Tuesday was a rough night for pitchers like Stephen Strasburg and Tim Lincecum. And guys like me.

I remember watching my retirement account plummet over a couple weeks so I called the firm that handles my account. "Funny" the man on the other end of the phone said. "You didn't call me when it was going through the roof." Good point. I sure wasn't yacking when Strasburg was mowing down hitters and helping my strikeout, whip and ERA totals. Why should I complain when he did a number on those three lines with his miserable Tuesday night outing? To be truthful, it wasn't just Strasburg. Mariano River and Matt Lindstrom didn't help either. I went to bed taking solace in the fact that Tim Lincecum got pounded and that would offset any loss I would take from the three amigos mentioned above. It didn't help. I slipped in the standings and I'm at a crossroads. I was doing so well. Now Tex is watching his wife give birth, Heyward has a bad knee, Cano had a head cold, my closers can't get out of their own way, and I have heartburn. Such is life as August continues to separate contenders in the standings. I'll keep the faith. Strasburg rebounds in his next start and I bounce back. I hope.

"Where have you been all my life?" "Come here often?" Well, I think the Rays, Giants and Tigers among others can certainly use those pick up lines or any others they can think of in the days ahead. They failed to pick up any hitting for the stretch run at the deadline to make trades without securing waivers on the player. It may cost them. Those teams each need a bat. Now it'll be tougher to get that big bat, but it can be done. Quality players are traded after August 1st. Last year when Scott Kazmir was traded he was considered a fairly good option by some people. So it isn't impossible to improve a club this late in the season. The chances of getting Adam Dunn through waivers are almost impossible. Some team would likely block a hitter of that magnitude. But Ty Wigginton? Perhaps. Jack Cust? Why not? Even Jose Bautista would make sense for both Toronto and a contending club. How about Jose Lopez? If Detroit still thinks they have a heartbeat, a guy like jose Lopez could help. I'd also be calling Seattle about Chone Figgins. I think we'll see some more deals in the next few weeks. It just makes sense. The list is lengthy of guys that could help another team more than their current club. Their current club might want to dump their salary and some clubs will not block expensive players for a two month run.

Is Buck making the difference in Baltimore? Does a manager make that much of an impact on a struggling club? Remember what happened in Colorado when Jim Tracy took over? The team played with more energy. I see that in Baltimore. They have some good, young players. They'll give some contenders headaches going down the stretch.

Here are my closers: Broxton, Rivera, Valverde and Lindstrom in a Challenge League. I have 6 save points in the 25 person league.
Is it killing me? Yes. I have a chance to win it all, but those guys are making me walk the plank. Every day I take another step to oblivion as they blow saves or gather rust waiting to pitch. Now c'mon. Three of those guys are studs. In a Challenge League, you can't punt saves. Please feel sorry for me. I don't deserve it. I eat the right amount of fruits and vegetables every day and I don't talk while I'm chewing. I do all the right things. I don't deserve it.

How will Dusty blow the Playoffs for the Reds? Speaking of the Reds, look for them to call up Aroldis Chapman as a reliever. He's really improved his command in the last month. Remember-it takes time to adjust to the U.S. coming from Cuba. I don't think he'll close, but stranger things have happened in baseball.

I look for more save opportunities for J. J. Putz. The Sox brass is tiring of Bobby Jenks. There were rumors he was coming to Arizona before the teams settled on Hudson for Jackson.

I'm thrilled to see Peter Bourjos called up to the Angles. I liked him the first time I saw in in low A ball and I wrote about him in one of my very first columns for RotoWire. The guy can really run. Two steals and one caught stealing in the first week. Look for him to play CF next season with Torii Hunter moving to right. Bourjos is an excellent outfielder.

These guys don't get enough love: Delmon Young, Rickie Weeks, Trevor Cahill, Starlin Castro, Carl Pavano, Jason Kubel, Jose Bautista.
There are more, for sure. But those guys I listed really don't get enough credit for their performance this season.

Look for Jake Westbrook to improve under the watchful assistance of pitching coach Dave Duncan. That's why I think he would be a good pick up if he's available to you. The Duncan Factor works wonders with retread pitchers. Especially guys that throw sinkers like Westbrook.

Cincy hung on to most of their top prospects with the exception of Chris Dickerson. It's best for the club and for Dickerson that he be given a different pasture to roam. In his case, the new grass may indeed be greener at some point.

Will we see Cameron Maybin again? I think so, but his shoulder has been a problem. He's just getting back to form and he'll have to prove he can hit consistently. That's something he hasn't done yet. Jury is still out on Mr. Maybin but the clock she is a tickin.

Is Tim Lincecum healthy? You tell me. I'm just askin. He certainly doesn't look like the same Cy we saw in the past. Less velocity and the breaking pitches are hanging. Maybe it's just a rough patch in the road. These guys aren't machines ya know. They can't just turn on a switch and let it fly. I'm just saying.

Nelson Cruz is awesome.

I'm really happy the Greenberg/Ryan group got the Rangers. These are good baseball people who want to bring a winner to the Dallas area. I think they can beat the summer heat and get it done. If you read me consistently, you know I love the Rangers pitching. Their hitting isn't too shabby either.

What to do with Chris Davis? Now there's a waiver wire pick up for the Giants. Feast or famine. He's one heckuva AAA hitter. But he needs to play day in and day out to improve at the big league level. And that means hitting against lefties, too.

I like the moves the Diamondbacks made. Good young pitching from the Angels for Haren. The Angels needed Haren and the DBacks needed the young studs. They both could win in the deal.

Ryan Howard should be back in two weeks. It would have been much worse if it were his wrist and not his ankle. They need his bat in Philly.

Without hitting homers in their own park, the Twins are still at the top of their division. They flat out hit and play the game the right way. They don't steal a whole heckuva lot, but they hit those gaps at Target Field and double opponents to death.

Carl Crawford is playing hurt and it shows in his numbers. I hope he can play through the pain and get back on track. He's had a tough two weeks.

Brett Gardner? I'm not convinced. He should have stolen second in the 9th against the Red Sox the other day. Instead, he ran when Robbie Cano was hitting with two strikes. Cano bounced out to second and Gardner died on the bases as the tying run. It wasn't the type of baseball I've seen from Joe Girardi in the past. Could come back to haunt them. Every game matters now.

I wrote about Domonic Brown this week in my prospect column. Stop by and give it a read. Next week I'll feature another promising outfielder when I profile the Brewers Lorenzo Cain.

If pitching is the name of the game, watch out for the Oakland A's next year. They just keep piling up the arms. Now if they can add a bat or two, they can contend. But really, it's the Rangers division for the next couple of years. The window seems to have slammed totally shut for the Angels. The cupboard is fairly bare.

Oh, by the way-Coke or Pepsi? I know-you drink Energy Drinks or Dr. Pepper. But if you didn't would it be Coke or Pepsi? I'm out.