THT Daily: Deadline Day

Major League News for July 31

Yesterday’s Results
Today’s Games
Standings
Game of the Day
Yesterday’s Home Runs
Top Minor League Performances
Player News
Stats

Yesterday’s Results
American League
MIN    15  TEX     2    (Recap and Boxscore) Punto: 4-4; Hunter: 3-5, 4 RBI; Silva: 7 IP, 1 R
TB      7  DET     3    (Recap and Boxscore) Hollins: 3-4, HR; Fossum: 7 IP, 0 ER, 10 K, 0 BB
SEA    10  BAL     5    (Recap and Boxscore) Betancourt: 2 2B; Johjima: 2-5, 3 RBI, HR
OAK     3  LAA     1    (Recap and Boxscore) Haren: 9 IP, 1 R
CHA     8  KC      4    (Recap and Boxscore) Cintron: 3-5, HR
BOS     9  CLE     8    (Recap and Boxscore) See below

National League
WAS    10  SF      7    (Recap and Boxscore) Kearns: 2 2B, 3 RBI; Vizquel: 4-5, 2 3B
FLA    15  PHI     2    (Recap and Boxscore) Cabrera: 2 2B, HR; Johnson: 7 IP, 1 R
COL     4  MIL     2    (Recap and Boxscore) Cook: 8 IP, 2 R; Fastest game ever at Coors
ARI    15  CHN     4    (Recap and Boxscore) Hudson: 2 HR, 6 RBI

Today’s Games
Visitors                         Home                             Time
ATL - Smoltz J. (8-5, 3.55)      PIT - Snell I. (9-6, 4.63)       7:05
NYM - Pelfrey M. (2-1, 5.28)     FLA - Olsen S.* (9-4, 3.79)      7:05
CLE - Sabathia C.* (7-7, 3.82)   BOS - Johnson J. (3-10, 6.35)    7:05
TOR - Burnett A. (2-4, 4.53)     NYY - Wright J. (6-6, 4.73)      7:05
SEA - Moyer J.* (6-9, 4.21)      BAL - Lopez R. (7-11, 6.57)      7:05
LAD - Sele A. (6-4, 3.79)        CIN - Arroyo B. (9-7, 3.20)      7:10
DET - Verlander J. (13-4, 2.69)  TB - Howell J.* (0-0, -)         7:15
ARI - Vargas C. (8-7, 5.04)      CHC - Hill R.* (0-4, 9.53)       8:05
PHI - Mathieson S. (0-2, 5.48)   STL - Suppan J. (8-5, 4.98)      8:10
TEX - Eaton A. (0-1, 7.36)       MIN - Baker S. (3-6, 6.27)       8:10
CWS - Buehrle M.* (9-9, 4.81)    KC - Perez O.* (0-0, -)          8:10
MIL - Bush D. (6-8, 4.95)        COL - Fogg J. (7-5, 4.56)        9:05
OAK - Blanton J. (11-8, 4.78)    LAA - Saunders J.* (1-0, 1.29)  10:05
HOU - Pettitte A.* (9-11, 5.18)  SD - Peavy J. (5-10, 5.01)      10:05
WAS - Hernandez L. (8-8, 5.70)   SF - Cain M. (7-7, 4.87)        10:15

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
BOS     63  41 .606    0.0   58     5    sparkline graph
NYA     61  41 .598    1.0   58     3    sparkline graph
TOR     57  48 .543    6.5   58    -1    sparkline graph
BAL     48  59 .449   16.5   46     2    sparkline graph
TB      44  62 .415   20.0   43     1    sparkline graph
American League Central     
DET     70  35 .667    0.0   66     4    sparkline graph
CHA     62  42 .596    7.5   60     2    sparkline graph
MIN     61  43 .587    8.5   59     2    sparkline graph
CLE     45  59 .433   24.5   55   -10    sparkline graph
KC      37  68 .352   33.0   39    -2    sparkline graph
American League West        
OAK     56  50 .528    0.0   53     3    sparkline graph
LAA     54  51 .514    1.5   54     0    sparkline graph
SEA     52  53 .495    3.5   53    -1    sparkline graph
TEX     52  54 .491    4.0   53    -1    sparkline graph


National League East        Pwins  Diff
NYN     63  41 .606    0.0   61     2    sparkline graph
PHI     49  55 .471   14.0   50    -1    sparkline graph
FLA     49  56 .467   14.5   51    -2    sparkline graph
ATL     48  56 .462   15.0   53    -5    sparkline graph
WAS     47  59 .443   17.0   47     0    sparkline graph
National League Central     
STL     58  46 .558    0.0   54     4    sparkline graph
CIN     55  50 .524    3.5   51     4    sparkline graph
MIL     50  56 .472    9.0   46     4    sparkline graph
HOU     49  56 .467    9.5   50    -1    sparkline graph
CHN     43  62 .410   15.5   42     1    sparkline graph
PIT     40  66 .377   19.0   47    -7    sparkline graph
National League West        
SD      55  50 .524    0.0   54     1    sparkline graph
ARI     54  51 .514    1.0   53     1    sparkline graph
COL     51  54 .486    4.0   54    -3    sparkline graph
SF      51  55 .481    4.5   52    -1    sparkline graph
LAN     50  55 .476    5.0   54    -4    sparkline graph

Game of the Day

David Ortiz hit a game-winning three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to lead the Red Sox to a 9-8 win over the Indians. It was his second game-ending hit in three days, fifth of the year and his 12th since joining Boston four years ago. Big Papi had two home runs in the game, giving him 37 for the season. His 14 home runs in July set a new Boston record for most home runs in one month.

One more Ortiz note: he drove in four runs, raising his total for the season to 105 RBI. That’s not only the most in the majors, it’s the highest total in Red Sox history through the end of July. The previous record was 104, set by Ted Williams and Vern Stephens in 1949. (Source: Elias)

It was another blow to the Cleveland bullpen, which now has almost as many blown saves (14) as saves (15). This time, the culprit was newly anointed closer Fausto Carmona. Casey Blake had two home runs and five RBI’s for the Indians.

CLEVELAND (8) VS BOSTON (9) - FINAL

CLEVELAND              ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
G Sizemore cf           5  0  1  0   0  1   1  .301
J Michaels lf           5  2  2  0   0  1   1  .275
T Hafner dh             4  1  1  1   0  0   0  .296
V Martinez 1b           3  1  0  0   1  1   0  .306
C Blake rf              3  2  2  5   0  0   0  .301
J Peralta ss            3  1  1  0   1  2   0  .259
H Luna 2b               4  1  1  0   0  0   1  .250
K Shoppach c            4  0  1  2   0  2   0  .241
A Marte 3b              4  0  0  0   0  2   1  .000

Totals                 35  8  9  8   2  9   4

BATTING: 2B - H Luna (1, D Wells); K Shoppach (3, D Wells); T Hafner (22, D 
Wells). HR - C Blake 2 (14, 2nd inning off D Wells 0 on, 1 Out, 5th inning off 
D Wells 2 on, 2 Out). SF - C Blake. RBI - C Blake 5 (47), K Shoppach 2 (9), T 
Hafner (86). 2-out RBI - C Blake 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - G 
Sizemore 1. Team LOB - 3. 
 
FIELDING: Outfield assists - G Sizemore (D Mirabelli at Home). 
 
BOSTON                 ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
K Youkilis 1b           4  1  0  0   1  2   1  .293
M Loretta 2b            5  1  1  0   0  1   3  .302
D Ortiz dh              5  2  3  4   0  1   1  .289
M Ramirez lf            3  1  1  2   1  0   0  .315
M Lowell 3b             4  0  0  0   0  0   2  .290
J Varitek c             1  1  1  0   0  0   0  .243
 a-D Mirabelli ph-c     3  0  1  0   0  2   0  .188
C Crisp cf              4  1  2  0   0  0   0  .269
W Pena rf               4  1  3  3   0  1   0  .333
A Cora ss               4  1  1  0   0  1   2  .293


Totals                 37  9 13  9   2  8   9

a-doubled to deep center for J Varitek in the 3rd.

BATTING: 2B - D Mirabelli (4, P Byrd); D Ortiz (20, J Davis). 3B - W Pena (1, P 
Byrd). HR - M Ramirez (29, 1st inning off P Byrd 1 on, 2 Out), D Ortiz 2 (37, 
3rd inning off P Byrd 0 on, 0 Out, 9th inning off F Carmona 2 on, 1 Out), W 
Pena (5, 4th inning off P Byrd 0 on, 0 Out). RBI - M Ramirez 2 (84), W Pena 3 
(24), D Ortiz 4 (105). 2-out RBI - M Ramirez 2. Runners left in scoring 
position, 2 out - M Loretta 1, M Lowell 1. Team LOB - 5. 
 
FIELDING: E - A Cora (4, throw). 

----------------------------------------------------
    CLEVELAND       - 032 030 000   --   8
    BOSTON          - 221 100 003   --   9

One out when winning run scored.
----------------------------------------------------

CLEVELAND                    ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
P Byrd                        4       9   6   6   0   2   3   5.00
J Davis                       2 2/3   2   0   0   1   4   0   4.82
R Betancourt (H, 4)           1 1/3   0   0   0   0   2   0   3.97
F Carmona (L, 1-5; B, 1)        1/3   2   3   3   1   0   1   4.82

BOSTON                       ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
D Wells                       4 2/3   8   8   8   2   3   2  11.08
K Snyder (W, 3-2)             4 1/3   1   0   0   0   6   0   6.00

WP - J Davis. Pitches-strikes: P Byrd 72-53; J Davis 48-33; R Betancourt 
16-11; F Carmona 15-7; D Wells 96-60; K Snyder 57-38. Ground balls-fly balls: P 
Byrd 1-8; J Davis 3-1; R Betancourt 0-2; F Carmona 0-1; D Wells 8-3; K Snyder 
2-5. Batters faced: P Byrd 20; J Davis 11; R Betancourt 4; F Carmona 4; D Wells 
24; K Snyder 14. 
 
UMPIRES: HP--C.B. Bucknor. 1B--John Hirschbeck. 2B--Wally Bell. 3B--Mark 
Carlson. 

T--3:15. Att--36,387. 
Weather: 82 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 8 mph, in from right.

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

image

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.

Hitter                  Pitcher                      True Dist  Std. Dist  HR #
Hermida, Jeremy   FLA   Lieber, Jon          PHI         445        434     5
Sexson, Richie    SEA   Rodriguez, Eddy      BAL         422        433    23
Markakis, Nick    BAL   Mateo, Julio         SEA         406        420     4
Young, Dmitri     DET   Meadows, Brian       TB          417        416     4
Cruz, Nelson      TEX   Eyre, Scott          MIN         416        410     1
Monroe, Craig     DET   Meadows, Brian       TB          409        409    15
Pena, Wily Mo     BOS   Byrd, Paul           CLE         436        408     5
Johjima, Kenji    SEA   Rodriguez, Eddy      BAL         398        408    12
Atkins, Garrett   COL   Capuano, Chris       MIL         444        407    15
Ortiz, David      BOS   Carmona, Fausto      CLE         433        406    37
Uggla, Dan        FLA   White, Rick          PHI         427        403    16
Ramirez, Aramis   CHC   Webb, Brandon        ARI         438        398    24
Cintron, Alex     CWS   Hernandez, Runelvys  KC          444        397     3
Coste, Chris      PHI   Johnson, Josh        FLA         402        397     3
Rabe, Josh        MIN   Rheinecker, John     TEX         399        394     2
Dye, Jermaine     CWS   Hernandez, Runelvys  KC          450        393    29
Hunter, Torii     MIN   Benoit, Joaquin      TEX         396        392    15
Mora, Melvin      BAL   Meche, Gil           SEA         380        390    12
Hollins, Damon    TB    Rogers, Kenny        DET         387        386    12
Ramirez, Manny    BOS   Byrd, Paul           CLE         441        384    29
Roberts, Brian    BAL   Meche, Gil           SEA         378        382     3
Tracy, Chad       ARI   Prior, Mark          CHC         428        381    15
Rivera, Juan      LAA   Haren, Dan           OAK         408        380    17
Crede, Joe        CWS   Hernandez, Runelvys  KC          422        376    22
Payton, Jay       OAK   Santana, Ervin       LAA         408        375     7
Olivo, Miguel     FLA   Lieber, Jon          PHI         385        375    12
Cabrera, Miguel   FLA   Lieber, Jon          PHI         382        372    16
Ortiz, David      BOS   Byrd, Paul           CLE         398        368    36
Holliday, Matt    COL   Capuano, Chris       MIL         375        367    20
Lee, Travis       TB    Rogers, Kenny        DET         367        366     8
Drew, Stephen     ARI   Rusch, Glendon       CHC         405        363     1
Bradley, Milton   OAK   Santana, Ervin       LAA         392        363     7
Hudson, Orlando   ARI   Prior, Mark          CHC         404        354    10
Green, Shawn      ARI   Prior, Mark          CHC         386        352    10
Teixeira, Mark    TEX   Silva, Carlos        MIN         343        339    15
Blake, Casey      CLE   Wells, David         BOS         365        335    14
Blake, Casey      CLE   Wells, David         BOS         360        328    13
Byrnes, Eric      ARI   Rusch, Glendon       CHC          NA         NA    15
Hudson, Orlando   ARI   Rusch, Glendon       CHC          NA         NA    11

Top Minor League Games

The following list, provided by First Inning, includes the top minor league batting (based on Runs Created) and pitching (based on Game Score) performances from yesterday.

ORG LVL PLAYER            POS AB  H 2B 3B HR BB SO  Notes
BAL A+  Arturo Rivas       CF  4  3  1  0  1  0  1  .515 OBP during past week
CHW A   Javier Castillo    SS  4  3  0  0  1  1  0   
LA  AA  Craig Brazell      1B  3  3  1  0  1  1  0  3 runs scored
LA  AAA Matt Kemp          CF  4  4  0  1  0  0  0  Hitting .545 over last 22 at bats
SEA AA  Jason Bourgeois    LF  6  5  2  0  0  0  0   
STL AA  Travis Hanson      3B  5  4  1  0  1  0  0   
TB  A+  Josh Arhart         C  4  3  1  0  1  0  0   
TB  A   Jackson Brennan    CF  2  2  1  0  1  2  0   
TOR A   L. Hetherington    LF  3  2  0  0  2  0  1   
 
ORG LVL PLAYER             IP   H  R ER SO BB HR  Notes
ARI AA  Ross Ohlendorf     7.0  5  4  4 11  1  2   
BAL AAA Brian Burres       6.1  5  1  1  5  3  1   
CHC A+  Donald Veal        6.0  5  1  1  6  3  0  40 K over last 34 IP
CHW AA  Lance Broadway     7.0  7  1  1  7  0  0  0.99 ERA over past month
KC  AAA Adam Bernero       7.0  4  2  1  1  3  1   
LA  AAA Hong-Chih Kuo      5.0  5  0  0  5  1  0   
LA  AA  Spike Lundberg     7.0  5  1  1  6  2  0   
NYM A+  Brian Bannister    7.0  4  0  0  8  0  0   
PHI AAA Eude Brito         7.0  4  1  1  5  2  0   

Player News

Player news items are provided by CBS SportsLine.com.

A Hardball Times Update
Goodbye for now.

Legendary right-hander Greg Maddux is leaving the Cubs after all: He’s headed to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who acquired him seconds before the trade deadline Monday for shortstop Cesar Izturis.

Tampa Bay traded Julio Lugo to the L.A. Dodgers for prospects Joel Guzman and Sergio Pedroza Monday. The Devil Rays assigned Guzman to Triple-A Durham of the IL and Pedroza to Class A Visalia of the California League. The Devil Rays also called up INF B.J. Upton from Durham and will recall Benjamin Zobrist from Triple-A Durham to start at shortstop for Tuesday’s game against the Tigers.

The New York Mets have sent outfielder Xavier Nady to Pittsburgh for starting pitcher Oliver Perez and reliever Roberto Hernandez. The 24-year-old Perez has fallen off after a big season in 2004. The left-hander went 2-10 with a 6.63 ERA in 15 starts for Pittsburgh this season before being optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on June 29. In six minor league starts, he was 1-3 with a 5.63 ERA.

Duaner Sanchez has a separated pitching shoulder from a car accident Sunday. The injury appears to be bad enough to keep him sidelined for the year. It was reported that he could be out for at least a month. Sanchez has been a key member of New York’s outstanding bullpen, going 5-1 with a 2.60 ERA in 49 games. He was acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers last offseason.

Omar Minaya said Lastings Milledge will be called up Tuesday. Xavier Nady’s departure leaves an everyday hole in right field.

The Tigers acquired first baseman Sean Casey from the Pirates on Monday in exchange for minor-league pitcher Brian Rogers. Casey, a career .304 hitter, gives the AL Central-leading Tigers the left-handed-hitting presence they have lacked as they head toward a playoff berth. Rogers is a Class A reliever who was not one of the Tigers’ top 30 prospects to begin the season. Rogers was an 11th-round pick in 2003. To make room for Casey, Detroit optioned the contract of first baseman Chris Shelton to Triple-A Toledo.

The Rangers received right-hander Kip Wells from the Pirates for minor-league pitcher Jesse Chavez, who was 2-5 with a 4.42 ERA in 38 games at Double-A Frisco before pitching once for Triple-A Oklahoma. The 29-year-old Wells was 1-5 with a 6.69 ERA in seven startsthis season for Pittsburgh after starting the season on the DL after March surgery to repair a blood clot in his right arm. John Rheinecker could be on the outs in the Rangers’ rotation.

The Rockies have acquired left-hander Jeremy Affeldt and right-hander Denny Bautista from the Royals for infielder Ryan Shealy and right-hander Scott Dohmann.

The Padres acquired Todd Walker from the Cubs on Monday to help out at third base. Mark Bellhorn is still expected to get playing time at third base for the Padres and Geoff Blum will return to a utility role. “Yeah, he’s going to get playing time at third,” manager Bruce Bochy. Walker can also spell rookie Josh Barfield at second base and come off the bench.

Atlanta dealt struggling pitcher Jorge Sosa to St. Louis for right-hander Rich Scalamandre. Sosa couldn’t hold jobs as a starter, closer or setup man this season. He blew three of six save opportunities in his brief stint as a closer. Sosa was 3-10 with a 5.46 ERA overall, a dramatic decline from his surprising success in 2005, when he was 13-3 with a 2.55 ERA.

The Reds added left-hander Rheal Cormier to their bullpen Monday, sending 23-year-old right-hander Justin Germano to Philadelphia. The Reds said Cormier had agreed to a one-year contract extension through 2007, with a club option for 2008. Germano, obtained from San Diego last year, was called up by the Reds to start Saturday night’s game at Milwaukee, taking the 6-3 loss before being optioned back to Triple-A Louisville.

The Rangers have acquired 1B/DH Matt Stairs from the Royals for minor league pitcher Joselo Diaz on Monday. Diaz started the season at Double-A Frisco and was 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in eight games before being promoted to Triple-A Oklahoma, where he had a 3.28 ERA with four saves in 28 games.

The Kansas City Royals made a number of roster moves. They placed Brandon Duckworth on the 15-day disabled list due to a strained left elbow, Doug Mientkiewicz (back) was placed on the 15-day disabled list due to his sore back, the Royals recalled Joel Peralta from Triple-A Omaha and they also activated Reggie Sanders (groin) from the 15-day disabled list.

The Orioles placed LHP Kurt Birkins on the 15-day DL, retroactive July 30 and recalled RHP Julio Manon from Triple-A Ottawa of the IL.

The Phillies recalled right-handed relief pitcher Brian Sanches from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to replace Rheal Cormier, while the Reds optioned outfielder Brandon Watson to Louisville.

The Nats, who won’t need a fifth starter again until Aug. 12, optioned Mike O’Connor to Triple-A New Orleans and called up RHP Ryan Wagner was from New Orleans for bullpen help.

Torii Hunter (foot) was activated from the 15-day disabled list on Monday. He was 3-for-5 with a home run (15) and four RBI (53) in Monday’s game at Texas. He also had three runs in the successful return.

Mark Prior allowed six earned runs, six hits and three walks in Monday’s game against the Diamondbacks, as he lost again and fell to 0-5. He also struck out five batters, as his ERA increased to 7.20. “I threw the ball good,” Prior said. “I did exactly what I wanted to do, make them hit it to the big part of the ballpark. Unfortunately the wind was howling out (Monday night) and I can’t do much about it.”

Chase Utley extended his hitting streak to 32 games Monday with a single in the sixth inning of the Phillies’ game against Florida, the second-longest streak in team history. Utley was 0-for-2 against starter Josh Johnson when he singled off the glove of diving second baseman Dan Uggla. Uggla smacked his hand against the grass and Utley extended the longest streak in the major leagues this season.

Rookie Josh Johnson allowed two runs in seven innings in the Marlins’ 15-2 victory over the Phillies on Monday, to take the NL lead in earned run average (2.52). Another rookie, Francisco Liriano, leads the AL and the majors with a 1.96 mark. This is the first time in major-league history that rookies lead both leagues in ERA at the end of July. (Source: Elias)

With Kenny Rogers allowing six runs in five innings to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays last night, that makes seven poor starts in his last eight. His ERA over that time is 7.85. He’s walking over 1 more per nine than in his previous 14 games and allowing about twice as many home runs. (Source: Baseball Musings)

1B Dan Johnson, sent down to the minors just after the All-Star break, hit a grand slam Saturday for Triple-A Sacramento and is batting .456 with 25 RBI in 14 games.

1B Nick Swisher, hitting .175 with 48 strikeouts over his last 38 games, dating back to June 14, didn’t start Sunday. Swisher has struggled to find his stroke and regain weight after coming down with mono and dropping 15 pounds.

3B Ty Wigginton hopes to be back in about four weeks after having his left hand broken by a pitch in Saturday’s game. Wigginton will be examined Monday by Rays orthopedist Koco Eaton. The normal recovery time is six weeks, but Wigginton insists he is a fast healer. A move to replace Wigginton will be announced Monday.

Howie Kendrick had a recent stretch of 17 hits in 34 at-bats. Kendrick, who was hitting just .115 when he was sent back to Triple-A Salt Lake in May, has been hot since being recalled for a second time, boosting his average to .333.

The New York Post reports that Gary Sheffield (wrist surgery) will probably return as the Yankees’ designated hitter, now that the team added Bobby Abreu to start in right field. “Gary has said his goal is to win a World Series with the Yankees and if this helps that happen, it’s good,” Sheffield’s lawyer, Rufus Williams said.

Ronny Cedeno is just 21-for-126 since June 15 but is 6-for-15 in his last four games, including a homer Sunday off Chris Carpenter. The reason? He’s using both of his eyes to scout the ball. Instead of rolling his eyes to pick up the pitch, he’s adjusted the angle of his head and it allows him to see the ball more clearly with both eyes.

Armando Benitez’s days as closer for the San Francisco Giants this season could be numbered. He has blown each of his last three save opportunities during the team’s seven-game losing streak, forcing San Francisco officials to decide whether another arm in the ninth inning might give the Giants a better chance to win.

Monthly home run stats from Hit Tracker:
April: 845 homers in 366 games = 2.31/game
May: 911 homers in 423 games = 2.15/game
June: 878 homers in 398 games = 2.21/game
July: 894 homers in 386 games = 2.32/game
Total Year: 3528 homers in 1573 games = 2.24/game

THT Stats

Access all of THT’s stats here…

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Dave Studeman was called a "national treasure" by Rob Neyer. Seriously. Follow his sporadic tweets @dastudes.

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