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Prodigious Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper sent a text message to manager Davey Johnson in which he implored to be put into the starting lineup. It was a rather bold statement by the 20-year-old star, as he told Johnson, “Play me or trade me.”

The text, which was sent on Friday evening ahead of Saturday’s contest against the San Diego Padres, was confirmed by CSNWashington.com’s Mark Zuckerman:

Johnson wasn’t about to go to the Washington brass to discuss a trade, so he had no choice but to grant Harper’s wishes.

It makes sense that the Nationals are being extra cautious with a player of Harper’s caliber and potential, though. After all, Harper had only one hit in the five games since he returned to the lineup from a knee injury.

As CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa reports, the club intended to give Harper the weekend off to ease him back into the lineup. Harper had tried to play through the injury previously and was unable to, resulting in a trip to the disabled list.

However, Harper was clearly having none of it—and perhaps the Nationals should be thankful for his insistence on playing.

In the game against the Padres on Saturday, Harper made good on his assertion that his health wasn’t bothering him enough to sit by accumulating three RBI in the team’s 5-4 victory over San Diego.

After the game, as documented by Zuckerman, it was apparent that Harper—at least publicly—was sticking to his principles, stating that he wasn’t exactly exaggerating or kidding in his text to Johnson:

I was pretty serious about what I said. I want to play. I want to play every single day. I think if he wants to put me in the lineup, then I want to be in the lineup. If he doesn’t, I’m going to try to make him put me in the lineup.

In any event, Johnson’s decision to call Harper’s number resulted in a victory for the team, as the Nationals improved to 45-42 in 2013—five games behind the National League East division-leading Atlanta Braves as the All-Star break approaches.

Speaking of which, Harper was named as a starter for the NL in the July 16 Midsummer Classic at New York’s Citi Field, as was revealed on a Fox TV broadcast.

Despite ongoing injury issues and a lackluster .263 batting average, the fans voted him into the game. 

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Manny Ramirez, in order to comply with the Rangers’ minor league team policy, had to cut off his extremely long dreadlocks before joining the team. 

Before:

After:

Rest In Peace, Manny’s dreads. 

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There are few tributes like naming a child after one of your loved ones. Los Angeles Angels pitcher Jered Weaver and his wife Kristin did just that with their first-born son, naming him in memory of Weaver’s former teammate, Nick Adenhart. 

Welcome to the world, Aden David Weaver. The Angels’ official Twitter account confirmed that Aden David was named in honor of Adenhart:

Adenhart and two of his friends were tragically killed in a car accident by a drunk driver in April of 2009. The driver in that incident, Andrew Gallo, was convicted of second-degree murder and several other charges in 2010. 

According to D.J. Short of Hardball Talk, Weaver still writes Adenhart’s initials into the dirt behind the mound before every start. 

Weaver had become close to Adenhart and decided to mentor him during the 2009 season (via ESPN). Adenhart was even going to move into Weaver’s apartment. 

Instead, Adenhart would pitch just once that season, throwing six shutout innings against the Oakland Athletics. That night, he was killed by Gallo, who ran a red light. 

Weaver has since become one of baseball’s finest pitchers. He is 2-4 with a 3.79 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 41 strikeouts in 54.2 innings pitched this season. He has made three consecutive trips to the MLB All-Star Game and has become one of the American League’s most consistent starters. 

His 20 wins and 1.02 WHIP last season led the American League, and you could argue that since 2010, only Justin Verlander has been better in the AL. 

I’m sure Weaver would trade that success to have his friend back. But through his son and the touching tribute of his son’s name, he’ll always have a piece of Adenhart with him. 

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Say what you will about Homer Bailey, but the man sure has a penchant for spectacular finishes.

The Cincinnati Reds right-hander recorded the first no-hitter of the 2013 MLB season on Tuesday night, blanking the San Francisco Giants in a 3-0 victory at Great American Ballpark.

Bailey barely seemed to break a sweat during his 109-pitch effort, striking out nine batters and mowing through the San Francisco hitters with ease.

The Giants had only one baserunner during the entire contest, as Gregor Blanco drew a walk to start the seventh inning. Other than that, Bailey was perfect. He went through San Francisco’s first 18 hitters without so much as a scare. The Giants continually hit lazy fly balls to the outfield and whiffed as Bailey broke their will with ever-changing speeds.

As noted by ESPN Stats & Info, Bailey became the fourth active pitcher with multiple career no-hitters. The others are Roy Halladay, Justin Verlander and Mark Buehrle—not bad company. 

Bailey’s no-hitter comes just before the All-Star break. Though there have been many close calls, the Reds star’s triumph was the first of 2013. Last season, there were seven no-hitters throughout Major League Baseball, a streak that led some to wonder if that signaled a far tilt toward a pitcher’s era. 

Actually, it was Bailey who closed out last year’s rampant run of no-nos. The Reds star blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 28 at PNC Park, again giving up a mere one walk and striking out 10 batters en route to a 1-0 Cincinnati win. 

As noted by MLB’s Twitter feed, Bailey has something of a “magic number” when it comes to throwing no-hitters. He’s thrown exactly 74 pitches for strikes in both outings, a strange fact in a night full of them for the former top prospect.

While Bailey “only” recorded nine strikeouts on Tuesday night, I’m sure he’s more than satisfied with his performance. The 27-year-old righty atoned for his only “mistake” of the night in getting Blanco to ground out to third to end the game, setting off a raucous celebration in front of over 27,000 at Great American Ballpark.

Watch the video embedded above and share in the triumphant moment for Bailey, his teammates and the Reds fans. 

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Former MLB outfielder Milton Bradley has reportedly been sentenced to almost three years in jail and 400 hours of community service for abuse of his estranged wife. 

The Associated Press, per CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder, has some of the details of his crimes:

Prosecutors say Bradley threatened and attacked his wife five times in 2011 and 2012. In one incident, Bradley pushed his wife against a wall and choked her after she asked him to stop smoking marijuana in front of their children and wanted his friends to leave their home.

According to ABC News, he was found guilty of nine misdemeanor counts, including four for spousal battery and one for assault with a deadly weapon. He is currently free on $250,000 bond but is due back in court next month. 

Anger isn’t exactly a new defining characteristic for the former talented-yet-controversial ballplayer. 

In June of 2004, after being ejected from the game for arguing balls and strikes, he responded by returning to the dugout and throwing a bag of baseballs onto the field, thus resulting in a four-game suspension. 

In September of 2007, he tore his right ACL while arguing with umpire Mike Winters, an untimely injury that seriously hindered the San Diego Padres’ postseason hopes. 

Those are the two incidents that likely initially stick out in the heads of most people, but he constantly made headlines for altercations with players, managers, fans and umpires alike. He broke bats on his knee, gave “the finger,” threw objects into the stands, and was seemingly always in trouble with the league. 

Bradley has always had talent. He led the league in both on-base percentage and OPS during an All-Star season with the Texas Rangers in 2008, and he delivered other productive (albeit, usually short) stints with the Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland Indians. 

Sadly, his anger always got the best of him, leading to on- and off-the-field antics that were, in the end, always simply too much for teams to put up with. 

Although it’s too late for the 35-year-old to return to professional baseball, hopefully (for the sake of both him and his family,) jail time and community service can serve as an avenue to help get his life back on track. 

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Los Angeles Dodgers phenom Yasiel Puig has made no bones about his desire to make the trip to Citi Field for the 2013 MLB All-Star Game.

Philadelphia Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon thinks the entire candidacy is a “joke.” Well, at least that’s what Papelbon said when he appeared on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM Tuesday afternoon.

Asked about Puig‘s All-Star candidacy, the Phillies closer minced no words. Defending his fellow veterans, Papelbon cited the Dodgers outfielder’s lack of service time, saying it “does an injustice” to compare Puig to players with a proven track record.

Here is Papelbon’s full quote, with transcription courtesy of CBS Philly:

To me, it’s an absolute joke. It’s really kind of stupid if you ask me. The guy’s got a month, I don’t even think he’s got a month in the big leagues, and just comparing him to this and that, and saying he’s going to make the all-star team, that’s a joke to me. It’s just really what happens in baseball when…to me it really does an injustice to the veteran players that have been in the game for eight, nine, ten plus years, and it kind of does them an injustice because they’ve worked so hard to stay there.

The 22-year-old Puig has indeed been up in the big leagues for less than a month. The Cuban defector, whom the Dodgers signed to a $42 million contract just one year ago, was called up by the Dodgers June 2 and made his debut a day later.

During that time, though, Puig has taken Major League Baseball by storm. The 6’3″, 245-pound Puig has lived up to every bit of the hype and then some from when he was signed by Los Angeles, hitting .436 with seven home runs and 16 RBI during his first month in the bigs.

Adding four steals and a cannon arm from right field to boot, Puig‘s eclectic skill set has made him one of the most exciting young talents in baseball. His 44 hits during the month of June were the most during a player’s first month in the majors since Joe DiMaggio had 48 in May of 1936.

Playing with the joy and aggression of a young man just happy to be there, Puigmania has created the most intrigue for baseball in Los Angeles since the MannyWood era. According to Forbes‘ Jesse Lawrence, the average price of Dodgers tickets has skyrocketed 88 percent since his arrival. People both inside and outside of Los Angeles have come in droves to see the Cuban mystery man.

As Puig continues to ascend, there has been plenty of talk about the Dodgers star making the All-Star Game. While it’s almost impossible for fans to vote him in—he’s only a write-in possibility, with ballots having long been printed before his major league rise—some have called on NL manager Bruce Bochy to let Puig play.

On one side, the Midsummer Classic is a spectacle made for fans. Puig is arguably the hottest name in baseball. His name resonates with casual fans, ones that MLB would want on its product during one of its biggest events.

On the other, though, Bochy will be trying to win the game and secure home-field advantage in the World Series for his league. The San Francisco Giants manager would also have to pass on more established veterans to give Puig the nod.

Either way, Papelbon has made his feelings on the matter quite clear

It will be awfully interesting to see what happens if and when Puig steps to the plate against Papelbon later this season. The Phillies and Dodgers have one more series this season, starting Aug. 16 in Philadelphia.

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MLB umpire Angel Hernandez has committed several notorious errors this season. On Friday night, Buck Showalter became the latest manager to express his displeasure with him.

The 57-year-old skipper yelled and gestured his way to an ejection in the top of the second inning.

Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis clearly whiffed on an R.A. Dickey knuckleball, but Hernandez was the only one at Rogers Centre who didn’t know it. He initially called it a foul ball, despite glaring evidence to the contrary.

Noticing that catcher Josh Thole couldn’t get his glove on the third strike, Davis began sprinting down the baseline. He knew that there was no contact and understood that in such a scenario, a batter can reach first base by getting there before the throw does. Thole was under the same impression, so he hustled after the ball to record the out.

However, when Dickey’s offering struck Hernandez in the leg, the polarizing umpire concluded that the bat affected its path. In reality, it simply deflected off Thole’s mitt.

Blue Jays manager John Gibbons raced onto the field first and convinced Hernandez to consult with his competent peers. It took them all of 30 seconds to overturn the missed call.

That’s when Showalter snapped. 

Who can blame him? An official standing mere inches from the play ruled in his favor, only to defer to crew members positioned many yards away.

At least Hernandez was bailed out this time. 

Take this opportunity to relive this botched safe/out call that denied the Chicago White Sox a game-winning fielder’s choice on May 24. Or how about on May 8, when he didn’t reward Adam Rosales a ninth-inning home run, even though the replay was definitive?

Stay tuned throughout 2013 for more horrible Hernandez calls and the animated reactions from whoever falls victim to his poor judgment.

*All video links courtesy of MLB.com.

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