Terrible Start For The Chicago White Sox

Can it get any worse for the Chicago White Sox? At 27-35 they are 10.5 games back of the Indians for the division lead and 8.5 back in the wild card race.

Two years removed from a World Series title the White Sox are gravely underachieving and playing like a group of whining babies. Manager Ozzie Gullien has been extremely vocal about volunteering to be fired and if his team can't string together a few wins General Manager Kennie Williams might be forced to hand him the pink slip.

New York Mets Struggling As They Enter The Subway Series

By David
Kaye

The New York Mets have lost five straight and nine out of ten as they head into a three-game set with the red hot New York Yankees this weekend in the Bronx.

At the beginning of the month manager Willie Randolph had his team fifteen games over .500, but they are now eight over the .500 mark and two games ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies.The Amazins are coming off of a road trip where they lost 2 out of three to the Tigers and were swept by the Dodgers. In all six games they held the lead early on, but either saw their starting pitcher or bullpen hand the game to the opposition.

Conversely, the Yankees have won nine straight and find themselves 7.5 games back of the division leading Red Sox. At 33-31, their pitching and hitting is clicking on all cylinders. Their big four of Wang, Clemens, Pettitte and Mussina have pitched lights out and their offense has begun to wake up.

Tonight the Yankees' send Roger Clemens to the mound to face off against left-hander Oliver Perez. This will be the rockets second big league appearance since he made his debut last Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Seattle Mariners Playing Extremely Well

By David
Kaye

At 35-26, the Seattle Mariners are the surprise story of MLB through the first two months of the season.

Predicted by the majority of baseball analysts and writers to finish dead last in the AL West, the M's are three games back of the division leading Angels and one game back in the wild card race.

Mike Hargrove who lead Seattle to a 69-93 record in '05 and a 78-84 record last season was on the hot seat entering this year, but is now up for manager of the year honors. While his pitching staff has been inconsistent this season, posting a disappointing 4.73 E.R.A., their offense has been the second best in the American League.

The team has posted a .287 batting average with 59 home runs and 308 runs batted in. Leading the way has been right fielder Ichiro who is batting .333 with 17 stolen bases and 87 hits and is currently third in all-star voting for outfielders in the AL.

Jose Lopez has distinguished himself as one of the premier second baseman in the AL with his .295 average and 37 RBI'S, shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt is not only doing it with the glove, but now has a batting average over .300 and catcher Kenji Johjima is quietly having a career season.

Johjima who is in his second season in the majors is batting .335 with seven homers, 27 runs batted in, 63 hits, 15 doubles and a staggering .527 slugging percentage. Along with his .997 fielding percentage Johjima is having the second best season of any AL catcher. Only New York's Jorge Posada with his .353 batting average and .559 slugging percentage is playing better.

If the Seattle Mariners are to continue their torrid pace they will find themselves in the thick of things come September.

New York Yankees Continue Hot Streak

By David
Kaye

With a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates at the stadium this weekend, the Yankees continue to show signs that their struggles are over and they are ready to compete for a playoff spot.

The Bronx Bombers have now won six in a row and nine out of eleven to pull within 9.5 games of the first place Boston Red Sox.

Giants' Barry Zito Struggles Against The Oakland Athletics

By David
Kaye

Has there ever been a time in your life when a former co-worker or friend who you spent countless years with leaves and comes back to haunt you?

After signing a 7-year, $126 million contract with the San Francisco Giants during the off season Barry Zito knew that he'd have the opportunity to face his former team at least once, twice if he was lucky.

On May 18th in his first start against his former team Zito was ruffed up for seven runs in four short innings of work. While the A's went onto win 15-3, it was shocking that the former CY Young winner struggled against the team he spent the first seven years of his career with.

You would think that he'd be used to the tendencies of his former teammates and would know how to pitch to them. Luckily, Barry had the chance to redeem himself yesterday at AT&T Park against players that he mentored for several seasons.

Unfortunately, it was a case of student defeating teacher as the A's hitters pounced on Zito for nine hits and three earned runs in four innings. The southpaw is now 6-6 with a 4.02 E.R.A. to begin his Giants career. Before Saturday's start Zito had won his previous three outings and surrendered just one run in hi last twenty innings pitched.

For the second consecutive time the player with the largest contract for a pitcher in baseball history was not able to defeat his former co-workers.

Astros' Berkman earned two-game suspension for onfield outburst

Associated Press

Updated: June 8, 2007, 7:43 PM ET

HOUSTON -- Astros first baseman Lance Berkman was suspended for two games and fined an undisclosed sum Friday, three days after he was ejected against Colorado and tossed his batting glove and equipment bag onto the field.

The suspension by Major League Baseball was to have begun Friday night against the Chicago White Sox. Berkman, however, is appealing the decision and was to play Friday.

"I think it's just a normal course of action so we can have a little bit more time to look at all of our options," Berkman said Friday in Chicago.

"It just gives everybody a little more time to make a decision as to whether it best behooves the club to go ahead and serve the suspension or to try to fight it with an appeal if we think we have a good chance of winning."

Berkman was ejected Tuesday night in the eighth inning after arguing a third strike. He then threw his glove and bag onto the field from the dugout.

He violated rules by returning in the ninth inning when the benches emptied after the Rockies' Manny Corpas hit Houston's Carlos Lee with a pitch. The Astros won 4-1.

"The suspension is automatic. But I'm not outraged by it, other than I think the whole incident is unfortunate because I don't feel I did anything to deserve to be thrown out of the game in the first place," said Berkman.

"Which means I should have been able to come back out on the field because I would never have been out of the game. I still don't know why he threw me out of the game. I didn't charge over there until after he gave me the heave-ho."

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Cardinals Sign Closer Troy Percival

By David
Kaye

First it was starting pitcher Roger Clemens who attempted to make a comeback and now it's 37-year old reliever Troy Percival who signed a minor-league contract today with the St.Louis Cardinals.

During his 11-year career Percival racked up 324 saves, while posting an impressive 3.10 E.R.A. After retiring during the middle of the 2005 season due to arm injuries, the future Hall of Famer signed on to become a special assignment pitching instructor with the Angels.

He spent ten successful seasons with Anaheim before he signed with Detroit before the '05 season. His addition to a struggling St.Louis team will provide an instant boost in both the clubhouse and on the field.

Fortunately, he's one of the good guys in the game who has worked extremely diligently to get the point where he is in his career. Currently, he ranks 12th on the all-time saves list and he'll look to add onto that number during his time in the gateway city.

Surprisingly, the one strength of the Cards team this year has been their bullpen that ranks sixth in MLB with a 3.41 E.R.A. I figure that Percival was enticed by the fact that he has the opportunity to play with Albert Pujols and learn from people like Dave Duncan and Tony La Russa.

The only thing that scared me when I read about the signing was that Percival has never pitched in the NL and he will quickly have to adapt to facing different hitters.

It has been rumored for several weeks that Percival was ready to return from retirement, but the reigning World Series champions were not among the list of choices. Initially, the Philadelphia Phillies and Florida Marlins were mentioned as teams he was interested in.

He will report to triple AAA Memphis to begin his comeback return and in the coming weeks he will be making an impact on the major league level.

Chicago Cubs Struggling To Play Well

By David
Kaye

After going on a $300 million spree during the Winter, the Chicago Cubs were expected to be a top the National League Central. Instead, they are in third place at 23-31 and losers of seven out of their last ten games.

Clearly, manager Lou Piniella had seen enough and was ready to blow a gasket when he threw a temper tantrum during Saturday's game against the Braves. His fit was directed at third base umpire Mark Wegner who was the unfortunate victim of Piniella's disrespectful tirade. Once again, sweet Lou embarrassed himself on a national stage and earned himself an indefinite suspension from MLB.

If you thought that his fight with the umpire was the worst incident that could happen to a woeful Cubs' team, then you didn't see the exchange of punches between starting pitching Carlos Zambrano and batterymate Michael Barrett.

After another poor pitching performance Chicago's ace took out his frustrations on his teammate in the dugout and the locker room. He instigated a scuffle that landed Barrett with a busted lip and both players with an undisclosed fine. Instead of working out their differences like men, both guys acted like children and set a deplorable example for any youngster watching at home.

Unfortunately, constant fighting between players and management will not translate to a winning product on the field. The front office spent over $300 million on players like Soriano, De Rosa, Lily and Marquis, but have ended up with a team that is reminiscent to the one that finished an NL worst 66-96 last season.

Even though both Chicago teams are under performing, the north siders have no excuse because they play in a weak division. At least the White Sox are forced to compete with teams like the Twins, Tiger and Indians on a night to night basis. Can someone tell me what the excuse is for the Cubs?

Despite Zambrano's inflated 5.62 E.R.A., the other four starters all have earned runs averages of under 3.52. Marshall, Marquis and Hill all have theirs at 2.93 or lower. One of the main problems has been the poor start by the bullpen and the inconsistent production by the offense. To make matters worse, the team is 2-12 in one-run games.

If things don't begin to turn around in a hurry, sweet Lou might be singing the blues right out of the windy city.

Houston Astros Lose Tenth Straight Game

By David
Kaye

After losing tonight to the Reds 4-2, the Astros lost their tenth game in a row.

It's hard to imagine that a lineup loaded with so much power and talent could go eleven days without a victory. Since defeating the Texas Rangers on May 19th, the Astros were swept by the Giants in a three-game series, swept by the Diamondbacks in a four-game set at Chase Field and have now lost the first two games of their series at home to the division rival Reds.

On Sunday, May 20th Houston was shellacked by their interstate rivals 14-1, and since then they have been unable to resolve their struggling offense and mediocre pitching. Only twice during their eleven game slid did the offense manage to score at least four runs and on five occasions they scored one run or less.

Hitting coach Sean Berry must be scratching his head and wondering what do I need to do differently to get my players out of their funk. It's not everyday that all-stars like Craig Biggio, Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman, and rising stars Hunter Pence and Luke Scott fail to drive in runners.

Manager Phil Garner was quoted as saying ''there's no question we're not swinging the bats well. It's a team wide-funk.'' The ten straight loses by his ball club are the most since 1995 and if they are not able to right the ship in a weak division Garner's job could be on the line.


Owner Drayton McLane expects a winning product on the field and he has spent the necessary money to make sure the Astros' are a winner. It wouldn't be a shock to see general manager Tim Purpura get the axe if his team doesn't start to improve their play.

Video - SF Giants Barry Bonds Hits Home Run # 746 Against The Rockies

This is SF Giants slugger Barry Bonds hitting it out of the park on a 2-1 count against the Colorado Rockies one week ago in San Francisco. This is home run number 746, placing him just nine away from Hank Aaron's record.

Arizona Diamondbacks on a Five-Game Winning Streak

At 30-23, Bob Melvin has his hitters and pitchers playing exceptionally well to begin the season.

Cleveland Indians Complete Three-Game Sweep of Detroit Tigers

By David
Kaye

The Cleveland Indians entered Friday's game with the division rival Detroit Tigers .5 games back, but after sweeping the AL champions they leave Comerica Park 2.5 games ahead in the division race.

Eric Wedge and his ball club will face their biggest test starting today as they square off against the red hot Red Sox' who are running away with the AL East. Both teams are regarded as the super powers in the American League, but this three-game set at Fenway Park will go a long way in determining which team has the upper hand.

At 31-17, the Tribe have not experienced this kind of success since back in 2001 when they last won the division.It's interesting to note that six years ago last nights winning pitcher Fausto Carmona was only seventeen years of age and most of his teammates were either in their late teens or early twenties.

After sweeping the Tigers on the road, Detroit will look to return the favor starting Thursday night as both clubs begin a four-game series at Jacobs Field. If the Indians are able to salvage a split they will have to feel pretty confident about themselves and their ability to compete with one of the best teams in baseball.

Colorado Rockies' Trade Rumors

By David
Kaye

With the trading deadline two months away, there are several teams in need of an extra bat or pitcher that will put them over the top.

The Denver Post reported Thursday that the Rockies' are willing to part with three of their best players: third baseman Garrett Atkins, first baseman Todd Helton and closer Brian Fuentes.

Atkins, 27, has been stuck in a slump throughout the first two months of the season, but would provide the Angels with the much needed power bat that they have been seeking for years. Even though he's batting .220 with three home runs and 19 RBI's, the UCLA graduate enjoyed a breakout season in 2006 hitting .329 with 29 homers, 120 runs batted in and 48 doubles.

At 21-27 and 12.5 games back of the AL East leading Boston Red Sox', the Yankees need all the help that they can get. Two Rockies', closer Brian Fuentes and veteran first baseman Todd Helton could be headed to the Bronx to right the sinking ship.

If the deal is completed between now and the end of July, beleaguered general manager Brian Cashman would be forced to trade away young talent and that's something I'd hate for him to do.

Tigers' Outfielder Magglio Ordonez For AL MVP

By David
Kaye

After running away with the AL MVP race in April and being one step away from having his name engraved on the award, Yankees' third baseman Alex Rodriguez is the not the clear cut favorite to take home the hardware.

Instead, Tigers' right fielder Magglio Ordonez is having a torrid month of May and is quietly distinguishing himself as the premier slugger in the American League. Through 45 games Magglio is hitting .361 with 12 home runs and 45 RBI's.

He ranks third in the AL in batting average, on base percentage[.441] and home runs, while he leads the majors in runs batted in and slugging percentage[.710]. Unlike A-Rod's team, the Tigers' are twelve games over .500 and lead the AL Central by a half game over Cleveland.

Ordonez, 33, is hitting .380 this month and in his last ten games he's batting .415 with seventeen hits, 11 runs knocked in, fourteen runs scored and five long balls. Yesterday against the AL West leading Angels he went 4-for-4 with three RBI's and three runs scored.

Hancock's father sues over pitcher's death

I understand what Hancock's father is trying to do, but at some point he must understand that his son was an adult and he needed to invoke so personal responsibility on his part. In no way should the restaurant be liable for the horrific events that ensued on the interstate.

By JIM SALTER, Associated Press Writer
May 24, 2007

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- The father of Josh Hancock filed suit Thursday, claiming a restaurant provided drinks to the St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher even though he was intoxicated prior to the crash that killed him.

The suit, filed in St. Louis Circuit Court by Dean Hancock of Tupelo, Miss., does not specify damages. Mike Shannon's Restaurant, owned by the longtime Cardinals broadcaster who starred on three World Series teams in the 1960s, is a defendant in the case along with Shannon's daughter, Patricia Shannon Van Matre, the restaurant manager.

Other defendants include Eddie's Towing, the company whose flatbed tow truck was struck by Hancock's sport utility vehicle in the early hours of April 29; tow truck driver Jacob Edward Hargrove; and Justin Tolar, the driver whose stalled car on Interstate 64 was being assisted by Hargrove.

The Cardinals and Major League Baseball were not listed as defendants. In a brief statement, the Cardinals said, "We hope this matter will come to a swift and fair resolution for all parties involved."

Authorities said the 29-year pitcher had a blood content of nearly twice the legal limit for alcohol in his system when he crashed into the back of the tow truck. He was also speeding, using a cell phone and wasn't wearing a seat belt, Police Chief Joe Mokwa said after the accident. Marijuana also was found in the SUV.

Mokwa said Hancock went to Shannon's not long after the Cardinals played a day game against the Chicago Cubs on April 28. The lawsuit claimed that Hancock was a regular at the restaurant bar and was there for more than 3 1/2 hours.

"It's understood that for the entire 3 1/2 hours that Josh Hancock was there that he was handed drinks," Keith Kantack, a lawyer for Dean Hancock, said. "It's our understanding that from the moment Josh Hancock entered Mike Shannon's that night that he was never without a drink."

A person answering phones at the restaurant declined comment. A message left with Van Matre was not returned.

The lawsuit claimed Tolar was negligent in allowing his vehicle to reach the point where it stalled on the highway, and for failing to move it out of the way of oncoming traffic. A police report said the car became stalled when it spun out after being cut off by another vehicle.

Police said Hargrove noticed the stalled vehicle and stopped to help. The report said he told officers he was there five to seven minutes before his truck was hit by Hancock's SUV. But Kantack said the tow truck may have been there up to 15 minutes, yet failed to get the stalled vehicle out of the way.

"Were the police contacted?" Kantack asked. "Why weren't flares put out? Why was the tow truck there for an exorbitant amount of time?"

Tolar did not have a listed telephone number. Calls to the towing company were met with a busy signal.

Kantack said others could be added later as defendants in the suit. He declined to speculate on whether the Cardinals or Major League Baseball could be added to the suit, but said the Hancock family has been "overwhelmed by the support and respect the Cardinals have shown since Josh's passing."

Dean Hancock said in a statement that the "facts and circumstances" of Josh's death "have caused great pain to all of Josh's family." As administrator of his son's estate, Dean Hancock said he has an obligation to represent the family on all issues, "including any legal actions necessary against those who contributed to the untimely and unnecessary death."
Updated on Thursday, May 24, 2007 7:44 pm EDT

Giambi meets with MLB

Please MLB, leave the Yankees' slugger alone. He needs to be rewarded for having the courage to come out publicly and admit to what he did. Maybe if the rest of the players did, the sport of baseball would have credibility and former fans would once again follow the games.

By RONALD BLUM, AP Baseball Writer
May 23, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) -- Jason Giambi met with lawyers from the baseball commissioner's office Wednesday to discuss recent comments that some interpreted as an admission of steroids use.
Allegations that he flunked an amphetamines test, however, were not discussed.

"The commissioner requested that Jason come in in response to the USA Today piece. Jason was interviewed this morning," union general counsel Michael Weiner said.

The Daily News on Wednesday reported Giambi failed an amphetamines test within the last year.

However, a person familiar with what went on at the meeting, said it only dealt with the remarks quoted in USA Today. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because those attending agreed not to make details public.

The meeting, at baseball's main office, lasted less than an hour.

The New York Yankees' designated hitter was quoted last Friday as saying:

"I was wrong for doing that stuff. What we should have done a long time ago was stand up -- players, ownership, everybody -- and said: 'We made a mistake.' We should have apologized back then and made sure we had a rule in place and gone forward. ... Steroids and all of that was a part of history. But it was a topic that everybody wanted to avoid. Nobody wanted to talk about it."

The meeting included Rob Manfred, baseball's executive vice president for labor relations, senior vice president Frank Coonelly and Howard Ganz, an outside lawyer.
Giambi brought along agent Arn Tellem, lawyer Brian O'Neill and Weiner, who represented the players' association.

Management and players did not agree to ban steroids until late 2002. Testing with penalties did not begin until 2004.

An agreement was reached before the 2006 season to also ban amphetamines. An initial positive test subjects a player to counseling and six additional tests for one year.

Names of players who test positive for amphetamines for the first time are not made public.

Updated on Wednesday, May 23, 2007 3:19 pm EDT

First Baseman Ryan Garko and The Cleveland Indians Continue To Play Well

By David
Kaye

Ryan Garko, 26-year old first baseman for the surging Cleveland Indians, continued his success Friday night against interstate rival Cincinnati.

After thumping Cinci by the final score of 9-4 this evening, the Indians have improved to 25-14 on the season. They are now one-game ahead of the Tigers in the AL Central and 2.5 games behind the Red Sox for the best record in the American League.

The Tribe are an amazing 15-3 at Jacobs Field and 9-2 against their division foes. Center Fielder Grady Sizemore and designated hitter Travis Hafner headline the group of youngsters who have re-energized the city of Cleveland. A credible argument can be made that the Indians have the best young position players in the majors and will be among baseball's best teams for several years to come.

Last night in the battle of Ohio, Ryan Garko went two for three with a three-run home run and improved his average to .321. All-star center fielder Grady Sizemore went four for five with a two-run dinger, three runs batted in and three runs scored. A recent Sports Illustrated article by Tom Verducci stated that ''he's without a doubt one of the greatest players of our generation.'' If Sizemore can continue on his torrid pace he will in deed live up to the hype.

The rest of the Indians offense includes Travis Hafner who belted 42 home runs and drove in 117 runs last season while sporting a .659 slugging percentage and .439 on base percentage, all-star catcher Victor Martinez who consistently ranks among the best hitting catchers in baseball , 24-year old shortstop Jhonny Peralta who is mounting a strong comeback season after struggling last year, and 23-year old third baseman Andy Marte who has a bright future with the club.

When you sprinkle in veterans like Trot Nixon, David Dellucci and Casey Blake Cleveland's offense is a recipe for success.

Pitching wise the Indians starting rotation will not over power you, but they'll get the job done when counted on. Left-hander C.C. Sabathia is the ace of a staff that has combined to go 17-8 on the young season. C.C. has started off the season strong going 6-1 with a 3.65 ERA.

23-year old righty Fausto Carmona who went 1-10 with a 5.42 ERA last season, is now 5-1 with a 2.55 earned run average in seven games. In his last victory Thursday against the Twins he pitched a complete game shutout against baseball's best pitcher Johan Santana.

Still, for the Indians to win the division this year and advance far in the playoffs they will need to resolve their bullpen woes. Closer Joe Borowski is 0-2 this season with a nine ERA and twelve saves. Look for general manager Mark Shapiro to make a trade by the end of July if his pen continues to pitch ineffectively.

Giambi's reported remarks to be investigated by baseball

Finally, a MLB player has come out of the shadows and said something sensible regarding the steroids issue.


Owners, players and the commissioner's office should be embarrassed by their actions during the steroid era and they haven't made their case any better by not taking the offensive to clean up their sport.

The example they set for young players just beginning their careers and who look up to these players as their role models is deplorable.


Yankees slugger Jason Giambi should not be quieted by MLB for telling the truth. There needs to be more players and executives who come out and tell the truth about what really happened in the last decade. A formal apology to all fans would be appropriate.

By RONALD BLUM, AP Baseball Writer

May 18, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) -- The baseball commissioner's office intends to investigate reported remarks by Yankees slugger Jason Giambi that the sport should apologize for use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Rob Manfred, executive vice president for labor relations in the commissioner's office, spoke Friday with Yankees president Randy Levine about the matter, a baseball official with knowledge of the conversation said, speaking on condition of anonymity because baseball officials didn't want the matter publicly discussed.

"I was wrong for doing that stuff," Giambi was quoted as saying in Friday's editions of USA Today. "What we should have done a long time ago was stand up -- players, ownership, everybody -- and said: 'We made a mistake.'

"We should have apologized back then and made sure we had a rule in place and gone forward. ... Steroids and all of that was a part of history. But it was a topic that everybody wanted to avoid. Nobody wanted to talk about it."

Giambi told a grand jury during the BALCO investigation in December 2003 that he used steroids and human growth hormone, the San Francisco Chronicle reported in December 2004. Before the start of spring training in 2005, Giambi made repeated general apologies at a news conference but wouldn't discuss whether he used steroids or admitted to the grand jury in 2003 that he did.

"The commissioner's office, I think, is going to be looking into this, and so at this point I just can't comment," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said before Friday's game against the Mets. "Let the commissioner go through the process he needs to go through, and we'll go from there."

Giambi refused to talk about the USA Today story on Friday.

Cashman was troubled by the notion that fans are owed an apology by Major League Baseball.

"There's an implication that there was a lot of people that were involved that would know that, what was going on, and I can tell you that's false," Cashman said. "We've spoken to that in the past, so I do have a problem with that, without a doubt, because I can tell you -- I can speak from being right there, too -- that whatever goes on individually with these guys, is really on them."

Giambi, whom USA Today said was interviewed on Wednesday, was quoted by the paper as saying he's thankful for baseball's testing program for steroids and amphetamines that was revised before the 2006 season. MLB does not test for human growth hormone and Giambi said he does not use the drug.

"Unfortunately, (the rumors) are going to be a part of it. But that's OK. I'm probably tested more than anybody else. I'm not hiding anything," he was quoted as saying. "That stuff didn't help me hit home runs. I don't care what people say, nothing is going to give you that gift of hitting a baseball."

Updated on Friday, May 18, 2007 7:20 pm EDT

Braves sale is approved

Liberty Media taking control of franchise from Time Warner
By Barry M. Bloom / MLB.com

NEW YORK -- The sale of the Atlanta Braves from Time Warner to Liberty Media was unanimously approved by Major League Baseball's owners at a special meeting on Wednesday.

The complicated stock-for-franchise deal had a deadline of midnight ET because of a change in the federal tax code affecting such transactions, that Commissioner Bud Selig said was far too complicated to explain. That change occurs on Friday.

The 30 owners met in a late-afternoon session to vote on the deal, which was in the process of being closed by the appointed hour. The ownership committee and the executive council had earlier in the day also cleared the deal. All the owners or their representatives are together this week for the second quarterly meeting of the year, one that has become a May staple at MLB's New York offices.

"There are a lot of reasons that I'm happy today, but one of the things I said right from the outset was we wanted to preserve what I thought was a great management structure," Selig said at a press conference almost immediately after the special vote. "They certainly have the record to prove that. A lot of (Braves) fans should be happy tonight because we've not only created great stability here, but it's in the best interest of the Braves and baseball."

The owners will still meet to take care of other business at their regularly scheduled joint meeting on Thursday morning.

Asked if he had any doubt that the deal would close by midnight, Selig said, "I would be stunned if it doesn't. I would say the chances are better than excellent. That was the reason we had the special meeting."

Under terms of the transaction, in which the franchise itself was valued at $450 million, Terry McGuirk will remain as president, John Schuerholz as general manager, Bobby Cox as manager and Hank Aaron, the Hall of Famer and current Major League Baseball home run leader with 755, will have an increased role in his position of senior vice president.

City-owned Turner Field will remain under the Braves control and the name will not change.

McGuirk said it was stipulated in writing that new ownership could not go below the team's current player payroll of $87.3 million, but was certainly encouraged to invest in the franchise. Under Ted Turner and Time Warner, the Braves won 14 division titles in a row -- a streak that ended last season -- captured five National League pennants and were victorious in the 1995 World Series over the Indians.

"Continuity seems to be the word that has triumphed here," McGuirk said during the press conference. "The championship level baseball that has been played here for the last 15 years, the management, all of that continues on unabated, thanks to the Commissioner and the owners and their confidence in this group. So we think it's a great day for the Braves. We're ready for the job and we're looking for many more championship seasons."

The approval effectively ends an era of Braves ownership, which began when the franchise was purchased in 1976 by Turner, who also had taken over the NBA's Atlanta Hawks. The cable television mogul used the ballclub as a national tool to bring attention to his burgeoning cable empire that eventually evolved into CNN, Turner South and TBS.

Originally the home of old movies, TBS has carried Braves games nationally for the last 31 years, a relationship that will expire at the conclusion of this season.

Turner remained associated with the ballclub and his cable product when Turner Broadcasting merged with Time Warner in 1995. He was vice chairman of the company, which eventually also merged with AOL, until his resignation in 2003. Three years later, Turner severed his relationship with the board of directors and hasn't been involved since.

Time Warner has been shedding itself of its sports properties, previously having sold the Hawks, the NHL's Thrashers, and Philips Arena, the downtown home of both indoor teams.

For a large block of Liberty stock, Time Warner is reportedly exchanging the Braves, a number of craft magazines and $1 billion. Liberty owns about four percent of Time Warner.

As has become a pattern in recent years, MLB was concerned about leaving the operational control of the team in familiar hands and wanted to make sure McGuirk remained with the club. The owners had previously been assured of that condition when the deal was formally announced in February.

"There are no changes," McGuirk said. "There will be a continuation of past practices."

Last year, as a condition of selling the Nationals to the Lerner family, MLB insisted in the last phases of the deal that Stan Kasten be brought in as part of the group. Kasten, at one time the president of all the Time Warner sports properties, was made a minority owner and was placed in charge of running the team.

Since late 1999, 18 MLB franchises have either been sold or have experienced a change in control of majority ownership, including the Expos/Nationals twice. The sale of the Cubs by the Tribune Co. is next on the table.

Barry M. Bloom is a national reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Cincinnati Reds' Struggling To Begin The Season

By David
Kaye

At 16 and 24, the Cincinnati Reds are dead last in the porous NL Central. Through forty games last season the Reds were 23-17 and two games behind the Cardinals for the division lead. Boy, what a difference a year makes.

Cincinnati possesses one of the best one-two punches in baseball with right-handers Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang guiding the pitching staff. After breakout season's last year, both pitchers have stumbled out of the gates. Despite a 5-1 record, Harang is sporting a 4.42 ERA in nine games this year.

Conversely, Arroyo has pitched well, but his offense has provided him with no run support. The 30-year old is 2-4 so far with a 2.64 ERA and one complete game thrown. The remaining three starters, Kyle Lohse, Matt Belisle and the injured Eric Milton have been ineffective to start this season.

All three starters have ERA's over four and have combined for eleven losses. The only bright spot in the Reds bullpen has been veteran closer David Weathers who has an impressive 1.89 ERA and seven saves through the first seven weeks of the season. The rest of the pen has been disappointing, ranking as one of the worst in the majors.

Offensively, only one hitter, 37-year old Ken Griffey Jr., has a batting average over .300. On the season the ten time all-star is hitting .311 with eight home runs and 25 runs batted in. Third baseman Edwin Encarnacion entered the season with a pool of high expectations, even being regarded by many analysts as a potential sleeper player who will have a breakout season, but he is now back in the minors after struggling with the bat. In thirty-one games he batted .218 with one dinger and 14 RBI's.

Although the Reds batters have not hit with great success, by no stretch of the imagination are they struggling. Five out of the eight hitters in their lineup have at least six home runs, but when they are called upon in the big situation they have all come up empty.

Cinci is 6-13 in games decided by two runs or less and are 4-12 in the month of May. They were 1-5 on their recent West Coast swing and have not won a series since the end of April when they took 2 out of three from the Pirates at PNC Park. To make matters worse, the Reds have not won a home series since they took two out of three from the Bucs during the first weekend of the season.