Mets vs. Cubs

The Mets dropped their opener with the Cubs by a score of 7-6. New York got on the board early when David Wright knocked in two runs in the 1st inning with a double to left field. Wright would later score in the inning on a ground-out by Joaquin Arias, giving the Mets a 3-0 lead. The Mets held that lead until the 4th inning when Chicago scored four runs in the inning on a single by Xavier Nady and a three-run shot off the bat of Alfonso Soriano to put the Cubs up 4-3. Rookie Lucas Duda tied up the game for the Mets in the 6th with his first major league hit, a double to right field, and his first RBI. The game did not remain tied long. In the bottom of the 6th, Mets starter R.A. Dickey gave up a three-run home run, the second of the day, to Blake Dewitt. Wright and Luis Hernandez each homered for the Mets in the 7th and 8th innings respectively.

Dickey took the loss for New York. He went 6 innings, giving up seven runs on eight hits while striking out three. Cubs starter Randy Wells went 5.2 innings to get a no decision. He gave up four runs on eight his while striking out four. James Russell got the win for Chicago. Carlos Marmol recorded his 26th save for the Cubs.

Phillies vs. Brewers

Philadelphia beat the Brewers 1-0, moving within one game of the NL East leading Braves. The lone run of the game came in the 2nd inning when Carlos Ruiz grounded out to the shortstop allowing Shane Victorino to score. Philadelphia’s bats were quiet for much of the night, only getting a total of four hits. Milwaukee bats were held to just three hits all night. Phillies starter Cole Hamels had a no-hitter going into the 5th inning until it was broken up by a single to center field by Casey McGehee.

Hamels got the win, going 7 innings and giving up only three hits and striking out seven. Milwaukee’s starter Chris Capuano took the loss, going 5 innings and allowing one run on four hits while striking out four. Ryan Madson closed it out for the Phillies to record his 5th save.

Nationals vs. Pirates

Washington fell to the Pirates 8-5. Danny Espinosa hit his first career home run in the 3rd inning to give the Nationals a 1-0 lead. Pittsburgh followed suit in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs on RBI’s by Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones. Ryan Doumit hit a solo shot in the 4th inning to give the Pirates a 4-1 lead. The Pirates would then go on to have a four-run 5th inning. Back-to-back doubles by Jones and Pedro Alvarez made it 7-1. Doumit capped of the inning with an RBI single to score Alvarez. Washington fought back with their own four-run inning in the top of the 6th. Adam Dunn and Justin Maxwell each singled home a run and Ivan Rodriguez hit into a double play which allowed Ryan Zimmerman to score. A double by Espinosa drove in the final run of the inning.

Zach Duke got the win for Pittsburgh, going 5 innings and giving up four runs on five hits while striking out five. Livan Hernandez took the loss, going 4.1 innings and allowing eight runs on eight hits while striking out four.

Braves vs. Marlins

Good pitching and speed on the bases were just too much for the Braves as they dropped their opener with the Marlins 6-1. Florida got things started in the 1st inning with a run scoring on a triple by Logan Morrison. Morrison had two triples in the game. Hanley Ramirez followed with an RBI double to score Morrison. Ramirez stole two bases in the game. Atlanta starter Kenshin Kawakami helped himself out at the plate, hitting a single in the top of the 2nd to give the Braves their only run, and cut the lead to 2-1. Florida responded in the bottom of the 3rd with three runs thanks to a double by Chad Tracy to drive in two runs, and a sacrifice fly by Brad Davis to score Gaby Sanchez. Florida tagged on another run in the 4th inning on an RBI double by Dan Uggla.

Florida starter Andrew Miller got the win, his first since July of 2009. He went 5 innings and gave up one run on seven hits while striking out six. Kawakami took the loss, going only 3 innings and allowing five runs on five hits while striking out two.

Braves vs. Marlins

The Marlins beat the Braves 5-4 in 11 innings. An RBI single in the first by Brian McCann and a home run off the bat of Eric Hinske in the 3rd gave Atlanta a 2-0 lead. Florida got on the board in the bottom of the 4th, scoring four runs in the inning. Cody Ross drove in Hanley Ramirez with a single, followed by two more runs thanks to a triple by Wes Helms. Helms would score the 4th run of the inning on a single by Brad Davis. A sacrifice fly by Melky Cabrera in the 6th cut the Marlins lead to 4-3. Atlanta tied up the game in the 8th on a double by Chipper Jones. It would remain 4-4 until the bottom of the 11th when Ramirez scored the winning run on a walk-off single by Helms.

Chris Volstad went 6 innings, giving up three runs on five hits in his no decision. Jair Jurrjens got a no decision as well, throwing 7 innings and allowing four runs on six hits. Jorge Sosa got the win for Florida. Jesse Chavez took the loss for Atlanta.

Nationals vs. Brewers

The Nationals fell to the Brewers 8-3 Sunday. Milwaukee jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first on a single by Jonathan Lucroy and a wild pitch by Ross Detwiler allowed Prince Fielder to score. Milwaukee scored three more in the 4th thanks to a throwing error by Ian Desmond and a two run shot off the bat of Rickie Weeks. A sacrifice fly by Josh Willingham and an RBI single by Adam Dunn in the 6th got the Nationals on the board and cut the Brewers’ lead to 5-2. Nyjer Morgan singled home a run in the 7th making it 5-3. Milwaukee responded in the bottom of the 7th with a three-run shot off the bat of Casey McGehee.

Ross Detwiler took the loss in his first game back since undergoing hip surgery in February.  Detwiler lasted only 3.2 innings and gave up five runs on three hits. Dave Bush got the win, going 6 innings and allowing three runs on six hits.

Phillies vs. Rockies

Philadelphia beat the Rockies 4-3. The Rockies, Clint Barmes, drove in the game’s first run in the 1st.  The Phillies responded in the bottom of the inning with a two-run shot to left field off the bat of Ben Francisco. Ryan Spilborghs homered in the 4th for Colorado to give the Rockies a 3-2 lead. The Phillies came back in the 7th as Jimmy Rollins drove in and scored the Phillies’ 3rd and 4th runs.

J.A. Happ got a no decision, throwing 5 innings and allowing three runs on four hits.  Jeff Francis also got a no decision, going 5 innings and giving up two runs on six hits. Ryan Madson got the win for Philadelphia. Joe Beimel took the loss for Colorado. Brad Lidge recorded his 9th save for the Phillies.

Mets vs. Dodgers

The Mets fell to the Dodgers 1-0, finishing their road trip with a 2-9 record. Russell Martin doubled to left field in the 8th inning, scoring Casey Blake from first base for the game’s only run. The Mets threatened in the 5th, 6th, and 7th innings, but couldn’t break through against Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw.

R.A. Dickey left the game after landing awkwardly while pitching to Martin in the 6th.  Dickey was pulled after pitching 5.2 brilliant innings, and giving up two hits.  Kershaw pitched 8 very good innings to get the win. He allowed seven hits and no runs. Pedro Feliciano gave up the winning run giving him the loss. Kenley Jansen recorded his 1st save for the Dodgers.

Utley with the eventual winner

Chase Utley and the Phillies were able to get back in the win column on Saturday with a 4-1 victory at Citi Field, ruining the Mets ’69 World Series celebration.  After being shut out for five innings, Chase Utley got to the Mets relief pitchers with a two run home run, and the Phillies needed no more.  Starter J.A. Happ(10-2) gave up one run over seven innings scattering eight hits and got his 10th win of the season, to continue leading all rookies.  Brad Lidge got his 24th save of the season and Carlos Ruiz and Pedro Feliz added RBI’s for the Phillies, Phillies Phandom will have more information on the Phillies.

Tim Redding started the game for the Mets after Livan Hernandez was released and pitched five shutout, one hit innings before giving way to the relief corp.  Pat Misch(0-1) came in to start the sixth after being recalled and walked Victorino and gave up the two run shot to Utley immediately afterwards, taking the loss.  The Mets only recorded a run on a single by Omir Santos in the second which scored Jeff Francouer from third.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog will have more on the Mets loss.

Hanson keeps winning

Two home runs and four runs in the first inning yesterday proved to be all the offense Atlanta would get, but more importantly, all they would need in a 4-3 victory.  Omar Infante led off the game with a home run for the Braves, LaRoche added an RBI single and finally Yunel Escobar capped the inning with a two run blast scoring LaRoche, and Hanson cruised.  Tommy Hanson(9-2) went seven innings giving up three runs on four hits while striking out seven in keeping the Braves playoff hopes alive.  Rafael Soriano worked the ninth to get his 19th save of the season.  The Braves Baseball Blog has more.

Chris Volstad(9-10) only got through four innings of work, but except for a bad blemish in the first, had a pretty solid start.  Volstad was charged with four runs on six hits and all four runs coming in the first inning, but the Marlins offense could not get him off the hook.  The Marlins got their three runs in the fifth on a double by Wes Helms and then a two run single by Jorge Cantu.  The Marlins looks to take the series today in Atlanta, but FishGuts has more on the team.

How silly does this look?

The Milwaukee Brewers appear to have found the Nationals of early season, as they took their second in a row by a score of 11-9 on Saturday.  Ths win did not come easy though, after being up 7-0 going to the bottom of the second, Mike Burns and the Brewers relief let the Nats right back in the game.  Casey McGehee went 2-5 for the Brewers but drove in the eventual winning run, and Mike Cameron contributed four hits and three runs and three RBI including a home run during the victory.  Chris Narverson(1-0) picked up the win as he pitched 2.2 scoreless innings of relief and Trevor Hoffman got his 27th save of the season in this game.

John Lannan may have had his worst start of the year in this one, going only 1.2 innings and allowing seven earned runs and putting the Nats in an early hole.  Luckily, they got him off the hook, but still lost the game.  Ronnie Belliard produced the biggest blow with a grand slam home run in the third and had two other hits and a total of two runs scored.  Jason Bergmann(2-2) took the loss as he worked one inning giving up two hits and a run.  CenterfieldGate has more on the Nationals latest losing streak.

Pelf comes up big

In a series in which the Mets best hope is to begin playing spoiler, they sent the up and down Mike Pelfrey to the mound against the struggling Cole Hamels.  Pelfrey(9-8) got the best of the Phillies for the third time this season in this one, going six innings and allowing just two runs and six hits and striking out five on route to a 4-2 victory.  He was helped by the Mets getting two runs each in the second and third inning, including Pagan having an RBI single and Jeff Francouer with a solo home run, continuing his hot play with the Mets.  The Mets bullpen did not allow another run, though they did give up four more hits, including Franky Rodriguez allowing two hits before striking out Ryan Howard to end the game, it was his 27th save.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog is the place to go for more Mets information

Cole Hamels had another tough game as his disappointing season continues after an outstanding 2008.  After a rain delay of over an hour, Hamels could not find his best stuff in this one.  Hamels(7-8) only lasted five innings but allowed all four Mets runs and ten hits in the loss.  The only run support he got as well was a Ryan Howard RBI single in the first and a Pedro Feliz RBI single in the sixth, but they squandered other opportunities.  The four game set should continue Saturday night, weather permitting, check out Phillies Phandom for more Phillies insight.

the Marlins welcome Sanchez back

The Florida Marlnis had just allowed the Braves to come back and tie them for second in the NL East and for third in the Wild Card this week.  They rebounded last night by sending newly back Anibal Sanchez to the mound while visiting the Braves in Atlanta.  Sanchez(2-4) pitched into the seventh inning allowing only two hits and one run while striking out seven Braves as the Marlins won 5-3.  Lucky for him, Hanley Ramirez recorded an RBI single in the top of the sixth to allow him to be the winning pitcher and then they added in the seventh.  In the seventh Jeremy Hermida hit a solo shot, Ramirez added a two run blow and sandwiched between was a Ross Gload RBI single.  Sanchez and Dan Meyer combined to give up three runs in the seventh inning, but that was all the Braves would get.  Leo Nunez worked the ninth giving up just one hit to get his 14th save of the year as Cody Ross threw out Adam LaRoche trying to stretch a single to a double to end the game.  FishGuts has more on this game.

Javier Vazquez(10-9) lost again to a division rival, this time going 6.2 innings.  He was charged with ten hits and all five runs, including two home runs and eight strikeouts this time.  Adam LaRoche produced all the Braves runs as he continued his hot play since returning to the Braves with a three run home run in the seventh scoring Ryan Church and Chipper Jones. The Braves Baseball Blog is your one stop shop for Braves info.

Fielder with another blast

The Milwaukee Brewers are trying to get their team straight and were able to get on their way last night with a 7-3 win in Washignton.  Prince Fielder hit a two run shot and Casey McGehee had solo shots on the way to the victory for the Brew Crew.  Former Met Braden Looper(11-6) got the win as he pitched six innings allowing only two runs on four hits, with one blemish being a shot to Adam Dunn.

J.D. Martin was pitching a pretty solid game until the seventh inning came around.  In the seventh, Martin gave up an RBI single which made the game 4-2 and with the lack of Nats offense at that point, he was headed for a loss.  Martin(2-3) had a final line of 6.2 innings pitched with four runs on eight hits in the game.  Ryan Zimmerman had an RBI groundout and a solo shot in the ninth and Adam Dunn also had a solo home run the game.  It was the Nats fourth loss in a row, check out CenterfieldGate for more on them.

Happ watches Upton

Justin Upton wanted to make sure that the Diamondbacks won at least one game out of three against the Philadelphia Phillies.  In the first inning, he hit a two run home run off of Phillies starter J.A. Happ and int the eighth inning, he added an RBI single for insurance.  He also had three of the Diamondbacks total seven hits on a night the D’backs won 4-0.  Yusmeiro Petit(1-5) got his first win of the season as he went six innings but only gave up four hits and a walk while striking out eight.

The Philadelphia Phillies team, fresh off trading for last year’s AL Cy Young Award winner, Cliff Lee, came in this game with the ability to sweep.  J.A. Happ(7-2) took his second straight loss after seven straight winning decisions but pitched well.  He gave up only the two run home run to Upton ion the first and only three hits in total and two walks. in six innings.  Two Philly relievers gave up a run each and the Philly offense couldn’t get a run home, which is a rare occurrence.  Read more about this game and other Philly news at Phillies Phandom.

Johnson pitches, and hits!

Josh Johnson decided to take the game last night against the Braves into his own hands, in every possible way last night.  Johnson deposited a Kawakami pitch in the fourth inning into center field for a three run home run which at the time gave the Marlins a 4-0 lead on way to a 6-3 win.  Hanley Ramirez contributed a RBI triple in the third and a solo home run in the fifth and Dan Uggla even got into the home run derby in the fifth as well.  Johnson(10-2) got his tenth victory of the year as he went six innings and gave up eight hits on three runs, all from home runs.  The Marlins sent four relievers to the mound to finish it off, with Leo Nunez getting his eighth save of the year working a scoreless ninth.  Check out FishGuts for more about the win and the Fish.

Kenshin Kawakami(5-8) had a terrible start, and the home run ball hit him harder than any other pitcher in the game, and it always hurts to give one up to the opposing pitcher.  Kawakami went 4.2 innings giving up seven hits and six runs, including the three home runs and even walked four.  The Braves offense did its best against one of the best pitchers in the NL as Casey Kotchman hit a solo shot and Garret Anderson hit a home run for the second consecutive night, of the two run variety.  The Braves Baseball Blog has all the Braves info you need.

If you hadn’t heard, New York is now Seattle East, so as seems to be a normal occurance, the rain came and didn’t stop last night.  The Mets and Rox will play a day-night double header today at Citi Field.

McGehee gets a hold of one

The Brewers were looking to avoid being swept by the worst team in baseball (by record that is) last night in Milwaukee.  After the second inning though, it wasn’t looking good as they were already down 4-0.  The Brewers came back though starting in the third on a Ryan Braun triple that scored a run, and he later scored on a wild pitch.  After going down 5-3 in the sixth, they Brewers got three in the sixth and never looked back.  J.J. Hardy missed an RBI chance in the sixth as he grounded into a double play scoring a run, but got an RBI groundout in the eighth to pad the stats.  Casey McGehee had the biggest blast as he hit a pinch hit two run home run to give the Nats the lead in the sixth.  Manny Parra(5-8) went six innings but gave up five runs and five walks on nine hits to get a shaky win for the Brewers.  Trevor Hoffman came in and struck out two in the ninth for his 23rd save of the season.

The Nationals’ Garrett Mock left the game after the fifth in line for a victory if the bullpen could hold on.  Unfortunately for him, Tyler Clippard(1-1) who had been very solid of late, blew his first save of the year going 1.1 innings and gave up two runs on the home run to McGehee.  Christian Guzman and Nyjer Morgan continued their hot play though, each having two hits and a run scored and Guzman even added an RBI.  Ryan Zimmerman added two RBI as well as Nick Johnson getting an RBI for the night.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more Nats info.

Rollins with a grand slam

The Phillies played a game on Saturday that entailed 29 hits and 20 runs, lucky for them, they had 14 of those 20 runs, winning 14-6.  Jimmy Rollins saved starter Rodrigo Lopez by hitting a grand slam in the bottom of the sixth inning.  The Phillies took an early 3-0 lead, but squandered it by the top of the sixth inning.  Lopez (3-0) worked six innings giving up three earned runs and four total in staying undefeated on the season.  Jimmy Rollins finished the day with a career high five RBI and Shane Victorino went 4-4 with three runs scored, three RBI and even added in a walk.  Check out Phillies Phandom for more Phillies info from this game and all others.

Cardinals pitching could almost have not been worse today.  Three pitchers combined to give up the fourteen runs, starter Kyle Lohse was let off the hook of a bad start by giving up three runs in only four innings of work as he left for a pinch hitter with a high pitch count.  Jason Motte(3-4) left after getting one out and giving up back to back home runs, one of them being the grand slam to Rollins.  New Cardinals Julio Lugo and Matt Holliday had good games again, going 6-9 with two runs scored and two RBI combined.

Blake gets the game winning RBI

In Los Angeles, Casey Blake saved the Dodgers from another possible loss to the Marlins.  With two out in the ninth inning, Casey Blake stepped to the plate and singled to drive home Rafael Furcal to win the game 4-3.  Blake had also scoredt he tying run in the sixth inning as the Dodgers came back from a 3-1 deficit to win this game.  Jonathan Broxton(7-0) got the win as he worked the top of the ninth for the Dodgers in this game and Andre Ethier and Orlando Hudson each had three hits for the Dodgers.

The Marlins as mentioned took a 3-1 lead in by the sixth with RBI singles from Cody Ross and Jeremy Hermida and an RBI double in the first by Jorge Cantu.  Besides that though, their bats couldn’t break Dodger pitching.  VandenHurk had a second straight solid start going five innings of one run ball and left in position for his second straight win, but the bullpen couldn’t hold it.  Renyel Pinto was charged with two runs in one third of an inning in the sixth and then Dan Meyer(2-1) took the loss in the ninth as he had put the baserunners on, even though Luis Ayala let up the final hit.  Check out FishGuts for more info on the Marlins.

Gallardo does it again pitching and hitting

The Brewers were able to rebound from a late loss to the Braves and their bats on Friday night, and sent their ace to the mound.  Yovani Gallardo(9-7) pitched 7.1 innings only giving up four hits and four runs and striking out six as the Brewers went on to win 4-0.  Gallardo helped himself with an RBI single in the fifth for the games first run.  Craig Counsell had an RBI groundout in the same inning and pinch hitter Casey McGehee had a two RBI single in the eighth for insurance.

The Braves sent previously undefeated Tommy Hanson to the hill on Saturday.  Hanson(5-1) took the loss even though he went seven innings and only gave up two runs because the Braves bats were silent.  Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more on the Braves.

Niese pitches a gem

There have not been many days where I have been able to write about multiple story lines for the Mets.  Tonight you can take your pick, as the Mets won 10-3 against the Astros with a great performance from a rookie, a superb game from a newcomer and a home run from a player who hadn’t hit one all month.  Jonathon Niese(1-0) went seven innings giving up a single run on four hits and two walks to get his first win since last September on a day the Mets needed it.  Jeff Francouer also went 2-4 with a run scored and four RBI, three of them coming on a home run fifth inning, it was his second as a Met and seventh overall.  David Wright hit his sixth home run in the ninth inning and it was impressive because he hadn’t hit one this month.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog has more info on the Mets.

Russ Ortiz(3-5) started for the Astros and only lasted 4.1 innings while giving up six runs on five hits and four walks.  The Astros managed a run early on a Pudge Rodriguez RBI single and then nothing until the bottom of the ninth when they had a nine run deficit.  Hunter Pence hit a two run homer in the ninth off Francisco Rodriguez, but that was all they would get.

Adam Dunn hits a granny

The Padres and Nationals waited out an over three hour rain delay in the second inning of the game Saturday in Washington, it could have been local time for the San Diego fans.  The Nationals got two runs in the first on a Zimmerman homerun and never looked back after the rain delay in the second.  Off a new pitcher, the Nationals scored five more after the delay, on a Adam Dunn grand slam.  Zimmerman ended this game with three RBI and Dunn had five RBI as the Nationals won 13-1.  Tyler Clippard(2-0) worked four innings after the rain delay to qualify for the win in this game as J.D. Martin had to leave after two innings because of the delay.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more info on the Nationals.

Padres starter Tim Stauffer(0-2) didn’t come back after the rain delay and went one inning giving up three hits and two runs to take the loss.  Five more Padre relievers combined to give up eleven more runs to make this game way out of reach.  The two finish their series on Sunday afternoon in D.C.

Ham Ram gets NL Player of the week

Fresh off the announcement that he was the National League Co-Player of the week , Hanley Ramirez went 3 for 4 with a run scored and an RBI bringing his average to .339 on the season while the Marlins defeated the Nationals 4-2.  This game was tied until the bottom of the eighth inning as there was a great pitched game by former Marlins Scott Olsen and Ricky Nolasco who appears to be turning his season around.  Nolasco(5-6) went eight innings of four hit ball while giving up only two runs and striking out eight.  Since being sent down to the minor league squad in late May with a 9.07 ERA in nine starts, Nolasco has a 1.80 ERA in five starts and is 4-1 in those games.  After Olsen pitched seven strong innings for the Nationals in his first start back from the disabled list, Ron Villone(3-5) went two thirds of an inning giving up what would eventually be the winning run to the Marlins.  Leo Nunez got the final out to record his third save of the season for the Marlins.  The Marlins moved into second place in the National League East with the victory and the series continues tonight.  For more Nationals news visit Centerfieldgate.

What could he be thinking?

The New York Mets continued their downward spiral on Monday night as they lost their fourth straight game, falling three full games behind the Phillies and even falling behind the Florida Marlins in the National League East.  Formerly undefeated Fernando Nieve(3-1) only lasted into the fourth inning this time, giving up eleven total hits and three earned runs and one home run.  The game was kept close until the Brewers broke it open in the final three innings getting seven runs off the final three Mets relievers, and those turned out to be important.  In the sixth inning, Brewers third basemen Casey McGehee made up for a Luis Castillo like error by hitting a grand slam, putting the Brew Crew up seven to three at that time.  Braden Looper(6-4) worked 6.1 innings against his former club only giving up one earned run and three in total and even contributed an RBI single.  Trevor Hoffman was summoned unexpectedly in the ninth inning to pick up his 18th save after Carlos Villanueva could only record one out while giving up five hits and three runs and making the game much closer than it actually was.  The two teams continue the series tonight at 8pm in Milwaukee and the Mets hope that ace Johan Santana can break their losing streak.  For additional Mets news, go to The Real Dirty Mets Blog.