Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1354 of 1503)

Indians 2, Yankees 1
Cleveland took a commanding 2-0 series lead with a dominating pitching performance by youngster Fausto Carmona (9.0 IP, 3 hits, 1 run, 5 Ks) and some late inning heroics by Travis Hafner. With two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th inning, Hafner lined the game-winning single off Yankees reliever Luis Vizcaino. Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com writes Hafner finally delivered on some of his enormous potential…Of course, Hafner might not have had the chance to knock in the game winning run if swarms of bugs didn’t attack Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain in a weird moment in the bottom of the eighth inning. Chamberlain, who gave up the tying run in the eighth, was obviously distracted by the pesky insects, but neither him nor NY Post columnist Joel Sherman are making any excuses for why the Yankees are on the brink of elimination.

Red Sox 6, Angels 3
With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Angels decided to intentionally walk David Ortiz to get to Manny Ramirez. Bad idea – Manny hit a walk off three-run dinger to give the Sox a 6-3 victory and a 2-0 series lead. Bob Ryan of The Boston Globe writes that Ramirez’s ninth inning magic was just Manny being Manny…Bill Plaschke of The L.A. Times likens Ramirez’s dramatic home run to the Angels’ current mental state: crushed.

Who said the newbies wouldn’t complete? The postseason-starved Indians crushed the Yankees to take a 1-0 series lead, while the Diamondbacks and Rockies cruised to a 2-0 advantage in their respective match ups. Find recaps below.

Rockies 10, Phillies 5
Colorado used the long ball to beat Philadelphia in Game 2, getting two dingers from Matt Holiday and a grand slam from Kazuo Matsui, the first of his career. The Denver Post believes it’s the Rockies’ mojo that is willing them to victory…While Jim Salisbury of The Philadelphia Inquirer thinks the Phils were so content with stealing the NL East from the Mets that they’re just trying to sleepwalk past the Rockies.

Diamondbacks 8, Cubs 4
Chicago jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when youngster Geovany Soto homered in the second. But Arizona hammered Cubs starter Ted Lilly, collecting four runs in the second and two more in the fourth. Jason P. Skoda of The Arizona Republic gushed over Augie Ojeda’s penchant for being a thorn in the Cubs’ side…In Chicago, Sun Times columnist Jay Mariotti referred to this series as a choke-job by the Cubs, one the team has never seen before (really).

Indians 12, Yankees 3
Cleveland got a blast from the past as the postseason-savvy Kenny Loften went 3 for 4, with four RBI and a run scored. Thanks to a long postseason layoff and a huge Game 1 rout, the fans are pumped in Cleveland writes Plain Dealer reporter Grant Segall…In the Bronx, New York Post columnist Mike Puma criticizes Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui for letting Tribe pitcher C.C. Sabathia off the hook in a wild fifth inning.