MLB

Baseball history has been made tonight.  Alex Rodriguez returned to the Yankees lineup, for the first time since injuring his hip and groin.  I wonder if he knew he'd be making baseball history tonight?

Jamie Moyer entered tonight coming off of a brutal outing against the Boston Red Sox.  I wonder if he knew he'd be making baseball history tonight?

Tigers' fans know this probably won't last forever.

However, Brennan Boesch has continued his hot streak much longer than anyone could have expected when he was called up from Toledo on April 24th.

Prior to Wednesday night's game with the Nationals, Boesch had hit eight home runs  on top of driving in 30 runs.

If Boesch had enough at-bats, he would rank fifth in the AL in batting average at .338, third in slugging percentage at .611, and fifth in OPS at .994.

He is doing it the old school way.  His hitting philosophy can be summed up in four words.

I was five years old when my dad took me to my first baseball game.

Old Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio was the scene. Even in 1986, "The Mistake by the Lake" was well past its prime. I believe Muni Stadium purists, like myself, defended the 78,000-seat paper weight by claiming it had character.

BOISE—Despite the uncooperative actions of the Treasure Valley weather gods, summer is among us and the 2010 Northwest League season is just two days away.  Media Day has come and gone from Memorial Stadium, marking the return of the Boise Hawks and the renewal of minor league relationships.

World Cup betting players don’t have to worry about a trade deadline, like most professional leagues around the world in all sports. In Major League Baseball, the big name that everyone is saying will be on the market is Seattle’s Cliff Lee, who was traded from Philadelphia in the Roy Halladay deal. 

Where did the best second baseman in baseball go?

Chase Utley’s batting average continues to go down the tube. Starting at well over .300, it’s been a slow dissent to the .200’s. It doesn’t take much to notice he’s struggling.

In his last 10 games Utley’s only managed to squeak out a .206 average at his 34 appearances at the plate. Combine his four runs and seven hits with his four strikeouts and 0 stolen bases and it doesn’t add up to much.

Well Mariners fans, lets face it, the 2010 season is a bust.

There will be no comeback, no 1995 style legendary run to the post season. No, I'm afraid the last exciting moment for the Mariners will be watching who they dump in the upcoming midseason fire sale.

Cliff Lee is a lock to be traded, and rumor has it that everybody not named Felix or Ichiro is up for grabs. I'd expect a lot of familiar names to be playing in different markets come August.

So, what does that mean for the 2011 squad? What does the future hold for Seattle baseball?

Who are the 10 toughest players in Major League Baseball today?

While many have been quick to limp to the disabled list, others such as Derek Jeter, Kevin Youkilis, and numerous catchers across the league take their nicks and keep moving forward.

What names belong on my top 10 list?

Let’s begin with an honorable mention…

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He was a Gold Glove center fielder, a four-time World Champion, a batting title winner, and a fan favorite for the biggest, most important baseball team in the history of baseball.

So, let’s ask: Is Bernie Williams a Hall of Famer?

Statistics: Career Ranking Amongst Center Fielders

Pirates prized prospect Pedro Alvarez had been called up by the team this week, and will probably replace Andy LaRoche.

Alvarez, 23, is a power hitting 3rd baseman, who can be a threat every at bat at the big league level but is very weak when it comes to defense.

He reminds us of a somewhat Adam Dunn, who is a power hitter, yet isn't the greatest fielder (I mean years ago, he has gotten better this year). Also, Dunn and Alvarez both strike out often. 

With Pittsburgh needing help at this point, they called up the young 3rd baseman.