Kuzul

Mariano Rivera has many awards in his collection, but he doesn't have an American League Cy Young Award yet.Maybe you missed it tacked onto the end there, but the key word in that lead-in would be "yet." He still has this year to win one, and his chances are looking pretty good.The longtime New York Yankees closer is proving all over again that there's nothing he can't do. And while the stars aren't perfectly aligned for Rivera to walk away with a Cy Young at the end of the year, there's certainly a hint of some sort of alignment.Entering Tuesday's action, Rivera is tied for the major league lead in saves with Jason Grilli of the Pittsburgh Pirates with 17. Mo owns a 1.47 ERA, a 0.87 WHIP and is holding opposing hitters to a .541 OPS with a 7.0 K/BB.That's how "dominance" is spelled in numbers, and these numbers are none ...

When Anthony Gose was called up to the Toronto Blue Jays from their Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons, it raised more than a few eyebrows.In fact, it was Gose who raised his eyebrow first. On the same day that Gose was promoted, a story by Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News quoted Gose as saying, “I’m probably at the lowest point I’ve ever been in my career." Clearly, this is not an ideal time to pit him against major league pitching. So when Buffalo manager, Marty Brown, called Gose to tell him he had been promoted it was just as puzzling to him as it would be to fans. By all accounts, it seems like the Blue Jays had better options in every facet of the game. They could have promoted either Moises Sierra or Jim Negrych in order to keep Gose in the minors to continue his development, but ...

After the most recent road trip, when the San Francisco Giants went 1-5 against the Toronto Blue Jays and Colorado Rockies, fans are starting to run around like Chicken Little, proclaiming that the sky is falling. And while it was undoubtedly a disastrous week in terms of pitching and defense, there is reason to be optimistic about how the rest of the season will unfold for the Giants.The first issue with the Giants as of late has been their atrocious defense. During the six-game road trip, the Giants committed 13 errors, some of which came on more-than-routine plays, like Marco Scutaro's drop of an easy pop up that he would've normally caught blindfolded. It was uncharacteristic for the Giants, who are generally a very sound defensive team.On the season, the Giants have accumulated 35 errors, which is tied for the second most in the majors. That is certainly an alarming ...

Jose Bautista is now a card-carrying member of the cool club. As BuzzFeed reports, the Toronto Blue Jays outfielder posted the following image to his Instagram feed, showing off his brand-new "MLB Lifetime Pass":Feelings of intense jealousy are indeed normal and will surely overcome you when looking at what is essentially a free ticket to any ballpark for Bautista's entire life. As for the impetus behind Bautista garnering the best card one could possibly hold, I am at a loss. As noted on the card, it is awarded by the commissioner "in appreciation of long and meritorious service."So was Jamie Moyer not around the day they were handing these things out?I will keep you updated if I get word on why Bautista was bestowed with baseball's version of the "one ring to rule them all" from Lord of the Rings.Many will point to Bryce Harper's Chipotle card or the Subway version Jarvis ...

Such a Herculean task it is to dissect the Philadelphia Phillies nowadays. Nearly two months into the season, the Phillies continue to hug a sub-.500 record. Meanwhile, the front office continues to debate on whether or not their supposed plan is being implemented appropriately. Whatever plan general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has for this club is not working. Simply put, he is at the forefront of the blame while skipper Charlie Manuel should be ousted for his debilitated decision-making.A perfect example of the adverse decision-making on behalf of the Phillies skipper can be seen Tuesday night, when the Fightins square off against the Miami Marlins.In 13 innings versus the Phils, Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez has yet to allow a run scored while giving up just three hits. Of those three hits Fernandez has permitted, two came off the bat of the switch-hitting utility man Freddy Galvis. Despite the small sample size, it is ...

The announcement in the New York Times of a Major League Soccer team owned by Manchester City of the English Premier League and the New York Yankees made headlines on Tuesday afternoon, raising the stakes for soccer and sports in an already crowded New York sports business landscape.While the involvement of Yankees ownership is intriguing from a business standpoint for both the baseball and soccer club, the investment should only lead to success for both sides. From the Yankee perspective, there's little that should cause fans to worry about a John Henry-Liverpool scenario.No, the New York Yankees' ownership group isn't going to suddenly stop paying big money to baseball players in order to grow their stake in a startup soccer team.Instead, look for the soccer team, known as the New York City Football Club, to play some games at Yankee Stadium and have their games televised on the YES Network.I ...

Because awful things never seem to truly die, two MLB franchises are digging deep into the fashion pile for "Zubazpalooza" day at the stadium. Big Lead reports the Oakland A's are bringing back the audacious parachute pants for the dog days of summer, when we all stop caring about what looks good and dress for what makes the heat tolerable. MLB.com has a full report on the A's bringing back pants we thought had died or gone to live in Rob Gronkowski's closet. Images via Zubaz's Facebook page. The A's iteration of "Zubazpalooza" will go down on Saturday, August 3 at O.co Coliseum.  Fans that purchase a special Plaza Reserved ticket package will receive a pair of green and gold Zubaz pants at the afternoon game vs. the Texas Rangers. The report states you can specify what size you want for your free Zubaz pants when you purchase the tickets for the game. Of course this begs ...

The Boston Red Sox have begun an experiment to see what else Jose Iglesias is capable of defensively. It’s well-known that Iglesias is a great defensive shortstop—easily the best in the organization—but it’s been his offense that’s kept him from being a starter in the big leagues. As Iglesias currently continues to develop in Triple-A Pawtucket, there are plans in place to move him around the infield. Iglesias will be getting playing time at second and third base in the near future in addition to fielding grounders at shortstop frequently, according to Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal. “They said I’m moving around, just to get an idea,” Iglesias told MacPherson. “They haven’t told me anything else.” Well, Pawtucket told Iglesias that he was going to make his first career start away from shortstop on Tuesday afternoon. MacPherson was present for the game and tweeted out some of his thoughts ...

The designated hitter has been in the American League since 1973, and it probably won't be much longer before it's in the National League, too. Now that interleague play is an everyday thing, it's just not practical for MLB's two leagues to play by different sets of rules.But having pitchers bat for themselves in National League games (and in games at National League parks) isn't just impractical in this day and age. It's also as dangerous as it's ever been.Isn't that right, Ryan Vogelsong?If you missed it, the San Francisco Giants veteran right-hander took a wild swing at an inside fastball from Washington Nationals reliever Craig Stammen on Monday night. Instead of hitting the bat, the pitch hit Vogelsong on his moneymaker. Pain ensued. Lots of it. And eventually the word came down from the Giants: two broken bones and a dislocated joint in Vogelsong's pinkie finger. He's expected to be out ...

Lockers and other inanimate objects continue their impeccable record against frustrated athletes. The Washington Post (h/t Larry Brown Sports) reports Nationals reliever Ryan Mattheus broke his right hand after hitting his locker following a lackluster performance on Sunday. Fans learned of the incident following the Nationals' loss to the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park on Monday night. It seems Mattheus was none too pleased with how he performed in the 13-4 loss to the San Diego Padres, a game wherein he gave up four hits, two walks and five earned runs in only one inning of work. It was the kind of line that takes you from the locker room straight to the bar to ease the pain. It seemed Mattheus wasn't interested in dulling the misery from his outing, because he had a one-round bout with a locker; one he lost. The effects of the broken right hand will be felt by more than ...