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Baseball fan following baseball since 1955. Have been fortunate enough to have seen Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Johnny Bench, Roberto Clemente and Dale Murphy play baseball in Kansas City and Houston. Served in Army in Hawaii and Vietnam with 25th Infantry Division.More By Niteowl049
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Baseball Notebook: Recaps of Yesterday's Games
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Tigers Hit Two Homers to Top Yankees 6-4
The Detroit Tigers defeated the New York Yankees 6-4, as Kenny Rogers (2-3) pitched his first good game since his first start of the season. Curtis Granderson has only batted 23 times, but has 3 homers, while Gary Sheffield has batted 67 times and has hit only 2 homers. Both homered in the game yesterday. Placido Polanco was 4 for 5 in the contest and raised his average above the Mendoza line for the first time this season, raising it from .174 to .216. Philip Hughes (0-4) only lasted 3 2/3 innings and his ERA rose to 9.00 after he gave up gave up 6 runs and 8 hits. Hughes may be "Zitoed" anytime now since neither he or fifth starter Ian Kennedy have won a game this season.
Mariners Sink Indians 7-2
The Cleveland Indians' bullpen turned a 2-2 game into a rout when closer Rafael Betancourt gave up 3 runs in the ninth inning and Craig Breslow allowed 2 more runs to cross the plate, as the Seattle Mariners sank the Indians into a last place tie with the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central. Ichiro Suzuki was 2 for 6, but is 5th on the team in batting average with a lousy .261. He is on an 8 game hitting streak, but has raised his average by only 11 points.
Orioles Move Into First Place In AL East, Defeating Rays 7-4
The Baltimore Orioles took over sole possession of first place in the AL East with their 7-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Not many experts predicted the Orioles would be in first place on the last day of April, especially after losing Erik Bedard. Most amazing of all is that the Orioles don't have a regular player hitting over .300. Garrett Olson (1-0) took the win in his first start of the 2008 season.
Lester Pitches 8 Inning One Hitter As Red Sox Shutout Blue Jays 1-0
This game can be summed up by the great pitching of Jon Lester, who pitched a one hitter that defeated Roy Halladay (2-4) and the Toronto Blue Jays in a 1-0 shutout win. It can also be summed up by the great defensive stop by Dustin Pedroia that kept Vernon Wells from driving in the go ahead run in the top of the ninth inning. Jonathan Papelbon (1-0) took the win after Kevin Youkilis singled in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth on a chilly night in Boston, with it being 47 degrees and having a 15 MPH wind.
Jose Guillen Drives in Five In Royals 9-5 Win Over Rangers
Jason Jennings (0-5) is the next candidate to be Zitoed this year after losing to the Kansas City Royals by a 9-5 score and giving up 8 hits in 2 innings, which is not a good way to stay in the starting rotation. I wouldn't be surprised if Jennings finds himself in the bullpen or in the Minors very soon. Jose Guillen led the Royals' offense, driving in 5 runs, while Mark Grudzielanek was 4 for 6 in the game. Josh Hamilton drove in his 28th run of the season for the Rangers, which gives him the most RBI's in the Majors this season.
Boof Bonser Pitches Twins To 3-1 Win Against the White Sox
Boof Bonser (2-4) pitched the Minnesota Twins to a 3-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox, as the Twins moved to within 2 1/2 games of the first place White Sox in the AL Central. The Twins are now tied with the Royals for second place with the Tigers and Indians tied for last place. Joe Nathan notched his 8th save in the contest and lowered his ERA to 0.90.
Angels Shutout A's 2-0: Joe Saunders Now 5-0
Joe Saunders (5-0) became the first Los Angeles Angels pitcher since Frank Tanana in 1978 to have a 5-0 record in April. His opponent last night, Greg Smith, pitched a great game of his own, allowing only 2 runs and 3 hits in 8 innings. His only problem was that the Oakland A's had overdone it on Monday when they scored 14 runs and had 16 hits, leaving no runs left for Smith on Tuesday night.
Hamels Outpitches Maddux As Phillies Defeat Padres 7-4
Cole Hamels (3-3) defeated future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux (2-2). Hamels also singled in the contest to raise his average to .313. Ryan Howard drove in his 12th run of the season, but is still in a slump. He is 5th on the Philadelphia Phillies roster in hits (17), 5th in doubles (2), 3rd in homers (5), 5th in slugging percentage (.354), and 4th in RBI's (12). Jayson Werth is ahead of him in the RBI category with 13, Chase Utley has 21, and Pat Burrell has 25.
Glavine Pitches Well, Bullpen Falters As Nationals Defeat Braves 6-3
The Atlanta Braves wasted a fine pitching performance by Tom Glavine, who gave up 2 runs in 6 innings, when the bullpen became unraveled in the seventh inning. Blaine Boyer (0-4) allowed 4 Nationals to cross the plate in the seventh. With John Smoltz on the disabled list, the Braves can't continue to lose when the bullpen enters the game. The Braves have won only two of their last seven games and those games were won by Jair Jurrjens and Chuck James. Jo-Jo Reyes, who has been lights out this season at the Triple A level, will start on Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds. Chipper Jones hit his 8th homer of the season, and raised his average to an astonishing .432, which is 66 points higher than the next closest hitter in the Majors, which is Albert Pujols (.366). Ryan Zimmerman was 3 for 3 and drove in 3 runs to lead the Nationals offense.
Dodgers Edge Marlins 7-6 Behind Kent's Single in Ninth
Jeff Kent hit a two out single in the top of the ninth to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 7-6 victory over the Florida Marlins. Andrew Miller should be returning to the minors very soon after giving up 6 runs and 9 hits in 3 innings for the Marlins. In 25 innings he has given up 27 runs and 48 hits with a 9.12 ERA.
Mets Defeat Pirates 5-4 In Eleven Inning Game
Johan Santana had a 4-2 win when he left the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but the Pirates came back to tie the score at 4-4 in the top of the ninth inning when Billy Wagner blew his first save of the season. David Wright singled in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh inning to end the game. Endy Chavez and Jose Reyes had 3 hits each, giving them 6 of the 9 Mets hits in the contest. The New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies both moved to within a half game of the first place Marlins in the NL East.
Brewers Pound Out 17 Hits In 10-7 Defeat of Cubs
Ben Sheets (4-0) didn't pitch his best game, but still has a perfect 5-0 record after his last start in April. Mike Cameron was 3 for 5 with 2 RBI's in his return from a 25 game suspension. The second through sixth hitters for the Milwaukee Brewers drove in 8 runs and had 12 out of the team's 17 hits. Sheets walked 7 in 5 innings showing he didn't have his best stuff but with the Brewers offense having a great night it really didn't matter. Derrek Lee hit his 8th homer and drove in his 22nd run of the season.
Cueto Implodes In 7-2 Loss To Cards
Johnny Cueto (1-3) proved last night that having a great start in his debut earlier this season means nothing until he can pitch like that consistently. In his debut, Cueto allowed one hit and struck out 10 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but he hasn't won a game since then. Yesterday, he gave up 6 earned runs and 8 hits in 1 2/3 innings, and in his last two starts, he has given up 11 runs and 16 hits in his last 8 2/3 innings. The only positive for Cueto is that he has walked only 6 in 35 innings, but his strikeouts have dwindled from 10, to 8, to 6, to 5, to 2 in his last five starts. His ERA is now at 5.40 after a 1.29 after his debut. Joel Pineiro (2-2) pitched 7 innings of scoreless baseball and allowed only one hit for the Cardinals. Rick Ankiel and Troy Glaus combined for a 5 for 9 night with 5 RBI's.
Astros Defeat Diamondbacks 6-4 Despite Sterling Debut By Scherzer
Max Scherzer, who was just called up by the Arizona Diamondbacks pitched 4 1/3 innings of scoreless and hitless relief in his Major League debut. He struck out 7 and walked none. Scherzer was 4-0 with Tucson before being called up and had struck out 38 and walked 3 in 23 innings. With Edgar Gonzalez (1-2 and 6.55 ERA) being the weak link in the rotation, Scherzer may be moved into the starting rotation eventually, but for one night at least (remember Cueto) he looks like he is going to be a good one.
Rockies Nip Giants 3-2 Behind Pitching of Cook
Aaron Cook (4-1) pitched seven strong innings, but scattered 10 hits, as the Colorado Rockies moved to within a half game of the third place San Francisco Giants in the NL West. Tim Lincecum (4-1) pitched his fifth straight quality start, but took the loss. The San Francisco Giants outhit the Rockies 10-8, but couldn't come up with the hits when they needed them most. Jonathan Sanchez (2-1) will start for the Giants tonight after winning his last two starts against the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds. Sanchez recorded his second 10 strikeout performance in his last start. In his three best starts against the Padres, Cardinals, and Reds, he has allowed one run in 19 innings while striking out 25 batters.
