Top News:
Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Red Sox stumble a bit vs. Rays as win streak ends — ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine sent relief pitcher Andrew Miller out to try and perform what he termed a “Houdini act” in the sixth inning Wednesday night. — The Rays had runners on first and third with no outs …
Discussion:
DRaysBay, Bless You Boys and The Soxaholix
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Hellickson Keys Rays' 2-1 Win Over Boston — ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Jeremy Hellickson pitched six solid innings, Luke Scott had a tiebreaking sacrifice fly, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat Boston 2-1 on Wednesday night, snapping the Red Sox's five-game winning streak.
Discussion:
Boston Globe and Red Sox Monster
Nick Cafardo / Boston Globe:
Final: Rays 2, Red Sox 1
Final: Rays 2, Red Sox 1
Discussion:
Over the Monster, DRaysBay and Surviving Grady
Canadian Press:
Blue Jays demote Adam Lind — The Toronto Blue Jays have sent struggling first baseman Adam Lind to the minors. — The Jays demoted Lind to triple-A Las Vegas and promoted catcher Yan Gomes. — Lind is batting just .186 with six doubles, three home runs and 11 RBI in 34 games.
Discussion:
Bluebird Banter, Yahoo! Sports, MLB Daily Dish and BBTF's Baseball Primer …
RELATED:
Evan Drellich / MLB.com:
Blue Jays send struggling Lind to Minors — Brazilian-born Gomes promoted from Triple-A Las Vegas — Adam Lind's continued disappointment at the plate resulted in his demotion to Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday, a move that brings with it a potential celebratory moment for a South American country.
Discussion:
Batter's Box Interactive …
Associated Press:
Wright Delivers Again, Mets Rally Past Reds — NEW YORK (AP) — David Wright lined his second double of the game, a tiebreaking drive in the eighth inning that raised his major league-leading average to .411 and sent the New York Mets past the Cincinnati Reds 9-4 Thursday.
RELATED:
Rick Freeman / Associated Press:
Frazier homers twice, Reds beat Mets 6-3
Frazier homers twice, Reds beat Mets 6-3
Discussion:
New York Post and Red Reporter
Joe McDonald / ESPN:
McDonald: Big Papi's advice for Pujols — Career advice from a (formerly slumping) slugger to another still mired in one … BOSTON — Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz always pays attention to Albert Pujols — they're friends and fellow Dominican Republic natives, after all.
Discussion:
Baseball Prospectus
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Pujols, Wells Homer to Lead Angels Over White Sox — ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Albert Pujols welcomed his new hitting coach to town with a go-ahead three-run homer and Vernon Wells added a two-run shot to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 7-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.
Discussion:
South Side Sox, ESPN, baseballmusings.com and Associated Press
Manny Navarro / Boston Herald:
Marlins, behind Stanton, continue to bloom in May — ATLANTA — Are these really the same guys who went 8-14 in April? — Although it took a little bit of everything — two diving catches, a steal of home, and another Giancarlo Stanton home run — the Marlins mad dash through …
Discussion:
Talking Chop and Fish Stripes
RELATED:
Robert Falkoff / MLB.com:
Wieters earns break after marathon duty — KANSAS CITY — Orioles manager Buck Showalter had a preliminary plan to pencil in Matt Wieters as his starting catcher on Thursday. But the plan changed after Wieters worked 15 innings in a 4-3 win over the Royals on Wednesday night.
Discussion:
Yahoo! Sports
Troy E. Renck / Denver Post:
Rockies defeat Diamondbacks as Fowler leads rejuvenated offense — They stand in the box and see green everywhere. The left fielder and center fielder are so far apart they text message rather than call for popups. The hitter's eye in center field is dark, coated in ivy that makes the ball seem brighter and, in some cases, bigger.
Discussion:
Purple Row
RELATED:
Janie McCauley / NBCSports.com:
Garcia, Freese lead Cardinals past Giants — SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Jaime Garcia matched his career high with nine strikeouts, David Freese hit a go-ahead solo home run in the seventh inning, and the St. Louis Cardinals gave manager Mike Matheny a victory against his old Giants team with a 4-1 win Wednesday night.
Discussion:
McCovey Chronicles
RELATED:
Lucas Apostoleris / Hardball Times:
More sliders, more success for Logan — The recent injuries to Mariano Rivera and David Robertson have caused something of a stir at the back end of the Yankees bullpen. Rafael Soriano, once the nominal “seventh-inning guy,” has taken hold of the closer's role, meaning that the Yankees …
Associated Press:
LaRoche, Gonzalez Lead Nationals Past Pirates 7-4 — WASHINGTON (AP) — Adam LaRoche broke open a tight game with a three-run double for his 1,000th career hit after homering for No. 999, and Gio Gonzalez took over the NL strikeout lead from teammate Stephen Strasburg by fanning 10 …
Discussion:
Bucs Dugout and Associated Press
RELATED:
Paul Sullivan / Boston Herald:
Cubs let down hard-luck starter Garza in loss to Phillies — CHICAGO — Matt Garza walked off the mound with his glove covering his face Wednesday night, leaving his legion of lip readers guessing once again. — The Cubs' most consistent starter over the last two seasons was removed …
Discussion:
Bleed Cubbie Blue
Jay Cohen / Associated Press:
Ruiz leads Phillies past Cubs — CHICAGO—Carlos Ruiz hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the eighth inning and the Philadelphia Phillies used Hector Luna's first career grand slam to pull away for a 9-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. — Kyle Kendrick pitched six sparkling innings …
Discussion:
Phillies Nation and The Good Phight