Nationals vs. Royals

It was  another fine pitching performance by Stephen Strasburg, but without any offense to back him up, he received his first Major League loss as the Nationals fell to the Royals 1-0.  The Royals got on the board in the top of the 5th when David DeJesus scored on a single by Jose Guillen.  Nationals’ bats were quiet, however, Strasburg did get his first Major League hit and Adam Dunn went 2-4 at the plate for Washington.

Strasburg took the loss, going 6 innings and giving up one run on nine hits. He also had nine more strikeouts tonight, giving him a total of 41 strikeouts in his first four MLB starts, which is a new record. Brian Bannister got the win throwing 6 innings and giving up no runs on five hits. Joakim Soria recorded his 17th save of the season for the Royals.

Check out Centerfield Gate for more.

Mets vs. Tigers

The Mets continue to win at home as they beat the Tigers 5-0. Detroit was held to just five hits on the night. It was a big night for Mets hitters though as Jose Reyes went 3-4 and Ike Davis went 2-4. New York got on the board in the 3rd when Reyes scored on a double by David Wright. Reyes later homered in the 5th to make it 2-0 Mets. They went on to score three more runs in the 7th on a Jesus Feliciano ground out and later on a two-RBI single by Davis.

R.A. Dickey pitched 8 brilliant innings to get the win, giving up no runs on four hits. He has now won six in a row. Jeremy Bonderman took the loss, throwing 6 innings and allowing four runs on seven hits.

For more info, check out the Real Dirty Mets Blog.

Marlins vs. Orioles

The Marlins didn’t seem to be distracted by the firing of Fredi Gonzalez as they took game two in their series with the Orioles, winning 7-5. Baltimore struck first scoring four runs in the 2nd on back-to-back one-run homers by Luke Scott and Adam Jones, and a two-RBI single by Corey Patterson. Florida responded in the top of the 3rd with home runs by Gaby Sanchez and Jorge Cantu to tie the game. The Marlins scored two more runs in the 7th on back-to-back doubles by Ronny Paulino and Chris Coghlan. Patterson would drive in another run for the Orioles in the 8th, cutting the Marlins lead to 6-5.

Ricky Nolasco got the win, throwing 7 innings and giving up four runs on eight hits. Brian Matusz took the loss, going 6.1 innings and allowing six runs on seven hits. Leo Nunez got his 16th save of the year for the Marlins.

Check out Fish Guts for more.

Phillies vs. Indians

The Phillies beat the Indians by a score of 7-6. Cleveland was off to a fast start as they scored two in the 1st on a home run by Shin-Soo choo. The Phillies responded in the bottom of the inning with an RBI ground out by Ryan Howard. They then tied it in the 2nd inning on a Jayson Werth home run. Raul Ibanez would drive in two more runs for the Phillies in the 4th to make it 4-3 Philadelphia. Choo would give Cleveland the lead once again in the 5th as he hit his second homer of the night, a two-run shot to center field. Brian Schneider tied it up for Philadelphia in the 7th with his first home run of the season, making it 5-5. It would remain tied until the top of the 9th when Trevor Crowe scored for Cleveland. Jimmy Rollins then hit a walkoff home run in the bottom of the 9th to win it for the Phillies.

Kyle Kendrick only lasted 4 innings for the Phillies, giving up five runs on six hits. J.C. Romero got the win for Philadelphia. Jake Westbrook went 5 innings, taking a no decision. He gave up four runs on seven hits. Kerry Wood took the loss.

Check out Phillies Phandom for more info.

Braves vs. White Sox

After waiting out a rain delay, the Braves lost to the White Sox 4-2. Atlanta scored first in the 2nd inning on an RBI single by Melky Cabrera. Chicago tied it up in the 4th on a single by Paul Konerko. Later in the inning Chicago scored two more runs on a Carlos Quentin home run. David Ross cut the White Sox lead to 3-2 with a RBI single in the 5th. Quentin homered again in the 7th, making it 4-2 Chicago.

Tim Hudson went 7 innings and got the loss, giving up four runson six hits. Mark Buehrle went 6 innings to get the win, and gave up two runs on nine hits. Bobby Jenks got his 16th save of the season.

For more info, go to Braves Baseball.

Wednesday’s games:

Nationals vs. Royals

Stephen Strasburg (2-0) goes for win number three as he and the Nationals take on Brian Bannister (6-5) and the Royals. Game time is 4:35 p.m. in D.C.

Marlins vs. Orioles

Ricky Nolasco (5-6) and the Marlins face Brian Matusz (2-7) and the Orioles. First pitch is 7:05 p.m. in Baltimore.

Phillies vs. Indians

Kyle Kendrick (4-2) takes the mound for the Phillies as they continue their series with the Indians. Jake Westbrook (4-4) gets the start for the Indians. Game time is 7:05 p.m. in Philadelphia.

Mets vs. Tigers

R.A. Dickey (5-0) looks to win his sixth game of the season as he and the Mets take on Jeremy Bonderman (3-4) and the Tigers. Game time is set for 7:10 p.m. in N.Y.

Braves vs. White Sox

Tim Hudson (7-2) and the Braves go up against Mark Buehrle (5-6) and the White Sox. First pitch is 8:10 p.m. in Chicago.

Phillies vs. Red Sox

The Phillies hoped for a better outcome as they took on the Red Sox in game two of their series at Fenway.  Instead, Philadelphia’s starter gave up nine runs for the second game in a row, and the Red Sox cruised to a 10-2 victory.

Boston starter Daisuke Matsuzaka was scratched just before game time due to a strained forearm, and the Phillies took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second off of emergency starter Scott Atchinson thanks to a Brian Schneider two-run double.   However, the Red Sox jumped on pitcher Joe Blanton in the bottom of the inning.  JD Drew started off the scoring with a solo home run, and Daniel Nava hit a grand slam in his first major league at bat to give Boston a 5-2 lead. 

The Sox added three runs in the third and one more in the fourth off of Blanton (1-5), who gave up 13 hits in addition to nine runs in his four innings of work.  Boston reliever Manny Delcarmen (2-2) pitched two scoreless innings in relief and earned the victory.

 

Mets vs. Orioles

The Mets won back-to-back games on the road for the first time since last July as they defeated the last place Orioles 3-1 Saturday night in Baltimore.

Jose Reyes led off the game with a home run off of Baltimore starter Brian Matusz.  The Orioles tied the game at 1 in the bottom of the first off of Hisanori Takahashi on a Nick Markakis RBI double.   The game remained 1-1 until the top of the sixth, when the Mets took the lead.  The Orioles failed to turn a double play on a David Wright comebacker, allowing the Mets to score the go-ahead run.  Jeff Francoeur added a solo home run in the eighth inning to cap the scoring. 

Takahashi (5-2) gave up just one run and six hits over seven innings to earn the victory, while Matusz (2-7) took the loss.  Francisco Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth for his 13th save.

 

Nationals vs. Indians

Cleveland rookie catcher Carlos Santana hit his first career home run, and the Indians jumped on Washington starter JD Martin for four runs in the second inning as they defeated the Nationals 7-1 in Cleveland.

Playing in his second major league game, the highly touted Santana drove in three runs to lead the Indians offense.  Indians starter Fausto Carmona (5-5) went nine strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out seven.  Ryan Zimmerman‘s eighth inning home run spoiled Carmona’s shutout bid.  Martin (0-2) pitched into the eighth inning, but allowed seven runs and took the loss.

The Nationals hope to avoid a sweep when they send phenom Stephen Strasburg to the mound on Sunday.

 

Braves vs. Twins

For the second straight night, two first place teams played a one run game.  After falling in the series opener, the Braves rebounded to defeat the Twins by a score of 3-2 at Target Field in Minnesota.

Braves starter Derek Lowe and Twins starter Nick Blackburn each allowed only two runs, but neither factored in the decision.  After the Twins took a 1-0 lead in the second, the Braves answered with two in the fifth thanks to a Melky Cabrera solo homer and an RBI double from Brooks Conrad.  A Joe Mauer double tied the game in the sixth, and the score remained even at 2 until the top of the ninth.  With runners on the corners, Conrad successfully executed a squeeze bunt, scoring Gregor Blanco with the go-ahead run. 

Atlanta’s Jonny Venters (2-0) struck out Jason Kubel with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth to earn the victory, while Minnesota’s Matt Guerrier (1-2) took the loss.  Billy Wagner worked around a one out single to nail down his 11th save for the Braves.

 

Marlins vs. Devil Rays

After winning on Friday in Tampa, the Marlins fell 6-5 on Saturday night as the Rays evened the Battle of Florida at one game apiece.

The Rays jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, thanks to home runs by Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, and Sean Rodrgiuez off of Florida starer Ricky Nolasco (5-5).   However, the Marlins battled back against Tampa starter Matt Garza.  Wes Helms hit a two run homer in the fourth and the Fish scored another in the fifth to cut the lead to 5-4.  After the Rays added a run in the seventh, the Marlins answered back in the eighth with one of their own, but couldn’t bring home the tying run. 

Closer Rafael Soriano pitched a perfect ninth for Tampa to earn save number 16 and preserve the victory for Garza (7-4) and the Rays.

Saturday’s games:

Phillies vs. Red Sox

Joe Blanton (1-4) and the Phillies look to rebound from their loss yesterday as they take on Daisuke Matsuzaka (5-2) and the Red Sox. First pitch is set for 4:10 p.m. in Boston.

Nationals vs. Indians

J.D. Martin (0-1) goes for win number one as he and the Nats take on Fausto Carmona (4-5) and the Indians. Start time is 7:05 in Cleveland.

Mets vs. Orioles

Hisanori Takahashi (4-2) and the Mets go up against Brian Matusz (2-6) and the Orioles. First pitch is 7:05 p.m. in Baltimore.

Braves vs. Twins

Derek Lowe (8-5) goes for his 9th win of the season, as he and the Braves take on Nick Blackburn (6-3) and the Twins. Game time is 7:10 p.m. in Minnesota.

Marlins vs. Rays

The Marlins look to take game two against the Rays. Ricky Nolasco (5-4) will take the mound for the Marlins, while Matt Garza (6-4) gets the start for the Rays. Game time is 7:10 p.m. in Tampa.