Tigers 8 - Indians 7
- Ubaldo Jimenez got torched for 8 earned runs over just 3.1 innings on 9 hits and 3 walks. His ERA as a member of the Indians is now 7.29 over 4 starts. I wonder if the club is having trader's remorse right about now.
- Rick Porcello was marginally better as he gave up 5 earned runs over 3.2 innings on 7 hits and 1 walk. Over his last 3 starts he's pitched 13.1 innings with 17 earned runs, 7 strikeouts, and 2 walks. He's regressing as he goes into September.
- Delmon Young went 2-4 with a homer, 4 RBI, and a run. Since joining the Tigers, he's 8-26 with 2 homers and 6 RBI.
- Austin Jackson went 2-4 with a RBI, 2 runs, and stolen bases at the plate. In the field, he played hero as he threw out Kosuke Fukudome at home to preserve the win for his team. The Tigers are now 4.5 games ahead of the Indians, who are close to being passed up by the White Sox.
- Carlos Santana went 1-4 with a homer, 2 runs, and a walk. With 19 homer this season, only two catchers have a higher OPS (.796) than him: Alex Avila and Brian McCann.
- W: Phil Coke (2-8), L: Ubaldo Jimenez (7-10), SV: Jose Valverde (37)
- HR: Carlos Santana (19), Delmon Young (6), Victor Martinez (8)
- SB: Ezequiel Carrera (5), Jason Donald (2), Austin Jackson (17), Wilson Betemit (4)
Rays 8 - Mariners 7
- Michael Pineda pitched 6 innings and allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits and no walks with 5 strikeouts. It's his first game with no walks since May 16th against the Twins. With the no-decision his record remains 9-7 with a 3.73 ERA.
- James Shields was knocked around for 7 earned runs over 7.1 innings, also in a no-decision. He gave up 12 hits with 1 walk and 7 strikeouts. A 3-run first inning was the beginning of the end for him as he gave up 2 homers, one which went to Wily Mo Pena. It's the fifth time Shields has given up 5 earned runs or more in a game this season. Still, his 3.05 ERA is 9th best in the AL.
- Johnny Damon went 2-5 with a double, 4 RBI, a run, and a walk-off shot. The 37 year old is batting .268/.319/.412 this season.
- Mike Carp went 1-4 with a RBI as he extended his hit streak to 20 games. Check your waiver wire, he might still be available in your league.
- W: Kyle Farnsworth (5-1), L: Dan Cortes (0-2)
- HR: Casper Wells (10), Wily Mo Pena (6), Johnny Damon (11)
- SB: Johnny Damon (12), Ben Zobrist (15), Matt Joyce (11); CS: Demond Jennings (4), John Jason (2)
White Sox 10 - Rangers 0
- Gavin Floyd was on point as he pitched 7 innings of shutout ball on 3 hits and 1 walk with 6 strikeouts. Given his 7.15 home ERA this season and the level of competition, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that many fantasy owners benched him for this start. He's like the Ricky Nolasco of the AL, you never know which version you're going to get. Speaking of which…
- Derek Holland version not-so-good showed up and allowed 5 earned runs on 8 hits and 2 walks over 3.1 innings, in a loss. Since the start of June, every 3rd start he's given up 5 runs or more. Wait, so maybe there is a way to predict his bad outings.
- Alex Rios went 2-5 with a homer, 2 RBI, and a run. It was his first homer at home since May 21st, which may as well be in the Reagan administration, it feels so long ago.
- Brent Lillibridge went 3-5 with a homer, 2 RBI, and 2 runs. The 1B/OF is hitting .264/.346/.509 over 186 plate appearances. Who needs Adam Dunn, when you've got Brent Lillibridge?
- W: Gavin Floyd (11-10), L: Derek Holland (11-5)
- HR: Brent Lillibridge (11), Alex Rios (8)
- SB: Michael Young (5), Mike Napoli (3), Alejandro De Aza (3)
Red Sox 6 - Royals 1
- Jon Lester pitched 6 innings and allowed 1 earned run on 3 hits and 4 walks with 3 strikeouts. How often do you see him with more walks than strikeouts? And to the Royals, no less. According to PitchFX he's lost almost 1 mph on his fastball this season, maybe that explains the 9.7 to 8.7 drop in his K/9 strikeout rate.
- Danny Duffy held the Red Sox to just 2 runs over 6 innings on 5 hits and 2 walks, but took the loss. Not a bad way to bounce back from his disastrous outing against the Yankees, where he gave up 8 earned runs over 3 innings. Getting his walk rate down from 4.36 BB/9 would do him a world of good.
- Ryan Lavarnway went 2-4 with a double and RBI. Over his first 17 plate appearances, he has 5 hits, 2 RBI, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts.
- Johnny Giavotella went 1-4 with a triple and run. It's the second triple of the season for the 2B, who is batting .267/.302/.417 over 63 plate appearances.
- W: Jon Lester (13-6), L: Danny Duffy (3-8)
- HR: Darnell McDonald (5), Carl Crawford (8)
- CS: Marco Scutaro (2)
Yankees 3 - Twins 0
- Ivan Nova pitched 7 shutout innings on 5 hits and 1 walk with 5 strikeouts for his 13th win. He must keep a rabbit's foot with him because he's won his last 5 starts in a row, since coming back up and 10 of his last 11. At this pace, people would probably want to give him Cy Young run based just on his record.
- Nick Blackburn walked 3 straight batters, before leaving with a lateral forearm strain. Up to that point he pitched 1.1 innings with 1 hit and 4 walks.
- Curtis Granderson went 1-4 with a homer, walk, and stolen base. The CF is up to a .281/.375/.594 batting line with 35 homers, 98 RBI, and 24 stolen bases. For better or worse, he's going to garner lots of MVP votes based on his raw offensive numbers alone.
- Alex Rodriguez came off the DL (knee) and went 0-5 at 3B.
- Joe Mauer went 3-4 and is now batting .288/.350/.352 over 277 plate appearances with 1 homer and 24 RBI.
- W: Ivan Nova (13-4), L: Phil Dumatrait (1-2), SV: Mariano Rivera (33)
- HR: Curtis Granderson (35), Mark Teixeira (34)
- SB: Curtis Granderson (24), Eduardo Nunez (19), Ben Revere (23)
Angels 7 - Orioles 1
- Jerome Williams held the Orioles to 1 run over 7 innings on 6 hits and no walks with 6 strikeouts. It was his first start, since coming up from Triple-A where he was 7-2 with a 3.91 ERA, 60 strikeouts, and 15 walks over 73.2 innings.
- Brian Matusz was torched yet again, this time for 6 runs (5 earned) over 4 innings on 9 hits and 1 walk. None of his 8 starts in the majors have been quality starts this season. His fastball sat around 89 mph, so there's at least that.
- Matt Wieters went 1-4 with a homer. The former top prospect is batting .261/.319/.404 on the season with 12 homers and 43 RBI.
- Mike Trout went 2-3 with a double, 2 runs, and walk. He went 3-11 with a double, homer, RBI, 4 runs, and a walk for the weekend.
- Peter Bourjos went 3-5 with a homer, 3 RBI, and a run. He feasted off of Orioles pitching in this series going 9-16 with a double, 3 homers, 5 RBI, 5 runs, and stolen base.
- W: Jerome Williams (1-0), L: Brian Matusz (1-6)
- HR: Matt Wieters (12), Peter Bourjos (8), Howard Kendrick (10)
- SB: Maicer Izturis (8), Vernon Wells (8)
Blue Jays 1 - A's 0
- Luis Perez pitched 6 shutout innings for his 3rd win on just 1 hit and 2 walks. It was his first start of the season as he replaces Brad Mills in the team's rotation. In 43.2 innings as a reliever this season he has a 3.71 ERA with 37 strikeouts and 15 walks.
- Guillermo Moscoso was every bit as good as he pitched 8 innings of 1-run ball, in defeat. He gave up just 3 hits with 1 walk and 7 strikeouts. That's now 4 quality starts over his last 5 outings with a 3-2 record, 2.90 ERA, 22 strikeouts, and 8 walks.
- Casey Janssen got the save with 3 scoreless innings that included 1 walk and 5 strikeouts.
- Joey Bats aka Jose Bautista went 2-3 with a triple, homer, and walk. The MVP candidate is batting .318/.459/.652 this season. I'd give him the slight nod over Pedroia for the award right now.
- W: Luis Perez (3-2), L: Guillermo Moscoso (6-7), SV: Case Janssen (2)
- HR: Jose Bautista (36)
- CS: Aaron Hill (3)
Brewers 6 - Mets 2
- Yovani Gallardo pitched 7 innings of 2-run ball on 6 hits and 1 walk with 6 strikeouts. Coming into today, he had a 4.32 road ERA, so this should help that. He's now allowed 2 earned runs or less in 6 of his last 7 starts.
- R.A. Dickey also pitched 7 innings and allowed 2 runs, but unfortunately he did not come away with the win. He's given up 3 earned runs or less in each of his last five starts, yet his record in those starts is 0-4.
- Ryan Braun went 3-5 with a double, RBI, 2 runs, and 2 stolen bases. He's now batting .330/.400/.584 with 24 homers and 26 stolen bases. A 30/30 season looks well within reach.
- Lucas Duda went 1-4 with a 2-run homer for all the offense the Mets would muster. On the season he's batting .276/.345/.464 over 224 plate appearances.
- W: Yovani Gallardo (14-8), L: Manny Acosta (1-1)
- HR: Casey McGehee (9), Lucas Duda (6)
- SB: Ryan Braun (25, 26)
Braves 1 - Diamondbacks 0
- Tim Hudson tossed 7 shutout innings on 3 hits and 3 walks with 7 strikeouts. His home ERA is now down to just 2.50 on the season. Over his last 10 starts his record is 7-1 with a 2.29 ERA.
- Josh Collmenter nearly matched Hudson's effort with 7 innings of 1-run ball on 4 hits and 3 walks with 4 strikeouts. Over his last 3 starts he has 17 strikeouts and 5 walks with a 2.18 ERA.
- Alex Gonzalez drove in the lone run with a solo shot in the 3rd inning. The short-stop is now batting .233/.259/.345. Yunel Escobar is batting .287/.365/.411 if you need him.
- W: Tim Hudson (13-7), L: Josh Collmenter (7-8), SV: Craig Kimbrel (39)
- HR: Alex Gonzalez (11)
- SB: Chris Young (18), Sean Burroughs (1); CS: Miguel Montero (1), Michael Bourn (11), Freddie Freeman (4)
Nationals 5 - Phillies 4
- Roy Halladay allowed 2 earned runs over 5 innings on 7 hits with no walks and 5 strikeouts, before a rain delay cut his outing short. He was in line for the win, but the Phillies bullpen let him down. Coming into this game, he was first among all pitchers and third among all players with a 6.7 WAR.
- Chien-Ming Wang pitched 5.2 innings with 3 earned runs on 5 hits and 1 walk, before the rain came. In his first 5 starts (27 innings) for the Nationals, he has given up 13 earned runs with 7 strikeouts and 6 walks.
- Danny Espinosa went 3-5 with a homer, 2 RBI, and a run. The 2B is batting .231/.313/.414 this season with 18 homers. He still leads all rookie position players in WAR (2.7) this season.
- Carlos Ruiz went 2-4 with a homer, 2 RBI, and a run. Chooch is batting .270/.366/.382 this season over 354 plate appearances.
- W: Sean Burnett (4-5), L: Brad Lidge (0-1), BSV: Antonio Bastardo (1)
- HR: Chase Utley (9), Carlos Ruiz (5), Ian Desmond (5), Danny Espinosa (18)
Reds 5 - Pirates 4
- James McDonald turned in a quality start with 3 earned runs allowed over 6 innings. He gave up 3 hits with 3 walks and 5 strikeouts, in what was another decent home start for him. On the season he has a 3.20 home ERA, which is leaps and bounds better than his 5.43 road ERA.
- Mike Leake pitched 6 innings and allowed 4 earned runs on 5 hits and 1 walk with 5 strikeouts. Over his last 5 starts (31.2 innings) he has 27 strikeouts and 6 walks with a 4.26 ERA.
- Joel Hanrahan blew a 1-run save and the game in the top of the 9th. Over his last four outings he has given up 5 earned runs with 6 hits given up, 0 strikeouts, and 4 walks.
- Joey Votto went 1-3 with a 3-run homer. The reigning NL MVP is hitting .322/.436/.536 this season with 22 homers and 80 RBI.
- Andrew McCutchen went 1-4 with a 2-run homer. The CF is batting .274/.375/.474 this season with 18 homers, 74 RBI, and 20 stolen bases.
- W: Jose Arredondo (3-3), L: Joel Hanrahan (0-3), SV: Francisco Cordero (26), BSV: Joel Hanrahan (3)
- HR: Joey Votto (22), Garrett Jones (15), Andrew McCutchen (18)
- SB: Brandon Phillips (8); CS: Josh Harrison (1)
Giants 6 - Astros 4
- Henry Sosa pitched 5 innings and allowed 4 earned runs, in a no-decision. He was a part of the trade that brought Jeff Keppinger to SF. In 3 starts for the Astros, he now has 17 innings pitched with 12 earned runs, 13 strikeouts, and 6 walks.
- Dan Runzler was run after getting just 5 outs and giving up 4 earned runs on 3 hits and 3 walks. He was filling in for Jonathan Sanchez, who is dealing with an ankle injury. The Giants are lucky the D-Backs have only gone 5-5 over their last 10 games as they've gone 4-6 over that same stretch.
- Pablo Sandoval went 2-6 with a 2-run homer that put the Giants up for good in the 11th inning. Kung-Fu Panda is hitting .310/.350/.520 this season with 15 homers and 50 RBI over 351 plate appearances.
- Brandon Belt went 4-5 with a 3-run homer. Props to the Giants for finally bringing him up and giving him playing time. The next step is for Bruce Bochy to move him up in the order and send Aubrey Huff where he belongs.
- J.D. Martinez went 3-5 with a double and 2 RBI. The LF is batting .278/.329/.557 with 5 homers and 21 RBI over 85 plate appearances.
- W: Jeremy Affeldt (2-2), L: Mark Melancon (6-4), SV: Ramon Ramirez (3)
- HR: Pablo Sandoval (15), Brandon Belt (5)
- SB: Jimmy Paredes (2), Clint Barmes (2)
Rockies 5 - Dodgers 3
- Kevin Millwood allowed 3 earned runs over 7 innings on 7 hits and a walk for his first win since September 29th of last season. The 36 year old was 5-1 with a 4.28 ERA over 73.2 innings in Triple-A with the Red Sox, before joining the Rockies.
- Chad Billingsley evened his record to 10-10, after he allowed 5 runs (4 earned) over 7.2 innings. He gave up just 3 hits, but 2 of them were homers. This is in addition to the 5 walks he issued, making his 7 strikeouts almost an after thought. It's tough to post an ERA better than 4.00, when you're not even striking out twice as many batters (132) as you're walking (68), like Billingsley is doing this season.
- James Loney went 4-4 with a double, homer, 2 RBI, and a run. He's hitting a puny .262/.311/.344 this season with 6 homers and 39 RBI.
- Carlos Gonzalez went 1-3 with a 2-run homer and a walk. The reigning NL batting champ is hitting .287/.358/.511 this season.
- W: Kevin Millwood (1-1), L: Chad Billingsley (10-10), SV: Rafael Betancourt (2)
- HR: James Loney (6), Carlos Gonzalez (21), Seth Smith (14)
- SB: Seth Smith (6)
Padres 4 - Marlins 3
- Cory Luebke pitched 6 innings of 1-run ball on 3 hits with no walks and 8 strikeouts. That's now 4 straight starts in which he's allowed 2 earned runs or less. As a starter he's got a 2.71 ERA with 69 strikeouts and 14 walks over 66.1 innings.
- Anibal Sanchez allowed 3 earned runs over 5 innings, in a no-decision. He gave up 6 hits and 2 walks with 3 strikeouts. He's now up to 163 strikeouts and 46 walks over 159.1 innings.
- Heath Bell blew a 1-run save on a Mike Cameron solo shot in the top of the 9th. It was his 4th blown save of the season and second this month.
- Mike Stanton went 1-4 with a solo shot. He's up to 30 homers with 77 RBI over 491 plate appearances.
- Kyle Blanks went 1-4 with a double and 2 RBI. He's up to 5 homers and 16 RBI over 104 plate appearances with a .272/.346/.511 batting line.
- W: Heath Bell (3-4), L: Edward Mujica (8-5), BSV: Heath Bell (4)
- HR: Mike Stanton (30), Mike Cameron (7), Will Venable (5)
Cardinals 6 - Cubs 2
- Jake Westbrook pitched 7 innings and allowed 2 earned runs for his 10th win. He gave up 7 hits with 2 walks and 3 strikeouts. It's a nice performance, but it's tough to trust him down the stretch as he has 80 strikeouts to 56 walks over nearly 150 innings.
- Rodrigo Lopez's record fell to 4-4 as he gave up 5 earned runs over 5.1 innings. It's pretty tough to be successful when you're giving up 4 home runs in an outing. With a 4.97 ERA, it's doubtful he's on anyone's fantasy rosters.
- Yadier Molina went 2-4 with 2 homers, 3 RBI, and 2 runs. The catcher is batting .296/.335/.457 this season.
- Albert Pujols went 4-5 with a homer. He's hitting .289/.357/.545 with 31 homers and 77 RBI. Remember when we were all worried about his wrist? Yeah, I don't either.
- W: Jake Westbrook (10-7), L: Rodrigo Lopez (4-4)
- HR: Albert Pujols (31), Jon Jay (8), Yadier Molina (10, 11)
- SB: Darwin Barney (7)