Wednesday, July 18, 2012

MLB Day 104 2012

Full slate for a getaway day, meaning six of the games come early. As a side note, this post won't be finished until later tomorrow as I have the honor and privilege of seeing my hometown Seattle Sounders FC host the English Premier League's Chelsea FC. For the baseball games, we begin with six matinees, starting in...

New York, where the Yankees host the Toronto Blue Jays. Ricky Romero and Hiroki Kuroda are the reliable pitchers. New York opened after about an hour of rain in the first inning as Nick Swisher singled in Derek Jeter before scoring on a two-run Mark Teixiera home run, followed by Andruw Jones singling Robinson Cano home. The Yankees got another in the fourth inning when Dewayne Wise hit a ground rule double, forcing in Jayson Nix. New York padded the lead in the sixth inning as Wise singled Nix home.This was good for a seven-inning 6-0 win, with Kuroda going the distance in the rain-shortened game and Romero was stuck holding the loss.

West to Milwaukee, as the Brewers host the St. Louis Cardinals. Adam Wainwright faces a lesser foe in Tyler Thornburg. Milwaukee led off in the first inning as Corey Hart singled both Norichika Aoki and Nyjer Morgan home, followed by Carlos Gomez reaching on an error to bring in Aramis Ramirez. St. Louis got on the board in the second inning as David Freese hit a solo home run. The Cardinals pulled closer in the third inning with an Allen Craig solo shot. St. Louis tried a ninth inning rally with Freese drawing a bases-loaded walk to force in Carlos Beltran, but they still lost 4-3. John Axford was in line for the win, Francisco Rodriguez turned an ugly save, and Wainwright was not freed from the loss.

Way west in California, the Los Angeles Dodgers host the Philadelphia Phillies. Cliff Lee and Clayton Kershaw are the staff aces pitching. Los Angeles started in the second inning on a solo home run by Juan Rivera. Philadelphia tied it in the fourth inning when Carlos Ruiz singled home Shane Victorino. The Phillies took a lead in the tenth inning as Hunter Pence singled both Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley safely home. The Dodgers tied it in the bottom of the tenth as Bobby Abreu singled to knock in Luis Cruz, before scoring on a single by Matt Kemp. Los Angeles won in the twelfth inning by a 5-3 score with a two-run home run from Kemp, sweeping in Mark Ellis. Jamey Wright was in line for the win, while Jake Diekman suffered the loss.

Backtracking to Colorado, where the Rockies host the Pittsburgh Pirates. James McDonald and Jeremy Guthrie are handed the ball. Colorado began in the first inning on a Dexter Fowler solo home run, followed by a two-run home run by Carlos Gonzalez, also scoring Marco Scutaro. Pittsburgh got one back in the second inning as Pedro Alvarez hit a solo shot. The Rockies padded their lead in the bottom of the second as Scutaro grounded out to bring in Jordan Pacheco, followed by Andrew Brown singling Josh Rutledge in. The Pirates got some back in the third inning on a three-run Garrett Jones home run, sweeping in McDonald and Andrew McCutchen, before taking the lead on a 2-RBI Clint Barmes single scoring Casey McGehee and Alvarez. Colorado fired back in the fourth inning on a Brown single to drive in Scutaro. Pittsburgh retook the lead in the fifth inning on a two-run blast by McGehee, also scoring Jones, followed by a Rod Barajas solo home run. This was all for the scoring, with he final being 9-6. McDonald picked up an ugly win, while Joel Hanrahan turned the save and Matt Reynolds was stuck holding the loss.

Back in California, the Oakland Athletics welcome the Texas Rangers. Colby Lewis returns from the disabled list to face Travis Blackley. Texas finally opened the scoring in the fifth inning as Craig Gentry doubled in Brandon Snyder. Oakland tied it in their half of the inning on a Brandon Inge solo home run. The Rangers took the lead back in the sixth inning as Michael Young singled home Elvis Andrus, followed by Nelson Cruz doing the same for Adrian Beltre. The Athletics tied it in the seventh inning on a 2-RBI Josh Reddick double, driving in Inge and Brandon Hicks. Oakland won the game in the bottom of the ninth by a 4-3 score on a Hicks solo shot. Ryan Cook picked up the win and Michael Kirkman was given the loss.

South to San Diego, as the Padres host the Houston Astros. Wandy Rodriguez and Clayton Richard are the solid pitchers. San Diego got going in the fourth inning as Alexi Amarista scored on a wild pitch, followed by Chris Denorfia singling Logan Forsythe and Chase Headley home, followed by both Carlos Quentin and Denorfia coming home on a Yonder Alonso double. The Padres got another in the fifth inning as Headley used two errors to come home. Houston got some back in the sixth inning when Matt Downs hit a three-run home run, sweeping in J.D. Martinez and Justin Maxwell. San Diego answered in their half of the inning as the pitcher Richard doubled Everth Cabrera across the dish. The Padres got another in the seventh inning as Alonso doubled to plate Denorfia. The Astros got one back in the ninth inning on a Downs solo home run. This was as close as it got, with the final at 8-4, leaving Richard the win, Huston Street hit fifteenth save of the season, and Rodriguez was on the hook for the loss.

Back northeast, the Detroit Tigers host the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. C.J. Wilson and Doug Fister the well-known pitchers. Los Angeles quickly scored in the first inning on an Albert Pujols solo home run. Detroit answered in the bottom of the first with a Delmon Young single to knock in Miguel Cabrera. The Tigers added on in the second inning as Ryan Raburn singled in Brennan Boesch, Cabrera grounded out to bring home Gerald Laird, and Prince Fielder hit a 2-RBI single plating Danny Worth and Raburn. Detroit padded the lead in the fifth inning as Boesch doubled to score both Cabrera and Jhonny Peralta. The Angels tried a rally in the ninth inning on a Torii Hunter groundout to drive in Mike Trout, but it wasn't enough to avoid a 7-2 loss. Fister earned the win and Wilson was stuck with the loss.

East further to Washington, as the Nationals host the New York Mets. Chris Young and Jordan Zimmermann get the starting nods. Washington began with a sixth inning two-run home run from Adam LaRoche, also scoring Bryce Harper. New York got one back in the seventh inning as Andres Torres singled Lucas Duda home. The Nationals padded their lead in the bottom of the seventh on a Steve Lombardozzi double, plating both Jesus Flores and Roger Bernadina. The Mets tried a ninth inning rally with a pair of solo home runs from David Wright and Jason Bay, but they still lost 4-3. Zimmerman picked up a strong win, Tyler Clippard turned in his fifteenth save in an ugly fashion, and Young was not freed from the loss.

Down in Tampa Bay, the Rays host the Cleveland Indians. Justin Masterson and Jeremy Hellickson take the mound. Tampa Bay started in the second inning on an Elliot Johnson single to bring in Luke Scott and a B.J. Upton sacrifice fly allowing Desmond Jennings to come home. The Rays added on in the third inning with Scott singling in Ben Zobrist and Jennings hitting a bunt single to give Matt Joyce time to score. Cleveland got going in the fifth inning on a Jack Hannahan double to knock in both Carlos Santana and Casey Kotchman before he scored on a single by Shin-Soo Choo. The Indians rallied ahead in the seventh inning as Jason Kipnis singled home Choo, Michael Brantley did the same for Asdrubal Cabrera, and Santana cleared the bases with a three-run home run, sweeping in Kipnis and Brantley. Tampa Bay got one back in the bottom of the seventh as Johnson singled to drive in Scott. Cleveland went back to work in the ninth inning as Kipnis singled in Cabrera and Santana finished Kipnis' trip with a single. The Rays tried a rally in their half of the ninth as Jennings grounded out to get Jeff Keppinger home but they would still fall 10-6. Esmil Rogers was in lnie for the win while Kyle Farnsworth was on the hook for the loss.

North a bit to Atlanta, as the Braves host the San Francisco Giants. Ryan Vogelsong and Mike Minor are the talented pitchers. Atlanta opened with a third inning Juan Francisco solo home run. San Francisco tied it in the sixth inning on a Melky Cabrera solo shot. The Giants took the lead in the tenth inning as Justin Christian reached on an error allowing Joaquin Arias to score and Cabrera single to drive in Brandon Crawford. The Braves evened the ledger with a two-run Brian McCann home run in the bottom of the tenth, also scoring Freddie Freeman. San Francisco charged ahead with a pair of three-run home runs, as Crawford hit the first blast, sweeping in Eli Whiteside and Brandon Belt, followed by Gregor Blanco going yard and taking both Christian and Cabrera with him. Atlanta got one back in their half of the inning on a Chipper Jones solo home run, but this only made it a 9-4 final. Santiago Casilla got the win despite blowing the save while Anthony Varvaro was responsible for the loss.

Still to the north, the Boston Red Sox host the Chicago White Sox. Pedro Hernandez and Felix Doubront are the little-known pitchers. Chicago wasted no time in scoring with a first inning Paul Konerko single to drive in Alejandro De Aza. Boston answered in the bottom of the first as Adrian Gonzalez singled home Jacoby Ellsbury. The Red Sox took the lead in the third inning as Cody Ross hit a three-run home run, sweeping in Ellsbury and Carl Crawford. Boston added on in the fourth inning as Ross went yard again on a three-run blast, also scoring Pedro Ciriaco and Ellsbury, followed by a Gonzalez solo home run. The Red Sox got some more in the sixth inning with a 2-RBI Gonzalez single to plate Crawford and Ross. This made it 10-1, an eventual final, with Doubront picking up the win and Hernandez getting hit hard in the loss.

Over in Cincinnati, the Reds host the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ian Kennedy and Mat Latos are the staff aces pitching. Arizona led off in the first inning on a two-run Jason Kubel home run, also scoring Aaron Hill. Cincinnati got one back in the second inning on a Drew Stubbs single to drive in Ryan Hanigan. The Diamondbacks shot back in the fourth inning as Kubel went yard again on a solo shot. Arizona extended the lead in the fifth inning with Hill doubling Ryan Roberts in and Miguel Montero drawing a bases-loaded walk to force in the pitcher Kennedy. The Diamondbacks got some more in the eighth inning with Paul Goldschmidt doubling Justin Upton across the dish before scoring on a passed ball. This was it for the scoring, leaving the final at 8-1, with the win going to Kennedy and the loss to Latos.

West further into Chicago, as the Cubs host the Miami Marlins. Josh Johnson and Jeff Samardzija will handle the pitching. Miami got things going in the third inning on a Jose Reyes solo home run. Chicago tied it in the fourth inning as Starlin Castro hit a solo shot. The Cubs took the lead in the seventh inning as Geovany Soto singled in Alfonso Soriano before scoring alongside Darwin Barney on a double from Jeff Baker, and then David DeJesus hit a sacrifice fly to give Luis Valbuena time to dash home. The rain cut this game short as well, so after eight innings, the final stood at 5-1. James Russell picked up the win and Johnson was handed the loss.

Up into Minnesota, as the Twins welcome the Baltimore Orioles. Tommy Hunter and Francisco Liriano take the hill. Baltimore quickly took a first inning on a two-run Adam Jones home run, sweeping in J.J. Hardy. Minnesota got one back in the fourth inning on a Josh Willingham solo home run. This wasn't enough, and they scored no more throughout the game to avoid the 2-1 loss, setting Hunter up for the win, Jim Johnson for a save, and Liriano took the hard luck loss.

Finally, in Kansas City, the Royals host the Seattle Mariners. Kevin Millwood and Bruce Chen have the green light to pitch. Seattle was first to score in the second inning with a Kyle Seager solo home run. Kansas City rallied ahead in their half of the inning as Mike Moustakas doubled in Billy Butler, followed by Brayan Pena grounding out to bring in Lorenzo Cain and Chris Getz reaching on a bunt single to finish Moustakas' trip around. The Mariners tied it in the fourth inning as Casper Wells hit a two-run home run, also scoring Ichiro. The Royals took the lead back in their half of the inning on a 2-RBI Alex Gordon double to plate both Pena and Getz. Kansas City added on in the fifth inning with Cain hitting a two-run home run, sweeping in Butler. Seattle shot back in the sixth inning as Miguel Olivo singled Wells across the dish. The Mariners rallied to tie in the seventh inning when Jesus Montero singled in both Ichiro and Wells, followed by Seager doubling Montero in. The Royals got the last laugh, winning in walkoff fashion in the ninth inning on a Butler solo shot for a 9-8 final. Greg Holland grabbed the win while Josh Kinney was on the hook for the loss.

Follow me on Twitter @KipperScorpion.

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