MLB Day 84 2012

Full slate plus one as our first pair of teams play a doubleheader to make up a missed game in...

Philadelphia, with the Phillies hosting the Tampa Bay Rays for a doubleheader. Aces David Price and Cole Hamels take the first game. Philadelphia opened the scoring with a sixth inning Jimmy Rollins solo home run. Tampa Bay got on the board in the eighth inning as Carlos Pena hit a three-run home run, sweeping in Elliot Johnson and B.J. Upton. The Phillies answered in the bottom of the eighth as Ty Wigginton singled home Hunter Pence. This was it for the scoring, leaving the final at 3-2, with the win belonging to Price, the save turned by Fernando Rodney, and the loss pinned on Antonio Bastardo.

In game two, the pitchers are Cesar Ramos and the inexplicably winless Cliff Lee. Tampa Bay got things going in the second inning with a Sean Rodriguez double to drive in Jeff Keppinger, followed by Brooks Conrad hitting a 2-RBI double to plate Ben Zobrist and Rodriguez. Philadelphia got some back in the fourth inning as Placido Polanco doubled in Hunter Pence before coming home on a John Mayberry single. The Rays answered in the sixth inning as Conrad doubled home Zobrist and Rodriguez again. The Phillies responded in their half of the sixth when Polanco doubled to score Pence. Tampa Bay extended the lead in the eighth inning as Jose Lobaton drew a bases-loaded walk to force home B.J. Upton, followed by Brandon Gomes doing the same for Zobrist. This made it 7-3 in the end, with the win going to Gomes and the loss to Lee.

Westward into Cincinnati, as the Reds host the Minnesota Twins. Scott Diamond and Mike Leake will be sent out to start. For a more detailed recap, visit ultimatebaseballfantasytrip.blogspot.com for the Game of the Day. Cincinnati was first on the board in the third inning with a Wilson Valdez single to drive in Devin Mesoraco. Minnesota tied it in the fifth inning with a solo home run by Trevor Plouffe. The Twins took the lead in the seventh inning on a Justin Morneau groundout, bringing in Joe Mauer. The Reds replied in the eighth inning with a Joey Votto two-run home run, also scoring Valdez. Minnesota shot back in the ninth inning as Josh Willingham hit a two-run home run, sweeping in Denard Span. This made it 4-3, a final, with the win going to Diamond, while Jared Burton got a spot save and Aroldis Chapman was on the hook for the loss.

Down in Miami, the Marlins host the Toronto Blue Jays. Jesse Chavez and Mark Buehrle will be responsible for pitching. Miami began in the second inning as Scott Cousins singled in Greg Dobbs before coming home alongside Omar Infante when John Buck hit a three-run home run. The Marlins got some more in the sixth inning on a two-run home run from Dobbs, sweeping in Logan Morrison. Miami struck again in the seventh inning as Hanley Ramirez tripled to force in Austin Kearns and Jose Reyes, before coming home on a Morrison sacrifice fly. This produced a final of 9-0, with Buehrle pitching well in the win while Chavez had no support in the loss.

To the north again, the Pittsburgh Pirates host the Detroit Tigers. Justin Verlander faces a lesser foe in Kevin Correia. Detroit wasted little time in scoring first with a two-run first inning home run by Quintin Berry, also scoring Austin Jackson. Pittsburgh tied it in the seventh inning on a two-run home run by Garrett Jones, sweeping in Pedro Alvarez. The Tigers got the lead back in the eighth inning as Delmon Young singled in Berry. This was good for a 3-2 win, with Verlander going the distance to pick up the win while Chris Resop was handed the loss.

East into Baltimore, as the Orioles host the Washington Nationals. Ross Detwiler and Jake Arrieta are the back-of-the-rotation starters. Washington led off with a third inning Ryan Zimmerman single, providing Jhonatan Solano time to get home. Baltimore took the lead in the eighth inning as Matt Wieters hit a two-run home run, also scoring Adam Jones. This was good enough to secure a 2-1 win, earned by Pedro Strop, while Jim Johnson turned the save and Sean Burnett was dinged for the loss.

Into Boston, as the Red Sox host the Atlanta Braves. Mike Minor and Aaron Cook are the struggling pitchers. Boston was the first on the board as Cody Ross hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning, also scoring Dustin Pedroia and Will Middlebrooks before Adrian Gonzalez hit a solo home run. Atlanta pulled back in the fifth inning on an Eric Hinske triple to force in Jason Heyward and Andrelton Simmons, before he came home as Juan Francisco reached on an error. The Red Sox shot back in the bottom of the fifth as Middlebrooks hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Kelly Shoppach and Ross hit a two-run home run, sweeping in Daniel Nava. The Braves responded in the sixth inning on a Heyward solo shot. Boston answered with a Nava double to plate Shoppach in their half of the sixth. The Red Sox got another in the seventh when Kevin Youkilis tripled in Gonzalez. They held on from here to win 9-4, with Cook picking up the win and minor taking the tough loss.

Southwest to Houston, where the Astros host the Cleveland Indians. Derek Lowe and J.A. Happ will make the starts. Cleveland got on the board in the second inning when Jose Lopez scored on a wild pitch. Houston tied it in the fourth inning when Chris Johnson singled home Carlos Lee. The Astros took the lead in the sixth inning as Lee singled to score Jed Lowrie. Houston got another in the seventh inning with J.D. Martinez grounding into a double play to give time for Johnson to score. The Astros got some more in the eighth inning as Johnson hit a two-run home run, sweeping in Lowrie, followed by another two-run blast from Martinez, also scoring Jason Castro. This made it 7-1, the final, with Happ notching the win and Lowe suffering the loss.

Back to the north, as the Chicago White Sox host the Milwaukee Brewers. Michael Fiers and Jose Quintana are the little-known pitchers. Chicago won it in the tenth inning by a 1-0 score as Eduardo Escobar singled in Alejandro De Aza. Brian Bruney got the win while Manny Parra was stuck holding the loss.

South a tad to the battle of Missouri in the Kansas City, as the Royals host the St. Louis Cardinals. Lance Lynn and Jonathan Sanchez take their turns in the rotation. St. Louis struck first with a three-run home run in the first inning off the bat of Carlos Beltran, also scoring Allen Craig and Matt Holliday. Kansas City got some back in the bottom of the first when Mike Moustakas hit a two-run homer, sweeping in Irving Falu. The Cardinals answered in the second inning with Holliday doubling home Shane Robinson and Craig scoring on a wild pitch. The Royals got some back in the fourth inning with solo home runs by Moustakas and Jeff Francoeur, followed by a Jarrod Dyson triple to force in Brayan Pena. St. Louis took the lead back in the sixth inning as Yadier Molina hit a solo shot. Kansas City retied it in their half of the sixth as Salvador Perez grounded out to bring in Francoeur. The Cardinals obtained the lead again in the seventh inning as David Freese singled to plate Holliday. St. Louis added on in the eighth inning when Daniel Descalso singled to score Matt Carpenter and Craig singled to knock in both Robinson and Descalso, followed by a Holliday sacrifice fly to give Rafael Furcal time to dash home. The Royals tried a rally in the ninth inning as Billy Butler hit a two-run home run, also scoring Alex Gordon, but this only made it 11-8 in the end. Victor Marte was in line for the win while Tim Collins was responsible for the loss.

Out in California, the Los Angeles Angels host the Los Angeles Dodgers. Aaron Harang and Garrett Richards will be sent out to the mound. The Dodgers started off with a first inning Bobby Abreu single to drive in Andre Ethier. The Dodgers got another in the second inning with Dee Gordon grounding out, giving time for Adam Kennedy to get home. The Angels tied it in their half of the second with a two-run home run by Peter Bourjos, also scoring Erick Aybar. The Angels took the lead in the fifth inning as Albert Pujols singled in Mike Trout. The Dodgers retied it in the sixth inning as Kennedy hit a sacrifice fly to allow safe passage home for Juan Rivera. The Angels gained the lead in the seventh inning on a Mark Trumbo single, giving Pujols time to dash home, followed by Howie Kendrick doing the same for Kendrys Morales. This was good for a 5-3 win, with Scott Downs picking up the win, Ernesto Frieri tossing the save, and Josh Lindblom was on the hook for the loss.

South into San Diego, as the Padres host the Seattle Mariners. Hector Noesi and Edinson Volquez try to right the ship on their seasons in pitching. San Diego began in the fourth inning on an Alexi Amarista ground rule double, forcing in Chase Headley and Chris Denorfia. This was all the scoring in the game, with Volquez picking up the win, Huston Street converting his tenth save of the season, and Noesi had no run support in the loss, but he did go two for two at the plate.

Up to the Battle of the Bay, with the Oakland Athletics hosting the San Francisco Giants. Matt Cain faces a much lesser foe in A.J. Griffin. San Francisco quickly established a first inning lead as Buster Posey hit a two-run home run, also scoring Ryan Theriot. Oakland got one back in the bottom of the first as Josh Reddick singled home Coco Crisp. The Athletics won it in the ninth inning with a walkoff three-run home run by Derek Norris, sweeping in Jonny Gomes and Brandon Inge for a 4-2 victory. Jim Miller was in line for the win while Santiago Casilla took the loss.

Back east a bit, the Arizona Diamondbacks host the Chicago Cubs. Matt Garza and Wade Miley receive the green light to pitch. Arizona took an early lead with a first inning Justin Upton single to score Gerardo Parra. The Diamondbacks got another in the sixth inning when Aaron Hill singled to drive in Parra. Chicago got on the board in the seventh inning on an Alfonso Soriano solo home run. Arizona shot back in the bottom of the seventh as Jason Kubel hit a solo shot. The Diamondbacks got some more in the eighth inning with a 2-RBI Upton single plating both Miley and Parra. This made it 5-1, a final, with Miley earning the win and Garza taking the loss.

East again into Texas, with the Rangers hosting the Colorado Rockies. Alex White and Matt Harrison will be on the hill. Texas started with a second inning Leonys Martin double to bring in Nelson Cruz, before he came home on a double from Elvis Andrus. The Rangers added on in the third inning when Martin tripled to force in both Michael Young and Cruz. Colorado tried a ninth inning rally as Marco Scutaro singled in Jonathan Herrera and Carlos Gonzalez hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Dexter Fowler, but they couldn't avoid a 4-2 loss. Harrison was given the win while White suffered the loss.

Finally, we're in New York with the Subway Series, as the Mets host their crosstown rivals, the Yankees. Aces CC Sabathia and R.A. Dickey pace the game. The Yankees got things going in the third inning as Mark Teixeira hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Curtis Granderson before Nick Swisher lifted a three-run home run to sweep in Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano. The Mets got one back in their half of the inning as Ruben Tejada hit a sacrifice fly to score Andres Torres. The Yankees answered in the fifth inning with Teixeira grounding into a fielder's choice to get Granderson across the dish. The Mets shot back in the bottom of the fifth with a David Wright single to knock in the pitcher Dickey. The Mets tied it in the sixth inning when Torres singled in both Justin Turner and Josh Thole, followed by a Tejada single to plate Vinny Rottino. The Yankees took the lead again in the eighth inning as Cano hit a solo shot. This was all they needed for a 6-5 win, with Boone Logan picking up the win, Rafael Soriano getting his fifteenth save of the season, and Miguel Batista took the loss.

Follow me on Twitter @UltBaseballTrip, and check out ultimatebaseballfantasytrip.blogspot.com for the trip of a lifetime, passing on through Cincinnati today.