Saturday baseball

Another set of games at the Ballparks. We begin with...

The Cleveland Indians blowing out their guests, the Baltimore Orioles, by an 8-3 score. Jeremy Guthrie had the loss, and Josh Tomlin took the win, both of them being the starters. Jake Fox and Orlando Cabrera were the top batters.

To New York City, where the Yankees hosted the Texas Rangers. Derek Holland and Freddy Garcia took the mound. New York opened with Mark Teixeira's two run homer to score Nick Swisher. Teixeira kept the Yankees going in the third inning with a sacrifice fly, allowing Derek Jeter to score. Texas got on the board in the eighth inning with Elvis Andrus singling in Mitch Moreland, followed by Michael Young doing the same for Ian Kinsler. New York replied with a two run tater from Robinson Cano's bat, knocking in Teixeira. Holland was stuck with the loss, Garcia got the win, Joba Chamberlain and Rafael Soriano grabbed holds, and Mariano Rivera converted the save in the 5-2 Yankee victory. David Murphy and Teixeira were the best batters.

In Washington, D.C., the rain postponed the Nationals hosting the Milwaukee Brewers, resulting in a Sunday doubleheader.

Into Kansas City, where the Royals shut down the Seattle Mariners with a 7-0 score. Felix Hernandez took the loss, while Sean O'Sullivan had the win. Brendan Ryan and Alex Gordon were the top batters.

Back east, the Boston Red Sox hosted the Toronto Blue Jays. Jo-Jo Reyes and Josh Beckett pitched. Boston got off to some early work in the first inning, with Adrian Gonzalez singling in Jed Lowrie, followed by Kevin Youkilis' RBI-double to score Dustin Pedroia. Toronto got a run back the next inning with Travis Snider's single to score Aaron Hill. The Red Sox answered back with Lowrie's two-run shot knocking in Jacoby Ellsbury. This 4-1 score would last for another 7 innings, allowing Reyes the loss, Beckett the win, a hold for Daniel Bard, and Jonathan Papelbon made the save. Hill and Lowrie were the best hitters.

Into Cincinnati, where the Reds dominated the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-2. James McDonald got pounded, while Mike Leake had it fairly easy on the mound. Garrett Jones and Ramon Hernandez were the best of the hitters.

Down south to Atlanta, with the doubleheader between the Braves and their guests, the New York Mets. D.J. Carrasco opposed Derek Lowe in game one. Atlanta had three solo shots, one each in the first, second, and fourth innings, with Chipper Jones doing the first, and Alex Gonzalez responsible for the latter two. New York woke up with a fifth inning fielder's choice by Jose Reyes, allowing Josh Thole to score. The next inning, the Mets struck again with Willie Harris' double to bring around Carlos Beltran. In the bottom of this inning, The Braves answered with a solo home run from Freddie Freeman to make it 4-2, the eventual final. Carrasco was stuck with the loss, while Lowe got the win, Eric O'Flaherty, Scott Linebrink, and Johnny Venters had the holds, and Craig Kimbrel converted the save. Harris and Gonzalez were the best hitters. Game two saw Mike Pelfrey pitch against Jair Jurrjens. Atlanta opened with Dan Uggla singling to score Jones. In the third inning, Jones added on for the Braves with his single, bringing around Martin Prado. Prado was brought home again in the fifth inning with Eric Hinske's RBI-single. Atlanta finished off a 4-0 win in the sixth inning with David Ross' single to knock around Jason Heyward. Pelfrey had the loss, and Jurrjens took the win. Daniel Murphy and Hinske were the top batters this time around.

South a little further, to Tampa Bay, with the Rays hosting the Minnesota Twins. Scott Baker and Jeff Niemann had their turn in the order. Minnesota led off in the second inning with Jason Kubel going yard for a solo home run. The Twins added on with a double play groundout by Luke Hughes, ridding himself and Denard Span of the basepaths, but scoring Alexi Casilla. Sam Fuld got Tampa Bay going later in the third inning with a sacrifice fly to score Casey Kotchman. Span responded back for Minnesota with a triple in the fifth inning, bringing Casilla in again. Matt Joyce got the Rays another run in the eighth by knocking in Reid Brignac with a single. Tampa Bay did some more work in the ninth with Ben Zobrist's solo shot, and they won the game 4-3 with a bases loaded single by Johnny Damon forcing in B.J. Upton. Matt Capps had a hold before Joe Nathan blew the save and took the loss, while Juan Cruz picked up the win. Span and Joyce had top batting honors.

Up to Chicago, where the White Sox suffered a 7-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels. Tyler Chatwood won the game, while Gavin Floyd was pinned for the loss. Hank Conger and Carlos Quentin were the best batters.

Eastward, to Philadelphia, where the rain forced a postponement for the Phillies hosting the Florida Marlins.

Down south again, to Houston, with the Astros hosting the San Diego Padres. Mat Latos and Nelson Figueroa played on the mound. San Diego led off with a two-RBI double from Chase Headley, scoring both Will Venable and Orlando Hudson. Houston answered in the bottom of the first with Hunter Pence's double, which brought around Michael Bourn. The Padres got back to work in the fourth with Brad Hawpe's single, knocking in Headley. The Astros tied it with a two run tater by Chris Johnson, bringing in Carlos Lee. Houston broke the tie with Joe Inglett's pinch hit single to bring around Johnson, followed by Angel Sanchez's RBI-single to score Humberto Quintero in the seventh, producing the eventual 5-3 final score. Latos was stuck with the loss, while Mark Melancon grabbed the win, Jeff Fulchino had a hold, and Brandon Lyon closed out for the save. Top batters were Headley and Johnson.

Westward to Arizona, with the Diamondbacks hosting the San Francisco Giants. Barry Zito and Joe Saunders had the ball for the starts. San Francisco opened with a Buster Posey home run in the first inning, knocking around Aaron Rowand. Arizona tied it with a Miguel Montero double, which provided safe passage for both Chris Young and Xavier Nady. The Diamondbacks grabbed the lead with a fourth inning Melvin Mora double to score Montero, but the greedy baserunner was out at third. The Giants retied it with Freddy Sanchez doubling Rowand home. In the seventh, Sanchez provided another big hit, a two-RBI single to score Mark DeRosa and Brandon Belt. This brought up a 5-3 final for the Giants victory. Guillermo Mota was the winner, holds went to Jeremy Affeldt and Sergio Romo, and Brian Wilson converted the save. Saunders was the losing pitcher. The best of the batters were Sanchez and Mora.

Onward to Colorado, with the Rockies getting beaten 8-3 by their visitors, the Chicago Cubs. Casey Coleman had the win, and James Russell had a hold before the game got out of hand, while Jason Hammel was stuck with the loss. Starlin Castro and Chris Iannetta took top batting status.

Westward to Oakland, with the Athletics smashing the Detroit Tigers 6-2. Dallas Braden had the win, and Brad Ziegler, Craig Breslow, and Grant Balfour had the holds before an Oakland run explosion. Justin Verlander suffered the loss. Victor Martinez and Hideki Matsui were the best hitters.

Down the California coast to Los Angeles, with the Dodgers suffering a 9-2 defeat at the hands of the St. Louis Cardinals. Kyle McClellan had the win, while Clayton Kershaw took the loss. Allen Craig and Andre Ethier were the best hitters.

That's all for Saturday at the diamond. Sunday should come out soon enough.