Kip Wells' 13 losses are tied for second most in the majors this year

Injuries, moves, rumors and newsmakers...

Shannon Stewart may be on his way out of Oakland; Kip Wells finally gets back on track; the Marlins get back their speedy rookie center-fielder; the Jays double the lights out of Chien-Ming Wang; and more...
 

  SWAPPING STEW?

In the next couple of days, outfielder Shannon Stewart may be traded to the Cubs. With the contending Cubs in desperate need of outfield help thanks to the injury to Alfonso Soriano, they reportedly claimed Stewart off waivers on Wednesday. The A's can now either pull him back or try to work out a trade with Chicago.

They certainly have the depth to deal Stewart, who's enjoying a pretty good season and will be a free agent after this season. Of course, the thing about Stewart is always that he's a steady hitter when he's healthy, but he seems to land on the DL at least once every year and he hasn't yet found himself there this year, so it's a bit of a buyer-beware situation for the Cubs.

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BLUE JAYS 
A franchise record was tied Wednesday night when the Jays hit nine doubles in their 15-4 pasting of the Yankees. Matt Stairs, Alex Rios and Frank Thomas each legged out a pair of two-baggers, with the other three going to Vernon Wells, Gregg Zaun and Lyle Overbay.

CARDINALS 
When Kip Wells rejoined the rotation after a stint in the bullpen on July 13, he had one of the worst starts by anyone this year. That start reflected his first go-round in the rotation this season, when he went 2-11 with an awful 6.92 ERA through June 14. But after that July 13 debacle, he's actually looked pretty good. Wednesday's 7.0 innings with one unearned run was his second-best start of the season and in his last five starts he's 2-1 with a 2.48 ERA.

CUBS 
For the third time this year, the Cubs have called up top prospect Felix Pie. Though he has superstar potential, the 22-year-old outfielder has struggled in his first taste of the Show, batting .216 in 139 at-bats before this latest call-up. He's not expected to play every day this time around, assuming the reserve role of Angel Pagan after Pagan was placed on the DL Wednesday with a case of colitis.

DEVIL RAYS 
The No. 2 man on the Devil Rays' payroll is no longer in the majors after lefty Casey Fossum was sent down to Triple-A Durham. Making $2.725 million this year, Fossum had a 7.69 ERA in 40 appearances, 10 of them starts. He's been replaced in the bullpen by fellow southpaw Jon Switzer.

GIANTS 
Barry Bonds wasted no time in beginning to distance himself from Hank Aaron on the all-time home-run list. A day after blasting his record-breaking 756th, he went deep again Wednesday night, launching a two-run shot in the first inning. And we promise, thus ends our mentioning every single time Bonds rounds the bases... Also in Wednesday's game, young righty Matt Cain proved that all he has to do to get some run support, and thereby wins, is to provide it himself. Riding a solid 3.93 ERA into Wednesday's outing, he had an oddly lopsided 3-12 record and had gone winless in five straight starts. Then he went out and tossed 6.0 scoreless innings and launched his first career home run to improve to 4-12.

MARLINS 
Speedy rookie Alejandro de Aza came from out of nowhere to claim the starting center-field job out of camp, but less than two weeks into the season he fractured his ankle and has been out ever since. But he was finally activated on Wednesday and should get a shot at regaining his role in center, though veteran utility man Alfredo Amezaga has done a decent job out there and will provide some competition. Continuing to struggle in the big leagues, outfielder Joe Borchard was designated for assignment to make room for de Aza, who went 2-for-4 with a double and a run Wednesday night.

PADRES 
Shea Hillenbrand's bizarre fall from grace continues, as the Padres have released him from their Triple-A club just a week-and-a-half after signing him. From 2002 to mid-2006, he was a quality corner-infield bat for the Red Sox, Diamondbacks and Blue Jays, making all-star teams in 2002 and 2005. But since last July's blowup and subsequent trade from Toronto to San Francisco, he seems to have forgotten how to hit. He'll surely get another chance somewhere, but he's got some work to do if he's going to get back to where he was with the bat.

REDS 
Outfielder Jason Ellison, recently designated for assignment by the Mariners, was claimed off waivers by the Reds on Wednesday. He gives the Reds a decent right-handed bat off the bench and a little speed.

ROCKIES 
Two starts after a 23-game DL stint and rookie righty Jason Hirsh is likely out again, though they haven't yet decided if he'll return to the DL. During Tuesday's quality start he was hit in the shin by a line-drive come-backer and x-rays have revealed a fracture in his fibula. Amazingly, he tossed 5.0 strong innings after the injury. The most likely candidate to replace him in the rotation would be righty Taylor Buchholz, who has done a solid job as a spot-starter this year... Also in Colorado, young catcher Edwin Bellorin made his major-league debut on Tuesday, got one at-bat and strained his hamstring, sending him to the DL on Wednesday. Fellow rookie backstop Alvin Colina was called up to take his place as backup. He has a little pop, but don't expect too much out of him.

TWINS 
Rookie Brian Buscher has seen semi-regular playing time at third base since coming up on July 27, but he was placed on the DL Wednesday due to an infection in his leg that has caused some concern. He may wind up in the hospital. Meanwhile, the Twins called up diminutive utility man Tommy Watkins, who's expected to get his share of starts pretty much anywhere but behind the plate. He's in his 10th pro season and this is his first trip to the majors.

YANKEES 
Scorching through his previous seven starts and looking for his 14th victory of the year, righty Chien-Ming Wang was lit up Wednesday night for the worst start of his career. Wang had lasted at least 5.2 innings in each of his 20 starts this year before the Blue Jays hammered him for eight runs on nine hits through 2.2 innings.