Milwaukee Brewers third basemen Jeff Cirillo claims that the Rockies are using illegal baseballs at Coors Field in order to lower offense. Considering the balls are checked out by Major League Baseball to keep just such a thing from happening, I doubt the validity of it. But then again, considering the balls are checked out by Major League Baseball, it's entirely plausible.
Jason Varitek has chosen to undergo surgery to repair cartilage in his injured knee, meaning the Red Sox have to find themselves a starting catcher ASAP. I'm probably the biggest Doug Mirabelli fan out there, but unless he catches on fire like he did in 2004 (.281/.368/.525) the Red Sox are going to need some help. Rod Barajas might be an option, as is Javy Lopez.
Carlos Guillen hit for the cycle last night, helping Justin Verlander become the majors first 14-game winner. Guillen has been one of the better players in the league since moving to Detroit; his pNRAA of +28.29 per 150 games is one of the top marks in the league among shortstops. That trade was an absolute steal for Detroit; since 2004, Guillen had had pNRAA of +44.45, +15.17, and +28.29 in exchange for Ramon Santiago and Juan Gonzalez.
The Brewers and Rockies played a nail biting 1-0 contest last night, one that featured a ninth inning almost rally by the Rockies against shiny new closer Francisco Cordero. Check out the WPA graph for the game, as they're always fun in 1-0 games. Also, check out the love for fan favorite, Chad Moeller.
Odalis Perez made his starting pitching debut for the Kansas City Royals last night, and he did nothing to stave off another 100-loss season in KC. If you haven't seen Tango's piece on Mark Teahen yet, you should probably take a look.
I've realized I mostly ignored the Jorge Sosa acquisition by the Cardinals, so take a look at what SB Nation's resident Cards expert thinks of the whole situation. I wouldn't exactly be thrilled about this if I were a Cardinals fan. The Ronnie Belliard deal confuses me as well. I'm really not sure what Walt Jocketty was thinking, especially since he's been pretty handy with trades throughout his tenure.
On a closing note, Francisco Liriano will miss today's scheduled start with a forearm injury. Hopefully for the sake of Twins fans that doesn't turn into anything more severe.