Midday Recap: MLB Squeezes Juiced Up Players

Well, by now you already know what the big story today is.

The hammer comes down as 13 players are suspended in the Major League Baseball Biogenesis investigation.  Unsurprising, Alex Rodriguez gets the stiffest penalty, suspended through the end of the 2014 season, which he is appealing.

The appeal allows A-Rod to continue playing for the Yankees during the appeals process, which is expected to last for the remainder of the 2013 season.  Because of that, the Yankee 3rd baseman was in the lineup, batting clean-up as the Yankees visited the Chicago White Sox.

Greeted by a roar of boos from the home crowd, A-Rod went 1 for 4, including a strikeout, as Andy Pettitte allowed 7 runs on 11 hits in the Yankees 8-1 loss.

Associated Press

The other 12 suspended for 50 games include Jordany Valdespin, whose animated personality frustrated Mets players and management, especially earlier this season when he got into an argument when being told he was going to be sent down to Triple-A Las Vegas.  Cesar Puello, who is on the Mets 40-man roster and was batting .328 with the Double-A team in Binghamton, also received a 50 game suspension.

Francisco Cervelli of the Yankees also took a 50 game suspension.  Cervelli was batting .269 with three home runs in his 17 games as catcher.

The suspensions make up the largest quantity of off-field suspensions since Major League Baseball handed its suspensions in the 1919 World Series fix attempt.

But the Biogenesis suspensions isn't the only news from yesterday.  The Los Angeles Dodgers are closer to history with their 15th road win in a row.  Adam Wainwright gave up two hits in his first three innings, but found himself in trouble in the 4th inning when he walked Adrian Gonzalez, surrendered a double to Yasiel Puig, and then gave up a single to Andre Ethier that brought Gonzalez home.  An A.J. Ellis ground out yielded the inning's first out, but also a run as Puig came home on the force play.

Pitcher Zack Greinke contributed to his own cause with a single in the 7th inning to score Nick Punto.  It was important that he did, as the Cardinals would get one back in the bottom half of the inning as Adron Cambers scores on a Allen Craig ground out to get back within 1.

The Cardinals gained one more base runner in the 8th when David Freese was hit by a pitch to lead off, but he was taken out as Tony Cruz hit into the inning-ending double play, and the Dodgers would go on to win 3-2.

Zack Greinke's 100th win comes as the Dodgers build a 6 game cushion over Arizona for the top spot in the National League West, and helps extend the Dodgers road win streak to 15.  The 15 road wins ties the Dodgers for 3rd all-time, two back of the all-time record held by both the 1916 New York Giants and the 1984 Detroit Tigers.

And finally a belated congratulations to the winning connections of Cross Traffic, winner of Saturday's Whitney Invitational.  John Velazquez teamed up with trainer Todd Pletcher to ride the lightly-raced horse, who heading into the race had only 4 starts.  But now, at 5 starts, the 4 year old horse will have a spot reserved for him in this year's Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita.

Don't Forget: The Buffalo Bills start their 2013 Preseason as they travel to Indianapolis to face Andrew Luck and the Colts this Sunday.  Kickoff is at 1:30PM live on 1410 CBS Sports Radio.

Mother Nature washes Matt Harvey away

Matt Harvey was looking good.  Both on the mound and in the batter's box.

Up until Mother Nature came and washed Matt Harvey away from the game on Sunday.  After pitching 6 innings of two-hit ball, it was determined by Terry Collins and the Mets brass that Harvey would not return following a twenty minute rain delay to start the 7th.

The damage was already done.  Up 7-0 at that time and well in line to earn his 7th win of the season, they felt it was best to sit Harvey and get him prepped for his next scheduled start, which is Friday against the Washington Nationals in New York.

The bullpen preserved the shutout as the Mets win the rubber game against the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-0.  LaTroy Hawkins and Brandon Lyon pitched the remaining three innings, holding the Phillies to two total hits during the final frames.

Matt Harvey's bat in the 5th inning helped open the game for the Mets, as his double brought home Juan Lagares, who benefited from a Ben Revere fielding error that put him at third base.  Harvey would be led home by Eric Young as the Mets plated three in the 5th.

On the mound, Harvey pitched six innings, allowing only two hits.  His shutout helped lower his ERA to 2.05, polishing his candidacy to start in the All-Star Game coming up next month at Citi Field.

His pitching performance was supported by the bat of David Wright, who went 4-for-5, all being for extra bases.  Eric Young and Marlon Byrd also had multi-hit games for the Mets.

Weekend Notes: Lucas Duda is on the 15-day Disabled List, retroactive to June 22nd, as he is out with a left intercoastal strain.  His departure brought speculation that Ike Davis would be returning from the Las Vegas 51s, however the Mets opted to see Davis spend more time tweaking his swing. Instead, the Mets went with Josh Satin at 1st Base the last two games, a position he played at for eight games back in 2011.  In 10 Major League starts at 1st Base, he has never been charged with an error.

On Friday, Jeremy Hefner won his 2nd game of the season as the Mets came back from a 3-0 deficit to win, thanks to some help from Eric Young.  His 2-RBI single tied the game in the 5th inning, and then Juan Lagares brought Duda home in the 6th for the go-ahead run.

Saturday saw the Mets bounce back from a 7-1 hole after Dillon Gee saw three of his pitches go beyond the wall, two of them to Ryan Howard, who has always had Gee's number.  The other homer Gee surrendered was to Michael Young, who with Ryan Howard combined for back-to-back solos in the 5th inning.  The 7th and 9th innings were huge for the Mets as they scored 4 in the 7th and 2 in the 9th to tie the game before Kevin Frandsen took the 2nd pitch he saw deep for the Philly walk-off.

The 9th inning comeback brought the 3rd straight blown save for Jonathan Papelbon, who remembers a blown save effort against the Mets back in July last year when David Wright walked off with a single in the bottom 9th at Citi Field.

Young Choice: Eric Young has enjoyed his time with the Mets already.  Since being traded from the Colorado Rockies in exchange of Collin McHugh, the switch-hitter from New Brunswick, New Jersey has hit .364.  He has batted in 5 runs, one fewer than the 6 he had through 50+ games with the Colorado Rockies.  Meanwhile, Collin McHugh was immediately optioned to Double-A, and lost in his first start with his new team, the Tulsa Drillers of the Texas League.  In that game, McHugh allowed two runs on five hits in 6 innings pitched.

Wheeler's on Deck: The Mets travel to the midwest for a pair of games against the Chicago White Sox.  The two teams split the pair played at Citi Field in May, one which included a Matt Harvey gem where the Mets finally tacked on the game's first run in the 10th inning. The White Sox won't have to face Harvey in this pair, but will find themselves facing Zack Wheeler on Tuesday night.  Wheeler kept the Braves scoreless in the nightcap of a day-night doubleheader, settling down to strike out 7 in his six innings of work.

North Country Sports Radio Recaps: May 7 (Mets won 1-0) | May 8 (White Sox won 6-3)

Radio Coverage: 7:30PM Tuesday, 1230 FOX Sports Radio

Midday Recap: A great night on the island

Adam Hunger | Reuters

The New York Mets didn't need a lot of offense on Tuesday night, especially with ace Matt Harvey on the mound.

All they needed was 1 run.  They got that run thanks to Mike Baxter, whose RBI single in the 10th inning gave the Mets the win to back up the best performance we've seen from Matt Harvey to date.  He fanned 12 in 9 innings of work on his way to a 1-hitter, which that lone hit was an infield single from Alex Rios that beat the throw of Ruben Tejada with 2 outs in the top of the 7th.

Bobby Parnell preserved the shutout with 2 strikeouts of his own, as he earned the win being the pitcher of record on the mound in the 10th inning.  He's 3-0 for the season.

TONIGHT'S OUTLOOK
The 2nd of the mini-series against the Chicago White Sox kicks off at 7:10PM as Jeremy Hefner takes the mound for the Mets.  Hefner has looked good in his last two starts as his ERA has lowered from 7.04 after he faced the Washington Nationals to the 4.34 it sits at now.  But for his good effort, he has yet to earn a win, as Los Angeles won the game in the 9th inning against the bullpen, and Miami was able to come back for their walk-off his last start when he pitched into the 9th.

The Mets will have to face Jake Peavy, who has a 3-1 record and is coming back after missing his last start due to back spasms.  His last time out, Peavy struck out 6 as the White Sox defeated the Tampa Bay Rays. His last start against the National League East, however, didn't fare as well, as he gave up 6 runs in 5 1/3rds innings of work.  Radio Coverage: 1230 FOX Sports Radio, 6:30PM

ISLE HAVE ANOTHER
Goaltending was not essential in Game 4 between the New York Islanders and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

10 goals in all were scored, and the Islanders crowd roared loudly as the Islanders have suddenly tied the series at 2-2 against the number one team in the east, the Pittsburgh Penguins.  John Tavares came up big midway through the third period as he settled a 4-4 tie and gave the Islanders the lead.  Then with less than 90 seconds left, Casey Cizikas added insurance as Marc-Andrew Fleury had to retreat back to the net, trying to come off the ice for the extra attacker.

For a team that for 70 minutes in the series looked like they didn't belong, the Islanders find themselves back on even terms, and could return to Uniondale with the chance to win the series on Saturday if they can take Game 5 in Pittsburgh on Thursday.

SHARK-BIT
It was not a good series for the Vancouver Canucks.  Troubles scoring, troubles with starting goaltenders, the Canucks were looking anything to help save their season.  In the 3rd Period, that help came by the two Alexes, Alexandre Burrows and Alexander Edler, whose goals gave the Canucks the 3-2 lead with under 9 minutes to play.  For four and a half minutes, it was looking like Vancouver was going to see another game, but then came Joe Pavelski, whose shot beat Schenider with 4:27 left to play to force overtime.

After a 3-on-1 that ringed the post, the Sharks clinched the series about 3 minutes later with Patrick Marleau's goal that beat Schenider with traffic in front.

As the National Hockey League bases 2nd round matchups based on seeds and not on 2/7-3/6 brackets, the San Jose Sharks will have to wait and see how the rest of the Western Conference 1st Round plays out.

UNOCCUPIED BOX
After Sunday's Montreal/Ottawa game brought 236 minutes worth of penalties and 9 game misconducts, it's a little surprising to see that Tuesday's Game 4 only brought 8 minutes of penalties, all in the first 40 minutes of the game.

In the game, it was looking like the Canadiens were going to even the series until Cory Conacher, last year's American Hockey League MVP with the Calder Cup winning Norfolk Admirals, tied the game at 2-2 with 23 seconds left to play.

In overtime, Kyle Turris ended things quickly as he gives the Sens a 3-1 series lead with the chance to clinch it at Montreal on Thursday.

In the other game played on Tuesday, the Chicago Blackhawks have the chance to clinch their series at home after the 3-0 win against the Minnesota Wild.

KNICKED
The New York Knicks shot 49% from the field, had 3 times fewer turnovers than the Indiana Pacers, and saw 32 points from Carmelo Anthony as the Knicks evened the series 105-79.  Oh, yeah, the Knicks outscored the Pacers 33-13 in the 4th Quarter in the victory.  Paul George led the Pacers with 20 points.

SPORTS ON THE RADIO
Tonight: Chicago White Sox vs. New York Mets - 6:30PM on 1230 FOX Sports Radio
Mets are off on Thursday.

Danger Averted

Rangers celebrate after a goal: The Journal News | Getty Images
Red Wings celebrate Brunner's OT winner: Tanya Moutaliaz | M Live
Los Angeles skates with the puck en route to 4-3 victory: AP

For  three teams, a victory on Monday keeps them from the brink of elimination.  For two of these three teams, a victory evens the series and ensures it will go at least 6 games.  The other team was trying to prevent an 0-3 hole.

That team was the Rangers, who needed the energy of playing in front of the Madison Square Garden crowd to help them find the back of the net, which was a real issue in the first two games.  After scoring the 4th from Derek Stepan, the Rangers needed every ounce of the crowd's cheer to help them through the final 1:54 of the game, which they had to face shorthanded, plus the pulled Branden Holtby made a 6-on-4 situation for the Capitals.  When the final horn sounded, the Caps had failed to find the back of the net, and the Rangers would prevail 4-3 to cut the Caps series lead to 2-1.

The Red Wings needed a Pavel Datsyuk shot that hit the water bottle and bounced out of the net to tie their game against the Anaheim Ducks.  Datsyuk's goal came right after a review was needed to verify that a previous Red Wing shot didn't cross the goal line.  The goal tied the game 2-2, and brought overtime.  After some good Anaheim chances, Gustav Nyquist was able to dance around Anaheim defenders on a pass, and was able to fling it towards Jonas Hiller.  He was able to block the first shot, but the rebound ended up right on Damien Brunner, who was able to shoot it into a mostly-open net for the game-winner that evened their series at 2 games a piece.

Over in Los Angeles, the Kings rebounded from an early 2-0 deficit to tie the game heading into the 1st intermission.  After T.J. Oshie regained the lead for the Blues in the 2nd Period, the Kings used back-to-back goals in 76 seconds span to take a 4-3 lead, which they were able to hold onto for the win.  Anze Kopitar scored the first of those two goals, and Justin Williams netted the game-winning goal at 8:30 in the 3rd Period.

In the other game in the NHL last night, the Boston Bruins took a 2-1 lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first game that Toronto has hosted in the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2004.  The Bruins won 5-2.

FIREWORKS TONIGHT?

The game of the night tonight has to be the Montreal Canadiens at the Ottawa Senators.  After Sunday's game left the benches bare and players ejected left and right, it'll be interesting to see what hostilities remain.  But for the Montreal Canadiens, there's the extra pressure of keeping the series under control, and even though Game 5 is in Montreal, the Canadiens don't want to give the Senators the possibility of clinching the series on their ice.  They'd rather do the opposite and clinch in Game 6 at Ottawa.  

For both of these storylines, the first 10 minutes will be most critical.  Who will make the first move?  Will the Canadiens immediately start with their fists or will they try to gather some goals first?  Will Ottawa use the home crowd to its advantage?  TV Coverage: 7:00, CNBC

In addition to this, the Islanders need to extend their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, who with a win tonight will have the possibility of clinching the series on home ice in Game 5.  (TV Coverage: 7:00, NBC Sports Network, MSG+)  Chicago is looking to take a 3-1 series lead back to home ice against the Minnesota Wild tonight (TV Coverage: 9:30, NBC Sports Network), and the San Jose Sharks can be the first team admitted to the 2nd Round if they can sweep the Vancouver Canucks on home ice. (TV Coverage: 10:00, CNBC)

RANGER HARVEY

Matt Harvey was among the attended crowd at Madison Square Garden on Monday, and will be at Citi Field tonight as he pitches against the Chicago White Sox.  The White Sox come to town after rallying to beat the Kansas City Royals 2-1 in 11 innings, blowing a save chance from Greg Holland.  The two game series against the Chicago White Sox will be a first for the White Sox, as they have never played a game against the Mets in Queens.  The last time these two teams met was in July, 2002, when the White Sox won two of the three games in that series.

The Mets will look to rebound from its loss to the Braves on Sunday, blowing a chance to earn a rare sweep in Atlanta.  The White Sox have had a tough season of their own, and will look to Hector Santiago tonight.  Santiago struck out 6 en route to a 3-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on May 2nd, pitching 5 1/3rds.  Radio Coverage: 6:30PM, 1230 FOX Sports R adio

BULL-IED

Is it really a surprise that the Chicago Bulls defeated the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals?  After all the Bulls were the team responsible for ending the Heat's long 27 game win streak.  Then the Bulls brought an end to the Knicks win streak, at 13 games.   Nate Robinson scored 27 points and dished it 9 times for the Bulls, and Jimmy Butler added 21 points.  The NBA's MVP, Lebron James, scored 24 points, assisting 7 times and gathering 8 rebounds.  But James did not earn a lot of support from the rest of the Heat, as Dwayne Wade was the only other player in double-figures, scoring 14.

Emanuel Ginobili's three with 1.2 seconds left in the 2nd overtime gave the San Antonio Spurs the 129-127 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of their Western Conference Semifinals.  Tony Parker scored 28 for the Spurs, and Tim Duncan and Gary Neal both had double-doubles.  Stephen Curry scored 44 for the Warriors, and led all players with just under 58 minutes of on-court time.

SPORTS ON THE RADIO

Tonight - Chicago White Sox at New York Mets - 7:10PM, 1230 FOX Sports Radio

Tomorrow - Chicago White Sox at New York Mets - 7:10 PM, 1230 FOX Sports Radio