MLB

With baseball a full two months in the books, teams are starting to make their runs toward the All-Star break.

With so much parity in MLB, teams with nearly identical records are separated by a few spots, sometimes more.

There are still many teams in realistic contention for their division title, but I will narrow it down to five teams right now that we could see playing in late October.

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There is an old saying that goes something like this: "Some days you get the bear, some days the bear gets you, and some days it doesn't pay to go into the woods."

Those words could be used to describe all of the pitchers in this article. Most of these guys are not bums or "tomato cans". Most are decent pitchers while some are even very good.

When things go badly, they tend to bundle up on you. Ask any of these men and I am sure they will concur.

Not all of them completed the inning. They do have much in common however.

Back in February, when the Mets signed Hisanori Takahashi to a minor league contract, barely anyone noticed.

Now, almost two months into the season, Mets fans are enamored by his talents.

The Mets, Marlins, and Nationals are all three games behind the division-leading Philadelphia Phillies, while the Braves are 2.5 back.

Either this speaks to how good the division is compared to what many thought, or it speaks to how many flaws the Phillies truly have and how average the division is.

When was the last time that a baseball card created any headlines in the last 20 years?

More than likely you remember Wayne Gretzky purchasing the Honus Wagner card in 1991 for a staggering $451,000. Upon further investigation, that same card was sold again in 2007, for a reported $2,350,000.

To be honest, I remember in seventh and eighth grade, being driven to flea markets by my mom, trying to get that ever-elusive Ken Griffey Jr. No. 1 Upper Deck rookie card.

How fun was that?

Remember the Beckett price guides!?

Here’s a look at the unheralded players who played well yesterday.

Ubaldo Jimenez appears to be set on a record-breaking course this season. Through 10 games he is 9-1 with a 0.88 ERA and has allowed only 42 hits in 71.1 innings pitched.

Let’s not get too excited.

Welcome to the Cleveland Indians Trading Post, a weekly segment meant to help my fellow Tribe fans sort out which of the few familiar faces left on the team won’t be around much longer.

This week’s potential trade bait is Mitch Talbot.

The basics

A second-round pick in the 2002 amateur draft, Talbot was acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays last winter in exchange for Kelly Shoppach.

Baseball stadiums come and go with regularity as of late. In small and big markets alike, teams are scrambling to build more suites and have the most up-to-date technology.

A perfect example of this is last year's New York Yankees and this year's Minnesota Twins.

Ubaldo Jimenez has been pitching like he is from another planet this season. He won his ninth game yesterday, pitching eight scoreless innings against the Diamondbacks who fell to the Rockies by a 7-3 score.

His record now stands at 9-1 with a 0.88 ERA, a 0.93 WHIP all of which lead the NL. He has pitched a quality start in all 10 of his starts. He has allowed two earned runs only twice this season. He has allowed one earned run three times and he has held his opponents scoreless in the other five starts.