Around the AL: Clemens wins 2007 debut

Roger Clemens’ rounds through the minor leagues came to an end Saturday as The Rocket made his 2007 Yankees debut against the Pirates at Yankees Stadium. Clemens allowed three runs in six innings and helped the Bronx Bombers earn the 9–3 win on 108 pitches. The win ended a month’s worth of buildup at Clemens hones his skills in the minor leagues and prepared for his major league arrival.

Clemens gives manager Joe Torre another reliable option every fifth day, something the club has missed during the early part of the season. And while the Yankees were already starting to show signs of a revival before Clemens arrived, his presence and competitiveness alone gives the Yankees an even more positive outlook now, however, as they try to prevent the Red Sox from running away with the division. That win pushed the team’s winning streak to five games (it was extended to six Sunday).

Make no mistake about it, Clemens nearly needs to walk away with a Cy Young to truly justify the massive contract given to him, but if he can continue to give the team quality starts, his passion to win will rub off on his teammates and they’ll forget all about the money. But there’s still quite an uphill climb ahead.

Take a bow
While his name may not be Roger Clemens, there’s another pitcher in the AL East who’s creating a bit of a stir. Tampa Bay’s staff ace James Shields has gone undefeated this season in 15 starts with the Devil Rays. That deserves an award in itself.

Shields, 25, has made a name for himself in a market where that’s fairly hard to do. He’s 6–0 with a 3.04 ERA, a 0.96 WHIP and better than a 4:1 strikeout to walk ratio. A winner in each of his last three starts, Shields has also eaten up at least seven innings in each of his last 10 outings, preventing manager Joe Maddon from diving into his struggling bullpen too early.

With Tampa Bay only five games under .500 at 28–33, keep an eye out for Shields and fellow youngster Scott Kazmir, who could be leading the D-Rays’ charge into respectability in the near future.

Sweet revenge
The Texas Rangers haven’t had much to celebrate this season, but a four-run comeback in the ninth inning against a former teammate will get any team revved up. Facing a 3–0 hole against Milwaukee and former Rangers closer Francisco Cordero entering the game for the Brewers, prospects looked bleak for Texas on Saturday night. But, after Cordero recorded two quick outs, the next six Rangers reached base capped off by Michael Young’s game-winning RBI single.

The comeback was extra sweet for the Rangers’ front office, which traded the closer away last July only to watch him post a 0.36 ERA in his first 26 outings. After 63 games, the Rangers still hold the worst record in the majors at 23–40.

Player of the Week: Alex Rodriguez, 3B, New York Yankees
Rodriguez claims his second Player of the Week award after hitting four home runs and helping the Yankees to a 6–1 record over the last seven days. Rodriguez’s final line for the week: 10-for-25 (.400) with seven runs, four home runs, 16 RBIs and a stolen base. He drove in two or more runs in five games and ended the week with a pair of big flies against Pittsburgh on Sunday

Previous Recipients: Gary Sheffield, Grady Sizemore, Jack Cust, Troy Glaus, Magglio Ordonez, Alex Rodriguez, Ian Kinsler, Vladimir Guerrero.

Pitcher of the Week: C.C. Sabathia, SP, Cleveland Indians
Like Rodriguez, Sabathia is earning his second award of the season. The 6-7 lefty started two games last week and threw nine innings in both of them without allowing a run. Amazingly, he only picked up the win in one of them, however, as the Indians gave him a combined one run of support (winning 1–0, then losing 1–0 in 12 innings Sunday). His final weekly line: 18 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.50 WHIP, 1–0 record and 14 strikeouts. J.J. Putz receives honorable mention for his five saves and Curt Schilling for his no-hit bid into the ninth.

Previous Recipients: Joe Blanton, Daisuke Matsuzana, Fausto Carmona, C.C. Sabathia, Dan Haren, Mark Buehrle, Felix Hernandez, John Lackey.

League Leaders (through June 10th games):
Batting Average:
1.    Magglio Ordonez (.367)
2.    Jorge Posada (.358)
3.    Placido Polanco (.348)

Home Runs:
1.    Alex Rodriguez (24)
2.    Justin Morneau (17)
2.    Gary Sheffield (17)

RBIs:
1.    Alex Rodriguez (63)
2.    Magglio Ordonez (56)
3.    Vladimir Guerrero (54)
3.    Victor Martinez (54)

Stolen Bases:
1.    Brian Roberts (21)
2.    Grady Sizemore (18)
3.    Carl Crawford (17)
3.    Julio Lugo (17)
3.    Ichiro Suzuki (17)

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