Keep the turkey in the oven for just five more minutes; it's Friday Round-Up time!

1.  A-Rod's homerun on 06/25/09 tied him with Reggie Jackson for 11th place on the all-time homerun list.  Congrats, A-Roid.

2.  Lance Berkman has surpassed the 1000 RBI milestone.  Congrats, Berk!

3.  First place teams as of 06/26/09;
          AL East:        Boston
          AL Central:   Detroit
          AL West:       Texas

          NL East:        Philadelphia
          NL Central:   St. Louis
          NL West:       Los Angeles

4.  Mariano Rivera is one save away from the 500 saves milestone.  Watch for it this weekend.

5.  Interleague play continues this weekend.  Some notable matchups;
                Cubbies at the White Sox for a inter-Chicago game.
                Yanks at Mets for a inter-NYC game.
                 Marlins at Rays for some inter-Florida action.
                 Boston at Atlanta for historic purposes.
                 Philies in Toronto for some Maple Leaf action.

6.  Pedro Martinez is still available.  Anyone?  Anyone?  Anyone?

7.  MLB.com found it necessary to comment on the passing of Michael Jackson.  Why????

Those are the most important things you need to know on this Friday.  Everything else is just garbage.

Ian Ferris manages a Hooters restaurant in Shelburne, Vermont, which is typically considered to be Red Sox territory, however, he is a Yankees fan and has seemingly pulled off what may be considered "revenge" for the buried Red Sox jersey at the new Yankee Stadium.

Fenway Park played host to a Phish concert on May 31, 2009, and while many Phish fans were smuggling in grass of the illegal type, Ferris was smuggling in a whole different kind of grass.  Yankee Stadium grass seed to be exact.  

                                                              
                                                                             Photo courtesy of New York Post

Prior to entering Fenway Park for the concert, Ferris hid the bag of grass seed down his pants and filled it with water.  Once he made his way onto the field for the concert, he tossed the bag onto the infield.  Ferris said; "This is payback."  "If even one blade of grass sprouts on the field, I feel it was a success."

Ferris, although creative and daring, receives the Looney Tunes Award of the Week for this stunt.

                                                   

Congrats, Mr. Ferris!

After returning to the lineup six weeks post hip surgery, it has been decided that A-Rod will get one day of rest each week until the All-Star break.  A-Rod did not start on Friday or Saturday this past weekend, citing mental and/or physical fatigue.  This plan was reportedly created by Dr. Marc Philippon, who was A-Rod's hip surgeon, to allow A-Rod to rest and gradually become stronger. 

The benefit of A-Rod's scheduled day off each week is two-fold.  First and foremost, the Yankees may be able to put someone in the lineup that can actually hit the ball and be somewhat productive.  Second, it will allow A-Rod ample time to shop for a new pink skirt.

                                                                    

Sorry, but when you're making $33 MILLION this year, get out on the damn field and play.  Stop making excuses for sucking.  And speaking of sucking;

A-Rod is batting a whopping .153 in June.  He has just two homeruns and 11 RBIs this month.  Money well spent, huh?

Wake the kids up!  It's Friday Round-Up time!

1.  Earlier this week, the Boston Red Sox and Fenway Park celebrated their 500th consecutive sold-out home game.  Surely a record that will be tough to ever surpass. 

2.  Raul Ibanez has been placed on the 15 day DL for a groin injury.  Even the DL can't cool down this monster.

3.  The Yankees hosted the Washington Nationals this week, and on 06/18/09, the new Yankee Stadium had its first homerless game.

4.  The highest paid team in Major League Baseball (Yankees) lost 2 of 3 to the worst team in baseball (Nationals).  This proves the point that you can't BUY A CHAMPIONSHIP!

5.  Joe Torre collected his 2,195th managerial win, putting him fifth on the all-time list, as the Dodgers beat the A's on 06/18/09.  With the win, Torre surpassed Hall of Famer Sparky Anderson.

6.  Ivan Pudge Rodriguez caught his 2,227th game behind the plate earlier this week, moving him into first on the all-time games caught list.  Rodriguez surpassed Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk.

7.  Russell Martin of the Dodgers announced on Thursday that he will donate $600,000 over the next 10 years to the ONE DROP Foundation, which seeks to help provide clean water for the poor.  A class act.

8.  Major League Baseball is pimping the first annual Civil Rights Game, which is scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 20th.  The Cincinnati Reds will host the Chicago White Sox, and Bill Clinton will speak.  Pimp...

9.  The Red Sox, the Tigers and the Rangers are in 1st in the AL.  The Phillies, the Brewers and the Dodgers are in 1st in the NL. 

10.  Tom Glavine sent a text message to WAGA, an Atlanta television station, saying;  "I'm not going to pitch or do anything in baseball until at least next year."  See?  Even old guys know how to text message.

The New York Times has reported that Sammy Sosa allegedly tested positive for PED's in 2003.  And in other breaking news, the grass is green and the sky is blue.


Mark Wilson/Getty Images

A wrath of legal problems awaits Sammy Sosa, as does his eligibility to the Hall of Fame.  Sosa would be eligible in 2013, having last played in 2007, but with this "news," support for the slugger could diminish and he may very well not receive the necessary votes.

Being sixth on the all-time homerun list and not making the Hall of Fame should be the least of Sosa's worries.  If in fact Sosa did test positive for PED's, he could face potential perjury charges, similar to what Clemens is now going through.  If it is confirmed that he did test positive for PED's and if he is ever convicted of perjury, his name will fade faster than the 8-track.

Back in 2007, Mark McGwire was eligible for the Hall of Fame, but he fell far short, receiving 128 votes out of 545 ballots, or 23.5%.  It can be assumed that the lack of support for McGwire is due to his link to PED's.

From 1993 through 1997, Sosa averaged 34 HR's per year.
From 1998 through 2003, Sosa averaged 55.3 HR's per year.

After allegedly testing positive in 2003, Sosa played three more full seasons in the Major Leagues; '04, '05 and '07.

From 2004 through 2007, Sosa averaged 24.3 HR's per year.

The story is in the numbers...

It goes without saying (but it will be said anyway) that this week's Looney Tunes Award of the Week goes to Luis Castillo of the New York Mets.  In the unlikely event you don't know why, simply watch this video from the Mets v. Yankees game on 6/12/09. 

Castillo is earning $6,250,000 in 2009.  After this play, he should give every penny back.

Yesterday, www.buyingachampionship.com inacurately predicted that the two games on Monday night would be a snooze-fest.  The Brewers v. the Indians, and the Angels v. the Giants.  What it turned out to be was an incredible showing of offense!  These two games turned into a slugfest.

Between the two games, there were 42 runs scored and 57 hits.

The Brewers beat the Indians, 14-12.  The Brewers collected 15 hits, including a grandslam by Prince Fielder.  The Indians collected 11 hits

The Angels beat the Giants, 9-7.  The Angels collected 16 hits while the Giants tallied up 15 hits.

Who knew...

Tonight signifies what might be one of the most boring nights in the Major Leagues this entire season.  There are exactly two games scheduled for tonight.  The Brewers will take on the Indians, and the the Angels will square off against the Giants. 

The pitching matchups?  The 3-3 Dave Bush will take on the 6-5 Carl Pavano.  Wait, Carl Pavano has 6 wins?  Did he even play in six games when he was in the Bronx?  Six wins, really?  On the west coast, the 1-2 Lackey will take on the 3-6 Zito.  Get out your Snuggies and your Miller Light, 'cause tonight will be a snooze-fest.

Baseball is so boring tonight, it may just be worth it to flip on HBO at 9:00 pm to watch the new Joe Buck Live show.  Well, maybe....

1.  The Yankees continue to suck when they play Boston.  They are now 0-8 on the year, and have given up first place in the AL East to the Sox.  Thursday's game was the 900th time the Yankees have played in Fenway Park.

2.  The Phillies took 2 of 3 from the Mets and have increased their lead in the NL East to 4.0 games.  Raul Ibanez and Chase Utley are monsters. 

3.  The Red Sox are in Philly this weekend, and the Mets are in the Bronx.  Could be a wild weekend of flip flopping.  There is a lot at stake for all four of these teams.

4.  The Colorado Rockies have won eight straight road games.  Despite their eight game winning streak, they are still 11.5 games behind the Dodgers.  That must be discouraging, huh?

5.  The Brewers have lost four in a row, and now have a 1/2 game lead over the Cardinals in the NL Central.

6.  The seagulls in Cleveland provided a walk-off win for the Indians. 

7.  A. Gonzalez has 22 HR's on the season, followed closely by Ibanez, who has 21.

8.  The Angels drafted Muhammad Ali's son earlier in the week; Asaad Ali.

9.  Phillies minor league player, Pablo Ozuna, was suspended for 50 games after showing an elevated testosterone/epitestosterone ratio.

10.  MLB says the interleague play this weekend will feature the 100 millionth fan to watch such a series.

 

 

 

In typical Los Angeles fashion, Dodger Stadium was given its very own zip code; 90090.  How fitting.  You know damn well the shirts will be in full force for the rest of the season.  Wearing a "90090" shirt will be "like totally Hollywood." 

The new zip code will officially be designated for "Dodgertown, California." 

Gregory Graves, the Postal Service's district manager for Los Angeles said; "Not only do more than three million citizens call Dodger Stadium their summer home each year but fans from all over the world send cards and letters to the Dodgers organization and their favorite players."  He added; "Zip Codes are as important to the Postal Service as a smooth, accurate delivery is for a pitcher in baseball.  The use of 90090 will assure fans of all ages that their mail will be delivered quickly and efficiently."

See that kids?  It's not that Manny Ramirez doesn't want to write you back when you send him a letter asking for an autograph.  It's just that Manny never gets your letter because the United States Postal Service is too incompetent to figure out that a letter addressed to "Manny Ramirez c/o Los Angeles Dodgers, Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA" might actually go to Dodger Stadium.  You can see where a designated zip code would come in handy.  Without it, who knows where your letter would go.  The poor mail delivery person would have to decide if your letter should be delivered to Manny Ramirez at Dodger Stadium, or Mike J. Thompson at the Los Angeles municipal water treatment facility. 

In an even more absurd stunt, the Post Master threw out the first pitch to celebrate the new zip code.  Unfortunately, the ball landed in zip code 90071.  This may be in the top 10 worst first pitches of all time.

And you wonder why the United States Postal Service is a dying business?

This week's Looney Tunes Award of the Week goes to Dodgertown!  Congrats!