With his front office having just given Kenji Johjima a $24 million contract extension, it seems odd Mariners manager John McLaren is using backup Jamie Burke as a personal catcher for ace Erik Bedard and lefty Jarrod Washburn. McLaren, like the Mets’ Willie Randolph and the Brewers’ Ned Yost, is a candidate to be the first manager fired this year. … Manager Joe Girardi’s plans to keep Joba Chamberlain in the Yankees’ bullpen all season have come crashing down, making it appear Co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner or general manager Brian Cashman overruled him. Girardi was right to value Chamberlain’s set-up role, but it appears he will be a starter by the All-Star break. … With summer still around the corner, it’s too early to read much into league stats. But 2008 does look like a down year for hitters. The AL slugging percentage entering the weekend was .397. It hasn’t been .400 or less since 1992. … For whatever reason, Arizona hitters are killers at home (third in the NL at .296 entering Saturday) and pussycats on the road (16th, .217). …
Less than two years after his Rookie of the Year season, the Phillies have had internal discussions about trading first baseman Ryan Howard, who is starting to look like an AL player. He would be a good fit with the White Sox if Jim Thome isn’t brought back for 2009. … The Orioles are happy they paid the price to sign Scott Boras client Matt Wieters a year ago. The former Georgia Tech catcher, who was bypassed by the Cubs (who are happy with their guy, Josh Vitters) and Pittsburgh, is killing the ball in high A and figures to be in Baltimore at some point in 2009, if not late this season. … Moving Dontrelle Willis to the bullpen is a sign of how little margin for error the Tigers believe they have after their awful start. Manager Jim Leyland says Willis needs only some “fine-tuning,” but it will be interesting to see how long it will be before he starts. … Padres GM Kevin Towers is threatening “wholesale” changes because he doesn’t believe his last-place team is playing with the proper intensity. …
Rest easy, Eddie Cicotte. When Florida beat Brandon Webb to end Webb’s winning streak at nine starts, it ended the threat to Cicotte, whose 12-0 record after 12 starts for the 1919 White Sox represents the longest such streak to start a season. … Jason Isringhausen is trying to regain his bearings at the Cardinals’ complex in Florida. He’s expected to return in June, but it could be awhile. … The first-place Marlins don’t win if they don’t hit a lot of homers. They entered Saturday 11-18 when they didn’t have multiple-homer games.
