MLB

Updates from Saturday, April 12

The MLB Lineups Twitter feed reported that McCutchen is in the lineup on Saturday:

Original Text

The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking up at Milwaukee in the standings in the early going in the National League Central, but they had much more pressing concerns during their game against the Brewers Friday.

Former 22-year MLB slugger Jim Thome got the opportunity to throw out the opening pitch at the brand new Charlotte Knights stadium.

There must have been a reason he was a designated hitter for most of the end of his career. 

Thome's pitch was terrible, and the fans seemed to be pretty disappointed. 

[Youtube]

Cincinnati Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton is already considered the fasest player in Major League Baseball, but how does he compare to someone like Deion Sanders?

MLB Tonight made the video above comparing Hamilton and Sanders on the basepaths after hitting a triple. Hamilton was able to beat Sanders by a fraction of a second.

[For the Win]

The Los Angeles Dodgers made a few low-key acquisitions this past offseason following two years of high-profile roster building. Just two weeks into the new season, some of those players are already playing major roles for the Dodgers.

Dan Haren has been a pleasant surprise at the back of the rotation, and Chris Perez has made a seamless transition to a setup role.

Yes, it's early on in the 2014 regular season. And, yes, there's still lots of baseball to play—a whole summer, in fact.

But in a big market like New York, team officials are always being looked at through a microscope and every step, every movement, is watched with great intensity. It's just the nature of the beast that is the Big Apple.

It was rough for a while there, but it looks like our long Nationals nightmare may finally be over.

Yes, Bryce Harper looks like he's back.

At the beginning of every Major League Baseball season, hope springs eternal. That is, of course, until the first couple weeks of games are played.

Once that grace period is up—a period that has been all too short for Cubs fans in recent years—it's interesting to take a less emotionally charged look at the team. After all, many players on teams will fall short of lofty expectations while others will put on performances that nobody saw coming. 

Hermes, a company well known for fine leather goods and accessories, is now selling a very expensive baseball glove and bat.

The glove is made with gold swift calfskin; it took 25 hours to stitch and costs $14,100, per the company's website. 

They are also selling an ash wood bat with more gold swift calfskin around the handle for $1,925.

The second full week of the fantasy baseball season is in full swing. You'll want to keep an eye on the prize and finish the weekend strong, but there is nothing wrong with a peek ahead.

Here’s a breakdown of the two-start pitchers for the week of April 14-20. I used ESPN to generate the list. Starts are subject to change due to weather and injuries. Check for updates according to your league settings to avoid any surprises.

Starting the season off with a 4-8 record is probably not what Arizona Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson had in mind.

The team began 1-7, marking it the worst start in franchise history, with one more loss in the first eight games than the club’s inaugural season in 1998. And after finishing the past two seasons with an 81-81 finish, winning one game in eight tries is going to start raising concerns.