MLB Day 153 2012

Four early games before the regular slate, with getaway day beginning in...

Cincinnati, as the Reds host the Philadelphia Phillies. Roy Halladay and Mike Leake take their turns in the rotation. Philadelphia established a lead in the second inning as Domonic Brown singled in Ryan Howard, followed by a three-run home run off the bat of Erik Kratz, sweeping in John Mayberry and Brown. The Phillies added on in the third inning as Chase Utley hit a two-run home run, also scoring Juan Pierre. Cincinnati got on the board in the fourth inning on a Jay Bruce double to bring in Chris Heisey. The Reds tried a ninth inning rally on a Bruce solo home run, but this only made it a 6-2 final. Halladay got the win and Leake was handed the loss.

Over in St. Louis, the Cardinals host the New York Mets. R.A. Dickey and Adam Wainwright pace the game. New York started in the second inning on a Josh Thole single to get Justin Turner home. The Mets added on in the third inning as Lucas Duda drew a bases-loaded walk to force in Mike Baxter. St. Louis replied in their half of the inning on a solo home run by the pitcher Wainwright. New York shot back in the fifth inning on a three-run Ike Davis home run, sweeping in Baxter and Daniel Murphy. The Cardinals got one back in the seventh inning as Allen Craig grounded into a double play to give time for Daniel Descalso to dash home. The Mets extended the lead in the eighth inning on an Andres Torres single to plate Turner. This was it for the scoring, leaving the final at 6-2. Dickey notched the win and Wainwright was stuck with the loss.

Up in Chicago, the White Sox host the Minnesota Twins. P.J. Walters is mismatched with Jake Peavy. Chicago set the tone in the first inning on an Alex Rios grand slam, sweeping in Dewayne Wise, Kevin Youkilis, and Adam Dunn. Minnesota shot back in the third inning as Eduardo Escobar hit a sacrifice fly to bring in Matt Carson. The White Sox extended the lead in the sixth inning as Rios hit a two-run home run, also scoring Paul Konerko. The Twins tried a ninth inning rally when Carson hit a sacrifice fly to plate Ryan Doumit, but they scored no more, losing 6-2. Peavy earned the win and Walters was given the loss.

Out west, the Oakland Athletics host the Los Angeles Angels. Dan Haren and Brandon McCarthy get the starting nods. Los Angeles opened in the third inning as Torii Hunter singled in Alberto Callaspo before scoring alongside Albert Pujols on a Howie Kendrick single. Oakland got on the board in the bottom of the third as Seth Smith singled to score Derek Norris. The Angels rallied to extend the lead in the ninth inning with Maicer Izturis walking with the bases loaded to force in Peter Bourjos, followed by a 2-RBI Hunter single to knock in both Erick Aybar and Callaspo, and then Izturis stole home cleanly to produce the 7-1 final. Haren notched the win and McCarthy was stuck with the loss after getting hit in the head by a come-backer.

East to Pittsburgh, where the Pirates host the Houston Astros. Fernando Abad and Kevin Correia are the little known pitchers. Pittsburgh started in the first inning as Garrett Jones singled in Clint Barmes, followed by Gaby Sanchez doing the same for Andrew McCutchen. The Pirates got another in the second inning as Brock Holt singled, scoring Alex Presley. Houston answered in the fourth inning on a Brian Bogusevic single that allowed Jimmy Parades to dash home. Pittsburgh shot back in their half of the inning on a Presley triple to force in Rod Barajas, before finishing his trip on a Holt sacrifice fly. The Pirates added on in the sixth inning as Barmes sacrificed to get Presley in. The Astros tried a ninth inning rally when Brandon Laird hit a two-run home run, also scoring Brett Wallace, making the final 6-3. Correia was handed the win while Abad was dinged for the loss.

Backing up to Detroit, as the Tigers host the Cleveland Indians. Ubaldo Jimenez and Doug Fister are the inconsistent pitchers. Detroit led off in the first inning on a two-run Miguel Cabrera home run, also scoring Austin Jackson. Cleveland got on the board with a fourth inning Michael Brantley single to bring in Jason Kipnis. The Tigers rallied to extend the lead in the eighth inning when Andy Dirks tripled to force in Jackson before scoring on a Cabrera sacrifice fly, followed by a Prince Fielder solo home run, and a Jhonny Peralta 2-RBI double to plate both Quintin Berry and Avisail Garcia. This made it 7-1, with Fister grabbing the win and Jimenez was pinned with the loss.

Further east, the Washington Nationals host the Chicago Cubs. Chris Volstad and Gio Gonzalez are penciled in to pitch. Washington began in the first inning when Adam LaRoche singled to plate Roger Bernadina. The Nationals added on in the third inning as both Bernadina and Bryce Harper hit solo home runs, followed by a two-run long ball from LaRoche, also scoring Ryan Zimmerman. Washington struck again in the sixth inning as Harper hit a solo shot. The Nationals padded the lead in the seventh inning on Ian Desmond and Danny Espinosa solo home runs, followed by a bases-loaded walk drawn by Zimmerman to force in Kurt Suzuki. Chicago got on the board in the ninth inning with an Anthony Rizzo solo shot, producing the 9-1 final, with Gonzalez getting the win, while Volstad was dealt the loss.

Up in Canada, the Toronto Blue Jays host the Baltimore Orioles. Miguel Gonzalez and Brandon Morrow are the solid starters. Baltimore got going with a second inning Adam Jones solo home run, followed by Manny Machado grounding out to bring in Matt Wieters. Toronto got on the board in the bottom of the second as Kelly Johnson doubled home Adam Lind. The Blue Jays tied it in the third inning with a Rajai Davis solo shot. Toronto extended the lead in the seventh inning as Adeiny Hechevarria laid down a bunt single to score Yunel Escobar, followed by a 2-RBI single from Davis that plated both Johnson and Hechevarria, and later Anthony Gose after an error. The Orioles tried a ninth inning rally as Mark Reynolds hit a two-run home run, also scoring Wieters, but they failed to tie the game and lost 6-4. Steve Delabar was credited with the win while Gonzalez was on the hook for the loss.

Back in the States, the Atlanta Braves host the Colorado Rockies. Alex White and Mike Minor are the young starters. Atlanta started in the fourth inning as Brian McCann grounded into a fielder's choice that combined with an error to get Chipper Jones home. This was the only run, with the 1-0 final in favor of Minor, while Craig Kimbrel tossed the save, and White took the unlucky loss.

Further south, the Tampa Bay Rays host the New York Yankees. Hiroki Kuroda and Matt Moore are set to start. Tampa Bay was first to score with a first inning Evan Longoria single to plate Sam Fuld. New York rallied ahead in the fourth inning as Alex Rodriguez doubled to score Derek Jeter before being forced in alongside Robinson Cano on a ground rule double by Russell Martin. The Rays tied it in the fifth inning when Zobrist tripled to push both Fuld and Desmond Jennings in. The Yankees got the lead back with a sixth inning Martin solo home run. Tampa Bay tied it in the bottom of the sixth as Luke Scott hit a solo shot. New York took the lead back in the seventh inning as Jeter reached on an error that got both Ichiro Suzuki and Steve Pearce across the dish. This made the final 6-4, with Kuroda notching the win, Rafael Soriano tossing the save, and Moore was handed the loss.

Staying in Florida, the Miami Marlins host the Milwaukee Brewers. Wily Peralta and Nathan Eovaldi are the completely unknown pitchers. Milwaukee struck first in the third inning on a two-run home run by Rickie Weeks, also scoring Norichika Aoki. Miami got on the board in the fifth inning when John Buck singled home Carlos Lee. The Brewers added on in the seventh inning as Weeks hit another two-run homer, again scoring Aoki, and a two-run blast by Corey Hart to drive in Aramis Ramirez. The Marlins answered in their half of the inning when Greg Dobbs singled in Justin Ruggiano, followed by Bryan Petersen doing the same for Buck, Donovan Solano following suit for Donnie Murphy, and Jose Reyes hitting a sacrifice fly to finish Dobbs' trip around. Milwaukee padded the lead in the ninth inning on a 2-RBI Hart double, driving in Weeks and Jonathan Lucroy. This produced an 8-5 final, with Peralta getting the win, John Axford turning his twenty-fifth save of the season, while Eovaldi was given the loss.

Northwest to Kansas City, where the Royals welcome the Texas Rangers. Ryan Demspter and Everett Teaford are called on to pitch. Texas wasted little time in scoring first as Adrian Beltre hit a three-run home run, sweeping in Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton in the first inning. Kansas City got on the board in the bottom of the first as Billy Butler doubled home Alcides Escobar. The Royals pulled closer in the sixth inning on a Salvador Perez double to get Butler home. The Rangers extended their lead in the seventh inning as Michael Young hit a solo home run, followed by Kinsler hitting a sacrifice fly to plate Geovany Soto and Elvis Andrus singling in Mitch Moreland. Kansas City replied in their half of the inning as Jeff Francoeur scored on a wild pitch and David Lough hit a sacrifice fly to give time for Eric Hosmer to score. Texas shot back in the eighth inning on a Nelson Cruz single, driving in Beltre. The Royals answered in their half of the inning when Mike Moustakas grounded into a fielder's choice that allowed Butler to dash home. Kansas City tried a ninth inning rally as Escobar singled to get Jarrod Dyson safely home, but they couldn't tie it, losing 7-6, with Dempster getting the win, Joe Nathan turning a messy save, and Teaford was not freed from the loss.

Westward to Los Angeles, as the Dodgers host the San Diego Padres. Clayton Richard and Aaron Harang take the hill. San Diego paced themselves to a first inning lead as Chase Headley doubled in Everth Cabrera, and also Will Venalbe after an error, before scoring on a Yasmani Grandal single. Los Angeles got on the board in the second inning as Luis Cruz singled Hanley Ramirez in. The Dodgers took one back in the third inning as Adrian Gonzalez singled home Mark Ellis. Los Angeles tied it in the fifth inning when Ramirez singled to get Shane Victorino across the plate. The Padres took the lead again in the seventh inning as Carlos Quentin hit a sacrifice fly that allowed Venable to dash home. This ended the scoring at 4-3, with the win belonging to Nick Vincent, the save turned by Tommy Layne, and the loss stuck on Shawn Tolleson.

North to Seattle, as the Mariners host the Boston Red Sox. Aaron Cook and Kevin Millwood are the back-of-the-rotation pitchers. Seattle opened in the fourth inning as Dustin Ackley singled to score both Eric Thames and Mike Carp. Boston got on the board in the sixth inning as Cody Ross doubled in Jacoby Ellsbury. They failed to tie the game, falling 2-1, giving Millwood the win, while Tom Wilhelmsen notched the save, and Cook was given the loss.

Finally, we end in San Francisco, as the Giants host the Arizona Diamondbacks. Trevor Cahill and Madison Bumgarner take the mound. Arizona led off with a first inning Miguel Montero single to knock in Adam Eaton. The Diamondbacks got another in the fourth inning when John McDonald singled in Chris Johnson. Arizona struck again in the seventh inning on an Aaron Hill double to drive in Eaton, followed by Paul Goldschmidt singling Hill the rest of the way home, before coming home alongside Montero on a Johnson double. San Francisco got on the board in their half of the inning as Brandon Belt hit a 2-RBI single to score both Marco Scutaro and Buster Posey. They scored no more, losing 6-2, with the win earned by Cahill and the loss pinned on Bumgarner.

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