American League
Oakland 3 Minnesota 4 -
Justin Morneau tied the game with his 25th homer in the 8th and
Joe Mauer singled home
Luis Castillo with the winning run as the Twins sent the A's to their 7th straight loss. Minnesota kept pace with the Tigers and Indians in the AL Central race with their 4th straight win, though they remain 6 games back. Morneau's homer gave him 76 RBI on the year.
Detroit 11 Seattle 7 - This game had it all. Five wild pitches, six doubles, 4 homers, 5 steals - including a steal of home by
Gary Sheffield - and two hit batters, one being
Ichiro Suzuki, who was forced to leave the game with a bruised thigh. Detroit starter
Justin Verlander improved to 11-3, though this was not nearly one of his better performances, allowing 4 earned on 8 hits a walk and 6 Ks over 7 innings.
Marcus Thames drove in four runs with a single and a 3-run homer, and
Magglio Ordonez hit his 14th home run and drove in 3 to give him 75 for the season. The Tigers maintained their wafer-thin 1/2-game edge on the Indians in the AL Central.
NY Yankees 7 Tampa Bay 6 - There are still signs of hope in New York, as the Yankees won and Boston lost on Sunday, allowing the Yanks to within 9 games of the runaway Red Sox.
Derek Jeter (right) hit his 9th home run - a two-run shot - in the 5th and singled home what would prove to be the winning run in the 8th. The win boosted New York over the .500 mark at 45-44 as they return home for a 4-game set with Toronto. Following that series, the Yankees play their next 17 games against Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Kansas City and Chicago, four of the five worst teams in the league. If the Yankees are ever going to make their move, this stretch - though August 5th - would be an opportune time to do so.
Kansas City 3 Cleveland 5 -
Fausto Carmona improved to 11-4, allowing 2 runs on 8 hits over 7 innings and
Joe Borowski picked up his 26th save as the Indians kept pace in the Central, 1/2-game behind Detroit. Cleveland won for the 33rd time at home, the best in the majors.
Other AL Scores
Chi White Sox 3 Baltimore 5
Toronto 2 Boston 1 - Sox, Jays split 4-game series; Toronto 10 back
Texas 5 LA Angels 4, 11 innings - Angels, only 14th home loss
National League
St. Louis 10 Philadelphia 2 -
Albert Pujols (right) socked a pair of homers and drove in 3 runs as the Cardinals avoided the sweep by handing the Phillies their 10,000th loss. Officially, the Phillies have amassed more losses than any other major league franchise, though the Braves (9,681) and Cubs (9,425) aren't far behind. The milestone may be considered one of futility, though it should be viewed in its entirety as a mark of longevity. The Phillies have been a part of major league baseball since 1883, and while they've lost plenty, they can lay claim to 8,810 wins over those 124 years... and counting. So, if the Phillies can average 90 wins a season, they'll reach the .500 mark in just 66 short years.
LA Dodgers 5 San Francisco 3 - The Dodgers completed their sweep of the Giants, winning their 11th straight in San Francisco while holding
Barry Bonds hitless and homerless. Bonds went 0-5 for the second straight night, hasn't homered in 7 games and hasn't hit in his last 20 official at-bats. Players and reporters say Bonds looks tired at the plate, that his feet and toes are swollen (steroid use symptom?) and maybe he needs some time off. Good idea, that last one. Maybe a three month vacation might coax Barry into an early retirement.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers maintained their 1-game lead over San Diego in the NL West and are 4-0 since the All -Star break, all four wins coming at the Giants' expense.
Pittsburgh 1 Atlanta 5 - For years, the Braves lived and died with starting pitching, so it should be no surprise that a relatively unknown pitcher,
Buddy Carlyle - who, at the tender age of 29, is technically a rookie - turns in a game-winning performance. Carlyle worked 8 innings, allowing just 4 hits and 1 earned without walking a batter for his third straight win and a 4-2 record overall. The Braves trial the Mets by 1 1/2 in the NL East race.
Other NL Scores
Washington 3 Florida 5 - M. Cabrera, 2 HR (21)
Cincinnati 2 NY Mets 5
Colorado 3 Milwaukee 4 - F. Cordero, S (28)
Houston 6 Chi Cubs 7 - D. Lee, 3-3, HR (7), 3 RBI (47)
San Diego 4 Arizona 0 - J. Germano (W, 6-3), 6 1/3 IP, 4 H, 0 ER
Kansas City 0 Boston 4 - Rookie starter Kason Gabbard (right) shut out the Royals on 3 hits Monday, earning his first complete game shutout, improving his record to 3-0. Gabbard walked one, struck out 8 and allowed just two runners past first base as the Red Sox turned 3 double plays behind him. Boston got all their runs via the long ball as Dustin Pedroia and Manny Ramirez hit solo shots in the 4th and David Ortiz put the game away with a 2-run blast in the 6th.
Toronto 4 NY Yankees 6 - The Yankees kept pace with Boston, remaining 9 games back while throttling their nearest competition, Toronto, with solid late-inning bullpen work and home runs from Jorge Posada, Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez, who cracked his 32nd with a 2-run shot in the 3rd inning.
Other AL Scores
Baltimore 2 Seattle 4 - Mariners, 2 1/2 behind Angels, win 6th of last 8
Texas 4 Oakland 1 - A's lose 8th straight
National League
Cincinnati 10 Atlanta 3 - Ken Griffey Jr. passed Frank Robinson to move into 6th place on the career home run list with number 687. Griffey's 24th homer of the season - a 3-run swat - gave the Reds a 5-0 lead in the 2nd inning as they cruised to their first win after dropping 3 of 4 from the Mets. Griffey's next target is still-active, Sammy Sosa, at 602. Slumping Sammy is 0-for-July in both homers and RBI, his last long ball coming on June 30. The Braves remained 1 1/2 back of New York in the AL East as the Mets lost at San Diego.
NY Mets 1 San Diego 5 - The first leg of the Mets' 7-game West coast swing didn't go so well as David Wells and a trio of relievers stymied the New Yorkers on 9 hits. Wells (5-5), worked 6 innings, giving up the only run the Mets would produce, in the 4th inning. Catcher Michael Barrett knocked in 3 runs with run-scoring singles in the 2nd and 8th innings, and added another single for a 3-4 night.
Philadelphia 3 LA Dodgers 10 - Jeff Kent knocked a 3-run homer off loser Jamie Moyer while Brad Penny (11-1) was turning in another outstanding performance from the mound, allowing just one earned run on 4 hits over 7 innings. Penny struck out 8 and dropped his ERA to 2.33. The Dodgers retained their 1-game advantage over the Padres in the contentious NL West.
Colorado 10 Pittsburgh 8 - The Rockies continued to creep up on the leaders in the NL West, and now trail Arizona by only 2 games, though they remain 6 1/2 behind division leader Los Angeles. Pitching not being the Rockies' strong suit, they nearly squandered an early 9-1 lead. Their bullpen came through, shutting out the Pirates over the final four innings. Matt Holiday drove in three runs with a double and a pair of sac flies.
San Francisco 2 Chi Cubs 3 - Barry Bonds sat this one out, but the Giants probably could have used his bat. Cubs' starter Rich Hill evened his record at 6-6, allowing the only runs off 4 hits over 8 innings of work. The Cubs continue to chase NL Central leader Milwaukee, who lead by 3 1/2. The Cubs have won 4 straight.
Other NL Scores
St. Louis 5 Florida 3
Houston 3 Washington 4
Arizona 3 Milwaukee 4 - R. Braun, 2-run HR (14); Brewers, 19-26, worst road record of any division leader
Detroit 4 Seattle 6 - Catcher Kenji Johjima (right) belted a grand slam in the 6th inning off Tigers' starter Kenny Rogers, lifting the Mariners over Detroit for the 2nd time in 3 games. The loss for Detroit enabled Cleveland to remain just 1/2-game back in the AL Central, despite their 6-5 loss to KC.
Oakland 3 Minnesota 4 - The Twins gained ground on both Detroit and Cleveland and are just 6 back. Minnesota has won 3 straight and 5 of their last 7, while the A's are losers of 6 straight. The Twins have an interesting week ahead, with a pair of 3-game series at home against division leaders; first the Tigers on Tues.-Thurs., followed by the Angels on the weekend.
Other AL Scores
Kansas City 6 Cleveland 5
Chi White Sox 6 Baltimore 7, 10 innings
Toronto 4 Boston 9 - D. Matsuzaka (W, 11-6), D. Ortiz, 2-4, 2-run HR (15)
NY Yankees 6 Tampa Bay 4
National League
St. Louis 4 Philadelphia 10 - Add Pat Burrell (right) to the arsenal of Phillies' hitters and you've got an incredible 1-6 lineup. Yesterday, we looked at the top 5 Phillies' hitters, but if Burrell has a few more games like Saturday's, we'll have to call them the Sizzlin' Six instead of the Fab Five. Burrell went 3-3, drove in 4 and scored a run, as the Phils kept pace in the resurgent AL East. The top six for Philly accounted for all 14 hits (in 25 at-bats) and all but one of the runs and RBI as they hammered the hopeless Cardinals for the 2nd straight day. The Phillies will be seeking the sweep tonight at 6:05.
Burrell, who is batting only .227, may be coming out of a first-half funk. With a five game hit streak (9-15), 2 homers and 9 RBI (at least one in each of the five games), Burrell adds serious sock to an already awesome attack. The rest of the league better beware. The Phillies are poised for a post-season run. Cole Hamels picked up the win Saturday. He's 11-4.
Houston 3 Chi Cubs 9 - Of teams making the most noise, the Cubs are among the loudest. Since June 22nd, the Cubs have punched out a 14-4 record and trail Milwaukee by 3 1/2. Aramis Ramirez went 3-4, driving in 4 runs and Alfonso Soriano crashed a 3-run homer in the 6th in Saturday's rout. The Cubs will be seeking the 3-game sweep on Sunday afternoon.
This coming week should be telling for the NL Central leaders as the Cubs and Brewers swap home games against San Francisco and Arizona.
LA Dodgers 8 San Francisco 7, 12 innings - The Dodgers squandered leads of 6-0 and 7-2, but finally sent the Giants to their 3rd straight loss and 2nd since the All-Star break. The Dodgers also kept Barry Bonds quiet, as the slugger went 0-5 and marked his 6th straight game without a home run. Bonds still needs 4 to catch Henry Aaron for the career mark of 755.
The added frames proved fortuitous for the Dodgers, as Rafael Furcal's sac fly in the top of the 12th provided the winning edge. Coupled with San Diego's loss, the Dodgers wrested control of first place in the tight NL West, by 1 game over the Padres, 2 1/2 over Arizona, with Colorado 5 1/2 back.
Cincinnati 1 NY Mets 2 - Tom Glavine (right) pitched his best game of the season, and moved closer to 300 wins with #298. Glavine (8-6), worked 8 stellar innings, allowing just 2 hits, the only run coming off the bat of Brandon Phillips in the 2nd, who belted his 19th home run. The Mets finally broke the 1-1 deadlock in the 8th, when Lastings Milledge singled home Shawn Green. Glavine was prepared to work the 9th, but with the lead run in, closer Billy Wagner came on to get the final 3 outs and pick up his 19th save. Glavine finished with 5 Ks without walking a batter.
Other NL Scores
Washington 2 Florida 5
Colorado 1 Milwaukee 2, 10 innings
Pittsburgh 4 Atlanta 5
San Diego 4 Arizona 5 - J. Valverde, S (27)
Bedard (8-4), ran his scoreless streak to 16 innings, following his 2-hit, complete game effort of July 7 - a 3-0 whitewash of Texas. He also leads the majors with 156 strikeouts and has an ERA of 3.22. All of that while playing for one of the weakest teams in the league. Baltimore, at 39-50, is better than only Texas, Kansas City and Tampa Bay.
NY Yankees 4 Tampa Bay 6 - With Toronto and Boston battling each other, the Bombers had the perfect opportunity to make up some ground last night, but Roger Clemens lasted only 5 1/3 innings, and was victimized for 3 early runs in the 2nd, from which the Yankees could never recover. Clemens allowed 5 hits and 4 walks, resulting in 5 earned runs, dropping his record to 2-4. New York and Toronto are tied for 2nd, 10 games back of the Red Sox in the AL East.
Detroit 6 Seattle 3 - Gary Sheffield's 3rd inning grand slam was enough support for Jeremy Bonderman, who improved to 10-1, allowing 3 earned on 6 hits over 7 innings. The win kept the Tigers 1/2-game ahead of Cleveland in the AL Central and snapped a 4-game Seattle win streak. The Mariners fell 3 1/2 behind LA in the West.
Texas 1 LA Angels 2 - With Seattle suddenly breathing down their necks, the Angels needed a boost, and they got it from starter Kelvim Escobar, who held the Rangers to one run over 8 innings on 6 hits, but did not get the decision. That went to Francisco Rodriguez, who pitched a scoreless ninth, just before Casey Kotchman singled home Gary Matthews Jr. with the winning run in the bottom half of the frame. Escobar's been rock-solid for the Angles of late, having registered wins in 6 of his last 7 decisions, while the Angels have won 8 of the last 10 games he's started.
Other AL Scores
Kansas City 4 Cleveland 5
Toronto 6 Boston 5
Oakland 3 Minnesota 5 - A's have lost 5 straight
National League
Houston 0 Chi Cubs 6 - Carlos Zambrano (11-7, right) blanked the Astros for 6 2/3 innings on 3 hits, putting away 7 on strikes, as the Cubs continued their relentless pursuit of the Brewers in the NL Central. Coupled with Milwaukee's loss to Colorado, Chicago is now only 3 1/2 games back. Contributing to his own cause, Zambrano singled twice in 3 at-bats, driving in a run in the 4th and scoring one in the 6th.
St. Louis 3 Philadelphia 13 - The first five batters in the Phillies' lineup may be the best in baseball. Last night they combined to go 15-25, with 8 RBI and 8 runs scored, three doubles and a pair of homers. Chase Utley was 4-5 with a solo homer, 3 RBI and 2 runs to lead the way. Over the course of the season so far, Utley, leadoff batter Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Ryan Howard and Aaron Rowand have put up impressive combined stats: 500 hits in 1678 at-bats for a .298 average; 76 home runs, 277 RBI, 293 runs. Five good reasons why the Phillies are battling for the AL East title, 4 games behind New York and 2 1/2 back of Atlanta.
Cincinnati 8 NY Mets 4 - Brandon Phillips pounded Mets' starter John Maine, blasting a grand slam in the first inning and delivering run-scoring singles in both the 5th and 6th innings to send the Mets to their 7th loss in their last 10 tries.