-P- As most of you have probably already noticed, Humberto Cota hit the DL with a strained left shoulder. He may actually be hurt, but one must wonder whether he is or not, since this move gives the Pirates an excuse to call Ryan Doumit back up. (And, as WTM wonders, how exactly did Cota injure his left (that is, non-throwing) shoulder?) The Pirates' stated reason for sending Doumit down in the first place was that they wanted him to get regular time at catcher. Now, with Ronny Paulino and Adam LaRoche struggling and Xavier Nady dealing with health concerns, Doumit may not get regular time at catcher, but he should get something resembling regular time, at least for the next week or two. He was already a key part of the Pirates' win today and he deserves a chance to keep contributing.
Of course, I also wouldn't be surprised if Jim Tracy kept him glued to the bench until Cota returns.
-P- Neil Walker is working on his fielding.
-P- The Bucs have released former Giants pitcher Jim Brower, who had a 3.68 ERA for Indianapolis. They also released former starting pitching prospect Jon Albaladejo, who was pretty decent as a reliever for Altoona in 2006.
-P- Via Primer, Jim Leyland thinks Sean Casey will hit. Isn't that adorable?
-P- The Braves and John Smoltz have agreed to a one-year, $14 million deal with a vesting option in 2009 and a team option in 2010. The $14 million is a lot, but this deal gives the Braves the chance to keep Smoltz if he's effective and drop him if he's not. Given that he's still an elite pitcher who might suddenly stop playing like an elite pitcher at any time, that sounds reasonable to me.