Around the Horn - 4/24

We can visualize the TV ads. Texas Rangers owner Tom Hicks sitting atop a bull with a cowboy hat perched upon his head. The dialogue would be something like, "Having trouble with your offense? Can't hit the ball out of the park? Leaving runners stranded? C'mon down to Tom Hicks' Texas Rangers Offensive Outlet in Arlington. We've got all the pitchers you can hit. Lefties, righties, it don't matter. Your offense will spring back to life."

The Detroit Tigers took Hicks up on his offer last night. Though their offense had already been steadily improving since that 0-7 start, they used an 11-run 6th inning last night to paste the Rangers, 19-6. A score like that sends fantasy enthusiasts scrambling for a box score. The big winner was whomever has Carlos Guillen. The new 3rd Baseman drove in 5 runs, while is switcheroo counterpart Miguel Cabrera cracked a 3-run homer. The Rangers have allowed 59 runs during their current 6-game losing streak.

The Angels got over their Fenway hex to snap the Red Sox 6-game winning streak, 6-4. Gary Matthews Jr. slugged a pair of solo home runs and Casey Kotchman added his 6th of the year. Dice-K was the lastest Red Sox hit by the flu and was scratched from his start in favor of Jon Lester. Big Papi continued to break out of his slump (9 for his last 22) with his 3rd home run, raising his average to .188.

The Rays dropped the Blue Jays into the AL East basement with a 5-3 win. Jason Hammel outpitched Roy Halliday who threw his 3rd straight complete game. When Halladay breaks down, will John Gibbons finally get the message not to overuse his ace?

Mike Sweeney homered and drove in 2 runs, and Chad Gaudin threw 7 scoreless innings in the A's 3-0 shutout of the Twins. It was Sweeney's first home run not in a Kansas City uniform.

The Orioles rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat the Mariners 3-2. Nick Markakis' ground out tied the game in the 6th and his home run in the 8th was the game winner. Daniel Cabrera was on his game, allowing 5 hits and no walks in 8 innings.

The Indians and Royals were rained out and will be playing a twinbill today.

The Atlanta Braves had a 5-game winning streak. Then they hosted the Florida Marlins. The NL East leaders dropped the Braves for the second straight game, 7-2. Mike Jacobs and Hanley Ramirez each hit their 7th home runs of the season, and Adam Miller won his first game as a Marlin.

The Cubs and Rockies played a see-saw match in Colorado. The Cubs blew a 3-0 lead, rallied from a 5-4 deficit, blew a 6-5 lead, and then finally won in 10 on Ryan Theriot's 2nd hit of the game. The Cubs offense is out of control. The Rangers should be glad they aren't playing them. Just take a look at the averages of the starting eight.

CF Reed Johnson .311
SS Ryan Theriot .338
1B Derek Lee .378
3B Aramis Ramirez .280
RF Kosuke Fukudome .351
LF Mark DeRosa .292
C Geovany Soto .353
2B Ronny Cedeno .375

The Pirates came back from a 4-0 deficit to beat the Cardinals 7-4. Doug Mientkiewicz delivered a pinch-hit 2-run single in the game winning 3-run rally in the 8th inning.

Bengie Molina homered off Trevor Hoffman to tie the game in the 9th and the Giants went on to beat the Padres 3-2 in13 innings. Fred Lewis and Aaron Rowand each singled in a run in the winning inning (nice rhyme).

The Mets had the anecdote for a 3-game losing streak, Johan Santana on the mound. The Mets ace went 7 innings to earn the win in a 7-2 Mets victory over the Nationals.

The Brewers blew a 3-0 lead, but Prince Fielder saved the day with his second 2-run home run of the day as the Brew Crew beat the Phillies 5-4. Chase Utley homered for the 6th time in 7 games for the Phillies and hot starting Pat Burrell added his 8th.

Dan Haren had his first poor outing in a Diamondbacks uniform as the Dodgers beat the Diamondbacks 8-3. James Loney and Chin-Lung Hu drove in 2 runs each.

News and Notes

Curtis Granderson made a fine return to the Detroit lineup yesterday. The centerfielder went 2-4 with 2 RBI, 2 walks, and 3 runs scored.

There was a rumor yesterday that Frank Thomas had returned to the Oakland A's whom he played for in 2006. But the Big Hurt put a halt to things when he received interest from an unnamed second team.

UPDATE 4/24 2:07 PM EDT - Frank Thomas has indeed returned to the A's. No word on who the mystery team was that supposedly came into play. Does this mean Mike Sweeney's days in Oakland are numbered?