Phillies vs. Astros

The Phillies and Astros played a wild game Tuesday night in Philadelphia.  The game featured a pitcher’s duel, ninth inning home run, and a key ejection that forced the Phillies to use a pitcher in the field.  In the end, the Astos defeated the Phillies by a score of 4-2 in a 16 inning marathon.

The Astros got on the board first in the fourth inning when Carlos Lee hit a two-run homer off of Phillies’ starter Cole Hamels.  The Phils got a run back off of Houston starter Bud Norris in the sixth on a Raul Ibanez RBI double, but the Astros held on to a 2-1 lead entering the ninth inning.    With two outs in the ninth, Jimmy Rollins blasted a solo home run off of Houston reliever Wilton Lopez to tie the game and send it to extra innings.  Then things got really interesting.

 Neither team could find a way to score in extra frames.  In the bottom of the 14th, Ryan Howard came up with two runners on and two outs.  Howard had two check swings ruled strikes by third base umpire Scott Barry, the last being strike three.  When Howard tossed his bat and helmet after the strike out, Barry ejected Howard, causing the Phillies first baseman to charge towards the umpire before being restrained.  The ejection left the Phillies short a position player, and forced manager Charlie Manuel to insert pitcher Roy Oswalt in left field. 

The Astros finally broke the tie in the top of the 16th off of reliever David Herndon (1-3), scratching out two runs on an infield single and fielder’s choice.  In the bottom of the inning, Howard’s ejection loomed large again.   Astros’ reliever Jeff Fulchino (1-0) retired the first two batters, but after walking Placido Polanco, Houston intentionally walked Chase Utley to bring up “clean up hitter” Roy Oswalt.   Fulchino got Oswalt to ground out to end the game and give Houston the victory.

 

Marlins vs. Mets

 The Mets’ slumbering offense knocked out Marlins’ ace Josh Johnson after five innings and used single runs in the final two innings to defeat Florida by a score of 6-5 at Citi Field.

The Mets broke a 2-2 tie with two runs in the fifth off of Johnson, thanks to an RBI single by Carlos Beltran and Jeff Francoeur‘s second sacrifice fly of the game.  Mets’ starter R.A. Dickey kept the Mets in the lead until the seventh.  With two outs and two on in the seventh, Dickey allowed a three-run homer to Gaby Sanchez to give Florida a 5-4 lead.  However, the Mets came back against the Marlins’ bullpen.

With two outs in the eighth, Angel Pagan doubled and Beltran drove in his second run of the game with a run-scoring single off of Clay Hensley to tie the game at 5.   After Hisanori Takahashi (8-6) retired the Marlins in the top of the ninth, Luis Castillo hit a two-out single off of Will Ohman (0-2) to score Ike Davis and give the Mets the walk-off victory.

 

Nationals vs. Cubs

The Cubs’ Carlos Zambrano pitched effectively into the eighth inning, and closer Carlos Marmol survived a shaky ninth as Chicago held on to defeat the Nationals 5-4 in Washington.

Nationals’ starter John Lannan (5-6) allowed a three-run homer to Alfonso Soriano and a two-run shot to Tyler Colvin as the Cubs built a 5-1 lead.  Meanwhile, Zambrano (5-6) allowed just one run and five hits over 7 1/3 innings, striking out eight.   Marmol entered the game in the bottom of the eighth with the bases loaded, but struck out Ian Desmond to keep the score at 5-1.

In the ninth, Marmol created his own bases loaded mess, and with two outs, Adam Kennedy cleared the bases with a three-run double to cut Chicago’s lead to 5-4.  Luckily for the Cubbies, Marmol rebounded to retire Ryan Zimmerman on a fly ball to preserve the victory.  Despite allowing three runs, Marmol was credited with his 23rd save of the season since he entered the game with the tying run at the plate.

 

Braves vs. Rockies

The first place Atlanta Braves received a solid starting pitching performance from Derek Lowe, but the Rockies’ Jorge De La Rosa was better on Tuesday night, and the Braves fell by a score of 5-2 in Colorado.

The Rockies opened the scoring when Carlos Gonzalez hit a two-run homer off of Lowe (11-12) in the bottom of the first.  The Braves got a run back in the second off of De La Rosa (5-4) on an Alex Gonzalez solo shot, but Rockies got that run back with a Seth Smith home run in the sixth.  Alex Gonzalez cut the Rockies lead to 3-2 with a seventh inning RBI single, but that was as close as the Braves would get.

The Rockies added some insurance in the eighth inning courtesy of a Dexter Fowler two-run single.  Huston Street pitched a perfect ninth inning to notch his 12th save of the season.

Mets vs. Rockies

The Mets beat the Rockies 1-0 Tuesday night. This game featured a great pitchers duel between starters Mike Pelfrey and Ubaldo Jimenez. The only run of the game came in the bottom of the 7th. After walking Chris Carter to start the inning, Jimenez then gave up a double to Josh Thole to put men on second and third. A few batters later, Jose Reyes hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Jeff Francoeur, who pinch-ran for Carter.

Pelfrey went 7 strong innings to get the win, giving up no runs and only four hits while striking out four.  Jimenez also went 7 great innings, but took the loss. Jimenez allowed one run on four hits while striking out eight. Francisco Rodriguez recorded his 25th save of the season for the Mets.

Marlins vs. Nationals

The Marlins took the series opener 8-2 Tuesday. Florida jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the 1st on an Dan Uggla home run. Uggla drove in two more runs in the 3rd on a double to left field to score Hanley Ramirez and Gaby Sanchez. Washington got on the board in the bottom of the 3rd after a field error by Wes Helms allowed Ivan Rodriguez to score. Florida added three more runs in the 5th with doubles by Sanchez and Helms. Logan Morrison singled in the 6th to score Ramirez, making it 8-1 Florida. Washington had the bases loaded in the bottom of the 7th, but could only get one run home to make it 8-2.

Anibal Sanchez got the win, going 6.2 innings and giving up two runs on five hits while striking out seven. Stephen Strasburg took the loss, going 4.1 innings and allowing six runs on six hits while striking out four.

Phillies vs. Dodgers

The Phillies fell to the Dodgers 15-9. Andre Ethier drove in Los Angeles’ first two runs of the game with a single in the 1st and a double in the 3rd. Ethier would score later in the 3rd on a single by Jay Gibbons. The Dodgers scored four more runs in the 4th to make it 7-0 Dodgers. Placido Polanco scored the Phillies first run in the bottom of the 4th. In the bottom of the 5th, Wilson Valdez scored on a ground out by Polanco. Ross Gload followed with a two-run shot t0 right field to cut the lead to 7-4. As soon as the Phillies made it a close game, they gave it all right back, giving up four more runs to L.A. in the top of the 6th. Domonic Brown homered in the 6th for the Phillies to make it 11-5. Los Angeles responded in the 7th with two more runs on a single by Matt Kemp. Philadelphia put up two runs in the 7th on a homer by Gload to make it 13-7.  In the top of the 9th, Casey Blake made it 15-7 Dodgers with a two run home run to left field. The Phillies fought back in the bottom of the inning, but were only able to add two runs on a double by Brown.

Vicente Padilla got the win, going 5 innings and giving up four runs on six hits while striking out two. Kyle Kendrick took the loss, lasting only 3.1 innings and giving up six runs on eight hits while striking out one.

Braves vs. Astros

The Braves beat the Astros by a score of 4-2. After entering the game for an injured Chipper Jones, Brooks Conrad scored the games first run in the 7th on a single by Troy Glaus. The Braves defense was sloppy in the bottom of the 8th, however, with errors by Alex Gonzalez and Omar Infante allowing Houston to take a 2-0 lead. Solo shots by Conrad and Glaus in the to of the 9th gave Atlanta the lead.

Braves starter Jair Jurrjens went 7.1 innings and got the no decision. He gave up two runs on six hits while striking out three. Jonny Venters got the win for Atlanta after facing just one batter. Houston starter J.A. Happ also got a no decision, going 6.1 innings and allowing one run on two hits while striking out six. Matt Lindstrom took the loss for the Astros. Billy Wagner  came in to pitch a 1-2-3 9th to get his 28th save of the season for Atlanta.

Mets vs. Phillies

The Phillies beat the Mets in a score of 7-5. In the first Placido Polanco doubled to score Raul Ibanez to put the Phillies on the board.  In the 3rd Jose Reyes singled scoring Jeff Francoeur to tie the game.  In the 4th Josh Thole singled scoring David Wright giving the Mets the lead.  The Phillies scored 6 runs in the 8th with hits from Ben Francisco, Carlos Ruiz, Jimmy Rollins, and Mike Sweeney.  The Mets fought back scoring 3 runs in the 9th when Mike Hessman hit a 3 run homer but it wasn’t enough.

Jon Niese pitched 7 innings giving up 4 hits, 1 run, and 7 strikeouts.  Joe Blanton pitched 7 innings giving up 7 hits, 2 runs, and 4 strikeouts.  Chad Durbin got the win pitching 1 inning giving up no hits with 1 strikeout.  Bobby Parnell got the loss while not retiring a batter and giving up 4 hits and 4 runs.

Marlins vs. Cardinals

The Cardinals beat the Marlins in a score of 7-0.  In the first inning Albert Pujols hit a 3 run home run scoring Felipe López and Jon Jay.  In the 3rd inning Matt Holiday doubled scoring Jon Jay.  In the 4th The Cardinals added 3 more runs when Brendan Ryan doubled scoring Aaron Miles, Jon Jay doubled scoring Brendan Ryan, and  Albert Pujols doubled scoring Jon Jay.

Adam Wainwright got the win after pitching a complete game shutout giving up just 2 hits with 7 strikeouts.  The loss went to Ricky Nolasco who pitched 5 innings giving up 10 hits, 7 runs, and 6 strikeouts.

Braves vs. Giants

The Giants beat the Braves in a score of 3-2. The Giants scored in the 1st when Aubrey Huff grounded out scoring Andres Torres.  The Braves tied it up in the 5th when Alex Gonzalez hit a solo shot.  The Braves took the lead in the 6th when Chipper Jones hit a solo home run.  The Giants tied it up in the 9th when Aubrey Huff scored due to an error by Chipper Jones.  In the 11th Pat Burell hit a sac fly to score Aubrey Huff.

Barry Zito pitched 7 innings giving up 4 hits, 2 runs, and 10 strikeouts.  Tommy Hanson pitched 7 innings giving up 3 hits, 1 run, and 3 strikeouts.  Javier Lopez got the win after pitching 1 inning giving up 1 hit, no runs, and 1 strikeout.  The loss went to Peter Moylan who pitched 1.2 innings giving up 1 hit, 1 run, and no strikeouts.  The save went to Brian Wilson who pitched a perfect 9th with 1 strikeout.

Nationals vs. Dodgers

The Nationals beat the Dodgers in a score of 6-3. The Nationals scored 3 runs in the 1st when Adam Dunn hit a 3 run homer scoring Ian Desmond and Ryan Zimmerman.  In the 3rd Adam Dunn hit another 3 run bomb scoring Desmond and Zimmerman making the score 6-0.   The Dodgers scored 3 runs in the 4th when Andre Either homered scoring Ryan Theriot and Casey Blake singled scoring James Loney.

John Lannan got the win and pitched 6 innings giving up 5 hits, 3 runs, and 2 strikeouts.  Clayton Kershaw got the loss and pitched 6 innings giving up 7 hits, 6 runs, and 9 strikeouts.  Drew Storen got his 1st save of the season giving up no hits with 1 walk.

Braves vs. Giants

The Braves took the opening game of their four-game series with the Giants by a score of 3-2. San Francisco jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the 1st as Andres Torres scored on Aubrey Huff’s ground out. The Giants tagged on another run in the 2nd when Torres hit a double to center, driving home Aaron Rowand. Atlanta tied up the game in the bottom of the 2nd with a two-run shot to left field off the bat of Alex Gonzalez. Eric  Hinske would homer for the Braves in the bottom of the 6th to make it 3-2 Atlanta.

Jair Jurrjens got the win, going 6 innings and giving up two runs on seven hits while striking out three. Tim Lincecum took the loss, going 6.1 innings and allowing three runs on six hits while striking out seven. Billy Wagner recorded his 26th save of the season for Atlanta.

Marlins vs. Phillies

The Phillies beat the Marlins 5-4 in 10 innings. The game was scoreless until the top of the 6th when Carlos Ruiz doubled, hitting  a line drive to center to drive in Raul Ibanez and Domonic Brown, giving Philadelphia a 2-0 lead. The Marlins came back in the bottom of the 7th to score four runs. Donnie Murphy hit a ground-rule double to drive in a run. Two batters later, Logan Morrison walked with the bases loaded tying the game at 2-2. Gaby Sanchez followed with a single to drive in two more runs for Florida. Going into the 9th with a 4-2 lead, a Hanley Ramirez error along with poor pitching from the Florida bullpen allowed for the Phillies to tie up the game. The game winning run for the Phillies came in the top of the 10th on a homer to left field off the bat of Ruiz.

Phillies starter Roy Oswalt went 6.1 innings, giving up two runs on three hits while striking out five. Ryan Madson got the win for Philadelphia. Chris Volstad went 5.2 innings for Florida, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out two batters. Will Ohman took the loss for Florida. Brad Lidge recorded his 12th save for the Phillies.

Nationals vs. Diamondbacks

The Nationals lost to the Diamondbacks by a score of 8-4. A fielding error by Adam Dunn in the 2nd allowed for Rusty Ryal to reach base and Adam LaRoche to score for Arizona. Ryal would score later in the inning on a double by Bobby Crosby. Adam Kennedy got Washington on the board in the 3rd with a solo shot to right field, cutting Arizona’s lead to 2-1. The next inning, Stephen Drew hit an RBI single for Arizona. Arizona starter Barry Enright helped himself out at the plate, driving in Drew with a single to center field. Ryan Zimmerman homered in the top of the 5th, cutting the lead to 4-2. Zimmerman had two home runs on the night. Arizona would respond, however, with three more runs in the bottom of the 5th. Roger Bernadina homered in the 7th for Washington. Arizona tagged on their 8th run in the 8th on a sacrifice fly by Justin Upton.

Ross Detwiler took the loss for Washington. He lasted only 4 innings, giving up seven runs on  nine hits while striking out five. Barry Enright got the win for Arizona. He went 6 innings allowing two runs on six hits while striking out three.

Marlins vs. Phillies

The Phillies beat the Marlins in a score of 6-1. In the 2nd inning Ben Francisco and Carlos Ruiz both went deep for the Phillies with a pair of solo shots.  In the bottom of the inning Dan Uggla also went deep with a solo shot.  In the 4th Roy Halladay singled scoring Ben Francisco and Carlos Ruiz.  In the 5th the Phillies added another run when Carlos Ruiz singled home Raul Ibanez.  In the 7th the Phillies added another  a final run when Wilson Valdez singled home Placido Polanco.

Roy Halladay got the win and pitched 7 innings giving up 5 hits, 1 run, and 9 strikeouts.  The loss went to Sean West who pitched 5 innings giving up 9 hits, 5 runs, and 4 strikeouts.

Mets vs. Braves

The Mets beat the Braves in a score of 3-2. The Braves struck first in the 2nd when Melkey Cabrera grounded out into a fielders choice scoring Alex Gonzalez.  In the bottom of the inning Jose Reyes doubled scoring Luis Castillo.  The Braves took the lead in the 5th when Melkey Cabrera single home Rick Ankiel.  The Mets tied it up in the 7th when Chris Carter singled home Jeff Francoeur.  The Mets took the lead in the 9th when Jeff Francoer hit a solo home run.

Derek Lowe pitched 6 innings giving up 6 hits, 1 run, and 3 strikeouts.  RA Dickey pitched 6 innings giving up 5 hits, 2 runs, and 2 strikeouts.  Manny Acosta got the win after pitching 1.2 innings giving up no hits with 1 strikeout.  Billy Wagner got the loss after pitching 1 inning giving up 1 hit, 1 run, and 1 strikeout.  Francisco Rodríguez got the save after pitching a perfect 9th.

Nationals vs. Diamondbacks

The Diamondbacks beat the Nationals in a score of 6-1. The Nationals took an early lead when Ryan Zimmerman hit a solo shot in the 1st.  In the 3rd the Diamondbacks tied it up when Stephen Drew hit a solo shot.  In the 4th the Diamondbacks took the lead when Mark Reynolds homered to score Adam LaRoche and Miguel Montero.  In the 6th the Diamondbacks added another run when Miguel Montero hit a sac fly to score Justin Upton.  In the 7th Kelly Johnson singled scoring Rusty Ryal to add another run.

Joe Saunders got the win after pitching a complete game with 5 hits, 1 run, and 5 strikeouts.  Scott Olsen got the loss and pitched 5.2 innings giving up 7 hits, 5 runs and 3 strikeouts.

I have decided on the title of my running article which I hope will continue to run on this website. As there were no comments on my previous article, I will assume that a) No One Cares or b) I am the only person reading it.

Where have you gone Mr. Jones?

I dont blame anyone. At this point in the baseball season, nothing is happening. Minor free agents are signing meaningless contracts, i.e., Andruw Jones & Alex Gonzalez, and teams are posturing. Many “sources” provide fodder for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and the like. Will the Blue Jays trade Roy Halladay? Who knows, but it is better to speculate about it then write nothing at all. Hell, if all ESPN and SI can put out is conjecture what the hell am I going to say.

The point is, there isnt much to say. Until the first domino falls, no one knows how this offseason will shape up.

How about Andrew/Andruw/Andru Jones? Remember when he hit 2 HR’s in a World Series game against the Yankees? What happened to him? Did he just lose confidence? Did he not try hard enough? Did he eat his way out of baseball? Or is he a casualty of the steroid era? I mean at this point, how could you at least not speculate that a guy who was productive and durable came crashing to the earth at around the same time steroids became a big deal. I am not saying that he took steroids. The point is that he could have taken steroids or some other performance enhancing substance. Or his career could have simply followed a bell curve, who knows. I certainly dont. However, that is what a blog is for, to voice an opinion and let the people decide one way or another.

For example, from 1997 until 2006, Jones averaged 33.7 HR’s a season. In 2005 and 2006, he managed to hit 51 and 41 HR’s respectively. In 2007, he dropped to 27 HR’s. Now, he is signing a minor league deal worth $500,000. Jones never hit for average, but I do not recall a debilitating injury (Jones did not go on the disabled list in his career until 2008) or anything else that would have slowed his career.

Look, more likely than not, Jones is just a victim of a downward career spiral. He put on weight and might not have had the discipline to maintain his status as an elite player. He never got a huge payday, ala, Adrian Beltre. (I mention Adrian Beltre not because he took steroids but because he had a curiously productive career year which coincided

I would be smiling too if I robbed a Major League Baseball Team

with his free agency year. Beltre has not come close to duplicating those numbers.) It is worth noting that Adrian Beltre had his huge season, .334 AVG and 48 HR’s in 2004. Jones’ best seasons came in 2005 and 2006. Despite being poised to receive a huge payday in free agency, Jones fizzled. One has to wonder why this occurred.

It is a shame because Jones could have been the Griffey Junior of his era. Now he is hoping for at-bats on the White Sox.

I know the steroid angle is played out and that no one cares anymore because most people assume all baseball players are guilty of something. However, any player whose career was productive and who has a rapid decline is under suspicion. Plus, it should be noted, Jones is only 32, which means his career derailed in his late 20′s. A little early for a guy who was pretty consistent over a 10 year span to suddenly lose the ability to hit a baseball, especially when he was never injured.