AGRI Biz

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka had a nightmarish first five months of the season. He was roughed up in his first three starts, allowing twelve runs in eleven innings, and it only got worse. The former 18-game winner had two effective starts, but then fell completely apart, relinquishing five, four, and six runs over his final three June outings. At this juncture of the season, the Japanese righthander ...

Kansas City Royals ace Zack Greinke isnÆt leading the American League in wins. He isnÆt second, third, fourth, fifth, or even sixth; heÆs seventh. He is 15-8 for a Royals team that is last in the American League Central with a record of 63-92. CC Sabathia has 19 wins for the New York Yankees, a team that will win 100 games this season. Likewise, Justin Verlander has 17 wins for the ...

Originally written on September 22 Zack Greinke was ready to quit baseball. He was a 22-year-old phenom and hated the attention that came along with the pressure to succeed amidst high expectations. HeÆd had enough. The lanky righthander was drafted out of high school by the Kansas City Royals in 2002. He wasnÆt supposed to be, though. Before the 2002 MLB Draft, Allan Baird, the Royals General Manager at the time, informed ...

Kansas City Royals ace Zack Greinke isnÆt leading the American League in wins. He isnÆt second, third, fourth, fifth, or even sixth; heÆs seventh. He is 15-8 for a Royals team that is last in the American League Central with a record of 63-92. CC Sabathia has 19 wins for the New York Yankees, a team that will win 100 games this season. Likewise, Justin Verlander has 17 wins for ...

The Los Angeles Dodgers, with 91 wins, had a tremendous chance to put away the Washington Nationals and hand the NL East bottom-dweller its 100th defeat. With the Dodgers behind by one, Orlando Hudson reached on an errant throw by Nationals shortstop Cristian Guzman to begin the top of the ninth inning. Future Hall of Famer Jim Thome, who is now designated to pinch hitting, hit for relief pitcher George Sherrill and ...

The Boston Red Sox had just scored six runs in the top of the third inning—three on Jason Bay’s 36th homer, two on Jacoby Ellsbury’s single, and the final on Dustin Pedroia’s second single of the frame—when starting pitcher Tim Wakefield’s knuckleball abandoned him. Fastballs can be controlled; so can sliders, changeups, breaking balls, and splitters. But knuckleballs are always unpredictable. They are thrown with no spin whatsoever and usually range from ...

  Boston Red Sox center-fielder and leadoff hitter Jacoby Ellsbury opened the series finale against the Baltimore Orioles by patiently working a six-pitch walk. Immediately, an offense that has been scorching hot this month was in business, determined to continue their domination over the Orioles by finishing off a sweep of their divisional foe. Ellsbury has anchored their lineup all season long and has been extraordinarily consistent. He hit .287 during the ...

Joe Mauer and Joe Nathan celebrate a win that brought the Minnesota Twins within three games of the Detroit Tigers in the race for the AL Central division crown. (AP Photo/Paul Battaglia) One strike away from victory, Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan fired a fastball to Detroit Tigers’ pinch hitter Aubrey Huff that was off the plate outside by a good foot. Despite the obvious ball, boos defeaned the Metrodome. The ...

The Angels were beside themselves as home-plate umpire Rick Reed let a borderline strike go as a ball to Nick Green. The close call forced in the tying run and allowed Alex Gonzalez to drive in the winning run. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) The Boston Red Sox fell behind by two, 7-5, after the Anaheim Angels scored four two-out runs in the seventh inning. They were down, but not out–the story of ...