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Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 8/3/13

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Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible


Around the Internet

Quick Hits

  • Brian Cashman confirmed that the plan is for A-Rod to play in Trenton today, workout on Sunday and return to the Yankees on Monday.
  • Joe Girardi said he will evaluateDerek Jeter's health before he plays him today.

Questions of the Day

  • What do the Yankees do with CC Sabathia?
  • What has been the most embarrassing loss of the season?
  • Have you ever taken Martial Arts? If so, what color belt did you make it to?
  • What would you major in at college right now?

Coming Up Today


Dodgers release Ted Lilly

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The Los Angeles Dodgers have requested unconditional release waivers on left-handed pitcher Ted Lilly, according to a source. The 37-year old was designated for assignment on July 25th, and will be free to sign with any team once the 48-hour waiver period has passed.

Lilly is currently drawing interest from a few clubs and hopes to sign on Monday or Tuesday at the latest, according to the source. He is looking to join a contender, which means that the weak starting pitching market at the trade deadline should help him find a job soon. He is willing to either start or relieve, and will accept a minor league assignment in order to prove himself to his new team.

In five starts on the season, Lilly is 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA, 7.0 K/9, and 3.9 BB/9. In fifteen major league seasons with the Expos (1999), Yankees (2000-2002), Athletics (2002-2003), Blue Jays (2004-2006), Cubs (2007-2010) and Dodgers (2010-2013), Lilly has posted a 130-113 record with a 4.14 ERA, 7.6 K/9, and 3.0 BB/9. He is in the final year of the 3-year, $33 million extension he signed with the Dodgers before the 2011 season, and will hit the open market this winter.

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Alex Rodriguez approached Yankees about possible buyout, per New York Daily News

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According to the New York Daily News, Alex Rodriguez didn't do himself any favors in his post-game press conference last night in Trenton. If the NYDN is correct in their report, MLB has decided not to negotiate on the length of A-Rod's upcoming suspension for his connection to Biogenesis. MLB Players Association director Michael Weiner tried to reach out on behalf of A-Rod to continue discussing a settlement for the number of games and was told that MLB is no longer interested in settling with Rodriguez.

The Daily News reports that the minimum Rodriguez faces is a 214-game ban that would keep him away from the game through the 2014 season. Rodriguez did not have complimentary things to say about the way he has been treated throughout this process by MLB or the Yankees, and he reportedly contacted the Yankees this morning to discuss a possible buyout of his contract. The team refused to discuss it.

According to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, A-Rod and his representatives believe that MLB is negotiating with the Yankees to keep Rodriguez off the field. The drama surrounding this case seems to be never ending and constantly getting worse. If all this is true, what will it be like if A-Rod ever plays a game for the Yankees again?

Rodriguez's plan was to settle for a 80-100-game suspension with the promise that he would retire once his suspension was up, also according to the New York Daily News. However, even once retired, A-Rod and his representatives wanted the Yankees to pay the remainder of the money owed to him on his contract.

If MLB doesn't push back their announcement again, hopefully more will be known on Monday. All players expected to be suspended, with the possible exception of A-Rod now, have until tomorrow at 6:00 pm to negotiate the terms of their suspension with MLB. Until then, and probably well after, it doesn't look like the mud will stop flying on any side.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

Alex Rodriguez to be banned by MLB without further negotiation

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Update: ESPN confirms earlier reports that MLB will suspend Alex Rodriguez on Monday for the remainder of 2013 and all of 2014.

Representatives for Alex Rodriguez reportedly contacted Major League Baseball and the New York Yankees on Saturday in an effort to negotiate a suspension settlement. Those efforts were rejected, however, according to a report from the New York Daily News.

Michael Weiner of the MLBPA contacted MLB on behalf of Rodriguez. According to the Daily News' report, league officials declined the meeting and said they were no longer interested in negotiating a suspension settlement with Rodriguez. A source told the paper that MLB execs are "more than comfortable" with the evidence they have against Rodriguez.

With a settlement apparently no longer an option, MLB is expected to suspend Rodriguez on Monday for the rest of this season as well as all of next season.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported it's still possible MLB Commissioner Bud Selig will opt for a lifetime ban, but the 214-game suspension is expected. According to the New York Times, a person close to Rodriguez said the meeting request was part of an "ongoing dialogue" and not a new direction in the negotiations. Previous reports indicated Rodriguez had no intention of making a deal with MLB.

Though the MLBPA contacted MLB on behalf of Rodriguez , he reportedly reached out to the Yankees directly in an attempt to negotiate a settlement on the remaining years of his contract. New York owes Rodriguez close to $100 million through 2017, but, according to the Daily News, the Yankees declined to take the meeting by telling the third baseman the situation is in MLB's hands.

The declined meetings come one day after Rodriguez hinted that the Yankees were playing a role in MLB's effort to ban him from baseball. According to Nike Peruffo of the Trentonian, Rodriguez said there was "stuff" going on in the background and people were "finding creative ways to cancel contracts."

"I will say this," Rodriguez said on Friday, via Peruffo. "There is more than one party that benefits from me not ever stepping back on the field."

Those comments reportedly irked both MLB and Yankee officials. One New York official went as far as to say Rodriguez always avoids blame for his own issues.

"This is typical Alex," one Yankee official said, via the Daily News. "Instead of taking responsibility for his actions, he blames everybody else. It wasn't the Yankees who introduced [Rodriguez] to Anthony Bosch. It wasn't the Yankees who introduced him to Dr. Galea, or anybody else."

Although MLB officials are confident in the evidence they have against Rodriguez, striking a deal would still have its benefits. If Rodriguez is suspended and files an appeal as expected, he would be allowed to play while the request is being heard by an arbitrator, according to the New York Times. The Yankees and MLB would likely prefer to avoid Rodriguez taking the field, though. If a settlement was reached, Rodriguez would be unable to play immediately.

Even if the sides could move past the public comments, there is still a lot of ground to make up in the negotiation. According to the Daily News, the best offer from Rodriguez's camp has been an 80- to 100-game suspension with Rodriguez agreeing to retire following the suspension. That offer is only valid, however, if Rodriguez is paid the remainder of his contract. Instead, MLB officials are considering a suspension of at least 200 games without pay, costing Rodriguez roughly $36 million in salary.

Regardless of the outcome, the matter should progress soon, as MLB officials are expected to suspend Rodriguez no later than Monday.

More from SB Nation:

Met’s Wright placed on DL

Report: MLB sets deadline of Sunday for Biogenesis pleas

Rob Neyer: I fell in love with Citizens Bank Park

David Roth: On Alex Rodriguez, the performance artist

Making AL logos fan friendlier

Yankees injuries: Derek Jeter will sit for two days, David Phelps scratched

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David Phelps was scheduled to pitch for Double-A Trenton in his latest rehab start, but instead he has been scratched because of elbow soreness. Phelps hasn't appeared in a game since July 4 when he went on the 15-day disabled list, but he had already thrown 7.2 innings in two rehab starts with the Thunder. He had given up three runs on five hits and fives walks, but he also struck out 12, so it's unknown if he had been feeling soreness or if this is new. It was thought that maybe he was being brought up instead of pitching today, but that clearly ended up being wrong.

Forearm pain and elbow soreness usually leads to Tommy John surgery, which would take him out of the entire 2014 season and possibly some of 2015, since the injury occurred so late in the 2013 season. This could be a huge setback, not just for Phelps' career, but for the Yankees' pitching options going forward. Phelps had a 5.01 ERA in 82.2 innings, so his loss might not hurt the team too badly now, but the team already has a shortage of pitchers if they lose Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes, and Hiroki Kuroda. Adam Warren, Michael Pineda, and maybe Brett Marshall or Manny Banuelos would be the only internal choices for the team if Phelps needs Tommy John surgery. This is obviously all speculative, but the threat is very real.

If that wasn't bad enough, Derek Jeter will sit for the next two days as he deals with a calf injury. He seemed to struggle a bit in San Diego on Friday night, leading to a flurry of questions from the media. Girardi said he would consult with Jeter and apparently something wasn't right. He's still dealing with lingering quad issues and the aurgically repaired ankle, so this isn't surprising.

Hopefully, he can stay healthy and off the DL, but at this point the 2013 Yankees have never been lucky with these things. If Jeter is lost again that's basically the season right there. Losing Jeter would make Eduardo Nunez a starting player again after hitting 262/.275/.354 since returning from the DL himself. It would also put Jayson Nix in the lineup every day, which is not something a playoff contender wants.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

Yankees lineup vs. Padres; August waiver trade candidates

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The Yankees try to even the series against the San Diego Padres after last night's crushing loss. They send out Ivan Nova to hopefully make up for CC Sabathia's disappointing start. Derek Jeter is out of the lineup for the next two games as he deals with a calf injury, so here's the lineup we have to live with:

Tonight's lineup is a little different. Brett Gardner bats first, but then Robinson Cano and Alfonso Soriano bat second and third with Curtis Granderson finally bats cleanup. After Lyle Overbay the lineup drops off, of course, so we're treated to Eduardo Nunez, Brent Lillibridge, Chris Stewart, and Ivan Nova. Out of that lineup only Soriano, Cano, and Overbay have an OPS over .700.

Chris Stewart has played every game since the start of the Rays series on July 26, before that Austin Romine got off to a hot start in the first half, hitting .333/.385/.500 over 10 games. It looked like he was finally breaking out and could be in line to get increased playing time, but now it doesn't look like he'll be playing much at all. The fact that Stewart has only hit .212/.293/.250 during the same time in twice the amount of games makes Girardi's decision inexcusable.

Mike Axisa has identified several players that could be made available as August waiver trade candidates. Michael Young, Carlos Ruiz, and Alex Rios could all be available for the Yankees. The money owed to Rios and Young could allow them to slip through waivers, and Ruiz's sub-par season might not make him someone worth claiming. Brian Cashman had previously tried to acquire Ruiz and Young from the Phillies at the trade deadline, but Ruben Amaro wouldn't budge. Acquiring any of these players for the right price would greatly benefit the offense.

He says that the Yankees could trade Phil Hughes if they can't make up any games in the standings in the next few weeks. He's a mediocre starter, but in the right ballpark, or in the bullpen, he could be a great asset to have for an already deep team. If the price is right, as in anything that is more valuable than organizational filler, the Yankees should make a deal.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

Alex Rodriguez suspension: Yankees 3B won't play Monday, per report

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Alex Rodriguez does not expect to play for the New York Yankees Monday despite the tentative plan to activate him from the disabled list, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

MLB is expected to make an announcement Monday at the latest that it has suspended Rodriguez for the remainder of the 2013 season and all of the 2014 season. Since Rodriguez has never been suspended for a violation of the Joint Drug Agreement, he would be allowed to play during his appeal if MLB only invoked the JDA to suspend him.

Rodriguez expects to be suspended under the collective bargaining agreement as well as the JDA, according to Passan, which will leave him ineligible to play during his hearing. T.J. Quinn and Andrew Marchand of ESPN explain the situation:

MLB is expected to declare that Rodriguez is not eligible to play while he appeals, invoking the powers of the commissioner to protect the best interests of the game. Rodriguez has said he will appeal any suspension, and is expected to file a grievance if MLB refuses to let him play while he appeals.

The third baseman played in his final minor-league rehab game Saturday, and is scheduled to fly out to Chicago after a workout Sunday. The Yankees start a three-game series against the White Sox Monday.

More from SB Nation:

Report: MLB is done talking to A-Rod

The anatomy of a one-pitch strikeout

David Roth: On Alex Rodriguez, the performance artist

Met’s Wright placed on DL

Making AL logos fan friendlier

Yankees 3, Padres 0: Nova and Granderson star in win

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With Ivan Nova dealing again, the Yankees offense was giving him no run support. Again. But that changed quite suddenly when Curtis Granderson stepped to the plate in the seventh inning. Nova went seven innings, allowing no runs on four hits and one walk, while striking out eighth. But all of that would've meant nothing, if not for Granderson's two run home run. That broke the deadlock and put the Yankees on their way to a 3-0 win over the Padres.

Neither team was able to score early on, but had two different ways of going about it.

The Padres weren't able to score due to some early RISP fails. In the first inning, Chase Headley and Yonder Alonso both hit one out singles. Nova nearly immediately got out of it when Will Venable grounded into a force out at second, which almost turned into a double play. But Venable just beat out the throw to first, keeping the inning alive. However, Jedd Gyorko just grounded out to end the inning anyway.

In the second inning, Alexi Amarista hit a lead off double, and moved to third on Logan Forsythe's ground out. Nova was able to get out of that jam too, though. After the first two innings, Nova caught fire and retired the next 12 Padre hitters.

Through the first six innings, the Yankee offense also couldn't score any runs, though they managed to somehow look worse than the Padres. Tyson Ross was shutting down the Yankees and through four innings, no Yankee managed to get on base. Lyle Overbay's one-out single in the fifth gave the Yankees their first hit and baserunner.

They then got their first real scoring chance in the sixth inning. Brett Gardner drew a two-out walk, and stole second during Robinson Cano's at bat. Cano hit one fairly deep to right-center field, but the ball eventually died and was caught for the third out.

Despite the Yankee offense looking completely anemic through six innings, they somehow managed to get on the board first. Alfonso Soriano led off the seventh with a single that just dropped between Amarista and Gyorko in shallow center field. Granderson came up next. He broke the tie by hitting a home run the went just over the right field wall. That gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead.

Ross then walked Overbay and Nunez, which brought an end to his day. He had shut down the Yankees for most of the game, and finished with a line of six innings, two runs, three hits and three walks, while he struck out nine. Nick Vincent came in to pitch for the Padres, and the Yankees sent up Ichiro Suzuki as a pinch hitter for Brent Lillibridge. Ichiro grounded into a force out at second. That put runners on first and third for Chris Stewart. With another run just 90 feet away, Stewart hit a pop fly to shallow right field. Overbay bluffed tagging up to force a throw, but stayed put at third. The Yankees elected to keep Nova in the game and let him hit, but he wasn't able to help his own cause and struck out.

With Nova still pitching, Venable led off the bottom of the seventh with a double, becoming the first Padre to reach base since the second inning. Nova then struck out Gyorko and got Amarista to ground out. After walking Forsythe, Nova struck out Nick Hundley to get out of another jam unharmed.

After a 1-2-3 inning from the offense against Colt Hynes, David Robertson came in to pitch the eighth. Robertson got the first two outs easily, before allowing a single to Headley. The single wouldn't haunt D-Rob though, as he got Alonso to fly out.

The Yankees were able to tack on an insurance run in the ninth. Granderson got his second hit of the day by leading off with a single. Overbay came up next and he flied out to center. Granderson had been running to try and steal second and had to rush back to first to avoid being doubled up. From the replays, it looked as if the throw did beat Granderson there and he was out. However, he was called safe. It was a crappy for the Padres, but wound up being a positive for the Yankees. After Nunez flied out, Jayson Nix came up. Nix had been put in at third after Ichiro pinch hit for Lillibridge. Granderson stole second during Nix's at bat and came around to score when Nix singled through the left side of the infield. That increased the Yankee lead to 3-0.

That gave Mariano Rivera an extra run to work with in the ninth inning. Not that he needed it. Mo retired the three Padre hitters in order and sealed a 3-0 Yankees' win.

The Yankees finish up their series in San Diego tomorrow at 4:10 eastern. It's a battle of former top Yankee prospects on the mound, as Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy will take the mound.

Box score.Graph thingy.


Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 8/4/13

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Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible


Around the Internet

Quick Hits

Questions of the Day

  • How would you rank the five starters in the rotation right now?
  • If the Yankees save money from A-Rod's suspension, who should they sign with that money?
  • What is your go to dance move?
  • What do you put on your hot dog/hamburger?

Coming Up Today

Baby Bomber Recap 8/3/13: Greg Bird homers in Charleston loss

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Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders:L 1-5 vs. Lehigh Valley IronPigs

RF Corey Patterson 0-4, 2 K
2B David Adams 1-4, K
CF Adonis Garcia 0-4, K
1B Dan Johnson 3-3, HR, RBI, BB - 18th homer of the season
DH Randy Ruiz 0-4, 2 K
LF Ronnier Mustelier 1-4, 2B - 13th double of the season
SS Brendan Harris 0-2, 2 BB
C Bobby Wilson 0-4, 3 K, PB
3B Alberto Gonzalez 1-3, E5 - fielding error

Chris Bootcheck 6 IP, 9 H, 5 R/3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, HB - eight groundouts, three flyouts
Sam Demel 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Cesar Cabral 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K

The IronPigs didn't score more than one run in an inning but they'd already finished scoring their five runs by the time the RailRiders got their first and only run of the game in the sixth inning.

Double-A Trenton Thunder:W 7-5 vs. Reading Fightin' Phils

LF Ramon Flores 1-5, RBI
3B Alex Rodriguez 0-0, 4 BB
CF Slade Heathcott 1-4, 2B, 2 K - batting .261 this season
2B Jose Pirela 2-4, HR, 3 RBI
DH Kyle Roller 0-3, BB, K
SS Reegie Corona 1-3, BB, SB - batting .290/.421/.452 over his last 10 games
1B Casey Stevenson 0-4
RF Cody Grice 1-3, 2 RBI, 2 K, CS
C Jose Gil 3-4, 2B, RBI, CS

Graham Stoneburner 3 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, BB - five groundouts, one flyout
Aaron Dott 1.1 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Francisco Rondon 3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 K, 4 K, HB, E1 - one groundout, five flyouts
Danny Burawa 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

The Thunder used two offensive bursts to best the Fightin' Phils with a four-run fifth that got them the lead for the first time and a two-run eighth that would break a 5-5 tie and be the deciding factor in the game.

High-A Tampa Yankees:L 0-5 vs. Fort Myers Miracle

CF Mason Williams 1-4, 2B, 2 K - 21st double of the season
2B Rob Refsnyder 0-2, 2 BB
3B Peter O'Brien 0-4, 2 K
1B Matt Snyder 0-3, K, HBP
C Tyson Blaser 0-4, 2 K
RF Taylor Dugas 0-3
SS Ali Castillo 1-3 - batting .262 this season
DH Jose Toussen 2-2, BB
LF Mikeson Oliberto 1-3, 2B

Bryan Mitchell 6 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, BB, 7 K, WP, HB - eight groundouts, two flyouts
Pat Venditte 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K - first appearance out of GCL
Manny Barreda 2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Can't win if you don't score. Giving up 13 hits is also generally a bad strategy.

Low-A Charleston RiverDogs:L 2-3 (12 innings), L 2-3 vs. Augusta GreenJackets

Game One:

CF Jake Cave 1-5, 2 K
SS Cito Culver 2-6, SB - fifth stolen base of the year
DH Greg Bird 1-5, HR, RBI, 2 K - 16th homer of the season
2B Angelo Gumbs 1-5, K
1B Reymond Nunez 1-3, K
RF Ericson Leonora 3-5
LF Daniel Aldrich 2-3, RBI, 2 BB, SB, OF assit, E7 - fielding error
C Nick McCoy 1-5, K
3B Francisco Rosario 0-5, K

Luis Severino 4 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 2 WP - four groundouts, one flyout
Tyler Webb 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, pickoff
Ben Paullus 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 WP, 2 HB
Derek Varnadore 1.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, K

Bird homered in the top of the 11th but the GreenJackets matched the run in the bottom of the inning and scratched out another run in the 12th to give them game one of the doubleheader.

Game Two:

CF Jake Cave 1-3, E8 - batting .282 this season
SS Cito Culver 2-3
1B Greg Bird 0-2, BB, K
DH Reymond Nunez 0-3, 2 K
2B Angelo Gumbs 0-3
LF Ericson Leonora 1-3, 2B, K - batting .326 with Charleston
RF Danny Oh 0-2, BB
C Wes Wilson 0-3, 3 K
3B Ty Afenir 0-3, 2 K

Cesar Vargas 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K - seven groundouts, five flyouts

The RiverDogs led 2-0 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning but couldn't hold their lead and dropped the second game of the doubleheader to the GreenJackets.

Short Season-A Staten Island Yankees:W 3-0 vs. Williamsport Crosscutters

2B Derek Toadvine 0-2, BB, HBP, CS
CF Michael O'Neill 1-4, 2B, 2 K - 11th double of the season
3B Eric Jagielo 1-3, BB - 5 for his last 33 (.152)
RF Yeicok Calderon 0-4, 2 K
1B Mike Ford 1-4, K
DH Bubba Jones 2-4, 2B, 2 K - 12th double of the season
C Trent Garrison 1-4, 2B, RBI
SS Jose Rosario 1-4, 2 RBI, SB
LF Daniel Lopez 1-4, CS

David Palladino 5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 5 K, WP - four groundouts, six flyouts
Kelvin Castro 3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K
Nick Rumbelow 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K

Yankees pitchers kept the Crosscutters off the board and limited them to six hits as team picked up their 19th win of the season.

Gulf Coast Yankees 1 Highlights:

DH Dustin Fowler 0-4, 2 K
SS Jerison Lopez 1-4, 2B, K, E6(2)
1B Renzo Martini 2-4, 2B, K - 11th double of the season, batting .291
C Eduardo de Oleo 2-4, HR, 2 RBI
2B Bryan Cuevas 1-4, HR, RBI, K, E4(7) - batting .303
RF Austin Aune 0-3, K

Rony Bautista 0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, K
Nestor Cortes 2.2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, K, WP

Gulf Coast Yankees 2 Highlights:

SS Abiatal Avelino 1-5, 3B, 3 RBI, BB, E6(7) - batting .340 this season
DH Luis Torrens 1-5, SB
3B Miguel Andujar 2-3, BB, HBP, E5(4)
LF Nathan Mikolas 2-4, 2B, BB
2B Jose Javier 1-5, K, SB, E4(11)
RF Wilson Agramonte 1-3, 2B, 2 BB, K

Elvin Perez 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, WP
Kenedy Agramonte 2 IP, 0 H,0 ER, 4 BB, K
Joaquin Acuna 1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, K

Alex Rodriguez Biogenesis scandal summary

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If you're human, unlike A-ROID2000 here, or you've tuned it out, or you just can't take one more PED story, I can hardly blame you.

Let's pretend you have the basics -- there was a big terrible dirty steroid/doping clinic in Miami named Biogenesis and Alex Rodriguez was implicated when they were exposed and now everyone is going to get banned and then everybody will die and then soccer will will finally supplant baseball as America's 2nd favorite sport.

Then you have the gist of everything, at least until last week. This summary is for you.

A quick review of the past week

Sometime last week, MLB threatened to suspend A-Rod for life due to his connection to Biogenesis. I (and many others, no doubt) speculate that this was a gambit to get Rodriguez to negotiate a quick settlement as he was planning an appeal.

Apparently it worked. A-Rod came to the proverbial table according to reports. Of course, Alex Rodriguez wouldn't be Alex Rodriguez without supposedly agreeing to walk away from baseball for life -- in exchange for the right amount of money. (!!)

We had seen numerous reports that we would know everything about everything by Friday, but MLB extended the deadline to negotiate to Sunday according to reports, with the idea that they'd announce the resulting suspensions Monday. That's tomorrow.

Over the weekend, we heard several reports of Rodriguez and will-he/won't-he be in the Yankee's Monday lineup at U.S. Cellular Field to face the White Sox. One reports says he won't play, but a previous report suggest that A-Rod expects to play. ANYBODY'S GUESS!

And in between all that, the hammer came down. No more negotiations. A-Rod contacted MLB and the Yankees for further suspension settlement negotiations, but was rejected. Done. Voila. Sayonara. So-long, farewell. So tough to say goodbye.

The last thing we've heard is that A-Rod will be suspended for the remainder of the 2013 season and the entire 2014 season, effectively ending his career.

Because this is an A-Rod story it would be inappropriate to do anything but end on a somewhat (completely) depressing note, so here's this: Rodriguez was walked four times in his final minor league rehab game.

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Detroit Tigers Links: Dave Dombrowski best GM in baseball & the amazing Ryan Raburn

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Detroit links:

Detroit Tigers' Jim Leyland explains decision to use Drew Smyly to face Paul Konerko to start ninth
MLive.com, Chris Iott

The biggest hit of the game came off the bat of Torii Hunter. But until that hit, the biggest hit of the game was a game-tying home run by Paul Konerko off Drew Smyly in the ninth inning.

Cartoons from the recent Tigers games
Roar of the Tigers, Samara Pearlstein

This past Saturday was Max Scherzer’s 29th birthday.

MLB Handling of Biogenesis Scandal Casts Shadow on Game
Tiger Tales, Lee Panas

Unlike the random drug tests, MLB decided they would not keep the Biogenesis data to themselves.

This Just In: Dave Dombrowski is Still the Best GM in Baseball
The Daily Fungo, Jim Craddock

This post will not please the mouth-breathing, knuckle-scraping, Sports Radio-calling, Dombrowski haters.

Around the AL Central:

Royals finish road trip with 6-2 win over the Mets
Royals Review

Solid pitching from Santana, timely hitting from the offense and some horrendous defense by Marlon Byrd helped the Royals cruise to victory.

MLB Final Score/Recap: Cleveland Indians 2, Miami Marlins 0
Let's Go Tribe

The Indians eke out a series win in Miami thanks to Scott Kazmir and the bullpen.

Morneau, Arcia Homer as Twins Sweep Astros
Twinkie Town

Behind home runs from Justin Morneau and Oswaldo Arcia, not to mention four shutout innings from the bullpen, the Twins top the Astros and sweep the weekend series.

Tigers 3, White Sox 2: Another extra-inning loss extends futility streak to 10 games
South Side Sox

Sox head home to host the Yankees after the worst road trip in franchise history.

Elsewhere in baseball:

Baseball's innocence lost long before this latest batch of cheats and frauds
The Detroit News, Jerry Green

Bud Selig is stuck with a scandal that is smearing baseball again, a scandal Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis would have handled with aplomb.

Dontrelle Willis joins the Angels on a Minor League deal
HardballTalk, Bill Baer

Willis last pitched in the Majors in 2011 with the Reds, posting a 5.00 ERA in 73.2 innings over 13 starts.

In search of baseball's dumbest rule
Baseball Nation, Grant Brisbee

Help us find the most pointless, silliest rule in the baseball rule books.

Report: Alex Rodriguez to be suspended through 2014 season on Monday
Big League Stew, Mark Townsend

With Sunday's deadline to agree on a settlement approaching, ESPN's T.J. Quinn and Andrew Marchand are reporting that Major League Baseball will announce on Monday that Alex Rodriguez is suspended through the 2014 season.

The mysterious and amazing Ryan Raburn
SweetSpot Blog, Adam Hintz

Ryan Raburn is awesome. Ryan Raburn is terrible. Both of these statements are true, depending on what season and what month you're talking about.

Roto Roundup: A-Rod, Hanley Ramirez, Nelson Cruz and Others

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Before I get into the Sunday Roto Roundup, I want to extend my thanks to Jason, Andrew, Zack and Alex for filling in for me while on vacation last week. They did such a great job, I thought I would come back from vacation and be the first Fake Teams managing editor to ever be Wally Pipp'd! Sincerely, thanks guys. You did a great job.

Biogenesis Fallout: Nelson Cruz, Everth Cabrera, Jhonny Peralta and Others

Alex Kantecki discussed possible replacement players for some of the soon-to-be (or already??) suspended players in his The Biogenesis Fallout article yesterday afternoon. In his piece, he offers waiver wire recommendations to replace Nelson Cruz, Everth Cabrera, and Jhonny Peralta who will be suspended later today.

Nelson Cruz ends weekend with a bomb

Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz ended his last weekend of the season by hitting a home run on Saturday and Sunday, and will finish the season hitting .269-.330-.511 with 27 HRs, 49 runs, 76 RBI and 5 stolen bases in 108 games played. He will certainly be suspended later today, but should be back in time for the playoffs, should the Rangers make the playoffs this season. Cruz was on pace for his best season ever, as he was projected to finish the season with 39 hRs and 110 RBI. You can make of that what you want. Cruz will be a free agent this offseason and I could see the Rangers re-signing him, as they are in desperate need of power bats.

I own Cruz in an AL-only keeper league at $28 and plan to keep him next season if he re-signs with the Rangers. I am not sure how I will replace his power on my roster, but I did trade for Kendrys Morales a few weeks ago in anticipation of his suspension. With that said, I will attempt to make a deal for another power hitter before our August 31st trade deadline.

Then again, we have these quotes from Cruz via MLB.com:

Cruz said he has not decided whether he would appeal a suspension.

"I haven't decided what I'm going to do about anything," Cruz said before Sunday's game against the Athletics.

If Cruz does appeal, the punishment would likely be delayed until the case is heard and decided by an arbitrator. That could mean Cruz would remain in the Rangers' lineup for the rest of the season.

"It's not just about myself, it's also about the team," Cruz said. "I don't know what will happen, but it's supposed to happen tomorrow."

Asked if he expects to play against the Angels on Monday, Cruz said, "That is my hope."

Quite interesting. I wonder if the Rangers have reached out to him on a contract offer for next season if he does appeal the suspension.

For more on Cruz and the impact of his suspension on the Rangers lineup, make sure you check out Alex's Biogenesis Fallout piece, as well as Lone Star Ball, SB Nation's Rangers fan site.

Everth Cabrera: Top 5 Shortstop in 2014?

Everth Cabrera is another of the 12-13 players who will be suspended due to links to Biogenesis today, so his suspension will have a big impact on fantasy rosters. Cabrera will finish the 2013 campaign with a .283-.355-.381 triple slash line with 4 HRs, 54 runs, 31 RBI and 37 stolen bases in 49 attempts. I do wonder though, why a speedy glove only shortstop would take PEDs. To recover from an injury?

Anyway, ECab has had a great season, one that I did not see at the beginning of the season. His 37 stolen bases in 95 games out him on pace to steal 54 bases this season. A shortstop who can steal 50+ bases is pretty damn valuable and could put him in the Top 5 shortstop talk come 2014. The top 3 will be Troy Tulowitzki, Hanley Ramirez and Jean Segura, probably in that order, followed by two of the following: Jose Reyes, Ian Desmond and Cabrera. We ranked Cabrera as our 6th ranked shortstop in our Midseason Shortstop Rankings, with the assumption that players would not serve their suspensions this season. Had we known that, he probably would have been a good bit lower in our rankings.

For more on Cabrera and the impact of his suspension on the Padres lineup, please check out Alex's Biogenesis Fallout article, as well as Gaslamp Ball, SB Nation's Padres fan site.

Round'em Up

This will be my last mention on Biogenesis in today's Roundup, but I can't wait till these suspensions and appeals are over with, as a guy who lives on the east coast, I tire of hearing about Alex Rodriguez's every move, every interview. I just want this to be over with. With that said, he is planning on appealing the MLB suspension, and from what I gather, he is the only player appealing the suspension, mainly due to the sizable contract that the Yankees owe him.

We learned last night that A-Rod will be in the Yankees lineup tonight, as MLB will allow him to play while he is appealing. I recommend grabbing him only if you are in a super deep mixed leagues or AL only leagues. Otherwise, I am not sure how many games you will get out of him, if any.

Since giving up 10 earned runs over two starts in mid-July, Cardinals starter Lance Lynn has pitched extremely well, including his start on Sunday on the road vs division rival Reds. Lynn limited the Reds to just 2 runs on 4 hits, 2 walks and 11 strikeouts in the Cardinals 15-2 win. Lynn moved his record to 13-5 with a 3.78 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and a 140-52 strikeout to walk rate in 143 innings. He has given up two runs or less in each of his last three starts.

Tigers starter Rick Porcello has a history of imploding fantasy owner's ERAs and WHIPs in just a single start, and he has a few of them this season. Recently, though, he has been more consistent on the mound, and has been better than his overall stats indicate to date. Porcello limited the White Sox to just one run on 8 hits, a walk and 4 strikeouts over 7.2 innings yesterday, but was left with a no decision after the Tiger bullpen blew the lead for him in the ninth inning.

On the season, Porcello is now 8-6 with a 4.28 ERA, a respectable 1.25 WHIP and an un-Porcello-like 88-25 strikeout to walk rate in 120 innings this season. He has given up three runs or less in 15 of his 20 starts this season.

After starting the season hitting no better than .240 in each of the first three months of the season, Tigers DH Victor Martinez has been on fire over the last month or so. Martinez went 2-3 with 2 walks on Sunday and is now hitting .272-.325-.396 with 9 HRs, 47 runs and 60 RBI this season.

Injury Roundup: CarGo to DL, Hanley next?

The Rockies started the season playing very well, but injuries to Troy Tulowitzki and now Carlos Gonzalez have derailed their season. The Rockies are considering placing Gonzalez on the DL today after he aggravated his sprained right middle finger swinging the bat on Sunday. According to Troy Renck of the Denver Post, the Rockies will call up Josh Rutledge should CarGo land on the DL. Renck stated that the Rockies want to see what they have in some of their young players over the last seven weeks of the season.

The Dodgers road winning streak continues, as they swept the Cubs this weekend for their 14th straight road win, a team record. What is notable from Sunday's 1-0 win was the fact that Hanley Ramirez had to leave the game after jamming his right shoulder running into the stands to catch a fly ball. So much for Hanley not being a team player. Anyway, he is to be evaluated by team doctors on Monday and as a Hanley owner in the Tout Wars league, I hope this is just a minor injury.

The guys over at True Blue LA have video of Hanley running into the stands, and you can click here to see it.

More from Fake Teams:

Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 8/5/13: Biogenesis Suspensions Day

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Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible


Around the Internet

Quick Hits

  • The Yankees might have already been informed of the decision to suspend Alex Rodriguez through 2014.
  • If A-Rod loses his appeal he could end up being suspended into 2015.
  • Derek Jeter has a mild calf strain, but it's still undecided if he'll go on the disabled list or not.
  • Joe Girardi might continue to play Derek Jeter because it's near the end of the season.
  • Saxon Butler has been promoted to Double-A Trenton.
  • Vernon Wells might play first base sometime this week.

Questions of the Day

  • What non-Cano free agent do the Yankees need to sign in the offseason the most?
  • Should the Yankees put Phil Hughes on waivers and try to trade him?
  • If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?
  • What kind of a device are you currently on?

Coming Up Today

  • Baby Bomber Recap 8/4/13 @ 9 am
  • Alex Rodriguez: Distraction From What? @ 10 am
  • ESPN presents: "The Suspension - An interview with Bud Selig" @ 11 am
  • The Suspension @ 12 pm
  • New York Yankees @ Chicago White Sox at 8:10 pm (Game Thread at 7:30 pm)

Lineouts! 08/05/13: Suspenions, fragile Hanley, and tweeting wives

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Monday is going to be an exciting day in Baseball with the Biogenesis suspensions looming, A-Rod is apparently going to be in the lineup in Chicago, and will Hanley Ramirez's injury put a damper on the streaking Dodgers' mood?

MLB Hot Topics

MLB bans loom Monday for A-Rod, 12 others -- including 3 new names by Jon Heyman -- CBS Sports

I'm sure everyone will be glued to their phones, TV sets, laptops, tablets, name any other device and people will be be paying close attention to the suspensions that are supposed to be handed down around noon eastern Monday. Heyman included in the headline that there are three new names not reported yet, so no one knows yet if they are big names or not. What we do know though is that the Yankees have been notified that A-Rod will be suspended through 2014, but say he is penciled into the lineup for tonight's game against the White Sox. Stay tuned folks.

Hanley Ramirez injury: Dodgers SS hurts right shoulder, leaves gameby Connor Moylan -- SB Nation

Hanley Ramirez's history with shoulder injuries isn't easily remembered due to all of his other injuries he has endured over his playing career. In 2011, Hanley had season-ending shoulder surgery on his left shoulder, but after this blunder, Ramirez could be looking at another DL stint. Moylan includes a GIF of the play in the article and what it seemed to most who saw the play is that Hanley looked to have enough time to slow down after catching the ball but instead didn't know where the wall was and the rest is history.

Matt Garza takes jabs at Eric and Kaycee Sogard during Twitter rant by Mark Townsend -- Yahoo Sports

Matt Garza has always been known as an energetic, fiery competitor, but he took it to another level Saturday night as he went on a Twitter rant against Eric Sogard and his currently pregnant wife Kaycee. Garza didn't like the squeeze play that Sogard executed to give the Athletics an insurance run, but the A's like every other team know Garza is one of the worst fielding pitchers in baseball. After the game, Kaycee tweeted something after hearing what Garza was quoted as saying to Sogard right after the bunt. That caught the attention of Garza, where the rant followed. Townsend includes the Twitter feed in the article so check it our for yourself.

New at SBNation MLB

After Biogenesis can we see the light at the end of the PED tunnel? by Joe Connor -- Pin Striped Bible

Connor has a very in-depth article of the changes that have been made in baseball to try to make the game as clean as possible. Christine Ayotte, who is the director of the lab in charge of the testing program, is quoted as saying the program is second to none and it is second-to-none in detecting positive tests.

Yovani Gallardo, velocity drop, and throwing a lot of pitches by Noah Jarosh -- Brew Crew Ball

This article by Noah is an interesting one, as he dives into some meaningful stats about pitchers who have thrown the most pitches since 2009. He's most interested in Gallardo, of course, since his season before going on the DL had been very poor. Jarosh finds that out of the 28 pitchers he included in his study only four have seen an increase in velocity since, and 16 of the pitchers have worse FIPs in 2013 than their career averages.

Cosart, Simpson, History Lessonby Clack -- The Crawfish Boxes

Most people probably don't know that Jarred Cosart is only the second pitcher in the last 100 years to throw six or more innings while allowing one or fewer runs in their first four starts. While it's obviously a very small sample size, it is nothing short of impressive for a rookie.

. . .

All statistics courtesy of FanGraphs.

Anthony Bauer is a writer at Beyond The Box Score. You can follow him on Twitter at @skipbauer22.

More from Beyond the Box Score:

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MLB Bullets Is Ready To Hand Down Suspensions

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I got a chance to meet up with a lot of other SB Nation bloggers yesterday and talk with bloggers/fans who represent lots of different teams and sports. It was a lot of fun to compare and contrast the issues with writing about MLB to the issues of NBA, NCAA and MLS writers. Also with the writers from the other baseball teams in SB Nation.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Certainly for all those players whose suspensions were announced today.

MLB vs. Alex Rodriguez: Who is overreaching?

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One of the great tragedies of literary history is the Oscar Wilde libel trial. You don't have to have read Wilde or even to have heard of him to appreciate the way he destroyed himself. Wilde was a bisexual male living in England at a time when same-sex relationships were against the law. In the early 1890s he began a relationship with Oxford student Lord Alfred "Bosie" Douglas, the son of the Marquess of Queensberry. The Marquess, a cantankerous, disagreeable personality, learned of the relationship and was upset by it -- he was upset by a great many things, but Wilde was particularly distasteful to him.

After trying to find various ways of publicly embarrassing Wilde, an internationally famous poet, playwright, novelist, and short-story writer, he finally left his calling card at Wilde's club with the note, "For Oscar Wilde, posing sodomite." First of all, as you can see from the picture at right, the Marquess had extremely poor penmanship, and I am not wholly convinced that he did not write, "For Uscan Wilm, jo obispi Tomdomitu." Everyone at the time read it as "posing sodomite," however, which presented an embarrassment for Wilde because this was a wholly derogatory thing to say about a person given both the prejudice against homosexuality at the time and that such conduct was against the law. These were, in short, fightin' words.

Wilde could have let it slide, but he was goaded by Bosie into suing his father for criminal libel (Bosie had some issues of his own to work out). The one defense to an accusation of libel is to show that you have written truthfully, and it was true that Wilde was a frequent and enthusiastic participant in homosexual activities. It was a relatively simple matter for the Marquess to demonstrate this with letters, witnesses, and Wilde's own flippant testimony. The Marquess was found not guilty, which meant that Wilde, having brought the suit, was liable for his legal expenses and bankrupted. In short order Wilde was arrested, charged with gross indecency and sodomy, convicted, and sentenced to two years hard labor. He emerged a broken man and died just over three years later.

The Wilde-Queensberry confrontation is a tale of great hubris and overreach. Wilde gave his enemies the power to destroy him and they took it. Fast-forward to the present, and head across the Atlantic, and we find someone in the collision between Bud Selig's Major Lawyers of Baseball and Alex Rodriguez's Legion of Super-Attorneys is making the same mistake. It appears it's going to be some time before we learn which side is playing the part of Oscar Wilde.

There is actually a third candidate for the Wilde role here: Tony Bosch. According to a New York Times story published Sunday, Porter Fischer, Bosch's former investor, was inspired to turn over the Biogenesis documents that began this whole imbroglio to the Miami New Times when Bosch reneged on payments on a $4,000 loan. "He stood up and walked right up to me and said, ‘I'm Dr. Tony Bosch, what are you going to do about it?'"

People playing the part of a doctor without a medical degree should really know better than to ask questions like, "What are you going to do about it?" There is a whole universe of possible answers, none of them good.

Join our Yankees community,Pinstriped Bible

So put "Doctor" Bosch in his own special corner, but there is still plenty of room among the remaining actors for the Most Overreaching Player award. At the most basic level, either Major League Baseball has overstated its case or Alex Rodriguez is delusional and/or receiving very poor advice. Think about the parameters that have already been laid out: The standard punishment for a first violation of the Joint Drug Agreement is 50 games, and that appears to be what most of the players on the Biogenesis list will receive. Ryan Braun, who failed a test, successfully appealed on a technicality, and then (to borrow from Monty Python) danced about on the JDA's grave singing "Hallelujah!" was given only 65 games off. For Alex Rodriguez to deserve an even greater sanction than Braun, one that departs from the 50-100-life scheme laid out in the JDA so drastically that something between 200-plus games and life has been contemplated, he must have done something far worse than fail a test -- especially since insofar as we know he hasn't failed one.

We then move over to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which states that the Commissioner can discipline a player "for just cause for conduct that is detrimental or materially prejudicial to the best interests of Baseball." This decision can be brought before an arbitrator and "the issue to be resolved shall be whether there has been just cause for the penalty imposed."

For Rodriguez's case to be ported over from the JDA to the CBA, it would seem likely that he either (a) recruited other players to Biogenesis, as has been rumored, or (b) attempted to obstruct MLB's investigation through the purchase and destruction of documents or the intimidation of witnesses, as has also been rumored. There is also (c) all of the above. Either or both would seem sufficient to justify a penalty in excess of the JDA's schedule of punishments, but it's unclear how an arbitrator might look at the matter.

175345521Photo credit: Rich Schultz

Now let's consider MLB's motivations, which include maintaining the appearance of a clean game, ensuring the JDA is respected, and getting this whole damned thing over with. Suspensions of 50 games, issued as soon as Monday, would allow the players to finish with the suspensions before the 2013 season is over, and even for those players to return in time for the playoffs. These players could go through the offseason, and in some cases free agency, without the specter of banishment hanging over them. We're getting all this information third-, fourth-, and likely sometimes fourteenth-hand, so perhaps Baseball's motives have been prettied up somewhere in the telling, but their most basic desire seems to be to get through all of this with as little pain as possible, but to get through it nonetheless.

Given that, ask yourself this: Would they make trouble for themselves by indulging in some longshot persecution of A-Rod? The logical answer is no. If they didn't have cause, they wouldn't pursue him in this way. They don't need him to serve as the star-level example -- Ryan Braun has already done so. If they could have dispensed with Rodriguez in the same manner as all the other players, they would have. They must have evidence, strong evidence, and confidence that they can make the case and have it stick.

Alex Rodriguez and his cadre of lawyers and flacks have been presented with this information. Yet, he seems to see the case primarily in terms of a conspiracy to defraud him of his contractual rewards. While it is true that any extended banishment of Rodriguez would come as an undeserved windfall to the Yankees (they're the idiots who signed such a self-defeating contract in the first place), it is difficult to believe that MLB's motivation is in any way related to New York's profit-and-loss statements. Indeed, given that a great deal of MLB's negotiating position vis-à-vis salary and bonus caps has been designed to constrain teams like the Yankees, you would think that having the dead weight of Rodriguez's contract acting as a drag on the Steinbrenners' check book would be viewed as a positive.

I'm as eager as the next member of the proletariat to read evil motives into everything Major League Baseball and its undead Commissioner does, but this particular accusation seems farfetched. By departing from the carefully bargained-for routine, they risk consequences in future negotiations with the Players Association which was already twitchy about the Commissioner's historic powers to levy discipline outside the boundaries established in the JDA or for on-field violations. The CBA includes a provision for the Players Association to reopen negotiations on the CBA purely based on the Commissioner's use of those powers. Whereas it seems unlikely that A-Rod's case would be the nail that deflates our era of labor peace, you really don't want to be playing Jenga with that particular pile of bricks.

Which brings us back to MLB's evidence. Rodriguez will be gambling his future on an arbitrator seeing his crime as merely a first-time violation of the JDA, and therefore only worthy of a 50-game ban. Alternatively, an arbitrator might see that the JDA is purely concerned with the enforcement of a regime of drug prohibition, and its penalties only consider the use of banned substances. Its design did not contemplate a player trying to subvert the entire system by leading credulous fellow players to a promised land of undetectable chemicals or conducting a cover-up of same.

I'm no lawyer, but it seems to me that such activities are properly the concern of the Commissioner's powers "involving the preservation of the integrity of, or the maintenance of public confidence in, the game of baseball," and that Rodriguez's grievance is, therefore, doomed -- at which point it's off to the courts we go to watch A-Rod spend millions to protect the millions that he had coming to him.

In short, it may well be years before we find out who the official Oscar Wilde MLB '13 is, but at this moment it seems likely to be Rodriguez -- unless, that is, someone on Baseball's table has really misread the cards they're holding.

More from SB Nation:

A-Rod to hear suspension Monday

David Roth: On Alex Rodriguez, the performance artist

Matt Garza was behaving badly on Twitter

The anatomy of a one-pitch strikeout

Making AL logos fan friendlier

Baby Bomber Recap 8/4/13: Gary Sanchez doubles in Double-A debut

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Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders:L 3-7 vs. Lehigh Valley IronPigs

CF Melky Mesa 0-4, 2 K
2B David Adams 1-4
RF Adonis Garcia 2-3, BB - batting .306/.320/.408 over his last 10 games
1B Dan Johnson 1-3, RBI, BB, K
DH Randy Ruiz 2-4, RBI, K - batting .296 with SWB
C JR Murphy 0-4, E2 - throwing error, third with SWB
3B Ronnier Mustelier 1-4, HR, RBI - fifth homer of the season
LF Corey Patterson 0-4, K
SS Alberto Gonzalez 1-4, K

Brett Marshall 5.1 IP, 12 H, 7 ER, BB, 6 K - three groundouts, one flyout
Dellin Betances 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K, HB
Mike Zagurski 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Jim Miller 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K
Matt Daley 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

Marshall ran into a disastrous six-run inning with the help of Betances, who let two of his inherited runners score. Marshall's ERA on the season climbed to 5.45 and the RailRiders dropped their 60th game of the season to fall five games under .500.

Double-A Trenton Thunder:W 4-3 vs. Reading Fightin' Phils

LF Ramon Flores 2-4, 2B, BB
SS Reegie Corona 0-4, BB
CF Slade Heathcott 1-4, RBI, SB - 14th stolen base of the season
C Gary Sanchez 1-3, 2B, RBI, HBP - Double-A debut
1B Kyle Roller 0-4, K
2B Jose Pirela 0-4
3B Casey Stevenson 3-3, 2 2B, BB - seventh and eighth doubles of the season
RF Cody Grice 1-4, 3B, RBI, K, E9 - throwing error
DH Shane Brown 0-2, RBI, BB

Shane Greene 6 IP, 7 H, 3 R/2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K, E1, HB - four groundouts, five flyouts
Zach Nuding 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K
Tom Kahnle 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Hits were even at eight and errors were even at two but the Thunder offense managed to break a 3-3 tie with a run in the bottom of the sixth for their 59th win of the season.

High-A Tampa Yankees:W 7-6 vs. Fort Myers Miracle

RF Taylor Dugas 1-4, BB, SB
2B Ali Castillo 1-5, 2B, 2 RBI, K - fourth double of the season
CF Ben Gamel 2-4, RBI, BB, 2 SB
3B Peter O'Brien 1-4, 2B, BB, K - 10th double since his promotion
1B Matt Snyder 1-4, RBI, BB
SS Dan Fiorito 1-4, 2 K - batting .268 this season
C Tyson Blaser 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, K, HBP
DH Jose Toussen 1-3, BB
LF Mikeson Oliberto 1-4, 2 K

Rafael De Paula 4 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 6 BB, 5 K - two groundouts, four flyouts
Joel De La Cruz 3 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Rigoberto Arrebato 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, 3 K

A huge four-run rally in the bottom of the ninth by the Yankees helped them pick up their 48th win of the season despite De Paula walking six batters in four innings out of the gate.

Low-A Charleston RiverDogs: L 5-6 vs. Augusta GreenJackets

CF Jake Cave 2-4, 2 2B, BB, K - batting .284 this season
SS Cito Culver 0-4, BB, 2 K
1B Greg Bird 1-3, 2B, 2 BB, 2 K - .415 OBP over his last 10 games
2B Angelo Gumbs 1-4, 2B, BB, K
RF Danny Oh 1-4, BB, 2 K - batting .281 this season
LF Ericson Leonora 2-5, 2 RBI
DH Daniel Aldrich 0-3, 3 K, HBP
3B Francisco Rosario 0-3, BB, K
C Nick McCoy 0-3, BB, K

Evan Rutckyj 5 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 2 K, 2 WP, HB - seven groundouts, three flyouts
James Pazos 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Adam Smith 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R/1 ER, BB

After a three-run rally by the RiverDogs in the top of the ninth tied the game for the first time the bullpen failed to hold and gave up the walk-off in the bottom of the inning.

Short Season-A Staten Island Yankees:L 0-2 vs. Williamsport Crosscutters

2B Hector Crespo 0-4
CF Michael O'Neill 1-4, 2 K
LF Brandon Thomas 2-4, 2B, K - sixth double of the season
RF Yeicok Calderon 1-4, K
DH Mike Ford 0-3, BB, K - batting .154 this season
1B Bubba Jones 1-3, BB, 2 K
3B Kale Sumner 0-3, BB, K - batting .121/.256/.152 over his last 10 games
C Trent Garrison 0-3
SS John Murphy 0-3

Caleb Smith 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, HB - four groundouts, one flyout
Philip Walby 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, WP
Charles Haslup 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB

The Crosscutters scored both their runs in the bottom of the first inning and that was the end of the scoring for the entire game for either team.

Gulf Coast teams have Sundays off.

Biogenesis Suspensions: Alex Rodriguez to appeal, others to accept 50-game suspensions

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Nothing is official yet, but all sign point to the 12 Biogenesis offenders to accept their 50-game suspension. Meanwhile, Alex Rodriguez is expected to be the only player to appeal his suspension, likely due to the harshness of the punishment. Facing a 214-game suspension that would take him through the 2014 season, A-Rod can appeal and continue to play baseball this season until an arbitrator has heard the case.

Bud Selig had the ability to revoke his right to an appeal if he deemed it to be the best course of action for baseball, but any suspension of A-Rod's rights would have brought on protest from the MLB Players Union. The final punishment handed out by MLB is still unknown because the arbitrator could determine that a 214-game ban is too harsh and could possibly decrease the final amount of games.

There are nine known players that are likely to face suspension today: Nelson Cruz of the Rangers, who fired his ACES representatives, the agency that caught heat for possibly steering their clients to Biogenesis, Jhonny Peralta of the Tigers, Everth Cabrera of the Padres, Francisco Cervelli of the Yankees, Jesus Montero of the Seattle Mariners, who informed the Rainiers that he won't be with the team on Monday, Ex-Mets and Houston Astros player and current Yankees minor leaguer Fernando Martinez, Athletics' Jordan Norbert, ex-A's and current Padres minor leaguer Fautino de los Santos, and Mets prospect Cesar Puello.

Yasmani Grandal, Bartolo Colon, and Melky Cabrera have all been deemed immune from additional punishment since all three have already served 50-game suspensions after a positive test.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

Alex Rodriguez: Distraction from what?

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I often think that when people discuss Alex Rodriguez, they use buzzwords they've previously seen used to describe him, without really considering how well they apply to the current situation. "Choker,""fraud,""liar,""history's greatest monster," there's a lot of them. But "distraction" is the one getting bandied about most at the moment. Rodriguez's return during what will likely be a long (and annoying) appeal process is supposedly going to serve as a distraction to his teammates in the clubhouse. But after watching another punchless, feckless effort on Sunday against the San Diego Padres, the question entered my mind: "What kind of distraction is Alex Rodriguez to a team that's struggling this badly on offense and has only two reliable starters right now?" Is a distraction from getting beaten by a sub-par team and a former Yankee pitcher really the worst thing in the world to have happen to a team?

To me, taking all precautions to avoid distractions/preserve clubhouse chemistry is a luxury for good teams. When everything is running smoothly and the team is performing well, you try to avoid inviting foreign elements that may disrupt the harmony that winning has helped form in the locker room. The 1998 Yankees had that luxury. The 2013 Yankees do not. The 2013 Yankees are already distracted. Being four games behind the final Wild Card position is distracting. Watching Phil Hughes work fewer than three innings while getting smoked by an average lineup in a pitcher's park is distracting. Not having won back-to-back games in over three weeks is distracting. When on their flight to Chicago for tonight's game, which realization do you think was most concerning to the Yankees' players and staff: that Alex Rodriguez will be there to meet them or that they're a completely average team?

Don't be under the impression that I'm trying to downplay the feeding frenzy that is awaiting those very Yankees when they meet up with their full-time news item/occasional starting third baseman. I'm sure it's going to be a miserable experience for a lot of those players answering question after question about Alex's return and impending suspension. But it's not like they wouldn't be doing that anyway, or weren't already doing that. At least now the baggage that comes with being Rodriguez's teammate will have a living, breathing non-Brent Lillibridge hitter attached to it. A hitter who, for better or worse, is one of the best ever at abusing baseballs. A player that is, by all accounts, a pretty good teammate, which means once the circus gets onto the field the distractions will be able to stay behind.

So when every tabloid in New York is bemoaning what a distraction Alex Rodriguez is going to be to his teammates and coaches, remember what's coming. In a very short period of time, if things do not turn around for this team, the questions about A-Rod are going to be interspersed more and more frequently with ones concerning why the Yankees aren't going to make the playoffs. If Rodriguez can help delay those questions for at least a little while longer, I'm sure his distractions won't seem so bad, even for players who didn't want him to come back ever again.

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