Wow, take a few days away from the internet and it is easy to get behind. There's plenty of catching up to do, so here is the latest news about Aussies in MLB:
Justin Huber
...got a start for the Padres today as they faced lefty Odalis Perez. However, his season just got even tougher. Poor bloke has been struggling to get a start in the lineup, and when he does he injures his back on a routine play backing up a catch taken by centrefielder Scott Hairston. The San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that Huber suffered from back spasms, which can be pretty crippling, and had to leave the game after just half a dig. Hard luck Hubey, hopefully there is no damage and we can see him back on the park soon.
Ryan Rowland-Smith
...has been becoming a stalwart of the Mariners' bullpen. He pitched in two games earlier this week, on Tuesday and Wednesday, as the Mariners met with powerhouse Boston.
On Tuesday (Mon in US), RRS came in to the game in the eighth inning, after Mariners starter Felix Hernandez gave up 4 runs to blow a 1-1 situation. RRS got the ball with two out, and loaded bases. He faced Sean Casey, who is boasting a .348 average this year. Rowland-Smith was solid with his 90mph fastball, drawing an 0-1 groundball to end the inning. He came out in the 9th inning and kept the Mariners in it. He allowed hits to Alex Cora, and to Jacoby Ellsbury on a bunt. But he then drew Dustin Pedroia into a double play, before facing off with big unit David Ortiz, who popped out in foul territory to end the inning. You can see video of the double play at MLB Gameday. Its worth watching, as it involves some athletic work by third baseman Adrian Beltre
On Wednesday, Rowland-Smith faced off against Ortiz again. However, this time Big Papi took the honours. Rowland-Smith entered as the LOOGY on this occasion, but Ortiz hit a liner to right for a single on the second pitch, and Rowland-Smith was then taken out of the game.
In his last ten games, Ryan has posted a 0-0 record, 0.00 ERA, with 7 hits and 3 walks over 10.2 innings, striking out 7. His ERA for the season is now down to 2.49. Things are looking good for him at the moment, and its good to see.
Phil Stockman
...played on Monday and struck out 4 batters over 2.1 innings. He came in to the game after Tom Glavine gave up a grand slam in the fifth inning against the Mets. With two outs, Stockman drew an 0-2 grounder from Mark Reynolds to end the inning. In the sixth he struck out slugging pitcher Micah Owings, he then walked Chris Burke. But he wrapped up the inning drawing a fly out from Stephen Drew, and a groundout from Orlando Hudson. In the seventh he gave up a triple to Conor Jackson, struck out Justin Upton, walked Eric Byrnes before striking out Chris Snyder and Mark Reynolds. After the game, Phil spoke about the Mets getting after Glavine: "It was just one of those days, you know, that's going to happen, but we battled pretty well, and hopefully tomorrow we can go out there with a clean slate."
Stockman has impressed in his time with the Braves in recent weeks. However, his opportunities may be decreasing. The Braves have re-activated closer Rafael Soriano from the DL, and he will likely move back to the pen very quickly. Luckily, the Braves Matt Diaz has been placed on the DL, which means that there is still a roster spot for Stockman. So for now things seem ok, but we will have to wait and see, especially given that there has been talk that Braves veteran John
Smoltz may pitch in the pen on his return from injury.
Grant Balfour
...could get a callup to Tampa Bay this week. The Rays' closer Troy Percival went down with a hamstring injury today. And he has had hamstring problems earlier this year. The St Petersburg Times is reporting that at the very least Percival is looking at a few days out of action, and they are tipping Balfour to get called up. OzMLBPlayers would be very happy to see Balfour in MLB action. We have been following his hot year in the minors closely, and hope to see some good performances from him in the show. And the Percival injury comes just a matter of days after we said that "unless there are some injuries or trades, it looks like Balfour is stuck in Durham for a while longer". Fancy that!
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