Mark Prior Might Actually Make It Back And Other MLBullets

I am told that, during NBA Finals' time outs, and between U.S. Open shots, there was some baseball played this weekend ...

• Mark Prior is in the midst of another comeback attempt, but this one might be going better than any of his previous efforts. While working his way through the Red Sox's minor league system as a reliever, Prior is actually crushing it. Among the first 19 batters he faced at AAA, Prior struck out 15. Thanks to his solid numbers and his freshly-returned low-90s fastball, Prior could be on the verge of a call-up to the Red Sox. Prior, still just 31, hasn't pitched in the big leagues since 2006. I'm pulling for him, but I'd recommend you do yourself a favor and not refresh your memory as to just how good he was as he came up with the Cubs. Looking over his early minor league stats, and then his first few years with the Cubs ... ouch.

• The baseball infirmary was busy this weekend, especially for pitchers. All of Brandon Beachy, Drew Hutchison, and Josh Beckett hit the disabled list, and the Braves, Blue Jays (who also lost Brandon Morrow and Kyle Drabek recently), and Red Sox will have to decide if they want to try and make an acquisition to fill the void, or try to fill their rotation holes internally. Obviously each team is hoping that the injury is a short-term one, but they've gotta be considering alternatives. Bud Norris also hit the DL, but I'm not sure the Astros have quite the same difficult decision before them.
• Brad Lidge was brutally bad in a couple appearances this weekend for the Nationals against the Yankees, and it cost him his job. He was designated for assignment yesterday, and the Nats will have 10 days to release, trade, or waive the formerly dominant closer.
• Matt Moore came into the season expected to be the pitching equivalent of Bryce Harper or Mike Trout, but, while those two have broken out, Moore has been merely OK. Dave Cameron at FanGraphs thinks he might know why, and it's tied primarily to Moore's stellar changeup. It is killer against righties, but is so weak against lefties that Moore doesn't even bother throwing it.
• Curt Schilling is taking a leave of absence from ESPN following the controversial bankruptcy of his video game company, 38 Studios.
• The math behind the perceived uptick in perfect games of late.

Brett Taylor is the Lead Writer at Bleacher Nation, and a Contributor here at Bleed Cubbie Blue.