The Last THT Daily

Major League News for October 2

Yesterday’s Results
Standings
Game of the Day
Yesterday’s Home Runs
Player News
Stats

Yesterday’s Results

American League
BOS     9  BAL     0    (Recap and Boxscore) Hansack: 5 IP, 0 H
TOR     7  NYA     5    (Recap and Boxscore) Lind: 2-3, HR, 3 RBI; TOR: 2 in 9th
CLE     6  TB      3    (Recap and Boxscore) Lee: 9 IP, 3 R
KC     10  DET     8    (Recap and Boxscore) 12 innings; I-Rod: 3-3, 3B
MIN     5  CHA     1    (Recap and Boxscore) Silva: 5.1 IP, 1 R
OAK    11  LAA    10    (Recap and Boxscore) See below
SEA     3  TEX     2    (Recap and Boxscore) Woods: 6 IP, 2 R

National League
ATL     3  HOU     1    (Recap and Boxscore) Smoltz: 6 IP, 0 R
FLA     3  PHI     2    (Recap and Boxscore) 11 innings; Myers: 6 IP, 2 R
NYN     6  WAS     2    (Recap and Boxscore)
CHN     8  COL     5    (Recap and Boxscore) Cedeno: 3B, 3 RBI; Atkins: 3-3, HR
PIT     1  CIN     0    (Recap and Boxscore) Youman: 7 IP, 0 R; Belisle: 6 IP, 0 R
MIL     5  STL     3    (Recap and Boxscore) Jenkins: 3-3, HR; Villanueva: 8.1 IP, 2 R
SD      7  ARI     6    (Recap and Boxscore) Tracy: 3-3, 2 HR; Gonzalez: 4-5; Piazza: 2 2B
LAN     4  SF      3    (Recap and Boxscore)

Standings

The graphics next to each team are called “sparklines.” They depict each team’s performance over the last month. Each “up” bar is a victory and a “down” bar is a loss. There are horizontal lines for home games and red bars represent games decided by two runs or less. “PWins” is short for Projected Wins, based on each team’s Run Differential, and is often a better measure of a team’s true strength. Other team graphs and stats can be found on our Team Page.

American League East        Pwins  Diff
NYA     97  65 .599    0.0   96      1      
TOR     87  75 .537   10.0   86      1      
BOS     86  76 .531   11.0   81      5      
BAL     70  92 .432   27.0   69      1      
TB      61 101 .377   36.0   65     -4      
American League Central
MIN     96  66 .593    0.0   93      3      
DET     95  67 .586    1.0   96     -1      
CHA     90  72 .556    6.0   88      2      
CLE     78  84 .481   18.0   89     -11     
KC      62 100 .383   34.0   62      0      
American League West
OAK     93  69 .574    0.0   85      8      
LAA     89  73 .549    4.0   84      5      
TEX     80  82 .494   13.0   86     -6      
SEA     78  84 .481   15.0   77      1      

National League East         Pwins Diff
NYN     97  65 .599    0.0   91      6      
PHI     85  77 .525   12.0   86     -1      
ATL     79  83 .488   18.0   85     -6      
FLA     78  84 .481   19.0   80     -2      
WAS     71  91 .438   26.0   69      2      
National League Central
STL     83  78 .516    0.0   82      1      
HOU     82  80 .506    1.5   83     -1      
CIN     80  82 .494    3.5   76      4      
MIL     75  87 .463    8.5   71      4      
PIT     67  95 .414   16.5   70     -3      
CHN     66  96 .407   17.5   69     -3      
National League West
SD      88  74 .543    0.0   87      1      
LAN     88  74 .543    0.0   88      0      
SF      76  85 .472   11.5   76      0      
COL     76  86 .469   12.0   81     -5      
ARI     76  86 .469   12.0   80     -4      

Wildcard Standings
American League
DET     95  67 .586    0.0
CHA     90  72 .556    5.0
LAA     89  73 .549    6.0
TOR     87  75 .537    8.0
BOS     86  76 .531    9.0
National League
LAN     88  74 .543    0.0
PHI     85  77 .525    3.0
HOU     82  80 .506    6.0
CIN     80  82 .494    8.0
ATL     79  83 .488    9.0

Game of the Day

The Athletics took 10 innings to beat the Angels, 11-10, and avoid being swept in their last series of the year. The winning run scored on a Jay Payton liner that hit pitcher Brendan Donnelly in the stomach. Donnelly picked up the ball but threw wildly to first in an attempt to get Payton and the winning run scored.

Frank Thomas homered and had four RBI’s in only one official at bat and Jeff Mathis hit a double and triple with three RBI’s for the Angels. Rich Harden was ineffective in his final tuneup before the playoffs. And lifetime Angel Tim Salmon played the last game of his career.

OAKLAND (11) VS LA ANGELS (10) - FINAL IN 10 INNINGS 

OAKLAND                ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
J Kendall c             3  1  1  0   0  0   3  .295
 b-A Melhuse ph-c       1  0  0  1   1  0   3  .219
M Kotsay cf             2  2  2  1   1  0   0  .275
 H Bocachica pr-rf      2  1  0  0   1  0   1  .231
M Bradley rf            3  1  2  1   0  0   1  .276
 D Johnson pr-1b        3  1  0  1   0  1   1  .234
F Thomas dh             1  1  1  4   0  0   1  .270
 a-J Brown ph-dh        4  1  2  0   0  0   1  .300
E Chavez 3b             3  0  1  1   0  1   0  .241
 D Jimenez 3b           1  0  0  0   2  0   0  .183
J Payton lf-cf          5  0  3  1   1  0   1  .296
N Swisher 1b-lf         4  0  0  0   0  0   4  .254
 B Kielty lf            0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .270
M Scutaro ss            4  2  3  0   2  0   3  .266
M Ellis 2b              5  1  2  0   0  1   3  .249

Totals                 41 11 17 10   8  3  22

a-grounded to first for F Thomas in the 4th;  b-hit sacrifice fly to left for J 
Kendall in the 6th.

BATTING: 2B - M Bradley (14, D Moseley); M Kotsay (29, D Moseley); M Ellis (25, 
J Romero); J Brown 2 (2, C Bootcheck, J Romero). HR - F Thomas (39, 3rd inning 
off D Moseley 2 on, 0 Out). S - B Kielty. SF - F Thomas , A Melhuse. RBI - F 
Thomas 4 (114), E Chavez (72), M Kotsay (59), M Bradley (52), A Melhuse (18), D 
Johnson (37), J Payton (59). 2-out RBI - E Chavez, M Kotsay, M Bradley, J 
Payton. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Scutaro 2, J Payton 1, A 
Melhuse 1, N Swisher 2. GIDP - J Kendall, N Swisher, M Ellis. Team LOB - 12. 
 
BASERUNNING: SB - M Kotsay (6, 2nd base off D Moseley/J Mathis), M Scutaro 
(5, 2nd base off D Moseley/J Mathis), M Ellis (4, 3rd base off J Romero/J 
Mathis). 
 
FIELDING: DP: 2 (M Scutaro-M Ellis-D Johnson 2). 
 
LA ANGELS              ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
M Izturis ss            5  1  2  1   1  0   1  .293
R Willits cf            3  1  1  0   2  1   0  .267
T Salmon dh             4  1  0  0   1  0   5  .265
A Kennedy 2b            3  1  1  1   2  1   0  .273
R Quinlan 3b-lf         5  1  2  2   0  0   3  .321
K Morales 1b            3  1  0  1   1  0   1  .234
C Pride lf              1  1  0  0   1  0   1  .222
 D McPherson 3b         3  1  1  1   0  1   0  .261
J Mathis c              5  2  3  3   0  2   0  .145
T Murphy rf             4  0  1  0   1  1   1  .229

Totals                 36 10 11  9   9  6  12

BATTING: 2B - J Mathis (2, H Street). HR - J Mathis (2, 4th inning off R Harden 
2 on, 1 Out), D Mcpherson (7, 5th inning off B Halsey 0 on, 2 Out), R Quinlan 
(9, 7th inning off J Witasick 0 on, 1 Out). S - R Willits. SF - K Morales. RBI 
- A Kennedy (55), R Quinlan 2 (32), K Morales (22), J Mathis 3 (6), D McPherson 
(13), M Izturis (44). 2-out RBI - D McPherson. Runners left in scoring 
position, 2 out - R Quinlan 2, T Salmon 1, C Pride 1. GIDP - K Morales, T 
Salmon. Team LOB - 7. 
 
BASERUNNING: SB - M Izturis (14, 2nd base off B Halsey/J Kendall). CS - T 
Murphy (1, 2nd base by R Harden/J Kendall). 
 
FIELDING: E - R Willits (1, throw); B Donnelly (1, throw). DP: 3 (M Izturis-A 
Kennedy-K Morales, A Kennedy-M Izturis-K Morales, D McPherson-A Kennedy-K 
Morales). 
 
----------------------------------------------------
    OAKLAND         - 203 203 000 1  --  11
    LA ANGELS       - 300 320 110 0  --  10
----------------------------------------------------

OAKLAND                      ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
R Harden                      3 2/3   3   6   6   6   3   1   4.24
B Halsey                      1 1/3   4   2   2   1   0   1   4.67
J Witasick (H, 2)             2       1   1   1   1   1   1   6.75
H Street (B, 11)              1       3   1   1   1   0   0   3.31
C Gaudin (W, 4-2)             1       0   0   0   0   1   0   3.09
R Flores (S, 1)               1       0   0   0   0   1   0   3.34

LA ANGELS                    ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
D Moseley                     4      10   7   7   2   1   1   9.00
J Romero                      1 2/3   3   3   3   1   0   0   6.70
G Jones                       0       0   0   0   1   0   0   6.00
C Bootcheck (L, 0-1)          4       3   1   1   3   2   0  10.45
B Donnelly                      1/3   1   0   0   1   0   0   3.94

G Jones pitched to 1 batter in the 6th.

IBB - A Kennedy (by H Street). HBP - B Kielty (by B Donnelly). 
Pitches-strikes: R Harden 91-44; B Halsey 25-18; J Witasick 23-13; H Street 
21-10; C Gaudin 10-7; R Flores 11-7; D Moseley 93-54; J Romero 28-12; G Jones 
7-2; C Bootcheck 72-44; B Donnelly 13-7. Ground balls-fly balls: R Harden 4-3; 
B Halsey 2-2; J Witasick 3-2; H Street 1-2; C Gaudin 2-0; R Flores 0-2; D 
Moseley 6-5; J Romero 2-3; G Jones 0-0; C Bootcheck 3-7; B Donnelly 0-1. 
Batters faced: R Harden 19; B Halsey 8; J Witasick 7; H Street 7; C Gaudin 3; R 
Flores 3; D Moseley 22; J Romero 9; G Jones 1; C Bootcheck 17; B Donnelly 4. 
 
UMPIRES: HP--Ramon Armendariz. 1B--C.B. Bucknor. 2B--Mark Carlson. 3B--Wally 
Bell. 

T--3:45. Att--44,107. 
Weather: 75 degrees, cloudy. Wind: 8 mph, out to center.

The following graph tracks the game’s Win Probability, courtesy of Fan Graphs.

Yesterday’s Home Runs

The following stats are provided by Hit Tracker, which logs the projected distance of each home run (if it were to land uninterrupted at field level) and its “standard” distance, which is corrected for weather conditions. You can read their daily updates at the Hit Tracker Blog.

Hitter                      Pitcher                       True Dist  Std. Dist.  HR #
Jackson, Conor      ARI     Hoffman, Trevor     SD           466        455      15
Hinske, Eric        BOS     Ortiz, Russ         BAL          406        440      13
Loretta, Mark       BOS     Manon, Julio        BAL          398        430       5
Sexson, Richie      SEA     Tejeda, Robinson    TEX          397        426      34
Lind, Adam          TOR     Farnsworth, Kyle    NYY          415        418       2
Norton, Greg        TB      Lee, Cliff          CLE          406        416      17
Francoeur, Jeff     ATL     Sampson, Chris      HOU          413        414      29
Tracy, Chad         ARI     Williams, Woody     SD           419        409      19
Lowell, Mike        BOS     Penn, Hayden        BAL          377        407      20
Uggla, Dan          FLA     Myers, Brett        PHI          396        403      27
Stairs, Matt        DET     Dohmann, Scott      KC           410        401      13
Duncan, Chris       STL     Villanueva, Carlos  MIL          423        397      22
Spiezio, Scott      STL     Cordero, Francisco  MIL          416        396      13
Hollins, Damon      TB      Lee, Cliff          CLE          375        392      15
Hunter, Torii       MIN     Vazquez, Javier     CWS          395        390      31
Kinsler, Ian        TEX     Woods, Jake         SEA          375        390      14
Mathis, Jeff        LAA     Harden, Rich        OAK          410        384       2
Matsui, Kazuo       COL     Miller, Wade        CHC          390        383       3
Posada, Jorge       NYY     Accardo, Jeremy     TOR          375        383      23
Pujols, Albert      STL     Villanueva, Carlos  MIL          425        380      49
Atkins, Garrett     COL     Howry, Bob          CHC          393        378      29
Quinlan, Robb       LAA     Witasick, Jay       OAK          395        372       9
Counsell, Craig     ARI     Williams, Woody     SD           381        372       4
Loney, James        LAD     Schmidt, Jason      SF           390        368       4
Fielder, Prince     MIL     Reyes, Anthony      STL          396        367      28
McPherson, Dallas   LAA     Halsey, Brad        OAK          379        361       7
Tracy, Chad         ARI     Hoffman, Trevor     SD           369        360      20
Inge, Brandon       DET     Perez, Odalis       KC           392        359      27
Ramirez, Aramis     CHC     Jimenez, Ubaldo     COL          375        357      38
Thomas, Frank       OAK     Moseley, Dustin     LAA          371        356      39
Jenkins, Geoff      MIL     Reyes, Anthony      STL          363        354      17
Suzuki, Ichiro      SEA     Tejeda, Robinson    TEX          337        344       9
Rivera, Mike        MIL     Sosa, Jorge         STL          358        326       6

Player News

Player news items are provided by CBS SportsLine.com.

Devern Hansack threw no-hit ball for five innings before the game was called because of rain, giving Boston a 9-0 win over Baltimore — but not giving the Red Sox rookie official credit for a no-hitter. You have to pitch nine full innings to be credited with a no-no. However, Hansack does get credit for a complete game and a shutout.

Dontrelle Willis left the game in the second inning against Philadelphia because of a sore left triceps. X-rays were negative, and manager Joe Girardi and Willis said the injury wasn’t serious.

The Twins are the first team ever to participate in the postseason after taking sole possession of first place for the first time all season on the final day.

Randy Johnson was optimistic after a bullpen session that he will start Game 3 of the playoffs Friday night. Johnson threw 41 pitches Sunday under the watchful eye of manager Joe Torre, pitching coach Ron Guidry and bullpen coach Joe Kerrigan. “It was surprisingly good,” Johnson said. “Everybody was more pleased than I was, so I guess that’s a good thing. My only concern is a stiff back.”

Joe Mauer became the first catcher to win an AL batting title. In fact, no other AL catcher had even ranked second. Four catchers finished third in the AL batting race (in a season in which their primary fielding position was behind the plate): Bill Dickey (1936), Elston Howard (1964), Thurman Munson (1975), and Brian Downing (1979). (Source: Elias)

Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano became the second pair of keystone-position teammates in major-league history to post a batting average of .340 or higher in the same season (minimum: 100 games at shortstop and second base, respectively).

John Smoltz won his 16th game of the season to tie Aaron Harang, Derek Lowe, Brad Penny, Carlos Zambrano and Brandon Webb for the league lead in victories. Prior to this year, no more than four pitchers had ever finished a season tied for either the AL or NL lead in wins.

Carlos Zambrano became the third pitcher in major-league history to lead his league in wins (either tied or outright) in a season in which his team lost at least 90 games.

Chicago Cubs’ CEO Andy MacPhail announced his resignation.

The Red Sox finished in third-place after placing second in the AL East in each of the past eight seasons. Not only was that the longest streak of consecutive second-place finishes for any team in major-league history, but it’s also longer than any such streak in the NFL, NBA and NHL.

Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein announced that rookie ace reliever Jonathan Papelbon will be converted to a starting pitcher next year.

THT Stats

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