There is never a dull moment when you are a player or a fan of the Chicago Cubs. The latest crazy moment features first baseman Derrek Lee, relief pitcher Angel Guzman, a batting helmet and a celebratory helmet slap.
On Thursday, Lee scored the game-tying run in the top of the ninth inning after Jeff Baker hit a homer with two outs to give the Cubs the lead over the San Francisco Giants. As Lee and Baker entered the dugout, teammates were celebrating.
During that celebration, Guzman greeted Lee with a helmet slap. The problem? The helmet slapped caused Lee to suffer …read more

The Minnesota Twins have been trying desperately to catch the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central. Their chances of doing that took a big hit when Justin Morneau was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his lower back that will force him to sit out the next three months.
With Morneau out for the season, don’t expect the Twins to make the 2009 baseball playoffs. They are 5.5 games out with a record of 72-72. Save for a monumental collapse by the Tigers, the Twins will have to wait another season to make postseason noise.
On the season, Morneau finished with 30 …read more

Tim Lincecum, arguably the best pitcher in Major League Baseball, will miss his next start due to a lower back injury. Lincecum is suffering from inflammation and spasms on the left side of his lower back.
Obviously, this is potential very bad news for the San Francisco Giants. Although manager Bruce Bochy thinks that Lincecum will be ready after only a couple of days, any type of setback would likely doom the Giants’ chances in the NL Wild Card race.
As it stands, the Giants trail the Colorado Rockies by three games for a spot in the 2009 baseball playoffs. The Rockies …read more

After the initial shot didn’t help, Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton had a second injection on Monday. Hamilton is dealing with a back injury brought on by a pinched nerve.
While Hamilton has talked about missing a few weeks, the Rangers believe he can be back sooner than that. In fact, Texas is holding out hope that their slugger can return by this weekend.
On the season, Hamilton is hitting .270 with ten homers, 49 RBIs and 43 runs. Compared to his near MVP season last year, his numbers this year are disappointing. That said, the Rangers are desperate to get him …read more

It’s safe to say that the Chicago Cubs won’t see their World Series curse end this year. Alfonso Soriano, arguably the team’s best player, could very well miss the rest of the 2009 baseball season due to a knee injury. According to the Chicago Tribune, Soriano went on record as saying he’ll have arthroscopic surgery later this month.
Even when healthy this season, Soriano didn’t do much to justify his $17 million salary. For the year, he’s hitting .241 with 20 homers, 64 runs and 55 RBIs. In fact, 2009 could go down as Soriano’s worst year since becoming an everyday …read more

Michael Young, the All-Star third baseman for the Texas Rangers, will miss approximately two weeks due to a strained left hamstring. Initially fearing that the injury was going to keep him out the rest of the season, Young was thrilled to hear the 14-day outlook.
“For them to tell me there’s a good chance I’ll be available the last two weeks,” said Young, “that’s great news to me.”
Arguably the best player on the Rangers, Young has hit .322 with 22 homers, 67 RBIs and 76 runs this season. The loss of Young goes beyond the numbers.
“There’s no way to replace Michael,” …read more

Randy Johnson has been out of action for the San Francisco Giants since July 6th. Recently, Johnson said that he thinks he can return during the 2009 baseball season — as a reliever.
In his career, which dates all the way back to the 1988 season with the Montreal Expos, he has only ten relief appearances. He last appeared out of the bullpen with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2001 campaign.
On the season, the Big Unit has an ERA of 4.81 and a record of 8-6. The biggest moment of the season was when the 45-year-old won his 300th game. He …read more

If you are a fan of the New York Mets, you have to hope that the injury bug is handing out a few years worth of injuries this season. On Wednesday, the Mets announced that starting pitcher Oliver Perez needs knee surgery and will be out for the rest of the season. Perez will join 12 other players on the disabled list.
Unlike David Wright, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado, who are also on the disabled list, the Mets likely won’t miss Perez much. After signing a three-year contract worth $36 million in the offseason, Perez has been horrible. …read more

Johan Santana of the New York Mets, regarded by some as the best pitcher in baseball, needs elbow surgery and will miss the rest of the 2009 baseball season. The surgery is needed due to the presence of bone chips in his pitching elbow.
The good news for Santana is that this surgery is relatively minor. The Mets fully expect their ace to be ready to go at the start of next season’s spring training. In fact, Santana had a similar procedure prior to the 2003 season.
For the Mets, they’ve dealt with a number of injuries all season — Santana is …read more

Corey Hart, the right fielder for the Milwaukee Brewers, was recently complaining of pains in his stomach and side. On Monday, the Brewers found out there was good reason for complaints. After an appendectomy, Hart was placed on the DL.
Hart started telling team doctors that something was wrong after he went 0-for-3 on Saturday against the San Diego Padres. Ken Macha, the manager of the Brewers, was thankful for how the surgery went down.
Said Macha: “The medical people in San Diego were terrific. To get that all scheduled and done on a Sunday was pretty awesome, so thanks to those …read more