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L.A. Lakers at Houst

9:30 tonight, ESPN

Series tied 1-1

Say what you will about

PG Derek Fisher, hes not uaccused of being dumb. B

former NBA coach Jeff Van

told SN Today, What Dere

did in Game 2 was very, ve

Indeed, Fisher was suspen

tonights Lakers-Rockets Gam

Houston after chucking Rock

Scola in Game 2. After a seri

fisticuffs and brouhahas bro

Game 2, this is one to keep a

S

Washington at Pitts

7 tonight, Versus

Capitals lead series 2-1

Pittsburghs Game 3 ov

win over Washington shif

series momentum to the

Theyre playing better ho

the Capitals and will enjoy

ice advantage again tonig

But for those who are e

about how Pittsburgh pla

Wednesday, Washington Bruce Boudreau offers a s

reminder that his Capitals

up 2-1 in the series.

They outplayed us (W

for sure, but Id much rath

where I am right now tha

they are, Boudreau said. C

Favre:No thanksBrett Favre reportedly has

decided to stay retired rather

than take a shot with the Vikings.

Ten reasons Favre should stay on

the farm. Page 31

Vikings coach reportedly never

got face-to-face meeting. Page 30

BILLKOSTROUN/AP

NHL PLAYOFFS

NBA PLAYOFFS

M

Johan Franzen, left, had twand an assist as the Red WiAnaheim and tied the WestConference semifinal seriePage 22

FRIDAY

MAY 8, 2009

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 290

Scoreboard

NBA PlayoffsEastern Conference semifinals

Cleveland 105, Atlanta 85

(Cleveland leads series 2-0)

NHL PlayoffsWestern Conference semifinals

Chicago 2, Vancouver 1, OT(Series tied 2-2)

Detroit 6, Anaheim 3

(Series tied 2-2)

BaseballAmerican League

Kansas City 3, Seattle 1

Oakland 9, Texas 4

Tampa Bay 8, N.Y. Yankees 6

Baltimore 5, Minnesota 4

Boston 13, Cleveland 3

Chicago White Sox 6, Detroit 0

L.A. Angels 6, Toronto 1

National League

Atlanta 4, Florida 2

St. Louis 5, Pittsburgh 2

San Francisco 8, Colorado 3

San Diego 4, Arizona 3, 10 innings

Cincinnati 6, Milwaukee 5

N.Y. Mets 7, Philadelphia 5

Chicago Cubs 8, Houston 5

Washington 11, L.A. Dodgers 9

MLB > 5 NFL > 30 NBA > 27 NHL > 21 NASCAR > 37 COLLEGE FOOTBALL > 36 COLLEGE BASKETBALL > 35 RECRUITING > 4QUICK LINKS:

Youre out!BY STAN MCNEAL | [email protected]

Hours after the Los Angeles Dodgers improved to a major-leaguebest 21-8 and broke a 98-year-old major league record for best home

start, their world was rocked. Manny Ram irez, their best player,was suspended 50 games for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

Repercussions will be felt by Ramirez, his team and the sport.

The fallout of Mannys50-game sitting streak

More Manny

Will Leitch: Fans dont know

what to think anymore, Page 5

Stan McNeal: Dodgers are stillthe team to beat, Page 6

Dodgers react: Ramirez thinks

he let team down, Torre says, Page 10

Big mistakeRamirez said in a statement that he took a doctor-

prescribed drug that unfortunately was on thebanned list. The New YorkDaily News reportedRamirez tested positive for a drug known for return-ing testosterone to normal levels after steroid use.Major League Baseball said only that Ramirez wassuspended for a violation of its drug policy.

After waiving his right to appeal, Ramirez will be

eligible to return July 3.

Baseballs black eyeA day after one superstar was disciplined,

another blemished superstar, Alex Rodriguez, isexpected to return the Yankees lineup. And the

list of tarnished reputations that alreadyincludes Barry Bonds and Roger Clemenscontinues to grow.

Im not surprised, former commis-sioner Fay Vincent told Sporting News

Today. I think the problem has been pervasive for along, long time.

Baseball can take solace in one way from Ramirezssuspension: No one can accuse the game of not punish-ing its superstars.

MLB is doing its part to get rid of the cheaters,Padres closer Heath Bell told SN Today. If you come uppositive, theyre going to bang you whether or not yourea $25 million player.

Dodgers will miss himThe Dodgers say they will welcome back Ramirez

when he is eligible to return. Until then, the club can relyon a still-potent offense that leads the N.L. in runs, apitching staff anchored by emerging ace Chad Billings-ley, a solid bullpen and a defense that allowed only oneunearned run in the teams first 29 games.

The Dodgers also will benefit from playing in the weakN.L. Westa division they probably would have beenfavored to win even if they hadnt re-signed Ramirez.

JEFFCHIU

/AP
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AUTO RACING

8 a.m.SPEEDFormulaOne, practice forSpanish GrandPrix, at Barcelona,Spain11:30 a.m.SPEEDNASCAR, SprintCup, practice forSouthern 500, at

Darlington, S.C.1:30 p.m.SPEEDNASCAR, SprintCup, HappyHour Series,final practice forSouthern 500, atDarlington, S.C.3 p.m.

SPEEDNASCAR,NationwideSeries, polequalifying forDiamond HillPlywood 200, atDarlington, S.C.

5 p.m.SPEEDNASCAR, SprintCup, polequalifying forSouthern 500, atDarlington, S.C.7:30 p.m.ESPN2NASCAR,NationwideSeries, DiamondHill Plywood 200,at Darlington, S.C.

BOXING

10 p.m.ESPN2

Middleweights,Brian Vera (16-2-0)vs. Craig McEwan(14-0-0), at FortWorth, Texas(same-day tape)

GOLF

9:30 a.m.TGCEuropeanPGA Tour, ItalianOpen, secondround, at Turin,Italy

1 p.m.

TGCPGA Tour,THE PLAYERSChampionship,second round,at Ponte VedraBeach, Fla.

2 p.m.ESPN2LPGA,MichelobULTRA Open,second round, at

Williamsburg, Va.

MAJOR

LEAGUE

BASEBALL

8 p.m.WGN ChicagoCubs atMilwaukee

NBA

BASKETBALL

7 p.m.ESPNPlayoffs,conferencesemifinals, Game3, Boston at

Orlando

9:30 p.m.ESPNPlayoffs,conferencesemifinals, Game3, L.A. Lakers atHouston

NHL HOCKEY

7 p.m.VERSUSPlayoffs, EasternConferencesemifinals, Game4, Washington atPittsburgh

9:30 p.m.VERSUSPlayoffs, EasternConferencesemifinals, Game4, Boston atCarolina (joinedin progress)

NBA

Lakers at Rockets9:30 p.m., ESPN

Physicality has been a big part of the firsttwo games of this series, and now the Lakerswill have to play without one of their startersbecause of it. PG Derek Fisher is suspendedfrom tonights game after trying to run througha Luis Scola pick in Game 3. With Fishers pen-chant for hitting big shots, that is a big blow forLos Angeles and it puts additional pressure onKobe Bryant. The only pressure on Houston isto hold the home-court edge it stole with itsGame 1 win.

NHL

Capitals at Penguins

7 p.m., VersusPittsburgh fans finally had an Evgeni Malkinsighting in Game 3, so its not surprising to seethe Penguins win that contest and hold servein this hotly contested best-of-7 matchup. ThePenguins need to keep peppering Capitalsrookie Simeon Varlamov, who has seen 32 moreshots than has his counterpart, Marc-AndreFleury. And despite some morbid commentsfrom one fan, Alex Ovechkin will be part of aCapitals team trying to go up 3-1.

BASEBALL

Cubs at Brewers8 p.m., WGN

The Brewers started slowly, but theyve gone

12-4 in their past 16 games, getting better thanexpected starting pitching to complementtheir potent lineup. During this run, Milwaukeehas taken advantage of some lesser teams, so aseries against the Cubs is a much better indica-tor of their talent. Dave Bush, who has had fourquality outings in his first five starts, faces call-up Randy Wells, who is taking the turn of injuredace Carlos Zambrano.

Compiled by Roger Kuznia

The Dolphins and minority investor Jimmy Buffett will announce today therenaming of Dolphin Stadium as LandShark Stadium, after the beer brewed byAnheuser-Busch under a license with

the entertainers Margaritaville market-ing arm, SportsBusiness Journals TerryLefton reported.

The next Pro Bowl and Super Bowl arescheduled to be played in the facility, butthe NFL will not allow the Land Sharkname to be used during its jewel events.The facility will revert to being calledDolphin Stadium next January, so, inessence, Land Shark Stadium will be aneight-month naming-rights deal, thoughsources noted there are other consider-ations in the deal, including Buffet per-formances at the stadium and a possibleMargaritaville Lounge in the venue.

Go to game, catch a movieThe Brewers will turn a parking lot at

Miller Park into a drive-in movie theaterthis summer, erecting a full-size screen,transmitting the movies audio to carradios and offering concessions fromKlements Sausage Haus, the Business Journal of Milwaukees Mark Kassreported. On June 5, Anchorman willlead off followed byJaws. On June 6, TheSandlotkicks off with Major Leaguefol-lowing. The movies for Aug. 7-8 havenot been announced.

Quick hitsPepsis Amp Energy has launchedTradin Paint, its new Dale Earnhardt Jr.-themed energy drink, SportsBusinessDaily reported. The drink will be avail-able nationwide through the end of thesummer in 16-ounce cans that featurethe same paint scheme as EarnhardtsNo. 88 Sprint Cup Chevy.

U.S. gold medal-winning gymnast

Shawn Johnson, one of four remainingcelebrities on Dancing with the Stars, isthe only athlete featured among Peoplemagazines 100 Most Beautiful Peoplethis year, SportsBusiness Daily reported.

IndyCar driver Danica Patrick hasmore than 2,000 followers on Twitterbut has yet to post an update. Wrote the Milwaukee Journal Sentinels Dave Kall-mann: Not sure what theyrefollowing.

Former Arizona State and Nebraskaquarterback Sam Keller has filed a class-

action lawsuit in Federal Court in Oak-land against Electronic Arts and theNCAA, alleging that athletes likenessesare used in video games without theirpermission and in violation of NCAArules, Bloomberg News reported. AnNCAA official said it is confident that nosuch use has occurred and that it willultimately be dismissed from the lawsuit.

SportsBusiness Daily, sportsbusinessdaily.com

Compiled by Ken Bradley, with wire reports

Dolphin Stadium officially named Land Shark

AMYSANCETTA/AP

Gold-medal gymnast Shawn Johnson got an awardfromPeoplemagazine for her good looks.

Tune In Today OFF THE FIELDSee a Different GameSPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com FRIDAY, MAY 08, 2009 2

A quick look at the best sports on TV all times Eastern

The countrys first and daily digital sports newsp

Delivered via email every morning, 7

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THEWORLDSFIRSTDIGDAILYSPORTSNEWSPA

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ON NEWSSTANDS

Rajon Rondo will play Game 3 aMagic tonight, but folks are sabout his first-round duel withDerrick Rose. SN Magazine reRondo-Rose talk will continue.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com FRIDAY, MAY 08, 2009My Profile

Channing CrowderDolphins linebacker

(What you wont find on Facebook even if you are approved as a friend)

Born: Dec. 2, 1983, in State College, Pa.Alma mater: FloridaWhats on TV:Family Guy,House,Iron Chef America, Chappelles ShowWhats in my iPod: Lil Wayne, Trick Daddy, Young Jeezy, Alicia KeysWhat I drive: 2007 Dodge RamFavorite flicks: The Program,Borat,Life,Any Given Sunday, all the Saw movies,

The Princess BrideWhat Im reading:LT: Over The Edge, by Lawrence Taylor; The BibleBookmarks: None. Dont own a computer.Superstitions: Dont split poles; listen to the same play list before every

game; mess with Ronnie Brown before game starts

Worst habits: Cussing people out; drinking out of milk cartonOn my office walls: Pictures of my dog named LTafter Lawrence Taylorand pictures of my two nieces and two nephews.

Love to trade places for a day with Hugh Hefner. Obvious.First job: Cashier at a Cub Foods, a grocery store in Atlanta. I was 16 years

old. I made $6.15 an hour. Got fired for eating cookies on the job.Favorite meal: Snow crab legsTalent Id most like to have: Play the pianoFavorite athletes to watch in other sports: Chris Paul and Tiger WoodsFavorite city to visit: MiamiFavorite team as a kid: Tampa Bay BuccaneersFavorite value in others: HonestyDream date: Alicia KeysMy greatest love: My familyMy hero: My mother

My bucket list: 1. Win a Super Bowl, 2. Go to Pro Bowl, 3. Have 6-plus kids, 4. Getmarried, 5. Watch my kids get college degreesMy motto: Clothes optional!

Jeff DAlessio

ELIOTJ.SCHECHTERFORSN
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MANNY RAMIREZ SUSPENDED

My shock about learning that MannyRamirez had been suspended lasted about30 seconds. I dont mean that in the way

most people say it wasnt shocking, aspart of an overarching point about how YouCant Trust Anything In Baseball Any-more. I mean that I was shocked, and then I

wasnt: The shock was soquick, so fleeting, so dis-posable. The story hadprogressed to its nextphase in less than aminute.

This is how things worknow. I spent this last Mon-day with Selena Roberts,author of the new biogra-phy/HORRIBLE SCAN-

DAL OF A BOOK! about Alex Rodriguez,following her around her media tour for astory forNew York magazine.

Three months ago, Roberts had brokenthe story that Alex Rodriguez had testedpositive for an anabolic steroid in 2003,and every media organization ran with thestory and absolutely buried A-Rod, partic-ularly after his shambling, bewildered con-fessions/press conferences afterwards. Butthat was two months ago.

Monday, I watched as Roberts and herbook were eviscerated, mostly for using thesame anonymous sourcing everyonethought worked just fine two months ago.

(One particularly loathsome radio hostdemanded an answer for trying to ruinA-Rods life for your own benefit.)

Our target no longer was A-Rod; it wasRoberts. What had changed in that time?How did we switch so fast? We got tired ofA-Rod, we got tired of steroids, we got tiredof it all. We just wanted it to go away. Weinadvertently set up an A-Rod RedemptionArc. Roberts book was inconvenient. Itwas in the way.

This is going to happen to MannyRamirez, too. Hell be disgraced but onlyfor a while. Sure, there will be discussionsfor years on what his numbers mean,whether he belongs in the Hall of Fame, allthe things that make baseball so special

and pure, all the things that will never letbaseball get out of its own way.

But eventually, well move on to the nextoutrage. So much has happened so quicklythat we keep veering all over the place,unable to settle on a direction before we

have to radically yank the wheel again. ItsBonds! Its Palmeiro! Its A-Rod! Its Manny!Its impossible to follow it.

So does Mannys testing positive meanwe overreacted to Bonds? Or were we tookind to him? Do we have to hate Manny

now? Is the game still supposedly rNo one knows what to think a

The only rational response is

thinking.(Mind you: Theres the delicious ity that the defense some close toare usingthat Manny took a drugual enhancement that, unbeknohim, was banned by Major Leagueis actually true. A future Hall of lovable goofball, a true baseball oreverything hed ever worked fofelled because he wanted to perfor bedroom. Could there possibly bapt turn for Manny Ramirezs take?)

Seriously, its time to let it go. Imit, were all tired of it. Well nev

know what happened during the Era, who was using, who wasnt.youmost of you will be media mewill be driven mad by this fact. Mowill not. Most of you will recogn baseball is a sport. Its entertainmsomething that can move us, tohearts, inspire us, connect generatiits still just a bunch of guys wearinoutfits swinging a stick and around a square.

We find joy in this for myriad reis meaningful. But it is not everythiit is not a morality play. When we king to make it into one, we get the w

we have now, the We Hate A-Defend A-Rod, the We Love Manny Betrayed Us! nonsense thaever seems to end.

This game is really, really fun. the same game its always been. Tpeople who can take that away from

Will Leitch is the author of three book s, including

Fan. He is the founding editor of Deadspin, a contrib

New York magazine and a regular columnist for S

Magazine. Get more of his opinions at leitc

Ramirez sits out, but we keep playing our game

Will LeitchBASEBALL

KATHYWILLENS/AP

As Alex Rodriguez, right, returns from hip surgery and his own admission of banned substance use, Manny Ramirez heads off for a 50-game suspension for using a PED.

SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com FRIDAY, MAY 08, 2009Baseball
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This is significant.That was the assessment of a Dodgers

scout who was in the press box at BuschStadium when he heard about what theLos Angeles Times first reported Thursdaymorning: Dodgers outfielder MannyRamirez had been suspended for 50 games

for testing positive forperformance-enhancingdrugs and would be outuntil July 3.

Well, yes, significant itis. That might be an

understatement along thelines of saying Mannyneeds a haircut or that afew baseball playersmight have used steroids.

But losing their best hitter and the face ofthe franchise might not be as catastrophicto the Dodgers playoff hopes as you wouldthink. If any division leader can weather 50games without its best hitter, the Dodgersmight be that team.

Based on their statement of supportThursday, the Dodgers have no intention oftrying to get out of the $45 million contractthey gave Manny. He cheated, he got caught.

Now hurry back. We will welcome Manny back upon his return, the club said instatement. Never mind that the Dodgersreputation could be tarnished for promot-ing a proven cheater.

Their season is off to such a great start.They went into Thursday nights gameagainst the Nationals with a major-leaguebest 21-8 record and a record 13-0 start athome. Even if it is only early May, being 13games over .500 is a nice cushion in a

division that the Dodgers won last seasonat only six games over .500.

Even more noteworthy is their competi-tion in the N.L. West. Its not exactly the best. In fact, even without Manny, theDodgers still have the best offense in themajors weakest-hitting division. Second baseman Orlando Hudson might not keephis average around .340 without Mannyhitting behind him. Outfielder Andre Eth-ier probably wont average nearly an RBIper game without Manny hitting in front ofhim. But the Dodgers still have a lineup

with no real weak links.With Manny, the Dodgers were leadingthe N.L. in runs, hits, walks, on-base per-centage and not having to bat in the ninthinning. Without Manny, they still went intoThursdays game with three players with20 or more runs scored. The rest of thedivision had one: Padres first basemanAdrian Gonzalez.

Mannys replacement, Juan Pierre, wonthit six homers all seasonMannys total todatebut he has been yearning to playevery day. Now that he has a chance, Pierrewill do everything he can to make the mostof it. In Pierres rare starts to date, he has

hit ninth to give the Dodgers the Tony LaRussa look of two leadoff hitters. For whatits worth, Pierre also will be an upgrade inthe field.

Xavier Paul, 24, was called up to takeMannys roster spot. Paul is a 6-0, 195-pound, lefthanded-hitting outfielder, andthe Dodgers scout called him a Shane Vic-torino-type. Paul is considered one of theclubs better outfield prospects with pluspower potential, and he was hitting .344

for Class AAA Albuquerque.Although the Dodgers pitching has had

trouble keeping up with their offense, thestaffoutside of the back of the rotationhas held its own. Chad Billingsley, 5-0 witha 2.21 ERA, is pitching like a legitimate No.1, and Jonathan Broxton looks like a top-flight closer. The bullpen, a question com-ing in, ranked second in the N.L. with a3.09 ERA before Thursdays game. Thepitching has been helped by a defense thathas allowed only one unearned run in thefirst 29 games.

The Dodger who will be under the mostpressure is manager Joe Torre. He is theone responsible for making sure the teamdoesnt come apart in Mannys absence.With Torre at the helm, there should befew worries. No manager is better at keep-ing pressure off of his players than Torre.No manager is better at keeping his teamon even keel. No manager has more expe-rience dealing with such distractions.

After the Dodgers homestand ends Sun-day, they will embark on a tough part oftheir schedule. They will travel to Philadel-phia and Florida before playing host to theMets and Angels. All those games come

before June.That still leaves 34 games before Mannysscheduled return for a series at San Diegoon July 3. By then, theres a good chance theDodgers lead might not be the biggest inbaseball.

But they still will have Manny for theseasons final three months. Last year, theydid OK with him for only the final twomonths.

[email protected]

Dont expect panic move

from Manny-less Dodgers

Stan McNealBASEBALL

CH

Juan Pierre, above, cant make up for the power production of Manny Ramirez, but hell outplay him in

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BY BILL EICHENBERGER

[email protected]

NEW YORKThe Yankees were

digesting the news of Dodgers out-fielder Manny Ramirezs 50-gamesuspension for a failed drug testwhen manager Joe Girardi made anannouncement of his own. Girardiconfirmed that Yankees third base-man Alex Rodriguez, who admittedearlier this year that he used ste-roids from 2001-03, would returnto the team tonight in Baltimore.

Even for the Yankees, for whomcontroversy and sudden twists andturns are the norm, this was a jar-ring sequence of events. The elationover Rodriguezs return from hip

surgery was tempered by whatRamirezs failed test meant to theintegrity of their sport.

It doesnt look good, Yankeescaptain Derek Jeter said of theRamirez revelation. It seems likeits a never-ending thing. Thatswhat it has seemed like of late. Youwant to put it behind you, but thenyou have something like this comeup. Its another black eye. Thats thebest way you can put it.

Jeter said he still is surprised whena player fails a drug test. Obviously,youre shocked, he said. Its not like

I assume everyone is doing it.Yankee outfielder Johnny Damonsaid the news about Ramirez, his for-mer teammate with the Red Sox, sur-prised and disappointed himbutnot as much as the similar news aboutRodriguez earlier this year. Im notsure that you can be too surprisedabout anyone anymore, Damon said.But the steroid allegations againstA-Rod, that was the biggest surprise

to me. Now another one of our greatplayers has gotten in trouble.

Damon said Rodriguez andRamirez have something in commonthat makes their decision to allegedlyuse performance-enhancing drugsdifficult to understand. Both are sohard-working and gifted, Damonsaid, it is dif ficult to understand why

theyd feel the need to cheat. Mannywas such a talented hitter. He madethings look easy. But he did hishomework, the videos that hewatched, the hard work that he putin on the field and off the field. Ididnt think he needed an edge.

Yankees first baseman Mark Teix-eira said Ramirezs suspension is fairwarning for every player in baseball.We have the strict testing. If anyone

is messing around with it now, theyare going to get caught, he said.

Girardi said there should be noconfusion about the drug-testingrules and regulations. Its talkedabout the first day of spring train-ing, he said. We always say, Nomatter what you take, you better letone of our doctors or trainers know

so that you know its safe. Damon said he hopes Ramirezsfailed test wont tarnish what theyaccomplished as teammates on the2004 Red Sox, winning the franchisesfirst World Series since 1918. I wouldlove to know that we went throughthat season and played fair, that every-thing we won we won the right way. Iwould love for it to come out that way.

But now he cant be sure.


MLB drug suspensionsPlayersthathavebeensuspendedforviolationsoftheMajorLeagueDrugPreventionandTreatmentProgramsinceitwasestablishedin 2005:

2009May 7Manny Ramirez, OF, L.A. Dodgers, 50 games,bannedsubstance.March23x-Kelvin Pichardo,P,San Francisco, 50 games,performance.Jan. 6x-Sergio Mitre, P, N.Y. Yankees, 50 games, perfor-mance.Jan.6J.C.Romero,P,Philadelphia,50 games,performance.

2008Nov. 11x-Henry Owens,P, Florida, 50 games,perfor-mance.May28x-HumbertoCota,C,Colorado,50 games,perfor-mance.April30x-Eliezer Alfonzo, C, San Francisco, 50 games,performance.2007Dec. 6z-Jay Gibbons, OF, Baltimore, 15 days, perfor-mance.Dec. 6z-JoseGuillen, OF, Kansas City, 15 days, perfor-mance.Nov. 27DanSerafini, P, free agent,50 games,perfor-mance.Oct.31Mike Cameron,OF, freeagent,25 games, stimu-lant.Sept.7Ryan Jorgensen, C, Cincinnati, 50 games,viola-tion.Aug.3Neifi Perez,INF,Detroit, 80games, stimulant.July6Neifi Perez,INF,Detroit, 25games, stimulant.May7Juan Salas,P,TampaBay, 50games, performance.2006Nov. 1GuillermoMota,P,free agent, 50 games, perfor-mance.June12y-JasonGrimsley,P,Arizona,50 games,perfor-mance.April28x-Yusaku Iriki, P, N.Y. Mets,50 games,perfor-mance.2005Nov. 2Matt Lawton, OF, free agent,10 days, perfor-mance.Oct.18Felix Heredia,P,N.Y.Mets, 10days, performance.Oct.4Carlos Almanzar,P,Texas,10 days,perf ormance.Sept. 7Mike Morse, INF-OF, Seattle, 10 days, perfor-mance.Aug.2Ryan Franklin,P,Seattle, 10days, performance.

Aug.1RafaelPalmeiro, INF, Baltimore,10 days,perfor-mance.July 8Rafael Betancourt,P, Cleveland,10 days,perfor-mance.May2Juan Rincon,P,Minnesota,10 days,unavailable.April26Jamal Strong,OF,Seattle, 10days, performance.April20Agustin Montero,P,Texas,10days, unavailable.April11JorgePiedra, OF,Colorado,10 days,unavailable.April3AlexSanchez,OF,TampaBay,10days,performance.x-Testedpositivewhile onthe 40-manroster.y-Was released by Arizona on June 7; suspension wouldbeginuponhisplacementtoa 40-manroster.z-Eliminated with April 2008 drug agreement betweenMajorLeagueBaseballand MajorLeagueBaseballPlayersAssociation.

Its like deja vu all over again for Yankees

Manny Ramirezs drug s uspension surprised a number of major league players.

DAVIDZALUBOWSKI/AP

A-Rod to play in Baltimore todNEW YORKAlex Rodriguez will

make his season debut for the NewYork Yankees tonight in Baltimore, joining a team that desperatelyneeds some timely hitting.

The Yankees announced thatA-Rod would rejoin the team onThursday, a few hours after the All-Star third baseman played in hisfinal rehab game in Florida.

He went 0-for-2 with two walksand put in three innings of defense,then took some extra ground ballsand batting practice.

Were all very encouraged thathes doing well and were all anxiousto get him back, said manager JoeGirardi, who learned of the decisionshortly before the Yankees wrappedup a two-game series against Tampa

Bay. We would have taken himback five weeks ago, if we could.Rodriguez had surgery March 9

to repair torn cartilage in his righthip, and has recovered morequickly than expected. The Yan-kees had initially set a target datefor his return of May 15.

A lot of us had a hard time wrap-ping our arms around it, that it wasactually physically possible, becausewe hadnt seen a player come backthis quick from that kind of surgery,Girardi said. But now that were tothis point, its kind of exciting.

The three-time A.L. MVP spentmuch of his rehab assignment facingquestions about a biography releasedthis week that suggests he used per-formance-enhancing drugs in highschool and also may have taken themafter he became a Yankee in 2004.

Rodriguez hasnt commentedabout the book.

He admitted earlier this year totaking steroids when he was a

member of the Texas from 2001-03.

On Thursday, he shooand thanked support staYankees minor league

in Tampa following the intgame.A-Rod credited Dr. Mar

pon, who operated on theDr. Mark Lindsay, a soexpert who has worked wdaily in Florida, for the suhis rehab program.

They have worked (hame, Rodriguez said. Pdid a good job with the sufeel blessed.

His return comes at antune time for the Yankehave struggled to find k

Theyre 4-for-32 with ruscoring position during game slide, and their 13after a big offseason spendalready has put some Girardi and G.M. Brian Ca

He adds to the team Jeter told Sporting NewsBill Eichenberger. But wcomes back, we have tagainst thinking that nowthing is fine and dandy he is back in the lineup.going to help. He would team that hes playing for

of what he is able to do. Bulike hes back now and savior. Everyone else htheir job.

We need some more tion on the offensive side ais the guy who could dooutfielder Johnny Dammean, hes definitely onbest players around.

The As

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NEW YORKManny Ramirez joineda growing lineup of All-Stars linkedto drugs Thursday, with the dread-locked slugger banished for 50

games by a sport that cannot shakefree from scandal.The Los Angeles Dodgers out-

fielder was suspended by MajorLeague Baseball, adding a furtherstamp to what will forever beknown as the Steroids Era.

Ramirez said he did not take steroidsand was given medication by a doctorthat contained a banned substance. Aperson familiar with the details of thesuspension said Ramirez used thefemale fertility drug HCG, or humanchorionic gonadotropin. The personspoke to The Associated Press on con-

dition of anonymity because thebanned substance wasnt announced.HCG is popular among steroid

users because it can mitigate the sideeffects of ending a cycle of the drugs.The body may stop producing testos-terone when users go off steroids,which can cause sperm counts todecrease and testicles to shrink.

Ramirezs suspension was basednot on the test result but rather evi-dence obtained afterward, a secondperson familiar with the suspensionsaid, speaking on condition of ano-nymity because those details were

not released. MLB had concludedthe spring test was positive, but theperson said the players associationwould have challenged the resultbecause of testing issues.

Ranked 17th on the career homerun list with 533, Ramirez becamethe most prominent baseball playerto be penalized for drugs. His bancame three months after Alex Rodri-guez admitted using steroids, and at

a time when Barry Bonds is underfederal indictment and Roger Clem-ens is accused of lying to Congressabout his own alleged steroid use.

No matter which way baseballturns, the legitimacy of many of itsrecent home run and pitchingrecords are being questioned. Slug-gers Mark McGwire and SammySosa have been tainted by steroidallegations, Rafael Palmeiro testedpositive for a banned drug and JoseCanseco said he used them.

In every case, players once believed to be locks for the Hall ofFame may now be locked out.

You cant have arguably the great-est pitcher of our era, arguably the twogreatest players of our era and now

another very, very good player beunder this cloud of suspicion and notfeel like it has ruined it for everybody,Atlanta star Chipper Jones said.

But what are you going to do?You cant be born in a different era.It is the Steroid Era, he said.

And that prompted yet anotherapology from another ballplayer.The 36-year-old Ramirez told theDodgers and fans he was sorry forthis whole situation.

Recently, I saw a physician for a per-sonal health issue. He gave me a medi-cation, not a steroid, which he thought

was OK to give me, Ramirez said in astatement issued by the players union.Unfortunately, the medication

was banned under our drug policy.Under the policy that mistake is nowmy responsibility. I have beenadvised not to say anything more fornow. I do want to say one other thing;Ive taken and passed about 15 drugtests over the past five seasons.

While Ramirez had little to say,

Canseco was quick to explain whysomeone might use HCG.

It could be that a player used it because he used steroids and wentcold-turkey and needed HCG to gethis levels back to normal. I had to useit when I quit steroids cold-turkey,said Canseco, who pleaded guilty lastNovember to a misdemeanor of try-ing to bring HCG across the Mexican

border into the United States illegally,told the AP. I had to go to a doctor toget it and get my levels back.

Because MLB imposed the sus-pension, the Dodgers cannot fur-ther discipline Ramirez.

We share the disappointment felt by our fans, our players, and everymember of our organization, Dodgerschief executive officer Jamie McCourtsaid in a statement. We will welcome

Manny back upon his return.Ramirez was not mentioned in the

Mitchell Report in December 2007,MLBs official report on drug use, andthere had not been whispers that hewas among the sports juiced players.

Rodriguez and Ramirez are thetwo highest-paid players in themajors. With this suspension, six ofthe top 17 home run hitters in history

now have been covered by the cloudof performance-enhancing drugs.Its kind of shocking that he got

caught up in anything, honestly.Manny likes to play stupid, but hesa pretty bright guy. And hes defi-nitely aware of a lot of things that hetries to act like hes completelyoblivious to, said Cincinnatipitcher Bronson Arroyo, Ramirezsformer Boston teammate.

Baseball added HCG to its list ofbanned substances last year. HCG isprescribed to stimulate female fertilityand testosterone production in menand to treat delayed puberty in boys.

Reaction to Ramirezs ban cameswiftly, from major league club-houses to the White House.

Its a tragedy. Its a shame. Mysense is, its a great embarrassment on

Major League Baseball, White Housepress secretary Robert Gibbs said.The penalty left the best team in

the majors without its driving forceand free spirit for nearly one-thirdof the season. Ramirezs suspensionbegan Thursday. Barring any post-ponements, he will be able to returnto the Dodgers for the July 3 game atSan Diego. Ramirez will lose$7,650,273 of his $25 million salary.

Baseball commissioner Bcouldnt comment on the sion because of provisionmanagement-union drug

ment, spokesman Rich LevRamirezs agent, Scott Bothe players association hered materials for a possibto an arbitrator, but decided not to file one bedidnt want to risk missingcant time in the second haseason, the person famildetails of the suspension sunion said merely that hehis right to contest the susp

Ramirez is batting .348 home runs and 20 RBIs the first 27 games of the sea

Losing Ramirez to sucould be a huge blow finanthe Dodgers. The slugger hsingle-handedly responsibincreasing attendance, mersales and interest in the teamtion to helping it win the Nafter his late-season arrival i

Los Angeles even renamtion of seats in left field atStadium Mannywood honor. Hours after the susthe team removed a refethose seats from its website

In his statement, Ramirez a

Dodgers owners Frank anMcCourt, and manager Joe TI want to apologize

McCourt, Mrs. McCourt, Mmy teammates, the Dodgerzation, and to the DodgeRamirez said. LA is a specto me, and I know everybodappointed. So am I. Im sorthis whole situation.

The As

Ramirez banished, but claims he didnt take steroid

MARKJ.TERRILL/AP

Hours after Manny Ramirezs suspension, the Dodgers removed from their website a reference to the left-field seats called Mannywood.

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St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russawas talking to reporters before Thursdaysgame against Pittsburgh when a clubhouseattendant stuck his head in and said: MannyRamirez, 50 games.

Youre kidding me, La Russa said.Then he checked the schedule to seewhether the Cardinals would be playing theLos Angeles Dodgers while Ramirez is out.

Reaction ranged from shock to self-interestacross baseball and other sports after MajorLeague Baseball suspended the slugger for 50games for failing a drug test.

The commissioners office did not identifythe substance; Ramirez said it was not ste-roids but a medication containing a bannedsubstance that a doctor had given him.

Under the policy that mistake is now myresponsibility, he said in a statement releasedby the players union. L.A. is a special place

to me and I know everybody is disappointed.So am I. Im sorry about this wholesituation.

At Fenway Park, where Ramirez playedthrough his prime and became Bostons firstWorld Series MVP, the writer of his autho-rized biography happened to be giving alunchtime talk when the news broke. Inno-cent until proven guilty, and I dont have allthe facts, said Jean Rhodes, the author of Becoming Manny: Inside the Life of BaseballsMost Enigmatic Slugger.

Rhodes painted Ramirez as a quirky crafts-man who gave off an air of apathy but wasdiligent in his preparations.

Thats the assessment of Cincinnati Redspitcher Bronson Arroyo, who played withRamirez on the 2004 team that ended Bos-tons 86-year World Series drought.

I wouldnt have been surprised if anybodyin the game turned up on anything prior to04, but since 04, I feel like the games beenpretty clean, Arroyo said.

Its kind of shocking that he got caught upin anything, honestly. Manny likes to playstupid, but hes a pretty bright guy. And hes

definitely aware of a lot of things that he triesto act like hes completely oblivious to.

The Red Sox declined to comment on thespecifics of Ramirezs suspension but added:We staunchly support Major League Base- balls drug policy and commend the effortsassociated with that program.

When the Red Sox clubhouse openedThursday afternoon, TVs were giving the lat-

est developments and few players milledabout.No comment about Manny, slugger David

Ortiz said, walking past reporters at hislocker. I play for Boston. Manny plays forL.A. Go and ask him.

In his pregame meeting with the media,manager Terry Francona deflected threeattempts for comment on Ramirez. The fourthquestion was about injuries.

Bless you, he told the reporter. Thank

God weve got injuries.Ramirezs quirky side made him a fan

favorite for his early years in Boston, and itmay have helped him become the Hall ofFame-caliber player who seemed unaffectedby strikeouts, home runs and paychecks alike.But his uncaring attitude eventually worethin on his teammates, and he was shipped toLos Angeles last summer.

He batted .396 with the Dodgers with 17homers and 53 RBIs in 53 games and helpedpropel them to the playoffs.

Hes a main cog, and hes not going to be inplay for a while, Rockies manager Clint Hur-dle said. Well see how that ball club handlesthat adversity. Can they win without him? Imsure they feel confident that they can. But Iknow theyre a different team without him inthe lineup.

The Associated Press

What theyre sayingReaction to Manny Ramirezs 50-gamesuspension:

I think the fans come to thegame, whatever sport it is andthey want their team to win. Idont think theyre thinking aboutthose things. ... I think theyreinterested in their team winning.In any sport, not just baseball.So quote me on that. Its not justbaseball. When fans go to the parkand theyre cheering for theirteam, theyre not standing upthere in the seventh inning, in myopinion, thinking about whether aguy did something. I dont believethat happens.

Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland

In terms of high-profilecases, this shows baseball isgetting more serious in termsof the testing program andthats a good thing. ... Also, it isregrettable that the sport doesnot identify substances involvedin positive cases. Baseball needsto be transparent.

WADA director general David Howman

I hope you never hear mebe accusational toward anybodybecause I know for a fact thatsome of these things with guys

being suspended at the majorleague or minor league level areinnocent as it gets. Of course,some of them are not, but Im notthe judge in this case.

Royals manager Trey Hillman

When he was young, Idefinitely dont think he was onsteroids. ... In some ways Im sadabout it because I had him when

he was young. Hes a great I look at Manny Ramirez likson. Ill wait to see exactlyits all about.

Phillies manager Charlie Ma

managed and coached Ram

minors and from 1994-200

Clevela

Obviously it hurts medeeply. No. 1, Im a huge fathats for sure. So I think itsad news for the game, no dabout it. Its just somethinthat, you know, when I hadGenesis I used to be him. Itone of those things. What cwe say? Its definitely bad bad newsand bad news iswelcome.

Major league home rCarlos Pena of the Tampa

This is somethingregrettable because Mannyone of my favorite players thought his numbers, his ahis home runs and RBIs whclean.

Hall of Fame pitcher Juan

Its unfortunate for tgame when you have big nabeing suspended or beingpunished, but I hope peoplrealize were doing all we cplayers and as a sport in geto make sure were clean.

San Diego Padres pitcher J

Its too bad. Hes onestar players. Nothing surpranymore. Unfortunate.

Atlanta Braves manager B

Sluggers sanction shakes, shocks fellow MLBers

Youre kidding me, was Cardinals manager Tony LaRussas reaction when told of Manny Ramirezs 50-game suspension.

CHARLESKRUPA/AP


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The Diamondbacks fired Bob Melvinon Thursday, hoping a new managerwill be able to get the most out of theirtalented core of young players.

The Diamondbacks said they willselect Melvins replacement at aChase Field news conference today.

SI.com reported that Arizona willname former MLB catcher A.J. Hinch,who served as VP of player develop-ment, as manager. Melvins firingcomes after a disappointing 12-17start by the Diamondbacks.

Melvin, who went 337-340 in four-plus seasons, had one year left on acontract he received after beingnamed the 2007 NL Manager of theYear. Hitting coach Rick Schu also wasfired, and pitching coach Bryan Price

resigned.

Tigers manager Jim Leylandannounced Thursday that DontrelleWillis will return to the rotationWednesday night in Minnesota.

Willis, who has been on the dis-abled list with an anxiety disordersince the end of spring training,hasnt won a game in the majorssince Sept. 25, 2007, with the FloridaMarlins. Willis has made four reha-bilitation starts in the minor leagues.Leyland also said he was encouragedabout the progress of righthander

Jeremy Bonderman, whos rehabbing inextended spring training.

According to The PhiladelphiaInquirer, the world champion Philliesare concerned with P Brett Myers loca-tion. When asked whether Myershas been missing his spots too often,pitching coach Rich Dubee told thenewspaper, A lot of misses? Id saythere are way too many, yeah.

Myers, who is 2-2 with a 5.35 ER A insix starts this season, has issued 15walks and allowed 10 homers in 37innings. In addition to Myers loca-tion problems, there is also comeconcern about a decrease in velocityfrom last season. In his start Tues-day, he averaged 88-89 mph, com-pared to 90-93 mph late last season,

according to the newspaper.

The Cardinals placed OF RickAnkiel on the 15-day disabled list, ret-roactive to Tuesday. Ankiel crashedheadfirst into the outfield wall whilemaking a catch Monday, and thoughhe was carted off the field and spentthe night in the hospital, he sufferedonly a bruised shoulder and someoverall soreness.

According to the HoustonChronicle, X-rays on the right indexfinger of Astros P Roy Oswalt con-firmed the teams initial diagnosis.Oswalt, who injured the finger inTuesdays start, has a bone bruisebut no fractures. He expects to startSunday against San Diego. In otherAstros news, the Houston Chronicle

reported 3B Aaron Boone, who hadopen-heart surgery before the sea-son, visited the clubhouse earlierthis week. Boone hasnt ruled out areturn this season.

Cubs OF Milton Bradley is await-ing word from Major League Base- ball about the appeal of histwo-game suspension. Bradley wasejected April 16 for arguing balls

and strikes, and there was allegedcontact (hats touching) betweenBradley and home plate umpireLarry Vanover during the argument.

Bradley told the Chicago Sun-Times,You need a video forensic expert tofind any possible contact.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, White Sox P Jose Contrerashas been put on notice. Contreras,who will start tonight againstTexas, is 0-4 with an 8.31 ERA infive starts this season.

Mariners manager Don Waka-matsu told The Seattle Times that hehas reached his threshold withstruggling P Carlos Silva. In the next

couple of days, Wakamatsu plansto speak with general managerJackZduriencik about the situation. Silvawas 4-15 with a 6.46 ERA in 28starts last season and is 1-3 withan 8.48 ERA in six starts thisseason.

Minor League Baseball atten-dance for the month of April wasdown less than one percent fromthe same period last year, despitethe economy and a later than usualstart to the season, SportsBusinessJournals Eric Fisher reported. Six

of the 11 full-season affiliatedleagues showed year-over-yearattendance growth, led by a 23.1percent spike in the Class A FloridaState League.

Former Phillies managerDanny Ozark, who led Philadelphiato three consecutive N.L. Easttitles in the 1970s, died Thursday.He was 85.

THE LAUNCHING PAD

What to expect in the major leagues today

We meet again ... alreadyJust over one month into the season, the Rays and Red Sox are re

match up for the third time. Tonight, theyre back at Fenway Park, wheRays took two of three during the opening series of the 2009 seasoweekend, Tampa Bay won three of four games played at TropicanFor Boston, Jacoby Ellsbury, Mike Lowell, Jason Bay, Jason Varitek andOrtiz are hitting a combined .176 (21-119) with three homers and ninvs. the Rays this season. By comparison, Tampa Bays Evan Longoria is.419 (13-for-31) with four homers and 15 RBIs against Boston in 2009.

Will Hamels end the hex?It ended so well for Phillies ace Cole Hamels in 2008. He posted

record and a 1.80 ERA in five postseason starts, en route to NLCS andSeries MVP honors and a world championship. Then came the elbowlems in spring training, the line drive off his shoulder in his third start asprained ankle in his fourth start. Perhaps he should pitch with bodyon tonight against the Braves. If Hamels luck is going to turn around

ever, facing Atlanta might be just what he needs. He went 3-1 withERA in five starts against the Braves in 2008, the most wins he had opponent in the regular season.

One and DunnThe Diamondbacks rank at or near the bottom of the league in just

every key offensive category, so the last thing their disgruntled fans wsee is Adam Dunn on the field in a n opposing uniform. Dunn had eighers and 26 RBIs after being traded to the D-backs late last season, and return to Chase Field this weekend as a member of the last-place Nat

C

INSIDE DISH

D-backs dump Melvin after poor start

GENEJ.PUSKAR/AP

Phillies starter Brett Myers has already walked 15 batters in just 37 innings.

CHRISOM

Of Evan Longorias 35 RBIs this season, 15 have come against Boston.
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SPORTINGNEWSTODAY www.sportingnews.com FRIDAY, MAY 08, 2009Baseball

MORE COVERAGEGet everything you need to

dominate your fantasy league atsportingnews.com/fantasy/baseball

Fantasy FocusStart em, Sit em

Start em

Brandon Inge, 3B/C, Tigers. Inge is13-for-33 (.394) with three homersagainst Indians ace Cliff Lee.

Jose Lopez, 2B, Mariners. Lopezsbat has heated up in recent weeks,and he is 9-for-18 in his careeragainst Minnesotas Scott Baker.

J.D. Drew, OF, Red Sox. As long as he

is healthy, Drew is a good startagainst James Shields. He is8-for-20 with a homer againstTampas ace.

Sit em

Yunel Escobar/Kelly Johnson, Braves.Atlantas middle infield duo is acombined 4-for-28 (.143) againstPhiladelphias Cole Hamels.

Aubrey Huff, 3B/OF, Orioles. Huff hasstruggled (7-for-28, six strikeouts)in his career against Yankeeslefthander CC Sabathia.

Cliff Lee, SP, Indians. Lee wasnt

sharp in his outing against theTigers on Sunday, and he had a5.09 ERA and 1.42 WHIP aga instDetroit in his stellar Cy Youngcampaign in 2008.

Brad Pinkerton

LEAGUE LEADERS

Batting Average

Runs

RBIs

Doubles

Triples

Home Runs

Stolen Bases

Pitching (3 decisions)

Strikeouts

Saves

A.L.

Player Team

Longoria TampaBay 14

Callaspo KansasCity 13

Polanco Detroit 12

MYoung Texas 12

Four tied 11

N.L.

Player Team

FSanchez Pittsburgh 13

Kotchman Atlanta 11

Zimmerman Washington 11

MCameron Milwaukee 10

Hudson LosAngeles 10

Tejada Houston 10

Votto Cincinnati 10

A.L.

Player Team

Greinke KansasCity 54

Verlander Detroit 45

FHernandez Seattle 45

Halladay Toronto 44

Lester Boston 43

Bedard Seattle 39

Two tied 36

N.L.

Player Team

Santana NewYork 54

Peavy SanDiego 52

Haren Arizona 51

Lincecum San Francisco 50

JVazquez Atlanta 50

Billingsley Los Angeles 42

Harden Chicago 41

A.L.

Player Team

FFrancisco Texas 9

Fuentes LosAngeles 7

Papelbon Boston 7

Soria KansasCity 7

Jenks Chicago 6

Rodney Detroit 6

Fivetied 5

N.L.

Player Team

FrRodriguez NewYork 9

Franklin St. Louis 9

Cordero Cincinnati 8

Bell SanDiego 8

Broxton LosAngeles 8

Qualls Arizona 7

BWilson SanFrancisco 6

A.L.

Player Team


CPena TampaBay 30

Bay Boston 29

Lind Toronto 29

Markakis Baltimore 29

AHill Toronto 28

Lowell Boston 26.

N.L.

Player Team

Pujols St. Louis 32

Cantu Florida 30

Ethier LosAngeles 27

BMolina San Francisco 27

Braun Milwaukee 24

Fielder Milwaukee 24

Ludwick St. Louis 24

A.L.

Player Team

Markakis Baltimore 31

Scutaro Toronto 31

AdJones Baltimore 30

Pedroia Boston 27

Bay Boston 26

AHill Toronto 25

Longoria TampaBay 24.

N.L.

Player Team

Pujols St. Louis 29

ASoriano Chicago 27

Hudson LosAngeles 25

Hart Milwaukee 24

Victorino Philadelphia 24

Ethier LosAngeles 23

Five tied 22

A.L.

Player Team

Youkilis Boston .393

VMartinez Cleveland .391

MiCabrera Detroit .390

Longoria TampaBay .368

AHill Toronto .362

Callaspo Kansas City .359

Markakis Baltimore .355

N.L.

Player Team

Beltran NewYork .382

Votto Cincinnati .370

Pujols St. Louis .356

Helton Colorado .355

MRamirez Los Angeles .348

Ibanez Philadelphia .343

Hudson LosAngeles .339

A.L.

Player Team

CPena TampaBay 13


Granderson Detroit 9

Kinsler Texas 9

Five tied 8

N.L.

Player Team

Pujols St. Louis 11

AdGonzalez San Diego 9

ASoriano Chicago 9

Bruce Cincinnati 8

Cantu Florida 8

Ibanez Philadelphia 8

Utley Philadelphia 8

A.L.

Player Team

Crawford TampaBay 20

Ellsbury Boston 15

Abreu LosAngeles 12

Figgins LosAngeles 12

Kinsler Texas 7

Span Minnesota 7

BUpton TampaBay 7

N.L.

Player Team

Fowler Colorado 9

Bourn Houston 8

Burriss SanFrancisco 8

Kemp LosAngeles 7

Morgan Pittsburgh 7

JosReyes NewYork 7

Threetied 6

A.L.

Player Team

Greinke Kansas City 6-0 1.000

Buehrle Chicago 5-0 1.000

Richmond Toronto 4-0 1.000

Frasor Toronto 4-0 1.000

ABailey Oakland 3-0 1.000

Bannister Kansas City 3-0 1.000

N.L.

Player Team

Billingsl ey Los Angel es 5-0 1. 000

Meredith San Diego 4-0 1.000

Pelfrey NewYork 4-0 1.000

Martis Washington 3-0 1.000

Broxton Los Angeles 3-0 1.000

DiFelice Milwaukee 3-0 1.000

A.L.

Player Team

Crisp KansasCity 4

Andrus Texas 2

Bloomquist Kansas City 2

JBuck KansasCity 2

Crosby Oakland 2

Cuddyer Minnesota 2

Fields Chicago 2

N.L.

Player Team

Bourn Houston 3

Kemp LosAngeles 3

Victorino Philadelphia 3

15 tied 2

GUSRUELAS/AP

Detroits Brandon Inge

American League StandingsEast W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomeToronto 20 11 .645 6-4 L-1 11-4Boston 18 11 .621 1 5-5 W-1 11-3TampaBay 14 16 .467 5 4 6-4 W-3 6-7NewYork 13 15 .464 5 4 4-6 L-5 6-7Baltimore 12 17 .414 7 6 3-7 W-2 9-8

Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomeKansasCity 18 11 .621 8-2 W-6 11-6Detroit 14 13 .519 3 3 5-5 L-1 8-5Chicago 13 14 .481 4 4 4-6 W-1 7-6Minnesota 13 16 .448 5 5 4-6 L-3 9-8Cleveland 11 18 .379 7 7 4-6 L-1 5-7

West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomeTexas 15 13 .536 7-3 L-1 8-6Seattle 15 14 .517 3 3-7 L-4 7-7LosAngeles 13 14 .481 1 4 7-3 W-1 7-7Oakland 10 16 .385 4 6 4-6 W-1 5-8

National League StandingsEast W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomePhiladelphia 14 12 .538 6-4 L-2 6-8NewYork 14 13 .519 1 6-4 W-4 8-6Florida 15 14 .517 1 4-6 L-3 6-7Atlanta 13 15 .464 2 3 4-6 W-2 5-9Washington 8 18 .308 6 7 5-5 W-1 5-7

Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomeSt. Louis 19 10 .655 6-4 W-2 12-5Chicago 16 12 .571 2 7-3 W-2 8-6Milwaukee 16 13 .552 3 7-3 L-1 7-6Cincinnati 15 13 .536 3 1 5-5 W-1 5-8Pittsburgh 12 16 .429 6 4 1-9 L-5 7-7Houston 11 17 .393 7 5 5-5 L-3 5-10

West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str HomeLosAngeles 21 9 .700 8-2 L-1 13-1SanFrancisco 14 13 .519 5 1 6-4 W-1 10-4SanDiego 13 16 .448 7 3 3-7 W-1 8-6Arizona 12 17 .414 8 4 4-6 L-1 8-10Colorado 11 16 .407 8 4 5-5 L-1 5-6

z-firstgamewasa win

Pitching Matchups TodaysGames (Alltimes Eastern)

American League The Line

N.Y.Yankees(Sabathia1-3)atBaltimore(Guthrie2-2),7:05p.m. NY-160atBa

Detroit(Verlander2-2)atCleveland(Cl.Lee1-4),7:05p.m. atCle-135D

TampaBay(J.Shields3-2)atBoston(Penny2-1),7:10p.m. TB-115atBo

Seattle(Jakubauskas1-3)atMinnesota(S.Baker0-4),8:10p.m. atMin-145S

Texas(Harrison2-2)at ChicagoWhiteSox (Contreras0-4),8:11p.m. atChi-120 Te

Toronto(Richmond4-0)atOakland(Outman0-0),10:05p.m. Tor-115atOa

KansasCity(Meche2-2)atL.A.Angels(Palmer2-0),10:05p.m. atLA-105KC

National League The Line

Atlanta(Jo-.Reyes0-1)atPhiladelphia(Hamels0-2),7:05p.m. atPhil-180A

Pittsburgh(Karstens1-1)atN.Y.Mets(Niese0-0),7:10p.m. atNY-175Pi

St.Louis(Pineiro4-1)atCincinnati(Cueto2-1),7:10p.m. atCin-130ST

SanDiego(Gaudin0-1)atHouston(W.Rodriguez2-2),8:05p.m. atHou-180S

ChicagoCubs(R.Wells0-0)atMilwaukee(Bush1-0),8:05p.m. atMil-120Ch

Florida(Nolasco1-3)atColorado(Hammel0-0),9:10p.m. atCol-130Fl

Washington(Martis3-0)atArizona(Y.Petit0-2),9:40p.m. atAri-140W

SanFrancisco(Zito0-2)atL.A.Dodgers(Billingsley5-0),10:10p.m. atLA-210SF
http://www.sportingnews.com/http://sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseballhttp://sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseballhttp://www.sportingnews.com/

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Carlos Beltran, who is flirting with the.400 mark a month into the season, is off toa red-hot start. The Mets center fielder toldSporting NewsTodays Bill Eichenberger and

other reporters that he hasnt been happieror healthier since signing with the Mets as afree agent before the 2005 season.

Q:What is it like for youright now being on thiskind of roll?

A:I feel good at the plate. Imseeing the ball good, andgood things are happening. ... Thishas been the best start of mycareer.

Q:How much longer do youhave to go before youstart noticing that youreflirting with a .400 battingaverage?

A:Because I feel so good at theplate and Im seeing the ballso good, Im not even thinkingabout that. My job right now is justto take advantage of how I feel, andthat is all that is in my mind.Hitting .400, that is somethingthat is almost impossible. But at thesame time, who knows? You neverknow.

Q:

So you dont keep up

with your personalstats?

A:I dont get caught up in thatbecause when you do, youforget about what we are here for.This is not about me personally.This is about the team. There aregoing to be days when I go 0-for-4,but I help the team win by makinga good defensive play. That is allthat matters.

Q:Is there anything youhave done differentlythat has contributed to your

fast start?

A:Ive been able to go to thebatting cage every day,which has helped a great deal. As ahitter, for you to hit a curveball,you have to be perfect. If you are alittle bit under, you are going to hita fly ball, and if you get a little biton top, you are going to hit agrounder. So you have to let thepitch get deep, then you square thatball, and thats what Im doing. Ivebeen going in the cage every singleday trying to hit at least 50curveballs.

Q:What about yourapproach at the plate?Has that changed?

A:In the past years, I alwayshave been a pull hitter. Butthis year, I feel like I can use thewhole field more. ... Im not think-ing of going to left field, centerfield, right field. ... Im not commit-ting myself to go anywhere. Im justseeing the ball, and if its outside, Ijust go with the pitch. If its inside, Ipull the ball.

Q:Are you concerned thatyou havent hit more

home runs?

A:Being honest, I dont care alot about home runs. I caremost about hitting for high averagebecause I know if I hit for highaverage, Im going to be on basemore. And Im going to score a lotof runs. Home runs, they willcome.

Q:What else has helyou?

A:

Im not thinking of m

ics or anything like And when you dont have athat in your head, you havechance of seeing the ball anrecognizing the pitch.

Q:As a switch hitterhard to keep a strlike this going since you maintain your swings frboth sides of the plate?

A:It is hard because I htake the same amouswings from one side as theLately, I havent faced a lot

lefties, so Im working andto get that feeling I have froleft side on the right side.

Q:Are you as healthyouve ever been amonth into the season?

A:This has been the fihere (New York) thabeen completely healthy. Myear I pulled my quad, my year a quad again, third yebit of hamstring, last year bknees. But at the same timethat even through those inj

battled and found a way to good years.

Q:Has health been afactor in your fasA:It feels great becausedont go to the batterthinking about finding a coable position. Nothing hurtyou dont have to worry aboanything.

Q&A with ... Mets OF Carlos Beltran

This has been the first year here that Ive been completely health

KATHYWILLENS/AP

No longer battling through injuries like he has in the past, Carlos Beltran said hes off to the best start of his career.


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NATIONAL LEAGUE

N.Y. Mets 7, Philadelphia 5

Mets 7, Phillies 5

Philadelphia AB R H BIRollins ss 5 0Victorinocf 4 0Utleyb 4 0 0 0Howardb 4 Werthrf 4 4 Ibanez lf 4 0 Feliz b 4 0 0Ruizc 0 0 0b-Cairoph 0 0 0Moyerp 0 0 0 0Happp 0 0 0a-Dobbs ph 0 0 0Condreyp 0 0 0 0Taschner p 0 0 0 0c-Stairsph 0 0 0 0Totals 35 5 10 5

NewYork AB R H BIJos.Reyesss 5 Castillob 4 0 0Beltran cf 4 Delgadob 0D.Wright b Sheffield rf 0 0 0Felicianop 0 0 0 0Fr.Rodriguezp 0 0 0 0Tatis lf 4 0 0R.Castro c 4 0 -Santos pr-c 0 0 0 0Pelfreyp 0 0 0

Churchrf 0 0 0Totals 34 7 10 7

Phi ladel phia 100 101 020NewYork 412 000 00x

a-fliedoutforHappinthe7th.b-grointhe 9th.c-walkedfor TaschnerinR.Castroin the8th.E: Jos.Reyes ().5,NewYork7. 2B:Howard(6),WertR.Castro(). HR:Howard(6), offPelFeliciano;Beltran(5),offMoyer;D.WJos.Reyes(),off Moyer. RBIs: How(9),Ibanez(),Jos.Reyes(9),Beltr(5),R.Castro (8).SB:Werth()nersleftinscoringposition:PhilaFeliz, Rollins); New York 4 (Jos.RCastillo). DP:NewYork (D.Wright(Castillo,Jos.Reyes, Delgado).

Phi lad el phia IP H R E RMoyerL, - 13 7 7 7Happ 23 0 0Condrey 0 0Taschner 0 0 0NewYork IP H R ERPelfreyW, 4-0 7 8 Feliciano 0Fr.Rodriguez S, 9-9 0 0 0

Condrey pitched to batterin thrunners-scored: Happ -0,TaschMoyer (Delgado). WP: Taschner.AngelHernandez;First,BillWelke;SThird,Scott Barry.T::5.A:7,95

Mets early offensive effort suits Pelfrey just fineNEW YORKCarlos Beltran and the

New York Mets made Mike Pelfreysjob easy with a sudden power surgeat expansive Citi Field.

Beltran and David Wright each hita two-run homer in the first inning,and New York beat the PhiladelphiaPhillies 7-5 on Thursday night for itsfourth consecutive victory.

Jose Reyes added a solo shot in thesecond off an ineffective JamieMoyer as the Mets again gave Pel-frey the offensive aid Johan Santanahas lacked all season.

He doesnt need the r un support,Pelfrey said with a smile. Hope-

fully, they keep it up. Its a lot easierto pitch with the cushion.Pelfrey (4-0) beat the rival Phillies

for the second time this month, hisonly wins in 10 May decisions dur-ing his career. Ramon Castro had atwo-run double, Wright went 3-for-3with a walk and the Mets madeMoyer look his age by turning theirspacious new ballpark into a band

box for one night.Still, manager Jerry Manuel was

infuriated with first-base umpireBill Welke all evening. Manuel cameout to argue three times with

Welketwice over calls thatappeared as though they shouldhave gone New Yorks way.

Manuel finally was ejected byWelke in the eighth following anobstruction call on Reyes that letShane Victorino slip out of a run-down. Welke said Manuel brushedhis hat with the bill of his own cap ashe screamed in the umpires face.

Well have to report on that, said

crew chief Tim Welke, Billsbrother.

Later in the inning, Jayson Werthhit a two-run homer off Pedro Feli-ciano to cut it to 7-5.

Francisco Rodriguez saved hisfourth game in four days, gettingthree outs to improve to 9-for-9 thisseason. With a runner on, he retired

Jimmy Rollins on a popup to end it.You knew they got a guy whos a

great closer, Victorino said. But itdoesnt change our approach. Wefeel we can come back againstanybody.

Werth had four hits and Ryan

Howard drove a solo homer over the415-foot sign in right-center for thePhillies, swept in the two-gameseries during their first visit to CitiField. Santana beat them 1-0 onWednesday night.

Howard also had an RBI double inthe first before the Mets roughed upMoyer (3-2), who was trying for his250th win.

Manuel stacked eight righthandedhitters against the 46-year-old leftyand they jumped all over his softtosses from the start. Beltran hit histhird homer in four games, Carlos

Delgado followed with a double andWright drove a 1-2 pitch over thecenter-field fence.

I think David is turning the cor-ner, Manuel said. When you hit a

ball out of center field in this park, itmeans youre doing a lot of thingsright.

It was only the second homer hit between the power alleys in 14games at Citi Field. Howards sixth-

inning shot made it three.I think this ballpark, you know

its big. But if you hit it good, itsgoing to go out. You cant let the highfences intimidate you, Beltran said.

Beltran and Wright also teamedup for two-run homers in the sixthinning of Monday nights 6-4 win atAtlanta.

Castros two-run double off thebase of the center-field fence made it7-1, chasing Moyer with one out inthe third.

I didnt like the way I threwtonight, Moyer said. Ill probablygo back and look at something fromtwo or three years ago. Somethingpositive.

The Mets (14-13) have scored 36runs in Pelfreys five starts, 24 morethan theyve managed in Santanassix outings.

Baseball is crazy, Reyes said,laughing.


David Wright follows through on a two-run home run against Philadelphia in the first inning, one of three hits for the Mets 3B.

JULIEJACOBSON/AP

Q&A with Mets Carlos Beltran, Page 13


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NATIONAL LEAGUE

Cubs8,Astros5

Chicago AB R H B IA.Sorianolf 5 Theriotss 4 0Fukudomecf-rf 4 0Ar.Ramirez b 4 Foxp 0 0 0 0Greggp 0 0 0 0Hoffpauirb 4 0 Bradley rf 4 0 Gathright cf 0 0Fontenot b-b 0 0 Soto c 5 0 0Lillyp 0 0 0

Heilmanp 0 0 0 0Marmolp 0 0 0 0c-Milesph-b 0Totals 38 8 14 8

Houston AB R H B IK.Matsui b 0 Tejadass 5 4 Berkmanb 5 0 0 0Ca.Lee lf 0 0Pence rf 4 0 0Michaels cf 0 0I.Rodriguezc 4 Keppinger b 4 0 0 R.Ortizp 0 0 0Byrdakp 0 0 0 0a-Blumph 0 0 0Sampsonp 0 0 0 0b-Bournph 0 0 0W.Wrightp 0 0 0 0F.Paulinop 0 0 0 0Ariasp 0 0 0 0d-Erstadph 0Totals 34 5 8 5

Chicago 102 100 004Houston 200 000 003

a-struckoutforByrdakinthe4th.b-struinthe7th.c-singledfor MarmolinthArias in the9th. E: Ar.Ramirez (),BChicago9,Houston7. 2B:Theriot(4), H(0). 3B: I.Rodriguez(),Erstad()offByrdak;A.Soriano(9),off F.Paulino;RBIs: A.Soriano (7),Ar.RamirezBradley(), Fontenot (7),K.MatsuiI.Rodriguez(), Keppinger (). SBFontenot, K.Matsui. Runners leftinChicago7(Bradley,A.Soriano,Soto5);HoPence, Blum,K.Matsui). DP: ChicagHoffpauir);Houston (Keppinger, K(Keppinger,K.Matsui,Berkman).

Chicago IP H R ERLillyW,4- 6 4 HeilmanH,4 0 0 0MarmolH,8 0 0Fox 13

Gregg 23 0 0Houston IP H R ERR.OrtizL, - 13 6 Byrdak 23 Sampson 0 0 0W.Wright 23 0 0F.Paulino 23 5 4 4Arias 23 0 0 0

Inherited runners-scored: GreggF.Paulino-0,A rias-0. Umpires: HomFirst,Marvin Hudson;Second, JohnHirsBell.T::7.A:8,65(40,976).

Reds 6, Brewers 5

Milwaukee AB R H BI BB S O Avg.Weeks b 4 0 0 .7Hart rf 4 0 0 0 .7Braun lf 4 0 0 .7Fielderb 0 .80M.Cameroncf 4 0 0 0 .9Hardyss 4 0 0 .Hall b 0 0 0 .89McClungp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---

a-Duffyph 0 0 0 0 0 .095DiFelicep 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Stetterp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Julio p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000c-B.Nelsonph 0 0 0 0 0 .000Kendall c 4 0 0 0 0 .05Looper p 0 0 0 0 0 .000Counsell b 0 0 0 0 .7Totals 33 5 7 5 3 10

Cincinnati AB R H BI BB S O Avg.Taverascf 4 0 .6HairstonJr. b 4 0 0 0 .90Bruce rf 0 .69R.Hernandezb 0 0 0 0 .80L.Nix lf 0 .5A.Rosales b 0 0 0 0 0 .4Haniganc 0 0 0 0 .0Janish ss 0 0 .75Owings p 0 0 .94Massetp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Rhodesp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---b-Dickersonph 0 0 0 0 0 .

Corderop 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Totals 30 6 9 5 3 2

Milwaukee 000 302 000 5 7 0Cincinnati 102 210 00x 6 9 1

a-fliedoutforMcClunginthe6th.b-fliedoutforRhodesinthe 8th.c-fliedoutfor Juliointhe 9th.E:Hairston Jr.(). LOB: Milwaukee4, Cincinnati7. 2B: Fielder (6),Hardy(),L.Nix(7),Janish().3B: Owings(). HR:Bruce (8), off Looper; Taveras (), off Looper. RBIs:Fielder (4),M.Cameron (8),Hardy(6),Taveras(),Bruce (6),L.Nix(5), Hanigan (),Owings ().S:A.Rosales. SF:L.Nix,Hanigan. Runnersleftinscoringposition: Milwaukee (Hall,Duffy, Hart);Cincinnati (Owings, R.Hernandez,Taveras). DP: Cincinnati (Janish,HairstonJr.,R.Hernandez),(Janish,HairstonJr.,R.Hernandez).

Milwaukee IP H R ER B B SO NP ERALooper L, - 13 8 5 5 75 4.8McClung 23 0 0 .45

DiFelice 0 0 0 0 0 .Stetter 0 0 0 0 0 6 .48Julio 0 0 0 0 7 5.7Cincinnati IP H R ER B B SO NP ERAOwings W, - 6 7 5 4 4 00 5.08MassetH, 13 0 0 0 .46RhodesH, 5 23 0 0 0 4 0.00Cordero S, 8-8 0 0 0 0 7 .5

Inherited runners-scored: McClung -0. HBP:by Stetter (R.Hernandez). WP: Looper, Julio, Masset.Umpires: Home, Greg Gibson;First,Andy Fletcher;Second, TedBarrett;Third,Tim Timmons. T: :55. A:4,74(4,9).

Cincinnati 6, Milwaukee 5 Chicago Cubs 8,Houston 5

Cubs Soriano

homers twiceOwings provides lift for ailing RedsHOUSTONAlfonso Soriano

wasnt happy with his one-hit,three-strikeout performancein the Chicago Cubs firstgame against the HoustonAstros.

He made up for it in the sec-ond game of the short series.

Soriano homered twice tolead the Cubs to an 8-5 victoryover the Astros on Thursdaynight. He hit a solo home runin the fourth and a two-runshot in the ninth.

Yesterday I had a bad day,so I wanted to come back andhave a better game, Sorianosaid.

Four of his nine home runsthis season have come againstthe Astros and he is hitting.320 with five RBIs in fivegames against Houston.

Mike Fontenot had two RBIsand Milton Bradley, MicahHoffpauir and AramisRamirez all drove in a run asthe Cubs swept the mini seriesfrom their N.L.-Central foe.

The win was Chicagos sixthin the last seven games.

Our team is getting togethernow, Soriano said. Werefeeling more like a team. Werepitching better and hitting atthe same time.

Cubs starter Ted Lilly (4-2)allowed four hits and two runswith five strikeouts in sixinnings to extend his winningstreak against the Astros tofive games.


CINCINNATIMicah Owings helped theailing Cincinnati Reds feel a little better.

The righthander pitched six inningsand had a tiebreaking triple Thursdaynight, leading Cincinnatis flu-strickenlineup to a 6-5 victory over the Milwau-kee Brewers and a split of their two-game series.

The Reds needed everything theycould get from Owings (2-3), their fifthstarter and occasional pinch hitter. Thelineup was missing two starters with theflu, and the pitching staff was so wornout that shortstop Paul Janish workedthe ninth inning of Milwaukees 15-3win on Thursday night.

Micah gave us all he had, managerDusty Baker said. We tried to stay withhim as long as we could. Our bullpenwas upside-down. Heck, our lineup wasupside-down, too. All of the guys camethrough big-time. This was a big win.

Owings run-scoring triple off BradenLooper (2-2) helped him turn a 6-5 leadover to the bullpen. Francisco Corderoretired the three batters he faced in theninth, remaining perfect in eight savechances.

Jay Bruce and Willy Taveras also hadsolo homers off Looper, who lasted only3 1/3 innings, his shortest appearance ofthe season.

The whole outingfrustrating is put-ting it a nice way, Looper said. I justdidnt have it today. I kept trying andkept trying, and wasnt able to get theball down.

Milwaukee won three of four on its brief trip to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.The Brewers have won 12 of their last 16games overall, allowing them to headhome feeling good.

Were playing great, manager Ken

Macha said. All kinds of things hap-pened in that game, so you probablycould sit in here and talk about this gamefor an hour about all the little things hereor there that could have made a differ-ence in the game.

Baker went through three differentlineups before the game, trying to keepon top of his teams multiplying illnessesand injuries. Janish had a sore shoulderafter his impromptu pitching perfor-mance the previous night and needed aday off.

Baker had to rework the lineup duringbatting practice after first baseman Joey

Votto came down with the flu. He totallyoverhauled it after second basemanBrandon Phillips also got sick a littlewhile later, forcing Janish into the lineupat shortstop. The Reds already weremissing shortstop Alex Gonzalez, side-lined by pulled muscles in his right side.

What little was left of the lineup wasjust enough to get a win. Owings pulledit through.

The Reds turned double plays behindhim in the second and third innings toescape threats and allow Owings to set-tle in.


ALBEHRMAN/AP

Micah Owings helped the Reds to victory with his pitching (six innings) and hitting (RBI triple).


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NATIONAL LEAGUE

Cardinals 5, Pirates 2

Pittsburgh AB R H BI BB SO Avg.McLouthcf 0 .89Delw.Youngb 4 0 0 0 0 0 .Monroe lf 4 0 0 0 0 .5Hinskeb 4 0 0 0 0 0 .9Mossrf 4 0 0 0 0 .95An.LaRocheb 0 0 0 .50R.Diazc 0 0 .85Bixler ss 0 0 0 0 .67Ohlendorf p 0 0 0 0 .077a-R.Vazquez ph 0 0 0 0 .60Meekp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Totals 30 2 4 2 3 7

St. Louis AB R H BI BB SO Avg.Schumakerb-lf 0 0 .89Rasmus cf 4 0 0 .57Pujols b 0 0 0 .56Ludwick rf 0 0 0 .84Duncan lf 0 0 0 .75Barden b 0 0 0 0 0 0 .06K.Greeness 0 0 .Thurstonb-b 4 0 0 0 0 .78LaRuec 4 0 .48Wellemeyerp 0 0 0 0 .8

T.Millerp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Boyerp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---b-Robinson ph 0 0 0 0 0 .000Franklinp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Totals 30 5 8 5 2 7

Pittsburgh 000 010 100 2 4 1St. Louis 100 040 00x 5 8 0

a-struckout forOhlendorfin the7th. b-groundedoutforBoyerinthe8th. E:An.LaRoche(4). LOB:Pittsburgh4,St.Louis7. 2B:McLouth (),LaRue ().3B: Schu-maker(). HR:R.Diaz(),offWellemeyer;LaRue(),offOhlendorf. RBIs: McLouth(8), R.Diaz(),Pujols(),Ludwick(4), Duncan(9),K.Greene(), LaRue().CS: Schumaker(). SF:Pujols, Duncan. Runnersleftinscoringposition:Pittsburgh (Delw.Young); St.Louis4 (Thurston, Robinson ).GIDP: Delw.Young.DP:St.Louis (Wellemeyer, K.Greene,Pujols).

Pittsburgh IP H R ER B B SO N P ERAOhlendorf L, - 6 7 5 5 5 84 4.4Meek 0 0 8 .08St. Louis IP H R ER BB S O NP ERAWellemeyer W, - 7 4 4 97 4.75T.MillerH, 23 0 0 0 0 7 4.BoyerH, 13 0 0 0 0 6 .7FranklinS, 9-9 0 0 0 0 9 0.00

HBP:byOhlendorf(Pujols,Ludwick).Umpires: Home,ChadFairchild; First,Jim Wolf; Second, BrianONora;Third,Fieldin Culbreth.T::0.A:4,98(4,975).

Braves 4, Marlins 2

Atlanta AB R H BIInfanteb 5 0 0Escobar ss 4 0G.Anderson lf 0 0 0

Kotchmanb 4 Francoeur rf 4 0 0K.Johnson b 4 0D.Ross c 4 Schafer cf 4 0 0Jurrjens p 0 0 0R.Sorianop 0 0 0 0c-Norton ph 0 0 0M.Gonzalezp 0 0 0 0Totals 36 4 12 4

Florida AB R H BIBonifacio b 4 0 0Maybincf 0 0 0b-Helmsph 0 0 0 0-Carroll pr-cf 0 0 0 0Ha.Ramirezss 4 Cantub 4 0 0 0Hermida lf 0 0 0Ugglab 4 0 0 0C.Ross rf 0 0 0Calerop 0 0 0 0

R.Paulino c 0 0 0a-Jo.Baker ph-c 0 0 0A.Sanchez p 0 0 0 0Badenhopp 0 0 0Pintop 0 0 0 0Gloadrf 0 0Totals 29 2 4 2

Atlanta 021 010 000Florida 100 001 000

a-linedout forR.Paulinointhe 8th.bininthe 8th.c-groundedoutfor R.-ranforHelmsinthe8th. E:Jo.Bake6,Florida 4. 2B: Kotchman ().HA.Sanchez;Kotchman(), offA.Sanc(5),off Jurrjens. RBIs: KotchmanHa.Ramirez(5). SB:K.Johnson().Bonifacio(). S: A.Sanchez. Runneposition: Atlanta (Francoeur (Maybin, Ha.Ramirez). DP: FlorHa.Ramirez,Cantu), (Carroll,Carroll, J

Atlanta IP H R ERJurrjens W, - 7 R.SorianoH, 5 0 0M.Gonzalez S, 5-6 0 0 0Florida IP H R ERA.Sanchez L, -4 4 23 7 4 4Badenhop 0 0Pinto 0 0Calero 13 0 0

Inherited runners-scored: Bade-0,Calero-0.Umpires: Home,LaMeriwether;Second,EricCooper;Th:46.A:7,759(8,560).

St. Louis 5, Pittsburgh 2 Atlanta 4, Florida 2

Jurrjens gets help from offeFlawless Franklin notches ninth saveMIAMI Jair Jurrjens enjoyed

the rare luxury of pitching witha lead. And it turns out hesgood at it.

Saddled with poor run sup-port in previous starts, Jurrjens benefited from two home runs by his Atlanta Braves team-mates and pitched seveninnings Thursday to beat theslumping Florida Marlins 4-2.

To have the lead was awe-some, Jurrjens said. Everytime my team scored, I was ableto shut them out the nextinning.

Casey Kotchman homeredand hit an RBI double for theBraves, who scored four runsin Jurrjens previous four out-ings. David Ross hit a two-runhomer to help Atlanta completea two-game sweep.

Marlins righthander AnibalSanchez (1-4) allowed bothhomers and four runs in 4 2/3innings before leaving the game because of discomfort in hispitching shoulder. Sanchezunderwent surgery on theshoulder in June 2007 andreturned last July.

He was in pain, managerFredi Gonzalez said. Youalways think worse-case sce-nario, but I dont know.

Sanchez was to undergoX-rays and an MRI exam.

Florida extended a club-record streak of 20 consecutivegames without a win by a start-ing pitcher. During that spanthe starters are 0-10.


ST. LOUISConsidering the St. LouisCardinals entered the season without afull-time closer, the ninth inning hasbeen in very secure hands.

Ryan Franklin had a 1-2-3 finish forthe second straight game in Thursdays5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.Hes 9-for-9 after taking over whenrookie Jason Motte struggled at the startof the year, and hasnt allowed a run in13 1/3 innings.

Id say thats the hardest job in baseball, manager Tony La Russa said.Youve just got to keep him fresh, because when hes fresh hes got it allworking.

Todd Wellemeyer threw seveninnings of four-hit ball and Jason LaRuehit a go-ahead homer in the fifth for theCardinals, who won two straight againstthe Pirates after opening a four-gamehomestand with two losses against thePhiladelphia Phillies. Skip Schumakerhad three hits and scored twice.

For us to bounce back the way wedid, I think it shows a lot about the char-acter of this team, LaRue said. Theresno quit.

The 36-year-old Franklin had 17 savesin 25 chances last year, stepping in when Jason Isringhausen was twice demotedfrom the closer role.

Ive been playing a long time, so Ivehad some good stretches where I couldhit the mitt when I wanted to, Franklinsaid. This is just one of them.

St. Louis batted around in a four-runfifth that started with LaRues firsthomer of the season. Ross Ohlendorf(3-3) hit Albert Pujols and Ryan Lud-wick in consecutive at-bats, the latterwith the bases loaded. Chris Duncanhad a sacrifice fly and Khalil Greene

singled in a run.Ohlendorf felt he slowed down too

much in the fifth.My fastball command wasnt as good

as it was the rest of the game, Ohlen-dorf said. I had a chance to help us enda losing streak and didnt come throughlike I needed to.

La Russa wasnt pleased that the Car-dinals were hit seven times in the twogames, although neither Pujols nor Lud-wick thought Ohlendorf was throwingat them.

He didnt know where he was throw-ing it, Pujols said. I dont think hewanted to hit me with Ludwick comingup.

Ohlendorf, who had won his previous

three starts, hit only two batters in hisfirst five starts over 31 innings. Hedeparted after six innings trailing 5-1,although he singled up the middle in thethird for his first major league hit afteran 0-for-18 start.

Robinzon Diaz hit his first careerhomer and Nate McLouth had an RBIsingle for the Pirates, who have lost nineof 10 while getting shut out three timesand scoring two runs twice. ManagerJohn Russell played a lot of reserves andfielded a lineup that entered with sevenhomers, four fewer than Pujols.

We changed things up a little, but westill didnt score any runs, Russellsaid.


TOMGANNAM/AP

Ryan Franklin, right, has closed the door on all nine of his save opportunities this season.


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NATIONAL LEAGUE

Giants 8, Rockies 3

San Francisco AB R H BI BB SO Avg.F.Lewis lf 4 0 .00Affeldt p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000Howryp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---b-Rowandph 0 0 0 0 0 .0J.Millerp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Burrissb 5 0 0 0 .4Sandoval b 5 0 0 0 .00B.Molina c 5 4 0 0 .0Winncf 5 0 0 .7Auriliab 5 0 0 0 0 .89Uribess 4 0 0 0 0 .65Schierholtz rf 4 0 0 0 .8Cain p 0 0 0 .00-Velezpr-lf 0 0 0 .58Totals 41 8 12 7 0 4

Colorado AB R H B I BB S O Avg.Fowler cf 0 0 0 .59Tulowitzki ss 0 0 0 .98Heltonb 4 0 0 0 0 .55Spilborghs lf 0 .8Hawpe rf 4 0 .Iannettac 0 0 0 0 .94Stewartb 0 .4Barmesb 4 0 0 0 0 .40Marquis p 0 0 0 0 0 .08Belislep 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---a-Murtonph 0 0 0 0 0 .00Daleyp 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---Ruschp 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400Totals 29 3 4 3 6 8

San Fr anci sc o 014 000 201 8 12 0

Colorado 000 000 102 3 4 3

a-grounded outfor Belisle inthe 7th. b-fliedoutforHowryinthe9th.-ranforCaininthe7th.E:Marquis(), Tulowitzki ().LOB: SanFrancisco7, Colorado5.HR:B.Molina(7),offMarquis;Hawpe(4),offAffeldt;Stewart(4),offJ.Miller.RBIs: F.Lewis(),Sandoval(9),B.Molina 4 (7),Winn (0), Hawpe(8),Stewart (). S: Cain. Runners leftin scoring position:SanFrancisco4 (B.Molina,Winn, Aurilia);Colorado(Hawpe, Stewart). DP: SanFrancisco (Aurilia,Uribe,Cain),(Uribe, Aurilia).

San Fr anci sc o IP H R E R B B SO NP E RACainW, - 6 0 0 5 7 07 .6Affeldt 0 .65Howry 0 0 0 0 5 .97J.Miller 0 0 .8Colorado IP H R ER BB SO NP ERAMarquis L,4- 6 8 7 5 0 87 .9Belisle 0 0 0 0 8.8Daley 0 0 0 7 .80

Rusch 0 0 5.0Marquis pitched to batters in the7th. Inheritedrunners-scored: Belisle-.Umpires: Home,GerryDavis;First,BrianGorman;Second,C.B.Bucknor;Third,MikeEveritt. T::56.A:,45(50,449).

Padres 4, Diamondbacks 3, 10

Arizona AB R H BIF.Lopez b 0 0 Ojedass 0 0 0J.Uptonrf 4 0Reynoldsb 5 0 0 0Whitesell b 4 0 0 0C.Jackson lf 0 0Byrnescf 0 0 Snyderc 0

Harenp J.Gutierrezp 0 0 0 0Schoeneweis p 0 0 0 0c-Tracyph 0 0 0Vasquezp 0 0 0 0Totals 32 3 5 3

San Diego AB R H B IGiles rf 5 0E.Gonzalez b 5 0 Meredithp 0 0 0 0Hairston lf 5 0 Ad.Gonzalezb 5 0 0Gerutcf 5 0 0Kouzmanoffb 5 0Hundleyc 4 0 C.Burke ss 4 0 0C.Youngp 0 0a-L.Rodriguez ph 0 0 0 0Morenop 0 0 0 0Gregersonp 0 0 0 0b-Headleyph 0 0 0 0

Bellp 0 0 0 0Ecksteinb 0 Totals 40 4 13 4

Arizona 002 001 000San Diego 000 021 000One out when winning run scoC.Youngin the6th.b-walkedforGrec-groundedoutfor Schoeneweisint(). LOB: Arizona 8,San Diego C.Jackson(4), Haren(),KouzmanoC.Burke (). RBIs: F.Lopez(7), ByrE.Gonzalez(5),Hairston(6),HundlSB:J.Upton().S:Ojeda.SF:F.Lopezleftin scoringposition:Arizona5, Haren); SanDiego 6 (E.GonzalGiles). GIDP: Ad.Gonzalez. DP: AOjeda,Whitesell).

Arizona IP H R ERHaren 6 8 J.Gutierrez 23 0 0Schoeneweis 13 0 0 0

Vasquez L, 0- 13 San Diego IP H R ERC.Young 6 5 Moreno 13 0 0 0Gregerson 23 0 0 0Bell 0 0 0MeredithW,4-0 0 0 0Inherited runners-scored: Schoenson-0. IBB: off C.Young(Snyder)EdRapuano;First,PaulSchrieber;SeThird,Joe West.T::0.A:8,9(4

NATIONAL LEAGUE

San Diego 4, Arizona 3, 10 inningsSan Francisco 8, Colorado 3

Ecksteins linedrive ends itMolina finally solves Marquis

SAN DIEGOThe San DiegoPadres will take any win thesedays, even if they have to workextra to get it.

David Eckstein singled in thewinning run with one out inthe 10th inning and San Diego beat the Arizona Diamond-backs 4-3 on Thursday.

It was the second time inthree games the Padres won in10 innings, and just their fourthwin in 17 games.

Its really big for this club,Eckstein said. Hopefully oneday well win a game where itsnot as close and as much pres-sure, but that seems like theonly way we know how to winright now.

This club has showed a lotof heart, especially in the toughtimes that weve been goingthrough. Weve just got to keeppushing forward.

Eckstein, who entered thegame for defensive purposes inthe top of the inning, lined ashot just past first basemanJosh Whi

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