MLB News and Notes August - 7

Notes from Monday's games
August 6, 2007

NEW YORK: DH Jason Giambi (left foot) wrapped up his minor league rehab stint Sunday and will join the Yankees in Toronto on Tuesday. It's not yet known when Giambi will be activated. ``I'll talk to him, see how comfortable he feels and go from there,'' manager Joe Torre said. ... RHP Jim Brower made his Yankees debut Monday, hours after his contract was purchased from Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre. Brower pitched to two batters, giving up a single and recording one out. He replaces LHP Mike Myers, who was designated for assignment. ... LHP Andy Pettitte made his 300th start as a Yankee on Monday and tied Waite Hoyt for eighth on the team's victory list (157).

TORONTO: RHP A.J. Burnett (sore shoulder) pitched five innings in a rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse at Ottawa on Monday, allowing one run and three hits. He walked one and struck out seven. Manager John Gibbons said Burnett could return next Sunday at Kansas City. ... LHP Scott Downs allowed two earned runs Monday, the first time he's been scored against since July 18 at New York. Downs has allowed just three earned runs since June 1. ... C Curtis Thigpen swiped second base in the sixth inning for his first major league steal.

TAMPA BAY: 1B Carlos Pena, who played for the Tigers from 2002-2005, had trouble finding the field in his first game at Comerica Park as a visiting player. ``Oops,'' he said after turning the wrong way and ending up in the umpire's tunnel. ``I guess I'm not used to being on this side.'' ... CF Carl Crawford shared AL player of the week honors for the second time in three weeks after hitting .591 with six RBIs and eight runs in six games. ``He's playing at a very high level, and I expect him to stay that way,'' manager Joe Maddon said. ``He just has that look about him.''

DETROIT: DH Gary Sheffield (right shoulder) said he is more encouraged than worried about his injury, which kept him out of the lineup for the fourth straight game. Sheffield said he might be ready to play after another day or two of rest. ... C Ivan Rodriguez (ankle) was a late scratch. ... OF Marcus Thames (pulled hamstring) is scheduled to play Tuesday and Wednesday for Triple-A Toledo and if all goes well, he will be activated Thursday. He ran sprints and did agility drills on the field four-plus hours before Monday's game. ... LHP Andrew Miller said his hamstring ``doesn't feel bad at all.'' The rookie was put on the DL on Aug. 4.

CLEVELAND: Manager Eric Wedge moved DH Travis Hafner into the cleanup spot, behind Victor Martinez. Hafner usually hits third. ``You want Haf in the middle of things,'' Wedge said. ... The Indians are sticking with Aaron Laffey in the rotation, for now. Laffey will start again on Thursday against the White Sox. ... Wedge on whether another pitcher will get to 300 wins, like Tom Glavine did on Sunday: ``I think it will be a long shot. Such longevity. You have to be a warrior and stay healthy for a long time to even have a chance to do that.''

MINNESOTA: CF Torii Hunter was in the lineup Monday after a scary fall Sunday during which he jammed his wrist. ``It's a little sore,'' Hunter said. ``But I thought it would be a lot worse.'' ... Nick Punto was playing SS to let starter Jason Bartlett recover after scraping up his face while sliding into second base on Saturday night. Bartlett also is 1-for-15 lifetime against Indians starter Paul Byrd. ... Manager Ron Gardenhire when asked if Glavine will be the last 300-game winner: ``No. I think there's going to be people to challenge that, just like every other record. We always thought there's no way you could get to Hank Aaron, and people are doing it.''

OAKLAND: Blame a bad bed for SS Donnie Murphy sitting out the Athletics' 4-3 loss Sunday to the Angels with stiffness in his lower back. ``I moved into my apartment, got some rental furniture,'' he said. ``I think that maybe the bed they gave me kind of messed me up a little.'' Murphy felt a lot better Monday and was back in the lineup. ... 2B Mark Ellis set an Oakland club record Sunday when he played his 71st consecutive game without an error. Ellis, who set a major league record last season for the highest fielding percentage ever by a second baseman (.997), didn't even know about the milestone until he set it. ``Hopefully it doesn't jinx me,'' Ellis said. ``It's a pretty storied organization, so it's a cool record.''

TEXAS: For their first homestand after multiple trades, the Rangers clubhouse had a slightly different look. Newcomer 1B/C Jarrod Saltalamacchia found himself occupying the locker next to All-Star SS Michael Young. ``He's a good guy,'' the 22-year-old rookie said. ``It's definitely good to be around someone who can take care of me, kind of teach me a little about the game.'' ... Saltalamacchia changed his uniform number to 25 from 16 Monday, after OF Jerry Hairston switched from 25 to 3. Hairston, in the midst of an 8-for-66 (.121) slump over his last 23 games, hoped the new digit would help alter his luck. Manager Ron Washington also changed his number, from 37 to 38, which belonged to departed closer Eric Gagne.

BOSTON: The Red Sox began a three-game series at Angel Stadium before a crowd that included the entire roster and coaching staff of the Single-A Lancaster JetHawks, whose 65-49 overall record in the California League is the best among Boston's minor league affiliates. Manager Chad Epperson and his players had an off day between a series at Lake Elsinore and one at home against Modesto. ... LHP Javier Lopez was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket to make room for RHP Curt Schilling, who made his first start since June 18 after missing 42 games with tendinitis in his shoulder. The Red Sox were 24-18 in his absence. ``I think how much you miss somebody depends on how other people do,'' manager Terry Francona said. ``Even though we weren't having a great month, we had some guys step up. Wake (Tim Wakefield) caught fire at a pretty good time, Dice-K really got hot in June and (Kason) Gabbard's starts were good. So it wasn't as glaring as it could have been. If we have Curt back the whole rest of the season, pitching like he's able to, it should enhance our chances of winning.'' ... 1B Eric Hinske was placed on the bereavement list so he could return to Boston to be with his wife Kathryn, who is having complications with her pregnancy. Hinske was replaced on the roster by OF Brandon Moss, who was hitting .290 with 13 homers and 67 RBIs for Triple-A Pawtucket before getting called up for the first time. ``Moss knows he's here for three days, but I think it's a great way to get him a first look at the major leagues and get his feet wet - just to see the surroundings and how we do things and the intensity of a game up here,'' Francona said.

LOS ANGELES: INF Erick Aybar was activated from the DL after missing 28 games because of a hand injury that required surgery. RHP Marc Gwyn was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake. ... The Angels began a three-game series against the AL East-leading Red Sox, who outscored them 25-3 at Boston in April in a series that was shortened to three games because of a rainout. ... The Angels entered Monday needing two stolen bases for their seventh straight season of 100 or more. They have more steals than any AL team, and are attempting to join the White Sox and Brewers as the only franchises in history to lead their league in that category four years in a row.

SAN DIEGO: RHP Chris Young threw a side session for about 20 minutes. Barring a setback, he is scheduled to come off the DL on Thursday and start the finale of a four-game series in St. Louis. ``He extended himself and came out of it good,'' manager Bud Black said. ... C Michael Barrett was a lineup scratch a day after taking a foul tip off his facemask.

ST. LOUIS: Manager Tony La Russa had the pitcher batting eighth for the third straight game, an effort to spark a sagging team that had lost five straight. La Russa used the same ploy in 1998 to give Mark McGwire a boost during his then-record 70-homer season. ``We were losing before we did this and you can lose a different way,'' La Russa said. ``But I think it makes sense when you have a third-place hitter like Albert (Pujols), who becomes a fourth-place hitter when you turn the lineup around.'' ... CF Jim Edmonds says he wouldn't be opposed to a move to RF if asked. Edmonds, 37, has battled a pinched nerve in his lower back, an injury related to offseason surgery on his foot, but has looked better in the field in recent weeks.

CHICAGO: Manager Lou Piniella had Ryan Theriot in the leadoff spot in place of Alfonso Soriano, who was placed on the DL with a torn right quad. Theriot doesn't think the change will feel much different than his normal No. 2 spot. ``Most of the time, Soriano hit the first or second pitch,'' Theriot said. ``So I'm going to keep the same approach that I have had. I just won't have the luxury of having Soriano on second base when I hit. He usually got a single and stole a base.'' ... Piniella could tinker with the lineup in the coming days, without Soriano. He said Eric Patterson, called up from Triple-A Iowa to fill Soriano's roster spot, would likely be in the lineup in left field Tuesday and hit second. ``We can use a lot of different lineups,'' Piniella said. ``We'll probably have more speed now.'' ... RHP Kerry Wood threw a scoreless seventh inning against the New York Mets on Sunday, his first outing in 14 months. Wood is trying to recover from right shoulder tendinitis. ``No more easing him in,'' Piniella said. ``We'll use Kerry as we need him. He'll probably pitch the sixth or seventh innings. That's a nice entering point for him.''

HOUSTON: Rookie CF Hunter Pence, placed on the DL on July 23 with a sprained right wrist, hit off a tee for the second straight day and reported only ``a little discomfort.'' Pence, a Rookie of the Year candidate, was leading the team with a .330 average when he got hurt. He feels ahead of the initial four-to-six weeks prognosis. ``I felt a lot better today than yesterday,'' he said. ``I was a little more fluid and had less pain.'' ... SS Adam Everett, out since June 15 with a fractured right fibula, has been doing some light workouts. ``Adam's a little better,'' manager Phil Garner said. ``He's just going to have to get through some of that pain.''

MILWAUKEE: Manager Ned Yost said closer RHP Francisco Cordero will not see the mound Monday following a 40-pitch outing against Philadelphia on Sunday. Yost said he hadn't named a closer-in-waiting and would choose based on the situation. ... CF Bill Hall was not in the lineup for the second consecutive game. Yost said Hall isn't feeling lingering effects from the ankle injury that put him on the DL in late July, but is just giving him two days off to ``see if we can get him going.'' ... LF Kevin Mench has eight walks over the last month after drawing only four before July 15.

COLORADO: The numbers caught up with C Chris Iannetta, who was hitting .179 in 51 games with the Rockies before being optioned Monday. ``He did everything he could,'' manager Clint Hurdle said. ``It got to the point where when trying hard isn't enough.'' ... Hurdle likes Iannetta's replacement, Edwin Bellorin, who was hitting .326 at Triple-A Colorado Springs. ``He swings the bat well and has handled the staff there well,'' Hurdle said. ... LHP Brian Fuentes (strained left lateral) said his shoulder was fine a day after throwing 25 pitches in a bullpen session in Atlanta.

WASHINGTON: Manager Manny Acta wasn't worried about any of his pitchers dealing with long-term damage to their psyche should they give up Barry Bonds' record-breaking home run. ``I don't think that will hurt their development at all,'' Acta said. ``I don't see what the problem is with people having their name linked to history. He has to hit it off somebody. ... A lot of people are making it out to be like you're going to be deported from the country or something. I know a lot of them are saying that they don't want to be the guy to do it but someone has to.'' ... 3B Ryan Zimmerman shared NL player of the week honors with Arizona pitcher Brandon Webb after hitting .519 with two homers and 11 RBIs last week. ``He was as good as you can get in a week. A very nice honor,'' Acta said.

SAN FRANCISCO: The Giants recalled RHP Scott Atchison from Triple-A Fresno to add to their taxed bullpen and give them an extra arm heading into a tough stretch. San Francisco sent down OF Fred Lewis, who has lately been pinch running for Barry Bonds late in games and then taking over the slugger's spot in LF. ... RHP Russ Ortiz will start either Thursday or Friday, manager Bruce Bochy said. The Giants still weren't sure whether LHP Noah Lowry would need to miss his next start Friday after leaving Sunday's game at San Diego with tightness in his forearm. An MRI exam on Monday was negative.