It’s baaaack.  I’m talking about interleague games and whether you love it or hate it, interleague play is here to stay.  Personally, I love it, but it may also be because I live in New York and am squarely right in the middle of the Yankees/Mets rivalry since I have friends that are hardcore fans for each respective team.  Special shout out to Chris Sannella (Mets) and Maria Corpuz (Yankees).  Personally, I like both teams… a rare thing to do in this town, I know, but I will say I’ve been a fan of the Yankees longer thanks to being born in the early 70’s and growing up with chants of “Reggie!  Reggie!  Reggie!”  Not a bad candy bar, either.

Here’s today’s games, starting with a traditional afternoon game at Wrigley.

Detroit Tigers @ Chicago Cubs
N. Robertson (6-3, 3.50) vs. G. Rusch (2-6, 7.29)
- The surprising A.L. Central leading Tigers take their game over to the N.L. to see if the magic can continue on the other side.

Tampa Bay Devils @ Philadelphia Phillies
J. Shields (2-0, 2.65) vs. C. Hamels (1-1, 3.68)
- The battle of the rookie pitchers should end up with the hitters winning considering the cigar box at Philly.

Minnesota Twins @ Pittsburgh Pirates
F. Liriano (5-1, 2.10) vs. I. Snell (7-3, 4.75)
- Liriano is shaping up to be another dominant lefty for the Twinkies.  The other one is that guy named Johan Santana.

New York Yankees @ Washington Nationals
J. Wright (3-4, 4.44) vs. S. Hill (1-1, 1.80)
- If you believe rumors, Alfonso Soriano can possibly be playing with his old team again.

Chicago White Sox @ Cincinnati Reds
F. Garcia (7-4, 5.13) vs. B. Claussen (3-7, 5.28)
- I have a feeling Garcia is going to get lit up against one of the better hard-hitting offenses in Reds.

Baltimore Orioles @ New York Mets
E. Bedard (5-6, 5.69) vs. A. Soler (2-1, 3.33)
- Bedard and the rest of the Orioles pitching staff haven’t fully felt the effects of Leo Mazzone’s prowess, but it won’t matter much against a very strong Mets lineup.

Toronto Blue Jays @ Florida Marlins
T. Taubenheim (0-3, 5.68) vs. S. Olsen (5-3, 5.10)
- The Blue Jays are actually contending in the A.L. East!  No more two-trick ponies in that division.  The Marlins have won five in a row and won’t make it easy for the Jays to continue climbing up the charts.

Boston Red Sox @ Atlanta Braves
J. Lester (0-0, 6.23) vs. T. Hudson (6-4, 3.79)
- The heralded prospect (Lester) faces the crafty veteran (Hudson).

Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Texas Rangers
B. Webb (8-1, 2.06) vs. K. Millwood (7-3, 4.54)
- Webb needs to hope his sinker works, otherwise there will be a lot of baseballs leaving the yard.

Cleveland Indians @ Milwaukee Brewers
C.C. Sabathia (5-2, 2.62) vs. C. Capuano (6-4, 3.35)
- This should be a great pitching matchup, despite the powerful bats each team employs.

Kansas City Royals @ Houston Astros
S. Elarton (1-8, 5.24) vs. W. Rodriguez (8-3, 4.48)
-  American League, National League, Little League… no matter who the opponent, the Royals stink!

San Francisco Giants @ Seattle Mariners
N. Lowry (2-4, 3.50) vs. G. Meche (6-4, 4.46)
- It has been reported that Barry Bonds would consider playing up the coast with the Mariners after this season.  True, not true?  Does it really matter?

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Oakland Athletics
B. Tomko (5-5, 5.20) vs. B. Zito (7-3, 3.53)
- The Athletics have won seven in a row and 9 of their last 10.  The Dodgers have been slumping of late and hope to turn things back around up north.

San Diego Padres @ Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
C. Hensley (4-5, 3.96) vs. J. Weaver (3-9, 6.15)
- This could be Jeff Weaver’s last chance to show that he belongs in the starting rotation before Angels ace Bartolo Colon comes back off the DL.

And lastly, we have a non-interleague game.

Colorado Rockies @ St. Louis Cardinals
A. Cook (5-6, 3.75) vs. J. Marquis (8-4, 4.88)
- The Rockies have been winning on the road and surprising the league considering the young talent they have and how badly they did last season. 

Enjoy the games!