Oakland designated hitter Mike Piazza is expected to be sidelined for at least a month with a strained right shoulder injured Wednesday night when he dove into third base in an unsuccessful attempt to avoid being tagged out.

No, this is not a misprint. It’s also one of the reasons why the Nationals are going backwards as an organization…

The Oakland A’s today acquired outfielder Chris Snelling from the Washington Nationals in exchange for outfielder Ryan Langerhans.

Snelling was batting .204 with a home run and seven RBI in 24 games with Washington.  He made 20 appearances for the Nationals in left field, including 10 starts, and was also 1 for 4 as a pinch hitter.  The 25-year old Snelling hit .263 over his first 12 games this year but is 3 for 23 (.130) over his last 12 games.

Snelling was originally signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Seattle organization on March 2, 1999 and made his Major League debut with the Mariners in 2002.  He also spent parts of the 2005 and 2006 seasons with Seattle and saw his most playing time with the Mariners last year, when he batted .250 with three home runs and eight RBI in 36 games.  Snelling was traded to Washington on December 18, 2006 with Emiliano Fruto in exchange for Jose Vidro.  Including his stint with Washington this year, he is a .229 career hitter with six home runs and 19 RBI in 83 games.

Langerhans was acquired from the Atlanta Braves on Sunday for a player to be named later.  He was 3 for 44 (.069) in 20 games with Atlanta and started each of the A’s two games in Boston in center field.

Notes courtesy of the Athletics media relations department.

The great story that is Josh Hamilton continues...

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Josh Hamilton, who led all rookies with six home runs and tied for the lead among Major League rookies with 13 RBI, has been voted National League Rookie of the Month for April, while Boston Red Sox left-hander Hideki Okajima, who fanned 17 batters in 12.2 innings pitched, has earned American League Rookie of the Month honors.

• Sean Casey drove in the go-ahead run with a pinch-hit in the 8th inning, and Placido Polanco contributed 4 hits and 2 RBI as the Tigers edged the Orioles, 5-4. Brian Roberts had 2 hits, 2 walks, and stole 3 bases, and Melvin Mora reached base 3 times, homered, stole a base, and scored twice for Baltimore.
• Travis Buck had 3 hits, doubled, and hit a game tying 9th inning home run off Jonathan Papelbon to send the Oakland-Boston game to extra innings and allow Dan Johnson to win it for the Athletics with an RBI double. Johnson finished with a double, home run, and 2 RBI. Curt Schilling allowed 2 runs on 8 hits in 7 innings for Boston but didn’t figure in the decision.
• Jhonny Peralta doubled, homered, and drove in 5, and Travis Hafner, Victor Martinez, and Trot Nixon combined to go 4-for-9 with a double, 2 home runs, 5 walks, 8 runs scored, and 7 RBI as the Indians crushed A.J. Burnett and the Blue Jays, 12-4.
• Ricky Nolasco allowed just one run over 5 innings, and Josh Willingham doubled, tripled, and drove in all 5 of Florida’s runs as the Marlins defeated the Mets for the second day in a row, 5-2. David Wright had 3 hits, a double, and his first home run of the year for New York.
• Joe Mauer, Luis Castillo, and Jason Tyner each had 3 hits, and Sidney Ponson somehow allowed just one run on 5 hits over 7 innings of work to lead the Twins to a 9-1 punishing of the Devil Rays.
• Rod Barajas reached base 3 times, homered, and scored twice, and Aaron Rowand had 2 hits, a walk, and 2 RBI as the Phillies edged the Braves, 6-4. Chipper Jones hit 2 home runs and drove in 3 for Atlanta in a losing cause.
• Adam Dunn doubled, homered, scored 3 times, and drove in 3, and Ken Griffey Jr. went 3-for-3 with a home run, 2 runs scored, and 2 RBI as the Reds destroyed the Astros, 11-2. Bronson Arroyo allowed just one run on 3 hits in 7 innings for Cincinnati.
• Phil Hughes pitched 6 1/3 hitless innings, but left the game with a left hamstring injury that may force him to miss 4-6 weeks. Robinson Cano and Jorge Posada picked up the offense for New York. Cano went 4-for-5 with 2 doubles, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored, and Posada went 3-for-4 with 2 doubles, 3 runs, and 2 RBI as the Yankees blew out the Rangers, 10-1.
• Geoff Jenkins had 4 hits, homered, and drove in 2, and J.J. Hardy also contributed 4 hits, 2 doubles, 2 runs, and 2 RBI as the Brewers cruised to a 12-2 win over the Cardinals. Ben Sheets allowed 2 runs on 6 hits in 6 innings for the win. Tony Graffanino also had 3 hits, a home run, and 3 RBI for Milwaukee.
• Vladimir Guerrero hit a grand slam, and Gary Matthews Jr. and Reggie Willits combined for 7 hits, 2 doubles, a triple, 5 runs scored, and a stolen base as the Angels beat the Royals, 7-5. Mark Teahen hit a 3-run home run, and newly recalled Billy Butler picked up 2 hits in his major league debut.
• Jarrod Washburn allowed just 2 runs on 4 hits over 7 innings, and Raul Ibanez had 2 hits and drove in 3 runs as the Mariners knocked off the White Sox, 5-2. Adrian Beltre had 3 hits for Seattle as well.
• Chris Young pitched 8 scoreless innings, allowing just 3 hits to help the Padres to a 3-0 shutout of the Nationals. Adrian Gonzalez doubled, walked, and drove in a run for San Diego.
• Olmedo Saenz hit a 2-out RBI single in the 9th inning to drive in the winning run and give the Dodgers a 2-1 walk-off win over the Diamondbacks. Brad Penny pitched 6 scoreless innings for Los Angeles, and Rafael Furcal reached base 3 times, doubled, scored, and drove in a run.
• Matt Holliday went 3-for-5 with a double, home run, 2 runs scored and 4 RBI, and Brad Hawpe added 3 hits, a double, and 3 RBI as the Rockies outlasted the Giants, 9-7. Benjie Molina had 3 hits and 2 RBI for San Francisco.
• Due to a forecast of continuing heavy rain, Tuesday’s Pirates-Cubs game was suspended* with Chicago leading, 6-5, in the 7th inning. The game will be completed Wednesday beginning at 12:35 p.m.
  
  * 2007 Official Baseball Rule 4.12 (a) A game shall become a suspended game that must be completed at a future date if the game is terminated for any of the following reasons: (5) Weather, if a regulation game is called while an inning is in progress and before the inning is completed, and the visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead; and the home team has not retaken the lead.

BDD Player of the Day – New York Yankees Phil Hughes