Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: Jo-Jo Reyes gets Gatorade bath after halting winless streak at 28

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports Jo-Jo Reyes gets Gatorade bath after halting winless streak at 28 31 May 2011, 4:30 am Talk about refreshing! For the first time in almost three years, a very drenched Jo-Jo Reyes can look at the box score of a game he pitched and see the following bit of information near the bottom: W: J. Reyes Hey, no matter what you think of the fuss made over Reyes' tying the major league record of starts without a win at 28 earlier this week, you have to admit that it must be a pretty cool feeling for the Toronto Blue Jays pitcher right now. Pitching wins may not be the most reliable statistic, but let's be honest: Reyes owned an 0-13 record and a 6.59 ERA since last winning on June 13, 2008. The 28 straight games might have been a result of Reyes' being an unfortunate victim of circumstance, but performances like the one he put together on Monday night were far from the norm during the dry spell. Honestly, what a way snap the skid. Reyes went all nine innings, striking out four and allowing only one run in the Jays' 11-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians. Though the Jays' offense did its part by posting seven runs in the fourth inning, Reyes didn't back into the victory. It was the first complete game of the left-hander's career and only the second thrown by a Jays pitcher this season. By the end of the contest, the crowd at Rogers Centre was standing and chanting his name. After he struck out Jack Hannahan to earn the win, Reyes was approached by fellow pitcher Ricky Romero, who said: "You can smile now, it's over." From the Associated Press: "It was just an awesome game," a smiling Reyes said. "I guess this was the way to do it if I had to choose." The win means that Reyes will share his weird and unlucky claim to fame with Matt Keough, who went 28 starts without a win with the Oakland A's in 1979. Keough was the subject of an interesting "where are they now?" article in the Toronto Star on Monday and it contained a piece of information that might prove inspiring  for Reyes' future. After setting that record in '79, Keough bounced back in 1980 to win comeback player of the year honors with a 16-13 record and 2.92 ERA. Reyes still has a ways to go before his numbers look like that, but Monday's win made for a heck of a great start. Or, depending how you look on it, one heck of a great ending. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: Jo-Jo Reyes gets Gatorade bath after halting winless streak at 28

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports

Jo-Jo Reyes gets Gatorade bath after halting winless streak at 28 May 31st 2011, 03:30 Talk about refreshing! For the first time in almost three years, a very drenched Jo-Jo Reyes can look at the box score of a game he pitched and see the following bit of information near the bottom: W: J. Reyes Hey, no matter what you think of the fuss made over Reyes' tying the major league record of starts without a win at 28 earlier this week, you have to admit that it must be a pretty cool feeling for the Toronto Blue Jays pitcher right now. Pitching wins may not be the most reliable statistic, but let's be honest: Reyes owned an 0-13 record and a 6.59 ERA since last winning on June 13, 2008. The 28 straight games might have been a result of Reyes' being an unfortunate victim of circumstance, but performances like the one he put together on Monday night were far from the norm during the dry spell. Honestly, what a way snap the skid. Reyes went all nine innings, striking out four and allowing only one run in the Jays' 11-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians. Though the Jays' offense did its part by posting seven runs in the fourth inning, Reyes didn't back into the victory. It was the first complete game of the left-hander's career and only the second thrown by a Jays pitcher this season. By the end of the contest, the crowd at Rogers Centre was standing and chanting his name. After he struck out Jack Hannahan to earn the win, Reyes was approached by fellow pitcher Ricky Romero, who said: "You can smile now, it's over." From the Associated Press: "It was just an awesome game," a smiling Reyes said. "I guess this was the way to do it if I had to choose." The win means that Reyes will share his weird and unlucky claim to fame with Matt Keough, who went 28 starts without a win with the Oakland A's in 1979. Keough was the subject of an interesting "where are they now?" article in the Toronto Star on Monday and it contained a piece of information that might prove inspiring  for Reyes' future. After setting that record in '79, Keough bounced back in 1980 to win comeback player of the year honors with a 16-13 record and 2.92 ERA. Reyes still has a ways to go before his numbers look like that, but Monday's win made for a heck of a great start. Or, depending how you look on it, one heck of a great ending.

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Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking ‘unwritten rules’ again

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking 'unwritten rules' again 30 May 2011, 5:18 pm A season ago in the wake of Alex Rodriguez infamously invading Dallas Braden's moundspace, author Jason Turbow wrote a post on The Stew in conjunction with (and to promote) his book about the so-called "unwritten rules" of baseball. The confrontation between Chicago White Sox left-hander John Danks and Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista on Sunday afternoon seems like an excellent opportunity to revisit Major League Baseball's unofficial (yet seemingly integral) code of player conduct. What happened? One batter after the Blue Jays had piled up a 9-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning on a Corey Patterson home run, Bautista hit an infield pop up on a 3-2 pitch. Right after making contact, Bautista — by far the best hitter in baseball this season — screamed at himself and slammed down his bat in exasperation. No at-bat should be wasted, in his view. Danks, who was having perhaps the lousiest game in the lousiest season of his career, took exception to the outburst and started yelling at Bautista — who yelled back as he made his way to the dugout. The argument never got too heated, but on the replay notice the umpire lurking, just in case: Watch an unwritten rule get violated After the game, Danks went into detail about what he told Bautista: "I just told him to run the bases," Danks said. "He was out there acting like a clown. He's a good player. He's had a great year and a half, no doubt, he's been one of the best hitters in the league. He was out there acting like he's Babe Ruth or something. "I've had a pretty [crummy] year to this point but I have pride still," Danks added. "I'm not going to let him sit out there and show me up like that." Danks might be surprised to learn that Bautista is actually hitting better than Babe Ruth. But, more to his point — is Danks right about Bautista showing him up? Not surprisingly, the common opinion seems to be that Danks should concern himself with pitching better and worry less about how hitters are responding. Based on the Twitter reaction, the only people defending Danks were (big surprise) White Sox broadcasters Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone. (Hawk also implied that Bautista was corking his bat, which would be the among the dumber things he's ever said. A) There's no evidence he is. B) There's no evidence it helps you go from mediocre to Ruthian.) Anyway, Bautista was unapologetic afterward, saying he wasn't here to make Danks feel good. And, to be fair, his intent wasn't to show up Danks in the first; He simply was mad at himself for not putting a good enough swing on the ball. As a result, however, he violated an unwritten rule and DISRESPECTED THE OPPONENT. To wit, check out what Drew Fairservice wrote at Ghost Runner: Was John Danks obviously irritated with his own performance, thus lashing out at the One Man Gang? Of course. But that doesn't really "make it okay." If it were any other guy on the team, I have a strong inkling Jose himself would pull the offending player aside for a quick conversation about respecting the opposition. There's no finer baseball man out there than Drew, who views the sport, in part, through the lens of a Blue Jays fan. If he can see Danks' point, others should as well. I'm sure our comments section will have an informed and respectful discussion about this. (Ahem.) Jose Bautista might very well be Babe Ruth 3000, but even the Bambino made outs. Therefore, he needs to act like he's been there before and be "OK" (at least outwardly) with not hitting every ball over the fence. Pick your spots. Besides: Before 2010, Jose Bautista made enough outs to know what it's like to struggle. And Danks also needs to pitch better. Follow Dave on Twitter — @AnswerDave — and engage the Stew on Facebook You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking ‘unwritten rules’ again

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking ‘unwritten rules’ again 30 May 2011, 5:18 pm A season ago in the wake of Alex Rodriguez infamously invading Dallas Braden's moundspace, author Jason Turbow wrote a post on The Stew in conjunction with (and to promote) his book about the so-called "unwritten rules" of baseball. The confrontation between Chicago White Sox left-hander John Danks and Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista on Sunday afternoon seems like an excellent opportunity to revisit Major League Baseball's unofficial (yet seemingly integral) code of player conduct. What happened? One batter after the Blue Jays had piled up a 9-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning on a Corey Patterson home run, Bautista hit an infield pop up on a 3-2 pitch. Right after making contact, Bautista — by far the best hitter in baseball this season — screamed at himself and slammed down his bat in exasperation. No at-bat should be wasted, in his view. Danks, who was having perhaps the lousiest game in the lousiest season of his career, took exception to the outburst and started yelling at Bautista — who yelled back as he made his way to the dugout. The argument never got too heated, but on the replay notice the umpire lurking, just in case: Watch an unwritten rule get violated After the game, Danks went into detail about what he told Bautista: "I just told him to run the bases," Danks said. "He was out there acting like a clown. He's a good player. He's had a great year and a half, no doubt, he's been one of the best hitters in the league. He was out there acting like he's Babe Ruth or something. "I've had a pretty [crummy] year to this point but I have pride still," Danks added. "I'm not going to let him sit out there and show me up like that." Danks might be surprised to learn that Bautista is actually hitting better than Babe Ruth. But, more to his point — is Danks right about Bautista showing him up? Not surprisingly, the common opinion seems to be that Danks should concern himself with pitching better and worry less about how hitters are responding. Based on the Twitter reaction, the only people defending Danks were (big surprise) White Sox broadcasters Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone. (Hawk also implied that Bautista was corking his bat, which would be the among the dumber things he's ever said. A) There's no evidence he is. B) There's no evidence it helps you go from mediocre to Ruthian.) Anyway, Bautista was unapologetic afterward, saying he wasn't here to make Danks feel good. And, to be fair, his intent wasn't to show up Danks in the first; He simply was mad at himself for not putting a good enough swing on the ball. As a result, however, he violated an unwritten rule and DISRESPECTED THE OPPONENT. To wit, check out what Drew Fairservice wrote at Ghost Runner: Was John Danks obviously irritated with his own performance, thus lashing out at the One Man Gang? Of course. But that doesn't really "make it okay." If it were any other guy on the team, I have a strong inkling Jose himself would pull the offending player aside for a quick conversation about respecting the opposition. There's no finer baseball man out there than Drew, who views the sport, in part, through the lens of a Blue Jays fan. If he can see Danks' point, others should as well. I'm sure our comments section will have an informed and respectful discussion about this. (Ahem.) Jose Bautista might very well be Babe Ruth 3000, but even the Bambino made outs. Therefore, he needs to act like he's been there before and be "OK" (at least outwardly) with not hitting every ball over the fence. Pick your spots. Besides: Before 2010, Jose Bautista made enough outs to know what it's like to struggle. And Danks also needs to pitch better. Follow Dave on Twitter — @AnswerDave — and engage the Stew on Facebook You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking ‘unwritten rules’ again

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports

Danks, Bautista argue during pop-up, evoking ‘unwritten rules’ again May 30th 2011, 16:18 A season ago in the wake of Alex Rodriguez infamously invading Dallas Braden's moundspace, author Jason Turbow wrote a post on The Stew in conjunction with (and to promote) his book about the so-called "unwritten rules" of baseball. The confrontation between Chicago White Sox left-hander John Danks and Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista on Sunday afternoon seems like an excellent opportunity to revisit Major League Baseball's unofficial (yet seemingly integral) code of player conduct. What happened? One batter after the Blue Jays had piled up a 9-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning on a Corey Patterson home run, Bautista hit an infield pop up on a 3-2 pitch. Right after making contact, Bautista — by far the best hitter in baseball this season — screamed at himself and slammed down his bat in exasperation. No at-bat should be wasted, in his view. Danks, who was having perhaps the lousiest game in the lousiest season of his career, took exception to the outburst and started yelling at Bautista — who yelled back as he made his way to the dugout. The argument never got too heated, but on the replay notice the umpire lurking, just in case: Watch an unwritten rule get violated After the game, Danks went into detail about what he told Bautista: "I just told him to run the bases," Danks said. "He was out there acting like a clown. He's a good player. He's had a great year and a half, no doubt, he's been one of the best hitters in the league. He was out there acting like he's Babe Ruth or something. "I've had a pretty [crummy] year to this point but I have pride still," Danks added. "I'm not going to let him sit out there and show me up like that." Danks might be surprised to learn that Bautista is actually hitting better than Babe Ruth. But, more to his point — is Danks right about Bautista showing him up? Not surprisingly, the common opinion seems to be that Danks should concern himself with pitching better and worry less about how hitters are responding. Based on the Twitter reaction, the only people defending Danks were (big surprise) White Sox broadcasters Ken Harrelson and Steve Stone. (Hawk also implied that Bautista was corking his bat, which would be the among the dumber things he's ever said. A) There's no evidence he is. B) There's no evidence it helps you go from mediocre to Ruthian.) Anyway, Bautista was unapologetic afterward, saying he wasn't here to make Danks feel good. And, to be fair, his intent wasn't to show up Danks in the first; He simply was mad at himself for not putting a good enough swing on the ball. As a result, however, he violated an unwritten rule and DISRESPECTED THE OPPONENT. To wit, check out what Drew Fairservice wrote at Ghost Runner: Was John Danks obviously irritated with his own performance, thus lashing out at the One Man Gang? Of course. But that doesn't really "make it okay." If it were any other guy on the team, I have a strong inkling Jose himself would pull the offending player aside for a quick conversation about respecting the opposition. There's no finer baseball man out there than Drew, who views the sport, in part, through the lens of a Blue Jays fan. If he can see Danks' point, others should as well. I'm sure our comments section will have an informed and respectful discussion about this. (Ahem.) Jose Bautista might very well be Babe Ruth 3000, but even the Bambino made outs. Therefore, he needs to act like he's been there before and be "OK" (at least outwardly) with not hitting every ball over the fence. Pick your spots. Besides: Before 2010, Jose Bautista made enough outs to know what it's like to struggle. And Danks also needs to pitch better. Follow Dave on Twitter — @AnswerDave — and engage the Stew on Facebook

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Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: The Juice: Brace yourselves: The Diamondbacks are in first place

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports

The Juice: Brace yourselves: The Diamondbacks are in first place May 30th 2011, 13:52 Nine innings, nine items to get you going. Ladies and gentleman of the Stew, take a sip of morning Juice. 1. Looks like Harold Camping is getting his wish: The Arizona Diamondbacks are in first place for the first time since the 2008 season after beating the Astros 4-2, thanks to a two-run double by Xavier Nady. That makes him XXavier, doesn't it? Hey, Kirk Gibson, what else can you take away from these guys? 2. No amount of offense wasted: It must be nice for the Atlanta Braves to live in a world where a two-run homer by Martin Prado is all of the offense Jair Jurrjens needs to beat the Reds 2-1. Did you know that hitters are 4-for-43 (.093) with runners in scoring position against Jurrjens? Thanks to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, now you do! 3. Breakdancing catcher: If only catcher Brayan Peña hadn't done an ill-timed Texas Two-Step at home plate, letting Mike Napoli sneak in like a bandit, the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers might still be playing. They'd be in the 36th inning. Instead, Rangers win 7-6 in nine. 4. Canadian trampling: The Toronto Blue Jays trounced John Danks and the White Sox 13-4. Along the way, Ozzie Guillen went off on White Sox fans, then said he didn't, but then South Side Sox showed he did — but it wasn't really that bad. You be the judge. Or move on to the next game. 5. Win one, lose one, move on: Justin Verlander threw a career-high 132 pitches in 7 2/3 innings to lead the Detroit Tigers to a 3-0 victory against the Red Sox. The teams split a day/night doubleheader. But, only 132 pitches? I thought Leyland would have abused him more than that by now. And I say "abused" using an elastic definition of the word. 6. Lohse's secret to success: Kyle Lohse continued pitching like a beast in the Cardinals 4-3 victory against the Rockies, who are playing like they're in mourning. After for Lohse, he says spending what amounted to years on the disabled list has helped him become a better pitcher: "I kind of got interrupted there a little bit with health issues," Lohse said. "But I learned how to concentrate a little bit harder. Now I'm able to lock it in and keep it there, not let one or two hits get to me." 7. Hella good: In a playoff preview, Tampa's Jeremy Hellickson dominated the Cleveland Indians in a 7-0 victory. And Avril Lavigne curses him, because he's not a Sk8rboi. 8. Claw'd: Clayton Kershaw comes through with a two-hitter (and a game score of 92!) in the Dodgers 8-0 thumping of the Marlins. 9. Cubbie Occurrence: It doesn't happen very often these days, so it behooves us to mention that the Cubs won, 3-2 against the Pirates. Follow Dave on Twitter — @AnswerDave — and engage the Stew on Facebook

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Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports: The Juice: Brace yourselves: The Diamondbacks are in first place

Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports Latest Big League Stew - MLB from Yahoo! Sports The Juice: Brace yourselves: The Diamondbacks are in first place 30 May 2011, 2:52 pm Nine innings, nine items to get you going. Ladies and gentleman of the Stew, take a sip of morning Juice. 1. Looks like Harold Camping is getting his wish: The Arizona Diamondbacks are in first place for the first time since the 2008 season after beating the Astros 4-2, thanks to a two-run double by Xavier Nady. That makes him XXavier, doesn't it? Hey, Kirk Gibson, what else can you take away from these guys? 2. No amount of offense wasted: It must be nice for the Atlanta Braves to live in a world where a two-run homer by Martin Prado is all of the offense Jair Jurrjens needs to beat the Reds 2-1. Did you know that hitters are 4-for-43 (.093) with runners in scoring position against Jurrjens? Thanks to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, now you do! 3. Breakdancing catcher: If only catcher Brayan Peña hadn't done an ill-timed Texas Two-Step at home plate, letting Mike Napoli sneak in like a bandit, the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers might still be playing. They'd be in the 36th inning. Instead, Rangers win 7-6 in nine. 4. Canadian trampling: The Toronto Blue Jays trounced John Danks and the White Sox 13-4. Along the way, Ozzie Guillen went off on White Sox fans, then said he didn't, but then South Side Sox showed he did — but it wasn't really that bad. You be the judge. Or move on to the next game. 5. Win one, lose one, move on: Justin Verlander threw a career-high 132 pitches in 7 2/3 innings to lead the Detroit Tigers to a 3-0 victory against the Red Sox. The teams split a day/night doubleheader. But, only 132 pitches? I thought Leyland would have abused him more than that by now. And I say "abused" using an elastic definition of the word. 6. Lohse's secret to success: Kyle Lohse continued pitching like a beast in the Cardinals 4-3 victory against the Rockies, who are playing like they're in mourning. After for Lohse, he says spending what amounted to years on the disabled list has helped him become a better pitcher: "I kind of got interrupted there a little bit with health issues," Lohse said. "But I learned how to concentrate a little bit harder. Now I'm able to lock it in and keep it there, not let one or two hits get to me." 7. Hella good: In a playoff preview, Tampa's Jeremy Hellickson dominated the Cleveland Indians in a 7-0 victory. And Avril Lavigne curses him, because he's not a Sk8rboi. 8. Claw'd: Clayton Kershaw comes through with a two-hitter (and a game score of 92!) in the Dodgers 8-0 thumping of the Marlins. 9. Cubbie Occurrence: It doesn't happen very often these days, so it behooves us to mention that the Cubs won, 3-2 against the Pirates. Follow Dave on Twitter — @AnswerDave — and engage the Stew on Facebook You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.