(Thursday, June 28th)
Final Score: Cleveland 4, Oakland 3
Cleveland, OH - Jason Michaels hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning to guide the Cleveland Indians past the Oakland Athletics, 4-3, at Jacobs Field. Cleveland starter Paul Byrd (7-3) gave up three runs on 10 hits in seven innings to notch the victory. Victor Martinez hit two doubles while Josh Barfield went 2-for-4 with two runs for the Indians, who took three of four from the A’s. Joe Blanton started on the mound for Oakland and pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on six hits. He also struck out three and walked one. Ron Flores (0-2) absorbed the loss after giving up one run on two hits in just one-third of an inning. Dan Johnson went 4- for-4 with a home run for the Athletics, who have six losses in the their last seven games.
Final Score: Detroit 5, Texas 2
Detroit, MI - Gary Sheffield hit a two-run homer and Magglio Ordonez knocked in two runs, as the Detroit Tigers downed the Texas Rangers, 5-2, at Comerica Park. Veteran Kenny Rogers (2-0) made his second start of the season for Detroit and gave up just one run on four hits in six innings. He also fanned three and walked just one. Placido Polanco finished 2-for-4 and scored two runs for the Tigers, who have eight wins over their last 10 games. Kevin Millwood (4-7) started for Texas and pitched six innings, allowing three runs on five hits to go along with six walks and six strikeouts. Michael Young and Sammy Sosa each knocked in a run for the Rangers, who had a two-game win streak end.
Final Score: Minnesota 8, Toronto 5
Minneapolis, MN - Frank Thomas belted his 500th career homer, a three-run shot in the first but the Toronto Blue Jays still fell 8-5 to the Minnesota Twins in the finale of a four-game set at the Metrodome. Thomas became the 21st member of the exclusive club with his three-run blast of 396-feet into the left field stands off Minnesota starter Carlos Silva. He also had an RBI double and matched his season high with four RBI, then was ejected in the ninth by plate umpire Mark Wegner after being called out on strikes for the second time in the contest. Toronto manager John Gibbons was also tossed after coming out to argue. Torii Hunter homered twice and Jason Bartlett also went long for the Twins, who rallied from a 5-1 deficit to win for the fourth time in six games. Silva (6-8) went seven innings, allowing five runs on six hits, while walking two and striking out five. Juan Rincon threw a scoreless eighth and Joe Nathan a perfect ninth for his 15th save in 17 opportunities. Matt Stairs went 2- for-4 with an RBI and a run scored for the Blue Jays, who have lost two of three since a four-game winning streak. Toronto starter A.J. Burnett was tagged for five runs on six hits in just four-plus frames. Jason Frasor (1-3) took the loss, surrendering two runs in one inning. A Stairs RBI single preceded Thomas’ 13th homer of the season, putting the Jays up 4-0 in the first. Score: New York 8, Baltimore 6, (Suspended, 8th inning)
Baltimore, MD - Thursday’s game between the Orioles and Yankees was suspended in the top of the eighth inning due to rain. The game will be resumed Friday, July 27th, 7:05 p.m. (et) with the regular scheduled game to follow. The Yankees, who led 8-6 with two outs in the eighth when play was halted, will welcome the A’s to town for the start of a 10-game homestand. Baltimore will begin a three-game set against the Angels at Camden Yards Friday.
Final Score: Chicago 5, Tampa Bay 1
St. Petersburg, FL - Javier Vazquez allowed one run over seven solid innings and Paul Konerko homered twice, as the Chicago White Sox completed their first sweep of the season when they wrapped up their four-game set against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at Tropicana Field with a 5-1 win. Vazquez (4-5), winless in his previous four starts, scattered seven hits with 10 strikeouts and three walks before Matt Thornton and Ryan Bukvich tossed a perfect eighth and ninth, respectively. Tadahito Iguchi also homered for the White Sox, who now head to Kansas City for three straight games over the weekend. Luis Terrero ended 2-for-3 with an RBI in the win. Greg Norton went 2-for-4 for the Devil Rays, who now head to Cleveland for four straight games. Scott Kazmir (5-4), who has just two losses in his last nine outings, gave up four runs on six hits with three walks and nine strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings for Tampa.
Final Score: Florida 9, Pittsburgh 7
Miami, FL - Matt Treanor homered and Scott Olsen struck out the first five batters he faced and finished with 10, one shy of his career high, as the Florida Marlins held off the Pittsburgh Pirates, 9-7, in the finale of a three-game set at Dolphin Stadium. Mike Jacobs had three hits and Treanor and Brett Carroll had two RBI apiece for the Marlins, who snapped a four-game slide. Scott Olsen (6-6) went six-plus innings, allowing five runs on seven hits, while walking two and striking out 10 including the first five batters he faced, a franchise record. Adam LaRoche had three hits, including a two-run homer and Freddy Sanchez went 3-for-5 with an RBI and run scored for the Pirates, who have lost six of eight. Zach Duke (3-7) was tagged for six runs — five earned — on 11 hits in just four frames.
Final Score: Los Angeles 9, Arizona 5
Phoenix, AZ - Russell Martin fell a triple shy of the cycle, as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat up on Randy Johnson and the Arizona Diamondbacks, 9-5, in the finale of a four-game series at Chase Field. Johnson (4-3), who was diagnosed with a herniated disk in his back last week, allowed four runs - three earned - on six hits in just three innings. He walked two, fanned a pair and labored through 69 pitches - just 49 for strikes. The 43- year-old Johnson was 4-0 with a 1.52 ERA in his last five starts coming in, but had not pitched since June 10, when he threw six innings of one-run ball to defeat Boston. He skipped his next outing against Baltimore, then landed on the DL with the same back injury that had previously required offseason surgery this past winter and caused him to miss the start of this season. Eric Byrnes had a two-run single, and Orlando Hudson a two-run double for the D-backs, who dropped three of four in the series. Martin clubbed a two-run homer in the first, a double in the fourth and a single in the sixth. He also scored all three times he was on base for the Dodgers, who moved into a tie with idle San Diego for first place in the NL West, a half-game ahead of Arizona. Randy Wolf (9-6) tossed six-plus innings and was charged with three runs on four hits for Los Angeles. He walked six batters and struck out four.
Final Score: Philadelphia 8, Cincinnati 7 (10 innings)
Philadelphia, PA - Jimmy Rollins collected four hits, including the game-tying RBI triple in the eighth and the game-winning RBI single in the 10th, and the Philadelphia Phillies outlasted the Cincinnati Reds, 8-7, to take two of three in the series. Chase Utley hit two two-run homers, his 14th and 15th on the season, with both coming on 3-0 counts for Philadelphia, which won its third in four games. Clay Condrey (3-0) tossed the scoreless 10th for the Phils. Adam Dunn, Edwin Encarnacion, and Alex Gonzalez all homered for the Reds, who have dropped three of four. Victor Santos (1-3) gave up two hits and a run in the 10th. Scott Hatteberg went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI. Phils starter Adam Eaton was ripped for six hits and five runs in six innings, walking three and fanning two. Fortunately for him and Philadelphia, his counterpart, Matt Belisle, had an even worse night, giving up eight hits and six runs in five innings.
St. Louis at New York, postponed
Flushing, NY - Thursday’s game between the New York Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals at Shea Stadium has been postponed due to rain. No makeup date has been announced. The Mets will embark on an 11-game road trip Friday, beginning with a day/night doubleheader against Philadelphia. The Cardinals, meanwhile, will travel to Cincinnati Friday for a three-game set.
Final Score: Houston 8, Colorado 5 (11 innings)
Houston, TX - Carlos Lee belted a game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the 11th to cap a memorable night, as Houston’s Craig Biggio become the 27th player in major league history to reach the 3,000-hit plateau as the Astros stunned the Colorado Rockies, 8-5. The Astros second baseman came into the game three hits shy of the milestone, but he went 5-for-6. He grounded out in the first, but then had hits in his last five at-bats. He singled in the third and fifth before lacing a base hit to right-center field off Aaron Cook with two outs in the seventh to reach the mark. Lee’s slam capped an improbable comeback for Houston, as the Rockies led through the entire game before the Astros tied it with a three-run eighth. The game then went scoreless until the 11th, when Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki crushed a 1-1 pitch from Brian Moehler (1-2) over the train tracks that run above the back left-field wall to give his team a 5-4 edge. Brian Fuentes (0-3) then retired the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the inning, but Biggio ignited a rally when he legged out an infield single. Hunter Pence followed with a double to put runners at second and third, and Fuentes drilled Lance Berkman with a pitch to load the bases. Lee then crushed the first pitch he saw just inside the left-field pole and circled the bases as the crowd erupted. The drama also overshadowed a superb start by Houston ace Roy Oswalt, who allowed just one run on nine hits over seven innings. Mike Lamb hit a two- run homer and Berkman added a solo shot as the Astros also won for just the second time in their last eight games. Tulowitzki finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while Chris Iannetta and Ryan Spilborghs also homered for Colorado, which has dropped the first seven games of a 10-game road trip. Cook yielded just one run and seven hits over seven innings.
