Orioles-Tigers game grinds through pitchers

Even Roy Halladay with his bionic arm wouldn't have lasted deep into this one.

The Orioles and Tigers chewed through their pitchers Monday like a wood chipper gorging on balsa-wood model airplanes.

In the bottom of the first, Detroit sent its entire batting order to the plate. In the top of the second, so did Baltimore. After two innings, the combined pitch count was 145, ESPN reported, and both starters - Baltimore's Kevin Millwood and Detroit's Andrew Oliver - were gone.

In Detroit's 12-9 home win, no pitcher lasted more than the three innings that Baltimore's Martin Hendrickson pitched for the loss. The win went to Eddie Bonine, who threw 61 pitches in 22/3 innings.

Now that everyone has long forgotten the fuss when Alex Rodriguez crossed Dallas Braden's mound, the A's are reviving the controversy. Braden is not on board.

Oakland is selling "Get off my mound" T-shirts, echoing Braden's response to the Yankees slugger on April 22, ESPN.com-NewYork reports.

"It looks like the A's are making light of the situation," Braden said in Monday's San Francisco Chronicle. "In some ways, it might keep what happened alive."

A-Rod is back in Oakland for the first time since the incident for a three-game series running through Wednesday. Braden, who is on the DL, says he doesn't plan on fanning the flames again with Rodriguez, who tried to ease the situation shortly after it began.

So we find ourselves in a looking-glass world where it's the players who are being the grown-ups.

Charlie Manuel has drawn some heat for passing on Joey Votto in favor of Ryan Howard on his all-star team. There's also an outcry in the AL over Boston first baseman Kevin Youkilis.

Second baseman Dustin Pedroia was among the six Red Sox making the team, but he is on the DL, wearing a medical boot and using crutches. Pitcher Clay Buchholz was also chosen, but he went on the 15-day DL Monday with a strained left hamstring.

After learning Youkilis was left off, Pedroia called on fans to vote for his teammate, the Boston Globe reported.

Youkilis is one of five players fans can vote for on MLB.com for the final spot on the AL roster. The results will be announced Thursday. As of Monday, Yankees rightfielder Nick Swisher had a slim lead over Youkilis, who has a .299 average with 17 home runs and 54 RBIs.

Asked if he would vote for Youkilis, Pedroia told MLB.com: "I've got a lot of free time. I'll be voting like crazy for Youk."

In a surprise motion filed in bankruptcy court Monday, the Texas Rangers said they would open the sale back up to bidders next month. A court-appointed restructuring officer had indicated he would be more likely to approve the bankruptcy plan after an auction.