Around The Majors- Tuesday Tidbits

Tuesday Tidbits
-Another strong performance by Jair Jurrjens led the Braves past the Padres 5-3. Jones and Kotsay both went deep off of Chris Young as Jeff Bennett picked up his first save. Atlanta has won 4 straight, San Diego has dropped 7 of 10.
-The Red Sox have now won 5 in a row as Tim Wakefield threw 8 scoreless innings as Boston blanked the slumping Tigers 5-0. Ortiz and Ramirez both hit solo blasts as Detroit has lost 5 straight.
-A 3 run David Dellucci homer off of Joba Chamberlain in the 8th won it for the Indians in a 5-3 decision over the Yankees. Both Pettitte and Carmona registered solid outings but Rafael Perez won it, and Rafael Betancourt saved it for the Tribe.
-Nate McLouth homered twice and drove in 3 as the Pirates pillaged the Giants 12-6 at PNC. Zach Duke picked up the win as Sanchez, Nady, and LaRoche each drove in 2 for the Bucs.
-The Rays got 2 RBI from Aki Iwamura and 6 innings from Andy Sonnanstine in a 5-4 win over Toronto. AJ Burnett struck out 10 in his 6 innings of work, but got the loss. Lyle Overbay drove in 2 for the Jays, but Troy Percival was able to close the door for the Tampa win.
-Carlos Zambrano threw 8 shutout frames to outduel Aaron Harang, and Kerry Wood closed out a 3-0 Cubs win over the Reds. Ronny Cedeno drove in 2 for Chicago.
-Scott Olsen pitched 8 2/3 shutout innings as the Marlins blanked Jeff Suppan and the Brewers 3-0. Mike Jacobs hit a 2 run homer for Florida, Olsen had 8 k's, and Kevin Gregg pitched the final out with the bases loaded for his 6th save.
-A 2 run double by Carlos Lee over Luis Ayala in the 8th gave Houston a 6-5 win over the Nationals. Lance Berkman went 5-5 with 4 runs scored for the Astros as Doug Brocail won it, and Jose Valverde saved it.
-It was the Garrett Anderson show in KC. He homered and drove in all 5 Angels run as Los Angeles bested the Royals 5-3. Brian Bannister took the loss for KC.
-Gavin Floyd took a no-hitter into the 9th and got one out before allowing a Joe Mauer hit in a 7-1 win over the Twins. Quentin and Dye each drove in 2 as Nick Blackburn took the Minnesota loss.
-A Rick Ankiel homer in the 8th proved to be the game winnner, as 3 Rocky runs in the 9th weren't enough in a 6-5 loss to St Louis. Chris Ianetta drove in 3 in the loss, their 8th in 10 games.
-Arizona scored 5 in the 4th to give Randy Johnson and the D-Backs a 6-4 win over Philadelphia. Both SS's in the game, Stephen Drew and Eric Bruntlett homered and drove in 3 for their respective clubs. Brandon Lyon picked up the Arizona save.
-Justin Duchscherer allowed 2 runs over 7 as Oakland bested Baltimore 4-2. Alan Embree and Santiago Casilla closed the door on the win.
-Josh Hamilton and David Murphy each homered and drove in 3 in Texas' 10-1 stomping of Seattle. Sidney Ponson had another stellar start, allowing just a run in 7 innings.
-The Mets started off really well, taking Hiroki Kuroda out of the game in the 4th off 8 hits and Moises Alou's steal of home but the Dodgers bullpen was dominant. They allowed just 3 hits the rest of the way, and Blake DeWitt made sure to provide the offense. He drove in 4, including an inside-the-park homer off of loser Nelson Figeroa as Los Angeles defeated New York 5-4. Takashi Saito saved it for the Dodgers.

News, Notes & Rumors
-The MLB Players Association is looking into whether teams colluded into not signing players like Barry Bonds and Kenny Lofton. The chances of this working are slim to none, and this work being done on Bonds' behalf is unquestionably sickening to many a baseball fan. Worry about stopping steroids in baseball, not potentially reward someone who took them.
-Both Toronto Shortstops David Eckstein and John McDonald both got hurt in their 5-4 loss to Tampa, and both will miss at least a few days. Marco Scutaro will try to take advantage of this odd occurrance as he'll get more playing time.
-As expected, the Twins placed Scott Baker on the DL with a strained groin retroactive to Sunday, and brought up pitcher Kevin Slowey.
-The Mariners have denied going after Ken Griffey Jr, says the Seattle Times, but the Cincinnati Enquirer is convinced that KGJ wants out as a Red.
-Jacque Jones would be a good fit for the Marlins, according to the Ft Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel.
-The Rockies are interested in Josh Fogg, and were told by the A's that Joe Blanton is currently unavailable. (Cincinnati Enquirer, Contra Costa Times)
-The Indians will try to trade Jason Michaels, but will offer him a AAA assignment if they're unsuccessful. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
-Alexei Ramirez was activated by the White Sox as they ponder releasing a player like Juan Uribe.
-MLB talked to the White Sox about the infamous slump-busting blowup dolls, but no punishment is expected, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Wednesday On Tap
3 day games today has Lieber facing Volquez in Cincinnati, Maine and Penny in Los Angeles, and Guthrie facing Blanton in Oakland. 5-0 Cliff Lee will battle 6-0 Chien-Ming Wang at 7pm on ESPN. Clay Buchholz faces the Tigers, Tim Hudson goes against San Diego, and Barry Zito makes his return to the mound against Pittsburgh.