ZAMBRANO INSANE!

Carlos Zambrano is hopping mad. First, he was dealt by his long-time club in a deal that his former owner described as a 'steal', portraying the fiery hurler as an expensive liability. But, no sooner was he acquired than his new club (the Texas Tornadoes) placed him on the disabled list. But 'Big Z' isn't just sore...he's freaking out:


There can be no doubt that sitting in the BARB equivalent of limbo is bad for Zambrano's psyche. After being placed on the disabled list, 'Big Z' learned that Texas GM Ronald Melkonian was already trying to deal him before he was even given a chance to start for a club that has a BARB-worst 9-23 record. So, in the middle of a game, the sidelined right-hander was charging on the field in a game with visiting Darwin, apparently with the intent of pleading his case with team officials. Instead, what they saw was a wild man apparently unable to string two sentences together:



Umpires had Zambrano removed from the field by security and filed a report on the disabled righthander with the Commissioner's Office. "This is a very sorry thing," intoned the Sage Czar of Baseball when apprised of Zambrano's conduct. "We can't have big men like Zambrano gibbering like idiots. He'll scare the kids. I'm afraid I have no choice but to apply some sort of discipline for this misconduct, and I think any owners that are thinking about trading for him should be aware that he is on thin ice as far as being able to play."

It certainly didn't help his new club, the Texas Tornadoes, who were axe-murdered by the visiting Finches. Josh Johnson (6-1, 3.14) gave up a first-inning triple and a run scored to Andre Ethier, then proceeded to frustrate the Texans the rest of the way, working carefully around the just-activated Alex Rodriguez. 'A-Rod' went 0-for-1 with a pair of walks, while former Yuma 1B Adam LaRoche drove in three runs off rookie Colin Balester (2-1, 5.08). Veteran Chipper Jones later hit an insurance home run off Fernando Rodney, only his second big fly of the season, and the Finches would go on to win, 9-1. The gloomy Tornadoes locker room stood in sharp contrast to the enthusiasm of GM Ronald Melkonian, who predicted that he might soon move Zambrano after using multiple players to acquire him.

In other BARB action:

LAS VEGAS 6, CASSELTON 4

WP: A.J. Burnett (1-3, 3.67)
LP: Aaron Harang (2-1, 5.82)
SV: Rivera (5)

A.J. Burnett finally got into the win column when Matt Holliday and Prince Fielder hit back-to-back home runs in a five-run fifth inning to win just their 12th game of the year. Surging Mike Napoli had three hits in a losing cause for the Horned Toads, including his 11th boundary belt of the season.

ST. FRANCIS 4, BLACK MESA 3

WP: Edwin Jackson (3-2, 5.01)
LP: Glen Perkins (1-3, 7.07)
SV: Francisco (9)

Johnny Damon keyed a three-run fifth with a tie-breaking single and Ben Zobrist added his sixth homer of the year to help Edwin Jackson and the Friars bullpen hold off visiting Black Mesa. The Kansans are rumored to be in the market for middle relief help due to the thinness of their pitching staff.

BROOKLYN 5, WORCESTER 4

WP: James Shields (3-3, 5.02)
LP: Adam Wainwright (3-1, 5.11)
SV: Rodriguez (8)

Mark Teahen hit his first dong of the year to tie the game, and Jermaine Dye followed with his 14th shot of the season to put the Moabs up 5-2 in the fourth, and despite a late charge by the Eliminators (including a pair of taters by DH Jorge Cantu), Brooklyn held on to improve to 17-21, stopping Worcester's winning streak at five games.

FROSTBITE FALLS 5, FRESNO 4

WP: Russ Springer (4-0, 1.33)
LP: Francisco Cordero (1-3, 6.92)
SV: Nathan (10)

Joe Nathan notched his loop-leading tenth save of the season as the Frostbite pen bailed out a so-so (7 H, 4 ER) start from Felix Hernandez, and the Squirrels (21-17) eked out a win on the road in Fresno.