In the top of the first, Manny Machado drew a one-out walk off of Padres starter Eric Stults, but Adam Jones hit a sharp grounder to third for an inning-ending double play. Miguel Gonzalez began his night by giving up a leadoff single to Will Venable, who then stole second base. Gonzalez responded by striking out Chris Denorfia and Chase Headley, and after walking Yonder Alonso on four pitches, got Jedd Gyorko to fly out to right.

In the second, Stults impressively struck out the side, but not before J.J. Hardy hit a two-out solo shot down the left field line, giving the O's a 1-0 lead. Things got a bit messy in the bottom of the inning, as Steve Pearce and Manny Machado misplayed a flyball to left into a leadoff double, but Gonzalez got out of the jam with a pair of groundouts and a flyout.

Both teams went down in order in the third, the Padres on three strikeouts. In the fourth, Machado reached base on a throwing error (perhaps a gift from Angel Hernandez), and Adam Jones drove him in on a single up the middle and an errant throw into the Orioles' dugout. Despite making it to third on the play, Jones was stranded, as Stults got a groundout and pair of strikeouts. Gonzalez protected his two-run lead by again retiring all three Padres.

Leading off the fifth, Steve Pearce hit a double down the left-field line, and Brian Roberts followed with a single, moving Pearce to third. Miguel Gonzalez, in just his second MLB plate appearance, laid down a pretty good bunt, which the pitcher slipped while trying to field, loading the bases. Only one run scored, however, on a Manny Machado single to left; Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, and Chris Davis all made unproductive outs. The score was now 3-0, but this was starting to feel like another day in which missed opportunities would catch up to the O's. Gonzalez, meanwhile, finally allowed another baserunner, when Rene Rivera singled with one out, but a botched bunt and a tapper in front of the plate - and two nice plays by Matt Wieters - ended the inning.

Those missed opportunities would seem more ominous in the sixth, as the O's went down in order. In the bottom of the inning, Miguel Gonzalez walked leadoff batter Chris Denorfia. He then struck out Chase Headley, but gave up a broken-bat single to Yonder Alonso. Next up was Jedd Gyorko, who crushed a three-run home run to center field, tying the game at 3-3. Alexi Amarista followed with a single, and Gonzalez began looking like he might not finish the inning, but the O's caught Amarista stealing on a pitchout, and Gonzalez struck out Ronny Cedeno, preserving the tie.

Both teams were unable to get a baserunner in the seventh, as Eric Stults finished his outing by retiring eight consecutive batters and Francisco Rodriguez struck out two. Leading off the eighth, Manny Machado and Adam Jones hit back-to-back singles against Padre righty Luke Gregerson. With two men on, manager Bud Black did the logical thing and brought in lefty Colt Hynes to face Chris Davis. Thor, however, doesn't care about platoon splits, and smashed Hynes's first pitch for his 41st homer, an Earl Weaver Special to right field.

A three-run lead in the eighth is pretty nice, but the Orioles weren't quite done. Matt Wieters followed Davis's homer by smoking a double to center field, and after J.J. Hardy struck out, Nate McLouth moved him to third with a single. Brian Roberts drove in Wieters with a sacrifice fly, making the score 7-3 Orioles. Ryan Flaherty, pinch-hitting for the pitcher and replacing Roberts in a double switch, struck out, keeping the score there. Buck Showalter went to Troy Patton to start the eighth, and he got two outs, interrupted by a Chase Headley double. Buck then summoned Darren O'Day, who induced a first-pitch flyout to get the O's within three outs of a mini-sweep.

The ninth pushed the score from a solid win to a near-laugher. Nick Markakis led off the ninth with a single, and Adam Jones followed suit after Manny Machado flied out. Chris Davis then drew a walk to load the bases, and Matt Wieters grounded out to first, driving in another run and moving the runners over. J.J. Hardy then stepped up to the plate and drove in two with an opposite-field single. Amusingly, Nate McLouth followed with a walk, giving Darren O'Day an unexpected at-bat that ended with an unsurprising strikeout. O'Day went from the batter's box to the mound and closed out the game by retiring the Padres in order. O's win, 10-3.

With the win, the Orioles finished the season series against the Padres with a 2-2 record, and started out their road trip with a couple of solid wins. Their next stop, after having Thursday off, is in San Francisco, where they'll face the Giants for three games. Hopefully, they'll continue to rack up wins, because the schedule is going to get a lot tougher once they're done facing the NL West.

Well, Wednesday wasn't the Padres' day either. They were defeated 10-3 as the Baltimore Orioles swept the two game miniseries.

The Orioles started by building a picket fence, putting up one lone run each in the second, fourth, and fifth innings to jump out to a 3-0 lead. Fairweathers who boo-hooed that the game was over before half of it had been played were hushed up in the sixth inning when Jedd Gyorko tied the game at threes with his tenth homer of the year.

Unfortunately, the tie didn't last that long and the bitter better fans scattered all over Twitter were again allowed to gloat when the Padres' bullpen coughed up seven runs in the last two innings. Chris Davis untied the game in the eighth with a three-run shot of his own, his forty-first homer of the season, the longest by a visitor in Petco Park's history. Baltimore tacked on another run that inning on a sac fly, and added three more in the ninth for good measure.

Alexi Amarista had the Padres' sole multi-hit showing, but also had an error leading to a run. Adam Jones led the Orioles with three hits because of course he did. Jones went 7-9 in his two days back in his hometown, good enough to nudge his batting average over the .300 mark or, as I just decided I like to call it, "The Kruk Line".

The pair of losses balances out the pair of wins the Padres had at Camden Yards in May to tie the season series at 2-2. San Diego is now 6-7 all-time versus Baltimore, bumping the number of teams the Padres have a sub-.500 record against up to 24.

Wonko led with 45 comments and Ivan Verastica tied with jodes0405 for second with 35. Friar Fever had a perfect 19.

Fake Teams Podcast, Episode 23: You Can't Argue With That

Andrew and Zack discuss our Midseason Outfielder Rankings, including their thoughts on Yasiel Puig, Bryce Harper,Mike Trout, Adam Jones and my "interesting" outfielder rankings. What? What? You don't like my rankings? They also discussed Wil Myers, Gerrit Cole and Chris Archer, so make sure you listen to their thoughts on the podcast.

You can listen to their awesome podcast in two ways:

MP3

ITunes

2013 Midseason Position Rankings

In case you missed our 2013 Midseason Rankings, below is a link to each of our Consensus Position Rankings for the rest of the season:

Consensus Midseason Position Rankings

Shelby Miller DL bound?

Cardinals young starter Shelby Miller lasted just two pitches last night before he had to leave last night's start vs the Dodgers. Miller was struck in the right elbow by a line drive off the bat of Dodgers leadoff hitter Carl Crawford. I hope he doesn't have to hit the DL, but he appeared in pain after being struck. Miller has had a great rookie campaign, making 22 starts, he is 11-7 with a 2.89 ERA, 3.09 FIP, 3.30 xFIP, 1.13 WHIP and a 132-35 strikeout to walk rate in 121.1 innings this season.

On the ESPN telecast last night, they reported that the Cardinals are calling Miller's injury a right elbow contusion. I am sure we will hear more about his injury later today, but with Carlos Martinez pitching well in AAA, the Cardinals may play it safe with their young starter and place him on the DL.

Here is a tweet from the Cardinals twitter account last night in Miller's injury:

INJURY REPORT: X-Rays on Shelby Miller's right elbow were negative.

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 8, 2013

For more on Miller's injury, and the Cardinals reaction to the injury, make sure you check out Viva El Birdos, SB Nation's Cardinals fan site.

Josh Donaldson is a Top 5 Fantasy Third Baseman

The best thing about major league baseball is the fact that every year several players have a breakout season that no one expected, and Josh Donaldson is having one of those seasons. Yesterday afternoon, Donaldson went 2-4 with a HR, 2 runs and 2 RBI, raising his triple slash line to .294-.373-.483 with 17 HRs, 56 runs and 63 RBI.

Amongst qualified fantasy third baseman, per FanGraphs, Donaldson ranks tied for 5th in home runs, 7th in batting average and runs scored, and 4th in RBI. I admit, I did not see this kind of season from him back in March, and I think I may have turned down a trade offer involving him in the offseason. Silly me.

For more on Donaldson, check out Athletics Nation, SB Nation's A's fan site. It is also the very first SB Nation site if I am not mistaken.

Round'em Up

The Mets called up infield prospect Wilmer Flores on Monday and eceived his first major league start at third base last night, and he made the most of it, going 2-4 with a double and 3 RBI in the Mets 5-0 win over the Rockies. Flores was hitting .321-.357-.531 with 15 HRs, 69 runs and 86 RBI playing for AAA Las Vegas before his call up. The issue for fantasy owners, and the Mets, is where will he ultimately play once he is handed an every day job in the big leagues. If he plays second base, he will have plenty of value for fantasy owners. If third base or outfield, not so much.

Flores teammate Matt Harvey just continues to dominate hitters every fifth day. Harvey shut out the Rockies on 4 hits, no walks and 6 strikeouts in a complete game shut out. Harvey is now 9-3 with a 2.09 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and an amazing 178-29 strikeout to walk rate in 159.2 innings on the mound. Over his last 10 starts covering 69.2 innings, he has given up just 16 runs on 45 hits, 10 walks, and 83 strikeouts, and has given up one run or less in seven of those ten starts.

ESPN's Mark Simon tweeted the following after Harvey's start last night:

Matt Harvey fastball velocity by inning 1-3 94.7 mph 4-6 95.3 mph 7-9 96.0 mph That's what we call "A Verlander"

— Mark Simon (@msimonespn) August 8, 2013

Yep. But Harvey is better than Verlander right now.

I recently traded for Kendrys Morales in my AL only keeper league, paying a steep price for him as well. To garner his services, I had to give up a $5 Miguel Sano for the $28 Morales. I had to do it, as I need the power and BA that he provides, as I was competing for this season. Yesterday, he went 2-4 with a double and an RBI, raising his triple slash line to .300-.353-.485 with 17 HRs, 51 runs and 64 RBI in 427 at bats. His name has popped up in trade rumors before the July 31st trade deadline, specifically with the Rangers, and ESPN's Jim Bowden wrote a piece yesterday stating it would make sense for both teams. I imagine the Rangers will look to sign Morales in the offseason to replace Nelson Cruz, who I think they won't re-sign.

Orioles first baseman Chris Davis is having one heck of a year, isn't he? Davis went yard again yesteday, driving in three, in the Orioles 10-3 win over the Padres yesterday afternoon. Davis is now hitting .302-.375-.676 with 41 HRs, 80 runs and 106 RBI and is on pace for an unbelievable 58 home runs and 151 RBI. I have already stated that I think Davis is a slam dunk first five pick next year, and I would love to see him hit 60 home runs this season. Unfortunately, some writers can't stop themselves from dropping the "PED" words as the reason for it if he does hit 60.

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen is doing his best to put his name atop the National League MVP race. Last night, McCutchen went 2-3 with a HR, RBI and a stolen base, and is now hitting .312-.384-.511 with 16 HRs, 71 runs, 65 RBI and 24 stolen bases in 30 attempts. He has hit in 8 of his last 10 games, with multiple hits in 7 of those games.

Some have mentioned Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw as an MVP candidate, and I think he has as good a chance as anyone other than McCutchen, as there isn't any one player having a dominant season like Miguel Cabrera, Mike Trout and Chris Davis are having in the American League.

More from Fake Teams:

• Streamer Report: Thursday's Streamers
• Three (Possibly) True Outcomes: Kyle Crick
• Deep League Thoughts -- Colonel Saunders
• Minor League Review: How Are Some of This Year's Top Draftees Doing So Far?
• Closer Report: Volatility continues in 2013
• Roto Roundup: Justin Verlander, Julio Teheran, Darin Ruf and Others
• Risers and Fallers: Mike Moustakas, Russell Martin and Others

Minnesota Twins rookie Andrew Albers almost threw a shutout against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night. Andrew Albers?

We spend a lot of time talking about the top prospects around here, but guys like Albers are great stories and can sometimes surprise us. Let's take a look at him as Prospect of the Day.

Albers is from Canada but attended college at the University of Kentucky, where he had some success as both a starter and reliever from 2005 through 2008. His senior year was very good: he posted a 2.40 ERA with a 64/16 K/BB ratio in 56 innings, almost all in relief, picking up five saves. This was enough to get him drafted by the San Diego Padres, as a strike-throwing bargain senior with a $10,000 bonus.

He pitched seven innings in rookie ball, but blew out his elbow and had to have Tommy John surgery in the spring of 2009. The Padres released him. He rehabbed, then pitched for Quebec in the Canadian-American League in 2010 and performed quite well, with a 1.40 ERA, 17 saves, and a 59/16 K/BB in 58 innings.

He attended two tryout camps in Arizona in the spring of 2011, but nobody signed him. He then drove out to Florida for a tryout with the Twins. The Twins had actually considered drafting him in '08 but the Padres beat them to it, so they were familiar with his ability and profile and signed him as a free agent. He took a spot in the High-A Fort Myers bullpen and thrived, posting a 1.55 ERA with a 46/7 K/BB in 52 innings, then continued to pitch well after moving up to Double-A (2.91 ERA, 34/7 K/BB in 43 innings).

The Twins converted him to a full time starter in 2012 with decent results (3.75 ERA, 73/12 K/BB in 98 innings for Double-A New Britain). He was even better this season, going 11-5, 2.86 with a 116/32 K/BB in 132 innings for Triple-A Rochester before his promotion.

He's a 6-1, 195 pound lefty, born October 6, 1985. As you may surmise given his background, he doesn't have a blazing fastball, working at 85-88 MPH and usually at the lower end of that range. He locates it well however, and is adept at changing speeds with his slider and changeup. He's always thrown strikes, and has succeeded at every level of baseball to which he's been exposed, including playing for the Canadian national team.

So what do the Twins have here? Albers is 27, so there's no additional upside to be had; he's not going to grow into any additional velocity. He doesn't have a big margin for error, and while the Royals were flummoxed in his debut, the scouting report will get around.

Albers has a similar profile to the man he replaced on the roster, Scott Diamond, a fellow Canadian who rode his ability to throw strikes and keep people off-balance to 12 wins and a 3.54 ERA last year. The league figured out Diamond and they'll probably figure out Albers eventually too.

But that's not really the point.

The point is that the Twins found a guy on the scrapheap who, at a minimum, is a good Triple-A starter and who has a non-zero chance of contributing something positive in the majors, at least for awhile.

Score one for good scouting, and score one for all the guys like Albers. He never give up and he earned his way to the major leagues.

The Chicago White Sox are going to finish the season with one of the bottom five records in all of baseball this season, a feat they haven't accomplished since 1989. Barring some sort of miracle run by the Sox or epic collapse by the Mets, Phillies, Twins, Angels, Brewers, or Giants, the Sox will have a top three draft pick for the first time since the 1977 draft. They had the top overall pick that year and drafted Harold Baines, which seemed to work out pretty well for everyone involved. So for most of us non-ancient fans, this is pretty much uncharted territory we're about to explore.

One of the more frustrating things about having to explain why I'm more than okay with the Sox more or less losing out for the rest of the season is the general assumption the layperson has about the MLB draft. I don't know how many times I've heard over the past month or so "Yeah, but draft position in the baseball draft doesn't really matter". I'm sorry, but that's never been true. It wasn't true before the new budgeting guidelines and it most definitely isn't true after. The Houston Astros had the first overall pick last year and were allotted $11,698,800 to spend on their first ten picks. The Twins, who drafted fourth, were given $8, 264,400 as their budget for signing ten picks. Having $3.6MM more to work with is a pretty huge difference, and that's without even accounting for the talent disparity.

There have been 49 first overall picks in MLB draft history. Of those 48 players (Danny Goodwin holds the rare distinction of being the only player drafted first twice), only six never played a single game in the majors. Two of those six were the last two years' top picks, Mark Appel and Carlos Correa, both of whom should move out of this sextet soon enough. The other four will be covered in greater detail later in this post. 87% of those drafted first overall have played in the majors and have averaged 20.7 bWAR for their careers. Obviously outliers like Alex Rodriguez, Chipper Jones, and Ken Griffey Jr skew this figure, but the point remains the same: the cream usually rises to the top.

Let's compare those numbers to the second and third overall picks. 41 second round picks have made the majors, good for an 83% success rate (four that haven't have been the most recent four, so this number should change). So the rate of reaching the majors isn't too much lower than that of the first overall picks, but the average bWAR takes a pretty substantial dive down to 14.2. This is largely due to the fact that the second overall pick has only produced one Hall of Famer, Reggie Jackson. The third pick is slightly more interesting, to me at least. Almost the same amount of third picks have reached the majors as second picks thus far, with only the 2013 (Jonathan Gray) and 2009 (Donovan Tate) being the recent draft choices to not have done so yet. The 81% success rate has resulted in an average of 12.3 bWAR per draftee, so that's still pretty great and the number should go up as Manny Machado continues to evolve.

The Sox getting the first overall pick would be huge for helping accelerate the needed minor league turnaround. There's of course the chance that Rick Hahn could manage to draft the sixth first overall pick to be worth a negative WAR, but the odds are against it. More interesting to me is the four who never made the majors. Of those four, Tim Beckham still has a shot. The first choice in the 2008 draft has been in AAA since late 2011 and could get a cup of coffee this September. The two picks after him have combined to play more than 800 games combined, though to varying levels of effectiveness (Pedro Alvarez and Eric Hosmer).

The other three stories are a bit more sad. Sometimes choosing the local high school product instead of the expensive college pitcher works out pretty well (Joe Mauer instead of Mark Prior). And then sometimes you have the 2004 draft and the Padres pick Matt Bush instead of Justin Verlander. Hell, even the third pick would have been a better choice and he was Phil Humber. Bush had a minor league career OPS of .569. He never made it past AA, tried being converted into a pitcher and failed and had numerous legal issues and is currently behind bars in Florida until 2016.

Brien Taylor was supposed to be the next Doc Gooden, drafted 1st overall by the Yankees in 1991. He was doing well enough in the minors until he decided to confront a man who fought his brother. He wound up dislocating his left shoulder and tearing the labrum. His fastball was no longer fast and he couldn't control his curveball. He hung around the minors until 2000, but never made it past A ball again. He was arrested for trafficking cocaine in 2012 and is currently in jail in New Jersey. The picks immediately after Taylor didn't amount to much either, but at least Mike Kelly and Dave McCarty made the majors.

Steve Chilcott was only the second first overall pick ever. The New York Mets chose the high school catcher, allowing Reggie Jackson to fall to the Athletics with the second pick. Mr. October wound up being an established regular for the A's as soon as 1968. Sure the Mets won it all in 1969, but it's not like they couldn't have used Jackson's 5.2 bWAR in right field or his stellar production for the next ten years or so. And in all fairness, Chilcott's career ended more in line with Taylor than Bush. A baserunnning injury in 1967 all but ruined his right shoulder, which is a fairly important body part for a catcher. He was out of baseball five years later.

The first overall pick isn't without risk, but the success rate is so much higher than any other pick that it's absurd to suggest draft position is somehow unimportant in the MLB draft. The Sox landing a top three pick would be a tremendous boon, so you might want to get comfortable cheering for a little bit more 2013 failure than you'd normally be okay with. It's for the greater good.

I've been on Jury Duty all week and during my lunch break I've been wandering around downtown.  The last two days I headed in the direction of the harbor.  With an hour and a half to kill and no friends to speak of, I took it upon myself to find the Lane Field Plaque.  It was placed there to commemorate the home of Pacific Coast League Padres from 1936-1957.

Like most San Diegans I've been down to the harbor plenty of times, but I can't remember ever actively seeking out the plaque. While finding it on the corner of two major streets might not seem to be a complicated task,  it is made more difficult by a sprawling construction project that's now in progress.

Lane Field (baseball) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A plaque at the corner of Broadway and Pacific Highway commemorates the ballpark.

I asked Twitter for help in finding it. We knew where it once was, but there were rumors it had been uprooted and moved until construction was complete.

@gaslampball@woedoctor a visual ref. for you --->pic.twitter.com/zNFDYttgDH

— Matt Schwarz (@friarfanatic10) August 7, 2013

Yesterday, with my lunch break quickly coming to an end I had to abandon my search fearing that the plaque was hidden behind a construction fence or possibly moved.

Today, with an even longer lunch break I had more time to investigate.  Using Google Maps I was able to match the location of palm trees on the Northwest corner of Broadway and Pacific Highway and take an azimuth to the location of the plaque.  There was no sign of it, save for a wooden crate.

Think the Lane Field plaque is under this wood box on Broadway and Pacific? pic.twitter.com/8cZMVkoFSB

— Gaslamp Ball (@gaslampball) August 8, 2013

I hypothesized that the plaque was being hidden and protected by the wooden crate seen in the picture above.  A few minutes after the tweet I was able to call over a construction worker and ask him if the plaque truly lied beneath.  He confirmed my suspicion, saying that the plaque would stay there for forevermore but likely remain covered until the two phases of construction were completed.

Maybe someday I'll return when it's not off limits to the public.  On that day I'll take along butcher paper and a crayon and make a rubbing and thus create my own replica and treasured souvenir.

For those asking, the construction project is a sizable one which will result in waterfront condos, a hotel and a park.The sign said the project will be complete in Spring 2014.

Happy birthday to the incomparable Bob Scanlan. The Scanman somehow turns 47 today, although he doesn't look a day over 29. He has worn a lot of hats over the years; literally so in his playing days and figuratively since.

A twenty-fifth round pick out of high school in 1984, Scanlan persevered for seven years in the Phillies' system before he got his opportunity. After stops in the GCL, Spartanburg, Clearwater, Reading, Maine, Reading again, and Scranton/ Wilkes Barre, Scan was traded to the Cubs along with Chuck McElroy for Mitch Williams on April 7, 1991. He made four appearances with Iowa before making his major league debut one month to the day later.

Everyone's first game is one they'll remember, but Scanlan's was worth remembering. He earned the win by going seven strong innings, allowing only five hits and no earned runs against a Houston Astros team featuring future Friars Steve Finley and Ken Caminiti. Scan was 0-2 at the plate but did work a walk against the late Darryl Kile. Oddly, it would prove to be the only walk of his career.

Following his solid rookie season, Scanlan was moved to the 'pen full-time in '92. He excelled in that role and led the team with 14 saves after being promoted to closer. It was short lived, as the team acquired Randy Myers before the '93 season but Scanlan made the best of it and recorded 25 holds, a team record that would stand until Carlos Marmol notched 30 in 2008.

The Cubs dealt Scanlan to Milwaukee prior to the 1994 season. After two years there, including a three-game stint in AA New Orleans, he split 1996 between Detroit and Kansas City, also making stops at Lakeland, Toledo, and Omaha. 1997 saw Scan spend a month in the Mexican League with Mexico City before he got picked up by the Padres organization; he put up solid numbers with AAA Las Vegas but, for the first time since 1990, he saw no major league action.

Scanlan made his way back to the majors in 1998 with Houston and did well in 27 games out of the bullpen. He also spent time with New Orleans again; by that time they were the Astros' AAA affiliate. He spent all of 1999 there as well before returning to the majors in 2000 with Milwaukee. Like New Orleans, the Brewers had shifted leagues since his last time there. He only got into two games with the newly-NL Brew Crew that year but was phenomenal all season with their AAA team in Indianapolis, saving 35 games with a 1.79 ERA.

His final season in the majors was 2001 with Montreal. He made his final appearance on September 29, allowing one earned run on three singles in the the eighth inning of a 7-4 loss to Cincinnati. Scanlan also saved 23 games for AAA Ottawa that season. He pitched two more seasons in the minors, splitting 2002 between the Rockies' AAA team in Colorado Springs and the Yankees' AAA affiliate in Columbus, OH before going back to the Astros' system in 2003 where he pitched very well for AA Round Rock and, yet again, AAA New Orleans.

In his 20 years of professional ball, Scanlan spent all or part of nine of them in the majors with six different teams. In his 17 seasons with time in the minors he pitched for 18 teams; 19 if you count the AA and AAA incarnations of the New Orleans Zephyrs as two different teams. If that's not love of the game I don't know what is.

After hanging up his spikes, Scanlan promptly transitioned into his second career behind the microphone and the keyboard. The typing kind; he doesn't play piano as far as I know, although I wouldn't be surprised in the least if he did. He's been a jack of many trades and a master of all of them, working as a pre-game, in-game, and post-game analyst on television as well as a variety of roles on both satellite and terrestrial radio. He has even contributed to Spanish radio broadcasts, which impresses me to no end, but now you can regularly hear him doing Padres games in his native tongue.

No tribute to Bob Scanlan would be complete without mentioning his amazing hair. It's so spectacular that it makes me kind of sad that he had to keep it covered with a hat for 20 years. Lucky for us, it's free from its woolen cage to be seen in all its glory. Le swoon.

If you feel so inclined, you can tell him happy birthday on Twitter or his Facebook fan page, both of which he keeps up with regularly. Even if you don't, he's still well worth a follow and a like. His personal website is also excellent and frequently updated.

So, happy cake day, Scan; I hope it's the best one yet. Here's to 47 more great years!

While watching the game tonight I saw a new USAA commercial on Fox Sports San Diego.  Former Padre reliever Rollie Fingers is one of their spokesmen.  In addition to describing his family's military service he also speaks of his own.  I didn't realize that Fingers had served 6 years in the Army Reserves.

Three years ago on Veterans Day we tried our best to track down all the Padres major leaguers who had spent time in the military.  We came up with 7 thanks to those with access to the Padres Honor Wall, but now we can add an 8th to the list thanks to USAA.

• Champ Summers
  Summers served in Vietnam with the United States Army.   He was discovered playing in a men's softball league after his service and played in the Major Leagues from 1974-84.  He played 47 games and his final Major League season with the Padres on their National League Championship team.
• Jason Szuminski
  Szumniski was a First Lieutenant in the United States Air Force serving as an individual mobilization augmentee assigned to the Air Force Research Laboratory's Propulsion Directorate, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.  He started the season on the 25 man roster in 2004 but was quickly dropped and returned to the Cubs per Rule 5 draft rules.  I was reminded that we interviewed him a little while ago.
• Al Bumbry
  Bumbry earned the Bronze Star as a platoon leader in Vietnam. A long time Oriole, Bumbry became a free agent and signed with the San Diego Padres in 1985. However, at age 38, he hit just .200 and stole only two bases, and he retired after the season.
• Fred Stanley
  Stanley went to High School in San Diego. He missed the 1969 season due to his service in Vietnam and then played for the Padres for one season in 1972.
• Rich Folkers
  Folkers' Minor League career was interrupted by doing a tour in Vietnam in 1969. After his return he promptly made the big leagues and played the 1975-76 seasons with the Padres.
• Earl Wilson
  Wilson missed the 1957-1958 seasons because of Military service.  He played with the Padres in 1970.
• Johnny Podres
  Podres missed the 1956 season due to his Military service.  He played his last season with the Padres in their first season, 1969.
• Rollie Fingers
  Fingers says in a recent USAA commercial that he served six years in the Army Reserves.  He played for the Padres from 1977 to 1980.

Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible

• Yankees 4, Tigers 3: Gardner saves everyone from heartbreak
• Yankees lineup vs. Tigers; Randy Levine doesn't know if they can make the playoffs
• Give Austin Romine a shot
• Yankees GIFs of the Week: Nova, Nix falls, and fan irritation
• How will Yankee fans react to Alex Rodriguez's return?
• Pinstripe Alley Podcast Episode 18: Boos, booze, and GIFs
• Yankees prospects: Dellin Betances deserves another look
• Yankees Prospect Interview: Nathan Mikolas
• Baby Bomber Recap 8/8/13: Thunder pitchers strike out 20 in extra innings win

Around the Internet

• New York Post | Ken Davidoff:Alex Rodriguez has brought a distraction from the Yankees brutal season.
• ESPN New York | Matt Ehalt: The return of A-Rod to Yankee Stadium has increased ticket sales by 50%.
• USA Today | Bob Nightengale: A-Rod says that the excitement about returning to Yankee Stadium is the reason why he went through all the rehab work in the first place.
• It's About the Money | Brad Vietrogoski:Adam Warren has struggled after a solid start to the season as he regresses to the mean.
• SB Nation | Connor Moylan:Evan Longoria thinks that Alex Rodriguez being able to play during a pennant race is unfair to the rest of the division.
• Pinstripe Pundits | Derek Albin: If Alex Rodriguez gets suspended next year, what does that mean for the 2014 Yankees payroll?
• Post-Cresent Media | Dan Kohn: Alex Rodriguez Field in Appleton, Wisconsin has been tripped of its name.
• The Taylor Hooton Foundation, an organization dedicated to eliminating performance enhancing drugs among youth, has terminated its professional relationship with Alex Rodriguez.
• Fangraphs | Jeff Sullivan: Take a look at this week's wildest swings as Ivan Nova and Boone Logan made the Padres look silly.
• CBS Sports | Mike Axisa: The Yankees wore their white-brimmed batting practice hats for a good cause.

Quick Hits

• The Yankees only let Derek Jeterthrow on the field before yesterday's game, nothing else.
• Aaron Judge is on the disabled list with a tweaked right quad.

Questions of the Day

• Who should the Yankees give a qualifying offer to?
• Will the Yankees stay above .500 for the rest of the season?
• Do you make your own lunch or do you usually order food?
• What is the first website you go to on a daily basis?

Coming Up Today

• Baby Bomber Recap 8/9/13 @ 9 am
• Yankees prospects: 2013 mid-season top five @ 10 am
• New York Yankees vs. Detroit Tigers at 1:05 pm (12:30 pm game thread)

I finally got around to buying a copy of Trevor Hoffman's 1992 Upper Deck Minors card a couple weeks ago. I already had cards of him as a Marlin, Padre, and a Brewer but this is my first showing him as a member of the Reds organization.

On the front, Trevor is pictured in his Chattanooga Lookouts uniform, and their logo is on the back. He played there in 1991 and for his first six games of the '92 season. Trevor pitched the rest of 1992 with the AAA Nashville Sounds before the Marlins snagged him up in the expansion draft. Speaking of the back of the card, the picture on it is awesome.

Early '90s Upper Deck had the best photography. They were the best at getting away-from-the-action and offbeat shots that nobody else was putting on cards. And if you don't feel like tilting your head like you're eating a taco in order to read the text, here's what it says:

The brother of former major leaguer Glenn Hoffman, Trevor hit .227 as an infielder in his first two pro seasons before moving to the mound at the start of 1991. His fastball should help him settle into a closer's role.

Good call, Upper Deck. Good call.

Minor League Player of the Day– Scott Van Slyke (Albuquerque) - 2 for 4 with a home run and 2 RBI

AAA– The Isotopes were in the winning column on Friday night with an easy 6-1 win over the Tacoma Rainers (Mariners). The highlight could have been Brian Wilsonmaking another rehab appearance with an inning of perfect work. But instead the light shined on one of Wilson's former teammates, Jonathan Sanchez won his 5th game, pitching 6 innings, giving up 1 run, 8 hits and 2 walks and 8 strikeouts. Scott Van Slyke homered and singled with 2 RBI. Tony Gwynn, Jr. also had 2 hits. Justin Sellersalso homered.

AA – The Lookouts and Stars of Huntsville (Brewers) had their game suspended in the 1st inning. That game is scheduled to be resumed today.

HiA – The Quakes saw the Storm (Padres) put up 5 runs in the first on their way to a 9 -3 victory over Rancho Cucamonga. Geison Aguasviva led 5 Quakes pitchers in their ineffectiveness, giving up 6 runs and 8 hits in 4 innings. Noel Cuevas got 3 hits in 4 at bats, scoring 2 runs and hitting a double.

LoA– The Loons were shut out by the Hot Rods (Rays) 3 to 0. Miguel Sulbaran started for the Lookouts, he gave up a run with 2 hits, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts. Kevin Taylor got the only hit of the day for the Loons.

Rookie Ogden– The Raptors took one on the chin by the Owlz (Angels) as they lost 10 to 5. J.D. Underwood gave up 6 runs in one inning of work. Jesmuel Valentin and Adam Law each had 3 hits. Jacob Scavuzzo and Joey Curletta had 2 hits.

DSL – The Dominican Dodgers only had 2 hits in a weather shortened loss to the Indians 5 - 0. Kevin Guzman pitched 4 innings, with 6 hits, 3 runs, a walk and 2 strikeouts.

Transactions:RHP Brian Wilson sent to Albuquerque Isotopes on rehab assignment; Chattanooga Lookouts placed C Dashenko Ricardoon the 7-day disabled list and also placed 3B Osvaldo Martinez on the 7-day disabled list retroactive to August 8, 2013. Great Lakes Loons activated RHP Ralston Cash from the 7-day disabled list and placed RHP Alan Garcia on the 7-day disabled list.

Coming up– Brandon Martinez starts for the Loons, Matt Magilltries for another win for the Isotopes. Victor Araujo gets the ball for the Raptors and Gustavo Gomez throws for the Quakes. And Zach Lee toes the rubber for the Lookouts.

Albuquerque Isotopes Box Score (AAA)

Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score (AA)

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Box Score (HiA)

Great Lakes Loons Box Score (LoA)

Ogden Raptors Box Score (Rookie)

Dominican Dodgers Box Score (DSL)

Minor League Central - Daily Dodger Recap

Every decision has a distinct set of consequences; some can be predicted with certainty, and others remain unforeseeable. As time rolls on, the affects of any given change or manipulation to a system play out, and often become the deciding factors as to whether the original decisions have proven beneficial or disruptive. When MLB and the MLBPA re-crafted their collective bargaining agreement, the two sides made significant changes, most of which have now become quite well-known, to the manner in which teams draft new players.

Along with assigned dollar amounts per pick, caps for money spent on international prospects, as well as the ability to use that slot money in trades, the new CBA also created nine protected picks. The teams with the nine worst records at the end of the season do not, for any reason, have to relinquish their draft pick. This comes into play most often when discussing the acquisition of free agents, and more specifically free agents who have been tendered a qualifying offer and have declined said offer.

Chase Utley Extension: Something everybody wants

Ken explores the pros and cons of the Phillies' most recent move to bring back a veteran player

While the teams that can smell the playoffs continue to pursue the postseason by any means necessary, nine teams hoping to both improve their big league roster while not being able to afford the luxury of losing their 2014 first round pick, vie for one of the nine worst records in baseball. In general, the wins the better, but this system incentivizes certain teams to hold back, and at the very least, not make decisions that lead to more wins. Other professional sports leagues like the NBA and NFL deal with the issue of tanking on purpose, with fans often hoping their team will continue to lose games so that they will have the best opportunity to rebuild their franchise into a winning one.

Teams like the Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, and Chicago White Sox do not have to worry about not finishing the season without a top-nine losing record. These teams all currently have winning percentages below .400. No matter the draft, a pick closer to number one gives the organization more options, but with the new rules in the CBA, the options truly become apparent for any team that has a protected pick. The idea of having a team's pick protected may not prove useful to many of the teams that hold such picks. For example, neither the Houston Astros nor the Minnesota Twins, two teams in complete rebuilding efforts, will want to acquire a top player in free agency that could theoretically cost them a draft pick. While the Astros might not care as much about the protected nature of their draft pick, a team like the Mariners, Mets, Phillies or Angels might have a different take on the situation.

These teams all play in fairly big markets, meaning that from season to season they possess money with which to spend in the offseason if they so desire. In fact, in order to keep their fans involved through a lean year or two, these teams will often make a move that seems out of character for their situation in order to bring in a big name player who could help keep revenue streaming in. Interestingly, all four of the teams mentioned above, as well as the Padres, Giants, and Rockies, will most likely make up spots seven through nine in the draft as well as the four spots that come after pick nine. Essentially, of those seven teams, three will have protected picks, while four will find themselves left out.

This situation creates some interesting strategy heading towards the end of the season. In September, roster sizes grow from 25 to 40, during which most teams, playoff-bound or not, bring up minor leaguers currently on the 40-man roster to alleviate or even fill some rolls on the major league club. It allows teams to see some potential future big-league players get some reps in the majors even if those players have not been deemed fully ready for promotion. Given that teams like the Mariners, Phillies, Angels, and Giants might want to remain active in the offseason vis-à-vis signing free agents, while simultaneously banking on having a juicy first-round selection in the 2014 draft, it might prove beneficial for these teams to lose more games than they is currently expected of them.

Last season we began to see the more significant affects of qualifying offers on free agents. Players like Rafael Soriano and Kyle Lohse eventually found suitors, but prior to the qualifying offer system, those players may have attracted more teams with better offers sooner. Teams like the Giants and Angels have made significant moves to acquire free agents in recent years, but haven't won enough games yet and most likely will continue to trend away from the playoff picture. These teams would like to improve their farm systems, but also have committed money to veterans in order to win now. Having a protected pick could prove beneficial, in allowing them to improve via free agency as well as pad the future.

It's quite possible that the benefits of having more options in the offseason without relinquishing a draft pick might not outweigh the profits made by winning as many games as possible that remain in the 2013 regular season. Still, for a subset of teams, the opportunity to tank the rest of the way could be a nice middle ground between the Astros' strategy of tanking for an entire season, and the overarching maxim of trying to win every game. Overall, we probably shouldn't expect these teams to put forth even worse everyday lineups just in an attempt to secure a protected draft pick. Remember, a team could try and lose, and still end up winning too many games. The fallout of the new CBA continues to include more ripples the more time that passes, with the possibility of tanking for a protected pick now constitutes another such ripple.

. . .

All statistics courtesy of Fangraphs, Baseball Prospectus and Baseball-Reference.

Ben Horrow is a writer at Beyond The Box Score and That Ball's Outta Here. You can follow him on Twitter at @Summerpastime.

More from Beyond the Box Score:

• Alex Rios Trade: Quick Analysis
• The Rise of Patrick Corbin and Wade Miley
• Grading the best tools in the major leagues
• Strikeout pitch sequences by location

Minor League Player of the Day– Zach Lee (Chattanooga AA) pitched 6 innings picking up for Chris Reed in the suspended game from Friday. Lee only allowed 3 hits and a walk while striking out 8 in his scoreless appearance and got his 9th win of the year.Lee just surpassed his 2012 total innings pitched and he now has pitched 124.2 innings. He'll have 4-5 more starts this year as the Lookouts don't look to make the playoffs this season.

AAA– The Isotopes lost to Tacoma Rainers (Mariners) 7-6 on Saturday night. Matt Magill started and pitched reasonably well, 6 IP, 3 runs, 6 hits, 8 strikeouts but also 4 walks. A surprise relief appearance by Stephen Fife did not help much, Fife went 2 innings, allowed 2 runs, 5 hits and a walk. And the third Dodger/Isotope pitcher in this game, Peter Moylan did Fife one better, allowing 2 runs in one inning. Scott Van Slykeand Alex Castellanos homered. But the rest of the Isotope offense couldn't string much together.

AA – The Lookouts and Stars of Huntsville (Brewers) played two games today, starting with the game that was suspended on Friday night, Zach Lee pitched 6 strong innings and led the Lookouts to a 5 -1 victory over the Stars. The Lookouts were fortunate that the 3 runs they scored before the game was suspended were part of this game but Zach Lee's 6 shutout innings may have not needed it anyway. Chris Reed was the original starter and he pitched 1 scoreless inning. Brian Cavazos-Galvez and Angelo Songcoeach had 3 hits, Songco had a double as part of his three hits and drove in 3 runs.

The Lookouts tried the same formula for the second game, taking a first inning 2 run lead but the Stars scored 2 in the top of the last inning (7th) and they beat the Lookouts 3 to 2. Andres Santiago pitched great for six innings, giving up just a solo home run. But then Yimi Garcia, who had 12 straight scoreless appearances, blew the save, giving up 2 runs for the loss. Brian Cavazos-Galvez had two hits but it was J.T. Wise, who hit a 2-run home run, that was the offensive star in this game.

HiA – The Quakes saw the Storm (Padres) score a run in 11th inning for the 5-4 win. Gustavo Gomez started for the Quakes and he gave up 4 runs (2 earned) in his 5.2 innings. The next two pitchers held the Storm scoreless until Matt Shelton gave up the winning run the 11th. Chris Jacobs (4 for 4) and Bobby Coyle (3 for 4), each homered.

LoA– Thirty years ago, a great moment occurred at Dodger Stadium which I was reminded of when I saw that the Loons squeezed by the Hot Rods (Rays) 2 to 1. With two out in the bottom of the 9th, back to back singles plus an defensive in difference put runner on second and third. James Baldwin beat out the bunt as the winning run scored. Brandon Martinez had an excellent start, scattering 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 7 in 5 innings.

Rookie Ogden– 3 Raptor pitchers gave up 13 runs (12 earned) as the Owlz (Angels) as they lost 13 to 6. Jesmuel Valentin had 2 hits as well as Jacob Scavuzzo had 2 hits. Pitchers Victor Arauljo, Jordan Hershiser and Jackie Mateo gave up the 13 runs.

Rookie Arizona - The Brewers scored 7 runs in the late innings with 4 in the bottom of the 8th as they beat the Dodgers 8-5. Greg Harris pitched a strong 5 innings, giving up only one run. Wascar Teodo lost the game by giving up the 4 runs in the 8th. Josh Henderson and Tyger Pederson led the offense with 3 and 2 hits respectively

DSL – The Dominican Dodgers defeated the Indians 7 - 2. Wellington Serrano pitched a nice 5 innings, giving up 5 hits and a walk. Franklin Perezand Jose Escudero pitched 2 innings apiece to secure the win. Johan Mieses had 3 hits to lead the offense.

Transactions:N/A

Coming up– Julio Urias, who has pitched 10 innings total in his last six "starts" (since July 10th) begins the game for the Loons, Red Patterson is on the hill for the Isotopes. Zachary Birdgoes for the Raptors and Ross Striplingthrows for the Lookouts. And Lindsey Caughel toes the rubber for the Quakes.

Albuquerque Isotopes Box Score (AAA)

Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score Game 1 (AA)

Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score Game 2 (AA)

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Box Score (HiA)

Great Lakes Loons Box Score (LoA)

Ogden Raptors Box Score (Rookie)

Arizona Dodgers Box Score (Rookie)

Dominican Dodgers Box Score (DSL)

Minor League Central - Daily Dodger Recap

Fake Teams Podcast, Episode 24: The Lost Podcast

Lost podcast, not last podcast. I sat down with Andrew Ball and Daniel Kelley on Thursday night to discuss our recent Midseason Starting Pitcher Rankings, where we discussed Clayton Kershaw, Yu Darvish, Kris Medlen, Jose Fernandezand Mike Minor, among others. We also took the opportunity to get into some good ole Zack bashing.

But, due to technical difficulties, some of the podcast was lost, but you can listen to what was recorded in the links below. And here are some of what was lost:

• Jered Weaver│ Both Daniel and Ray think Weaver is being undervalued by the FT staff, citing that he has always outperformed his peripherals and he's finally healthy.
• Francisco Liriano│ Daniel, much like Brian Creagh, has been burned so many times by Liriano that he still can't jump on the bandwagon. Also, Liriano's increased slider usuge this year may make him at risk for an injury.
• Matt Cain and Kris Medlen │ One of the things I really support about Daniel's rankings, even if I don't do it myself, is the fact that he doesn't let a few months of data sway his opinion from the rankings we did in the preseason. Cain and Medlen are both pitchers with track records of success, granted a longer one for Cain, but he is sticking by both of them.
• Mike Minor │ All of us, myself included feel that stripping away Minor's name and simply evaluating the raw numbers makes him an easy top-20 pitcher. Kudos to Ray for the ranking at 13.
• Matt Moore│ Ray thinks Moore is the next Clayton Kershaw, while Daniel is a bit more hesitant citing that Moore is only about a year younger than Kershaw right now. I'm in the middle of the two opinions.
• Zack Smith │ Zack's rankings of David Price at 20, Hiroki Kuroda at 50, and C.C. Sabathia at 16 made all of us say, "huh?"

You can listen to the podcast in two ways:

MP3 LINK
ITUNES LINK (subscribe here)

Minor League Ball: Organization Top 20 Prospects in Review

Minor League Ball's John Sickels is in the middle of reviewing all of his preseason Top 20 Prospects and you can find all of them in the link below:

Organization Top 20 Prospects for 2013

Nathan Eovaldi: Marlins' future ace?

Marlins starter Nathan Eovaldi is owned in less than 1% of ESPN leagues, and I had thoughts about including him in my Saturday streamer article, but felt he was a risk pitching on the road in Atlanta against the hottest team in baseball. Well, Eovaldi made that decision look silly. Eovaldi pitched perhaps his best game as a big league starter last night, shutting out the hot Braves lineup on one hit, 3 walks, and a season high 8 strikeouts in 7 innings to earn his second win of the season.

Eovaldi is now 2-2 with a 2.82 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and a 41-26 K-BB rate in 60.2 innings of work this season. He has struggled with his command this season, and could stand to strike out a few more batters, as he holds his 95+ mph fastball deep into games, but has limited opposing batters to a .207 batting average in his 10 starts this season.

I took a chance on drafting Eovaldi at $1 in one of my NL only keeper leagues and he is looking like a solid buy at the moment. Right now, a case can be made that he could be the Marlins #2 starter behind Jose Fernandez, and a possible future ace in what could be a very good Marlins rotation a few years down the road with Andrew Heaney and Justin Nicolino pitching well in the minors.

Jose Bautista: Quieting this doubter

I have to admit, I was wrong on Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista. There, I said it. Back in the offseason rankings, I was down on Bautista due to his low batting average, big power ways, and the fact that he was coming off a wrist injury. On Saturday, Bautista went 3-4 with a HR, 2 runs and 2 RBI in the Blue Jays 5-4 win over the A's.

For the season, Bautista is now hitting .269-.364-.519 with 27 HR, 79 runs, 71 RBI and has chipped in with 7 stolen bases for his owners. At this rate, he is on pace for 38 HRs, 100+ runs, 100+ RBI and 10 stolen bases, which will move him up in my rankings this coming offseason.

Round'em Up

On my drive home from running errands with my 88 year old mother yesterday, I was listening to the beginning of the Dodgers-Rays game on XM Radio, and Jim Bowden was the color analyst on the game call. He was pretty insightful in his scouting analysis of Dodgers starter Zack Greinke. He said that a few weeks ago, Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt worked with Greinke on changing the grip on his cut fastball ( I think) to get more movement on it, and his recent performance show that the change in grip has worked. Greinke shut out the Rays for 6.1 innings, giving up 6 hits, walking one and striking out 7 to win his 10th game of the season. Greinke moved his record to 10-3 with a 3.21 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and a 93-33 K-BB rate in 117.2 innings this season. Yes, he is still a top 20 starter.

A's outfielder Josh Reddick appears to like hitting at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. For the second game in a row, Reddick has had multiple home run games, as he went 2-4 with 2 HRs and 3 RBI in the A's loss to the Blue Jays. Like I mentioned in yesterday's Roundup, Reddick has struggled at the plate this season, but owns solid plate discipline and has been unlucky with batted balls in play this season, so he could end the season on a high note, and be a sleeper heading into 2014 drafts.

There isn't much more one can write about Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera. After hitting a game-tying 2 run home run off of HOF closer Mariano Rivera on Friday night, where he fouled two balls off his knee and lower leg/foot, Miggy had a big game on Saturday afternoon. He went 3-4 with a HR and two runs scored, and is now hitting .363-.455-.676 with 35 HRs, 84 runs and 109 RBI. He ranks first or second in the following categories in the American League:

BA

HR

RBI

Runs

Walks

OBP

OPS

Pretty impressive. He is approaching 400 home runs in his career and he is only 30 years old.

The Padres traded for starter Tyson Ross in the offseason, and he has proved to be a pretty good starter for the team. Ross limited the Reds to just one run on 4 hits, 4 walks and 6 strikeouts on Saturday night, in the Padres 3-1 win. Ross is now 3-5 on the season with a 2.75 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and a 62-31 K-BB rate in 72 innings this season. He has given up two runs or less, and gone at least 6 innings, in each of his last four starts against the Reds, Yankees, Diamondback and Brewers, with just the starts vs the Yankees coming at home. Solid effort from the young starter who could be a sleeper in 2014 drafts.

More from Fake Teams:

• Streamer Report: Sunday's Streamers
• Minor League Review: How Are Some of This Year's Top Draftees Doing So Far? Part 2
• Around the League - AL and NL
• Low Level Prospect Review: Jesse Winker, OF, Cincinnati Reds
• Roto Roundup: Josh Reddick, Brandon Beachy, Jed Lowrie and Others
• Waiver Wire: 10 Under 10%
• Fantasy Fools: You drafted a kicker before the last round? You fool!
• Fake Teams Podcast Episode 24: The Lost Podcast

Yesterday, the Giants looked like they were going to win against the Orioles only to completely melt down over the last two innings. Also, a tumultuous ninth inning between the Tigers and the Yankees featured three home runs and two Meltdowns! And Clayton Kershaw continued his case for the National League Cy Young and MVP awards with his bat and his pitching against the Rays.

The Smallest Sample Size -- Game Results for 8/11/13

Photo credit: USA TODAY Sports

Tigers 4, Yankees 5

Justin Verlander looked like he's starting to get back on track but stumbled yesterday, giving up four runs and two homers in seven innings. Andy Pettitte continued to allow a ton of baserunners but only gave up one earned run in his four and a third. But the real excitement of this game came in the ninth inning. Mariano Rivera (-28% WPA) melted down again, this time giving up homeruns to Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez. Even after Miggy's dinger, the Yankees win expectancy was still 83.5%. Prince Fielder lined out to third and then V-Mart changed the game with a clutch homer to tie the game (34.9% WPA). With the game tied and all the momentum seemingly with the Tigers, the Yankees still had a 56% win expectancy. And, of course, they won it on a Brett Gardner walk-off home run with one out to go. Jose Veras (-36% WPA) registered his first Meltdown since May 28th as a result.

Angels 5, Indians 6

The Angels had a 96.8% win expectancy with a five run lead in the sixth until Jerome Williams gave up a pair of two-run dingers (26.7% WPA). Then, unfortunately, the game had to be handed over to the Anaheim bullpen. Carlos Santana started the seventh with a home run off J.C. Gutierrez (-29% WPA) and Nick Maronde (-18% WPA) allowed an inherited runner to score by giving up a single to Michael Bourn. Justin Masterson wasn't at his best, allowing four runs on seven hits and four walks in just over four innings but the Indians were able to fight back against Williams and the miserable Angels bullpen.

Athletics 6, Blue Jays 4

A.J. Griffin clearly didn't have his best control yesterday, giving up three runs (two earned) over five and two-thirds with six walks and five hits but the Athletics were able to fight back. First, they were finally able to get to R.A. Dickey in the sixth, tagging him for three runs on three hits, one of which was a two-run dinger off the bat of Brandon Moss. Dickey was able to have perfect inning in the seventh but gave way to Darren Oliver. Oliver melted down and ended up giving three runs back to Oakland with one out left in the eighth (-42% WPA). Alberto Callaspo was able to provide some clutch hitting from the eight-hole in Oakland's lineup, contributing 36% to their win expectancy. Grant Balfour made things interesting in the ninth by allowing a run on three walks and a double but was able to keep the win intact.

Padres 2, Reds 3

Yesterday's 13-inning affair between the Padres and the Reds featured a back and forth tug-of-war in win expectancy. The Padres were in line for the win thanks to some dominant pitching from Ian Kennedy. But he faltered in the eighth and gave up a two-run pinch-hit homer to Xavier Paul (40% WPA) that tied the game up. Mike Leake was in line for the loss (#killthewin), despite only giving up one earned run over seven innings and nine baserunners. Once Paul hit the game-changing home run in the eighth, the Padres had multiple opportunities where they were projected to win but couldn't capitalize. They were even able to advance runners to third and second on a balk! Yet all of the baserunners that the Padres had in extra innings were stranded. Then, Tim Stauffer came into the game and loaded the bases with a walk, double and hit batter. Obviously struggling with command, San Diego had already used four other relievers and instead chose to roll with Stauffer (-37% WPA) against Joey Votto, who hit a game winning sacrifice fly to left.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Marlins 4, Braves 9

The Braves hiccuped Saturday and saw their win streak snapped by those pesky Miami Marlins but they quickly started a new one on Sunday. Mike Minor gave up four runs on seven baserunners over seven innings but was bailed out by a late inning surge against Dan Jennings and A.J. Ramos. Freddie Freeman provided 44% of the Braves win expectancy thanks to a clutch three-run dinger, another hit and two walks in five plate appearances.

Red Sox 3, Royals 4

This game looks a lot closer in the box score than it actually does in the win expectancy chart. James Shields spun seven innings of three run ball (two earned) on ten baserunners and five strikeouts. The Kansas City bullpen was able to nail down the remaining six outs with Shutdowns from Aaron Crow and Greg Holland. John Lackey was bested by Shields but still had a pretty good game himself. The core of the Boston lineup just couldn't seem to get anything going as Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz and Daniel Nava amassed -23% WPA in 11 plate appearances.

Greg Holland has a 1.18 FIP/1.45 xFIP/1.4 SIERA while striking out over 42% of the batters he's faced in 46 innings. Absolutely incredible. Who do you think has had the better season for a reliever this year: Holland or Craig Kimbrel?

Twins 5, White Sox 2

Jose Quintana (-19% WPA) fell apart in the fifth inning of yesterday's game and completely gave it away on two home runs to Brian Dozier and Joe Mauer. Kevin Correia (31% WPA) didn't have much trouble throughout the game (.79 pLI), shutting out the White Sox over seven innings with seven strikeouts. Although they would eventually score two runs off of Casey Fien, the White Sox lineup only had one better that provided a positive amount of winning probability.

Rangers 6, Astros 1

Dallas Keuchel was looking to be a hard luck loser yesterday, having only allowed two runs over eight innings against the re-energized Rangers offense. But he unraveled in the ninth and gave up four more runs (three earned) on back-to-back singles from Jurickson Profar and Leonys Martin. Despite scoring six runs, the Texas offense only had three batters contribute a positive amount of winning probability. Martin Perez (51% WPA) was downright dominant, hurling a complete game with eight strikeouts and six baserunners. The lone run came from a Chris Carter homer with one out to go in the ninth.

Cubs 4, Cardinals 8

The Cardinals were in control throughout most of this game, only hiccuping in the sixth as Joe Kelly ran out of gas and Seth Maness (-23% WPA) gave up inconvenient singles to Starlin Castro and Darwin Barney that scored two runs and tied the game up at four. Edwin Jackson (-21% WPA) showed signs of having a much improved second half but has fallen apart over his last couple starts. Yesterday, he gave up four runs on six hits and three walks in just five innings. After Pete Kozma put St. Louis back on top in the bottom of the sixth, the Cardinals were never in doubt of winning the game as their lowest win expectancy was 69.6% from there on out.

Orioles 10, Giants 2

Despite the box score, San Francisco actually was in control for most of this game. Going into the seventh inning, the Giants had a 72.3% win expectancy with a 2-1 lead. Chris Davis led off with a double off of Matt Cain. Then, after a Matt Wieters flyout, J.J. Hardy homered to take the lead, plummeting the Giants' win expectancy to 29.7% after just three batters. In the eighth, Jose Mijares and Sandy Rosario struggled and combined to give up four more runs. Barry Zito, now a full-time reliever, gave up a three-run dinger to Adam Jones in the ninth to make it 10-2. Matt Cain only gave up three of the ten runs and allowed just six baserunners over seven innings but was handed the loss.

Photo credit: USA TODAY Sports

Brewers 0, Mariners 2

Most of the time that Felix Hernandez is on the mound, all he needs is one run to grab the win for the Mariners -- and he did just that yesterday. Hurling eight shutout innings while only allowing four hits and a walk with nine strikeouts, King Felix (41% WPA) added another dominant outing to his Cy Young case while lowering his ERA to 2.28, FIP to 2.50 and xFIP to 2.63. Milwaukee didn't stand a chance the entire game as they only threatened in the second with Juan Francisco's double. Wily Peralta was the hard-luck loser yesterday, as he only gave up two runs on four hits over eight innings.

Mets 9, Diamondbacks 5

Jon Niese returned from the disabled list and allowed four runs on eight baserunners across six innings. Zeke Spruill (-31% WPA) was chased after giving up five runs (one earned) over three innings that included eight baserunners. The Diamondbacks were able to climb back into this game but just couldn't get over the hump. At one point, they had their win expectancy up to 46.7% in the sixth, but their hopes were doused by back-to-back strikeouts with two men on base. Will Harris (-20% WPA) melted down shortly thereafter and the Mets quickly ran away with the game.

Pirates 2, Rockies 3

Chad Bettis and Jeff Locke were engaged in a battle during the first six innings of yesterday's game. Locke bowed out after five and two thirds, having given up two runs (one earned) on four walks and three hits. Bettis fared a little better, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks over six innings. After Bettis was removed, all three relievers were able to record Shutdowns whereas Bryan Morris gave up three hits and the game-winning run over two innings for the Pirates. Nolan Arenado had a clutch double (19.6% WPA) in the seventh inning that put the Rockies on top. Rex Brothers (20% WPA) had the bases loaded in the ninth but was able to escape the ninth unscathed and preserve the win.

Phillies 0, Nationals 6

Stephen Strasburg's first complete game and first shutout came courtesy of the anemic Phillies offense! Best of all, he did it with under 100 pitches, aka a "Maddux."Kyle Kendrick had some terrible BABIP luck yesterday, allowing four earned runs on 11 hits in four and a third. With a dominant pitcher on the mound, the Nationals didn't really need much offense to run away with the win ... but they hit anyway. Strasburg (28% WPA) was incredibly efficient and practically untouchable, only allowing four hits and a walk with ten strikeouts over nine incredible innings.

Rays 2, Dodgers 8

Clayton Kershaw does it all. He shuts down offenses and triggers his own. Kershaw's two-RBI single in the second proved to be the biggest swing in win expectancy (19.7% WPA) throughout yesterday's showdown between the Rays and the Dodgers. Also, it's all he really needed to seize the win for the Dodgers. Tossing eight innings and allowing two runs (one earned), Kershaw struck out eight and only allowed five baserunners. It'll be interesting to see who wins the National League Cy Young this year as Kershaw, Matt Harvey and Adam Wainwright are all very deserving. Meanwhile, Jeremy Hellickson (-28% WPA) struggled again as he was chased after three innings and four runs.

. . .

All statistics courtesy of FanGraphs.

Mike Mulvenna is a writer at Beyond The Box Score. You can follow him on Twitter at @mkmulv.

More from Beyond the Box Score:

• Regression spells trouble for certain contenders
• Prince Fielder's hitting woes
• The Smallest Sample Size 8/11/2013: Hidden Ball Trick!
• Lineouts! 08/10/13: Chase Utley, Jake Peavy and the Mets are running
• Is it worth it to lose now, and win later?

Trevor Cahill got another rehab start for Reno last night and looked much closer to being ready to rejoin the major league rotation. He went 7 innings allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out 4. It wasn't a stellar performance but it was better than last time and now the only question is whether his next start is with the Diamondbacks or with Reno. My hunch is he'll make his next start for the Dbacks. He did throw 98 pitches, 55 of them strikes and there's probably not much more he can do other than just get a little bit sharper. But given the dire situation of the team and the need to go on a hot streak and right quick I suspect they'll hope Cahill can provide some consistency in the rotation.

Snake Stars
3 Stars: Brandon Drury, South Bend 3 for 5, 3 R, 2 HR (14), 4 RBI
2 Stars: Eddie McKiernan, Visalia 9 IP, 7 H, 0 BB, 6 K, 1 ER, W (6-3)
1 Star: Tom Belza, Visalia 3 for 5, 3 R, 1 HR (9), 3 RBI
0 Stars: Kevin Munson, Reno 1/3 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 1 K, 4 ER, BS, L (0-2)

Triple A: Reno 4 Memphis 6. The Aces were headed to victory behind Trevor Cahill's 7 solid innings until Kevin Munson had a rare meltdown allowing 4 runs in the 8th inning. Cahill allowed 2 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks. Chris Owings went 2 for 4 with a double and Tyler Bortnick went 2 for 4 with a triple to pace the offense.

Double A: Mobile 1 Birmingham 3.David Holmberg started and was pretty sharp going 5 innings. A couple of errors by Ryan Court made a bit of a mess as Holmberg allowed 3 runs, just 1 earned on 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6. Holmberg only made 71 pitches before being pulled. The offense could only come up with one run with Nick Ahmed and Ryan Court each collecting 2 hits.

High A: Visalia 11 @ Inland Empire 1. The Rawhide bombed Inland Empire both offensively and defensively. Eddie McKiernan was particularly sharp tossing a complete game while allowing 1 run on 7 hits. The offense pounded out 20 hits led by Tom Belza who went 3 for 5 with a 2-run homer.

Low A: South Bend 12 West Michigan 1. The Silver Hawks went the way of Visalia and bombed West Michigan. Robert Coe went 6 solid innings allowing 1 run on 5 hits. Brandon Drury led the 15-hit attack with 2 home runs and 4 RBI. Fidel Pena went 3 for 5 with a triple and 4 RBI.

Short Season A: Hillsboro 0 Tri-City: The Hops offense returned to its meager ways with just 3 hits. Austin Platt pitched decently enough allowing 2 runs (1 earned) over 5+ innings.

Rookie: Missoula 6 @ Great Falls 7.Andrew Potter got knocked around pretty good allowing 6 runs in 3+ innings. The offense did well to battle back within 1 with a 4-run 9th but couldn't push across the tying run. Chuck Taylor had a huge game going 4 for 5 with a double, an RBI and 3 runs scored. Daniel Palka went 3 for 5 with a double and an RBI.

AZL Rookie: Dbacks 2 Padres 3. Sean Furney had an outstanding start going 7 strong innings allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits and a walk with a whopping 11 strikeouts. The offense couldn't bail him out though with just 2 runs led by Sergio Alcantara who had 2 hits and both RBI.

This is the point in the season where things start to get messy. Doing this the standard way is ugly, doing it with percentages is ugly. The short season players really mess with things this time of year, so I am doing a rating by league and seperating hitters and pitchers.

It's interesting to look at some of these players and compare players from past seasons to players this year. It's amazing how many similar players to Addison Russell have failed. I'll be working on this a lot more this off season. I'm just not sure how to best present it and what other info you guys would like. Let me know in the comments what you would like to see, whether it be comps to other players, MLB projections, odds of reaching MLB, projected length of career, etc..

AAA Hitters

AA Hitters

High A Ball Hitters

A Ball Hitters

Short Season A Ball Hitters

Rookie Ball Hitters (Including DSL/VSL)

AAA Pitchers

Rank Name Team Level Value

AA Pitchers

High A Pitchers

A Ball Pitchers

Short Season A Pitchers

Rookie Pitchers (Including DSL/VSL)

The San Diego Padres lost some momentum over the past week, dropping a pair of series to the Baltimore Orioles and Cincinnati Reds after emerging victorious from their previous four series.

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Will Venable was a big part of the team's temporary resurgence after the All-Star break, slugging a team-leading four home runs while posting a .353/.405/.647 batting line over the past four weeks. Chase Headley (.300/.371/.450) began to turn it on during that time frame, as well, after a slow start to the season, while Yonder Alonso (.350/.417/.375) remains a solid on-base threat despite the conspicuous absence of his power.

Will Venable

#25 / Right Field / San Diego Padres

Height: 6-2

Weight: 205

Bats: L

Throws: L

Born: Oct 29, 1982

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	OPS+	HR	rWAR
2013 - Will Venable	118	15	2.1

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Unfortunately for San Diego, it can't stay healthy and/or on the field, much like the problem plaguing the Colorado Rockies, who will host the Friars for a three-game set starting on Monday night at Coors Field.

Just as Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez, Michael Cuddyer, Jhoulys Chacin, Tyler Chatwood and others have missed significant time for the Rockies, Chase Headley, Carlos Quentin, Yasmani Grandal, Kyle Blanks, Everth Cabrera, Jason Marquis and a host of others have been out of action for long stretches.

Cabrera was suspended for his involvement with in the well-known Biogenesis case, while the others have spent copious amounts of time on the disabled list.

The absences of Headley, who missed the first two weeks of the season, and Quentin, who has been out since July 31 and served an eight-game suspension for injuring Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke in a bench-clearing brawl in April, have been the most damaging to the team, which says something considering Cabrera was an All-Star who boasted a 113 OPS+ at a key position before being disciplined by Major League Baseball.

The Padres have inserted Logan Forsythe (.215/.301/.347 in 164 plate appearances this season) at shortstop in Cabrera's absence and also acquired veteran Ronny Cedeno (.224/.261/.309) from the Houston Astros for depth at the position.

On the mound, the Padres have regressed a bit since hot starts by Marquis and Eric Stults injected life into the Padres' rotation in the early months of the season. Marquis is out for the year, while Stults' batted ball luck has regressed closer to the mean (though he does still sport a pretty good strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.23).

Andrew Cashner and Tyson Ross have emerged as the Padres' best pitchers, which is a plus for the team considering both hurlers are just 26 years old. Cashner still has an unusually low strikeout rate (6.1 per nine innings) for a guy with his velocity, but he makes up for it with good walk numbers. Ross, on the other hand, is better at inducing strikeouts (7.8 per nine) and is the tops on the team at getting groundballs.

The Rockies won't see Ross this series, but will catch Stults, Cashner and Edinson Volquez, the latter of which is 0-3 with a 12.18 ERA in four starts against Colorado this season. Courtesy of Baseball-Reference, you can see just how unkind the Rox have been to Volquez:

DJ Lemahieu really needs to get it together!

Colorado has taken 10 of the 13 meetings between the two teams this season, but San Diego earned a split in its last series at Coors Field, thanks in part to scoring 26 runs in four games. If the Padres can come away with two wins in Denver once again, they'll move into a third-place tie with the Rockies, though that isn't much to brag about considering the teams' records.

*****

Probable pitchers

Game 1: Monday, Aug. 12 at 6:40 p.m. MT (ROOT Sports)

Edinson Volquez (8-9, 5.44 ERA) vs. Jhoulys Chacin (10-6, 3.30 ERA)

Game 2: Tuesday, Aug. 13 at 6:40 p.m. MT (ROOT Sports)

Eric Stults (8-10, 3.50) vs. Jeff Manship (0-1, 3.60)

Game 3: Wednesday, Aug. 14 at 1:10 p.m. MT (MLB Network)

Andrew Cashner (8-6, 3.87) vs. Jorge De La Rosa (11-6, 3.26)

*****

With 117 games played and 45 scheduled for the rest of the season, I thought it might be a good time to check in on where the 2013 Padres stand compared to every other Padres team.

After the Padres wasted Ian Kennedy's stellar pitching performance yesterday their season win total sits  uncomfortably at 53.  Not as bad as just 35 wins and not as good as 76.  Just right there in the middle somewhere feeling awkward about itself.

If other seasons are any indication and the season continues as it has then we can guess the Padres will finish with a win total in the low 70's.

The first 117 games