MLB Bullets Is Under Further Review

No, I haven't been asked to replace Stephen Colbert on Comedy Central. Yet.

• Instant replay has been around for two weeks now, and a lot of people have been complaining about it. Commissioner Bud Selig said that there has been "very little controversy" and that while there have been a "glitch" or two, MLB is doing very well for the first few weeks of a new system. MLBAM CEO Bob Bowman said that "technology takes a while to work" and then took a shot at ESPN over some of their personalities criticizing the new system.
• Jon Morosi (and I'm glad to see he's not using his middle name in his byline now) says that while the system could use some fine-tuning, the replay system is moving MLB in the right direction. In particular, Morosi wants to see more explanations as to why the replay umpires ruled as they did.
• On thing that in particular needs to be "tweaked" is the way that umpires are ruling on "transfer" plays and what happens when a fielder drops the ball. Matt Snyder has three egregious examples of calls that seem to go against common sense.
• David Schoenfield looks at the same incidents and argues that MLB need to clarify the "transfer" rules soon. He also thinks it would be a good idea to make such plays unreviewable.
• Jonathan Bernhardt isn't taking the argument that replay is making the game longer seriously. He thinks the game has far worse offenders in that area.
• Whether you love him or hate him, everyone seems to want to talk about Yasiel Puig these days. In a story from Los Angeles magazine that you really should read, Jesse Katz tells the untold story of how Puig got out of Cuba. It involves smugglers, extortion and death threats, among other things. At least one murder. Basically, it sounds like a movie plot. Katz also goes to Cuba to see what life was like for Puig back there and what kind of a guy he was before he came to America.
• Bill Plaschke reads the story in horror and worries that the extortion and death threats involved might have a negative impact on the Dodgers season.
• Craig Calcaterra reads Plaschke's column and says, "Really?" You read that story and what you're worried about what the impact on the Dodgers is? You can tell I'm a particular fan of Calcaterra's frequent takedowns of Plaschke.
• If you're too lazy to actually read the whole story, Mike Oz has a good summary here.
• The Diamondbacks are terrible. Really bad. Like worse-than-the-Cubs bad. Most of the fault lies in their starting rotation. Mike Axisa compares the Diamondbacks starters to the worst collection of starting pitchers in baseball history. With the caveat that it's a small sample size, they're ranking (or reeking) pretty highly in that category right now.
• Jay Jaffe wonders if the Diamondbacks have already dug themselves too big a hole to climb out of.
• So with the Diamondbacks rotation in ruins, now would be the time to call up Archie Bradley, arguably the top pitching prospect in the minors? Nope. Instead, the Diamondbacks promoted Mike Bolsinger, a 26 year old who had a 4.72 ERA in Triple-A Reno last season. Bradley's agent has blasted the Diamondbacks decision.
• Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers defended his decision and says it has absolutely nothing to do with money and not wanting to start his service clock. Good one, Kevin. I haven't laughed so hard since. . .well since Bronson Arroyo pitched against the Mets last night!
• The Butcher's Bill is cheap today. Mike Napoli has a dislocated finger. He'll miss a few days.
• Kole Calhoun turned his ankle and is headed to the DL.
• This isn't a new injury, but a new development in an old one. Josh Johnson is going to see Dr. James Andrews about his forearm. That story falls into the "Dog bites Man" category.
• Tom Verducci echoes Jonah Keri's article from last time and says that pitchers are throwing too hard, too young and too much. These arms are damaged long before they sign their first professional contract. He also notes that US-born pitchers are having Tommy John surgery at a higher rate that Caribbean pitchers, and he thinks that is due to the different ways they learn to pitch.
• Adrian Beltre went on the DL a few days ago with a strained quadriceps, but he says he could have played through it and disagreed with the decision to place him on the DL.
• A list of five teams hit especially hard by injuries this season.
• Chase Headley reportedly turned down a three-year contract extension from the Padres worth between $33-39 million. If he has a good season this year, that will look like a smart decision. If he continues to hit .160 like he is now, not so much.
• The Yankees are going to have a roommate. The new MLS franchise, NYCFC, will play their first three seasons at Yankee Stadium.
• Murray Cook, MLB's fields and facilities coordinator, says that it's "not ideal but doable." Let's see. "The House that Martin Demichelis built"? Yeah, I'm not buying it either.
• The Yankees are not going to sign Stephen Drew, says owner Hal Steinbrenner. I don't think the two stories are related, but you never know. Maybe they want him for NYCFC.
• They've dropped two straight to the Cardinals, but before that, Rob Neyer asked what we really learned from the Brewers winning streak.
• The Red Sox are struggling so far this season. I'd gladly "struggle" any April in exchange for three World Series titles in the past ten years.
• David Schoenfield thinks the Braves need to cut Dan Uggla. What's really funny about this is the timing, as he published this story just a few hours before Uggla had a two home run game. Braves fans want him to write another one about cutting B.J. Upton.
• Richard Justice says that the Braves have been able to survive their injuries because their franchise makes smart decisions and doesn't panic.
• Sam Miller wonders how bad a season can a player have and still make the Hall of Fame? Answer: pretty bad.
• Speaking of which, Christina Kahrl thinks the old Albert Pujols is back. Or at least what we expected a 34 year old Pujols would be like.
• The Twins beat the Royals when Mike Moustakas didn't hustle out of the box. Note: This would be the lead story everywhere if "Mike Moustakas" was named "Yasiel Puig."
• The Orioles are putting up billboards in D.C. I don't understand why this is a story.
• Long before Jackie Robinson, the Giants had African-American trainers.
• A look at the new "axe-handle" bats.
• According to one study at least, teams are costing themselves millions of dollars by not changing their Native American nicknames. It's good to know that the Indians are fighting for the principle of Chief Wahoo and that this isn't all about money.
• Finally, it's hard to believe that the El Paso Chihuahuas are sticking with this mascot, who will no doubt give children nightmares. Or middle-aged blog writers. The horror. The horror.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.