MLB Bullets Is Only Human

It's Friday. That's all I've got.

• Remember that almost no-hitter that Yu Darvish threw this week that was broken up with two outs in the ninth? Never mind. MLB changed the scoring on the David Ortiz pop fly from an error to a hit. So now Darvish threw a two-hitter.
• Richard Durrett is upset about this change because logically, the ball was an error.
• Jay Jaffe is also uncomfortable about this change, arguing that it invalidates the experience of the fans at the game.
• Also, let's face it. There's no way this ruling gets reversed if Darvish retires Ortiz in the ninth inning.
• If only that were the biggest problem for the Rangers pitching staff. Both Martin Perez and Matt Harrison came up injured. Perez has a torn UCL and Harrison has a displaced vertebra that could possibly end his career.
• Sure enough, add Perez to this year's Tommy John surgery list.
• David Schoenfield says that without Perez and Harrison, the Rangers postseason chances are doomed.
• Cliff Corcoran doesn't say doomed, but he does say the Rangers are in deep doo-doo. (OK, he doesn't say that either. I'm paraphrasing.)
• Dave Cameron is more optimistic. He thinks Nick Tepesch can pitch as well as Perez would have this season.
• Dirk Hayhurst, who knows a little something about arm injuries from personal experience, says that MLB needs to do something about arm injuries. He doesn't really have a solution other than "don't throw so hard", though.
• Sabermetrics have been unable to provide any answers to the problems of arm injuries, writes Neil Paine.
• Pitcher injuries are a topic on the quarterly owners meetings. Also, commissioner Bud Selig didn't shut the door when asked about MLB's return to Montreal.
• Of course, Selig won't have much to say about that because he's not going to be commissioner much longer. A committee of seven owners was named to find a successor to Selig.
• Richard Justice says that Selig will be "a tough act to follow," quoting Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt.
• Bob Nightengale says the exact same thing using the exact same quote.
• Craig Calcaterra says that the qualification that the next commissioner should be a "visionary leader" does not describe heir apparent Rob Manfred.
• A look at drawings of the proposed new Braves stadium. Zzzzzzzzz. Kauffman Stadium is more interesting than that and it was built in 1973. (Admittedly, Kauffman is the best of the post-Dodger Stadium, pre-Camden Yards stadiums)
• Jerry Crasnick says that the Royals offense is in a team-wide slump. They need to start hitting if the Royals are to contend.
• Mike Trout has been slumping in May. Rob Neyer wonders if Trout has suddenly become mortal.
• The data shows that Trout's problem has been striking out on pitches up and in.
• Jay Jaffe thinks all the strikeouts are alarming and has a look at this slump. Still, he thinks it's (probably) just a slump.
• Matt Snyder thinks everyone is overreacting. (And as I write this, Trout hits a walkoff HR.)
• There were some injuries other than those to Rangers pitchers, although it probably doesn't seem like that to fans in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex. Dillon Gee went to the DL with a lat strain.
• Colby Rasmus went on the DL with a hamstring injury.
• CC Sabathia is dealing with "degenerative changes" in his knee.
• There was a trade! OK, it was just Kyle Blanks going from the Padres to the Athletics.
• The Rays are off to a bad start this year, sitting in last place in the AL East. Jonah Keri thinks there is a whole lot of "Devil" in this year's Rays. He blames the pitching staff, with injuries and young pitchers who haven't stepped forward when needed.
• Marc Normandin thinks the Rays will probably be fine in the end and that they're just going through a rough patch. It helps that the AL East seems to be weaker than it has been since they split to three divisions.
• Maybe the Rays would be better if they weren't the slowest team in baseball. Not on the basepaths. Just as far as it takes them forever to play a game.
• Ian O'Connor thinks that Curtis Granderson made a big mistake signing with the Mets.
• The Mets outrighted Kyle Farnsworth and he's very bitter about it. How do I know this? Because he said "I'm very bitter right now."
• The White Sox cut Jeff Keppinger. Doug Padilla praises them for eating the money left on Keppinger's contract and moving on.
• Anthony Castrovince thinks the Dodgers are probably going to have to make some changes if they want to repeat as NL West champions.
• Ken Rosenthal blames team chemistry for the Dodgers' woes.
• The Dodgers are talking about a long-term extension for Hanley Ramirez, but the two sides remain far apart.
• Johnny Cueto is having one of the all-time great starts to a season so far.
• More on what is going on in Mexico with Cuban slugger Alfredo Despaigne and how it threatens the relationship of the Mexican League (which is officially an unaffiliated Triple-A league) with MLB.
• Dirk Hayhurst also talks about how crappy minor league ballplayers are treated by MLB.
• This one is going to be controversial, and it stinks that ESPN put it behind a paywall. Dan Szymborski says that the evidence that steroids help ballplayer performance is hard to find. (ESPN Insider Only)
• Worldwide doping experts would prefer more lenient punishments for athletes in exchange for cooperation.
• Finally, the Athletics' Josh Reddick has been on a hot streak lately. Since baseball players are superstitious, he's not going to change the walkup music he's used since the streak started: Careless Whisper by Wham!

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