SnakeBytes, 6/14: Sweet Victory Edition

Well, after a ninth inning that pretty much encompasses the best and worst baseball has to offer to the fans, we get a breather today.  Day off, team on a plane to the east coast, and we can just relax to enjoy the fact that we won a home stand.  Yeah, I know, it's hard to believe.  But it really happened.  Here's some articles to prove it.

Recaps:

• [azstarnet.com] Young corrects his swing, then rights D-back bullpen - "I felt all right, and it was good to be able to come through tonight."

• [mlb.com] Ninth-inning shuffle: Young delivers walk-off - "I knew it had a chance," Young said of his third career walk-off blast; the other two came in 2007. "I was yelling at it, hoping it would get up, and luckily it did."

• [cardinals.com] Frustrating road trip ends with gut-wrencher - Hey! It's about a frustrating road trip that isn't ours!  But it has been a rough stretch for the Cardinals- they've gone 1-10 in their last 11.

And past the jump, you'll find more stories.  And cake.

Enrichment Center regulations require both hands to be empty before receiving any cake.

DBacks News:

• [azcentral.com] Arizona Diamondbacks' Rodrigo Lopez leaves injuries behind - It's hard to remember that the Green Lantern only pitched 30 innings last season.

• [dbacks.com] Upton carries with him lessons from youth - "As hard as you work, someone else is working just as hard, so you always have to keep that in mind."

• [azcentral.com] Arizona Diamondbacks could try different options at closer - Well, who would have seen this coming?

• [foxsportsarizona.com] Pre-Game Report (June 13): Boston to face Kennedy, Lopez, Haren - Dontrelle Willis's split finger nail is still bothering him, so we'll send up Kennedy, Lopez and Haren against the Red Sox.

• [fangraphs.com] What The Arizona Diamondbacks Should Do - A look at who we should offer in trade.  We've discussed most of the names they offer, but I'm more surprised at some of the players they don't discuss much, like Kelly Johnson.

• [MLBTradeRumors.com] Dan Haren Trade Destination Poll - As sellers, this is pretty much what we're going to be dealing with until the trade deadline. MLB Trade Rumors is surveying their readers to see where they think Haren will end up at the end of July. At the time of clipping, the Mets were winning with "not traded" in second place.

• [foxsports.com] Rangers exploring right-handed hitter options - According to Ken Rosenthal, the Rangers are interested in Conor Jackson.

Who's going to make the cake when I'm gone? You?

Other News:

• [azcentral.com] ASU baseball beats Arkansas to return to College World Series - For the second day in a row, ASU took it to the 12th inning before pulling out the win, so they're off to Nebraska for their second consecutive trip to the CWS.  Good luck, Sun Devils!

• [npr.org] Chess Boxing And Other 'Sports From Hell' - I know we talked about an excerpt from this book before, but chess boxing is always a winner in my eyes.

• [mlb.com] Lilly's no-hit bid paces Cubs' win - No word if Lilly spiked his glove after giving up the hit, but I just think Wrigley Field was glad to finally see a winner, i.e., the Blackhawks.

• [si.com] Reds' rookie pitcher Mike Leake excels without any hype - What? There are other rookies besides Strasburg? I hadn't heard.

• [mlb.com] Strasburg collecting strikeouts at record pace - Speaking of, your mandatory Strasburg link for the day.  If he maintains that pace, it'd be really impressive, but come on, guys, two games?  Small sample size for a "record pace."

• [yahoo.com] McNamee claims Clemens' foundation paid for drugs - Whenever I think of Clemens, I'm reminded of the line from Major League: "This guy threw at his own kid in a father/son game."

Okay, Snake Bytes is over now. You win! Go back to the recovery annex for your cake.