Former major league manager Kevin Kennedy, now working as a broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Rays, is suddenly thrust into the limelight, as he intervenes to stop a deranged man who threatens to blow up a flight between Los Angeles, CA and Tampa, FL. Kennedy is one of ten passengers who subdue the madman as the Delta Air Lines flight is diverted to Albuquerque, NM.

Roy Halladay continues to be outstanding for the Phillies. Today, he pitches his first shutout in the National League, disposing of the Braves, 2 – 0. He is now 4-0, 0.82 for the season.

The Dodgers let their bats do the talking in pounding the Reds, 14 – 6, in Cincinnati. Los Angeles bangs out 18 hits, with Rafael Furcal leading the way with a 3 for 5 performance; Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier add homers for the benefit of Hiroki Kuroda. Reds pitcher Aaron Harang benefits from a rare reversal of a call by the umpiring crew in the 4th. Batting with the bases loaded and 2 outs, he hits a low liner to Ethier in right field. Ethier traps the ball, but first base umpire Tim McClelland declares a catch and the inning over. After protests from manager Dusty Baker and first base coach Billy Hatcher, the umpires confer and reverse the call, giving Harang an RBI single that ties the game 4 – 4 at that point.

Philip Hughes of the Yankees justifies the decision to return him to the starting rotation, pitching a no-hitter for 7 innings before Eric Chavez of the Athletics bounces a ground ball towards the mound to open the 8th. The ball hits Hughes’s left forearm and lands for a single in front of the pitcher. The Yankees win the game, 3 – 1.

The Mets’ youngsters are in evidence in a 6 – 1 win over the Cubs. Jonathon Niese picks up the win with a solid effort over 5 2/3 innings; Jenrry Mejia, the youngest player in the National League, pitches the final two innings; and 1B Ike Davis goes 2 for 4 with an RBI in his major league debut. Angel Pagan adds a homer off James Russell, who suffers his first major league loss for Chicago.

Two young pitchers carry no-hitters deep into their starts today. Brandon Morrow of the Blue Jays does not give up a hit to the Royals until Yuniesky Betancourt singles with two out in the 6th. Jose Bautista hits two homers and drives in five runs in an 8 – 1 win. Morrow is the third Blue Jays pitcher to start a game with five or more hitless innings this season, after Shaun Marcum on opening day and Ricky Romero a week ago. Meanwhile, in Baltimore, Doug Fister of the Mariners gives up his first hit to Nick Markakis, the first batter in the 7th inning, as Seattle jumps on Brad Bergesen to defeat the Orioles, 8 – 2.

The Padres get a walk-off home run from an unexpected source, 5-foot-7 infielder David Eckstein, who wraps a ball around the left-field foul pole in the 10th inning for a 3 – 2 win over Jeremy Affeldt and the San Francisco Giants.

Jason Heyward, 20-year-old rookie outfielder for the Braves, continues to be one of baseball’s biggest stories this young season. Today, he knocks in the winning run with a two-out single in the bottom of the 9th in Atlanta’s 4 – 3 win over Colorado. His 15 RBI put him in a tie for second place in the National League even though he is hitting seventh in the batting order.

One day after playing a marathon 20-inning contest, the Cardinals’ bullpen gets some rest as Adam Wainwright pitches a complete game for a 5 – 3 win over the Mets. Colby Rasmus and Ryan Ludwick’s homers account for all of St. Louis’s runs; Wainwright helps his own cause by doubling ahead of Ludwick’s blast in the 8th. For their part, the Mets designate 1B Mike Jacobs for assignment before the game in order to call up P Tobi Stonerfrom AAA Buffalo. Jacobs has become redundant because of the rapid development of prospect Ike Davis, who will be called up to the majors tomorrow. Stoner is the losing pitcher in his only game of the season, in spite of giving up only one run in 2 1/3 innings of work with the Mets’ bullpen also burnt out from yesterday’s game.

Ubaldo Jimenez pitches the first no-hitter in Colorado Rockies history. He disposes of the Atlanta Braves, 4 – 0, at Turner Field to improve to 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA for the year. Jimenez is helped by a spectatular diving catch of a Troy Glaus line drive by Dexter Fowler in the 7th inning.