Aroldis Chapman's debut

Aroldis Chapman made his much anticipated MLB debut Tuesday night for the Cincinnati Reds. Chapman was clocked at 103 mph twice in his perfect inning of work. He pitched the 8th inning and struck out one. Veteran Aaron Harang returned to the Reds rotation and he went four innings while allowing three runs (one earned) on eight hits. The Reds pounded Milwaukee Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo for eight runs in just five innings. The Reds increased their lead in the National League Central to seven games over the St. Louis Cardinals, who continue to struggle.

The Cardinals were shutout for the second straight day by Houston Astros pitching, this time by Wandy Rodriguez (and three relievers). Rodriguez allowed just two hits through seven innings while striking out five. Michael Bourn and Hunter Pence collected two hits a piece for the Astros, with Pence driving in two runs.

The Texas Rangers acquired outfielder Jeff Francoeur from the NY Mets for utility-fielder Joaquin Arias. This move gives the Rangers a veteran power bat and a great throwing arm from the outfield to back up Nelson Cruz. Cliff Lee again struggled for the Rangers, as he lasted just 4.2 innings while giving up seven runs (four earned) on ten hits. It was his shortest outing of the season. Despite the poor start from Lee, the Rangers pounded out 16 hits and nine runs (Michael Young, David Murphy, Vladimir Guerrero, and Mitch Moreland all homered) and the game against the KC Royals went to the bottom of the 9th inning tied at 9-9. The Royals scored the game winner on a wild pitch from reliever Alexi Ogando, scoring Willie Bloomquist.
The NY Yankees finally pulled ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East as they beat the Oakland A’s 9-3. Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson, and Mark Teixeira all homered for the Yankees. Yankees starter Phil Hughes struggled, but gave the team enough for the victory (five innings, two runs, four hits, and five walks).

Jose Bautista homers

The Rays held a 3-1 lead over the Toronto Blue Jays until the Blue Jays scored ten runs in the top of the 6th inning to pound the Rays 13-5. Rays starter Jeff Niemann did not record an out in the 6th inning, as all six batters he faced scored. Lance Cormier came on in relief and allowed two homeruns, by Aaron Hill and AL homerun-leader Jose Bautista (his 43rd). The Blue Jays pounded out 15 hits with every starter recording at least one hit. Blue Jays starter Rickey Romero was wild (he walked five) and allowed five runs (four earned) but allowed just three hits in 7.1 innings for the victory.

The Baltimore Orioles have been receiving great starting pitching as of late, and Tuesday night was no different. Rookie left-hander Brian Matusz allowed just two runs (on a Jed Lowrie two-run homerun in the 5th inning) on six hits through six innings. Jim Johnson returned to the Orioles from the DL to pitch an inning of scoreless relief and Mike Gonzalez and Koji Uehara closed out the Boston Red Sox (Uehara earned his 5th save of the season). Red Sox starter Josh Beckett was the hard-luck loser as he allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits through seven innings. The Red Sox dropped to eight games back of the Yankees and are still seven games back of the Rays in the wild card race.

The San Diego Padres have now lost six games in a row as they lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-4. The Diamondbacks scored five runs in the 5th inning off Padres starter Kevin Correia and reliever Joe Thatcher. The inning was highlighted by a Miguel Montero two-run double and Gerardo Parra two-run single. Despite the slide, the Padres still hold a four game lead in the NL West over the SF Giants.

The Giants held on against the Colorado Rockies, as they score three runs in the bottom of the 8th inning to win 5-2. Rookies Esmil Rogers of the Rockies and Madison Bumgarner of the Giants pitched six solid innings for their teams. Andres Torres hit a solo homerun to lead off the 8th inning and Buster Posey delivered a two-run double.

The Atlanta Braves scored seven runs in the bottom of the 5th inning against NY Mets starter Jonathon Niese and the Braves held on for a 9-2 victory. The inning was highlighted by a Jason Heyward two-run double and David Ross’ grand slam. Rookie Braves starter Mike Minor was solid as he allowed just two runs on seven hits through five innings. Ross went 2-for-4 with four RBIs while Derek Lee went 3-for-3.

The Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals battled to a scoreless tie into extra innings. The Marlins scored the game’s lone run in the bottom of the 10th inning on an RBI single from Chad Tracy against Nationals rookie reliever Drew Storen. The Marlins collected just three hits in the game, two of which came in the 10th inning. Marlins starter Anibal Sanchez allowed just three hits through seven shutout innings while striking out seven.

Nationals starter Jordan Zimmerman, in his second start since his return from Tommy John surgery, allowed just one hit through six innings while striking out nine (he did not walk a batter).

CarGo slides into third

The Atlanta Braves stayed atop the National League East as they defeated the NY Mets 9-3. The Braves received a solid pitching performance from Jair Jurrjens, as he allowed three runs on six hits through 5.2 innings while striking out eight (though he did walk six). The Braves bullpen was solid, going 3.1 shutout innings. Offensively, the Braves banged out 14 hits with Jason Heyward collecting four hits and four RBIs (while hitting his 16th homerun) while Omar Infante, Martin Prado, Brian McCann, and Derek Lee each had two hits.

With the Braves win, the Philadelphia Phillies needed a win out west against the LA Dodgers. Instead they were again dominated by Hiroki Kuroda. Kuroda went into the 8th inning for the second time in his career without giving up a hit.

Phillies outfielder Shane Victorino collected the Phillies first hit, a hard single to right field (it was a huge hit for Victorino who has not been hitting from the left side of the plate). Hong-Chih Kuo would relieve Kuroda and close out the one-hitter. Kuroda also collected his first hit of the season against the Phillies Roy Halladay. Halladay was not on on Monday, as he allowed ten hits and three runs in seven innings.

Rod Barajas first pumps Hiroki Kuroda

New Dodgers catcher Rod Barajas hit a solo homerun off Halladay to continue his torrid pace against Phillies pitching this season.

The first place Cincinnati Reds continue to stay hot as they defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4 in ten innings. The Reds beat future MLB Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman, as Jay Bruce delivered a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning. Bruce also homered in the game as he went 3-for-5 in the leadoff spot (rookie Chris Valaika also went 3-for-5 batting behind Bruce). Juan Francisco of the Reds also added a pinch-hit homerun in the 6th inning.

The St. Louis Cardinals continue to slide further and further behind the Reds and the wild card leading Phillies as they lost again, this time to the Houston Astros. JA Happ of the Astros pitched a complete game two-hit shutout. Happ walked one while striking out four. Astros rookie first baseman Brett Wallace went 3-for-3 with an RBI.

The San Diego Padres also continue to slide (they lost their 5th game in a row) as they lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-2. The only offense the Padres received was a two-run homerun from Miguel Tejada in the 1st inning off Diamondbacks starter Joe Saunders. Saunders settled down from there, going eight innings and allowing just the two runs on ten hits. Mark Reynolds hit two homeruns as he went 3-for-5 with five RBIs and Chris Young and Miguel Montero each went 2-for-4 for the Diamondbacks.

The SF Giants received great starting pitching from Jonathon Sanchez against the Colorado Rockies. Sanchez went eight shutout innings and allowed just five hits. Jorge De La Rosa was in line for the hard-luck loss as he allowed one run on four hits through seven innings.

However in the top of the 9th inning, things fell apart for the Giants. Sanchez walked leadoff hitter Dexter Fowler, ending his night, which brought on closer Brian Wilson. Carlos Gonzalez hit a broken bat fly ball to right field that Cody Ross broke in on and could not revert back fast enough.

The ball sailed over his head, with Fowler scoring the tying run and Gonzalez heading for third base. The relay throw from Freddy Sanchez hit Gonzalez and bounced into the seats, sending Gonzalez home to score the go-ahead run. CarGo again came through for the Rockies as he legitimizes himself for MVP talk. The Rockies and closer Huston Street held on for the 2-1 win and moved 3.5 games behind the Phillies for the NL wild card.

The Texas Rangers received 7.2 shutout innings from CJ Wilson, as they defeated the KC Royals 3-0. Wilson allowed just two hits and struck out six (though he walked four). Andres Blanco went 3-for-4 with two runs scored while Josh Hamilton, Elvis Andrus, and Bengie Molina each collected two hits.

Evan Longoria hugs Carlos Pena after homer

The NY Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays still continue to be tied atop the American League East and wild card standings. The Yankees beat the red-hot Trevor Cahill of the Oakland A’s 11-5. Cahill allowed eight runs on nine hits through just four-plus innings. Mark Teixeira returned to the lineup to hit a homerun off Cahill, as did Robinson Cano (they went back-to-back in the 3rd inning). Marcus Thames homered for the sixth time in six games for the Yankees. Javier Vazquez earned the win with 4.2 two hit innings as he struck out six.

The Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-3. Rookie Rays starter Wade Davis has been great since June, as he has not lost, and that continued on Monday night. Davis allowed two runs on six hits while striking out three. Carlos Pena crushed a three-run homerun in the 3rd inning off Blue Jays starter Brett Cecil. Pena also added a sacrifice fly. Evan Longoria contributed two more hits.

Braves celebrate Mccann's replay walk-off

The St. Louis Cardinals continue their road woes as they lost their series in Washington. The Nationals beat Cardinals ace 1b Adam Wainwright 4-2 on Sunday. Wainwright has lost three straight starts for the first time in his MLB career. Wainwright has not picked the best time to struggle, as the Cardinals now sit five games behind the National League Central-leading Cincinnati Reds.

Wainwright allowed all four runs on six hits through just five innings. He allowed a two-run homerun to Mike Morse in the 3rd inning (Morse went 2-for-4 a day after going 4-for-4). Nationals starter John Lannan gave up just one run on eight hits through 7.2 innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out four. He also did damage at the plate by going 1-for-3 with a two-run double. Lannan is 4-1 with a 3.25 ERA since being recalled from Double-A Harrisburg on August 1st.

The Reds increased their NL Central lead to five games as they defeated the Chicago Cubs 7-5. Reds rookie starter Travis Wood struggled but pitched well enough to earn the victory. He allowed three runs on ten hits through five innings while walking three. However lefty reliever Arthur Rhodes blew the save in the 8th inning when he gave up a Kosuke Fukudome two-run homerun to tie the game at 5-5. The Reds came right back to score two runs in the bottom of the 8th inning, capped by a Fukudome throwing error that allowed Chris Heisey to score the go-ahead run. Francisco Cordero needed just nine pitches to close out the Cubs in the 9th inning for his 35th save of the season.

The NY Mets knuckleball pitcher RA Dickey single-handedly beat the Houston Astros 5-1 on Sunday. Dickey allowed just one run on six hits through seven innings. At the plate, Dickey contributed a two-run double in the Mets four-run 2nd inning off Astros starter Bud Norris. Dickey improved to 9-5 and lowered his ERA to 2.56 (which is 10th best in MLB).

The Atlanta Braves stormed back to defeat the Florida Marlins 7-6 after being down 6-1 after the 4th inning. Braves starter Derek Lowe lasted just three innings and allowed five runs on six hits while walking three. Marlins starter Josh Johnson was dominant through six innings as he allowed an unearned run on three hits while striking out eight. The Braves scored three runs in the bottom of the 8th inning off Marlins reliever Will Ohman (though only one was earned). In the 9th inning off Marlins closer Leo Nunez, Matt Diaz hit a pinch-hit two-run homerun and then with two outs and a runner on base, Brian McCann continued his hot day by hitting a ball off the right field wall which was ruled a double (McCann went 3-for-4). After further review, the umpires ruled that the ball was a homerun, and the Braves walked off with the 7-6 victory. It was the first reviewed walk-off homerun since MLB instituted replay for homeruns.

The Philadelphia Phillies continued their dominance over the San Diego Padres, as they swept the three-game series. Cole Hamels was again dominant, as he pitched eight shutout innings. Hamels allowed just four hits while striking out six (he also did not walk a batter). The Phillies have lost just four total games at Petco Park since it opened and have swept the Padres in San Diego four times in the last eight years (they only play each other home-and-home each year). The Phillies remain two games behind the Braves.

Ivan Nova wins 1st game

Ivan Nova of the NY Yankees won his first Major League game (in his second start) as he defeated the Chicago White Sox and Gavin Floyd 2-1. Nova allowed just one run on five hits through 5.2 innings and struck out seven. Floyd allowed just the two runs (one on a Marcus Thames solo homerun) on seven hits through 6.2 innings. Yankees rookie catcher Francisco Cervelli went 4-for-4.

The White Sox remain five games behind the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central as the Twins were defeated by Luke French and the Seattle Mariners 2-1. French allowed one run on a Michael Cuddyer solo homerun in the 7th inning. He went seven innings and gave up just three hits while striking out four. Carl Pavano was the hard-luck loser as he allowed two runs on five hits through seven innings.

The Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays remain tied for first in both the AL East and the wild card as the Rays defeated the visiting Boston Red Sox on ESPN’s Sunday Night game of the week. Rays starter James Shields outlasted Red Sox starter John Lackey as the Rays won 5-3. Carlos Pena hit a solo homerun in the 4th inning off Lackey and Carl Crawford hit a two-run shot in the 6th inning off Lackey (his 100th of his MLB career). Shields allowed three runs while striking out eight while Lackey allowed five runs while striking out seven. John Jaso, Crawford, and Evan Longoria each had two hits a piece for the Rays. The Red Sox fell to 6.5 games behind the Yankees and Rays in the AL East and wild card standings.

Dan Johnson walk-off

There were two walk-off homeruns hit last night around the same time. In Tampa, Rays DH Dan Johnson finally swung the bat and connected for a walk-off against Boston Red Sox reliever Scott Atchinson for a Rays 3-2 win. Johnson had struck out looking in his first two at-bats against Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz. It was a pitcher’s duel between Buchholz and Matt Garza, who allowed a run on six hits in seven innings. After Boston had taken a 2-1 lead in the 8th inning on a Victor Martinez solo homerun off Joaquin Benoit, BJ Upton answered with a solo homerun to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the 8th inning off Buchholz. The game stayed tied until Johnson’s heroics in the 10th inning. The Red Sox collected 10 hits, with Martinez and David Ortiz going 7-for-9.

In Cleveland, Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera delivered a walk-off homerun in the bottom of the 10th inning off KC Royals reliever Jesse Chavez for the Indians 4-3 win. The Indians jumped out to an early 3-0 lead over Zack Greinke but he settled in to allow no runs after the 2nd inning (he went eight innings and allowed eight hits though he walked four). Rookie Jeanmar Gomez held the Indians to two runs on six hits in 5.2 innings (he allowed a Wilson Betemit two-run homerun in the 6th inning). Betemit drove in the tying run off Rafael Perez in the 8th inning and send the game into extra innings for Cabrera’s heroics.

Eduardo Nunez celebrates 1st homer

With the Rays win, the Red Sox dropped back to 5.5 games behind them in the American League East and wild card standings. The NY Yankees stayed tied with the Rays with their 12-9 victory over the Chicago White Sox. The Yankees offense jumped all over White Sox starter John Danks for eight runs in just 4.1 innings. Nick Swisher, Eduardo Nunez, and Marcus Thames all homered off Danks, with Nunez’ being his first Major League homer. The White Sox bullpen wasn’t a whole lot better. Yankees starter CC Sabathia wasn’t great but gave them enough for the victory. He allowed five runs on nine hits through seven innings (he won his AL-leading 18th game). The White Sox made the game close against Yankees relievers Joba Chamberlain and David Robertson but Mariano Rivera closed out the game with the tying run at the plate for his 26th save.

With the White Sox loss, the Minnesota Twins increased their lead in the AL Central to 4.5 games as they defeated the Seattle Mariners 1-0 earlier in the day. Nick Blackburn allowed just two hits in 8.2 shutout innings and newly acquired reliever Brian Fuentes arrived to strike out Russell Branyan to end the game. The hard luck loser was Doug Fister, who allowed a run in the 3rd inning on an RBI single from Denard Span.

Brett Myers of the Houston Astros set the franchise mark with his 27th consecutive start of six innings or more as he and the Astros defeated Johan Santana and the NY Mets 4-1. Carlos Lee provided the offense by connecting on a two-run homerun in the 5th inning (he drove in three runs). Astros rookie shortstop Tommy Manzella collected a career-high three hits.

The Arizona Diamondbacks continue to pummel the SF Giants pitching staff as they beat Barry Zito, one night after beating ace Tim Lincecum, 11-3. Zito allowed nine runs (seven earned) in just 3.2 innings and he walked five. Diamondbacks rookie starter Dan Hudson allowed just two runs on four hits through seven innings for the win (the one run coming on a Pablo Sandoval solo homerun in the 4th inning). Adam LaRoche, Mark Reynolds, and Miguel Montero drove in three runs each for the Diamondbacks. The Giants have fallen to 1.5 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the wild card (as the Phillies beat the San Diego Padres 3-1 behind Joe Blanton’s pitching and Shane Victorino’s offense and defense). The Giants remain six games back of the Padres.

The Colorado Rockies are still in the race (though nine games back of the Padres) as they are just 4.5 games behind the Phillies for the wild card. The Rockies received solid pitching from Jhoulys Chacin, as he went seven innings while allowing just one run on four hits. Carlos Gonzalez delivered the huge blow, a two-run homerun in the 7th inning, as the Rockies beat the LA Dodgers 5-3. CarGo also collected a triple. Dodgers newly acquired catcher Rod Barajas made the game close with a two-run homerun off Huston Street in the 9th inning, but Street recovered to get Reed Johnson to fly out to end the game.

The Oakland A’s, trying to get closer to the AL West-leading Texas Rangers received a complete game shutout from Dallas Braden as the A’s beat the Rangers 5-0 to move to 8.5 games back. Braden allowed just four hits. Daric Barton provided all the offense Braden would need as he hit a two-run homerun off Rich Harden in the 3rd inning. Harden allowed four runs on eight hits in just 4.1 innings. Derek Holland did give the Rangers much needed relief as he went 4.2 one-run innings.

Victor Martinez hr

The Boston Red Sox sat 5.5 games back of the American League East-leading NY Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays, as well as the wild card heading into Friday’s games. That is what makes this weekend’s Red Sox-Rays series so great. If the injury-riddled Red Sox were to sweep, they would be just 2.5 games back. Friday night’s game matched two of the best young left-handed starting pitchers in the game: Boston’s Jon Lester against Tampa’s David Price.

Price was hurt by the long ball and Victor Martinez, who hit two homeruns in the Red Sox 3-1 victory. Price struck out eight in his seven innings of work. Lester was somewhat dominant though his control was a little off. He allowed just two hits in seven innings and struck out ten, though he walked five. Jonathon Papelbon struck out the side to record his 33rd save. Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett had two of the Rays three hits. For Boston, Martinez had three hits while JD Drew collected two hits.

The NY Yankees received another subpar pitching performance from AJ Burnett as they lost to the Chicago White Sox 9-4. Burnett last just 3.1 innings while he allowed nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits while walking three. Sergio Mitre saved the Yankees bullpen for the weekend by going 4.2 shutout innings as he allowed just one hit. White Sox starter Freddy Garcia allowed just two runs (one earned) on five hits in seven innings. Offensively for the White Sox, Juan Pierre and Omar Vizquel went a combined 4-for-8 with four runs scored at the top of the order.

The White Sox made news as they claimed slugger Manny Ramirez off waivers from the LA Dodgers. The teams have until Tuesday to make a deal.
The Minnesota Twins kept ahead of the White Sox as they defeated the Seattle Mariners 6-3. While clinging to a 2-1 lead over the Mariners, the Twins scored three runs in the 6th inning to pull away. Twins starter Scott Baker put together another solid start as he allowed two runs on five hits through 6.2 innings. Offensively for the Twins, rookie third baseman Danny Valencia collected two RBIs and his first Major League triple.

The Twins also made news on Friday as they acquired lefty reliever Brian Fuentes from the LA Angels. This move gives the Twins three potential closers (Jon Rauch, Matt Capps, and Fuentes). They also welcomed Randy Flores, who was claimed off waivers from the Colorado Rockies (he went 0.1 inning on Friday night).

The Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies have both been struggling at the same time, which has allowed teams in the wild card (like the LA Dodgers, Rockies, SF Giants, and St. Louis Cardinals) to creep closer. The Braves continue to struggled with their pitching staff and bullpen (right-handed relievers for the Braves have an ERA over 5.00) which led to rookie Craig Kimbrel being recalled.

Logan Morrison celebrates 1st homer

Tommy Hanson struggled again, allowing back-to-back homeruns for the first time in his career, and that happened to him twice against the Florida Marlins. In the 1st inning, Cameron Maybin and rookie Logan Morrison went back-to-back to give the Marlins a quick 2-0 lead (it was Morrison’s first big league homerun). In the 6th inning, Dan Uggla and Gaby Sanchez went back-to-back. For the Marlins, Chris Volstad was dominant as he allowed one run (a solo homerun to Jason Heyward in the 8th inning) on six hits in eight innings in the Marlins 7-1 victory.

The Phillies have struggled offensively. Ryan Howard and Chase Utley have returned to the lineup from the DL and have not regained their strokes. Howard has struck out 13 times in his last 27 at-bats. On Friday night in San Diego, the Phillies faced Mat Latos, who allowed just one run on five hits through seven innings. Roy Oswalt was just as good for the Phillies, as he allowed just one run (a solo homerun to Yorvit Torrealba) on five hits through eight innings. The Phillies scored a run off the Padres bullpen in the 8th inning to give them a 2-1 lead.

Jimmy Rollins slide for game winner

However Brad Lidge could not close out the win. With a man on and two outs, he intentionally walked Adrian Gonzalez to face Ryan Ludwick, who he then hit. With Chase Headley batting and the bases loaded, Lidge balked in a run to tie the game at 2-2 (Headley would ground out to end the inning on the next pitch). Into the 13th the game would go and Jimmy Rollins scored just around the tag at home plate on a single by Placido Polanco. Chad Durbin closed out the game for the Phillies with two shutout innings of relief.