Braves vs. Marlins

 

The first place Braves used late inning heroics on Saturday night to defeat the Marlins by a score of 10-5 in Miami.

 

The Braves got off to a quick start as Martin Prado led off the game with a home run off of starter Anibal Sanchez.  However, the Marlins answered back with a run in the bottom of the first, and used long balls from Dan Uggla and Mike Stanton to build a 5-2 lead against Atlanta starter Kris Medlen.  The Marlins held that lead until the top of the eighth, when the Braves exploded against Florida’s bullpen.  Troy Glaus walked with the bases loaded, and Eric Hinske followed with a 2-run single to tie the game at 5.  Brooks Conrad then followed with a pinch-hit grand slam off of Marlins reliever Burke Bandenhop to give the Braves a 9-5 lead.  The Braves added another run to cap off an 8 run inning.

 

Braves reliever Jesse Chavez (2-1) pitched a perfect seventh inning in relief and earned the victory, while Jhan Marinez (1-1) picked up the loss for Florida.

 

 

Rockies vs. Phillies

 

The Phillies jumped all over Cy Young candidate Ubaldo Jimenez and rolled to a 10-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies in Philadelphia.

 

Jimenez (15-2) held the Phillies off of the scoreboard for the first two innings, but then failed to record an out in the third as the Phillies scored seven runs.  Ryan Howard hit a 3-run triple to put the Phillies on the board, and then scored on a wild pitch.  Later in the inning, Greg Dobbs singled home a run, and Jimmy Rollins tripled home two more as the Phillies build a 7-0 lead.  Jimenez was charged with 6 runs over his 2+ innings, allowing just 3 hits but walking 6.

 

Those seven runs were more than enough for Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick (6-4).  Kendrick pitched seven innings and allowed just one run on a solo homer by Ian Stewart.  The Phillies added two more in the sixth courtesy of a Raul Ibanez two-run homer, and Rollins singled home another run in the seventh to cap off the Phillies scoring.  The Rockies scored a run off of Jose Contreras, but Vance Worley pitched a scoreless ninth inning to close out the game.

 

 

Mets vs. Dodgers

 

The Mets offensive struggles continued Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles.  Despite strong pitching, the Mets couldn’t score a run when they needed to and fell 3-2 to the Dodgers in 13 innings.

 

Mets starter Mike Pelfrey made it through five innings for the first time since June 25.  He allowed two runs and six hits over those five innings, and departed with New York trailing 2-0.   Dodgers starter Carlos Monasterios pitched five scoreless innings, but LA went to the bullpen in the sixth, and the Mets finally broke through.  Rod Barajas singled home a run, and Jose Reyes singled home another to tie the game at 2.  The Mets threatened to take the lead, but left the bases loaded.

 

From there, the bullpens took over.  The Dodgers emptied their bullpen, and called upon their last pitcher, George Sherrill, for the 13th.  Sherrill pitched a perfect inning, and the Dodgers finally broke through in the bottom of the frame.  The Mets were forced to call upon Oliver Perez as they ran out of relievers.  Perez came in to bail the Mets out in the 12th, and retired the first batter in the 13th before facing James Loney.  Loney hit a long home run to right center to send the Dodgers fans home happy, and hand the Mets yet another walk-off loss.  Sherrill (1-1) picked up the victory, and Perez (0-4) suffered the loss.

 

 

Nationals vs. Brewers

 

The Nationals mounted a ninth inning rally to tie the Brewers in Milwaukee, but the Brewers answered in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Nats by a score of 4-3.

 

Nationals starter J.D. Martin was forced the leave the game in the third inning after aggravating a bulging disk in his back.  Ryan Braun and Jim Edmonds homered to give the Brewers a 2-0 lead.  Brewers starter Manny Parra pitched well, but allowed a run in the fifth and a run in the sixth as the Nats tied the score.  The Brewers scored in the bottom of the sixth on a double by Jonathan Lucroy, and took a 3-2 lead into the ninth.  John Axford came on to attempt the save for Milwaukee, but the Nationals loaded the bases with no outs.  Pinch hitter Adam Dunn hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Ryan Zimmerman with the tying run, but Axford retired the next two Nats to limit the damage.

 

In the bottom of the ninth, Drew Storen came in for the Nationals.  With one out, Storen allowed a single to Rickie Weeks and walked Joe Inglett to bring up Ryan Braun.  Braun singled off of the left field wall to bring home Weeks and give the Brewers a walk-off victory.  Axford (6-1) picked up the victory despite blowing the save, and Storen (2-2) was tagged with the loss.

Braves vs. Mets

The first place Atlanta Braves opened up a three game series in New York against the second place Mets on Friday night.  Behind strong pitching and timely hitting, the Braves defeated the Mets by a score of 4-2 to extend their lead to four games in the NL East.

Braves starter Tommy Hanson and Mets starter R.A. Dickey pitched well, with each allowing only two runs over the first six innings.  The Mets threatened to break open a 2-2 tie in the sixth and put runners on second and third, but Bobby Cox called on reliever Eric O’Flaherty, who retired pinch hitter Jesus Feliciano on a ground ball to keep the Mets off of the scoreboard.  Despite throwing over 100 pitches, Jerry Manuel left Dickey in to pitch the seventh inning.  The knuckleballer retired the first two batters in the inning, but then allowed back-to-back home runs to Melky Cabrera and Omar Infante which gave the Braves a 4-2 lead. 

The Braves bullpen did the rest, shutting down the Mets for the final three innings.  Billy Wagner pitched a 1-2-3 ninth against his former club to pick up his 20th save on the season.  O’Flaherty (3-1) earned the win in relief, while Dickey (6-2) suffered the loss for the Mets.

 

Phillies vs. Reds

The Phillies and Reds played the wildest game of the night on Friday in Philadelphia.  The Reds appeared to be cruising to a victory, but the Phillies exploded for six runs in the ninth and used a walk-off home run in the tenth to defeat the Reds 9-7.

The Reds jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning off of Phils starter Joe Blanton, thanks to a three run homer from Jonny Gomes.  The Reds scored three more runs off of Blanton over his 5 1/3 innings, and added another run in the top of the ninth to take a commanding 7-1 lead.  Meanwhile, Reds starter Mike Leake was cruising, holding the Phillies at bay while helping out his own cause with three hits and an RBI.  However, it all came apart in the bottom of the ninth.

After a Ryan Howard RBI single with one out, Leake allowed a three run homer to Greg Dobbs which cut the lead to 7-5.  Leake departed and the Reds brought in their closer, Francisco Cordero.  Cordero retired his first batter, but after walking Ben Francisco, Cordero allowed a game tying home run to pinch hitter Cody Ransom to send the Phillies crowd into a frenzy.   Reliever Ryan Madson pitched a perfect tenth inning for the Phillies. Arthur Rhodes came on to pitch the bottom of the tenth for Cincinnati, and Raul Ibanez greeted him with a leadoff double.  Ryan Howard followed with an opposite field home run to give the Phillies the improbable victory.  Madson (2-0) picked up the win, while Rhodes (3-3) suffered the loss.

 

Nationals vs. Giants

It was the Strasburg and Dunn show Friday night in Washington as the Nationals defeated the Giants by a score of 8-1.

Rookie phenom Stephen Strasburg allowed a leadoff home run to San Francisco’s Andres Torres in the first inning, but settled down after that.  The Nationals tied the game in the bottom of the first off of Giants starter Matt Cain, and took the lead in the fourth inning on an Adam Dunn solo homer.  The Nats added two runs in the sixth and four more in the seventh, highlighted by a three run homer from Dunn.  Dunn’s second blast put the nail in the coffin for Cain (6-8) and the Giants.

Strasburg (3-2) allowed only three hits over his six innings of work, walking just one while striking out 8.  Three Nats relievers combined to shut out the Giants over the final three frames to close out the victory for Washington.

 

Marlins vs. Diamondbacks

After falling in the series opener in Arizona, the Florida Marlins bounced back to even the four game set by defeating the Diamondbacks 3-2 on Friday night.

Marlins pitcher Ricky Nolasco and D-Backs starter Dan Haren each pitched into the seventh inning and did their best to keep their opponents off of the scoreboard.  The Marlins broke through with two runs in the third on RBI singles from Dan Uggla and Cody Ross.  After Arizona scored a run in the fourth, the Marlins got that run back in the seventh.  Uggla’s RBI infield hit brought home Florida’s third run and ended the night for Haren (7-7).  Arizona answered with a run off of Nolasco (9-6) in the bottom of the seventh, but couldn’t bring home the tying run.  

The Marlins bullpen took control from there.  Clay Hensley struck out the side in the eighth inning, and Leo Nunez pitched a perfect ninth inning to earn save number 19 on the season.

Mets vs. Nationals

The Nationals beat the The Mets in a score of 2-1. The Mets scored a run in the 1st when Ike Davis singled home Jesus Feliciano.  The Nationals tied it up in the 7th when Nyjer Morgan singled home Ian Desmond.  In the 9th the Nationals scored the go ahead run when Ryan Zimmerman hit a sac fly to bring home Willy Harris.

Johan Santana pitched 7 innings giving up 6 hits, 1 run, and 7 strikeouts.  Livan Hernandez pitched 7 innings giving up 7 hits, 1 run, and 7 strikeouts.   Matt Capps got the win pitching 1 inning giving up 1 hit with 1 strikeout.  The loss went to Pedro Feliciano who pitched 1 inning giving up 2 hits, 1 run, with no strikeouts.

Phillies vs. Pirates

The Pirates beat the Phillies in a score of 3-2. The Pirates struck first when they scored in the 2nd when Bobby Crosby singled home Lastings Milledge.  The Phillies then added a run in the 3rd when Wilson Valdez hit a solo shot.  The Pirates tacked on another run in the 3rd when Pedro Alvarez doubled home Jose Tabata and they added another run in the 4th when Jose Tabata singled home Andy LaRoche.  In the 5th the Phillies added a run when Shane Victorino scored thanks to a fielding error off of a Greg Dobbs hit.

Daniel McCutchen got the win and pitched 5.1 innings giving up 6 hits, 2 runs, and 4 strikeouts.  Cole Hamels took the loss and pitched 7 innings giving up 5 hits, 3 runs, and 8 strikeouts.  Octavio Dotel pitched 1 inning giving up 1 hit with 1 strikeout.

The Braves and Marlins were off.

Zambrano finally beats the Phils

The Philadelphia Phillies were looking to extend their team winning streak to eleven games yesterday afternoon in Philadelphia.  Carlos Zambrano and though were finally able to slow down the Phillies, their offense and their pitching to salvage a game in the series.  Zambrano(7-4) went 6.2 innings giving up only four earned runs on ten scattered hits and striking out four to get the win in the game.  Jeff Baker and Aramis Ramirez had big hits, each getting two RBI doubles to lead the Cubbies.  Seven Cubs players in all had at least one RBI on Wednesday afternoon and Kevin Gregg came in for a four out save.  Gregg got his 19th save by coming in with the two men on in the eighth and after walking Utley, got Howard to ground out to end the inning and then worked a perfect ninth to secure a 10-5 win.

The Phillies’ Jamie Moyer couldn’t bring the magic he had against the Marlins back to Philly on this day.  Moyer(9-7) went only five innings and gave up four earned runs, five total and took the loss even though Philly tried to claw back.  Chad Durbin couldn’t record an out while giving up two hits and three runs and three walks and Brad Lidge couldn’t get out of the ninth while giving up two hits, two runs, and two walks while recording only two outs.  Victorino, Feliz and Dobbs had the RBI’s for the Phillies, but Check out Phillies Phandom for more.

Escobar helps the Braves again

The Braves keep winning, and even against the wild card leading San Francisco Giants.  The Braves won their fourth straight game and now have won six of seven since the all-star break as they beat Tim Lincecum and the Giants.  Jair Jurrjens(9-7) pitched into the eighth inning and was charged with one earned run while only giving up three hits and a walk, but striking out nine batters getting the win.  Brian McCann got another RBI, but the offensive highlight on Wednesday night was once again shortstop Yunel Escobar who is on fire of late, as he hit a three run home run which proved to be the winning RBI’s in this game.  Rafael Soriano gave up a run in the ninth while preserving a save, his 14th of the year for the Braves as they won 4-2.  Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more information about the Braves.

The Giants sent reighning Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum(10-3) to the mound, but he only got through five troubling innings, giving up four runs on four hits and two walks even though he struck out nine.  It was only the third loss of the year for the young ace, but he was up against another young up and coming star.  Randy Winn and Travis Ishikawa had the two RBI’s for the Giants.

Nolasco with another great game

An afternoon finale in San Diego brought an opportunity for the Marlins to sweep the Padres and get back on track with three straight wins.  Starter Ricky Nolasco(7-7) didn’t disappoint as he pitched 6.1 shutout innings only giving up two hits and three walks but striking out ten batters.  He was supported  later in the game as for the first six innings, he was only given a one run lead.  Jeremy Hermida and Chris Coghlan homered for the Marlins and Hermida added another RBI on a fielders’ choice and Uggla had the other RBI in a 5-0 win.  Check out FishGuts for more information on the Marlins and all about their team.

There isn’t much to say again for the Padres in this game.  Josh Geer(1-6) lasted six strong innings and only gave up two runs, but the horrendous San Diego offense could only muster three hits against the Marlins pitching.

Willingham with a huge game

The Mets walked into Washington this week as a struggling team playing another struggling team.  The home struggling team got the best of them, as Wednesday night they took the rubber game of the series 3-1.  Josh Willingham went 4-4 with a run scored and two RBI, both RBI on a home run in the sixth inning.  The sixth inning home run put the Nats in the lead of a previously tied game and sent the Mets to yet another series loss.  Ronny Belliard drove in the other run for the Nats on a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning.  Craig Stammen(3-5) pitched 7.1 strong innings only giving up four hits and a run in the sixth but got mainly good defense and timely hitting behind him.  Mike MacDougal got his sixth save of the year while working a perfect ninth inning for the Nationals.  Check out CenterfieldGate if you want more information about the Nats and their team.

The New York Mets sent Mike Pelfrey(7-6) to the hill after a horrible outting last Thursday in Atlanta.  He managed to get through seven innings, only giving up three runs on six hits, but unfortunately as always is the story, the Mets meager lineup couldn’t support him.  Angel Pagan hit a triple in the sixth inning and was able to score on a throwing error by the Nationals shortstop for the Mets only run.  The Real Dirty Mets Blog has all the Mets info you need.

Utley rounds the bases after a three run shot

Philly fans were able to relax very early last night, as the Phillies put up a 10 spot in the first inning against the Reds last night in Philly.  In the first inning alone, Victorino and Rollins scored two runs and Victorino, Dobbs and Utley hit home runs.  Johnny Cueto(8-5) only lasted two outs in the first and was charged with nine runs on five hits and three walks.  The Phillies still managed to add on more runs, as they won the game 22-1.  Cole Hamels(5-5) was able to cruise through seven innings only giving up three hits, including a home run and even added two hits and an RBI of his own.  The two teams meet up again tonight in Philadelphia, Cincinnati will hope to put up any fight.

Sandoval says "vote for me!"

Pablo Sandoval made a loud audition to get votes in the MLB Final NL All-Star vote when he put the Giants ahead in the fifth inning with a grand slam on way to a 5-4 victory.  Marlins pitcher Sean West(3-3) got through six innings and the main blemish he had was the grand slam, as he gave up a total of five runs in taking the loss.  Matt Cain(10-2) worked into the seventh and picked up his tenth victory of the season after being named an NL All-Star on Sunday.  Not to be outdone, Brian Wilson earned his 22nd save of the season but not before allowing two runs on three hits and a walk to allow the game to be closer than it was.  The Marlins continue the west coast trip tonight after falling two games behind the Phillies in the East.

Lee stays hot

Derek Lee continued to play great baseball going two for four with a two run home run in the first inning for the Cubs.  They added all four runs in the first two innings and that would be all they needed.  Randy Wells(4-3) worked six innings giving up seven hits and two runs, including a home run to McLouth in getting his fourth victory this year.  Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol got holds as Kevin Gregg got his 15th save this season during a 4-2 Cubs victory.  Jair Jurrjens(6-7) went six innings but gave up those four runs in the first two innings in getting the loss for the Braves.  The series will continue in Chicago tonight.

Pitching this well in Colorado?

Oddly enough, Jason Marquis is having a wonderful season in what is known as a great hitters ballpark in Colorado.  Marquis(11-5) got his league leading 11th victory as he worked eight innings and giving up zero earned runs during a 1-0 Colorado victory.  Colorado got their first and only needed run in the first as Todd Helton doubled in Clint Barmes in the opening inning.  Craig Stammen(1-4) took a tough loss for the Nats as he went seven innings and giving up only five hits, but that double gave him the loss.  Huston Street worked a perfect ninth inning earning his 20th save of the year for the Rockies.  The Nats look to rebound tonight again in Colorado.

Rollins breaks out of his slump

Jimmy Rollins went 2-5 with 2RBI and a run scored last night, further breaking out of his slump while helping his Phillies win versus the New York Mets 7-2.  The Phillies got all their runs in the first three innings against Mets starter Livan Hernandez(5-4) who lost his third decision in a row and looked terrible from the start last night.  Greg Dobbs, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley each had two RBI each for Philly to move back into first place all alone in the NL East.  Rodrigo Lopez(1-0) won his first game in almost two full years pitching into the seventh inning only giving up six hits and two earned runs.  To get more info on the Phillies and their win last night, check out Phillies Phandom.

Some bright spots for the Mets were that Ryan Church continued to be hot, going 3-4 with a run scored, and his one out actually was a trapped ball by Greg Dobbs.  Also, the bullpen in their second straight day of long relief, pitched five innings of one hit ball.  To get additional info on the loss, check out The Real Dirty Mets Blog.

The Phillies and Mets will meet up today at 4pM on the Fox game of the week, Fernando Nieve takes on Jamie Moyer.

Volstad didn't have it tonigh

Rain delays aren’t a new thing to the Marlins being in Miami, and lately the Pirates have seen their fair share too.  The Pirates went through two rain delays Thursday against the Mets and dealt with another delay during the opening game of a series in Florida last night.  After all was said and done though, former Brave Charlie Morton(1-1) pitched six innings of one hit and no run ball against a big hitting Marlin team to get the win.  Pittsburgh pitching chased Marlins starter Chris Volstad(5-8) after only three innings and 47 pitches but four earned runs and added more later against Marlin relief.  Three pirates contributed two RBI each for Pittsburgh to take the opening game of the set and knock the Marlins out of their first place tie temporarily.

The Marlins’ Hanley Ramirez ended his RBI streak at 10 games when he failed to drive any runs in during this game and actually had no hits as well.  Catcher Scott Baker contributed three RBI on two hits and had two RBI in the game to lead the fish.

The two teams match back up at 6:10 in Miami tonight.

Nice debut

Brooks Conrad who was just called up to replace the injured Kelly Johnson wasted no time in making an impact for the Bravos.  In the seventh inning of a 5-5 game between the Nats and Braves, Conrad hit a three run home run to give the Braves the lead in a game they would eventually win 8-5 over the last place Nats.  Neither starting pitcher in this game could last a full five innings, and it was up to which relief pitchers could get the job done to win it.  The Braves had the better relief pitching, but by a slim margin as Rafael Soriano gave up two runs in his save chance in the ninth to record his ninth save by one run.  Boone Logan(1-0) worked a perfect 1.2 innings to earn the win for the hot Braves, winners of 5 in a row now, and they stayed two games behind the Phillies and moved into a third place tie with the Mets.  Jesus Colome(1-1) gave up the three run home run and took the loss for the Nationals who have now lost four games in a row.  Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more.

The Nationals continuously fought back in this game, including Christian Guzman getting two hits in four at bats and driving in three runs.  Adam Dunn hit his 21st home run as well to lead the team.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more Nats news.

The two teams continue their series at 1:05PM on Saturday afternoon.

Jurrjens loses no-no in the 7th

Wednesday night was another tough one for the Phillies, but it was almost a whole lot worse for them as Jair Jurrjens(6-6) of the Braves went seven innings while only giving up a single hit, in his last inning of work.  He had the no hitter going into the seventh despite giving up an unearned run in the fourth inning on the way to one of his best pitched games in his short career.  The Braves supported him with plenty of offense starting in the fourth inning with Tuesday night’s hero Martin Prado getting two RBI and scoring a run in the third inning, and adding another two runs scored later in the game.  The Braves racked up seven runs on nine hits against Philly ace Cole Hamels(4-5) and got fourteen hits and eleven runs overall in winning the game 11-1.  Additional Braves information can be found at The Braves Baseball Blog.

There wasn’t much going for the Phillies on this night both on the offensive and defensive side of the game.  Cole Hamels couldn’t get through the fifth inning and the only reliever to pitch a perfect inning was Sergio Escalona in the seventh.  Greg Dobbs hit a sacrifice fly to get the only run in and struggling Shortstop Jimmy Rollins went 0-3 again and is now only batting .205 for the season.  To get more news and info on the Phillies, be sure to check out our new Phillies Phandom Blog here at NLEC.

The two teams meet again tonight at 7PM with the Phillies sending J.A. Happ to the hill against Javier Vazquez as the Phillies try to avoid a sweep and keep their divisional lead over the Marlins.

Marlins sweep the Nats

On a day when Marlins ace Josh Johnson didn’t have his best stuff, the Marlins offense was able to pick him up.  Josh Johnson was only able to last one out into the fourth inning, giving up five hits and four walks but surprisingly only one earned run.  The Marlins offense got him off the hook, but relief pitching almost gave the game right back to the Nationals when Renyel Pinto blew a save in the seventh inning.  Late in the game though, the Marlins offense was able to come through against the Nationals reliever Julian Tavarez(3-6) who gave up two runs without recording an out in the eighth inning taking the loss.  Dan Meyer(2-0) worked the final two outs of the eighth for the Marlins and Leo Nunez worked a perfect ninth to get his fourth save of the season.  Hanley Ramirez was able to record his 10th straight game with an RBI when he doubled in Chris Coghlan and Emilio Bonifacio home in the third inning of this game.

One of the bright spots for the Nationals in this game was that young pitcher Jordan Zimmermann pitched another quality game, going six innings giving up only six hits and two earned runs while striking out six in the no decision.  He also drove in a run in the first inning with a single.  You can get more Nationals info over at CenterfieldGate.

Both teams have the day off on Thursday and check back tomorrow for their series preview of the weekend as the Marlins welcome in the Pirates and the Nationals return home for the Braves to come in.

Pelf balked, but it didn't cost him!

Mike Pelfrey(6-3) was exactly what the Mets needed yesterday, going 7.2 Innings of shutout ball against the power hitting Milwaukee Brewers yesterday.  A day after the Mets had a closed door 25 minute meeting and all were required to get on the bus to the park, it was must win game for them.  The final score of the game was 1-0 on a Ryan Church single, scoring Luis Castillo from second base in the top of the sixth inning.  Francisco Rodriguez came in and got the save in the ninth for the Mets while only allowing one hit for his 21st save of the season.  Pelfrey even balked during the game, but thanks for a base running error by Prince Fielder, it did not cost him a run.  Get more Mets news and info at The Real Dirty Mets Blog.

Yovani Gallardo pitched another gem against the Mets, but gave up the single run in seven innings.  He had twelve strikeouts during those innings only allowing five hits and two walks, but is now 0-1 against the Mets this year in two sterlings starts.

The Mets head to Pittsburgh for one game this afternoon as Tim Redding will hope to get the Mets on a streak before a matchup with their rival Phillies this weekend in Philadelphia.