Tag Archive: Arizona Diamondbacks


Ramirez’s 2 HRs helps Silva, Cubs beat D-backs

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July 7, 2010

PHOENIX (AP)—Maybe it’s the triple-digit heat outside or just the sputtering team they are facing. Something is finally warming up the bats of the Chicago Cubs.

Especially for Aramis Ramirez.
Ramirez homered twice, Carlos Silva earned his first victory in five starts and the Cubs beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-4 on Tuesday night to clinch their first road series in 1 1/2 months.

“Well. We’ve been waiting for Ramirez to heat up,” manager Lou Piniella said, “and today was a real nice day with the bat.”

Ramirez, hitting .178 going into the game, had his first two-home run game since Aug. 23, 2008. He has 22 multi-homer games in his career.

“It’s about time I start contributing to this team,” he said. “… I’ve never been that bad in my life. I don’t think I’m that kind of hitter. I think I’m a decent hitter. I’ve been good through the years. So hopefully I take this game and just take off.”

Kosuke Fukudome also homered in the air conditioned confines of Chase Field, where Cubs fans seemed to outnumber those rooting for the flailing home team.

The Cubs won their first road series since taking two of three at Texas May 21-23. They had lost five straight series overall. Chicago can complete just its second three-game sweep of the season with a win on Wednesday night.

The Cubs have won two in a row for the first time since June 16-17 at Oakland. That’s also the last time they won a series.

Silva (9-2) allowed two runs on four hits through six innings, then left with what has been a recurring problem with his right calf.

“It’s been like all year long, this problem with the leg,” he said. “I try to pitch through it. It’s kind of hard.”

The Cubs right-hander, who failed to make the All-Star team, began the season 8-0 but lost his next two and had no decision in his last two outings. Carlos Marmol struck out five in 1 2-3 innings for his 16th save in 19 opportunities.

Kelly Johnson drove in two runs with a home run and single for the Diamondbacks, who lost their fourth in a row to fall to 1-4 since A.J. Hinch was fired and replaced on an interim basis by Kirk Gibson. Justin Upton also had two hits for Arizona.

Ramirez hit a two-run homer off starter Barry Enright (1-1) in the sixth to put Chicago up 3-1 and another two-run shot off reliever Aaron Heilman to make it 6-2 in the eighth.

The Diamondbacks got two runs, one unearned, in the eighth to cut it to 6-4, but the Cubs brought on Marmol. That put the strikeout-prone Diamondbacks against the best strikeout reliever in the game. Marmol now has 77 strikeouts in 40 2-3 innings.

Silva had not won since a 6-1 victory at Pittsburgh on June 7, even though he had allowed two runs in three of his last four starts and only three in the other.

Enright, in his second big-league start, blanked the Cubs through five innings but gave up a solo homer to Fukudome and a two-run shot to Ramirez as Chicago went up 3-1 in the sixth.

“I was kind of throwing strikes around the plate and they were pretty comfortable with me,” Enright said. “That was different then the first outing. That third time through the lineup they started hitting the first pitch, first pitch fastballs. Balls that were more up as I got more tired during the game.”

Fukudome, who struck out three times, knocked a 2-1 pitch over the porch in center field to tie it 1-1 leading off the sixth. Four batters later, Ramirez hit his first two-run shot and it was 3-1.

It could have been more. After Fukudome’s homer, Theriot lined one past Chris Young in right-center and tried for a triple. But left fielder Gerardo Parra threw to shortstop Stephen Drew. Drew’s perfect throw got to third just ahead of Theroit, who went head first into the base and was tagged out by Mark Reynolds.

“I’m going to make them make two perfect throws and if they throw me out, they throw me out,” Theroit said. “Looking at the replays, Parra made a great throw in and then it was another great throw from third base.”

Notes: Chicago has 15 runs in its last two games, more than it has scored in consecutive contests since May 8, and that pair against Cincinnati included a 14-2 victory. … The Diamondbacks have struck out 50 times in the last the four games. … The only other three-game sweep for the Cubs this season was at home against Milwaukee April 13-15. … Johnson has hit safely in 17 of his last 18 games. … Theroit had his 25th multi-hit game of the season.

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Cubs overcome 9 walks to beat Diamondbacks 9-4

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July 6, 2010

PHOENIX (AP)—Shortly after pulling off a pair of early-game escapes, Tom Gorzelanny half-jokingly told manager Lou Piniella he had just walked more in one game than Seattle’s Cliff Lee had all season.

He was close. Gorzelanny actually matched Lee’s total with six in five innings.
Not that it mattered. The way he was pulling off escapes and the rest of Chicago’s pitchers were making hitters miss, the walks could be tolerated.

Gorzelanny got out of one jam in the first inning, a bigger one in the third and the Cubs struck out 12 in a 9-4 win over the still-struggling Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday.

“You get where you put yourself in bad situations and you have to find a way to get out of it,” Gorzelanny said after his first win since May 19. “Today, I was just good enough to work my way out.”

Chicago gave Gorzelanny some rare support early, roughing up Ian Kennedy (3-7) for four runs the first two innings. Kosuke Fukudome led off the game with a homer, Starlin Castro and Geovany Soto drove in two runs each from the bottom of the order, and Alfonso Soriano capped it with his 800th career RBI with a solo shot in the eighth.

Those nine walks? Unseemly, but the Cubs were able to work around it. For a team that’s won just six times in 17 games, they’ll take a W any way they can get it.

“It was a good game for us,” Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. “Offensively, we put some runs on the board, we hit the ball with some power, we hit with men on base. Good to see. As far as our pitching was concerned, outside of walking quite a few people, we did a nice job.”

The Diamondbacks had been swinging and missing a lot this season, with 100 more strikeouts than the next closest team in the majors, including 28 combined in a pair of losses to the Dodgers over the weekend.

Chicago was fourth in the majors with 634 strikeouts, so there figured to be a lot of flailing.

There was. Arizona whiffed at least a dozen times for the third straight game, including eight of the last nine outs to push its season total to 773.

What hurt the Diamondbacks more was the inability to capitalize on the walks. Arizona was 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position and got one run on two bases-loaded chances in the first three innings to lose its third straight under interim manager Kirk Gibson after winning in his debut.

“For me, the most frustrating part is I want the guys to feel the success for the work they have put in, but the game just doesn’t do that sometimes,” Gibson said. “That is kind of the way things have been going around here now, but we are identifying that area that we need to make an adjustment.”

Gorzelanny did the best escape work, pitching out of walk-induced jams in the first and third innings.

The left-hander got out of a bases-loaded spot in the first by striking out LaRoche after a pair of two-out walks. In the third, Gorzelanny walked the bases loaded with no outs, but allowed just one run on Miguel Montero’s sacrifice fly.

Gorzelanny gave up a leadoff homer to LaRoche in the fourth inning and Johnson made it 5-3 with an RBI triple in the fifth. That was it, though. Gorzelanny was done the next inning, lifted for a pinch hitter after allowing three runs on five hits.

“Today, I should have gone out there a little bit better,” Gorzelanny said. “I was just trying to do too much. It was one of those days where I was kind of battling everything.”

Kennedy knows how hard it can be to work around walks. He set a team record with nine in his last outing, a 5-3 loss to Tampa Bay on June 26.

The right-hander rediscovered the strike zone against the Cubs, walking none in 5 2-3 innings. He just couldn’t miss their bats.

Fukudome started it off, breaking a 1 for 10 slump on Kennedy’s fourth pitch, launching it into the balcony in center for his seventh homer of the season.

Castro followed two leadoff singles in the second inning with a two-run triple off the wall in center, and Soto made it 4-0 with a run-scoring double hit even harder to nearly the same spot.

First-time All Star Marlon Byrd knocked in a run on a groundout in the fifth, then two more came across in the sixth on Soto’s RBI double and a run-scoring single by pinch hitter Mike Fontenot. That put the Cubs up 7-4 and chased Kennedy, who allowed seven runs on nine hits to push his winless streak to eight starts.

“I’m pretty sure that every time I went behind, fell behind they either got on either by a single or extra-base hit,” Kennedy said. “It is frustrating because you can’t do that and I know that, but it got me today.”

NOTES: Fukudome’s homer was Chicago’s first to lead off a game this season. … Arizona LF Cole Gillespie made a spectacular catch in the fourth inning, diving toward the wall on a ball hit by Aramis Ramirez that went over his head.

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Diamondbacks fire manager Hinch, GM Byrnes

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July 2, 2010

PHOENIX (AP)—The Arizona Diamondbacks fired manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Josh Byrnes on Thursday night in a shakeup at the top of a team cemented in last place in the NL West for the second year in a row.

Diamondbacks bench coach and ex-major league slugger Kirk Gibson will take over as interim manager for a ballclub that was 31-48, 15 games back of San Diego.

Team president Derrick Hall called the dismissals “a first and major step in the re-evaluation of our team.”

The 35-year-old Hinch was promoted May 7, 2009. Despite having no managerial experience at any level, he was moved from the front office to manager following the firing of Bob Melvin. Hinch has two years remaining on his contract after this season.
Hinch is the fourth manager to lose his job this season. Florida’s Fredi Gonzalez, Baltimore’s Dave Trembley and Kansas City’s Trey Hillman have also been fired.

Byrnes, once considered a rising star among young baseball executives, has a whopping 5 1/2 years left on a deal that runs through 2015.

Former major league pitcher Jerry DiPoto, vice president for player development, will take over the GM duties on an interim basis.

In a statement issued Thursday night, Arizona managing partner Ken Kendrick called the firings “a significant decision, but one that we find necessary in order to achieve a direction of winning consistently on the field again.”

The team scheduled a Friday news conference to discuss the move.

Gibson’s name is as recognizable as Hinch’s was obscure, as much as anything for one of baseball’s most dramatic home runs.

He hit .268 with 255 home runs, 870 RBIs and 284 stolen bases in 17 seasons as a major league outfielder with Detroit, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City and Pittsburgh.

He was the Dodgers’ team leader and NL MVP in the 1988 regular season, but injuries to both legs kept him on the bench when the World Series against Oakland began.

In Game 1, barely able to walk, Gibson came to the plate as a pinch hitter in the ninth and hit Dennis Eckersley’s 0-2 pitch into the right field seats of Dodger Stadium to give Los Angeles a 5-4 victory. He limped around the bases, pumping his fist in triumph, as broadcaster Jack Buck uttered his famous “I don’t believe what I just saw!”

Gibson was the Tigers’ bench coach from 2003-2005 and joined Melvin’s staff in the same capacity in 2007.

Byrnes was in his fifth season as general manager after being lured from the Boston Red Sox, where he was assistant to GM Theo Epstein. After the young Diamondbacks finished with the NL’s best record and made it to the NLCS in 2007, Arizona gave him an eight-year extension.

Hinch, who has a degree from Stanford, was vice president for player personnel when he was moved to the manager’s role, even though he had never even been a coach before. At the time, Byrnes touted Hinch’s “organizational advocacy.”

The team stumbled on to a last-place finish in the NL West (70-92), but Hinch confidently said “I like this team” coming out of spring training this year. Quickly, though, the Diamondbacks faded. At one time, they lost 10 in a row, including a franchise-worst 0-9 road trip. When the club returned from that awful journey, Hinch acknowledged, “This group hasn’t responded that well to me.”

Hinch had an 89-123 record in not quite 14 months as Arizona’s fifth manager.

DiPoto had a 27-24 record with 49 saves and a 4.05 ERA in 390 major league appearances in eight seasons with Cleveland, the New York Mets and Colorado. He worked for the Red Sox scouting department for two years before becoming Colorado’s player personnel director in 2005. He joined the Diamondbacks when Byrnes became general manager in 2006 and was in his second season and vice president/player personnel.

The Diamondbacks open a 10-game home stand Friday night with the first of a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The team is on pace to shatter the major league record for strikeouts in the season and its bullpen statistically is one of the worst the game has known.

“We have a number of talented players, obviously see great room for improvement,” Kendrick said. “This franchise has enjoyed tremendous success over the years and we want to get back to our winning ways. The loyal staff of this organization, as well as all of our fans, hopes for and deserves better results on the field.”

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Pujols’ bat helps Cardinals whip Arizona 8-0

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July 1, 2010

ST. LOUIS (AP)—Albert Pujols matched Stan Musial to reach another milestone. Still, the Cardinals current star is less than thrilled with his season so far.

Pujols recorded his 37th career multihomer game with a pair of two-run shots, tying the Hall of Famer who’s honored with two statues outside Busch Stadium in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 8-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night.

“It’s pretty special,” said Pujols, who had a season-best five RBIs. “I’m blessed to have the opportunity to be compared sometimes with him.”

Dontrelle Willis (1-1) had another wild outing for the Diamondbacks, walking six, hitting a batter and getting lucky on a really wild pitch thrown behind a batter that caromed back to catcher Miguel Montero for a tag play at the plate in the fourth. The Cardinals had 14 baserunners in 23 at-bats against the 28-year-old lefty, who retired none of four batters to start the fifth and has walked 13 in 7 1-3 innings his last two starts.

“It’s been tough, because I feel like I’ve been one pitch away from getting out of some jams,” Willis said. “It’s almost like I feel I’d rather give up 12 runs and get out early than be in battling.

“But that’s the beauty of it, you have to battle and kind of make your own breaks.”

Adam Wainwright (11-5) handcuffed the Diamondbacks into the seventh for his major league-record 23rd consecutive quality start at home, four more than any other pitcher in history, and improved to 8-0 with a 1.49 ERA at home. Wainwright, who scored the winning run on a throwing error on Monday, rebounded smartly from a season-low four-inning outing in his last start, and added an RBI single and two walks off Willis.

“Really, I just tried to go out there and not let my last outing affect me,” Wainwright said. “Just go out and pitch a good quality game and do what I do, throw strikes, get ahead in the count and put them away with my stuff.”

Pujols hasn’t matched his start from last season, when he had 32 homers and 87 RBIs at the All-Star break. He had eight extra-base hits in June until Tuesday. But he’s tied for the NL lead with 18 homers after getting three the last three games, and among the leaders with 57 RBIs and a .312 average. His four multihomer games ties for the major’s most.

“I can say I’m not happy with the way things have gone this season,” Pujols said. “But at the same time, if you look at it, it’s kind of being greedy if you look at my numbers.”

Felipe Lopez had four hits to match his career best and scored three times. Matt Holliday had two hits and two walks, although he missed out on a two-double game when he was tagged out after oversliding second in the third.

Willis’ wildness didn’t cost him early, with the Cardinals leaving the bases loaded and stranding two in the second. Lopez got a leadoff single ahead of both of Pujols two-run homers, the first on a drive over the visitors’ bullpen in left-center in the third and the second to straightaway center in the fifth to make it 4-0.

“Good teams, they exploit your weaknesses, whether it’s keeping the line moving with some rallies when they put together a couple hits, or getting enough walks to where the lineup turns over,” Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch said. “It seems like every time (Willis) got into a jam he was going go through that little pocket of Lopez, Pujols and Holliday.”

The Diamondbacks have lost 18 of 21 on the road and Arizona pitchers have given up 44 homers in the last 39 games.

NOTES: The Cardinals are the first team since the 1974 Pirates to have two pitchers score in the same inning, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Jaime Garcia scored the tying run and Wainwright slid home with the winning run in a three-run ninth Monday. Ken Brett and Dock Ellis were the Pirates pitchers. … Wainwright worked 6 1-3 innings and was taken out in mid-inning for the first time in 27 starts dating to Aug. 8 at Pittsburgh, when he went 6 2-3 innings. … Diamondbacks SS Stephen Drew missed his fourth start in five games with a sore left knee. … Willis has 56 walks in 65 2-3 innings overall this year with the Tigers and Diamondbacks.

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Jackson throws no-hitter for Arizona in 1-0 win

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June 28, 2010

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (AP)—Edwin Jackson overcame a wild start to throw the fourth no-hitter in the season of the pitcher, leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 1-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.

Jackson (5-6) threw a whopping 149 pitches—a major league high—and walked eight, all but one in the first three innings, in the second no-hitter in Diamondbacks’ history.

This is the third time the Rays have been no-hit since last July, including Dallas Braden’s perfect game at Oakland on May 9.
Colorado’s Ubaldo Jimenez no-hit Atlanta on April 17 and Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay tossed a perfect game at Florida on May 29. Armando Galarraga had his perfect game ended with two outs in the ninth on a blown call by umpire Jim Joyce.

Adam LaRoche homered off Jeff Niemann (6-2) with one out in the second, all the support Jackson would need.

Yankees 2, Dodgers 1
At Los Angeles, CC Sabathia won his fifth consecutive start with eight sharp innings, Alex Rodriguez homered in the sixth inning to snap a tie as the New York Yankees beat Joe Torre and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

It was Torre’s first time facing the Yankees since leaving as manager in 2007.

The American League East-leading Yankees won their third straight while sending the Dodgers to their 10th loss in 13 games, a slide that has plunged them from first to third in the National League West.

Sabathia (9-3) allowed four hits and one run, struck out seven and walked three. The Yankees’ defense helped him out, too, turning double plays in the third and fifth innings.

Mariano Rivera struck out the side in the ninth to earn his 17th save in 18 chances. Vicente Padilla (1-2) gave up two runs and six hits in seven innings, struck out seven and walked one.

Rockies 4, Angels 3, 11 innings
At Anaheim, California, Jonathan Herrera’s RBI single in the 11th inning lifted Colorado over Anaheim.

Carlos Gonzalez tied the game at 3 when he singled home Herrera in the eighth, ending a streak of 27 straight saves at home for Angels closer Fernando Rodney.

Matt Belisle (3-3) pitched 2 2-3 innings of scoreless relief and Manny Corpas earned his 10th save.

Chris Iannetta doubled with two outs against Francisco Rodriguez (0-1) and Melvin Mora walked before Herrera singled.

Bobby Abreu led off the bottom of the 11th with a single and stole second before Juan Rivera walked, but Mike Napoli hit into a fielder’s choice and Jeff Mathis grounded out.

Athletics 14, Pirates 4
At Oakland, Coco Crisp had three hits and Ben Sheets won for the first time in more than a month as Oakland beatup hapless Pittsburgh.

Crisp singled, doubled and tripled in his third game since coming off the disabled list earlier this week.

Coming off a three-game sweep by Cincinnati, the A’s had 17 hits and a season-high for runs.

Sheets (3-7), who signed a one-year, $10 million contract with the A’s in the offseason, scattered eight hits over six innings and had a season-high nine strikeouts to end his personal eight-game losing streak.

Brad Lincoln (0-2) gave up five runs in six innings for the Pirates, who have lost 15 consecutive road games.

Giants 5, Red Sox 4
At San Francisco, Juan Uribe homered, Jonathan Sanchez won his second straight decision, and San Francisco rallied from an early three-run deficit to beat Boston.

Sanchez (6-5) appeared in for a long night after he allowed Kevin Youkilis’ three-run homer in the first inning, but he contributed an RBI infield single as San Francisco got three runs back in the second. Buster Posey had an RBI single that inning among his three hits.

The Red Sox lost Dustin Pedroia in the third after he fouled a ball off his left foot. The second baseman was examined by a trainer, but finished the plate appearance to draw a walk from Sanchez. Pedroia was then replaced by pinch-runner Mike Cameron.

Tim Wakefield (2-6) was solid but didn’t get enough support from his weary teammates. The Red Sox arrived in the Bay Area at 4 a.m. following a 13-11, 10-inning win at Colorado.

White Sox 6, Cubs 0
At Chicago, Jake Peavy allowed three hits over seven innings and Carlos Quentin hit his fourth homer in four games as the Chicago White Sox matched their longest winning streak in 34 years with a victory over the Chicago Cubs.

But all that was overshadowed by a confrontation between Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano and Derrek Lee in the visitor’s dugout following a four-run first inning.

Zambrano (3-6) screamed as he walked down the dugout steps past Lee and stormed toward the other end. Lee appeared to yell something, and as Zambrano headed back toward him, manager Lou Piniella, pitching coach Larry Rothschild, and bench coach Alan Trammell stepped between them.

Cubs catcher Geovany Soto grabbed the pitcher from behind and pulled him away. Zambrano appeared to say something to Piniella on his way to the clubhouse after being lifted for Tom Gorzelanny, who came out to pitch the second inning.

Astros 7, Rangers 4
At Arlington, Texas, Geoff Blum had the go-ahead RBI double to help Houston end Texas’ 11-game winning streak that was the longest in the major leagues this season.

Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton had three more hits to extend his career-best hitting streak to 19 games.

Blum had the third consecutive double for the Astros to start the sixth for a 4-3 lead and chase Colby Lewis (7-5), who pitched a two-hitter at Houston last weekend. Blum then scored when Texas made two errors on the same play.

Chris Johnson had four hits and drove in three runs for the Astros, while Lance Berkman ended an 18-game homerless drought with a 422-foot solo blast. Carlos Lee had three hits, including two doubles.

Royals 4, Cardinals 2
At Kansas City, Zack Greinke went eight-plus innings and Scott Podsednik started a three-run third inning as Kansas City beat St. Louis.

Greinke went into the ninth looking for the franchise’s first consecutive shutouts in almost 18 years. But Felipe Lopez’s sacrifice fly off Joakim Soria drove in Ryan Ludwick, who reached on catcher’s interference leading off the inning. David Freese added an RBI single.

Greinke (3-8), twice pitched out of late-inning jams and gave up seven hits and two runs, one earned. He walked two and struck out six. Soria picked up his 18th save in 20 opportunities.

Brewers 8, Mariners 3
At Milwaukee, rookie catcher Jonathan Lucroy hit his first major league home run to lead Milwaukee over Seattle.

Dave Bush (3-5), whose last turn in the rotation was skipped, pitched six innings. He gave up three runs on seven hits. Carlos Villanueva, Kameron Loe and Trevor Hoffman each pitched a scoreless inning in relief.

The Mariner’s Ryan Rowland-Smith (1-7) gave up five runs on five hits in 5 1-3 innings.

Rowland-Smith retired nine of the first 10 batters, but Corey Hart led off the fourth with a single and Ryan Braun singled before Lucroy’s three-run shot. Carlos Gomez followed with a solo homer.

Alcides Escobar’s sacrifice fly in the sixth inning and Prince Fielder RBI double in the seventh upped the Brewers lead to 6-3. Gomez singled and Escobar hit another sacrifice to add two more runs in the eighth.

Orioles 7, Nationals 6
At Baltimore, pinch-runner Jake Fox scored the winning run in the ninth inning on a throwing error by Cristian Guzman as Baltimore rallied from a six-run deficit to beat Washington.

The Orioles trailed 6-0 in the fifth inning and 6-3 in the eighth before coming back. Baltimore took full advantage of Washington’s season-high four errors—none more damaging than the last.

Matt Wieters drew a one-out walk from Tyler Clippard (8-4) in the ninth and moved to second on a single by Scott Moore. Fox then ran for Wieters, and Matt Capps entered to face Julio Lugo.

Alfredo Simon (2-1) worked the ninth for the Orioles, who have won two straight for the first time since mid-May.

Braves 3, Tigers 1
At Atlanta, Billy Wagner earned his 400th career save and Brian McCann’s fourth-inning homer helped Atlanta down Detroit.

McCann’s 100th career homer was one of the few mistakes made by Rookie Andy Oliver (0-1) in his major league debut. The left-hander gave up five hits and two runs in six innings.

Brooks Conrad added an eighth-inning homer off Eddie Bonine.

Kris Medlen (5-1), possibly pitching to protect his spot in the Braves’ rotation, gave up six hits and one run in 6 2-3 innings.

Wagner struck out the side in the ninth for his 15th save this season. Wagner is fifth on the career list and second among left-handers behind John Franco who has 424 saves.

Phillies 9, Blue Jays 0
At Philadelphia, Roy Halladay pitched seven scoreless innings in his first start against his former team as Philadelphia routed Toronto.

The series was moved from Toronto to Philadelphia because of the G20 Summit. But the Blue Jays wore white and batted second.

Halladay (9-6) allowed six hits and struck out four to snap a personal three-game losing streak. Jose Contreras and David Herndon finished the seven-hitter.

Ross Gload tied a career-high with four RBIs and Shane Victorino homered, helping the Phillies win their fourth straight.

Blue Jays starter Jesse Litsch (0-2) allowed six runs and seven hits in four-plus innings. The right-hander made his second start since having Tommy John surgery last June.=

Reds 10, Indians 3
At Cincinnati, Drew Stubbs drove in four runs with a homer and a single as Cincinnati sent Cleveland to its sixth straight loss.

The Reds wore green caps as part of an Irish Heritage Night promotion, bringing a new hue to the intrastate rivalry—one that’s been one-sided lately. Cincinnati is 12-4 in the series over the last three seasons.

Aaron Harang (6-7) gave up eight hits in seven innings, getting his first victory in three starts. Cincinnati had been shut out in his last two starts.

This time around, Stubbs hit a two-run homer in the second off Aaron Laffey (0-2), and added a two-run single in the fifth that made it 8-2.

Scott Rolen also homered for the Reds, who lead the National League in batting average and hits. Jay Bruce doubled twice, scored three times and had a sacrifice fly.

Mets 5, Twins 2
At New York, David Wright homered and drove in two runs to back a solid start by Mike Pelfrey as New York beat slumping Minnesota.

Jason Bay added a long RBI double and the Mets took advantage of two rare defensive miscues by the Twins to win for the 15th time in 19 games. Jose Reyes drove in a run and scored another as New York improved to 27-11 at home with its 13th victory in the past 15 games at Citi Field.

The Mets, who began the day a half-game behind first-place Atlanta in the NL East, are a major league-best 22-8 since May 22. The Twins, who entered with a half-game lead in the AL Central over Detroit, have lost four straight and six of eight.

Pelfrey (10-2) gave up a leadoff homer to Denard Span on his second pitch and little else. Francisco Rodriguez pitched the ninth for his 17th save in 20 chances.

National League

Padres 3, Marlins 0
At Miami, Will Venable’s two-run home run in the seventh inning broke a scoreless tie, Clayton Richard gave up five hits in six efficient innings as the San Diego Padres spoiled Florida interim manager Edwin Rodriguez’s home debut by beating the Marlins.

Venable and Chase Headley each had two hits for the Padres, who have won four of their last five. Richard (5-4) won for the first time in his last six starts, although he has a 2.77 ERA during that stretch.

Hanley Ramirez had three hits for Florida, raising his average to .299. The rest of the Marlins went 4 for 27, with Ronny Paulino getting two of those hits.

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Dbacks promote OF Gillespie, send down INF Roberts

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June 26, 2010

PHOENIX (AP)—The Arizona Diamondbacks recalled outfielder Cole Gillespie from Triple-A Reno on Monday and sent infielder Ryan Roberts to the minor league team.

The 26-year-old Gillespie was recalled from Reno on April 21 and hit .256 with one home run, five doubles and four RBIs in 17 games. He was optioned back to the Aces on May 19.

The 29-year-old Roberts was recalled from Reno on May 25 and hit .176 with three RBIs in 12 games for the Diamondbacks.

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Arizona (27-42) at Detroit (37-30)

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June 26, 2010

The Arizona Diamondbacks haven’t won a series on the road in nearly nine weeks. They’ll get a chance Sunday afternoon against the Detroit Tigers.

Facing right-hander Max Scherzer for the first time since dealing him to Detroit in the offseason, Arizona will look to end its trip with back-to-back wins.
With former Tiger Edwin Jackson giving them 7 2/3 strong innings, the Diamondbacks (27-42) won 6-5 on Saturday to snap a four-game slide and a franchise-record 14-game road losing streak. It was also the Tigers’ first loss in eight games.

“It has been a long time since we’ve won a game in gray uniforms,” Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch said following his team’s first road win since May 17. “We really needed this.”

Arizona, which is 10-26 on the road, hasn’t won a series away from Chase Field since May 3-6 against Houston.

Scherzer (3-6, 6.14 ERA) will try to prevent his former teammates from accomplishing that goal. Scherzer was 9-15 with a 3.99 ERA in 37 starts for Arizona over the last two seasons before being traded to the Tigers in the seven-player deal that sent Jackson to the Diamondbacks.

Scherzer had a rough start with Detroit – going 1-4 with a 7.29 and getting sent to Triple-A Toledo – but he is 2-2 with a 4.13 ERA since being called up May 30.

Scherzer will try to win consecutive starts for the first time this season as the Tigers (37-30) look to rebound from a difficult night at the plate. Detroit was 3 for 17 with runners in scoring position Saturday, plating just one run in the first inning when they had the bases loaded with no outs.

“Everyone will want to talk about (having the tying run at second base with Miguel Cabrera up in) the ninth, but it was the first inning that really hurt us,” said manager Jim Leyland.

The Diamondbacks will counter with Ian Kennedy (3-4, 3.57), who was acquired from the New York Yankees in the three-team deal that brought Scherzer to Detroit.

Kennedy, who matched career highs with six runs and nine hits allowed in Tuesday’s 6-3 loss at Boston, is looking forward to bouncing back from that outing and pitching opposite of Scherzer, his teammate on Team USA during the summer of 2005.

“It’s fun to compete against your friends,” Kennedy told the Diamondbacks’ official website. “I haven’t seen him in forever. …Once I’m out there and he’s out there, it’s just like anything else. It would be different if we were playing at our park because we would have to hit against each other.”

Kennedy might have preferred that the game was in Arizona. He is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in his last four road starts, allowing four homers and walking 10 during this stretch.

Kennedy has no record with a 7.71 ERA in one career start versus Detroit.

Tigers right fielder Magglio Ordonez, who is 2 for 3 lifetime against Kennedy, is batting .462 with two homers and 13 RBIs during a nine-game hitting streak.

Diamondbacks third baseman Mark Reynolds made a pair of errors Saturday, but went 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the second inning to snap an 0-for-15 slide.

Arizona’s Miguel Montero has homered in two straight games and is batting .360 since being removed from the disabled list June 12.

Detroit is 24-11 at Comerica Park and 7-1 on a homestand that ends Sunday

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Diamondbacks recall newly acquired reliever Demel

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June 26, 2010

PHOENIX (AP)—The Arizona Diamondbacks recalled newly acquired relief pitcher Sam Demel from Triple-A Reno on Wednesday and optioned right-hander Cesar Valdez to the minors.

The 24-year-old Demel was obtained Tuesday from Oakland in a trade for outfielder Conor Jackson. Demel was expected to join the Diamondbacks in Boston.

Demel had a 2-0 record and 1.26 ERA with six saves and 28 strikeouts in 22 relief appearances for Triple-A Sacramento this season.

The 25-year-old Valdez had a 7.65 ERA with 10 walks and 13 strikeouts in nine games for Arizona, including two starts.

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Lester strong, Pedroia, Youkilis homer for Boston

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June 25, 2010

BOSTON (AP)—Mired in a slump, Dustin Pedroia had an MRI on his right knee to see if that might be causing his problem.

The test was negative.
The results were positive.

“I think when he had his knee checked out, that was good for him. He knew he wasn’t hurting himself,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said after Pedroia homered to help Boston beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-2 on Wednesday night. “He’s just a good player. You wind him up, and let him go play. He’ll produce.”

Kevin Youkilis also homered, and Jon Lester (8-2) scattered four hits over seven innings to earn his eighth straight victory and send the Diamondbacks to a franchise-record 12th straight road loss.

Rodrigo Lopez (2-6) lost his fourth straight decision, giving up Marco Scutaro’s single to lead off the Red Sox first before Pedroia hit a line drive over the Green Monster for his ninth homer of the season. Pedroia also singled and scored in the third inning—his fifth multi-hit night in his last six games.

“I’ve hit my whole life,” he said. “It’s not going to stop.”

Pedroia began slumping in mid-May, though, and his average dropped from .305 to .248. He said last Thursday that his knee had been bothering him, and he had an MRI.

The test didn’t show any damage, and the news gave Pedroia the confidence to return to his all-out style of play.

“I’m feeling better. That’s the biggest thing,” he said. “It definitely helped me.”

Lester gave up Justin Upton’s two-run homer in the second inning and then just two more singles. He struck out seven—giving him a share of the AL lead for strikeouts with 96—but also walked three and hit two batters.

“It’s kind of night and day from inning to inning and batter to batter sometimes,” he said. “Obviously, your objective is to win the game and we did that tonight. But there are still things that need to be refined.”

After Ramon Ramirez put two men on in the ninth, Jonathan Papelbon got the last out for his 15th save.

Lopez allowed six runs, 10 hits and two walks in seven innings and struck out three. Sam Demel, acquired Tuesday in a trade with Oakland, made his major league debut in relief and pitched a perfect eighth.

The Diamondbacks haven’t won on the road since May 17—a full month.

“Anytime you lose a game, it’s tough,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “We certainly haven’t won a game in our gray uniforms in a long time.”

The Fenway Park crowd broke into the now-obligatory chant of “Beat L.A.!” in support of the Celtics, who will play Game 7 of the NBA finals against the Lakers on Thursday night. More surprising was the sound of a vuvuzela—one of the buzzing horns made famous from the World Cup—coming from the stands.

The Red Sox scored two in the third, but Chris Young avoided more damage when he leaped against the center field wall to take an extra-base hit away from Victor Martinez. Young came down with his hat crooked, and apparently in a bit of pain, but he stayed in the game.

The next batter, J.D. Drew, hit a line drive to Young’s right, but he couldn’t get to it and played it off the Green Monster. Pedroia scored, then David Ortiz scored on Adrian Beltre’s infield hit to make it 4-2.

Youkilis added a two-run homer in the seventh. It was his 13th homer.

Lester is 8-0 with a 2.01 ERA in 11 starts since opening the season 0-2.

NOTES: The Red Sox announced that LHP Felix Dubront will start on Friday in place of Daisuke Matsuzaka, who is on the disabled list with a forearm strain. … The Red Sox signed 10 draft choices, including first-round selection INF Kolbrin Vitek and second pick OF Bryce Brentz. Both players were assigned to the Single-A Lowell Spinners. Also agreeing to terms with the club were right-handed pitchers Garrett Rau, Keith Couch and Michael Gleason; shortstops Nick Robinson and James Kang; outfielder Luke Yoder, catcher Jayson Hernandez and first baseman Trygg Larsson-Danforth. … Scutaro was back in the lineup at shortstop after he missed a game because of a sore neck.

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Arizona (26-40) at Boston (39-28)

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June 24, 2010

The Boston Red Sox moved up the start time of Thursday’s series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks to give fans the chance to watch the Game 7 of the NBA finals between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers.

While a championship isn’t on the line at Fenway Park, the Red Sox are hoping to be celebrating a sweep of the Diamondbacks as they try to gain ground in the AL East.
First pitch between Boston (39-28) and Arizona (26-40) was pushed up one hour in order to allow fans to watch the Celtics try to clinch their second NBA title in three years. Their game against the Lakers begins at 9 p.m. EST.

The Red Sox have given Boston fans plenty to cheer about recently. They’ve won four of five and 20 of 28, including a 6-2 victory over the Diamondbacks on Wednesday. It was the fifth time in six games they’ve scored at least six runs, and they are three games behind division co-leaders New York and Tampa Bay.

Dustin Pedroia continues to do his part to help Boston get back into contention, hitting a two-run homer in the first inning Wednesday. He finished with two hits for his fourth straight multihit game.

Pedroia’s average had dipped to .248 in part due to a knee injury, but his surge has come after an MRI on the knee came back negative. The second baseman is 12 for 24 with eight runs scored and six RBIs in his last six games, raising his average to .271.

“I think when he had his knee checked out, that was good for him. He knew he wasn’t hurting himself,” manager Terry Francona said. “He’s just a good player. You wind him up, and let him go play. He’ll produce.”

The Red Sox will try for their first sweep since winning three straight against Tampa Bay from May 24-26 as they hand the ball to John Lackey (7-3, 4.54 ERA), who has been outstanding in his last two starts.

Lackey has won his last three decisions and gave up two runs in seven innings of a 12-2 victory over the Phillies on Friday. The prolific run support came after Boston only scored two runs for him against Baltimore on June 6.

The right-hander made his first start against the Diamondbacks last year, giving up one unearned run in seven innings of a 2-1 win.

Lackey will try to extend the Diamondbacks’ franchise-record 12-game road losing streak. Arizona has scored two or fewer runs in eight of those defeats.

“Anytime you lose a game, it’s tough,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “We certainly haven’t won a game in our gray uniforms in a long time.”

Arizona will try to avoid the sweep behind Dan Haren (7-4, 4.61), who has won his last two starts.

He pitched eight innings against the Cardinals on Saturday, allowing two runs while striking out nine in a 7-2 win.

“There’s a handful of games every year where you’ve got everything working, where you’ve got all your pitches and feel good,” Haren said, “and this was one of them.”

The right-hander is 2-3 with a 2.65 ERA in six career starts against the Red Sox. He is 2-0 with a 1.25 ERA in the last three, but has not faced them since 2008.

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