THT Daily: Easter Sunday
by Dave StudemanApril 08, 2007
Major League News for April 7
Yesterday’s ResultsToday’s Games
Standings
Game of the Day
Player News
Yesterday’s Results
American League TOR 8 TB 5 (Recap and Boxscore) TEX 8 BOS 4 (Recap and Boxscore) LAA 2 OAK 1 (Recap and Boxscore) NYA 10 BAL 7 (Recap and Boxscore) CHA 3 MIN 0 (Recap and Boxscore) DET 6 KC 5 (Recap and Boxscore) National League LAN 4 SF 1 (Recap and Boxscore) SD 3 COL 2 (Recap and Boxscore) HOU 5 STL 1 (Recap and Boxscore) CIN 7 PIT 5 (Recap and Boxscore) FLA 8 PHI 5 (Recap and Boxscore) ATL 5 NYN 3 (Recap and Boxscore) ARI 7 WAS 1 (Recap and Boxscore) CHN 6 MIL 3 (Recap and Boxscore)
Today’s Games
National League --------------- Philadelphia Phillies at Florida Marlins, 1:05 PM (R) Zach Segovia (0-0) vs. (L) Scott Olsen (1-0) New York Mets at Atlanta Braves, 1:05 PM (R) Orlando Hernandez (1-0) vs. (R) Kyle Davies (0-0) Pittsburgh Pirates at Cincinnati Reds, 1:15 PM (L) Zach Duke (0-0) vs. (L) Eric Milton (0-0) Arizona Diamondbacks at Washington Nationals, 1:35 PM (R) Livan Hernandez (0-0) vs. (R) Shawn Hill (0-1) St. Louis Cardinals at Houston Astros, 2:05 PM (R) Kip Wells (0-1) vs. (R) Jason Jennings (0-0) Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers, 2:05 PM (R) Wade Miller (0-0) vs. (L) Chris Capuano (0-0) Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres, 4:05 PM (R) Aaron Cook (0-0) vs. (R) Jake Peavy (1-0) Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco Giants, 4:05 PM (L) Randy Wolf (0-1) vs. (L) Barry Zito (0-1) American League --------------- Baltimore Orioles at New York Yankees, 1:05 PM (L) Erik Bedard (0-1) vs. (R) Darrell Rasner (0-0) Seattle Mariners at Cleveland Indians, 1:05 PM (R) Jeff Weaver (0-0) vs. (L) CC Sabathia (1-0) Toronto Blue Jays at Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 1:40 PM (R) Roy Halladay (0-0) vs. (L) Scott Kazmir (0-0) Minnesota Twins at Chicago White Sox, 2:05 PM (L) Johan Santana (1-0) vs. (L) John Danks (0-0) Detroit Tigers at Kansas City Royals, 2:10 PM (R) Jeremy Bonderman (0-0) vs. (R) Brandon Duckworth (0-0) Oakland Athletics at LA Angels of Anaheim, 3:35 PM (R) Joe Blanton (0-0) vs. (R) Kelvim Escobar (1-0) Seattle Mariners at Cleveland Indians, 4:05 PM (R) Felix Hernandez (1-0) vs. (R) Fausto Carmona (0-0) Boston Red Sox at Texas Rangers, 8:05 PM (R) Curt Schilling (0-1) vs. (R) Vicente Padilla (0-1)
Standings
American League East Pwins Diff TOR 2 2 .500 0.0 1 0 TB 2 2 .500 0.0 0 0 NYA 2 2 .500 0.0 1 0 BOS 2 3 .400 0.5 0 0 BAL 1 4 .200 1.5 1 -1 American League Central MIN 3 1 .750 0.0 1 1 CLE 2 1 .667 0.5 1 0 CHA 2 2 .500 1.0 0 0 DET 2 2 .500 1.0 0 0 KC 2 3 .400 1.5 1 0 American League West LAA 5 1 .833 0.0 2 0 SEA 2 1 .667 1.5 2 0 TEX 2 3 .400 2.5 0 0 OAK 2 4 .333 3.0 0 0 National League East Pwins Diff NYN 4 1 .800 0.0 2 0 ATL 4 1 .800 0.0 1 0 FLA 3 2 .600 1.0 2 0 PHI 1 4 .200 3.0 0 0 WAS 1 5 .167 3.5 0 0 National League Central CIN 4 1 .800 0.0 1 0 PIT 3 2 .600 1.0 1 1 CHN 3 2 .600 1.0 0 0 MIL 2 3 .400 2.0 2 0 STL 1 4 .200 3.0 0 0 HOU 1 4 .200 3.0 1 -1 National League West ARI 4 2 .667 0.0 1 0 SD 3 2 .600 0.5 1 0 COL 3 2 .600 0.5 1 0 LAN 3 2 .600 0.5 0 0 SF 1 4 .200 2.5 0 0
Game of the Day
Alex Rodriguez hit one of the clutchiest home runs that will be hit all year when, with two out in the bottom of the ninth and the Yankees trailing by a run, he blasted a grand slam home run to give the Yankees the win. Jason Giambi also hit a critical three-run homer in the eighth, when the Yankees were trailing 7-3.
Kei Igawa left Saturday's start after five mediocre innings trailing 7-3. Two days after countryman Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched seven dominating innings to win his debut for the Boston Red Sox, Igawa started hearing boos after his 12th batter. He failed to string together a 1-2-3 inning and gave up seven runs, eight hits, three walks, a hit batter and two home runs, a performance that left him with a 12.60 ERA. For the Orioles, Melvin Mora tied a career high with five RBI.
BALTIMORE (7) VS NY YANKEES (10) - FINAL
BALTIMORE ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
B Roberts 2b 3 2 0 1 2 0 1 .176
M Mora 3b 5 1 2 5 0 1 0 .292
N Markakis rf 5 1 2 1 0 1 1 .250
M Tejada ss 5 0 0 0 0 1 3 .200
A Huff dh 4 1 1 0 1 0 1 .350
K Millar lf 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 .071
F Bynum lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000
C Patterson cf 2 1 1 0 1 0 0 .200
C Gomez 1b 4 0 1 0 0 0 4 .250
A Castillo c 4 0 1 0 0 3 5 .167
Totals 37 7 9 7 4 7 17
BATTING: 2B - M Mora (2, K Igawa). HR - N Markakis (1, 1st inning off K Igawa 0
on, 2 Out), M Mora (2, 4th inning off K Igawa 1 on, 0 Out). RBI - N Markakis
(3), B Roberts (1), M Mora 5 (7). 2-out RBI - N Markakis, B Roberts, M Mora 3.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Castillo 1, M Tejada 1. Team LOB -
8.
FIELDING: E - M Tejada (3, throw).
NY YANKEES ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
R Cano 2b 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 .389
D Jeter ss 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 .278
B Abreu rf 2 3 0 0 2 1 1 .267
A Rodriguez 3b 4 4 3 6 1 0 0 .389
J Giambi dh 3 1 1 3 1 0 0 .188
H Matsui lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250
a-M Cairo ph-lf 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000
b-J Damon ph-cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .333
J Posada c 4 0 1 1 0 1 0 .438
D Mientkiewicz 1b 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 .333
M Cabrera cf-lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .083
Totals 34 10 7 10 5 5 6
a-popped out to second for H Matsui in the 4th; b-struck out swinging for M
Cairo in the 8th.
BATTING: 2B - A Rodriguez (3, S Trachsel). HR - A Rodriguez 2 (3, 1st inning
off S Trachsel 1 on, 2 Out, 9th inning off C Ray 3 on, 2 Out), J Giambi (1, 8th
inning off D Baez 2 on, 1 Out). RBI - A Rodriguez 6 (9), J Posada (3), J Giambi
3 (6). 2-out RBI - A Rodriguez 6, J Posada. Runners left in scoring position, 2
out - D Mientkiewicz 1. Team LOB - 4.
FIELDING: E - K Igawa (1, ground ball).
----------------------------------------------------
BALTIMORE - 140 200 000 -- 7
NY YANKEES - 200 100 034 -- 10
Two outs when winning run scored.
----------------------------------------------------
BALTIMORE ip h r er bb so hr era
S Trachsel 6 2/3 4 3 3 2 3 1 4.05
J Parrish 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
D Baez 1/3 1 3 3 2 0 1 11.57
J Walker (H, 2) 2/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00
C Ray (L, 0-1; B, 1) 2/3 2 4 4 1 1 1 13.50
NY YANKEES ip h r er bb so hr era
K Igawa 5 8 7 7 3 2 2 12.60
B Bruney 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 0.00
M Myers 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.00
L Vizcaino 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.00
M Rivera (W, 1-0) 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00
HBP - C Patterson (by K Igawa); B Abreu (by C Ray). Pitches-strikes: S
Trachsel 92-53; J Parrish 5-4; D Baez 15-5; J Walker 8-6; C Ray 21-12; K Igawa
97-53; B Bruney 16-10; M Myers 22-12; L Vizcaino 13-8; M Rivera 16-12. Ground
balls-fly balls: S Trachsel 8-9; J Parrish 1-0; D Baez 0-1; J Walker 1-0; C Ray
0-1; K Igawa 3-10; B Bruney 0-0; M Myers 3-0; L Vizcaino 0-2; M Rivera 0-2.
Batters faced: S Trachsel 27; J Parrish 1; D Baez 4; J Walker 2; C Ray 6; K
Igawa 28; B Bruney 3; M Myers 4; L Vizcaino 3; M Rivera 4.
UMPIRES: HP--Ed Montague. 1B--Jerry Layne. 2B--Bill Miller. 3B--Marvin
Hudson.
T--3:13. Att--50,510.
Weather: 39 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 10 mph, out
to left.The following graph tracks the game's Win Probability, courtesy of Fan Graphs. You can also view live WPA graphs at Fangraphs during any ballgame all season long.
Player News
Player Headlines are courtesy of RotoworldSammy Sosa went 2-for-5 with the first home run of his comeback as the Rangers beat the Red Sox 8-4 on Saturday night. 11 to go until No. 600. Sosa's homer was a two-run shot off J.C. Romero in the sixth inning, doubling the Rangers' lead to four runs. Sammy is now 4-for-15 with three RBI and a 5/1 K/BB ratio in four games.
Roy Oswalt went the distance and threw a five-hitter Saturday in a 5-1 win over the Cardinals. Just what his team needed. Oswalt needed just 94 pitches, so he could have finished the game regardless of whether the score was 2-1 or 9-1. It was the first win of the season for the Astros, who like the Cardinals, now have a 1-4 record.
Hideki Matsui is likely to miss at least four games after straining his left hamstring on Saturday. They're looking to get him back against the A's on Friday. "Hopefully, it's only a few days," manager Joe Torre said. "It's not a full-blown hamstring, but again, it's something you have to keep an eye on." The Yankees expect to have Johnny Damon in center field on Sunday, so Melky Cabrera will move over to left field.
Pirates activated second baseman Freddy Sanchez from the 15-day disabled list. Sanchez's return will push Jose Casillo into a utility role. He'll be joined there by Don Kelly, as the Pirates elected to keep a sixth infielder and send down Ryan Doumit to make room for Sanchez. Manager Jim Tracy didn't commit to starting Sanchez on Sunday, but the reigning batting champ will likely be back in the lineup by Monday anyway.
Player news items are provided by CBS SportsLine.com.
Angels starter John Lackey scattered seven hits in seven innings Saturday vs. Oakland, and the Los Angeles Angels took advantage of some shoddy Oakland baserunning to beat the Athletics 2-1 Saturday night for their fifth win in six games. Lackey (2-0) gave up one run, struck out six and walked none en route to a 2-1 win. A's starter Dan Haren allowed just two runs -- one earned -- in Saturday's loss. He was outdueled by Lackey despite allowing only six hits and three walks though seven solid innings. He struck out two batters.
Rangers closer Eric Gagne threw 17 pitches in another minor league game Saturday night, the first time in nearly two years the former Cy Young Award winner pitched in games on consecutive days. Starting for Double-A Frisco for the second night in a row, Gagne faced five Arkansas batters and threw 12 strikes while throwing mostly off-speed pitches. He allowed a solo home run and a single. "There was a little stiffness, but it felt good the first time throwing back to back in two years," Gagne said. "I was trying to work everything. The curveball and changeup was not as good as (Friday). I hit some spots and I missed some spots. These were positive outings."
RHP Duaner Sanchez will have surgery Tuesday in New York to have a screw inserted into his right shoulder. Sanchez hasn't pitched for New York since July, when he separated the same shoulder in a taxi accident and had surgery. He felt a pop in the shoulder last month while throwing in spring training.
The Indians are expected to decide Sunday whether to put catcher Victor Martinez on the disabled list. Martinez strained his left quadriceps running to first base in the third inning of Friday's snow-out. "He's certainly going to miss some time," GM Mark Shapiro told the team's Web site. "The good thing is it doesn't appear to be serious."
Weather permitting, the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians will attempt to complete the first official games of their series and play a Sunday doubleheader at Jacobs Field. If the first game gets underway, Jeff Weaver will make his Mariners debut.
RHP Jon Lieber (ribcage muscle) threw 3 2/3 innings Friday for Single-A Clearwater and is expected to join the Phillies' bullpen Monday in New York.
St. Louis ace Chris Carpenter, who sat out his scheduled start on Friday because of inflammation in his right elbow, threw a bullpen session on Saturday. "He felt fine and we'll just have to see how he responds tomorrow," La Russa said.
Colorado's Josh Fogg pitched well Saturday night at San Diego before allowing the tying run in the seventh. He gave up two runs and six hits, struck out three and walked one in 6 1/3 innings. David Wells also pitched well in his season debut Saturday vs. Colorado, but did not factor in the final decision. Wells allowed two runs and six singles in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out four and walked one.
A's SS Bobby Crosby, who left Friday night's game after five innings because of back spasms, said he felt much better and hopes to be in the lineup Sunday. "It's not related to my other back injury," he said. "I've had this before. I'm not overly concerned about it." He pinch ran in the ninth inning.
Rangers SP Kevin Millwood allowed three runs and eight hits Saturday vs. Boston while picking up his first win of the season. After throwing 50 pitches the first two innings, allowing a run in each, Millwood threw only 54 more pitches and made it through six innings to avoid another 0-2 start in Texas.
Julian Tavarez, added to the Red Sox rotation during the spring after it was announced that Jonathan Papelbon was returning to the closer's role, allowed four runs, six hits and five walks over four innings while earning his first loss of the season Saturday at Texas.
Frank Thomas hit home run No. 488 Saturday night, a majestic 453-foot grand slam off left-hander Casey Fossum that helped his new team, the Toronto Blue Jays, beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 8-5. "When I get to 500, I'll be happy -- extremely happy," Thomas said. "But I've got my focus somewhere else. I don't want to get caught trying to just get to 500 because that can be a long, long chase. I'm not going to put pressure on myself."
Manager John Gibbons has been impressed by the start of RHP Casey Janssen, who is working out of the bullpen this season after starting last year. In his first 3 2/3 innings, he has allowed one hit. "He's very aggressive," Gibbons said. "He throws strikes. If you throw strikes, you have a chance."
Rocco Baldelli, who has been bothered by a sore right hamstring, started in center field Saturday vs. Toronto. He was the designated hitter in Tampa Bay's first three games.
Carl Crawford set a Devil Rays record with the sixth leadoff homer of his career Saturday vs. Tampa Bay, one more than Rocco Baldelli and Randy Winn.
Blue Jays closer B.J. Ryan got the final three outs for his second save in three opportunities Saturday night at Tampa Bay. Blue Jays reliever Shaun Marcum (1-0) struck out five of the seven batters he faced in 2 1/3 perfect innings to get the victory Saturday at Tampa Bay.
Arizona 1B Tony Clark made his first start and collected three hits Sunday at Washington.
Brandon Webb scattered seven hits over seven innings Saturday at Washington. In leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 7-1 victory over the Washington Nationals, the only run Webb allowed came on a homer that might really have been a foul ball. "I felt a lot better," Webb said. "I had a great bullpen before the game. I felt like I was going to be on."
John Patterson (0-2), the closest thing Washington has to an established starter, labored through a 31-pitch first inning in which he allowed three runs and two hits with two walks Saturday vs. Arizona en route to his second loss of the young season. Patterson said he was bothered by the conditions, which never allowed him to get loose on the mound. "It was cold," Patterson said. "It was really cold." Patterson's problem was throwing strikes. Over the first two innings, he faced 11 batters and began nine with a ball. He finished with 88 pitches -- half were balls.
Phillies 2B Chase Utley batted third for the third game in a row Saturday after hitting cleanup the first two games. "Utley hits better in the three hole," manager Charlie Manuel said after the game.
RF Jeremy Hermida (knee bruise) has yet to begin a rehabilitation assignment and might not rejoin the Marlins until May, manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday.
Marlins 2B Dan Uggla went 0-for-4 Saturday vs. Philadelphia, dropping his average to .095 (2-for-21).
Dontrelle Willis (2-0) pitched six innings and retired Ryan Howard three times Saturday vs. Philadelphia. Willis allowed three runs -- all on Jimmy Rollins' inside-the-park homer -- and struck out nine. He improved to 11-1 in April with an ERA of 2.40.
Ryan Howard went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts, helping the Florida Marlins escape several jams in an 8-5 victory over the Phillies on Saturday. Howard, who set a Phillies record with 58 home runs last year, stranded five runners as his average fell to .158 with no RBI.
Though Astros manager Phil Garner often gives Craig Biggio the day off on Sunday, he said he will likely play the second baseman this Sunday. He's cognizant of the fact that a lot of home fans would be disappointed if he didn't play. "I like to try to play him at home as much as possible," Garner said. "If I drove an hour or something to the game, I'd like to see him play." Biggio is closing in on 3,000 hits.
Astros SS Adam Everett has hit safely in all five games this season after going 1-for-4 Saturday afternoon vs. St. Louis.
RHP Lance Cormier and LHP Mike Hampton are scheduled to throw prior to Sunday's game against the Mets. Both are on the 15-day DL, Cormier with a strained right triceps and Hampton with a strained left oblique.
Mets SS Jose Reyes had a triple from each side of the plate Friday night. He also did it on May 18, 2005, vs. Cincinnati. Over the last 40 years, only three other players have done that - Roy White, Yankees, 1969 and 1970, and Bernie Williams, Yankees, in 1998-1999, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Braves starter John Smoltz (1-0) went six innings and allowed two runs, seven hits, walked four and struck out four Saturday afternoon vs. the Mets and former teammate and golfing buddy Tom Glavine. Smoltz was on the winning end of a 5-3 decision. "It was a matchup as advertised," said Atlanta manager Bobby Cox. "Both threw great. We were lucky to get more than one run off Glavine."
Mark Buehrle's lower left arm was sore and his hand swollen Saturday, but it didn't keep the White Sox southpaw from venturing into the cold to play some catch at U.S. Cellular Field. "My hand is a little swollen, so it felt like I was throwing a softball, but other than that, there were no problems," Buehrle said.
Derek Lowe bounced back from a bad outing on opening day and the Los Angeles Dodgers extended their winning streak in San Francisco to seven games with a 4-1 victory Saturday. Jeff Kent hit a go-ahead two-run double in the fifth.
Javier Vazquez allowed one hit in 6 2/3 scoreless innings and four relievers completed the frosty three-hitter Saturday to help the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 3-0. In winning for the first time since last Aug. 10, Vazquez walked four and struck out five on another January-like day at U.S. Cellular Field.
Reggie Sanders went 3-for-4, including a two-run homer in the third, and scored three runs against Detroit Saturday. He doubled in the second and scored on Esteban German's single. Sanders singled to lead off the sixth and scored on German's double.
Gary Sheffield, Ivan Rodriguez and Curtis Granderson homered to help the Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals 6-5 on a cold Saturday afternoon. Sheffield, who had just one single in his first three games with the Tigers, homered to left with two outs in the first. Rodriguez homered into the Tigers' bullpen to leadoff the fourth, putting the Tigers up 4-3. It was his 19th home run in 152 career games against Kansas City. Granderson homered to leadoff the fifth.
Blowing into his cupped right hand between pitches because of the cold temperatures, Aaron Harang (2-0) persevered for 5 2/3 innings to get the victory against the Pirates Saturday.
Edwin Encarnacion had three hits, including a bases-loaded single against the Pirates Saturday.
Aramis Ramirez clobbered a two-run homer to left center field at Milwaukee Saturday. Ramirez has been a slow starter in past seasons, but led the major leagues with eight home runs in spring training and has at least one hit in each of the Cubs' first five games.
Carlos Zambrano allowed three runs in seven innings and hit an RBI single to help the Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Brewers 6-3 Saturday. Zambrano (1-1) struck out four of the first six batters he faced and cruised through three perfect innings to start the game before allowing a solo home run to Rickie Weeks to lead off the fourth.
Manager Terry Francona said the Red Sox "don't want to take any shortcuts" with LHP Jon Lester, who was 7-2 as a rookie last season before finding out he had lymphoma. He allowed only two hits Thursday in the first of his four scheduled starts for Class A Greenville.
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Dave was called a "national treasure" by Rob Neyer. Seriously. Comments about this article can be sent to him through the miracle of e-mail.