MLB Bullets Stays Classy, San Diego

I could talk about the USA-Portugal game, except I won't. Only to say that I'd have been happy with a 2-2 draw on Saturday. I'm not today.

• After only 2 1/2 years on the job, the Padres fired GM Josh Byrnes on Sunday.
• Jon Heyman writes that the move was a mistake and they got rid of a "good baseball man" because they had unrealistic expectations. On the other hand, he calls the three people replacing Byrnes on an interim basis (Omar Minaya, A.J. Hinch and Fred Uhlman Jr.) "good baseball men," so either they're replacing one "good baseball man" with three, or Heyman uses that term a little too loosely.
• Anthony Castrovince agrees with the firing and says that Byrnes track record just isn't good.
• Christina Kahrl wonders how you can evaluate the job a GM is doing in under five years and thinks it's a knee-jerk "Steinbrenner" move.
• Keith Law disagrees and says the firing was long overdue. (ESPN Insider) Along with Castrovince and pretty much everyone else on this subject, Law points to the Latos trade as a major blunder. He also says that the Rizzo trade is starting to look like a bad one too. A good one for the Cubs, though.
• This is dated but Ken Rosenthal said on Saturday that the Padres were likely fire Byrnes and that they needed to make a decision on him well before the trade deadline. But he also wrote "Firing Byrnes or anyone else would be distasteful while the franchise remains in mourning." So much for taste. Stay classy, San Diego.
• Speaking of mourning, San Diego State had a memorial service for Tony Gwynn.
• Addison Reed talks about quitting smokeless tobacco.
• Before he died, Gwynn recorded a message about the dangers of smokeless tobacco that will be released by MLB this season.
• Dirk Hayhurst says that smokeless tobacco has been a part of baseball's culture and that needs to stop now. He is in favor of a complete ban and compares how baseball cracks down on steroids to how it treats tobacco. He notes that he never used the stuff, although he did have to buy it as part of keeping the "candy bag" full for the bullpen.
• But baseball won't be banning smokeless tobacco anytime soon.
• One more story about the Padres before we move on. Alex Torres became the first player to wear one of the new protective caps in an actual game.
• He said seeing former teammate Alex Cobb getting hit by a line drive inspired him to wear the cap. Torres was the pitcher who relieved Cobb after he was struck.
• Boy, here's a name I haven't mentioned in a while. Alex Rodriguez has dropped his medical malpractice suit against the Yankees team doctor.
• Jack Moore says that with this move, it's looking like ARod will in fact play for the Yankees next season. In part because they could really use him even if he's only half of what he once was.
• Joe Torre, in an official capacity with Major League Baseball, blasted David Ortiz's criticism of Fenway Park official scorer.
• Cuban slugger Yasmani Tomas has left Cuba.
• Just a few days after manager Mike Scioscia said he stood behind him, the Angels released Raul Ibañez. Just enough behind him to give him a push, I guess.
• Although there was talk that he'd be open to a trade after he broke the team hits record, Jimmy Rollins says he wants to stay with the Phillies.
• Ben Reiter lists three reasons why the Phillies won't do a complete teardown and rebuild.
• The Marlins are looking to add pieces at the trade deadline.
• Why can't the Nationals beat the Braves?
• The injury report. Nori Aoki hits the DL with a groin strain.
• Rafael Furcal, who, with the exception of 2009 and 2012, has missed a huge chunk of every season since 2007, is expected to miss a large chunk of time after re-injuring his hamstring.
• The Cardinals put Michael Wacha and Jaime Garcia on the DL.
• Mark Trumbo is out until the All-Star Break.
• Both Jose Bautista and Brett Lawrie left Sunday's Blue Jays game with an injury.
• Christina Kahrl thinks that the Blue Jays are going to have to make some adjustments to win the AL East.
• Jonathan Bernhardt writes that while the Blue Jays pitching problems mean that they aren't going to run away with the division, the Blue Jays are still contenders.
• Top Astros prospect Carlos Correa broke his ankle.
• Top Astros rookie George Springer hit the catwalk at Tropicana Field with a massive home run.
• The West Michigan Whitecaps finished the rebuild of their stadium after the fire this offseason.
• Phil Hughes finally walked a batter after 106 straight without issuing one.
• It's official: Brian Dozier has taken Ben Zobrist's title of the Most Underrated Player In Baseball.
• Jeff Sullivan says that Jonathan Lucroy has taken Yadier Molina's title of being the best catcher in the National League.
• Sullivan also says that on further review, Billy Hamilton has been a really good ballplayer this season. He also notes that he's been as valuable as the man he replaced in center field, Shin-Soo Choo, but in a completely different way.
• Despite a list of injuries to rival the Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Dustin McGowan is still pitching. It's only a scratch.
• The Brewers scored three runs on one wild pitch.
• Virginia and Vanderbilt will face off in the College World Series Finals. The Commodores haven't been this good since they had Lionel Richie.
• Cliff Corcoran believes it makes no sense that you can't review whether the catcher caught or trapped the ball.
• Mets manager Terry Collins believes that MLB will adopt the NCAA's "must-slide" rule at home plate.
• Yeah, but then we'd miss out on this creative way of eluding a tag at home plate. Really, is there anything better than Korean baseball? Maybe Taiwanese baseball. They're both crazy.
• Finally, it's been such a bad season for the Tampa Bay Rays that they decided to "turn back the clock" to their better days. They wore their old uniforms that they wore back in the 1970s. What? You're telling me the Rays weren't a franchise until 1998? The Rays don't let details like that get in their way.

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