First-place White Sox smash Mariners
CHICAGO -- The No. 13 suddenly has become a lucky one for the first-place White Sox.
After exploding for that particular run total in finishing off a rare series win over the A's at McAfee Coliseum on Sunday afternoon, the White Sox bats didn't cool off against the Mariners on Monday before a sold-out crowd of 39,002 at U.S. Cellular Field. They pounded their way to a 13-5 victory and into a one-game lead over the Twins in the American League Central.
This effort was produced against the hapless Mariners (46-78), the team with the worst record in the American League by a fairly large margin. So, Chicago spotted Seattle a three-run, first-inning lead just to be sporting.
No advantage stands as too big to conquer, though, with the White Sox offense firing on all cylinders as it is right now.
"Yeah, it was a team effort all up and down the lineup," said right fielder Jermaine Dye, whose two doubles left him as one of four starters with two hits. "For us to come back after being down three runs, we did a good job. We continued to pile runs on, all up and down the lineup."
"We swung the bat good as a group," added White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, whose team knocked out just 11 hits but took advantage of six walks and fanned just once. "I think we had good [at-bats]. I think we got big hits with people on base."
Four home runs on Monday punctuated the White Sox offensive output, giving them eight long balls in the last two games combined. The White Sox (71-53) have homered four times in five of their last 16 games, giving them a Major League-high 182.
Orlando Cabrera's drive in the fifth ultimately served as the game-winner, although his two-run shot to left off of Jarrod Washburn (5-13) didn't have the look as if it would clear the fences when first leaving the shortstop's bat. Cabrera's sixth home run sparked a six-run rally, which included Dye's two-run double and RBI singles from Alexei Ramirez and Nick Swisher.
"That is the way this team has been built, with guys who can get the ball that far," said Cabrera, who has hit in seven straight. "But our offense was great today."
"It's a good start to this series, a good way to come out, especially against a guy like Washburn," added White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who finished 1-for-4 with one run scored.
Swisher also came through with his 18th home run, a two-run shot with one out in the second on a 3-2 pitch to erase Seattle's early lead. The Mariners' advantage was built against Mark Buehrle (11-10), who picked up his third straight win despite allowing five runs on 11 hits over 5 2/3 innings.
Buehrle's numbers were a bit deceiving. Ichiro Suzuki posted his requisite three hits against the White Sox ace, improving on his career .400 average vs. Buehrle, with none of them being hit hard. Buehrle also could have escaped the first on a potential inning-ending double play hit back to the mound by Adrian Beltre, but there was confusion with who was covering second.
Ramirez caught Buehrle's throw behind the base and threw to first for the second out. But Jose Lopez singled home two, and Wladimir Balentien drove home Lopez with a double.
"I have to make a better throw," said Buehrle, usually a stellar defensive presence on the mound. "There was miscommunication between all three of us, and we have to be on the same page."
Luckily for Buehrle, the offense bailed him out of trouble. Carlos Quentin homered for the sixth time in his last 10 games, giving him a Major League-best 35, helping the White Sox move a season-high 18 games over .500, win for the sixth time in their last seven games and improve to 43-19 at home.
Much like Sunday's finale in Oakland, Ramirez put a little icing on this victory cake with a three-run blast off Jake Woods in the seventh. Ramirez homered in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.
Tuesday's challenge gets a little tougher for the White Sox, with rookie Clayton Richard on the mound and the South Siders facing Seattle ace Felix Hernandez and his 3.04 ERA. Yet these are the games the White Sox have to win, against porous teams at home, in order to build on their current one-game advantage over the Twins.
"You know what? We're not worried about them," said Dye of Minnesota. "Ozzie lets us know that we can't worry about what other teams are doing and play our game and continue to play the way we've been playing."
"All along I said they won't hold our offense down," Buehrle added. "They were going to turn it around [after a slow start] and start hitting, and they have. This is a game where I might not have deserved to win, but the offense picked me up."
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
Ortiz blasts two in 10-run first inning
BOSTON -- David Ortiz walked into Fenway Park on Tuesday not having homered at the old ballpark since a July 27 tilt against the New York Yankees. He dismissed that drought rather quickly off Rangers pitcher Scott Feldman.
Ortiz blasted two homers in the first, one hooking around the right-field foul pole and another to straightaway center field, as Boston pounded 10 runs across the plate to start the contest. It was the first time the team scored double-digit runs in an inning since a 14-run outburst against Florida on June 27, 2003.
The Sox won that game, 25-8. In this outing with Texas, they'd eventually need to come from behind to nab a 19-17 victory. As for the beginning of the contest, Ortiz was the catalyst for the early outburst.
"He swung the bat great," said Dustin Pedroia, who went 5-for-6 with two RBIs and five runs scored. "We're going to need him to do some special things."
Big Papi went 3-for-4 in the contest with four runs scored and six RBIs. The pair of home runs marked the first multiple homer inning for a Red Sox player since Nomar Garciaparra did so on July 23, 2002, in the third inning against Tampa Bay.
After a leadoff walk to J.D. Drew and a single by Pedroia, Ortiz clocked a 0-1 fastball to right for an early 3-0 lead.
With one out, Mike Lowell singled, and Jason Bay reached on a Ramon Vazquez error at third base. Jed Lowrie sent both of them home with a two-run double.
Drew notched an RBI single of his own, sending Lowrie home after a walk to Kevin Cash put runners on first and second. Then, Pedroia hit an RBI single -- all still with one out.
That brought Ortiz to the plate once more, and Big Papi didn't waste any time extending the damage. Ortiz sent a first-pitch fastball to straightaway center field for his second homer.
"I just decided to stick with what I have," Ortiz said, alluding to his left wrist that put him on the disabled list for nearly two months, along with forcing him to sit on Monday against Chicago. "My hand has been up and down a lot. That's why you guys saw me get a day off yesterday. And it helped me."
It was the 54th time in Major League history that a player had belted two homers in an inning. The Cubs' Jim Edmonds accomplished the feat most recently against the White Sox in the fourth inning on June 21, 2008. The feat also harkened to Fernando Tatis' two grand slams he hit in one inning with the St. Louis Cardinals on April 23, 1999, at Dodger Stadium.
The Red Sox have gone deep twice in an inning four times. In addition to Ortiz and Garciaparra, Ellis Burks did it on Aug. 27, 1990, against Cleveland, and Bill Regan did it on June 16, 1928, against Chicago. Both Burks' and Regan's two homers came in the fourth inning.
Ortiz is the third Red Sox player to drive in six runs in a single frame, the first since Carlos Quintana in the third inning on July 30, 1991, against Texas. Tom McBride is the only other Red Sox player to do so, accomplishing it against Washington on Aug. 4, 1945.
Ortiz nearly added a third homer in the fifth. He hit a shot to center that looked initially like it was a home run before second-base umpire Scott Barry signaled a ground-rule double on account of fan interference.
"It was kind of close. If we don't have fans there, it'd probably go out," Ortiz joked. "But we need those fans, so I'll take that anyway."
Copyright 2008 Sporting Life UK Ltd, All Rights Reserved.
Beckett, offense click like old days
KANSAS CITY -- The only clicking that could be seen or heard around the Red Sox on Tuesday night was the offense, which pounded the baseball throughout most of this 8-2 triumph over the Royals.
Earlier in the day, "clicking" was being used in an entirely different context, as slugger David Ortiz said that was what he felt in his recovering left wrist in the ninth inning of Monday night's loss.
But by several hours before gametime, Ortiz pronounced himself as "fine." He was fine enough to deliver Boston's first run of the night -- an RBI single in the first.
"This stuff is tricky," said Ortiz after the game. "Today I felt fine. I was swinging. Don't listen to me."
From there, the Boston bats clicked away, bashing hits all over the park. It was a game-plan right out of 2007. With ace Josh Beckett on the mound, the Red Sox pounded the baseball.
And as the offense kept supplying run support, Beckett (6 2/3 innings, four hits, two runs, seven strikeouts) put up a steady succession of quality innings.
Though it is true Beckett (10-8, 4.08 ERA) entered the night with 5.5 runs per game of support -- just shy of Jon Lester's 5.6 for the team lead -- the stat was a tad misleading.
In Beckett's eight losses, the Red Sox scored a total of 10 runs while he was in the game.
"Last year was one of those years where everything goes right," Beckett said. "Hopefully we can keep that up."
This was one of those nights where nearly everyone was in the groove. Jason Bay led the 13-hit attack, going 4-for-5 with two runs, two doubles and two RBIs. The new left fielder is 9-for-21 since coming to Boston in the blockbuster deal for Manny Ramirez.
"He's a good hitter, bro," Ortiz said of Bay. "He's a good hitter. We needed that."
The hits were still coming for the Red Sox after the game, as Ortiz nailed Bay with a pie to the face after his postgame interview with NESN.
Bay is displaying the comfort of someone who has been with the Red Sox for a few years instead of a few days.
"It felt pretty good to go out and get a win and personally have some success tonight," said Bay. "I'm hoping that I can keep riding this wave and we can keep winning."
The Red Sox, who had lost five of six games before the trade, are 4-1 in the first five games with Bay.
With the Rays picking up a win over the Indians, the Red Sox remained three games back in the American League East.
After chipping away with one-run rallies in the first, fourth and fifth, the Red Sox produced two more in the sixth and three in the seventh to take a commanding 8-1 lead.
The most bizarre run of the night came in that game-breaking seventh, when Bay clocked a fly ball to deep left-center. Center fielder Mitch Maier raced back and got a glove on the ball right in front of the wall. But he knocked it literally on top of the wall. As the ball rolled on the wall, left fielder Ross Gload gently knocked it back in to play. If it rolled just inches backward on to the grass behind the wall, it would have been a home run.
It was reminiscent of the triple that Kevin Youkilis hit against the Yankees on July 4, a ball that rested on the wall before bouncing back into play.
"That was a pretty unique play," said Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek. "We've been a part of some weird plays out on the fence this year. The ball hadn't carried as well here as it normally does, especially to left field. He really tattooed the ball and it stayed in. Gload made a phenomenal play just pulling that ball back in and just keeping it from being a homer, because I think it was going to roll the other side."
Jed Lowrie followed with a two-run triple, allowing Beckett to finish his night in stress-free fashion, as he so often did a year ago.
With Julio Lugo out until perhaps September with a severe strain of his left quadriceps, Lowrie has fit in every bit as seamlessly as Bay.
"Boy, he's taking some nice swings," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona. "He made a nice play in the hole. He swings at strikes. He's been good."
Trying to find the right combination in his lineup, Francona had J.D. Drew in the leadoff spot and Youkilis hitting cleanup. Mike Lowell and Bay both moved down a notch, to fifth and sixth, respectively.
Jacoby Ellsbury had a nice night at the bottom of the order, producing two hits and stealing his first two bases since July 1.
But as important as all the offense was, there are few things more vital to the Red Sox than a fully-functioning Beckett.
"He's had a lot of starts where we haven't scored him a whole lot of runs," said Varitek. "This was the first time we scored him some runs in a while. He's the hugest part of our starting staff."
Is that because the Red Sox need Beckett to be their No. 1 pitcher?
"He is our No. 1," said Varitek. "He is. People follow his lead quite a bit. That's happened quite a bit in the past and it will continue to happen."
Beckett came out after 90 pitches and the Royals threatening in the seventh. But rest assured, the hot and humid Kansas City weather did not faze the Texan.
"None," said Beckett. "I think growing up in Texas, playing games in 100-degree weather [helped]. I think one time we started a game in Brownsville and it was 117 degrees. We played a doubleheader that day. It didn't really affect me."
"He did a great job," Bay said of Beckett. "He's one of the best guys in the league. He's fun to play behind. Ever since I got here, we haven't given up more than four runs. It's fun to play behind starting pitching like that gives you a chance to win every night."
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
Dynamic Dempster drops Crew
MILWAUKEE -- The Cubs have a little more breathing room in the National League Central.
Ryan Theriot had three hits and three RBIs, and Alfonso Soriano had three hits and scored twice to back Ryan Dempster and lead the Cubs to a 7-2 victory Wednesday night over the Milwaukee Brewers.
With the win, the Cubs opened a four-game lead over the Brewers in the Central, and they can complete a sweep with a win Thursday in the series finale.
"These guys have a good team and great pitching, and we anticipate them being there the whole year and being on our heels," Theriot said of the Brewers. "We have to continue to play well, because we know they will."
The Brewers know that, too.
"They're the better team in July," Milwaukee's Corey Hart said of the Cubs. "That doesn't make them World Champs yet."
It says a lot that the Cubs can win despite stranding 15 on the bases and having their Nos. 3-4 hitters go hitless.
"It says a lot about the guys in here," Dempster said. "The only two guys who didn't get hits were [Aramis Ramirez] and [Derrek Lee] and that just shows you that everybody in the lineup is chipping in."
Dempster is, too. Now 12-4, the right-hander struck out nine to notch his second straight win on the road after beginning the year 0-3 in eight starts away from Wrigley Field. Miller Park is 90 miles north of Chicago, and with the large contingent of Cubs fans in the raucous crowd of 44,871, it must have felt like home. Dempster gave up five hits and one walk over seven innings.
He is making the Cubs look like geniuses for switching him from closer to starter.
"He's more relaxed," Piniella said. "He's got starting experience. He did that in the past. He's a better pitcher now than he was then. He's got a good split-finger, a good slider, two-seam, four-seam fastball, and he seems just more relaxed as a starter. I really felt that coming into Spring Training he would win a spot in the rotation, and he did that quite easily, to his credit. He came in with a great frame of mind and in great shape."
He also fooled the Brewers.
"They both come out basically the same," Hart said of Dempster's fastball and slider. "Half the time, it's too late before you decide what it is."
Soriano has shown this series how valuable he is on top of the Cubs' lineup. Now 6-for-12 in the three games, he singled to lead off the game, advanced on a sacrifice and stole third. Lee walked, and one out later, Soriano scored on a wild pitch by Manny Parra (9-4) on strike three to Reed Johnson. Mark DeRosa made it 2-0 with an RBI single.
"I didn't know where the ball was," Johnson said of the play. "I think I heard it hit the facing of the backstop, and I started running. I saw Prince Fielder hold up his hands and say, 'Don't throw it.' It ended up working out. Any way we can score runs, we'll take it."
Ray Durham answered in the Brewers' first, leading off with a double and scoring two outs later on a wild pitch by Dempster on an 0-2 count to Hart.
With one out in the Chicago sixth, Dempster and Soriano both singled, and both tallied on Theriot's triple to right-center to put the Cubs ahead, 4-1. Parra departed, and two batters later, Johnson hit an RBI single off Carlos Villanueva.
"It was a big hit at that point," Theriot said of his triple, "but 'Demp' threw the ball well and we felt good going into that inning with the lead we had. He was throwing well tonight and had command of all his pitches."
The Brewers put up a fight. In the third, Parra doubled to lead off and reached third, but Dempster was able to escape. Parra then tripled with one out in the fifth, and was stranded again.
"I tried to simplify it," Dempster said. "I tried to stay aggressive and make them get it over, get 'em in, and you find yourself in a good situation because you're ahead in the count."
The Cubs added two runs in the ninth, and Fielder connected on his 21st homer with one out in the Milwaukee ninth off Neal Cotts.
There have been no signs in this series of the offensive funk the Cubs were immediately after the All-Star break. They've been retired in order only three times in 27 innings in the three games.
"We're starting to swing the bat better as a team," Johnson said. "A week ago, we were talking about whether we were going to come out of this thing. We didn't know when it was going to be, but just the emotions and adrenaline of the series just locked us back in and got everybody swinging the bats well."
Thursday is the Trade Deadline, but Dempster doesn't see any holes that need filling.
"I love our club -- it's cool," Dempster said. "I love everybody in here. Who knows what will happen?"
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
Cabrera out of lineup Wednesday
MINNEAPOLIS -- Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera was out of the starting lineup on Wednesday against the Twins, but manager Jim Leyland said he will be available to pinch-hit.
"I'm going to give him another day," Leyland said before Wednesday's game. "If the ideal situation came up, I would pinch-hit him again. But I expect him to play tomorrow in Seattle."
Cabrera was out of the Tigers' starting lineup on Tuesday after exiting Monday's contest with a tight left hip flexor. The slugger pinch-hit in the eighth inning, however, entering the game for Clete Thomas and popping out to right field off Minnesota reliever Dennys Reyes.
Cabrera was injured in the bottom of the second on Monday after dropping a throw from third baseman Carlos Guillen following a Brendan Harris grounder.
Leyland said he made the decision to hold Cabrera out of Wednesday's starting lineup because the first baseman "limped up to home plate noticeably" before his pinch-hit attempt on Tuesday.
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
Rangers calling up top prospect Davis
HOUSTON -- Unsatisfied with their production at first base and unsure when Hank Blalock will return, the Rangers are calling up first baseman Chris Davis from Triple-A Oklahoma.
Davis, a left-handed hitter with exceptional power, will join the Rangers on Thursday night at Minute Maid Park.
"We've been patient up to this point expecting Hank to be back for the Houston series," Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. "Unfortunately, through no fault of his own, he had his latest setback. I don't expect it to be long-term and we expect to send him on a rehab assignment in the near future. But we felt this was an opportunity to give Chris a chance to see what he can do and see if we can't get more production out of that position."
Blalock has been on the disabled list since April 26. He was supposed to be activated on Tuesday but jammed his right hand in a rehab game with Oklahoma on Sunday, and the Rangers are unsure when he'll be ready to return.
The Rangers expect him back before the All-Star break, but right now he still has swelling in the hand and is unable to grip a bat. The Rangers are still planning on Blalock moving to first base when he comes off the disabled list, but right now Davis is their man.
"More than likely, I would expect Hank to play at that point," Daniels said. "We've had discussions about Chris some time ago, but we hoped Hank would be back by now. Rather than continuing to wait, this is a chance to look at Chris. I said before the season that the key to our season would be the health of our veterans and the continued development of our young players.
"The health has been a mixed bag. But one of the bright spots of the year has been the young players not only graduating to the big league level, but contributing to winning. Chris has a chance to be the next one."
Davis, the Rangers' fifth-round pick in the 2006 First-Year Player Draft out of Navarro College, started the season at Double-A Frisco and hit .333 in 46 games with 13 home runs and 42 RBIs in 186 at-bats. He was then promoted to Triple-A Oklahoma where he is also hitting .333 with 10 home runs and 31 RBIs in 111 at-bats. Overall, he has a .386 on-base percentage and a .643 slugging percentage while striking out 73 times and walking 26 times in 297 at-bats.
He was switched to first base this year, and Daniels said the Rangers are happy with the progress he has made defensively.
"The obvious thing that stands out with Chris is the power potential," Daniels said. "That's a unique tool that he has. He's also been a better hitter and a better defensive player. This is only his second full season of professional baseball, but we've seen him make adjustments in handling left-handed pitchers, improving his pitch selection and his plate recognition. It has been very rewarding. I expect him, though, to have an adjustment period at the big league level."
The Rangers have not made a corresponding move, but it's likely that they'll drop right-handed-hitting first baseman Chris Shelton.
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
Billingsley sinks Reds in native Ohio
CINCINNATI -- Chad Billingsley brought a bit of relief to an otherwise grueling road trip for the Dodgers on Tuesday night.
He put on a show for his family, too.
Billingsley, a native of Defiance, Ohio, gave up just one run on five hits through 6 1/3 innings of work, leading the Dodgers to a 3-1 victory over the Reds at Great American Ball Park and snapping L.A.'s five-game losing streak.
"Billingsley was terrific," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "He had complete command the whole game. That was a good win for us, especially with the way we've been struggling."
The Dodgers are just 2-5 on their current nine-game road trip and haven't won a game since beating the Padres, 7-2, on June 10. They've struggled to score runs, blown leads while on the cusp of victory and lost two members of their rotation in a matter of five days.
The last time the Dodgers won a series was May 19-21, when they swept the Reds.
Billingsley's luck hasn't been much better. A victim of no run support on several occasions, he's winless in his last five starts since notching a win over the Reds on May 21.
But with his parents and several other family members watching after making the 170-mile trip from Defiance, Billingsley (5-7) finally got over the hump.
"It's been a rough stretch here for the past couple weeks," Billingsley said. "All the pitches were working well. They didn't really have any hard-hit balls off me -- they just found holes. It was a matter of staying within myself and trying not to do too much."
He gave up a leadoff single and a walk to start the game, but was solid from then on until things got rocky in the seventh. He struck out six batters in the first three innings and nine in the game, including three in the third when he gave up a leadoff base hit before striking out the side.
"That was big," Torre said of Billingsley's performance. "Somebody's going to have to pick us up. Before I came on here, I heard a lot of good things about Billingsley, and I've been seeing that.
"In Spring Training, he wasn't too good. But once he sort of hit his stride, you could see the leadership qualities and the take-charge type qualities that he has. And tonight, especially here where I'm sure he had a lot of family, it was a great game for him."
Billingsley exited in the seventh when he gave up back-to-back one-out singles to Edwin Encarnacion and Joey Votto before walking Paul Bako to load the bases.
In came reliever Joe Beimel, who got Javier Valentin to ground out to first. Encarnacion scored from third to pull Cincinnati within 2-1, but Beimel got Corey Patterson to ground out to short and end the inning in the next at-bat.
"Joe did the job," Torre said. "That was a possible double-play ball, and James [Loney] got the one out. He doesn't melt. Joe Beimel -- he comes in and might fall behind, 2-0, but he knows exactly what he wants to do. He's been terrific for us this year."
Blake DeWitt knocked a one-out single in the eighth and scored when Jeff Kent doubled into the left-field corner. Reds left fielder Adam Dunn had difficulty fielding the ball, which allowed DeWitt to score from first and Kent to advance to third on the throw.
Russell Martin walked in the next at-bat to put runners at the corners with one out before Loney grounded into a double play.
The Reds threatened in the eighth when Brandon Phillips and Dunn both walked with two outs, but Jonathan Broxton got Encarnacion to fly out to center and end the inning.
Takashi Saito gave up a leadoff single to Votto in the bottom of the ninth, but struck out Ken Griffey Jr. and David Ross before sealing his ninth save of the season when he got Patterson to ground out.
"It has been hard because save opportunities have been few," Saito said through translation from traveling secretary Scot Akasaki. "But I think that's something you think about before the game. Once you get on the mound, you have to concentrate on the batter in front of you and getting him out."
Johnny Cueto (5-7) took the loss for the Reds, pitching seven innings and giving up two runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts.
The Dodgers, who have averaged slightly more than three runs per game on their road trip, scored first on Juan Pierre's two-out double in the third. Kent, who went 3-for-4, singled to lead off the fourth and scored on a double by Martin to make it 2-0.
The Dodgers added an insurance run in the eighth on Kent's one-out RBI double.
Copyright 2001-2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.
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