That’s where Ichiro Suzuki sits going into Friday’s action at Toronto…just 5 hits short of 3,000 career hits.

Yes, I know. His first seven full seasons were played in Japan’s Pacific League where the parks are smaller and the pitching inferior. But still, the man is a career .353 hitter in Japan, and never once did his batting average dip below .342 in a season in which he played at least 44 games.

In each of his seven full seasons in the United States, Ichiro has collected at least 200 hits, scored at least 100 runs, stole at least 30 bases, and played at least 157 games. He also holds the Major League record for most hits by a player over an eight year span. Should Ichiro reach 200 hits again in 2008, he would join Willie Keeler (1894-1901) as the only players in history to record eight consecutive 200-hit seasons.

If Ichiro were a player who fell flat on his face after crossing the Pacific, I could understand it if people criticized him. But the man is an All-Star in two countries…perhaps even a Hall of Famer! He deserves to be recognized as such, both now, and when he reaches the milestone of 3,000 hits.

There’s nothing like the feeling of homering and getting the game-winning RBI—and then being sent to the minors. That happened to Ben Zobrist today, as the Tampa Bay Rays activated shortstop Jason Bartlett from the DL and needed the roster space.

You’d think they might have let the guy enjoy himself for a day longer, or even kept him around as insurance in case Bartlett isn’t recovered from a knee sprain. After all, Bartlett reportedly felt about 80 percent after a Monday workout, and Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon is concerned that an upcoming trip to Kansas City might be interrupted by rain, meaning Maddon would play both ends of the potential double-header that would result.

There’s always Willy Aybar to fill in, of course, and Zobrist isn’t much more than a utility middle infielder. And he’ll likely be back up again when rosters expand—still, it’s gotta sting for Zobrist, who’s got to wonder what it takes to stick at the major-league level.

In a battle for the division today at Shea Stadium, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel made a statement by benching 2007 MVP Jimmy Rollins.  Rollins appeared in the ninth inning as a pinch hitter and made the last out but the real story came after the game — Rollins was late.

Rollins blamed traffic, Manuel stated he spoke to his shortstop about it but no further details were offered.  This season, Rollins’ behavior has been puzzling.  Known for his hustle and determination last season, Rollins was benched earlier this year for not hustling and Manuel stated at the time that it was not the first time.  Last week, there was another instance caught on camera during an important game with the Marlins where Rollins was again accused of not hustling which may have cost the Phillies a run and the game.  Now, Rollins has a third blemish on his record and the Phillies are out of first place in the NL East for the first time since May.

Where this goes from here is anyone’s guess?  The Mets are one of the hottest teams in baseball but their success may cause them to overlook their needs and stand pat at the Trade Deadline.  The Phillies have not played well since June 13 but are notorious for playing well in August and September under Manuel.  The big question though — what’s up with Jimmy?

The timing on this seems to be a bit weird but Washington Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden announced yesterday on Sports Talk 980 in DC that the Washington Nationals plan to let Closer Chad Cordero hit the open market at the end of the season (he would later confirm this with a e-mail to MLB.com). This announcement comes just two weeks after Cordero went through shoulder surgery.

Of course Bowden tries to spin it just a tad.

“We hope that Chad Cordero re-signs with us, but based on his surgery, our interest would be a low base salary with incentives,” Bowden said via e-mail.

And as you can imagine, this news didn’t make Chad Cordero happy at all.

“I’m shocked he would say it now and make it official. It’s a bit upsetting. It’s early,” Cordero said. “I understand that it’s a business.”

After this do you really think Cordero is going to re-sign? I highly doubt it, nothing says thank you like being told you’re essentially not wanted back after surgery.

…It looks like MLB Umpires are stepping into the modern age with the help of Web 2.0 and IBM. There will be computers in the Umpires room at the stadium that will have a “Umpires Desktop” with a variety widgets available to them. Including Weather Updates for the city they’re in, and a widget from MLB that includes player history’s including warnings on past incidents.

“The Umpire Desktop provides significant, real-time information to our crews, and is a valuable resource with respect to the overall Major League umpiring effort. It is assisting not only in training and development, but also every other aspect of what game officials do,” said MLB’s vice president of umpiring, Mike Port, in a statement.

Hmm, welcome to the modern era.

…Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal in his latest ramblings suggests that the Braves should take the best offer for Mark Teixeira they can get. The deal he is suggesting is sending Tex to Arizona for Connor Jackson, saying that three years of Jackson is better than a couple months of Mark Teixeira.

…Steve Bartman (remember him?) has turned down a $25,000 dollar offer to sign a photograph of the infamous shot of him tipping a foul ball that looked to be headed into Moises Alou’s glove - seemingly costing the Cubs the game. All he would have to do to collect is attend The National Sports Collector Convention and sign the picture.

…The United States Mens Baseball Team has finalized it’s roster for the Olympic Games in Beijing. They have selected Colorado Rockies second baseman Jason Nix to round out the roster.

…Peter Abraham is reporting that the Washburn to Yankees talks are gaining some steam (Cashman and Company are in Tampa with the Steinbrenners), and this time seem to include DH/First Baseman Jose Vidro.

- Javier Valentin went 3-for-4 with a home run, Adam Dunn hit a grand slam, and Bronson Arroyo threw 7 solid innings as the Reds squashed the Padres, 9-5. Jody Gerut and Kevin Kouzmanoff each had 2 hits and a home run for San Diego.

- Mike Mussina tossed 8 scoreless innings, and rookie Justin Christian collected 2 hits and 2 RBI to lead the Yankees past the Twins again, 5-1. Mike Lamb had 3 hits for Minnesota.

- Jim Thome hit a 3-run home run, Carlos Quentin belted 2 “big flies,” drove in 4 runs, and scored 3 times, and the Chicago White Sox rallied for 5 runs in the bottom of the 8th inning to turn away the Rangers, 10-8. Michael Young had 2 hits, a home run, and 2 RBI for Texas.

- Matt Holliday was on base 3 times, doubled, and knocked in 2 runs, and Jeff Baker added a single, a triple, and 2 runs scored to help the Rockies hold off the Dodgers, 5-3. James Loney had 3 hits for Los Angeles.

- Kevin Youkilis had 2 hits, drove in a run, and scored twice, and Mike Lowell contributed 2 more hits and drove in 2 runs in the top of the 12th inning to lead the Red Sox over the Mariners, 6-3. Boston had 11 hits in the game, and they were all singles. Jose Vidro went 3-for-4 with a walk and a 2-run homer for Seattle.

- Gregor Blanco went 4-for-5 with a triple, 3 RBI, and 3 runs scored, and Yunel Escobar doubled twice and drove in 3 runs as the Braves beat the Marlins, 9-4. Tim Hudson pitched 6 scoreless innings for Atlanta before exiting with elbow tightness.

- CC Sabathia tossed a complete game 3-hit shutout, and Ryan Braun went 4-for-5 with a triple and a home run as the Brewers breezed to a 3-0 victory over the Cardinals. Sabathia has now pitched 3 consecutive complete games for Milwaukee and is making GM Doug Melvin look like a genius. Rickie Weeks also had 3 hits for the Brewers.

- Benjie Molina singled, doubled twice, and drove in 2 runs, Omar Vizquel contributed 3 hits, and Rich Aurilia laced a 2-run double in the bottom of the 8th inning as the Giants rallied to beat the Nationals, 6-4.

- Jonny Gomes and Ben Zobrist hit back-to-back home runs in the 5th inning, and James Shields provided Tampa Bay with another quality start as the Rays edged the A’s, 4-3. Zobrist ended the day going 2-for-3 with a homer and 2 RBI before being sent down to the minors after the game.

- Doug Mientkiewicz went 4-for-4 with 2 RBI, and Jason Bay blasted a 2-run home run as the Pirates swept the Astros with an 8-7 win on Wednesday. Mark Loretta had 3 hits and 2 RBI for Houston.

- Armando Galarraga threw 6 perfect innings on the way to a 3-hit 7 inning performance, Magglio Ordonez and Placido Polanco each collected 3 hits, and Miguel Cabrera drove in 3 runs as the Tigers clawed past the Royals again, 7-1.

- Casey Kotchman went 5-for-5, Jeff Mathis added 2 singles, a double, and a grand slam, and Howie Kendrick doubled 3 times, drove in 3 runs, and scored 3 runs as the Angels outlasted the Indians, 14-11. Ryan Garko had 3 hits, a home run, and 4 RBI for Cleveland.

- John Maine pitched 7 solid innings, and Jose Reyes broke a 3-3 tie with a 3-run home run in the bottom of the 6th inning as the Mets bounced back to double up the Phillies, 6-3.

- Reed Johnson went 3-for-4 with a double and a grand slam, and Derrek Lee smacked his 16th home run of the season as the Cubs hammered the Diamondbacks, 10-6. Chris Young contributed 3 doubles, Conor Jackson went 3-for-3 with 2 walks, a triple, and a stolen base, and Chris Snyder hit a 3-run homer for Arizona.

- The game between the Blue Jays and Orioles was suspended due to rain in the 6th inning. The game will be continued today in Baltimore. Toronto currently leads 2-1.

Wednesday’s Scoreboard

Thursday’s Probable Pitchers

**Note - Due to inefficient code, we have changed the scoreboard to what you see above. Click through for full boxscores and play-by-play courtesy of MLB.

BDD’s daily recaps are provided by founder and managing editor Joe Hamrahi. Joe’s a CPA, a financial executive, a baseball analyst, and a proponent of using all available information (read stats and scouts!) in order to make better baseball decisions! Joe can be reached at jhamrahi@baseballdigestdaily.com.

As the Mets take the field at Shea today, they should be playing for a sweep of their division rivals and a vicious knockdown blow that would have set the Phillies back three games in the race for the NL East title.  Instead, the Mets blew game one in spectacular fashion on Tuesday, bounced back on Wednesday and now face a rubber match for the division lead.  At home, against a division rival near the end of July, this is a series the Mets need.  Yet thanks to a six run ninth inning on Tuesday, the Phillies get a shot at escaping without falling behind in the NL East race.

Since the collapse, there has been media fallout.  Some pointed the finger at “interim” manager Jerry Manuel for not sticking with Johan Santana.  Manuel defended himself – Santana’s pitch count was over 100 and an early exit meant he would be better in August and September.  He even threw a little dirt on his ace.  “If he would have been adamant about (staying in the game) I am sure I would have (let him pitch the ninth),” Manuel told WFAN on Wednesday.

Others blamed closer Billy Wagner.  Wagner should have toughed it out and played through the pain.  Some went as far to say Wagner let his team down by playing it safe.  Hindsight is always 20/20, isn’t it? 

Instead, Wagner should be given credit for doing the right thing and not causing a stink over the medically recommended day off.  If the Mets have any hope of not repeating last September, they are going to need Wagner down the stretch.  The Mets’ medical staff has not been the most reliable in the decision-making department this season — see Ryan Church — so a caution flag from that branch of the team should heed extra warning. 

It’s hard to fault Manuel.  Whether or not you agree with the decision to remove Santana, your bullpen should be good enough to hold a three run lead in the ninth — with or without your closer — especially in your house.

Although one good thing could come out of Tuesday’s disaster for the Mets if GM Omar Minaya paid attention.  He might not be, though, since most of the Mets’ issues are not new.  After Wagner, their bullpen is mediocre.  The ‘pen owns a 15-13 record and the team is 3-10 when tied after the sixth inning.  The Mets are tied for third in the Majors with 29 blown leads.  The Rangers and Padres have blown 33 leads and the Royals are tied with the Mets at 29. 

Also, the team has yet to address their corner outfield concerns.  Winning is the great deodorant and the Mets’ 10-game winning streak did a great job of hiding the fact that their corner outfield situation just stinks… especially defensively.  While Minaya playfully bantered with the New York media over the Barry Bonds’ rumors, he ducked what should be harsh criticism for not filling a huge need. 

There’s a good chance the Mets walk away from their series with the Phillies at Shea with the division lead.  Oliver Perez has been impressive against Philadelphia this year — 18 1/3 scoreless innings in three starts.  However, Tuesday should serve as a reminder to Minaya that while many in the media have deemed the Mets the chosen ones in the National League East, there are glaring weaknesses in their armor that could again be exposed in August or September.

Mets’ co-owner Fred Wilpon said he had a sleepless night thanks to Tuesday’s collapse.  He even decided to go public and admit the Mets handled the Willie Randolph firing poorly.  Now, the Mets’ players can help make that all go away by stepping up and delivering.  Hopefully, the team gets at least a corner outfielder or an extra bullpen arm to help them down the stretch.  The ball is in Omar Minaya’s court and he cannot wait to pull the trigger at 3:18 a.m. on August 1 – waiting that long to make a decision to act this time would be too late and could prove to be much more devastating than the media backlash over the Randolph firing.