Was Sherrill hit by All-Star pitching curse?

The issue of pitching use during the All-Star Game is under scrutiny again because of the injury that landed Orioles closer George Sherrill on the disabled list this past week.

There had already been some questions raised about Phillies closer Brad Lidge and Rockies starter Aaron Cook. Both have had their struggles since the All-Star Game on July 15, which taxed both staffs by going 15 innings.

Lidge pitched the 15th inning at Yankee Stadium after warming up a half-dozen times. Cook pitched three shutout innings on three days' rest.

Now add Sherrill, the ex-Mariner who worked 2-1/3 scoreless innings in the All-Star Game — his longest stint of the season. He went on the DL Tuesday with shoulder inflammation.

Is there a connection? Boston's Terry Francona, the American League manager, called Sherrill on Wednesday to find out.

"He just was concerned, and he wanted to make sure he didn't have anything to do with it," Sherrill told the Baltimore Sun.

"But [the All-Star Game] was just another step in the process. Being a lefty specialist and only getting 40-whatever innings the last few years and then all of the sudden having 50 already, it's just that on top of everything else."

Said Francona to reporters: "I don't think we were disrespectful or ignorant of him. I do understand that now he's on the DL, so I called him.

"I don't want to see a kid go on the DL anyway, not if I have something to do with it. But I don't want them to go on the DL anyway."

Sherrill had 28 saves, a 4.08 earned-run average and a .221 opponents' batting average in 37 games before the break. In 10 games after the break, he had three saves, a 5.91 ERA and a .295 opponents' batting average.

It might well be because of his increased workload as a closer this season. But Major League Baseball needs to rethink the whole concept of the All-Star Game determining home-field advantage in the postseason.

Players, by and large, dislike it. And with the possibility of extra-inning games always there (and commissioner Bud Selig's edict that the game would be played to conclusion, no matter what it took), it might be time to increase All-Star pitching staffs by two or three players just to ensure that no pitcher is overused.

Thumbs down in L.A.

If the Angels are looking for bad omens, consider this:

In 1995, their descent from the top of the AL West standings hit critical mass when shortstop Gary DiSarcina injured his left thumb in early August and needed season-ending surgery.

This year, with the Angels holding a huge lead in the AL West, shortstop Maicer Izturis underwent season-ending surgery on his left thumb.

Somehow, I think the Angels will be able to pull through this time.

Notes

• Houston's struggling Brandon Backe had allowed 11 runs in two of his three starts before Saturday's scheduled outing against the Mets.

Just four other pitchers since 1956 have had two starts of 11-plus runs allowed in the same season. And one of them, surprisingly, was the Mariners' Jamie Moyer, in 2000. He holds the distinction of being the only pitcher to do so in consecutive starts.

Moyer went 13-10 in 2000, but his ERA was 5.49, the highest of his 22-year career. Much of that can be attributed to his starts on Aug. 9 and Aug. 14.

On Aug. 9, in a 19-3 loss to the White Sox, Moyer allowed 11 hits and 11 runs, all earned, in 3-2/3 innings. And in his next outing against Detroit, a 15-4 loss, Moyer gave up 10 hits and 11 runs (just six earned) in 4-1/3 innings.

That was part of a five-game stretch of Moyer starts in which the Mariners lost 13-6, 19-3, 15-4, 10-4 and 10-3.

For the record, the other pitchers to give up 11 or more runs twice in a year were the Cardinals' Jason Marquis (2006), the Brewers' Paul Wagner (1998) and the Brewers' Jaime Navarro (1997).

• The LaRoche brothers of the Pirates finally got to play together last week against the Reds, with Adam starting at first and Andy at third.

There's always a local angle: The last brothers to play as Pirates teammates were the O'Brien twins of Seattle University, Eddie and Johnny.

The O'Briens last appeared together, also against the Reds, on April 19, 1958. Eddie pitched two innings of relief, and Johnny was a pinch-runner, as the Pirates lost 9-6.

• Barry Zito has taken his abuse on these pages, so let's credit him for starting to turn things around. In 10 starts since June 25, he is 5-4, and has had two scoreless efforts in his last four outings. For a guy who was once 2-11 and seemed a lost cause, it's a hopeful sign.