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Major League Baseball finally brought the hammer down on Tampa Bay Rays catcher Dioner Navarro Tuesday morning.  Navarro was suspended for two games for bumping an umpire this past weekend.

Now on to the fun part.

This means Rays fans will get at least two more long looks at the emerging youngster John Jaso.  And it has been a sight for sore eyes.  Jaso has caught the attention of both Rays fans, teammates and coaches alike. 

Hours before the Philadelphia Phillies failed to make the necessary plays in a 5-1 loss to the San Francisco Giants, they made one huge play off the field.

The Phillies announced they had locked up slugger Ryan Howard to a five-year, $125 million contract extension that could keep the All-Star first baseman in Philadelphia through 2017.

The contract runs through 2016, with a club option for 2017 that could raise the value of the deal to $138 million.

Ryan Howard, arguably the face of the Philadelphia Phillies franchise, is now—on average—the second highest-paid player in the MLB, next to New York Yankees third baseman and arguably the game’s greatest, Alex Rodriguez.

Is Howard worth a guaranteed $25 million a season?

The numbers suggest yes.

Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Manny Ramirez is back on the disabled list, this time with a strained right calf.

Ramirez hasn't officially been on the DL since 2002, but the calf strain is just another injury in a string of complications experienced by the slugger over the past several seasons.

As the season moves in to full swing, the pace set by Manny seems to mimic last season's pre-suspension trend. Ramirez has now missed five of the Dodgers' 18 games, and when he is not in the lineup, the numbers certainly reflect his absence.

Eighteen months ago, the NY times announced that it was actively shopping its stake in New England Sports Ventures, which owns the Red Sox, NESN, Fenway Park, and other real estate holdings. It said it was selling its 17.5 percent stake in NESV in an effort to raise cash and shield the paper from the rapidly-developing revenue squeeze that hit the newspaper industry in the wake of the recession.

Welcome to Colorado.

There are very few things the ultra-versatile Ben Zobrist can't do.  Later today, the list gets smaller. Scratch signing a long-term contract extension off the list, as Zobrist will sign on the dotted line keeping him with the Rays through 2015.

The former utility player had a breakout season last year, hitting .297, with 27 HR, and 91 RBI.  Questions abound as to whether that was a career year or if he could replicate the success.

Count the Rays as believers.

During this afternoon’s media briefing, Red Sox manager Terry Francona announced that CF Jacoby Ellsbury (at center in photo) has been diagnosed with a hairline fracture in each of four ribs.

RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka has now completed his rehab assignment (three starts) with the Pawtucket Red Sox and, according to Sox manager Terry Francona, he will rejoin the rotation on his next turn.

In today’s media briefing, Tito said the team will NOT go with with a six-man rotation, therefore one of the current members of the starting five will be sent to the bubllpen. It says here it will be Wakefield, who has been brutal in each of his last two outings.

Francona was not willing to name the starter to be demoted in today’s briefing.

The New York Yankees accomplished a rare feature in their 4-2 loss against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday afternoon. Pitcher CC Sabathia was pitching very well, but did not get enough run support to top the A's.

Sabathia pitched to Kurt Suzuki. The ball was chopped to Alex Rodriguez, who rushed to third and stepped on the bag to get Daric Barton out.

Rodriguez then beamed the ball nicely to Robinson Cano awaiting at second base to force Ryan Sweeney out.