B.J. Upton suspended for two games

Earlier in the week, Tampa Bay outfielder B.J. Upton was ejected for arguing a called strike three on a pitch that looked to be a ball.

"I just kind of lost it a little bit," said Upton after the game, per MLB.com's Spencer Fordin. "I guess you could say ... I just didn't feel like that pitch in that particular moment was a strike. ... I'm a pretty laid back guy, I think. Obviously, you could tell I didn't like the call. ... It is what it is. It's done with now."

Well, it wasn't exactly over.

Upton was suspended for two games by Major League Baseball. Although he appealed, he will serve the suspension in Cleveland next week.

In his last ten games including today's win over the Orioles, Upton is hitting .244 with three home runs, ten runs batted in and three stolen bases.

Nelson Cruz out of Thursday's lineup, too

Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz left Tuesday's game against the Mariners with tightness in his quad.

"I feel good right now," Cruz said Tuesday, per ESPN's Richard Durrett. "We'll wait until tomorrow and see. Hopefully, it should be just one day."

It's not "just one day" as Cruz is out of Thursday's lineup as well.

Cruz, who hit a home run in each of the team's first four games of the year, has struggled since April 10th.

In the first eight games, Cruz hit .360 with five home runs and ten runs batted in. Since then, Cruz is hitting only .175 (14 for 80) with two home runs and eight runs batted in.

Considering he had hoped he would have returned for tonight's game, it doesn't appear that Cruz will be out any or much longer.

Francisco Liriano hurls no-hitter vs. White Sox

There was quite a bit of pressure of Twins starter Francisco Liriano entering last night's start against the White Sox.

Before last night's game, Liriano posted a record of 1-4 with an ERA of 9.13 and 18 walks in 23 2/3 innings pitched and the team had the fewest wins (nine) in all of baseball.

Liriano's spot in the rotation was on the line as manager Ron Gardenhire had said last week, "That's kind of why we're working on [Kevin] Slowey, getting him stretched out, in case we decide after this next start whether we're going to do something or not."

And, boy, did he deliver by throwing the franchise's first no-hitter since 1999 and the fifth in team history.

"I'm pretty excited," Liriano said, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. "I can't explain myself right now. I'm very happy, very excited. I had a rough start to the season, so it's very exciting."

Liriano was helped out by some nice plays in the field and he walked six batters, but his no-no should help restore his confidence, as pitching coach Rick Anderson notes.

"I'm excited as can be about the no-hitter, but I'm even more excited the confidence is there," Anderson said. "I can't wait for the next start. And that's what he needed -- confidence. Hopefully, this is a confidence thing, and it's something we all need to get our strut and our swagger back. I think we all needed that. And that's a big step."

Francisco Liriano may only have one more chance (start) to keep spot in rotation

Things haven't gone well for Twins starter Francisco Liriano (and his fantasy owners) this year.

And depending on how his next scheduled start on Tuesday goes, it could get worse, much worse.

"There's times when he looks totally dominant and he'll go an inning or two like that, but then he just kind of starts misfiring, and I think once we get ahead he just kind of backs away a little bit. So, if it's a confidence thing, then we've got to really work hard to get it there, but if not, we're going to have to make a decision and see where we go from there," manager Ron Gardenhire said, per Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.

"That's kind of why we're working on [Kevin] Slowey, getting him stretched out, in case we decide after this next start whether we're going to do something or not."

Slowey, who eligible to return from the disabled list, will make one more rehab start to help get him ready to take over Liriano's spot in the rotation, if necessary.

In his five starts, Liriano is 1-4 with an ERA of 9.13 and 18 walks in 23 2/3 innings pitched.

Derek Lowe arrested Thursday night for DUI

At roughly 10 p.m. last night, Braves starting pitcher Derek Lowe was arrested for driving under the influence.

In addition to the DUI charge, Lowe was charged with reckless driving and making an improper lane change.

"Obviously we are concerned and disappointed about the events involving Derek Lowe overnight," the Braves said in a statement (via MLB.com's Mark Bowman). "We are currently gathering information and plan to address this matter later today."

Lowe, who is scheduled to start on Sunday, has a 2-3 record with an ERA of 3.21 and 32 strikeouts in 33 2/3 innings pitched. With the exception of his April 20th start, Lowe has allowed two or fewer runs in all of his games so far this season.

Seven straight multi-hit games for Lance Berkman

Of course, Lance Berkman does not have a realistic shot at the triple crown.

But heading into the last two days of April, Berkman is second in the National League in all three triple-crown categories: batting average (.410), home runs (eight) and runs batted in (22).

Berkman trails teammate Matt Holliday in batting average (.433) and Brewers Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder in home runs (nine) and runs batted in (23), respectively.

In last night's game, Berkman had four hits, two of which were home runs, and five runs batted in. That extended his streak of multi-hit games to seven consecutive games.

During that seven-game span, Berkman is hitting .607 (17 for 28).

Pujols leaves game with tight hamstring

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols left last night's game against the Reds with tightness in his hamstring after trying to run out a grounder in the seventh inning.

The Cardinals have Monday off as they travel to Houston to begin a three-game series with the Astros on Tuesday.

Will he be able to play?

"I think it all depends on how I wake up tomorrow," Pujols said, per Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "The tests were pretty good. They don't think it's too bad. When I wake up tomorrow, I can sense a little more about how I feel. Hopefully it's not as bad as I feel right now. I'll be glad we have a day off tomorrow.

"I'll show up here early tomorrow, get treatment and we'll go from there. Right now, if I told you I was going to be playing Tuesday, I don't want to say yes and not be there. ... Hopefully, in my prayers, I feel good, have a good day off tomorrow, travel, and on Tuesday I'll be ready to go."

Pujols got off to a slow start and was hitting only .150 through April 11th's win over Arizona. In his past 12 games, however, Pujols has 16 hits in 48 at-bats (.333 average) with six home runs and 13 runs batted in.

Jose Contreras to DL, Ryan Madson to close

Phillies closer Brad Lidge started the season on the disabled list and isn't expected back until June, at the earliest. In addition, J.C. Romero is on the DL with a strained calf and isn't eligible to return until May 4th.

Add another Phillies relief pitcher to the disabled list: Jose Contreras.

Per the Philadelphia Daily News, Contreras has been placed on the 15-day DL with flexor pronator strain. From Sunday to Thursday, Contreras made four appearances in five days and felt some tenderness in his elbow.

"He had been pitching quite a bit," general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "A little tender. He did a little better yesterday, and then today he felt some more soreness ... I think it was just the work that he's done. He didn't indicate it was one pitch, just over time, especially after his outing on Thursday."

To take Contreras' roster spot, the Phillies called up Michael Stutes from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

That means that Ryan Madson will assume closing responsibilities. Madson is 2-0 with two saves, ten strikeouts and a 1.00 ERA in nine appearances this season.

James Shields hurls four-hit shutout, second straight complete game

Facing the Toronto Blue Jays today, Tampa Bay starter James Shields hurled a four-hit shutout while striking out seven batters.

Shields has now thrown back-to-back complete games after allowing only one run and four hits versus the White Sox on April 19th.

With the exception of his second start of the season, Shields has pitched seven-plus innings and allowed two or fewer runs in his other four starts.

On the season, Shields has improved his record to 2-1 and has lowered his ERA and WHIP to 2.35 and 0.97, respectively.

Neftali Feliz to 15-day DL, Rangers to use closer-by-committee approach

It seems that there have been a greater number of injuries to key players this April than there has been in the first month in recent memory.

Players such as Tampa's Evan Longoria, Washington's Ryan Zimmerman and Minnesota's Joe Mauer are just a few of the elite players that have landed on the disabled list (DL). Two players (Matt Holliday and Adam Dunn) even had emergency appendectomies.

And after already losing outfielder Josh Hamilton for six-to-eight weeks, the Rangers have placed their closer, Neftali Feliz, on the 15-day DL with shoulder inflammation.

The move is retroactive to Thursday, which means Feliz will be eligible to return on May 6th when the Rangers begin a three-game series at home against the Yankees.

"If this was somebody older, who had dealt with this before, we might just give him a few days off," [general manager Jon] Daniels said, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. "But we want to be extra cautious."

Right-hander Cody Eppley from Triple-A Round Rock will take his spot on the active roster.

Last season, Feliz set the rookie record for saves (40) in a season and won the A.L. Rookie of the Year award. This year, Feliz has converted all five of his save opportunities and has a 1.08 ERA.

As far as the interim closer while Feliz is out, it's going to be a closer-by-committee approach. Per Anthony Andro of Fort Worth Star-Telegram, manager Ron Washington said, "We've got no bona fide closer right now."

X-rays on Kevin Youkilis came back negative

After fouling a ball of off his shin, Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis left yesterday's game in the second inning.

Per the Boston Herald, the X-rays came back negative, which rules out a fracture. However, manager Terry Francona describes Youkilis as being "pretty sore."

Youkilis, who is off to a slow start this season, is hitting only .214 with three home runs and eight runs batted in through 18 games.

That said, he's had two multi-hit games in his past four games played and 14 at-bats.

The Red Sox, who won only two of their first 12 games, have won five of their past six games.

Tigers place Victor Martinez on the disabled list

The Detroit Tigers have placed catcher/designated hitter on the 15-day disabled list (DL), per John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.

Martinez, who strained his right groin in Saturday's game, aggravated the injury in Monday's win over the Mariners.

The Tigers called up catcher Omir Santos from Triple-A to take V-Mart's roster spot.

In his past three games, Martinez has five hits in ten at-bats. On the season, Martinez is hitting .250 with two home runs and nine runs batted in.

Mike Leake arrested for stealing $60 worth of t-shirts

Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake was arrested for allegedly stealing six t-shirts from Macy's earlier this afternoon.

The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum jail sentence of 180 days.

As expected, both the organization and Leake issued statements that they won't comment on the charges directly.

Per a report in the Cincinnati Enquirer, police documents indicate that security cameras show that Leake removed the security tags and walked out of the store without paying for them.

If security cameras show that Leake removed the security tags, however, it doesn't appear that he can (plausibly) claim that he didn't know he had the merchandise on him when leaving the store.

Leake, the team's first-round pick in 2009, was the 21st player since the start of the draft to appear in a major league game without appearing in a single minor league game. He finished with an 8-4 record last year and 2-0 in three starts this season.

Ryan Franklin blows another save, is a change coming?

It hasn't been a good start to the season for (current) Cardinals closer Ryan Franklin.

As Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch sums up in his column, here's what Franklin has done so far this year:

"Four blown saves in five opportunities. An 11.57 ERA. Eight hits, two walks and three homers in 4 2/3 innings. And hitters have a .364 batting average against Franklin. It's ugly."

Ugly is right.

With Franklin's four blown saves, the Cardinals could easily be 12-4 instead of 8-8 this season as Miklasz points out.

Like many, Miklasz suggests that Mitchell Boggs should replace Franklin as the team's closer.

Boggs, who's owned in only seven percent of Yahoo! leagues, has allowed only two earned runs while striking out 12 batters in nine innings this season.

Will manager Tony La Russa make the choice that seems to be the only choice to make? Or will he remain loyal to Franklin, to a fault?

Matt Capps in, Joe Nathan out, as Twins closer, for now

The Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays are currently in the sixth inning and the Twins have a two-run lead, 4-2.

If there's a save opportunity in the ninth inning, it will be Matt Capps -- not Joe Nathan -- on the mound to close out the game for the Twins, per Kelsie Smith of the Pioneer Press.

With last night's blown save, Nathan has done so in back-t0-back save opportunities and his ERA has increased to 8.44. In those two games, he has allowed four earned runs, three hits and three walks with no strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings.

Nathan said last night, "Coming back from Tommy John isn't easy. It's a tough process and to do it now while I'm closing games out, I think that's a tough gig when you're healthy."

Capps hasn't been much better recently.

In his past two appearances (1 1/3 innings), Capps has allowed three earned runs. And on April 14th, both Capps and Nathan blew save opportunities.