Opinion

1. Is Brian Matusz' 2009 performance more impressive than Matt Wieters' of 2008?

Lawrence Barreca: In some ways yes, and in other ways no. Both have taken the same sort of route, hitting Frederick and Bowie along the way, and both had similar results.

Citi Field is a state-of-the-art facility. A throwback to old-time baseball with an eye towards the future. Filled with a vast array of unobstructed views, intimate feel and quirky dimensions. It is truly a ballpark in every sense of the word.

So why does it feel more like a morgue?

It wasn't so long ago that the core of these Mets' players—Wright, Reyes, Beltran, and Delgado—were part of a reorganization, headed by Omar Minaya, to bring back the good old times from Shea and deliver them into Citi Field.

Jacoby Ellsbury, the young center fielder for the Boston Red Sox, is regarded around the league as one of the great young players in Major League Baseball today.

While Jacoby is still developing as a baseball player, his offensive repertoire currently consists of a swing that is prone towards contact, a batting average that generally hovers around .300, and the potential to develop legitimate power as he grows older.

Also, it should be noted that Jacoby is considered to be among the fastest players in the league, and his stolen base total is consistent with that notion.

Last night’s win against the Yanks notwithstanding, the next month is going to seriously test the mettle of the Angels. Hunter and Vladdy out means more pressure on...the pitchers.

The Angels are not going to outslug teams on a regular basis. They’re hitting better for sure—with the exception of Matthews, who is a stiff waiting to happen...oh, wait, it did happen! But Hunter is a huge loss and even Vladdy was coming around.

Perhaps it is unpopular with the fans and the players in the clubhouse, but no one can accuse Pittsburgh Pirates' General Manager Neal Huntington of being without vision and purpose.

Huntington, who has recently been almost vilified in Pittsburgh by fans and players who have nothing but disdain for his trades of popular major league players for high-ceiling talents and loads of prospects, maintains that he knows exactly what he's doing.

In a first half of mostly pleasant surprises for Giants fans, Jonathan Sanchez's no-hitter is by far the best story. Sanchez's struggles and demotion were all forgotten for nine magical innings, made much more special for Jonathan by the presence of his father, who joined his son in the dugout after the game against the San Diego Padres.

In a move not often associated with contending ballclubs, the Seattle Mariners traded their incumbent starter at shortstop on Friday, sending Yuniesky Betancourt to Kansas City in exchange for two minor league pitching prospects.

Though it seems a peculiar deal for a team closing in on first place in their division, Betancourt had long ago punched his ticket out of town with inconsistent play, a lack of focus, and an injury that kept him out of the lineup for the past month.

Is it a coincidence that just as Ryan Ludwick went down with an injury at Pittsburgh, the Cardinal offense began to struggle?

Is it a chance happening that while Ludwick struggled once coming off the disabled list, the Cardinal bats were quiet?

Finally, is it pure luck that as soon as Ludwick began to find his stroke, the Cardinals finally began to churn out runs again?

Just 24 hours ago, a pretty good portion of San Francisco Giants fans were wondering what the heck Jonathan Sanchez was doing back in the rotation after struggling so mightily before his demotion to the bullpen.

But because Randy Johnson was placed on the disabled list and, with much fanfare beforehand, Sanchez was put back in the rotation for the immediate future. It was one last shot to either show he is a valuable trade commodity or an arm that can stick with the club through the rest of the season.