Matt Wieters is showing signs of turning things around. Mark Reynolds continues his tremendous home run pace. It was a painful ninth inning for Chad Billingsley owners. Let’s look at these stories and all the rest from yesterday’s games:

New York (AL) 10, Toronto 8

Aaron Hill went 2-5 with 1 HR, 3 RBI and 2 R. He continues to show that, even for those who were high on him heading into the season, he was sorely underestimated entering 2009. He’s now hitting .299 with 20 HR and 59 RBI on the season and has entrenched himself among the best 2B in the game this season. Amazingly, he has already exceeded the number of home runs I projected him for prior to the season (18). He’s been impressive to say the least.

Granted, a lot of them were unearned runs, but Joba Chamberlain simply did not get the job done. He allowed 8 runs (3 earned) on 9 hits and 1 walk, striking out 1, over 3.2 innings. His ERA is up to 4.04 and he just has not been the dominant starting pitcher that people hoped he would be this season. Usable, yes, but far from an ace at this point.

Derek Jeter (4-5, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 3 R), Jorge Posada (4-5, 3 RBI and 2 R) and Hideki Matsui (2-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R) were the big offensive contributors for the Yankees. Posada now has gone 6-11 with 1 HR, 5 RBI and 3 R over the past two games. It really goes without saying that he’s a must use catcher in all formats.

Oakland 5, Cleveland 2

Nice start for Gio Gonzalez, giving up 2 runs on 6 hits and 1 walk, striking out 8, over 6 innings. Does anyone trust him enough to use him, however? He entered the game with a 7.27 ERA and 2.25 WHIP over 4 starts. He could prove usable, but it’s going to take a whole lot more than this.

Jhonny Peratla went 1-4 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R. He was drafted for his power, but he has just five on the season, with this being his first in 10 games. He is a player to look at as a solid buy low candidate for the second half, assuming he can get putting the ball in the air more (he entered with a 28.2% fly ball rate).

Boston 8, Seattle 4

Brandon Morrow took his next step in his conversion back to a starting pitcher, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7, over 6 innings (98 pitches). His achilles heel was the home run, allowing 3 solo shots. While it was not a great line, keep in mind that it was against the high-powered Red Sox. He has the potential to be a useful option in all formats, so definitely keep your eye on him. In deeper formats, he’s worth stashing immediately, though he’s better left on the bench for now with his next start coming against the Rangers.

David Ortiz went 2-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 2 R. While he’s still hitting just .225, he now has 9 HR and 38 RBI. Is he the prototypical Big Papi? Not yet, but he could emerge in the second half.

Jon Lester continues to pitch well, though he took a no decision, in part due to his defense. He allowed 4 runs (1 earned) on 8 hits and 3 walks, striking out 9, over 6.2 innings. He has allowed 3 earned runs or less in each of his last 7 starts, lowering his ERA from 6.07 to 4.16. See what you get with a little patience? Kansas City 6, Chicago (AL) 3 Jermaine Dye went 1-3 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R. He’s now homered in back-to-back games and has a 3-game hitting streak, going 3-10. He has played like a top OF option this season, hitting .291 with 20 HR and 51 RBI on the season. While I wouldn’t expect him to duplicate the power over the second half, I easily could see him finishing with 35 HR and 100 RBI on the season.

Brian Bannister allowed 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 2, over 6 innings of work. Great start. His 3.87 ERA is also nice. Those who read the site, however, know that I will continue to strongly recommend staying as far away from him as possible. He’s very inconsistent and you run the risk of taking one of those beatings if you try to spot start him. Minnesota 6, Detroit 2 Rick Porcello struggled for the second consecutive start, giving up 6 runs (4 earned) on 7 hits and 2 walks, striking out 3, over 4 innings. He’s now 8-6 with a 4.14 ERA. As I always say, no matter how good a rookie pitcher looks, they generally are an inconsistent group, making it tough to depend on them. There are going to be highs and lows, and right now Porcello is clearly struggling. Do not write him off, however, as he is likely to right the ship again. His next start comes against Cleveland, and it would definitely depend on your other options as to what to do with him.

Justin Morneau went 2-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R. He’s now homered in back-to-back games, and five of his last seven.

Nick Blackburn went the distance, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 7 hits and 1 walk, striking out 6. He’s now 7-4 with a 2.94 ERA, having not allowed more than 3 earned runs in a start since 5/16 (a span of 9 starts). He’s proven to be a solid option in all formats, though a well below average strikeout pitcher (51 over 116.1 innings). If you have pitchers who can pick up that slack, then I wouldn’t hesitate to use him right now. Los Angeles (AL) 9, Baltimore 6 Matt Wieters went 3-3 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 2 R. He now has a 5-game hitting streak, going 8-17 with 1 HR, 3 RBI and 2 R. Slowly but surely, he’s starting to come around and develop into the top-notch catcher we all had hoped for. Is he there yet? Not even close, but he’s progressing nicely. Stay patient.

Vladimir Guerrero went 1-3 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 2 R. He now has a 3-game hitting streak and has homered in back-to-back games. He has 7 RBI in the past three games and is coming around into the top player he always has been. Do not sell low on him if approached, you’re going to regret it.

It was another lousy start for Joe Saunders, giving up 6 runs (5 earned) on 7 hits and 3 walks, striking out 2, over 5.1 innings. He’s been terrible in 5 of his last 7 starts, giving up four earned runs or more. Consider that he had an ERA of 3.17 on 5/21, it has been quite a fall, now at 4.44. Don’t give up on him, but depending on your other options he is far from a must use option. Texas 5, Tampa Bay 2 Matt Garza simply didn’t have it, giving up 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7, over 5 innings. It happens. That is the most runs he’s allowed in a game since 4/19 (his third start of the season), so it is nothing to worry about. His next start comes against the A’s, so it’s a good situation to get things back on track.

Ian Kinsler went 0-4 with 2 R, leaving him at 0-17 with 4 R over his last four games. At least he’s scoring, right? He’ll turn things back around, I wouldn’t worry about him.

Chris Davis went 1-4, then came word that he’s being sent down to Triple-A. Is anyone really surprised at this point?

Scott Feldman pitched well again, giving up 2 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits and 4 walks, striking out 2, over 6 innings of work. He’s now 7-2 with a 3.91 ERA. A 1.18 WHIP is tremendous, making him a good play, though he does not strikeout many (45 K in 89.2 innings). Just keep that in mind.

Florida 5, Pittsburgh 0

Ricky Nolasco was unbelievable, tossing eight shutout innings giving up 3 hits and 2 walks, striking out 12. Was this the same guy who was just awful early on this season? He’s now won four consecutive starts. Over the six starts since returning from the minor leagues he’s posted a 1.54 ERA and 45 K over 41 innings of work. Needless to say, he’s returned to being a must start option in all formats. A win is going to be tough to come by in his next start, as he takes on Dan Haren and the Arizona Diamondbacks, in what should be a tremendous match-up.

Andrew McCutchen went 2-4 with 1 SB, though he was the only Pirate that was impressive on this day. He’s on a 5-game hitting streak, going 8-21 with 2 RBI, 4 R and 2 SB. As a rookie, he just continue to produce and certainly is a must use in most formats.

St. Louis 10, Cincinnati 1