So Long, Sweet Lou:
- Lou Pinella managed his last game on Sunday. He's leaving the Cubs to tend to his ailing mother.
Vin Scully:
- Vin Scully announced that he will return for a 62nd year as the voice of the Dodgers next season. Fact: He's better at his job than most everyone in the world is at theirs.
Notables:
- CC Sabathia collected his AL leading 17th win, after he pitched 6 innings of no run ball against the Mariners. He would have pitched deeper into the game, but there was heavy rain in New York. Sabathia struck out 8, walked none, and lowered his ERA to 3.02.
- Robinson Cano hit a grand slam off of Luke French, on his way to a 6 RBI day. He's batting .325 with 25 home runs and 86 RBI... not bad for second baseman.
- Justin Verlander pitched 8 innings of 1-run ball against the Indians in a win, his 14th. The lone run he gave up was on a Shin-Shoo Choo homer. Verlander struck out 8 and walked 1. He's now up to 160 strikeouts, which is 5th in the AL.
- Clay Buchholz hurled 6 innings of shutout ball against the Blue Jays. He struck out 7, walked 3, and lowered his ERA to an AL best 2.26. Like Sabathia, Buchholz could have pitched deeper, had the weather not interfered. With the win, he's now 15-5.
- Bill Hall hit his 17th homer of the season on Sunday. He's hitting .240, but is only 2 seasons removed from hitting 15 homers for the Brewers. I must admit, I did not see this coming when the season started. Then again, I didn't think the Red Sox would have this many injuries.
- Tommy Hunter rebounded from back-to-back poor outings, holding the Orioles to 3 runs over 8 innings. He struck out and walked none in the win. He's now 10-2 with a 3.68 ERA.
- Josh Hamilton & Vladimir Guerrero each went 2-4 with 3-run home runs. On the season, Hamilton is batting an AL leading .357 with 88 RBI, while Vladdy is hitting .299 with 88 RBI.
- John Danks & Zack Greinke each took no-decisions in the White Sox/Royals game. The first two games in the series went to extra-innings and this one was no different. Danks pitched 6 innings, struck out 5, and allowed 2 earned runs, while Greinke pitched 8 innings, struck out 9, and allowed 2 earned runs.
- Matt Garza pitched 7.2 innings and allowed only 1 earned run against the A's. He struck out 3, walked 3, and improved to 13-7 with the win. It's the first time Garza has had back-to-back wins, since late June. More importantly, it's the first time he's had back-to-back games with no home runs allowed since mid-May.
- Scott Baker fired 7 shutout innings against the Angels for a win, his 11th. He struck out 4, walked 2, and lowered his ERA to 4.63. Baker is now 8-3 with a 3.86 ERA at home, but 3-6 with a 5.47 ERA away from the Target Field.
- Nelson Figueroa & Andrew Miller each allowed 1 earned run in a no-decision. Figueroa pitched 6 innings, struck out 7, and walked 1, while Miller (did you see his mustache?) pitched 5 innings, struck out 3, and walked 3.
- Hunter Pence stayed hot, hitting his 19th homer. He's batting .333 with 7 homers and 28 RBI since the All-Star break.
- Roy Oswalt held the Nationals scoreless for 7 innings on Sunday. He struck out 8 and walked 1 in his 9th win. Oswalt is 3-1 with a 2.43 ERA and 1.05 WHIP since joining the Phillies.
- Johan Santana took a loss after he pitched a 2-run complete game against the Pirates with 9 strikeouts. He walked only 1, but allowed 2 home runs that proved to be the difference as the Mets offense could only muster 1 run. Santana has an 8.1 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 since the All-Star break. He had a 5.9 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 before the break.
- Jon Garland won his 13th game of the season, after he pitched 5.1 innings and allowed 2 earned runs to the Brewers. He struck out 4, walked 3, and allowed a home run to Ryan Braun, but the Padres offense had his back. Garland has now won 3 in a row.
- Jaime Garcia pitched a complete game, shutout against the Giants. He struck out 6, walked none, and scattered 3 hits in the gem. Garcia now has a 1.55 ERA and 1.12 WHIP at home this season. The rookie is 11-6 with a 2.42 ERA on the season and should garner significant consideration for the NL Rookie of the Year award.
- Mike Minor struck out 12 Cubs batters, on the way to the 2nd win in his very young career. He pitched 6 innings, allowed 3 earned runs, and walked 1 batter. Through 3 games, he has a 22/4 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Braves have good young arms like Antonio Cromartie has children.
- Jason Heyward had the first 4-hit game of his career. It was also his first multi-homer game of his career. If you're into OBP, he also tacked on 2 walks. Not to be outdone, Omar Infante also had a 4-hit game with 2 home runs and 4 RBI. New ATLien Derrek Lee chipped in with 3 RBI... Yeah, it was a high scoring affair.
- Bronson Arroyo struck out 6 Dodgers batters, walked none, and allowed 2 earned runs over 7 innings, in a win. He out-dueled Clayton Kershaw, who struck out 11, walked 5, and allowed 3 earned runs over 7 innings, in a loss. Arroyo is now 14-7 with a 3.82 ERA, while Kershaw is 11-8 with a 3.07 ERA.
- Joey Votto was a John McClane like figure on Sunday for the Reds. He hit a home run in the 6th inning against the Dodgers, to put the Reds up 3-2. In the 9th inning with 2 outs, the bases loaded, and the score still 3-2, he ended a 10-pitch battle with Jonathan Broxton by hitting a 2-run single. The Canadian is batting .323 with 29 homers and 86 RBI this season. Come out to the coast, we'll get together, have a few laughs...
- Jhoulys Chacin out-dueled Daniel Hudson, pitching 7.2 innings of no-run ball with 9 strikeouts and 1 walk against the D-Backs. Hudson pitched 7 shutout innings with 9 strikeouts and 2 walks. On the season, Chacin is 6-9 with a 3.98 ERA, while Hudson is 3-1 with a 3.10 ERA.
Save Chances:
- Rafael Soriano, converted (37). Stuck out 1 and gave up 1 earned run on 2 hits.
- Francisco Cordero, converted (34). Pitched a clean 9th.
- Neftali Feliz, converted (31). Struck out 3, but also served up a solo shot to Ty Wigginton in the 9th.
- Huston Street, converted (10). Pitched a clean 9th.
- Brandon Lyon, converted (6). Struck out 1 in a scoreless 9th.
- Joel Hanrahan, converted (2). Struck out 1 in a scoreless 9th.
Other Closer Outings:
- Chris Perez pitched a clean 9th with 1 strikeout.
- Bobby Jenks pitched 3 scoreless innings with 1 hit given up and 4 strikeouts... 42 pitches in 3 innings is like 1 inning for Jose Valverde.
- Joakim Soria pitched a scoreless 9th.
- Andrew Bailey struck out 2 in a clean 9th. It was his first game back from the DL.
- Matt Capps struck out 1 in a clean 9th.
- Jonathan Broxton found trouble again Sunday. With 2 outs and the bases loaded, Joey Votto hit a 2-run single off of him. The official damage report is 0.2 innings, 3 hits, 2 earned runs, 1 walk, and 1 strikeout. Not good times for Broxton or his owners.
The Mess That Is Arizona:
- Aaron Heilman gave up 1 earned run on 2 hits.
- Sam Demel struck out 2 and walked 2 in a scoreless 9th.
Non-Closer Outings:
- Brandon League struck out 1 and allowed 1 run (unearned) in an inning of work.
- Joba Chamberlain pitched 1.1 scoreless innings.
- Jason Frasor walked 1, struck out 2, and gave up 2 earned runs in the 8th.
- Daniel Bard struck out 2 and walked 1 in a scoreless 7th.
- Mike Wuertz struck out 1 in a scoreless 8th.
- Wilton Lopez struck out 1 in 2 scoreless innings of work. He hasn't given up a run since July 18th.
- Ryan Madson struck out 1 in a clean 8th.
- J.C. Romero stuck out 2 in a clean 9th.
- Evan Meek walked 1 in a scoreless 8th.
- Luke Gregerson pitched 1.2 scoreless innings with 1 walk and 1 strikeout.
- Trevor Hoffman struck out 1 in a clean 9th.
- Jonny Venters pitched a scoreless 7th.
- Octavio Dotel pitched a clean 8th.
Tough Days:
- Jeanmar Gomez pitched 3 innings and gave up 7 earned runs to the Tigers. He walked 3, struck 1, and served up 11 hits. Gomez entered the game with a 1.84 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 29.1 innings.
- Kevin Millwood served up 2 home runs, on his way to a giving up 6 earned runs in 6 innings to the Rangers. He's rocking a 5.63 ERA and a 2-14 record... ouch.
- Manny Parra struck out 5 Padres hitters; that's the good news. The bad news is that he also gave up 7 earned runs in 6 innings on 4 walks and 8 hits. He's got a 3-10 record and 5.65 ERA.
- Barry Zito allowed 5 earned runs in only 3.2 innings against the Cardinals. The lefty struck out 3, walked 2, and gave up 7 hits. He's now winless in his last 7 starts.
- Kila Ka'aihue was 0-3 with 1 walk and 1 strikeout. Since coming back up, he's batting .145 with 0 RBI. I've stopped calling him Ghostface Kila and Kila Monster and started calling him, Batting Average Kila and guy I want off my AL only team.
Strasburg Watch:
- Stephen Strasburg went to bed on Saturday with a forearm flexor tendon strain, but woke up Sunday feeling much better. So good, he did his normal day-after routine of playing catch. When the parts come back from the shop When the results from his MRI come back, we'll know how serious his injury is. I'm expecting another night's rest to have him feeling fine and ready to go. Then again, I'm optimistic and believe Strasburg to be part machine.
Lineup-ology/Injuries:
- Maicer Izturis was placed on the DL with right shoulder inflammation by the Angels. Jordan Walden was called up to take his roster spot.
- Kevin Slowey was placed on the DL with a right triceps strain by the Twins. Nick Blackburn was recalled to take his roster spot and is expected to start Monday.
- Ron Mahay was placed on the DL with a right shoulder strain by the Twins. Anthony Slama was recalled to take his roster spot.
- Travis Schlichting was placed on the DL with soreness in his right shoulder by the Dodgers. Jeff Weaver was activated from the DL to take his roster spot.
- Rod Barajas was claimed off waivers from the Mets by the Dodgers. Josh Thole should go back to getting playing time for the Mess Mets.
- Cody Ross was claimed off waivers from the Marlins by the Giants. Cameron Maybin will be recalled on Tuesday to take his roster spot.
- Andrew Bailey was activated from the DL by the A's. Ross Wolf was optioned to free a roster spot.
- Edwin Encarnacion was held out with a wrist issue by the Blue Jays. Jose Bautista played 3B, while Fred Lewis, Vernon Wells, & Travis Snider played in OF.
- Michael Saunders didn't play due to a sore shoulder. Matt Tuiasosopo took his place in LF for the Mariners.
- Carlos Gonzalez returned for the Rockies. He had been dealing with a knee injury from earlier in the week.
Home Runs:
- Joey Votto (29), Josh Hamilton (28), Robinson Cano (25), Adrian Gonzalez (25), Luke Scott (24), Vladimir Guerrero (22), Matt Kemp (21), Ty Wigginton (20), Aramis Ramirez (19), Hunter Pence (19), Ryan Braun (18), Bill Hall (17), Shin-Soo Choo (15), Jorge Posada (15), Jason Heyward (13 & 14), Gaby Sanchez (14), Raul Ibanez (12), Chase Headley (10), Austin Kearns (10), Wilson Betemit (8), Omar Infante (5 & 6), Lastings Milledge (4), Jose Tabata (3), Danny Valencia (2), & Allen Craig (2).
Stolen Bases:
- Carl Crawford (41), Michael Bourn (40), Nyjer Morgan (31), Jose Reyes (28), Chris Getz (12 & 13), Jason Kendall (12), Roger Bernadina (10 & 11), Gregor Blanco (8 & 9), Felipe Lopez (8), Eric Young Jr. (8), Melky Cabrera (7), Michael Young (4), Luis Durango (3), & Jon Jay (2).
Caught Stealing:
- Brandon Phillips (10), Hanley Ramirez (9), & Mark Kotsay (3).