland and Quentin played together last year for both Triple-A Tucson and the Diamondbacks, so there's common knowledge shared by the pair. In Tuesday's situation, Eveland didn't make a bad pitch as much as giving Quentin something for which he was looking.
"I'm not going to say it was a horrible pitch," said Quentin, who raised his RBI total to 13 with his second home run of the season. "It wasn't up, just over the plate a little bit. It was down, but sometimes I like the ball down."
"I was trying to throw something down, hoping he'd roll over it and hit into a double play," added Eveland, who exited after Crede's run-scoring single with two outs in the fifth. "He didn't."
Not a single White Sox hit came against two Oakland relievers, but the early support was enough to make a winner of Danks. Scott Linebrink recorded the final out in the eighth, and when Linebrink got in trouble by putting two runners on in the ninth, closer Bobby Jenks needed just two pitches to record three outs and pick up his fifth save in five tries.
For Danks, it was his second career home victory over the A's. He also fell one-third of an inning short of matching his career high. It's the sort of outing both Danks and Guillen expect from the young hurler, with Guillen even joking afterwards how Danks does what is expected of him and gets invited into the U.S. Cellular Conference and Learning Center for a special interview session.
"Obviously it's not going to be, but we wish every outing would be like that," Guillen said. "I was talking with [pitching coach Don] Cooper, and it would be nice if we get more [consistency] from him. When he's good, he's real good. When he's bad, he's real bad. I think that's a growing-up thing, that's experience."
"Last year, if I felt like I did today, I probably wouldn't have made it out of the third or fourth inning," Danks added. "I would have tried to overthrow. Today, I didn't feel like I had the best stuff I've had, but I'm taking those steps forward and growing. You have to go out there and battle every game."
As for the birthday aspect of Tuesday's effort, Danks recalls making only one other start on this special day. That also was a victory.
His first present, aside from the victory, actually came when Guillen left the dugout in the eighth to remove Danks. The crowd responded with a standing ovation.
"He's fine. He's young," said White Sox catcher Toby Hall, who caught Danks on Tuesday. "He's got a good demeanor and got good stuff, and outings like that you just build on, especially after that last outing he had. To come out there and do that was awesome."
"Franchise is back!" Mike Redmond shouted.
Clearly, the Twins are excited to have Liriano in their rotation once again.
Liriano rejoined his Twins teammates the day before he's set to make his return to the Major Leagues. His start Sunday afternoon against the Royals will mark the final step in what has been a long comeback from Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery for the 24-year-old left-hander.
When Liriano takes the mound Sunday, it will be exactly 19 months since he last pitched in a big league game. On Sept. 13, 2006, Liriano pitched just two innings in a start against the A's before he left with elbow pain.
He underwent the surgery that November, and since then, it's been a long road to recovery -- one Liriano is excited to see reach its full circle point Sunday.
"It's something big for me," Liriano said. "It's my comeback again, so I want to go out there and try to do the best I can."
The Twins seem just as eager to watch Liriano's return to the mound.
"I don't know how he's going to do," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I know he's got great stuff. It's just going to depend on whether he throws the ball over or not. I think our team is excited, though. We all know how good this guy is."
In Spring Training, the Twins saw glimpses of the pitcher who was a Rookie of the Year frontrunner in 2006 before getting hurt. While it was a spring full of ups and downs, Liriano at times looked like he could regain his previous form.
"There was a few times out there where he just dominated a couple innings where we were like, [oh]," Gardenhire said. "And our catchers, both of them, told me a couple times there towards the end, he's got as good of stuff as anybody on our staff."
But Liriano, who went 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA in his rookie season, wasn't exactly dominant in two Minor League starts geared to help him raise his pitch count to near 100 pitches. In those two outings, one for Class A Fort Myers and another at Triple-A Rochester, he posted a 7.56 ERA.
The pitcher himself even labeled his performance "OK."
"I was just trying to work on my pitches, and I think I have to throw more fastballs," Liriano said.
There is one area where Liriano did see vast improvement during his short Minor League stint, and that was his ability to throw his slider without any apprehension. Even in his final Spring Training start, Liriano was still a bit fearful to really let loose with the pitch.
Now, that fear appears to be gone.
"I'm just letting it go right now," Liriano said. "I don't feel anything in my mind. I'm just trying to let it go."
Exactly the type of impact that Liriano's return will have on the Twins is unknown. While the team would love Liriano to be the dominating arm that he was in '06, the Twins' need doesn't seem to be quite as dire right now.
The starting staff has been one of the team's highlights so far this season, recording six quality starts and posting a 3.54 ERA in the club's first 10 games.
But the Twins' skipper acknowledged that getting a pitcher back like Liriano could end up being just the spark the team needs.
"He could be huge for us," Gardenhire said. "He's kind of one of those guys who can make your staff go from OK, which we like, to being pretty impressive at times.
"He had No. 1 dominating stuff before he got hurt. Now we'll have to see if he's got No. 1 dominating stuff coming back and whether he can throw it over. But he has that ability, we've seen it. Now we'll see if he can find that same form."
Such has been the reach of "Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life," a multi-curricular character education program of Major League Baseball and Scholastic Inc., that was developed by Sharon Robinson, Jackie's daughter, in 1997, the 50th anniversary of his breaking the color barrier in the Major Leagues.
During that season, Sharon and her mother, Rachel Robinson, spent a lot of time throwing out ceremonial first pitches at ballparks throughout North America. Sharon remembers a player asking her at the time, "Is that all this is about?"
"It got me thinking about how much more involved I could be in getting my father's message across," Sharon said.
She had several meetings with then National League president Leonard Coleman, now board chairman of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, which Rachel inaugurated 35 years ago.
"I came up with all these ideas to Len, most of which he responded to by saying 'No,'" Sharon recalled. "Then I said, 'How about going into the schools and talking about Jackie's character and how it can relate to children today.' 'Great, we can do that for baseball,' Len said. We reached out to a publisher. Scholastic was very interested and got this off the ground."
The program began in nine Major League markets, expanded to all big league markets within two years and for the past five years has been continent-wide. Breaking Barriers has reached more than 14 million children and 2.6 million educators in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. It has been used by Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI), presented by KPMG.
Using baseball as a metaphor for life, the curriculum is based on values demonstrated by the barrier-breaking Robinson: determination, commitment, persistence, integrity, justice, courage, teamwork, citizenship and excellence. Utilizing baseball-themed features, activities and lessons, the program is designed to teach children in grades 4-6 values and traits they need to deal with the barriers and challenges in their lives.
Helping to carry the ball in the first year of the program in 1998 were Mike Piazza, who began that season with the Dodgers and later was traded to the Marlins and the Mets, and Alex Rodriguez, then with the Mariners.
"They were the first two, and they never hesitated," Sharon Robinson said. "We taped them during Spring Training. They spoke directly to kids in videos we could use in classrooms. A-Rod did his both in English and Spanish. Their involvement was crucial in helping us get our message across to other players."
A year later, the Major League Players Association came on board and has been supportive ever since as scores of players have devoted time to visit children in schools and at ballparks.
"Players talk about barriers they have faced in life," Sharon said, "about what obstacles they have had to deal with. Some players have talked about an issue many kids unfortunately can relate to, absent fathers. One player talked about how a girlfriend of his died while he was on the road. Players have talked about how a birth of their child took place while they were out of town. The players are also good at listening. It's amazing to see how kids feel comfortable with players."
Sharon recalled a session at a school in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan out of which came the Red Sox's Manny Ramirez when Bobby Valentine, then manager of the Mets, and his new first baseman, Mo Vaughn, paid a visit.
"There was a boy who talked about how difficult it was for him dealing with asthma and how kids in the schoolyard teased him and kicked away his Breathalyzer," Sharon said. "Mo was so moved that he embraced the boy, who then jumped on his lap, and Mo told a story about being taunted when he was a kid. There was a real connection there."
A major component of the program is the Breaking Barriers Essay Contest, which encourages children to write about barriers or obstacles they have faced or are still facing in their lives and how they used the values exemplified by Jackie Robinson to deal with them.
This year, 11,640 essays were submitted, 3,000 more than the previous record of 2007. Nine finalists are selected. The grand prize winner gets to accompany Sharon Robinson to the All-Star Game on July 15 at Yankee Stadium. Also honored are four first prize and four second prize winners. Prizes include laptop computers, a class set of Sharon's book, "Promise to Keep," Breaking Barriers T-shirts and, for the grand prize and first prize winners, a school visit from Sharon.
Administration of the program, which Mitchell had already called "the strongest in U.S. professional sports," will be turned over to an outside party, Dr. Bryan Smith, who has been sharing in that administration in recent years with a lawyer for the owners and a lawyer for union. Smith has been appointed for an initial term of three years.
"Baseball already has the toughest penalties in professional sports and our testing program will now be more rigorous and independent than ever -- with additional in-season and offseason tests," Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement. "I will continue to take every step necessary to protect the integrity of this game.
"Sen. Mitchell made sound recommendations for improvements to our Joint Drug Agreement and I am gratified that the Players Association once again proved willing to work with us to improve the program."
In addition to those increased tests both in and out of season, Selig agreed that he would not discipline any of the active players named in the Mitchell Report in lieu of community service and a $200,000 contribution by the union to an anti-drug charitable, educational or research organization. Any fines imposed on management will be donated to the Partnership of a Drug Free America and the Taylor Hooton Foundation.
Royals outfielder Jose Guillen, who was suspended prior to the Dec. 13 issuing of Mitchell's report for admitting the use of performance-enhancing drugs in 2004, also had his punishment commuted.
The deal, which also includes testing of the top 200 amateur players eligible for the annual First-Year Player Draft, was the result of months of collective bargaining, which began in the wake of Mitchell's report and Congressional hearings staged earlier the year.
There was an urgency on both sides to hammer out these details as soon as possible, said Rob Manfred, MLB's executive vice president of labor relations and human resources.
"I think there was really good cooperation between the parties," said Manfred, who has been management's chief negotiator in these successful collective bargaining sessions for a good part of this decade. "Both sides have a reason to be proud of themselves. No matter what difficulties we had within the context, we went forward, we went forward quickly and made a very good agreement."
It's the third time since the drug policy was collectively bargained in 2002 that the owners and union reopened and enhanced the policy to toughen the existing rules.
It was formally reopened for the first time in January 2005 when penalties were inserted for any first-time offenders. Before the end of that calendar year, the policy was adjusted again from 10 days for a first positive test to the current penalty schedule, plus year-round testing was formally instituted. Both times more drugs were added to the list of those banned, including human growth hormone and amphetamines in November 2005.
In the report, Mitchell made 20 recommendations to strengthen the current program, about a half-dozen of which couldn't be adopted unless the changes were collectively bargained. Selig had already unilaterally instituted a number of them, including formation of a Department of Investigations, which is now in charge of pursuing any charges or rumors of drug use by Major League or Minor League players.
"The Commissioner deserves a lot of credit for getting all of [the recommendations] done," Manfred said. "Just overall, this is a good week for the Commissioner the way this has all played out."
Mitchell said that the current penalties -- 50 games for a first positive test, 100 for a second and a lifetime ban for a third with the right to apply for reinstatement after two years -- were adequate, and those won't change. But he advised that the program should be independently administrated, be more transparent, that testing -- in season and out -- should be increased, education be a necessary component and that new and better testing practices are able to be implemented without having to reopen the program on each occasion.
Mitchell also recommended that Selig refrain from punishing any of the active players named in the report, which are actually only some of the 89 mentioned. In the end, Selig agreed.
"It is time for the game to move forward," Selig said. "There is little to be gained at this point in debating dated misconduct and enduring numerous disciplinary proceedings. Educating children and their parents about the dangers of performance-enhancing substances is a much more productive endeavor."
Addressing the issue of transparency, the sides have allowed Smith complete autonomy to file an annual written report summarizing the number of tests administered, the number of positive tests resulting in discipline, the substances involved in the positives, the number of players given therapeutic-use exemptions listed by category of ailment and the number of non-analytical positives.
The new agreement also requires that records of negative test results be maintained for two years and that Smith annually audit test results and review the performance of the collection company and the laboratory.
Previously, no annual report was presented and test results were earmarked to be destroyed at the conclusion of each calendar year.
Smith's initial three-year term can be renewed for four successive terms and he can only be removed from his position by an independent arbitrator if he or she rules that Smith has acted in a manner inconsistent with the program or has engaged in other misconduct that affects his ability to function in the position.
Other significant improvements in the program include:
• An additional 600 tests per year, bringing the total number of tests to 3,600, an average of three per player per year. That figure includes an authorization for Smith to conduct 375 offseason tests during his three-year initial term, thus doubling, on average, the current number of offseason tests.
• The agreement expands the list of banned substances to include insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), gonadotropins, aromatase inhibitors, selective estrogen receptor modulators, and anti-estrogens, including clomid.
• Beginning in 2009, Major League Baseball will impose uniform certification requirements on full-time strength and conditioning coaches employed by each team. In 2010, Selig will issue guidelines designed to ensure that qualified strength and conditioning coaches are available to players at all levels of every organization.
• Major League players, including players named in the Mitchell Report, will join MLB to help educate youth and their parents regarding the dangers of performance-enhancing substances.
• Teams will be notified if any amateur player tests positive, although the player would still be eligible for that year's Draft. Any amateur player declining to be tested will lose his eligibility for the Draft.
Manfred said that the program administrator will use the list of top 200 amateur prospects compiled each year by the MLB Scouting Bureau as the basis for those players to be tested. Plus, drug testers will fan out to high schools, colleges and homes to conduct these tests.
"We're going to use a combination of mechanisms," Manfred said. "We're going to contact individual players -- we have the names and addresses of all of them. We'll work with colleges and universities to try and avoid doing one guy in one spot at a time. It's going to be a little bit of a logistical challenge, but one, frankly, that we think is worthwhile."
The Yankees' season-opening power outage notwithstanding, both big-market, big-money clubs have been designed as offensive juggernauts, capable of pounding mediocre pitching and creating very long workdays at the ballpark.
The Red Sox may have their true ace in Josh Beckett, but the Yankees can counter with a 19-game winner in Chien-Ming Wang, a pitcher they feel confident sending out every fifth day. And there are prominent injuries -- the Yankees have limited use of Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada, while the Red Sox prepare for life without Mike Lowell and Alex Cora.
There are recognizable closers finishing games, hot young prospects on the rise, some shaky items in the back end of the rotation and question marks in middle relief. Oh, and both teams are 5-5. Sound familiar?
"I think there are similarities," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "I think they're happy with their young players, like we are, and I think they believe that their young players are going to blossom, like we believe. To me, that's how you keep from getting old as a club -- you keep bringing up youth. It's a good mixture."
The Yankees and the Red Sox play the first three of 18 scheduled games head-to-head on Friday, as New York visits Fenway Park for its second road series of the new season. Wang draws the nod against Boston's touted Clay Buchholz.
The trip will be slightly different than those in past years for the Yankees, who will walk through the 1912-era building knowing that they have not only entered the home of the defending division champs, but for the second time in four years, the Red Sox have a world championship banner to show off.
"They filled a lot of positions last year to be in that situation," said Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon. "They probably played the best of any team all throughout the season, so they definitely deserved to win."
Damon, a member of that celebrated 2004 World Series squad, has lost much of his connection to the Red Sox -- that sort of thing tends to happen when you accept a four-year deal with the organization's most hated rival.
But Damon, who still counts an army of friends in the Boston area, doesn't believe that seeing the Red Sox's latest championship banner will provide the Yankees with any additional motivation.
"Over the two years that I've been here, I feel like we've had a good enough team to do that," Damon said. "It's just a matter of getting the job done."
For Girardi, this will mark his first venture to Fenway Park as a Yankees manager, though he has experienced the rivalry of Yankees vs. Red Sox as a player, coach and broadcaster.
Girardi is expecting a much more charged atmosphere than the two clubs had when they met at Legends Field in Tampa, Fla. for a Grapefruit League matchup last month, though that exhibition had just as much jazz in the stands as a meaningless game possibly could. On Friday, it counts for real.
"I think it'll be just as hostile, enjoyable and intense," Girardi said. "It's great anytime you go into ballparks and it's full, whether it's for you or against you, and I think it's a good environment. It's loud, and people are on the edge of their seats. I always think that's a good environment for athletes to play in."
The Yankees hand the ball to Wang, a 38-game winner over the last two seasons, in the first game.
"Obviously, you feel comfortable whenever he's on the mound just because of his past and what he's done," Girardi said.
Wang intends to continue trying to modify his game to put the Red Sox off-balance: Last season, former pitching coach Ron Guidry suggested that Wang incorporate more changeups against AL East clubs because it appeared some lineups -- Boston included -- had figured out how to sit on Wang's bowling-ball-like sinker and reduce its effectiveness.
Going to secondary pitches was a work in progress during Spring Training for the Taiwanese right-hander, but the dress rehearsals are over. Wang will have his best test yet to see how Guidry's old advice holds up.
"They were sitting on my sinker," Wang said. "I threw more soft, and it helped."
Wang has pitched in the playoffs -- to less-than-desirable results, the Yankees would bemoan -- and in the Olympic Games, but he would agree that there's nothing that quite compares to the raw energy when the Yankees and Red Sox clash. He says that, even at Fenway, it's an environment he enjoys.
"The fans are crazy," Wang said. "It's not bad, it's not good. Sometimes you laugh."
The win gave the D-backs a sweep over the Dodgers, and Arizona has now won six straight.
Starter Micah Owings (2-0) picked up the win after allowing three runs over seven innings.
The D-backs scored a pair of runs in the fourth to take a 2-1 lead, but the Dodgers tied things up in the fifth and then took a 3-2 advantage on a James Loney homer in the sixth.
Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda looked like he might get out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth when he got Chris Young to pop up for the second out. But Byrnes followed by lacing a sharp grounder through the hole at short to score Augie Ojeda and Robby Hammock.
Starter Dustin Moseley (1-1) brought a shutout into the sixth inning, but gave up all four of his runs in his final inning. Moseley scattered nine hits and gave up home runs to Jhonny Peralta and Kelly Shoppach in the sixth. The Angels (6-4) took two out of three games from the Indians (4-5) and tagged starter and former Angels pitcher Paul Byrd (0-2) for six runs and five hits, including three home runs, in three innings.
Darren Oliver, Scot Shields and Justin Speier combined to close out the game for the Angels. The bullpen combined to allow one run in the final three innings, with Speier, who blew a save Tuesday night, throwing a scoreless ninth to close out the game.
Polanco hadn't committed an error since July 1, 2006. He went 186 games and 911 total chances without one, easily eclipsing the previous records for Major League second basemen held in both cases by Luis Castillo.
Compared to last summer, when an error previously charged to him was reversed to him, the end to his streak on Tuesday came with no debate. Ramirez hit a ball deep to center field and over the head of Brandon Inge to lead off the bottom of the third inning. Ramirez rounded second as Inge gathered the ball and fired to Polanco in short center.
Polanco had a play on Ramirez at third, but his throw hit the infield dirt in front of Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera and skipped off of his glove. The ricochet seemingly prevented pitcher Kenny Rogers from blocking it as it rolled into the dugout for an automatic advance of Ramirez.
Ramirez's run made it a 2-0 lead for the Red Sox.
"All players have the option. It's entirely up to them," Commissioner Bud Selig told MLB.com on Monday. "Candidly, I hope they all do it."
Next Tuesday is the 61st anniversary of the day Robinson put on a Brooklyn Dodgers uniform in a regular-season game for the first time, thus re-integrating Major League Baseball forever. This year's signature event will be at Shea Stadium, as the Nationals visit the Mets, whose manager, Willie Randolph, grew up in Brooklyn and has often said he's a great admirer of Robinson.
There's a full slate of games on Tuesday. Robinson also will be honored in each of the other 14 Major League ballparks where games are scheduled. Shea is in its last season, to be replaced next year by nearby Citi Field, where the Jackie Robinson rotunda will replicate the famous entry to Ebbets Field. That's the tiny long-gone ballpark one borough over from Queens where Robinson went out to play first base that day in 1947. The Dodgers defeated the Boston Braves, and the grand old game was never the same.
Selig will probably be at Shea, he said on Monday. Rachel Robinson, Jackie's seemingly ageless widow and the founder of the now 35-year-old Jackie Robinson Foundation -- which offers college scholarships to underprivileged minority students -- will be there for the ceremony and a tour of the partially completed new ballpark that's targeted to open in time for the 2009 season.
MLB.TV will have a part in the evening, too.
From 6-7 p.m. ET, during the nightly WhipAround show, MLB.TV's Harold Reynolds will report from the Shea Stadium field, and the pregame ceremonies will be aired live.
And when the Mets take the field, some of their players will run out there wearing the famous number that Selig retired on the occasion of Robinson's 50th anniversary in 1997.
Robinson was simply issued that number as a matter of course by then equipment manager John Griffin upon his arrival in Brooklyn. Robinson wasn't the first or the last player to wear the famous jersey for the Dodgers. In 1939, George Jeffcoat did so when he pitched one game. And long after Robinson retired in 1956, it was issued again to Ray Lamb, a pitcher from USC. But Lamb was so uncomfortable wearing the number in 1969, he gave it up when the season ended.
After that, it was never worn again by a Dodger and was retired by the club in 1972, a decade after Robinson was elected to the Hall of Fame.
The idea of "unretiring" Robinson's number last year was the brainchild of Cincinnati's Ken Griffey Jr., who personally petitioned the Commissioner for the opportunity.
"It's just my way of giving that man his due respect," Griffey said at the time. "I just called Bud and asked him if I could do it. He made a couple of phone calls and said, 'Yeah.' We had a good conversation. It was about me wearing it on that day, and only that day."
Other players followed suit.
Barry Bonds, MLB's all-time leader with 762 homers and then of the Giants, quickly accepted at the behest of Peter Magowan, the team's managing general partner. When all was said and done, Andruw Jones, Dontrelle Willis, Torii Hunter, Jermaine Dye, Derrek Lee, Mike Cameron, Gary Sheffield and, C.C. Sabathia were among the stars who honored Robinson by wearing the number.
"It meant a lot," said Sabathia, who started for the Indians last year and defeated the White Sox that day. "I'm just excited I got a chance to pitch. To be able to pitch and play on this day was huge."
Full squads, such as the Dodgers, Pirates, Cardinals, Astros and Brewers pledged their allegiance to Robinson as the 25 players on each team wore No. 42. Dodger Stadium was the scene of the central ceremony for last year's 60th anniversary.
"I think it's great," Selig said about last year's No. 42 tribute that is now spreading into this April. "Just their understanding of history and what that man did for so many people is so important. Believe me, it makes me very happy."
Mariano Rivera, of course, has worn No. 42 since he joined the Yankees for good in 1995, and he was among a handful of players grandfathered in when Selig retired Robinson's number throughout baseball. Rivera is the only remaining active player who still wears it day-in and day-out.
"You're not just talking about any player or any person," Rivera said about the legacy left by Robinson. "The respect that he had for the game, the passion that he had for the game, how he played the game -- we should respect that and tribute that."
Negotiations on the deal began during Spring Training, but when a deal was not initially reached, the club renewed Young's contract for 2008 for around $400,000. Talks between the two sides heated up again soon after, and while a deal was reached toward the end of spring, there were still some final details to be worked out.
The contract is believed to be close to the one signed recently by Rockies shortstop Troy Tuluwitzki, which was for six years and $30 million.
The deal would keep Young in a D-backs uniform through 2013 and would cover all his arbitration years in addition to his first year of free agency.
Young became the first rookie in Major League history to collect 30 homers and 25 stolen bases last season when he hit 32 homers and stole 27 bases. His nine leadoff home runs were the fifth-most in a single season.
Acquired by the D-backs from the White Sox after the 2005 season, Young has three home runs this season.
Ryan Theriot walked to lead off the 12th against Evan Meek (0-1), and stole second, and Alfonso Soriano walked. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch on the first pitch to Felix Pie. One out later, Derrek Lee was intentionally walked to load the bases and Ramirez flew out to right to score Theriot.
After a wild pitch, Kosuke Fukudome was intentionally walked to load the bases again. Meek, the Pirates' Rule 5 pick, then unintentionally walked Mark DeRosa to force in a run.
Jon Lieber (1-1) picked up the win, pitching three innings in relief. Carlos Marmol pitched the 12th and picked up his first save.
Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the second on Geovany Soto's RBI single. With one out in the third and two on, the Cubs scored on an error by Pirates starter Tom Gorzelanny, who fielded Ramirez's infield single, then overthrew first. Fukudome and Soto each hit RBI singles, and Ronny Cedeno added a three-run double to make it 7-0.
The Pirates loaded the bases with two outs in the fourth against Lilly, and took advantage of back-to-back errors. Luis Rivas hit a grounder to Cedeno, who overthrew first, enabling two runs to score. Chris Gomez then hit a grounder along the line to Ramirez, and his throw was off the mark, allowing two more runs in. Nate McLouth hit an RBI triple to make it 7-5 and force Lilly's exit.
Johnson safely slid between the legs of Pirates catcher Ryan Doumit to score in the Chicago sixth. But the Pirates loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth, and Carmen Pignatiello walked McLouth to force in a run. Freddy Sanchez hit a sacrifice fly off Bob Howry to close the gap to 8-7.
Jose Bautista doubled with one out in the seventh, and one out later scored on second baseman Mark DeRosa's error when he booted Nyjer Morgan's grounder to tie the game at 8.
Lidge, 31, was originally placed on the DL during Spring Training on March 24 (retroactive to March 21) while recovering from right knee surgery performed on Feb. 25. He made one rehabilitation appearance with Class A Clearwater, allowing one run in 1.0 inning with two strikeouts.
Acquired in a November trade from Houston, Lidge went 5-3 with 19 saves and a 3.36 ERA in 66 appearances last season with the Astros.
To make room for Lidge on the 25-man roster, right-hander Tim Lahey was designated for assignment. Lahey, 26, was claimed off waivers from the Cubs on March 28. He did not appear in any regular season games with the Phillies.Hiroki Kuroda's Major League debut Friday night, for the Dodgers against the Padres, was nearly a win-yawn situation.
He was phenomenal, throttling the Padres and slowing general manager Ned Colletti's pulse. In seven innings, he allowed three baserunners -- and, true to his reputation for intolerance, fumed over the third, a single with two outs in the seventh inning of a game he led 7-1. He had only two three-ball counts, while throwing 53 of his 77 pitches for strikes.
"Very impressive," said his manager, Joe Torre. "Didn't seem nervous at all. Very business-like, with no indecision on his part."
Want more? At bat, Kuroda turned a seventh-inning sacrifice situation into a walk, helping set up the Dodgers' six-run tiebreaking surge.
At the same time, the shrill was gone. Notwithstanding a PETCO Park sellout, attracted by the fervent Southern Californian rivalry, there was none of the sideshow theatrics that had greeted prior Japanese arrivals.
Which is the ultimate sign that the Japanese have arrived. Still, perhaps none of the pitchers had ever checked in quite as did Kuroda, whose debut captured the best of both Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideo Nomo.
In his debut a year ago in Kansas City, Matsuzaka had also gone seven innings, had also allowed one run, while striking out 10 (Kuroda fanned four).
Nomo, in his American bow on May 2, 1995, pitched five shutout innings of one-hit ball against the Giants, but struggled a bit with his control, walking four.
"As the innings went on, I started to feel real confident," said Kuroda, speaking through his interpreter. "I was able to make all my pitches. Plus, [catcher] Russell [Martin] led me along real well."
While the 33-year-old right-hander was startlingly good, the lack of commotion surrounding his coming-out was even more startling -- in a good way. Gradually, transitions by Japanese standouts are going from phenomena to part of a routine process.
The San Diego media relations folks reported issuing credentials to about two dozen Japanese media. Nothing like Boston's Box-Lunch Brigade of last year, when the crush of Japanese journalists following Matsuzaka shut down overburdened press room kitchens coast-to-coast.
So, mangling the well-known historical declaration, this was one giant step for Kuroda, one small leap for Japanese ballplayers.
Let's just say there was no hyperventilation when Kuroda faced the second man in the Padres lineup, Tadahito Iguchi. A shrug when compared to a year ago, when the needle on the seminal-moment meter went haywire for Dice-K's first stateside run-in with Ichiro Suzuki.
We can't imagine how long Kuroda had anticipated this evening, this opportunity to pitch on baseball's grandest stage. But we know how long it took him to realize he would like pitching here.
Two innings. Six batters. That sixth batter, Khalil Greene, ripped a screamer to straightaway right, sending Matt Kemp back toward the warning track, where he reached up to make a rather routine backhanded grab.
Having made his home in Hiroshima Municipal Stadium, with its 300 feet to the right-field fence, Kuroda wasn't used to seeing such a long drive not end up in a spectator's lap.
"It's a lot bigger park than the ones I played in in Japan," said Kuroda, before flashing a humble smile. "But then [Brian] Giles homered off me, so there's nothing I can say about that."
In the sixth, Giles introduced him to the little porch that juts out of the right-field corner. Fireworks released the smoke in which Kuroda's first lead went up. But the smoke blew over as quickly as the thought that Kuroda's excellence might go unrewarded.
"I really regretted that pitch," Kuroda said of the 2-0 fastball to the San Diego right fielder. "But I knew we had good hitters on our team, and that they could come back for the win."
Kuroda getting the win himself seemed a little more remote, even to him. He had thrown only 64 pitches though six innings, but this was his first regular-season start, circumstances which encourage managers to be cautious.
"I didn't think I'd be able to win this early in the season," agreed Kuroda.
Torre said he would have considered pinch-hitting for Kuroda only if his turn came with a man on third and less than two outs. Instead, it came with a man on first and one out, and the walk he coaxed from Padres reliever Joe Thatcher threw gasoline on the simmering rally.
One 2-0 meatball to Giles. As blemishes on a mini-masterpiece go, not much.
"He has a good running sinker," Giles said, "and I probably chased it a bit. In the third at-bat [in the sixth], he's not going to want to walk anyone. He's got a lead. He just left the ball over the plate."
Doesn't matter if you are coming from Japan. Or just from the Grapefruit League. Pitching seven innings at the expense of three baserunners is a remarkable No. 1.
The Dodgers did not know what to hope for. They got more than they could expect.
"This is a big day for him. He's been aspiring for this for a long time," Colletti had said before the game. "So I'm sure he is excited."
By the end, there was a lot for everyone to be excited about. The Dodgers, by how well their new guy had pitched. Everyone else able to recognize the assimilation of Japanese players as a good thing, by the serenity in which he could do it.
The club announced the diagnosis -- mild strain of the left hamstring -- and the prognosis without defining how it would replace Martinez in the rotation. To replace him on the roster, the Mets purchased the contract of Nelson Figueroa from the roster of its Triple-A New Orleans affiliate and added the right-handed journeyman to the 25-man roster.
The decision to disable Martinez was made after the hamstring was examined via an MRI in Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon and one night after he injured the muscle throwing a pitch in the fourth inning of the Mets' 5-4, 10-inning loss to the Marlins.
It's the third straight season that Martinez has been placed on the disabled list.
The club said Martinez was expected to return to pitching in four to six weeks. It didn't specify at what level. The longer Martinez goes without pitching, the more pitching at a Minor League level he is likely to need.
While manager Willie Randolph didn't say who might start in Martinez's stead, he did say who wouldn't -- Jorge Sosa. A person in the organization had characterized Sosa as the most logical choice Wednesday morning. But Randolph indicated he preferred not to upset the balance in the bullpen by starting Sosa. Of the eight pitchers not in the rotation, Figueroa is the most likely to start. But Randolph said he had no person in mind because a need for the fifth starter doesn't arise until April 12.
Putz, who saved a career-high 40 games in 2007, was diagnosed with inflammation in the ribcage on his right side.
The Mariners selected right-hander Roy Corcoran from Triple-A Tacoma to take Putz's spot on the roster.
Putz said the pain began after throwing a split-finger fastball to Michael Young on the third pitch of the at-bat in the ninth. Putz wound up blowing the save. During a press conference Wednesday, Putz said it felt "like an icepick stabbing inside."
The right-hander had a precautionary MRI exam done Wednesday, and it revealed mild costochondritis on his right side, a Mariners release said. Costochondritis is inflammation where cartilage attaches to a rib.
Corcoran, 27, was one of Seattle's final cuts this spring after posting an 0-1 record with a 6.75 ERA -- four earned runs in 5 1/3 innings in five relief appearances. Corcoran spent the 2007 season at Triple-A Albuquerque in the Florida Marlins organization.
