Bases Covered is a daily roundup of the most interesting stories in baseball.
Closing the gap
Ichiro Suzuki continues to impress despite his age. The 42-year-old Marlins outfielder is nearing the 3,000 hit mark in the majors; he’s now at 2,977 hits. And he’s closing in on another record of sorts: he’s now just one hit away from Pete Rose’s all-time record of 4,256 total (combining Ichiro’s 1,278 hits from nine seasons in Japan with his 2,977 hits in MLB).
Rose, for one, isn’t happy about the notion that Suzuki could eclipse him, and he doesn’t think Ichiro’s hits from the NPB should count.
“I’m not trying to take anything away from Ichiro, he’s had a Hall of Fame career,” Rose said in an interview with USA Today, “but the next thing you know, they’ll be counting his high school hits.”
The Marlins defeated the Padres on Monday, 13–4.
Price looking for Dombrowski to deal?
Red Sox ace David Price is no stranger to blockbuster deals, and he spoke recently about the possibility of Boston’s president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, making a big splash for his team this summer (the Red Sox could use bolstering in the rotation and the bullpen).
“Obviously, we have, you know, the money to pick up contracts, we have a ton of prospects,” Price said. “We have Dave Dombrowski, who is never scared to make a big splash. That’s not the case for a lot of teams.”
Price added that “it’s exciting just to see what could happen.”
The Red Sox will host the Orioles beginning Tuesday in a battle for first place in the AL East.
Friend turned foe
Zack Greinke throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers. (Ross D. Franklin/AP)
Zack Greinke took the mound against his former team, the Dodgers, on Monday evening, earning the win (final score: 3–2). The 32-year-old righty pitched seven innings, allowing two runs on seven hits, walking two and fanning six.
After the win, Greinke commented: “The fans were pretty loud today, so that made it more so of an intense game.”
Chicago comeback
Chicago White Sox starter James Shields was roughed up in his debut. (Charles Rex Arbogast/AP)
The Chicago White Sox rallied from a seven-run deficit to defeat the Tigers, 10–9, on Monday.
Once again, it wasn’t a great night for Chicago starter James Shields, who allowed seven runs in five innings. The 34-year-old right-hander admitted to being surprised at how poor his pitching has been in his last few starts.
“I guess surprised would be the word, but honestly I just have to continue to work and get better,” he said. “I’m going through a little stretch the last three games, but I feel like those last three innings I have to build off and continue to grow.”
On the market
Yulieski Gourriel, a 32-year-old Cuban defector and former third baseman for the national team, has been declared a free agent by MLB.
According to a story in the New York Times:
“One scout who has seen Gourriel but who requested anonymity to candidly share his evaluation called him ‘advanced’—a very good hitter who profiles as an everyday player.”