You can expect more fireworks today as middle relievers will be called to the mound to bail out stumbling starting pitchers.

The five man rotations are heading into their third full week without an off day, so only the strongest pitchers are getting the job done for 6 or more innings.

Once a team uses its middle relief two or three days in a row, unless the next starter comes up big, it gets ugly.

Ergo, yesterday 62 home runs, the most in a single day in major league history.

What’s up today?Jim Thome has homered in six straight games. He faces David Wells in Yankee Stadium, a good homerun park for a lefty swinger. Wells has not been invincible this season. I say Thome hits number seven in the game today. The Yankees will be in the pen, so will Cleveland. There will be runs in this game.

The White Sox are just warming up. With the Twins heartbreaking loss to the A’s last night, Chicago has a sense that this might be a good week to let the bats loose and gain some ground in the AL Central. Detroit starts Brian Moheler for the first time in two years or so. How long do you think he will go before turning the game over to Jose Lima and company?

Gary Glover has been a five to six inning pitcher himself, so Jerry Manuel will be looking towards his relievers as well.

These two teams combined for 12 home runs last night. Chicago’s only hope is to hit and they do that pretty well.

Paul Wilson and Ismael Valdes have had their successes at times this season. This game looks like a potential slugfest. Last night was too quiet in Texas with the Rangers winning 3-1 over Tampa. Tonight, with the bull pens rested, the managers won’t hestitate to take the starters out and then the fun begins.

Joel Pineiro has pitched well for Seattle since transitioning in as a starting pitcher. Kansas City is scoring some runs. Problem is Miguel Asencio, their pitcher tonight, gives up plenty. The KC pen will be armed and dangerous tonight. If you are in the bleachers in Safeco bring your glove, there will be action from both teams.

In Oakland, Mark Mulder and Johann Santana pitch. Mulder is capable of shutting down this team. The Twins throw a completely different line up against lefties and they don’t hit much (.248). Art Howe will trot out his righthanded lineup against Santana. Home runs will come early in this game because once the fog rolls in around the fifth inning or so, the only balls going out will be smoked line drives. Both relief corps are fairly fresh, so unless Santana’s pitch count is way up by the fifth (which happens to just about every starter who faces Oakland), this could be another close game.

Boston still isn’t hitting with any authority. Roy Halladay is the best Toronto has right now. John Burkett throws softly enough which may allow the strikeout prone Toronto hitters some hacks today.

The Giants hit seven homers last night in Coors Field. Maybe the humidor was a hoax. Livan Hernandez has been so bad against lefties that Larry Walker and Todd Helton will send a limo for Livan to make sure he gets to the park. Jason Jennings has pitched well at times, but he needs the all star break to regroup. So do the Rockies.

San Diego’s pitching staff is so beat up that an infielder may pitch the eighth today. The Pads hit the ball and St.Louis has pitching woes every day, so this one will be a high scoring game, too.

The Cubs can’t get anyone out. Kerry Wood is a huge disappointment. The Marlins hit the ball well at home. Runs will come in bunches today in the sauna in Miami. Maybe Wood will have it today? Nah, Don Baylor is on his way out, I feel it.

The Mets have trouble with lefties. The Phillies have trouble getting five innings from a starter. Last night, the Phils needed relief help after five scary innings from Terry Adams. Tonight Jeff D’Amico, who is feeling the strain of a full season of work goes against Randy Wolf, lefthander who is a pitcher capable of keeping the relievers in the pen until the sixth inning. The Phils are dusting off the long ball and should hit some more tonight.

The Dodgers are showing the Diamondbacks who is boss in the West. LA’s Andy Ashby is a sinkerball pitcher, Arizona’s Miguel Batista will keep the Arizona pen off the field until it is safe to bring in Byung-Hung Kim. This one actually might be a pitcher’s duel.

With the Fourth of July coming up tomorrow, don’t be surprised if baseball continues the fireworks today.