Article:Baseball Notebook: End of the Road for Edmonds?

End of the Road For Edmonds?

The Cubs gambled that Jim Edmonds would be able to help the team but it is looking like he is at the end of his major league career. He has batted 114 times this season between his time with the Padres and Cubs and has been 3 for 24 and hitting .125 for the Cubs with no extra base hits.

He has only one homer and 6 runs batted in when including his time with the Padres. Calling up Felix Pie again is not an option since he is hitting worse in the minors hitting .140 than he did in the majors where he hit .222. Matt Murton only hit .214 while with the Cubs before being sent down to Iowa but is hitting .354 so he would still be an upgrade over Pie.

It is not a matter of if Edmonds will be released but rather on what date the release will be announced. Any minor league outfielder in the Cubs organization would be an upgrade over Edmonds who has seen his offensive numbers steadily decline in the last 4 or 5 seasons. The Cubs don't have the luxury of carrying a washed up player on the roster so I will be surprised if he is still on the team two weeks from now. Edmonds has some great career numbers like 363 homers and 1127 RBI's but doubt he will ever be voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It is time for Edmonds to leave and enjoy the $77 million he made during his career.

Bedard Wins Pitching Duel As Mariners Post 1-0 Win

Erik Bedard 4-3 pitched the Mariners to a 1-0 victory over the Red Sox and limited them to no runs and 2 hits in 7 innings while Tim Wakefield 3-4 pitched almost as well allowing one run and five hits in 8 innings. Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell both singled for the only two hits for the Red Sox. The loss moved the Red Sox to a game and a half behind the first place Rays in the AL East.

White Sox Edge Indians 6-5

Gavin Floyd 5-3 didn't pitch his best game but kept the score close enough to take the win yesterday against the Indians. Carlos Quentin drove in 3 runs to give him 47 for the season and only Josh Hamilton has more with 58.

Garza Strikes Out Ten In Rays 5-3 Defeat of Rangers

Matt Garza 4-1 pitched eight innings of 4 hit baseball while striking out ten as the Rays defeated the Rangers 5-3 and the Rays extended their lead in the AL East to a game and a half over the second place Red Sox. The Rays had no extra base hits in the game but they didn't need any with the Red Sox pitchers issuing 9 walks. Evan Longoria drove in his 28th run and is hitting .316 in his last ten games with 3 homers and 11 runs batted in. He is only 3 runs batted in behind Carlos Pena and 4 behind the team leader Justin Upton who has batted 35 more times than Longoria.

Yankees Post 4-2 Win Over Slumping Orioles

Andy Pettitte 5-5 won his second straight start pitching 6 2/3 innings while allowing only 2 runs to score. Mariano Rivera posted his 13th save of the season and 456th of his career and should register his 500th save next season. Jason Giambi hit his team leading 11th homer of the season. Bobby Abreu and Alex Rodriguez are next with 7 each. Chien-Ming Wang 6-2 will start against the Twins on Saturday. Wang last won a game on May 2.

Twins Score Five Times in 9th To Tie The Royals 8-8 and Win in 11th

The Twins were trailing the Royals 8-3 entering the ninth inning but scored five times in the top of the ninth to tie the score at 8-8 and then went on to win the game on a solo homer by Justin Morneau in the tenth inning to defeat the Royals 9-8. The loss was the tenth in a row for the Royals and since starting the season with a 6-2 record they have been 15-30 since then. Zack Greinke 5-2 is the only Royals starter with an ERA under 4 with his 2.88 mark and has only pitched one bad game in 11 starts.

Thames Powers Tigers To 6-2 Win Over Angels

Marcus Thames hits two homers as Tigers defeat Angels 6-2 and the Tigers escaped the cellar in the AL Central and and are only two games behind the third place Indians. Thames would probably be an everyday player on most teams. He has never batted more than 348 times in a season but still has hit as many as 26 homers in a season. Armando Gallaraga 4-2 took the win while Joe Saunders 8-2 took the loss for the Angels. Righthanded batters are hitting .126 against Gallaraga and he has a 3.44 ERA leading all Tigers starters.

Halladay, Harden Battle With Blue Jays Wining 2-1

Roy Halladay 6-5 pitched eight strong innings while allowing only one run and struck out nine. Halladay leads the majors with 89 innings pitched and leads the AL in strikeouts with 71. Halladay has only given up 2 runs in his last 17 innings. His mound opponent Rich Harden 3-0 pitched seven innings and allowed one run to score but wasn't around for the decision. Harden has only had six starts this season and has had only one bad start. It is imperative for Harden to stay healthy if the A's are to contend for the AL West title.

Eaton Defeats Rockies 6-1 While Utley Hits 17th Homer

Adam Eaton 1-3 finally won his first game of the season in his last start in the month of May. Eaton has had quality starts in his last two games. He gave up only one run and 4 hits to the Rockies yesterday in the 6-1 win. Chase Utley took over the major league lead in homers with his 17th homer. The Phillies have the longest winning streak in the majors with four wins in a row.

Mets Tie Marlins in 9th Winning 7-6 in 12th

The Mets tie the Marlins in the ninth at 5-5 and then despite the Marlins scoring in top of the 12th came back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the frame to take a 7-6 win. Cody Ross hit two homers and has 9 homers in his last 11 hits and has 6 homers and 11 runs batted in his last ten games. In 580 major league at bats which is not too many more than an average player would have in a season Ross has 35 homers and 109 RBI's. The win enabled the Mets to move to within 2 games of the third place Braves and the Phillies are only a half game behind the Marlins.

Reds Score Nine Runs Third Day in a Row As They Defeat the Pirates 9-1 Yesterday

Bronson Arroyo 4-4 pitches the Reds to a 9-1 win with the help of David Ross who drove in 4 runs and Joey Votto who went 3 for 3 and drove in 2 runs. Jay Bruce doubled and drew two walks in the contest. The Pirates could only muster 3 hits off of Arroyo and their only run batted in of the game was by pitcher Franquelis Osoria.

Suppan Pitches Brewers To 1-0 Win Over Braves

Jeff Suppan 3-4 pitched his best game of the season allowing no runs and 4 hits in 8 innings as the Brewers won their third game in a row. Jo-Jo Reyes 2-3 took the loss despite pitching 7 innings and allowing only one run and 2 hits and the Braves held the Brewers to 3 hits. The win moved the Brewers to within 3 and a half games behind the third place Astros. Chipper Jones was 1 for 2 with two walks and is hitting .418.

Nationals Slam Padres 6-4 On Jesus Flores Grand Slam

Jesus Flores hit a fourth inning grand slam that gave the Nationals a 4-0 lead. The Nationals went on to win the game by a 6-4 margin. Odalis Perez 2-4 took the win.

Cubs Win Third in a Row With 2-1 Defeat of Dodgers

The Cubs didn't score their first run of this game until they scored in the bottom of the ninth tying the game 1-1 then Alfonso Soriano singled in the winning run in the tenth inning. The win was the third in a row for the Cubs and kept them a game and a half ahead of the second place Cardinals. Soriano has 9 homers and 24 runs batted in during May after having only 2 homers and 5 runs batted in at the end of April but did miss some games in April while on the disabled list. He is hitting .343 in May and slugging .686 for the month.

Wainwright Pitches Cardinals To 6-1 Defeat of Astros

Adam Wainwright 5-2 pitched the Cardinals to a 6-1 win over the Astros. Cesar Izturis and Yadier Molina both drove in two runs during the contest. It looks like the Cardinals, Cubs and Astros will be battling for the NL Central title all season with the Brewers possibly getting back into the picture.

Giants Only NL West Winner: Defeat Diamonbacks 11-3

The Giants were the only NL West team to win yesterday so they gained on both the first place Diamondbacks and the Dodgers. They are only team in the division to break even in the division in their last ten games. Diamondbacks are 3-7 in their last ten games. Jonathan Sanchez 3-3 took the 11-3 win while Doug Davis 2-2 took the loss.