The Day in Review

Micheal Phelps, Russia and Georgia - there's so much to distract me from baseball right now. Still, I'll do my best to focus tonight.

Injury News

• Joel Zumaya is on the DL, and if you listen to Jim Leyland talk about the injury, he probably is done for the year. Maybe next year he can finally wrench the closer's job from Todd Jones.
• I almost wrote Kevin Jones instead of Todd Jones. Too much fantasy football draft prep. 
• We reported Mike Lowell's injury yesterday - today's developments have him on the DL for Boston. Sean Casey picks up playing time with Kevin Youkilis shifting across the diamond in Lowell's absence.

Notable Performances

• Kevin Slowey continues to pitch well - tonight he gave up 3 hits and 1 ER in six innings. He's had a very up-and-down year (check out his game log on Yahoo!, it includes two CG shutouts), so he's still kind of risky for spot starts.
• Spot starter Mark Buehrle rewarded owners with 7 shutout innings and five strikeouts in a ChiSox win. Andy Sonnanstine had six K's in six innings; the game was tied as I wrote this. Joe Blanton had the lead but had given up 4 earned already.
• Aubrey Huff hit his 25th homer and drove in 2 runs for Baltimore.
• Paul Maholm's ridiculous pitching continues with another 8-inning victory against the depleted Reds tonight.
• Vernon Wells hit a grand slam - he has 7 RBI in 4 games since returning from the DL four days ago.
• The Mets beat up on the Nats, 12-0, in what could be a preview of some September games that will win fantasy championships.
• Since I'm posting on games in progress, CC Sabathia still could get the CG as I write this, though he's up to 77 pitches after 5 innings so it seems unlikely. 

Fun fact from ESPN today: The only team other than the Cubs today to win both games of a doubleheader by 8 runs is... the Cubs, in 1908, the last year they won the World Series. Karma? That's what you need to know about the day.