MLB Day 151 2012

Happy Labor Day, the unofficial end of summer in the USA, and the benchmark for the stretch run in baseball. Mostly matinees today, beginning in...

Detroit, as the Tigers host the Cleveland Indians. Corey Kluber and Anibal Sanchez are the struggling starters. Cleveland opened as Jason Kipnis scored on passed ball in the first inning. Detroit answered in the bottom of the first as Delmon Young singled to knock in Quintin Berry. The Indians retook the lead in the third inning on an Asdrubal Cabrera single, scoring Shin-Soo Choo. The Tigers retied it in the fourth inning on a Jhonny Peralta single, allowing Young to dash home. Cleveland got the lead back in the seventh inning on a Cabrera sacrifice fly that provided time for Lou Marson to dart home. This made it 3-2, the eventual final, with Kluber picking up the win, Vinnie Pestano turning a spot save, and Darin Downs was handed the loss.

Back east, the Washington Nationals host the Chicago Cubs. Jeff Samardzija and Ross Detwiler are the surprisingly good pitchers. Washington got going in the second inning on an Adam LaRoche solo home run. The Nationals got another in the eighth inning as Ryan Zimmerman doubled to plate Bryce Harper. Chicago tried a ninth inning rally as Welington Castillo singled home Anthony Rizzo, but they couldn't tie it, falling 2-1. Detwiler picked up the win, Tyler Clippard tossed the messy save as his thirtieth of the season, and Samardzija was not freed from the loss.

Up in Canada, the Toronto Blue Jays host the Baltimore Orioles. Joe Saunders and J.A. Happ are the veteran starters. Baltimore began with a second inning Nate McLouth sacrifice to get Manny Machado home. The Orioles added on in the fifth inning as Nick Markakis doubled to plate Robert Andino, before scoring on a J.J. Hardy double. Baltimore struck again in the eighth inning with a Hardy single to knock in McLouth. This was all for the scoring, leaving the final at 4-0. Saunders got the win and Happ took the loss.

Well south, the Miami Marlins host the Milwaukee Brewers. Mike Fiers and Ricky Nolasco are the inconsistent pitchers. Milwaukee led off in the second inning as Carlos Gomez hit a two-run home run, also scoring Jonathan Lucroy. Miami got on the board in the third inning as Jose Reyes hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Gorkys Hernandez. The Marlins rallied ahead in the fourth inning on a Donnie Murphy single to knock in Justin Ruggiano, a Nolasco bunt single that gave time for Rob Brantly to come home, a Donovan Solano single plating Murphy, and a Reyes single doing the same for Nolasco and Hernandez. The Brewers got one back in the seventh inning when Ryan Braun singled to drive in Jean Segura. Miami shot back in the eighth inning when Hernandez reached on an error that allowed Brantly safe passage home. This was it for the scoring, with the final being 7-3. Nolasco earned the win, Steve Cishek finished off for a save, and Fiers was dealt the loss.

Back north a touch to Cincinnati, as the Reds welcome the Philadelphia Phillies. Tyler Cloyd is mismatched with Johnny Cueto. Cincinnati started with a second inning Jay Bruce solo home run. Philadelphia took the lead in the fifth inning on a three-run Jimmy Rollins home run, sweeping in Steve Lerud and the pitcher Cloyd. The Phillies got another in the sixth inning as John Mayberry hit a solo shot. The Reds tried a ninth inning rally when Bruce singled home Ryan Ludwick, but this only made it a 4-2 final. Cloyd got the win, Phillippe Aumont got the spot save, and Cueto took a rare loss.

Back in Florida, the Tampa Bay Rays host the New York Yankees. CC Sabathia and James Shields pace the game. Tampa Bay opened with a second inning Chris Gimenez single to knock in Jeff Keppinger. The Rays added on in the third inning as B.J. Upton hit a solo home run. New York got on the board in the fourth inning with an Eric Chavez sacrifice fly to bring in Robinson Cano, followed by Raul Ibanez tripling to force in Alex Rodriguez, before he came home the final 90 feet on a Russell Martin single. Tampa Bay retied it in the fifth inning on an Evan Longoria groundout to allow Upton to dart home. The Rays took the lead in the eighth inning on a Gimenez single that plated Ryan Roberts. This held up for a 4-3 win, earned by Shields, while Fernando Rodney shut the door for a save, and David Robertson was on the hook for the loss.

Into Georgia, where the Atlanta Braves host the Colorado Rockies. Tyler Chatwood and Kris Medlen get the starting nods. Atlanta struck first in the first inning as Michael Bourn scored on a wild pitch and Martin Prado reached on an error to get Freddie Freeman home. The Braves struck again in the third inning as Prado hit a sacrifice fly to score Bourn, followed by Juan Francisco singling to bring in Jose Constanza, and a 2-RBI David Ross double to drive in both Freeman and Francisco. Colorado got on the board in the seventh inning as a Jordan Pacheco single combined with an error to knock in Carlos Gonzalez. This was as close as it got, with the final standing at 6-1, giving Medlen a dominant complete game win and Chatwood suffered the loss.

Up to Pennsylvania, as the Pittsburgh Pirates host the Houston Astros. Edgar Gonzalez and Jeff Locke are the completely unknown pitchers. Houston quickly scored first in the first inning as Matt Downs grounded out to get Tyler Greene home. The Astros added on in the third inning as Justin Maxwell grounded into a fielder's choice to bring in Greene. Houston padded the lead in the fifth inning on a three-run home run by Brett Wallace, sweeping in Jose Altuve and Greene. Pittsburgh got on the board in their half of the inning as Clint Barmes singled home Pedro Alvarez. They scored no more, losing 5-1, with Gonzalez getting the win and Locke taking the loss.

Back west, the Kansas City Royals host the Texas Rangers. Yu Darvish faces a lesser foe in Bruce Chen. Texas started in the second inning on a three-run home run by Geovany Soto, sweeping in Nelson Cruz and David Murphy. The Rangers struck again in the third inning on a Josh Hamilton solo home run. Texas extended the lead in the sixth inning as both Adrian Beltre and Cruz hit solo shots. Kansas City got on the board in their half of the inning as Tony Abreu tripled both Johnny Giavotella and David Lough in before scoring on an Alex Gordon double. The Royals pulled closer with an eighth inning Abreu single to knock in Brayan Pena. The Rangers extended the lead in the ninth inning on a two-run home run from Michael Young, also scoring Cruz. This produced the 8-4 final, with Darvish getting the win and Chen suffering the loss.

Across Missouri, the St. Louis Cardinals host the New York Mets. Collin McHugh and Joe Kelly are the young pitchers. St. Louis began in the first inning as Matt Carpenter grounded out to get Jon Jay home. The Cardinals extended the lead in the third inning on a Carpenter sacrifice fly to bring in the pitcher Kelly and a Yadier Molina single to knock in Matt Holliday. St. Louis padded the lead in the fourth inning as Skip Schumaker hit a solo home run. New York got on the board in the seventh inning as Kelly Shoppach hit a two-run home run, also scoring Mike Baxter. The Cardinals answered in their half of the inning on an Allen Craig single to score Jay. The Mets pulled closer in the eighth inning when Daniel Murphy hit a two-run home, bringing in Ruben Tejada. They didn't get the equalizer, losing 5-4, with Kelly getting the win, Jason Motte tossing the save, and McHugh was handed the loss.

Out west, the San Francisco Giants host the Arizona Diamondbacks. Patrick Corbin and Barry Zito are the back-of-the-rotation pitchers. San Francisco led off with a first inning Buster Posey double to drive in Marco Scutaro, followed by Hunter Pence hitting a 2-RBI triple to force in Pablo Sandoval and Posey, before he scored on a Hector Sanchez single. Arizona got on the board in the fifth inning with a two-run home run by Chris Johnson, also scoring Miguel Montero. The Diamondbacks pulled closer in the sixth inning as Paul Goldschmidt hit a ground rule double to force in Justin Upton, followed by a Johnson sacrifice fly to plate Jason Kubel, before taking the lead on a Willie Bloomquist single that finished Goldschmidt's trip around,a Chris Young single that did the same for Cody Ransom (yes, he's back with the D-Backs), and Aaron Hill followed suit to get Bloomquist the rest of the way home. The Giants replied in the seventh inning as Sandoval singled Angel Pagan across the dish. Arizona shot back in the eighth inning on an Upton single to push in Ryan Wheeler. San Francisco rallied back in the bottom of the eighth as Brandon Crawford doubled to score Sanchez before scoring on a single by Brandon Belt. The Giants tied it in the ninth inning on a Posey double, getting Marco Scutaro around. San Francisco won 9-8 in the tenth inning as Scutaro singled Crawford across the plate. Sergio Romo was in line for the win, while Bryan Shaw was handed the loss.

Across the bay, the Oakland Athletics host the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. C.J. Wilson and Tommy Milone are on the hill. Los Angeles started with a second inning Vernon Wells single to get Erick Aybar home, followed by Chris Iannetta doing the same for Alberto Callaspo. The Angels added on in the third inning with a Torii Hunter solo home run and an Aybar single to knock in Howie Kendrick. Los Angeles padded the lead as Wells hit a solo shot in the fourth inning. Oakland got on the board in the bottom of the fourth as Josh Reddick singled home Jonny Gomes. The Athletics pulled closer in the fifth inning as Josh Donaldson hit a solo home run. The Angels padded the lead in the sixth inning on a two-run home run by Iannetta, also scoring Wells, followed by Hunter hitting a sacrifice fly to drive in Mike Trout. Oakland took one back in the seventh inning on a Chris Carter solo shot. This was as close as it got, with the win going to Wilson while Milone was shelled in the loss.

Further north, the Seattle Mariners host the Boston Red Sox. Clay Buchholz and Jason Vargas take the mound. Boston opened in the first inning on a Cody Ross single to knock in Dustin Pedroia. Seattle tied it in the fourth inning as John Jaso singled in Franklin Gutierrez, before taking the lead as Justin Smoak did the same for Kyle Seager, and then Eric Thames flied out, which combined with an error to get Jaso home and Carlos Peguero reached on an error to bring in Smoak. This rally paced them to a 4-1 win, earned by Vargas, while Tom Wilhelmsen closed out for a save, and Buchholz was dinged for the loss.

East to Chicago, as the White Sox host the Minnesota Twins. Samuel Deduno and Hector Santiago are the relievers-turned-starters pitching. Chicago led off in the second inning as Gordon Beckham hit a two-run home run, also scoring A.J. Pierzynski. Minnesota answered in the fifth inning with a Jamey Carroll solo home run. The White Sox replied in the seventh inning as Paul Konerko singled home Kevin Youkilis. The Twins shot back in the eighth inning on a Justin Morneau single to plate Joe Mauer. Chicago struck again in the eighth inning when Beckham singled to drive in Alexei Ramirez. This made it 4-2, a final, with Santiago notching the win, Addison Reed turning the save as his twenty-fifth of the season, and Deduno was stuck with the loss.

Finally, we end in Los Angeles, as the Dodgers host the San Diego Padres. Andrew Werner and Joe Blanton have the green light to pitch. San Diego started with a first inning two-run home run by Chase Headley, also scoring Will Venable. Los Angeles shot back in the fifth inning as Mark Ellis singled to knock in Luis Cruz. The Dodgers tied it in the sixth inning on a Hanley Ramirez solo home run. The Padres took the lead in the seventh inning on a Headley single to plate Clayton Richard. Los Angeles tied it in the ninth inning on an Andre Ethier solo shot. The Dodgers won 4-3 in the eleventh inning as A.J. Ellis singled in Ethier. Brandon League was in line for the win while Cory Burns was handed the loss.

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