Laments:

- I'm doing an article on my most-owned players across my 10 leagues (so far, Kevin Correia is the leader in the clubhouse with five - draw your own conclusions), which is a good way to check up on my tendencies/biases. It's also a good way to lament not having certain players that are off to fantastic starts to the season, like:

Paul Konerko
Kelly Johnson
Francisco Liriano
Matt Garza
Chris Young (the AZ OF version) -this despite talking him up all spring and getting him in plenty of mock drafts - sigh....
Brett Gardner (ditto on the mock vs. actual ownership)

Lefty Killers No More?

- Remember when the Brewers were lethal against left-handed starters? That hasn't necessarily been the case (at least, for non-Pirate opponents). Clayton Richard's gem on Friday was just the latest by an opposing lefty. Wade LeBlanc got them the night before, and Jaime Garcia earlier this season shut them down. This isn't to say that Garcia or LeBlanc or Richard won't be fine starters, but it's an indication that this isn't the same lefty-killer lineup.

Get Off My Lawn!:

- Ok, I get that mental mistakes are aggravating and serve as a great source to vent the spleen, but this article by Tim Kurkjian is remarkably brutal from a writer that I frequently enjoy reading. It's chock full of unsupported conjecture, opinions stated as facts and ass-kissing of star players, topped by a quote in the middle of the article that pings off the scale for unintentional comedy. I won't reproduce it here - you have to read it for yourself.

Notables:

- Alfonso Soriano is just one of a number of Cubs hitting well right now. Basically, only Aramis Ramirez isn't joining the party. Geovany Soto's resurgence is particularly encouraging - maybe that weight loss offseason has made a big difference.
- Cliff Lee and Colby Lewis engaged in a remarkable pitcher's duel. Both looked fantastic, and Lewis actually got better deep into the game.
- Eric Young Jr. stole his third base since getting the call a week ago and hit in the leadoff spot again.
- Austin Jackson went 5-for-5 with two runs scored and his fifth stolen base (in six tries).
- Justin Morneau returned from a back injury and got the Twins on the board with a homer.
- Ryan Zimmerman homered twice against Ricky Nolasco, who has now allowed six homers this season.

Save Chances:

- Francisco Cordero converted the save on Friday night against the Cardinals, giving up a double and getting the final out on a nice play by Scott Rolen at third and a great scoop by Joey Votto at first. Cordero has now pitched four days in a row and five Reds games (they were off on Monday) in a row. Almost certainly Cordero won't be available to pitch on Saturday (note, it's an early start on Saturday, too), but finding the potential replacement isn't going to be easy. Nick Masset has pitched the last two days and three of the last four, and hasn't actually been all that good. Arthur Rhodes might be the leading candidate, but he also pitched on Friday night.
- Jeremy Affeldt got a one-out save with one runner on while protecting a three-run lead. Sergio Romo started the ninth for the Giants, with Brian Wilson unavailable.
- Mariano Rivera remained perfect on the year, two strikeouts, no baserunners.
- Joakim Soria converted the save, but it was rough, giving up a run on a hit and two walks, striking out one. He needed 26 pitches to finish his inning of work and also pitched on Thursday, so it's possible he won't be available on Saturday.
- Billy Wagner got just his second save of the year, walking one. It was his first save chance since April 9.
- Heath Bell struck out the side while allowing one hit in converting his seventh save of the year.
- Neftali Feliz threw a perfect inning with one strikeout. Unfortunately, I didn't get any velocity readings - did anyone see where he was clocked at?

Other Closer Outings:

- Rafael Soriano - Randy Choate got the loss, but Soriano was awful, giving up three hits and hitting a batter to allow the runner he inherited from Choate to score, plus one of his own.
- Carlos Marmol pitched the first time in four days. He walked the first batter and also allowed a hit, but also struck out the side to get out of it.
- Jose Valverde - 1-2-3 ninth while protecting a four-run lead.
- Alfredo Simon? - Pitched a scoreless ninth in a tie game, walking two and striking out two.
- Brad Lidge had a messy 2010 debut, giving up a homer to Rod Barajas, a line out to right and then a single before getting lifted. He only threw 11 pitches.
- Jonathan Broxton struck out the last two batters in yet another non-save opportunity.

Non-Closer Outings:

- I might have written Manny Corpas off too quickly. He has thrown nine scoreless innings over his last four games.
- Jim Johnson - Came into the game in the seventh, gave up a homer to J.D. Drew in the eighth.
- Matt Thornton had a rare bad outing against the Yanks, giving up two runs while retiring only one batter.

Tough Days:

- Joel Pineiro - 10 Runs (9 ER) in 3.1 innings - 10 H and a walk, three HR's.
- Rick Porcello - Got the win, but allowed five runs on 8 H, including a homer.
- Trevor Cahill had a rough debut, giving up eight runs (six earned) to the Blue Jays. He allowed three homers, two to Alex Gonzalez, among his seven hits allowed over five innings.
- Kyle Kendrick allowed three homers in five innings. Danys Baez followed that by allowing four runs in his inning of work.
- Charlie Morton struck out eight in his six innings of work, but also allowed two homers and dropped to 0-5.

Late Injuries:

- Brian Wilson tweaked a groin before Friday's game and was unavailable to pitch. Sergio Romo got the first two outs of the ninth but gave way to Jeremy Affeldt for the final out after allowing a double.
- Edgar Renteria left with a strained groin. Between his injury and Juan Uribe's sore elbow (that he played through on Friday night), don't be surprised if the Giants call up someone who is capable of playing shortstop for the weekend.
- Jeff Francoeur suffered a bruised left elbow after getting hit by a pitch. He earlier crashed into the outfield fence while making a nice catch.

Quick Non-Baseball Note:

- Which commercial is worse? The Staples "low price" shout-athon or the Denny's 2-4-6-8? They both are insta-switches to me. Then again, maybe that those two commercials slay me so much is a good indicator that I watch too much of the MLB Network.

Red Sox Catcher SB Alert:

- Victor Martinez threw out both runners attempting to steal against him on Friday night.