Click here for a copy of this report in Word for Windows format

July 16

RUFFINS reserve A Greenberg, activate R Seanez.

STONES reserve P Orr, activate D Meintkeiwicz.

STONES reserve R Wagner, activate R Bottalico.

July 19

RESERVOIR DOGS reserve R Sanders, activate C Jones.

July 20

RESERVOIR DOGS reserve M Grudzielanek, activate M Loretta.

July 21

LAMBCHOPS reserve C Wilson, activate S Taguchi.

STONES reserve K Stinnett, activate K Hill.

STONES reserve D Cruz, activate R Freel.

DA PAUL MEISTERS reserve M Byrd, activate M Holliday.

DA PAUL MEISTERS reserve R Colon, activate T Glavine.

July 23

COPPERFIELDS reserve V Zambrano, activate J Santana.

COPPERFIELDS reserve C Capuano, activate K Mercker.

COPPERFIELDS sign C Duffy (.11), reserve P Polanco.

RESERVOIR DOGS reserve Y Brazoban, activate J Marquis.

RESERVOIR DOGS reserve S Olsen, activate M Redman.

RESERVOIR DOGS reserve A LaRoche, activate R Durham.

KENNDOZA LINE sign J Gerut (.11), reserve him, waive T Linden.

KENNDOZA LINE reserve A Heilman, activate W Alvarez.

KENNDOZA LINE reserve R Fick, activate D Ardoin.

DOORMATTS sign J Rodriguez (.07), reserve B Hawpe, waive S Torres.

DOORMATTS reserve M Sweeney, activate B Eldred.

Click here for updated rosters in Excel format.
Click here for the 2006 Rotation Draft Pick Tracker

Free Agent Bids and Waiver Claims

Who's Your Daddy?

When it comes to Baseball answering that question, I think we all know by now that the standard answer -- that Abner Doubleday gave birth to our beloved game -- is mythological at best.

Baseball historian John Thorn ("Total Baseball", "The Hidden Game of Baseball") has posted a story on his blog that makes the case for a quartet of early baseballers:  Alexander Cartwright, Daniel Lucius Adams, William Rufus Wheaton, and Louis Fenn Wadsworth.

The article is a fascinating read, not only for a discussion of baseball's origins, but for other tidbits, such as the origin of the term "shortstop" to denote the position that plays between 2nd and 3rd base:

He [Adams] also added the position of shortstop to the Knicks’ scheme in 1848 — not as an extra infielder, but to assist in relays from the outfield. The early Knick ball was so light that it could not be thrown even 200 feet; thus the need for a short fielder to relay the ball in to the pitcher’s point and stop the runners’ advance.

When the ball was wound tighter, gaining more hardness and resilience, it could be hit farther and, crucially, thrown farther. This permitted the shortstop to come into the infield, which Adams did.

This was new to me, at least.  If you're interested in the whole article, you can find it here:

http://thornpricks.blogspot.com/2005/07/four-fathers-of-baseball.html

Kenn In Print

Our own Kenn Ruby has had another story published in the Chicago Tribune.  The latest is a feature on the Chicago White Sox' bat boys, and appeared in last Tuesday's Tempo section.  Congrats, Kenn!

In case you missed it, you can find it online at:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/whitesox/chi-0507180246jul19,1,960065.story

Registration is required to access the story.  If you're not registered with the Trib's website (and don't want to be), use "[email protected]" and "tribune" as the e-mail address and password to get in (courtesy of www.bugmenot.com).

Hometown Discount Watch

In 2006, the teams that finished in 5^th-12^th place in 2005 will receive a budget of up to .06 to use toward reacquiring players who had played out their option with the team (B-contract players). The exact amount each team receives will be based on how far behind the 5^th place team they are at the end of the year, in terms of a percentage of the 5^th place team's point total.