Rays 2, White Sox 1

- Operation Start at 6:40 prevails again. I thought that one of the problems with attendance was the difficult in the commute to get there? Or perhaps it was how long to get home? At any rate, seems to me like this wouldn't improve attendance.
- Adam Dunn might have returned too quickly from his appendectomy. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Tuesday and is 2-for-23 with 14 K's since coming back.
- The White Sox haven't had a save chance since last Wednesday's brutal extra-inning loss to the A's, so we're still not certain how manager Ozzie Guillen will handle any save situations. Matt Thornton pitched with a four-run deficit Monday and Jesse Crain pitched the eighth with the team trailing by a run on Tuesday.
- The Rays seem pretty set with Kyle Farnsworth as their closer right now, but they didn't turn to him Tuesday, instead allowing James Shields to throw his first complete game since June 2008. During the game I saw a few notes on Twitter on how he was striking out Adam Dunn without using his fastball, so I checked to see if this was a trend. Sure enough, according to Fangraphs, Shields has been throwing his fastball and cutter considerably less frequently in favor of his curveball and change-up.
- Johnny Damon (finger) and Dan Johnson (forearm/wrist) sat out, so Casey Kotchman and Felipe Lopez both got starts instead.
- CS: Alexei Ramirez (1).

Orioles 11, Twins 0

- Pavano-freude: the act of gloating about a pitcher getting blown up when you don't own him anywhere, yet he's likely owned in most of the leagues that you're in. Carl Pavano gave up eight runs over 4.2 innings, allowing eight hits and three walks.
- Joe Nathan's non-closer debut didn't go well - he served up a three-run homer in the 8th inning to Vladimir Guerrero, with the team already down 8-0.
- Delmon Young and Justin Morneau were both held out due to sick bats - er, flu-like symptoms. Young also has a sore rib cage. Thus, your starting first baseman for the Twins was Luke Hughes, with Matt Tolbert starting at second base.
- Alexi Casilla is yet another struggling Twins hitter - his 0-for-3 dropped him down to .128 on the season. He might not have much rope to keep starting at shortstop, even with Tsuyoshi Nishioka's injury.
- HR: Vlad Guerrero (2).

Brewers 9, Phillies 0

- Even the very best starting pitchers will have an occasional dud. It was Roy Halladay's turn Tuesday, giving up six runs over 6.2 innings on 10 hits.
- The Phillies' bullpen is already a little thin with Brad Lidge out, but now they are without J.C. Romero, who went on the DL with a strained calf.
- With the win, the Brewers tied the Reds for first in the NL Central despite starting off the season 0-4.
- HR: Ryan Braun (5), Casey McGehee (2); SB: Shane Victorino (3), Placido Polanco (1); CS: Carlos Gomez (1).

Blue Jays 6, Yankees 5, 10 innings

- Mariano Rivera had his first blown save of the year, giving up two runs on four hits and a walk in the ninth.
- Because the Yankees have Monday and Thursday off this week, they used Ivan Nova in relief in the 10th inning, and he got the loss.
- Alex Rodriguez (side) sat out again Tuesday despite Monday's off-day, but said he expects to play Wednesday.
- Aaron Hill left with a strained hamstring. Though the Jays said it's too early to speculate whether he'll go on the DL, it's worth noting that they pulled Mike McCoy from his game at Triple-A Las Vegas after just one inning.
- Down on the farm for the Jays, Brett Lawrie is tearing it up at the plate, but he also committed his sixth error of the season at third base. It's Lawrie's defense that has him ranked lower than you might otherwise think he deserves.
- Frank Francisco came off the DL, but didn't pitch even though the Jays used six pitchers Tuesday night. Jon Rauch got the win, pitching the 10th, despite allowing two walks.
- HR: Curtis Granderson (5), Mark Teixeira (6), Jose Bautista (4); SB: Aaron Hill (6), Corey Patterson (3); CS: Brett Gardner (3) out of 6 attempts and went 0-for-4 while batting ninth.

Astros 6, Mets 1

- Justin Turner got the start at second base for the Mets after they designated Brad Emaus for assignment. He went 1-for-4 while batting eighth.
- Wandy Rodriguez's owners have to breath a sigh of relief after his outing, though it has to be discounted some because he was facing the Mets. He allowed one run over seven innings, striking out seven in the process.
- David Wright hit a ball that might have been a homer elsewhere and ended up firing his helmet in frustration after it was caught on the warning track.
- Carlos Lee hyperextended his left elbow on a tag play at third base. He stayed in the game immediately after the injury, but left in the eighth inning.
- Jason Bay went 4-for-4 in a rehab game at High-A Port. St. Lucie. He'll come off the DL soon - perhaps as early as Wednesday.
- HR: Carlos Beltran (3); SB: Michael Bourn (8).

Marlins 6, Pirates 0

- Josh Johnson doesn't yet see the improvement in the Pirates. He threw seven shutout innings, striking out nine while allowing three baserunners.
- Logan Morrison left Tuesday's game with a strained arch in his left foot, and he had a walking boot afterward. I'd be stunned if he plays Wednesday.
- The Marlins dropped Michael Stanton to sixth in the order for Tuesday's game. He ended up going 1-for-3 with a double and two runs scored.
- CS: Hanley Ramirez (2).

Diamondbacks 5, Reds 4

- Ryan Roberts was a late add to the lineup in place of Melvin Mora, who was out with a sore foot. Roberts then homered twice and added a stolen base. There's really not a whole lot preventing the Diamondbacks from giving Roberts a full-time chance to start.
- Sam LeCure was the latest Reds starter to struggle, giving up four homers.
- LeCure's outing could have been worse, but for the offensive exploits of the Little Cat, Armando Galarraga, who first bunted a runner into an out at third base and then was caught off between second and third on Kelly Johnson's subsequent single.
- Brandon Phillips returned after missing four games, going 2-for-4.
- HR: Kelly Johnson (2), Ryan Roberts 2 (4), Chris Young (4), Drew Stubbs (4); SB: Ryan Roberts (2), Stubbs (5), Jonny Gomes (3)(!); S: J.J. Putz (4).

Angels 15, Rangers 4

- Peter Bourjos hit a legitimate homer and he hit a Little League homer (single plus a three-base error), sort of - as Sam Miller from the Orange County Register has defined it, a real Little League homer comes on an infield single or even a four-base error, and preferably requires two errors on the play. Consider this a "slow-pitch softball homer."
- The Angels have already committed to playing Peter Bourjos in center field, and they're now starting that commitment to Hank Conger ahead of Jeff Mathis. Conger rewarded the team with a 2-for-3 day with two runs and two RBI and is up to .333.
- After the game, the Angels likely ended Brandon Wood's tenure with the team, designating him for assignment. Someone has to claim him on waivers, no? He's been awful, but you have to at least try to see if he's a change-of-scenery guy.
- Matt Palmer started in place of Scott Kazmir, who threw three innings in extended spring training. Kazmir is out for at least a couple more weeks.
- HR: Maicer Izturis (2), Mark Trumbo (3), Bourjos (2), Yorvit Torrealba (2); CS: Peter Bourjos (1) - this was just the second attempt for Bourjos.

Royals 5, Indians 4

- The Royals continued their running ways in a big way, swiping five bags with Lou Marson behind the plate. This game really illustrated the team's plans, as Alex Gordon got two of the steals and Billy Butler got another. Wilson Betemit did his best part to drive Chris Liss crazy by stealing his third base.
- Joakim Soria finally struck out a couple of batters, including Carlos Santana on three pitches to end the game. But before then he allowed an unearned run and walked in a runner with the bases loaded. He just hasn't been the same reliable Soria so far.
- Jeanmar Gomez's start in place of the injured Mitch Talbot didn't go so well - 4.1 innings, nine hits, five earned runs and two walks.
- SB: Shin-Soo Choo (4), Alex Gordon 2 (2), Billy Butler (1), Wilson Betemit (3), Alcides Escobar (4); S: Soria (5).

Giants 6, Rockies 3

- Ubaldo Jimenez's velocity was all over the place Tuesday. He started off working around 95 mph, but in the middle innings of his start he was down to 89-91 mph, but then he reached 96 mph in his final inning of work.
- The Rockies sent Ian Stewart down to Triple-A Colorado Springs before the game to make room on the roster for Jimenez. Stewart spent most of spring training hurt and then began the season hitting 2-for-26. It's not the worst thing in the world for him to go down and get some confidence and at-bats.
- Aaron Rowand left with a bruised left forearm.
- The Giants' decision to send down Brandon Belt gives Pat Burrell a modicum of job security for now.
- HR: Aubrey Huff (2), Pablo Sandoval (5); SB: Darren Ford (1); CS: Freddy Sanchez (1); S: Brian Wilson (5).

A's 5, Red Sox 0

- Brett Anderson was flat out nasty, keeping the Red Sox off-balance all game with his nasty slider, including one on his final pitch of the game, resulting in a strikeout of Darnell McDonald.
- John Lackey allowed only one run over six innings in his first start since getting scratched due to last week's rainout.
- Jed Lowrie started again for Marco Scutaro, but went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts while batting leadoff.
- Tyson Ross will replace the injured Dallas Braden in the rotation Friday.
- SB: Coco Crisp (7), Cliff Pennington (2); CS: Dustin Pedroia (1), Jacoby Ellsbury (1).

Mariners 13, Tigers 3

- With Victor Martinez on the DL and Magglio Ordonez still hurting, the Tigers started Brennan Boesch at DH and Donald Kelly in RF. Casper Wells will also figure in the picture down the line.
- Phil Coke dug himself an early hole, walking the first two batters and then committing an error on the third batter to load the bases. He ultimately allowed four first-inning runs, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
- Justin Smoak is away from the team on bereavement leave due to the death of his father.
- The Mariners scored 13 runs without the benefit of a homer and just three doubles.
- SB: Ichiro Suzuki 2 (6), Chone Figgins (2); CS: Jack Wilson (1).

Braves 10, Mets 1

- A close game was blown up by Kenley Jansen and Ramon Troncoso. If you took the chance on Jansen this week to try to fade Jonathan Broxton, you really paid for it.
- Brandon Beachy was fantastic in getting his first win, shutting out the Dodgers over six innings, allowing just two hits and two walks while striking out seven.
- The Dodgers batted Jerry Sands seventh in the lineup, starting him in left field again.
- HR: Martin Prado (2), Dan Uggla (4), Freddie Freeman (2), Eric Hinske (1).