Observations:
- This is how the day set up for Dallas Braden: It's Mother's Day so his grandmother would be in attendance to watch him. He lived with his grandmother in a hotel, after his mother died of skin cancer, while he was in high school. It was also Section 209 Day at the Oakland Coliseum, which means tickets are discounted in section 209 because Braden, from the 209 area code, was pitching that day. He's also been dealing with the "get off my mound" situation between him and A-Rod. Some of it is A-Rod, but much of it has been Braden not willing to let the issue go. Oh and last year on Mother's Day, Braden was hit by a Vernon Wells line drive.
- With all of this as the backdrop, Braden went out and pitched the 19th ever perfect game. The 2nd perfect game in Oakland A's history, next to Catfish Hunter. To do it against the Rays is especially impressive as they had a MLB best 22-8 record coming into the game. They had also been a MLB best 13-2 on the road.
- He needed 110 pitches to master the feat. Of the 27 outs he recorded, 7 were ground balls, 10 fly balls, 4 line drives, and 6 were strikeouts.
- His answer to the first question after the game was, "You ain't got nothing to say, it was perfect!"
- His grandmother said after the game, "Stick it, A-Rod."
- The part that strikes me as a bit different about Braden's perfect game is that there never seemed to be a close call on defense. There wasn't a Dewayne Wise (Mark Buehrle) or Rusty Greer (Kenny Rogers) play where you're on the edge of your seat wondering if the defense will screw it up. It just happened.
Notables:
- Ubaldo Jimenez and Clayton Kershaw went head-to-head in an arm's race on Sunday. Kershaw out lasted Jimenez for the win, by going 8 innings, allowing no runs on 2 hits, and striking out 9. He's now 2-2 with a 3.96 ERA. Ubaldo went 7 innings, giving up 1 run on 2 hits and 4 walks, striking out 5. He's 6-1 with a microscopic 0.93 ERA. If it weren't for Dallas Braden, this is what everyone would be talking about.
- Tim Lincecum gave up 2 earned runs, while striking out 8 in 6 innings of work. Dan Runzler and Serio Romo undid all of this, in the following inning. Still, Timmay was on point.
- Adam Wainwright gave up 2 runs and struck out 7 over 6 innings. He "raised" his ERA to 2.08 and improved his record to 5-1.
- Jon Lester gave up 2 earned runs, on 4 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 7 in 7 innings against the Yankees. He's now 3-2 with a 3.71 ERA.
- Roy Oswalt went 8 innings, giving up 3 earned runs, while striking out 9 and walking 1. His ERA is 2.63, with a record of 2-4. Oswalt is getting close to Zack Greinke territory, with the run support he's been getting.
- Mike Leake had a no-hitter through 5 innings. It was broken up by Cubs phenom Starlin Castro. Leake finished with 6 strikeouts over 7 innings in a win. Yeah, he's pretty good.
- Livan Hernandez did it again. He pitched 7 innings of 1 run ball, this time striking out 3 and walking 1. His 1.04 ERA is stunning.
- Jason Vargas and Nick Blackburn might be twins. Today Vargas threw 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball, while Blackburn threw 7 innings of shutout ball. They both gave up 4 hits and walked 2 batters. They also both have 3 wins on the season now.
- Denard Span went 3-4 with 3 RBI, 2 runs, and 1 stolen base. He's now batting .271.
- Vernon Wells went 3-5 with his 9th homer of the season. He's now batting .339.
- Alex Rios went 4-4 with his 6th homer. He's now batting .324.
- Ichiro stole his 7th, 8th, and 9th bases of the season.
- Yadier Molina went 1-4 with 3 RBI and 1 run, out of the 5th spot. He's now batting .301 and has 22 RBI on the season... not bad for a catcher.
- Hunter Pence went 3-5, with a home run, to raise his average to .231.
- Chris Coghlan went 3-4 with 1 run, out of the lead-off spot... that's more like it.
- Andy Marte went 1-2 with 1 run, 1 walk, and 3 RBI. I still have faith in this once failed prospect.
Chicks Dig the Long Ball:
- Tyler Colvin (4), Joey Votto (7), Aaron Rowand (4), Placido Polanco (5), Jayson Werth (7), Shane Victorino (7), Hanley Ramirez (7), Josh Willingham (6), Carlos Lee (2), Hunter Pence (3), Vernon Wells (9), Fred Lewis (2), Alex Rios (6), Mike Aviles (2), Josh Wilson (1), Michael Saunders (1), Russell Martin (3), Prince Fielder (4), Casey McGehee (6), Gregg Zaun (2), Nick Swisher (7), Alex Rodriguez (3), & Jeremy Hermida (4).
Stolen Bases:
- Johnny Damon (2), Mark Gruzielanek (1), Lou Marson (2), Jonny Gomes (1), Andres Torres (4), Jose Reyes (7 & 8), Roger Bernadina (2), Tyler Greene (1), Tony Gwynn Jr. (7), Chase Headley (9), Mike McCoy (4), Andruw Jones (6), Denard Span (8), Ian Kinsler (2), Josh Hamilton (3), Ichiro Suzuki (7, 8, & 9th), Ryan Langerhans (1), Rickie Weeks (3), & Ryan Braun (8).
Caught Stealing:
- Brandon Inge (1), Jerry Hairson Jr. (2), Michael Bourn (4), Mike Aviles (1), Ian Kinsler (1), Manny Ramirez (1), & Matt Kemp (7)... yes, 7.
Save Chances:
- Matt Capps, converted (13)... 1-2-3 9th inning.
- Francisco Cordero, converted (10)... 1-2-3 9th inning.
- Kevin Gregg, converted (9)... 1-2-3 9th inning.
- Neftali Feliz, converted (9)... 1-2-3 9th inning.
- Brian Wilson, converted (7). Came on in the 8th and struck out 5 of the 6 batters he faced... nasty.
- Chris Perez, converted (5). Gave up a walk and hit, before retiring the next 3 batters. Kerry Wood will reportedly take over the closer role on Tuesday.
- Jonathan Broxton, converted (3)... 1 strikeout, 2 hits.
- Brad Lidge, converted (1)... 1-2-3 9th inning.
- Heath Bell, blown (2). With a 1 run lead, a throwing error by Jerry Hairston Jr. allowed Carlos Lee to reach 2nd base. Pedro Feliz got a sac-fly to score the pinch runner, Kaz Matsui.
- Bobby Jenks, blown (1). This was uuuugly as Jenks gave up 3 earned runs on 4 hits, 1 of which was a homer, while getting no outs. Jenks now has a 6.75 ERA and is in jeopardy of losing his job.
Other Closer Outings:
- John Rauch 1 inning, 1 hit.
- Matt Lindstrom 2 clean innings.
- Kerry Wood got 1 out in the 7th inning.
- Alfredo Simon 1 inning, 1 strikeout, 2 hits.
Non-Closer Outings:
- Matt Thornton struck out 2 and walked 1 in 2/3 inning of work. His 2.35 ERA and 25/3 strikeout to walk ratio must look awfully tempting to Ozzie Guillen.
- Tyler Clippard did what Tyler Clippard does, win. He allowed an inherited runner to score in the 8th inning, to tie the game 2-2, but Josh Willingham picked him up with a homer in the bottom of the inning. He's now 6-0 with a 0.76 ERA.
- Brandon League got 3 strikeouts in 2/3 inning of work, try to figure that one out.
Tough Days:
- A.J. Burnett gave up 8 earned runs, on 9 hits, 3 walks, while striking out 4 in only 4 1/3 innings of works. He's 4-1 with a 3.40 ERA.
- Oliver Perez walked 7 batters in 3 1/3 innings of work. He gave up 3 earned runs on 4 hits. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
- Max Scherzer gave up 5 earned runs off 9 hits, in 5 innings of work. He struggled with his control, with 3 walks, 1 wild pitch, and 1 hit by pitch off Travis Hafner. His ERA is now a rotund 6.81. Hey, at least he didn't give up any home runs, right?
- Brian Matusz went 3 2/3 innings, giving up 6 earned runs on 9 hits and 1 walk. Like Alan Thicke once told me, Growing Pains hurt.
- Luke Hochevar lasted only 2 2/3 innings. He gave up 4 earned runs on 3 hits and 4 walks.
- Paul Maholm and Brian Bass combined to go 5 2/3 innings and give up 9 earned runs on 10 hits and 7 walks for the Pirates... Double the pitchers, double the pain.
- Esmerling Vasquez's line today for the Diamondbacks: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 HR.
- David Wright and Justin Morneau both went 0-4 with 4 strikeouts... 2 Golden Sombreros! Wasn't Cinco de Mayo on Wednesday?
- The Braves 5-9 hitters went 0-16 with 7 strikeouts and 14 left on base.
- The White Sox 2-4 hitters went 1-14 with 8 strikeouts and 14 left on base.
- The Giants and Mets combined to leave 49 men on base. That has to be some sort of record for futility.
- The entire Tampa Bay lineup.
Lineup-ology:
- Joe Mauer started at DH for the Twins. Wilson Ramos started at catcher.
- Robinson Cano was back at 2B for the Yankees.
- Jorge Posada started at DH for the Yankees. With Curtis Granderson's injury and the play of Francisco Cervelli, don't be surprised to see more of this in the coming days.
- Carlos Gonzalez was out of the lineup for the Rockies, due to a death in the family. He'll miss Monday's game too.
- Kevin Correia missed his start, also due to death in the family.
- Andy Marte got the start at 3B for the Tribe. Jhonny Peralta's production has been in decline, so this is worth watching.
- Asdrubal Cabrera was back at SS and hitting lead-off for the Indians. Luis Valbuena was at DH, while Mark Grudzielanek started at 2B. Grudzielanek could pick up more at-bats, if Valbuena continues to slump.
- Randy Ruiz started at 1B for the Blue Jays. Lyle Overbay sat this one out and unless he starts hitting better, he might find himself on the bench more often.
- Tyler Colvin started in place of Alfonso Soriano for the Cubs.
- Max Ramirez got the start over Matt Treanor at catcher for the Rangers.
- Jerry Hairston Jr. got the start at 2B for the Brewers and had a 9th inning to forget. With a 1 run lead, he got caught stealing to end the top of the inning and then made a throwing error in the bottom of the inning to help blow the lead.
- Corey Hart got the start, while Jim Edmonds was on the bench for the Brewers.
- Brian Burres will stay in the Pirates rotation, while Jeff Karstens moves to the bullpen.
Comings/Goings:
- LaTroy Hawkins was placed on the 15-Day DL by the Brewers retroactive to Friday. They're calling it weakness in his throwing shoulder. Mitch Stetter was recalled to take his spot.
- Brian Schneider was placed on the 15-Day DL by the Phillies with a left Achilles' strain. Paul Hoover was called up to take his spot.
- Matt Chico was designated by for assignment by the Nationals. Doug Slaten was called up to take his spot.
- Ryan Madson was moved from the 15-Day DL to the 60-Day DL. Don't kick chairs like Madson, throw them like Bobby Knight... I kid, I kid. Seriously though, this should help tell you just how serious Madson's injury is.
Injuries:
- Troy Tulowitzki tweaked his right quad and is thought to be day-to-day.
- Larry Wayne Jones missed Sunday's game with a groin issue. Injuries like these are par for the course with Larry.
- Jason Heyward missed another game with a groin injury. He'll probably miss tomorrow's game as well.
- Luis Castillo is dealing with a bone bruise in his left heel. He's out indefinitely and should be monitored, as a DL stint is not out of the question.
- Jim Johnson, currently on the 15-Day DL, will reportedly make a visit to Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion on his right elbow. You never want to hear the name Dr. James Andrews, elbow, and a pitcher's name in the same sentence.
- Matt Holliday missed Sunday's game with a groin injury. With Monday off, he should be back Tuesday.
- Ryan Church has a bruised wrist, he's not expected to go on the DL.
Star Prospect News:
- Mike Stanton saved a girl from a well, rescued a cat from a tree, and gave his mom the best Mother's day gift ever recorded. I swear this is all true.