The Tigers designate pitcher Dontrelle Willis for assignment. He seemed to have turned a corner in his comeback bid when he made the Tigers’ starting rotation out of spring training, but has only won one game all season. This may not yet be the end of the line for the gregarious lefthander, though, as both the Diamondbacks and Marlins have shown interest in acquiring his services. On June 1st, Willis will be traded to Arizona for P Billy Buckner.

San Diego score their most runs at home since moving to PETCO Park in 2004, routing New York, 18 – 6. The last two runs are scored against Oliver Perez, who has pitched so poorly that manager Jerry Manuel has relegated him to the deepest reaches of the bullpen. Jerry Hairston hits a grand slam for the Padres, who remain two games ahead in the NL West.

Alex Rodriguez may not be his usual superhuman self this season, but it’s still a bad idea to issue an intentional walk to face him with the bases loaded. The Indians find this out the hard way, as A-Rod connects for a grand slam in the 7th inning, turning a 2 – 1 Yankees lead into an 11 – 2 rout. The slam is the 20th of his career, placing him third on the all-time list, behind Lou Gehrig (23) and Manny Ramirez (21).

Ubaldo Jimenez of the Rockies throws his second career shutout – his first was his no-hitter on April 17th – in beating San Francisco, 4 – 0. He is the first pitcher to reach 10 wins in the majors this year, defeating defending Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum.

The Tigers fail to take advantage of a three-home run performance by Miguel Cabrera, falling, 5 – 4, to Ben Sheets and the Oakland Athletics. Reliever Ryan Perry is the loser. The A’s get some bad news after the game, as they announce that two-time All-Star pitcher Justin Duchscherer, who has made only 5 starts this year, needs to undergo surgery on a bothersome hip and will be out for the rest of the season.

Matt Cain of the Giants pitches a one-hitter in defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks, 5 – 0. The only hit is a 2nd-inning double by Mark Reynolds.

Corey Hart hits a two-run homer in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Milwaukee Brewers a 2 – 0 win over the New York Mets at Miller Park. The homer ends a string of 35 consecutive scoreless innings by Mets pitching.