MLB Day 16 2012

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Washington, D.C., with the Nationals hosting the Houston Astros. Wandy Rodriguez and Gio Gonzalez earned the starts. Washington began with a fourth inning Adam LaRoche single, scoring Jayson Werth. This held up for a 1-0 Nationals victory in short time, with Gonzalez earning the win, Brad Lidge picking up a semi-sloppy save, and Rodriguez taking a very hard-luck loss.

Into the Bronx, with the New York Yankees hosting the Minnesota Twins. Francisco Liriano will duel with CC Sabathia. Minnesota began with a second inning solo home run by Josh Willingham. New York answered in their half of the inning on a Brett Gardner ground rule double to force in Curtis Granderson. The Twins replied in the third inning when Clete Thomas doubled Alexi Casilla in before coming home on a Jamey Carroll single. The Yankees got the lead in the bottom of the third as Eduardo Nunez singled in Andruw Jones, followed by Chris Stewart's two-RBI single that drove in Granderson and Nunez and Derek Jeter's sacrifice fly to bring in Gardner. New York padded the lead in the fourth with a solo shot from Jones. The Yankees kept going in the fifth inning as Jeter singled in Gardner. New York struck again in the seventh as Stewart hit a single, giving time for Gardner to cross home. This put the final at 8-3, with Sabathia picking up the win and Liriano getting dealt the loss.

Up in Canada, the Toronto Blue Jays host the Tampa Bay Rays. Jeff Niemann and Ricky Romero will be pitching. Toronto began with a first inning solo shot by Jose Bautista. The Blue Jays added on in the third inning as Bautista hit a sacrifice fly to allow J.P. Arencibia to score, followed by Adam Lind's two run homer to score Kelly Johnson. Tampa Bay got going in the fifth inning as Reid Brignac hit a single to bring around Matt Joyce and Chris Gimenez did the same for Sean Rodriguez. Toronto extended the lead in the sixth when Eric Thames singled, and combined with an error, Bautista was able to get home safely. The Rays got one back with a seventh inning Joyce solo home run. The Blue Jays answered with a bottom of the seventh Lind single, driving in Yunel Escobar. Toronto padded the lead as Brett Lawrie launched a solo shot in the eighth inning. This made it 7-3, a final, where Romero got the win and Niemann took the loss.

Back stateside, the Boston Red Sox welcome the Texas Rangers. Colby Lewis and Jon Lester are the pair of aces pitching. Boston was first on the board with a two-run Dustin Pedroia homer, also scoring Mike Aviles in the first inning. Texas took the lead in the second inning, starting with a two-run home run by Miek Napoli that also scored Nelson Cruz, followed by Elvis Andrus singling in Yorvit Torrealba, and Josh Hamilton grounding into a fielder's choice that allowed time for Craig Gentry to cross the plate. The Rangers added on with Gentry reaching on a fielder's choice that provided time for Cruz to score, followed by an Andrus sacrifice fly to get Torrealba home safely and Hamilton singling in Gentry. Texas extended the lead again with a Michael Young solo shot in the sixth inning. The Rangers padded the lead with eighth inning homers by Hamilton, a three-run blast sweeping in Ian Kinsler and Andrus, a solo shot from Adrian Beltre, and a two-run blast from Cruz, also bringing in David Murphy, before Alberto Gonzalez grounded out to get Napoli home and Andrus doubled to do the same for Gentry for an 8-run rally. The Red Sox got one back as Adrian Gonzalez his a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth. Texas shot back as Napoli lifted a two-run homer, sweeping in Murphy. This was it for the merciless 18-3 slaughter by Texas, with the win going to Lewis and the loss to lack-Lester.

Down in Florida, the Miami Marlins host the Chicago Cubs. Ryan Dempster and Josh Johnson are starting tonight. Chicago first dented the scoreboard in the fourth inning as Alfonso Soriano grounded out to give Darwin Barney time to score. Miami tied it when the pitcher Johnson reached on an error, giving Gaby Sanchez time to dash home, and they took the lead as Emilio Bonifacio singled Johnson all the way home. The Cubs tied it on a Bryan LaHair single, bringing in Steve Clevenger in the seventh inning. The Marlins broke the tie in the eighth inning as Hanley Ramirez hit a three-run homer, also scoring Jose Reyes and Bonifacio. This held up for a 5-2 win, which was credited to Steve Cishek, while Heath Bell cleanly converted the save, and Rafael Dolis was stuck holding the loss.

Just a bit north of there, the Atlanta Braves bring in the New York Mets. Johan Santana and Randall Delgado will make the starts. Atlanta started off with a first inning Chipper Jones sacrifice fly, providing time for Michael Bourn to dart home. The Braves added on in the second inning with Freddie Freeman's double sparking a rally when Dan Uggla scored, followed by Tyler Pastornicky doubling in both Matt Diaz and Freeman, before coming home himself when the pitcher Delgado reached on a fielder's choice, combined with an error, and wrapping up the rally was Heyward singling in Delgado. New York got on the board in the fourth inning with Josh Thole singling to score Jason Bay and Mike Baxter hitting a single to complete Thole's trip around the bases. Atlanta padded the lead with a Diaz sacrifice fly, scoring Jones, before Freeman singled in McCann in the fifth inning. The Mets answered on a Daniel Murphy single, giving Kirk Nieuwenhuis time to score. The Braves struck again with a Juan Francisco solo home run in the eighth inning. This made it 9-3, a final, with the win going to Delgado, while Santana's short outing was pinned with a loss.

To the northwest, the Chicago White Sox host the Baltimore Orioles. Wei-Yin Chen and John Danks take their turns in the rotation. Baltimore finally broke the silence with a pair of home runs in the sixth inning, as Nolan Reimold went yard for two runs, also scoring Robert Andino, and J.J. Hardy lifted a solo shot. Chicago shot back on a two-RBI double from A.J. Pierzynski, scoring both Brent Morel and Paul Konerko. Baltimore held on from here, winning 3-2, with Chen in line to pick up the win, Jim Johnson sloppily converting the save, and Danks taking the loss.

Up in Milwaukee, the Brewers host the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chad Billingsley and Yovani Gallardo are the solid starting pitchers. Milwaukee began with a solo home run by Mat Gamel in the second inning, and a Cesar Izturis singled to drive in Jonathan Lucroy. Los Angeles got on the board in the fifth inning as Juan Uribe popped out and Juan Rivera was able to score on an error. The Dodgers tied it as James Loney doubled in Andre Ethier. The Brewers got the lead back on a Norichika Aoki sacrifice, allowing Gamel time to cross the plate. Los Angeles leapfrogged Milwaukee with a two-run blast by Ethier, sweeping in Mark Ellis for a 4-3 lead in the eighth. The Brewers got the last laugh, taking the game in the ninth with a George Kotteras double to bring in Carlos Gomez as the tying run and Gamel as the game-winner. Jose Veras earned the win in the 5-4 win, while Javy Guerra blew the save and took the loss.

Back to the south a bit, as the Kansas City Royals host the Detroit Tigers. Drew Smyly and Bruce Chen will throw. Detroit got things going with a second inning Ramon Santiago sacrifice fly, allowing Delmon Young to score. Kansas City tied it in the third inning when Alex Gordon singled in Alcides Escobar. The Tigers reclaimed the lead with a Miguel Cabrera single that gave Andy Dirks time to cross home in the eighth inning, followed by a Prince Fielder single that forced in Brennan Boesch. This was good enough for a 3-1 win, with Octavio Dotel getting the win, Jose Valverde earning the save, and Chen being stuck with the loss.

Across the state of Missouri, the St. Louis Cardinals host the Cincinnati Reds. Johnny Cueto and Kyle Lohse are the underrated starting pitchers. St. Louis got on the board first with a solo home run from Carlos Beltran in the first inning. Cincinnati tied it in the eighth as Zack Cozart singled to bring in Devin Mesoraco. The Cardinals won it in the twelfth inning as Matt Carpenter hit a sacrifice fly to allow time for Tyler Greene to score. Jason Motte picked up the win while Sam LeCure took the loss.

Westward to Colorado, as the Rockies welcome the San Diego Padres. Anthony Bass and Jamie Moyer will be pitching. Colorado was first on the board with a two-run Dexter Fowler home run in the third inning, also scoring Marco Scutaro. The Rockies added on as Willin Rosario doubled in Michael Cuddyer in the fourth inning. San Diego got one the board in the seventh as Andy Parrino reached on an error, giving time for Jesus Guzman to score, and pulled closer with a Jason Bartlett sacrifice fly, also scoring Chris Denorfia. Colorado extended the lead with an eighth inning Cuddyer double, knocking in Troy Tulowitzki, followed by Rosario hitting a sacrifice fly to get Todd Helton across the plate. The Padres got one back as Nick Hundley hit a solo home run in the ninth inning, but failed to rally further, losing 5-3. Moyer got the win, Rafael Betancourt converted a rocky (pun intended) save, and Bass was the losing pitcher.

Down in Arizona, the Diamondbacks hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates. Jeff Karstens and Ian Kennedy are on the hill. Pittsburgh led off with a first inning Garrett Jones single, bringing around Andrew McCutchen. Arizona tied it when Miguel Montero hit a single to drive in Chris Young, followed by a Jason Kubel double to bring Montero all the way home. The Diamondbacks added on in the second inning when Willie Bloomquist doubled to score Aaron Hill. The Pirates retied it in the third as Neil Walker singled in McCutchen before crossing the plate himself when Jones doubled him in. Pittsburgh took the lead with Jones hitting a solo home run in the sixth inning. Arizona got an equalizer in the eighth inning when John McDonald hit a solo shot. The Pirates took the lead for good in the ninth inning as McCutchen singled in Alex Presley for a 5-4 win, which was given to Jason Grilli, while Juan Cruz converted the save and Bryan Shaw took the loss.

West to Anaheim, where the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim welcome the Oakland Athletics. Tyson Ross and Dan Haren get the manager's approval to start. Oakland started the scoring in the fifth with a Daric Barton solo home run. Los Angeles tied it with a bottom of the fifth Peter Bourjos groundout, giving time for Vernon Wells to come home. The Angels tied it in the sixth as Torii Hunter singled in Kendrys Morales. The Athletics took the lead in the eighth inning as Coco Crisp singled to drive in Cliff Pennington, followed by Josh Reddick hitting a go-ahead ground rule double to knock in Jemile Weeks, and Yoenis Cespedes hitting a 2-RBI single to finish both Crisp's and Reddick's trips around the bases. Los Angeles pulled as close as 5-3 with a solo home run by Vernon Wells in the ninth inning. The win went to Brian Fuentes, the save to Grant Balfour, and the loss to Kevin Jepsen.

Up in Seattle, the Mariners host the Cleveland Indians. Justin Masterson and Kevin Millwood take the mound. Cleveland opened with a first inning Travis Hafner single, driving in Michael Brantley. Seattle took the lead on a third inning John Jaso two-run home run, also scoring Brendan Ryan. The Mariners extended the lead in the fourth as Brendan Ryan drew a bases-loaded walk and Jaso was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, forcing in Justin Smoak and Kyle Seager, followed by Chone Figgins sacrifice fly that allowed Michael Saunders time to score, Ichiro singling to finish Ryan's and Jaso's trips around, and Smoak singling in Dustin Ackley. The Indians evaluated the damage and started chipping away as Brantley reached on an error that gave Jack Hannahan time to get home safely, followed by Shin-Soo Choo singling in both Jason Donald and Brantley before Carlos Santana cleared the bases with a three-run home run, driving in Jason Kipnis and Choo as well as himself, and they later tied the game on a Donald sacrifice fly that gave Shelley Duncan time to reach home. Cleveland got the eventual game winner in the seventh as Donald singled to drive in Hafner for a 9-8 victory. Rafael Perez picked up the win, the unrelated Chris Perez converted the save, and Charlie Furbush took the loss.

Finally we head to the city by the bay, as the San Francisco Giants host the Philadelphia Phillies. Joe Blanton and Madison Bumgarner will play from the mound. San Francisco dented the scoreboard in the first with a Melky Cabrera triple that drove in Angel Pagan before he came all the way home on a Pablo Sandoval groundout. Philadelphia got one back in the fourth inning on a solo shot by Hunter Pence. The Giants answered in the fifth with a Nate Schierholtz single to score Sandoval and Brandon Crawford grounding into a fielder's choice to give time for Buster Posey to dash home. The Phillies got one back as Carlos Ruiz hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Jimmy Rollins. They couldn't tie the game, losing 4-2, with Bumgarner getting the win, Santiago Casilla converting the save, and Blanton suffering the loss.

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