Starting Five: Favorites Finding Form

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That the Angels and Cubs -- two overwhelming favorites to win their division entering 2009 -- finally seem to have their mojo back.

A day after Chicago rallied from four down in the eighth inning to beat the White Sox, they climbed out of a 7-0 fourth-inning hole to beat the Indians, thanks in part to another dramatic home run from Derrek Lee -- a drive that came off of longtime Cub Kerry Wood no less.

Not to be outdone, the Angels' Juan Rivera snapped a 4-all tie in the eighth inning of the Freeway Series opener with a decisive solo home run. The Halos have now reeled off seven straight wins, and, despite all the hard luck (and tragedy) they've had to deal with so far this season, are a 1/2 game behind the division-leading Rangers in the AL West.

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From the Trainer's Room ...
The Rockies bullpen could get a little thinner if things don't go well for setup man Manny Corpas in the next few days. Corpas showed up at Coors Field with a swollen right (throwing) elbow Friday, and an MRI revealed a bone chip. Colorado is planning to give him two days of rest, but if the swelling doesn't subside, a DL trip could be in his future.

"I don't want to go on the DL, but only God knows if I will," Corpas said after the Rockies' 7-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night. "I'm hoping this rest will work. It's already less swelled up than it was. This morning it was really [puffy]."

Numbers Game ...
There's been plenty of scrutiny of the Yankees' decision to stick with Chien-Ming Wang in the rotation with potentially more attractive options waiting in the wings. Maybe the Red Sox should feel some of the same glare. Daisuke Matsuzaka surrendered a leadoff homer to the Braves' Nate McLouth, and things got worse from there. Matsuzaka allowed six runs in all against Atlanta and couldn't record an out in the fifth inning as his ERA rose from 7.55 to 8.23.

Dice-K is yet to make it into the seventh inning in eight starts this year, and he's allowed four or more runs in all but two of those turns. He was booed at almost every turn Friday night at Fenway Park.

"Everybody knows I haven't been performing well," said Matsuzaka, "and as a professional, I have to accept it when I get a reaction like that."

Making things more awkward is just what the Sox should do with him going forward. John Smoltz will return next week, but Clay Buchholz and Michael Bowden -- stuck in Triple-A -- are also knocking down the door to the major leagues.

In Their Own Words ...
"We're the world champs -- I mean nobody's going to be tougher than us when we walk on the field." -- Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino, who apparently isn't talking about his team's home field. Philadelphia, which lost 7-2 to Baltimore Friday night, has now dropped four straight at home and is 13-20 at Citizens Bank Park on the season. No other current division leader has a losing record at home, and only the lowly Nationals have won fewer games on their home turf this year.

Advance Scouting ...
It's not every day you can see two brothers oppose each other, but that's just what we'll gate late Saturday night. The Angels send Jered Weaver to the mound against older sibling Jeff, who will start for the Dodgers, in the middle game of the second Freeway Series (9:05 PM ET). It will be just the 21st time in major league history that brothers have started against each other, and the first time since 2002, when Andy Benes and Alan Benes squared off.