Noteworthy Injuries: Jason Heyward, Ike Davis, Geovany Soto, Yunel Escobar, Dexter Fowler

Yankees 3, Royals 1

- Be honest, who had under 4.5 runs in a Kyle Davies vs. Freddy Garcia matchup? 5.5 runs? 6.5 runs? For what it's worth, the line was 9.5/10.
- I'm going to preface this by saying I actually like a lot of the work done by New York area beat writers and follow many of them on Twitter. But between this and my Mets note below, it's going to be a day where I'm picking on them quite a bit. I'm perplexed/amused by their breathless anticipation of how Melky Cabrera would be received by Yankees fans in his first appearance back in Yankee Stadium. Yes, he played four years with the Yankees, and who can forget that one year where he hit 13 homers and topped out with a .752 OPS, but seriously, this is hardly a conquering hero returning.
- I tried to buy-low on Derek Jeter from Yahoo's Brandon Funston last week, on-air no less, but to no avail. I'm certain that he's a lot less eager to trade him after this past weekend and now another two hits Tuesday.
- The Yankees went with Joba Chamberlain in the eighth rather than Rafael Soriano, who instead will go for an MRI on his sore elbow Wednesday.
- The Royals' steal-or-bust philosophy came back to bite them in the fourth inning, when Matt Treanor got picked off (and that's why pitchers throw over even when a plodder is on-base), followed by Chris Getz getting hosed when trying to advance on a wild pitch. They did have two successful steals, padding their major league-leading total to 44 steals on the season.
- The Royals are losing the services of Bruce Chen for the time being, with him going on the DL with a strained left side. Vin Mazzaro, who lost out on the fifth starter's job to Sean O'Sullivan, will replace Chen. Mazzaro has a 4.97 ERA and 1.753 WHIP at Triple-A Omaha, albeit with 27 strikeouts in 25.1 innings.
- HR: Melky Cabrera (take that, smartass Erickson) (4); SB: Chris Getz (7), Jeff Franceour (4), Derek Jeter (2); CS: Matt Treanor (1), Nick Swisher (1); SV: Mariano Rivera (13).

Mariners 6, Orioles 7, 13 innings

- Brandon League had his second bad outing in a row, this time resulting in his first blown save of the year. Kevin Gregg blew a save chance in this one, too. Shockingly, given all the derision that the analyst/fantasy industry has heaped upon him, this was just Gregg's second blown save of the season. League wasn't helped by Jack Wilson failing to make a play on a potential double play, albeit on a hard hit ball.
- It wasn't a good day for closers-in-waiting, either. Jaret Wright, who began the day with a 1.16 ERA, first blew the lead for the M's, giving up two runs on three hits. For the O's, Mike Gonzalez retired just two batters while allowing two runs on three hits and a walk.
- Carlos Peguero started in left field in the wake of the Mariners ridding themselves of Milton Bradley and Ryan Langerhans, but Michael Wilson later pinch-hit and had his first major league hit; he also threw out a runner at home plate to boot. The two are expected to platoon in left field until Franklin Gutierrez returns and then returns to full speed. At that point, the M's will have to decide on Michael Saunders' fate.
- J.J. Hardy was huge in his return from the DL, homering and getting four hits. Yeah, I'm sure the Twins wouldn't have any use for that. Why exactly did they dump him this offseason?
- This game featured five intentional walks. Blech.
- HR: Adam Kennedy (3), J.J. Hardy (1); BS: Wright (1 - yeah, the save rule is still stupid in this instince, even though Wright pitched poorly), League (1), Gregg (2).

Dodgers 10, Pirates 3

- The AP's recap of the game picked a curious play to highlight as the key play of the game - Aaron Miles' bunt single with two outs in the sixth inning. Yes, it extended the inning to get Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp up to the plate, but that was probably the fourth biggest play of the Dodgers' four-run inning. Jamey Carroll actually started the two-out rally with a hit, Ethier knocked in the first run, and Kemp had the big shot, a three-run homer. But therein lies the power of the narrative - after all, it's the little things that matter, right AP?
- The Pirates apparently need to don the road-grays when Kevin Correia starts. He's now 5-0 on the road and 0-3 at home.
- Blake Hawksworth left the game for the Dodgers with a groin injury. Normally this wouldn't register much, but the Dodgers' bullpen is already thin with Jonathan Broxton out. They could be especially vulnerable in games where the pitcher fails to go deep.
- HR: Matt Kemp (7), Andrew McCutchen 2 (7).

Rays 4, Indians 5

- This was the Indians' fourth consecutive walkoff win at home. However few fans that attend Indians games (13,551 on Tuesday) are getting their money's worth. I understand that there's a lag in attendance when the season ticket base is low, more so when the team in question has had bad weather, which Cleveland certainly has (1:35 rain delay to start Tuesday). Still, this used to be a team that was consistently well-attended. I'm surprised that there hasn't been more of a rebound following the Tribe's good start. They've now won 14 in a row at home after losing the first two games of the season.
- The walk-off walk by Michael Brantley was the first walk allowed all season by Kyle Farnsworth. That just blows me away, given Farnsworth's reputation - admittedly, he's cut down on his walks the past two years.
- Then again, I shouldn't be surprised that this happened to the Rays in Cleveland, which has been a house-of-horrors for them lately - they've had some remarkably weird losses there.
- Grady Sizemore hit his sixth homer of the year. He came into the game slugging over .600, though he is just 0-for-1 on the basepaths. If you're re-drafting today, how early are you willing to take the plunge on Sizemore?
- Carlos Carrasco will come off the DL to start Wednesday for the Indians.
- HR: Evan Longoria (2), Matt Joyce (3), Grady Sizemore (6), Michael Brantley (2); SB: Johnny Damon (5), Asdrubal Cabrera (3), Michael Brantley (5).

Red Sox 6, Blue Jays 7, 10 innings

- Jon Lester had his first bad start since Opening Day, a start that included him walking three batters in the first inning. Lester thought he got squeezed, having words with the home plate umpire as he walked off after the inning.
- Adrian Gonzalez hit two more homers, giving him five (of six) in the month of May. The second homer tied the game in the ninth, coming against Frank Francisco.
- David Cooper hit his first major league homer, then followed that up with a game-winning sacrifice fly.
- Yunel Escobar left after getting hit by a pitch on the ankle, leaving the Jays especially shorthanded with Adam Lind (back) still out. The Jays haven't put Lind on the DL yet, hoping that he'll return by Friday.
- Rajai Davis stole two bases in the 10th inning before scoring the winning run, including one stolen base of second on a pitch-out.
- HR: Adrian Gonzalez 2 (6), David Ortiz (5), David Cooper (1), Jose Bautista (11), J.P. Arencibia (5); SB: Jacoby Ellsbury (11), Dustin Pedroia (5), Rajai Davis 2 (9); CS: Davis (3); BS: Frank Francisco (1).

Nationals 7, Braves 6

- The Braves had two ugly errors by Freddie Freeman and Nate McLouth, leading to four of the seven runs allowed by Tim Hudson to be unearned.
- Not only has Drew Storen emphatically earned the closer's job for the Nats on his own merit, but he's been helped by the collapse of Sean Burnett, who allowed two runs to score without retiring a batter Tuesday. Burnett wasn't helped by having both of his runners left to Tyler Clippard score on a three-run homer by Dan Uggla.
- The Hold Rule Might Be a Bigger Joke Than the Save Rule: For his efforts in allowing a three-run homer, Clippard received a hold.
- Jason Heyward has a sore right shoulder that worsened Tuesday night, creating some numbness in his forearm. He'll go for an MRI on Wednesday.
- Alex Gonzalez sat out due to the groin strain he suffered Sunday. He's hopeful that he can return as early as Wednesday.
- Mike Morse sat out for the Nats with a tender knee. D.J. Laynce Nix replaced Morse and hit a big homer.
- HR: Jayson Werth (5), Laynce Nix (4), Martin Prado (4), Dan Uggla (6); SB: Rogeravin Bernadina (2), Jerry Hairston Jr. (1); SV: Drew Storen (8).

Phillies 1, Marlins 2

- This was the game that everyone who wasn't watching their own team was watching to start off the night, with the pitching matchup between Josh Johnson and Roy Halladay. They didn't disappoint, thanks to Johnson's ability to work out of trouble. The key sequence in this game occurred in the top of the second. After Ryan Howard's homer put the Phillies on top 1-0, they subsequently loaded the bases with nobody out. Johnson was able to coax strikeouts from Dane Sardinha and Halladay before retiring Jimmy Rollins to escape without allowing any more runs. The next time you hear someone extolling the virtues of pitching to contact, remember this sequence as well - a ball in play from Sardinha or Halladay could have easily resulted in the critical second run scoring. There are times when it's vital to have a pitcher who can miss bats when presented with weak hitters and runners on-base.
- The first run from the Marlins came from when Johnson started an inning with a walk, and the second run happened when Rollins booted a ball for an error to start the inning.
- The absence of Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz was really felt in this one - and not just in the second inning. The Phillies' 6-7-8 hitters Tuesday night were Ben Francisco (.237/.353/.386), Pete Orr (.234/.308/.255) and Sardinha (.182/.357/.182). Getting the two injured players back, plus promoting Domonic Brown soon (.367/.429/.633 at Triple-A Lehigh Valley) will change matters. The Phillies are off to a good start, removing the urgency in these moves, but I'm sure that they'd like to have more ammo for these divisional games against the Braves and Marlins.
- Joe Blanton felt some discomfort in his elbow Monday after coming off the DL and pitching five innings. He still is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Wednesday.
- Utley started his rehab assignment Tuesday night - he has up to 20 days before the Phillies have to decide to call him up.
- HR: Ryan Howard (8); SB: Hanley Ramirez (8); CS: Emilio Bonifacio (2); SV: Leo Nunez (12).

A's 2, Rangers 7

- Brett Anderson vs. the Rangers in two starts: 9.2 IP, 15 H, 11 ER, 4 HR, 8 BB, 8 K. Brett Anderson in his other starts so far: 43.2 IP, 38 H, 8 ER (!), 0 HR, 4 BB, 32 K. Let's write this one off as another anomaly.
- Colby Lewis held the A's to one run over 7.1 innings, this despite not striking out a batter.
- Jamey Newberg (www.newbergreport.com) talked all spring about how Michael Napoli was acquired with the lefty-heavy schedule that the Rangers would face in mind. Jamey Newberg is a prophet. Napoli vs. lefties this year: .273/.415/.697. With Nelson Cruz on the DL, Napoli will start to face more righties, against who he's not hitting for average against (.139). If he's at-bat late in a tight game, it's absolutely imperative for the opposing manager to bring in a right-handed hitter to face him or otherwise force him from the game.
- Adrain Beltre hasn't hit for average (yet), but fantasy owners probably aren't complaining too much, given his eight homers and 28 RBI from a position that has been absolutely decimated with injuries.
- Andrew Bailey threw 30 pitches in his first simulated game since going on the DL with a forearm strain. The A's have been especially deliberate in bringing Bailey back, perhaps keeping in mind the elbow surgery which ended his 2010 season.
- Neftali Feliz was used up five in the ninth inning, and he needed 20 pitches to complete his scoreless inning, walking two in the process. He was last used Saturday, so this is probably a case of him getting some work in rather than manager Ron Washington's lack of confidence in the remainder of the bullpen. Or maybe that's wishful thinking - given Feliz's usage earlier in the season. The real test will come if Feliz is asked to pitch Wednesday in a tie game or with a one-run deficit late.
- HR: Cliff Pennington (3), Adrian Beltre (8).

Reds 7, Astros 3

- For the second time in as many starts, Homer Bailey enjoyed good run support against the Astros and performed nicely, this time throwing seven shutout innings. Bailey's 2011 Soft Landing Tour will continue with a home start against the Cubs on Monday, before he faces the Indians on the road over next weekend. Remember that it was against the Indians last year where he went down with his first shoulder impingement, and he's had other difficult outings against them in the past.
- It's officially uh-oh time for Aroldis Chapman. He walked three batters and hit another Tuesday, throwing only five of his 19 pitches for strikes. He went through stretches in the minors last year when his control completely abandoned him, but nothing like this at the major league level. You might see a DL trip or a demotion in the offing fairly soon to correct these control problems. For now, manager Dusty Baker is saying that a minor league demotion is not an option. We'll see what happens Friday, when the Reds have to decide what to do with Jose Arredondo.
- Jay Bruce hit a monster shot in the first inning off of Brett Myers, his sixth homer in his last 14 games.
- Just as Brett Anderson would like to not see the Rangers anytime soon, Myers just as soon would like to avoid the Reds in the near future. Tuesday's start was the third time already he's faced them this season, with diminishing returns each time out. They jumped on him for six runs in the first two innings, effectively finishing off this game before Chapman did his best to make it interesting late.
- Jeff Keppinger, who has been out all year, might begin a rehab assignment Thursday. However, if the Astros get Jason Bourgeois back at the same time, Keppinger might not have a job to come back to, as Bourgeois was starting to get looks at his original position in the minors, second base.
- HR: Jay Bruce (8).

Cardinals 6, Cubs 4

- Chris Carpenter gave up 13 hits and four runs, but finally got some run support and won for the first time this season. Who would have thought that the Cardinals would be in first place despite getting no wins from Carpenter prior to Tuesday?
- Eduardo Sanchez walked another batter, but still got his fourth save of the year. It was interesting to see the Cards turn to him after he couldn't close the door completely on Sunday. Handicapping the Cards' bullpen situation is particularly difficult because so many of their alternatives are pitching well - Sanchez, Salas, Boggs, Motte and even Miguel Batista. About the only potential save candidate that has pitched poorly is incumbent closer Ryan Franklin, who is thoroughly buried now.
- Official Scorer Rant of the Week: If you've seen the highlight, how can you justify Nick Punto getting a triple on Alfonso Soriano's "falling down" play? Yes, Punto hit a line drive, but it was right at Soriano. Even if he didn't touch it, it was a totally catchable ball - that |STAR|has|STAR| to be ruled an error. If the official scorer doesn't have the leverage to rule as such, then the rule needs to be changed. That's absolutely ridiculous.
- Kerry Wood was brought into the game in the eighth inning in a 4-4 tie and got the loss. Wood had a rare stinker, giving up two runs on two hits and three walks to get the loss. Sean Marshall, who has been the best reliever for the Cubs, never got into the game.
- Geovany Soto left the game in the first inning with a groin strain. He'll have an MRI on Wednesday to determine how bad the injury is. Koyie Hill replaced him in the game. The Chicago Sun-Times suspects that Soto will need to hit the DL, and Wellington Castillo was pulled from his Triple-A Iowa game in case they need to call him up. Castillo isn't hitting all that well so far, but last year he had a .815 OPS at Triple-A Iowa. He probably has a higher ceiling than Hill.
- SV: Eduardo Sanchez (4).

Tigers 10, Twins 2

- Francisco Liriano was pulled after just three innings, with the Twins citing his recent illness as the reason. However, he was awful before that, allowing four runs on three hits (including a homer) and three walks. He threw just 29 strikes among his 59 pitches. It's just too convenient to blame all of his woes on the illness, given his start to the season.
- It's noteworthy that Brian Duensing came on in relief of Liriano and not Kevin Slowey. Duensing's last start was cut short due to weather problems in Boston, but Slowey pitched in relief of him in that game. Might we see Slowey go into the rotation in Duensing's spot this week?
- Rick Porcello won his third straight decision, allowing one run over five innings. He only threw 83 pitches in the game, but might have had a quick hook because of an hour-long weather delay in the fourth inning.
- The Twins hope to have Delmon Young off the DL by Friday.
- Victor Martinez went 3-for-4 with four RBI and two runs and one walk. He's been on fire since coming off the DL a week ago, going 12-for-26 with four walks.
- Matt Capps pitched a scoreless inning in mop-up duty, striking out two. He hadn't pitched since May 4. Maybe - just maybe - the Twins should have used him in the 11th inning Monday instead of James Hoey, rather than saving him for the save situation that never came.
- HR: Jhonny Peralta (3), Rene Tosoni (1); SB: Austin Jackson (4).

Padres 6, Brewers 8

- Shaun Marcum gave up nine hits in his six innings of work, but because eight of those hits were singles and he didn't walk anyone, he could have fared much worse. It was still a bad outing - he gave up five runs - but the Brewers' bats made up the stagger, so he got the win and gave his owners eight strikeouts to boot. His overall rate stats are fantastic - 2.72 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 50:12 K:BB in 49.2 innings. In fairness to Marcum he retired 14 hitters in a row at one point before the Padres had five consecutive hits in the sixth inning, starting with a bloop double.
- Clayton Richard's truly awful start (3.1 IP, 10 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 1 BB) could have been even worse - three of the four double plays turned by the Padres happened on Richard's watch, including one play where the Brewers ran into two outs (Corey Hart at third base, Jonathan Lucroy at second base).
- Lucroy had a mixed-bag night - he had three hits, but he also had the baserunning mistake, got hit in the jaw by a foul tip and criticized his game-calling with Marcum on the mound.
- John Axford gave up an unearned run but converted the save, but not before he allowed two base hits and had runners on the corners with two outs. If it weren't for Rickie Weeks' throwing error with nobody on, however, he might not have gotten to that point. Weeks already has six errors on the season.
- SV: Axford (7).

Mets 4, Rockies 3

- Mike Pelfrey allowed three homers, but all three homers were solo shots and were the only runs he allowed. Overall it wasn't his best performance - he struck out just two batters and threw 56 of his 92 pitches for strikes, but got away with it by inducing 12 ground outs.
- Ian Stewart continued to slump, going 0-for-3 before Jason Giambi pinch-hit for him in the ninth. This is almost all over - barring a sudden breakout, he might be down for a significant period of time once Ty Wigginton returns.
- Lots of injury news from this game. Ike Davis collided with David Wright and suffered a left calf strain. Dexter fouled a pitch off his knee and had to leave the game, with Ryan Spilborghs taking his place. Jason Hammel took a comebacker off his left calf - he stayed in the game, but immediately allowed the key hit in the game, a two-run double by Pelfrey. He doesn't anticipate missing his next start, but it did hit him on his landing leg and Hammel copped to thinking about the injury while he was pitching.
- Speaking of David Wright, the Mets plan on giving him Wednesday's game off. Wright's owners must be thrilled about the prospect of missing a Coors Field game.
- HR: Carlos Gonzalez (3), Troy Tulowitzki (9), Seth Smith (3); SV: Francisco Rodriguez (10).
- If you're a Mets beat writer and haven't yet chimed in on the huge, earth-shattering news that Josh Thole has quit Twitter, please weigh in now. I must know how you feel about this issue.

White Sox 2, Angels 6

- With Vernon Wells (groin) hitting the DL, Howie Kendrick got the start in LF, going 2-for-4 while batting fifth behind Torii Hunter.
- The real beneficiaries to Wells' injury are the Angels' collection of infielders, as now manager Mike Scioscia can play all of Kendrick, Maicer Izturis, Erick Aybar, Alberto Callaspo and Mark Trumbo without using up the DH slot. It's the little victories.
- John Danks has had a mediocre start to the season, and Tuesday was no different - he allowed six runs on 10 hits and two walks, striking out four.
- Brent Morel is hitting just .222 and committed two more errors Tuesday night, giving him six on the season already.
- Jake Peavy will come off the DL to make his first start of the season Wednesday. Peavy won't displace Phillip Humber from the rotation, however - instead, the White Sox will go with a six-man rotation for now. We'll see how that works - I bet that set-up won't last beyond the month of May.
- HR: Paul Konerko (9), Maicer Izturis (3); SB: Torii Hunter (2).

Diamondbacks 0, Giants 1

- This was the other starting pitcher duel of the night, and the combo of Ian Kennedy and Tim Lincecum totally delivered. Both threw eight scoreless innings, combining for 17 strikeouts.
- The Giants won the battle of the bullpens, with Brian Wilson throwing a scoreless inning for the win and David Hernandez allowing a run to get the loss. Hernandez generally has been pretty good this year (even with the run allowed in a third of an inning, his ERA sits at 2.16.), but he hasn't been able to correct his one big flaw - his walks. A leadoff walk came around to score here, and he's now walked 10 batters in 16.2 innings.
- Pablo Sandoval fielded ground balls before the game. Don't get too excited - he's still supposed to miss another four weeks. Plus, the type of injury he has hurts his hitting more than his fielding.
- SB: Kelly Johnson (5), Darren Ford (4) - Ford pinch-ran for Buster Posey in the ninth, swiped second without a throw, then scored the winning run; CS: Justin Upton (3).