Category: MLB (Page 337 of 448)

– The Chicago Cubs couldn’t have pictured a worse start to the second half, dropping four of their last five games. Their latest defeat – a 9-2 drubbing at the hands of the Arizona Diamondbacks – allowed the Milwaukee Brewers to inch just one game out of first in the NL Central. All of a sudden the Cubs’ potent lineup has disappeared. Outside of a 9-0 win against Houston, the Cubs are averaging just one run a game.

– The Brewers are officially the hottest team in baseball, winners of six in a row after Bill Hall homered in the top of the ninth to give Milwaukee a 4-3 win over division rival St. Louis. The Brewers are now 7-3 in their last 10 games and sit just one game out of first in the NL Central.

– If the Brewers are the hottest team in baseball, the New York Yankees are by far the hottest team in the AL. With an 8-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday, the Yankees have won five in a row and have cut the deficit in the AL East down to 3.5 games. Bobby Abreu hit his 11th homer of the year and although he didn’t pick up the win, Darrell Rasner (5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 K) kept the game close until NY’s lineup produce three runs in the sixth and four more in the seventh to top the Twins.

– Dice-K improved to 11-1 on the season after pitching 7.1 strong innings in Boston’s 4-2 win over the Mariners. He fanned six and gave up just two runs on five hits while J.D. Drew continued his masterful season, homering in the first and driving in Jacoby Ellsbury on a sac fly in the fifth. The BoSox remain just a half game out of first in the AL East after the Rays lost to the A’s 8-1.

– The Florida Marlins are officially making a push in the NL East after shutting out the Atlanta Braves 4-0. Youngster Rick YanderHurk threw a one-hitter threw five innings and he also struck out seven in picking up his first win of the year. The Marlins and Mets trail the Phillies by only one game in the division.

– The Milwaukee Brewers have raced of the All-Star Break like a bat out of hell. After the Cardinals’ Skip Schumaker hit a sac fly to tie the game 3-3 and push it into extra innings, the Brewers scrapped across three runs in the top of the 10th to beat the Cardinals 6-3. Milwaukee has now won five straight and have inched within two games of the Cubs in the NL Central.

– Speaking of the Cubs, they continue to slide after losing 2-0 to the Diamondbacks. Rich Harden took the loss despite only giving up one run on one hit and striking out 10 over seven innings. Chicago gave its new starter zero run support as Randy Johnson shut down the Cubs over seven innings. The Big Unit struck out four and gave up just two hits and no runs.

– The Yankees have hit their second-half surge apparently. The Bronx Bombers have now won four in a row after crushing the Twins 12-4 thanks to a barrage of home runs. Alex Rodriguez (21), Derek Jeter (6) and Robinson Cano (8) each homered in the win, and Sidney Ponson improved to a stunning 6-1 on the year.

– The Yankees couldn’t make up any ground in the tight AL East, however, as both the Rays and the Red Sox each won. Tampa used another strong outing by ace Scott Kazmir and a home run by sensational rookie Evan Longoria (19) to beat the slumping A’s 4-0. Boston won by the same score, as Jon Lester shutout the Mariners 4-0 and Jason Varitek hit his eighth dinger of the year.

– The Los Angeles Angels won their fifth straight game Sunday, knocking off the Boston Red Sox 5-3 in a series sweep. The Halos once again had to rally in late innings, scoring three runs in the bottom of the eighth on doubles by Howie Kendrick and Casey Kotchman. The Angels now have a nine game lead over the Oakland A’s in the AL West.

– The Milwaukee Brewers won their fourth straight after defeating Tim Lincecum and the San Francisco Giants 7-4. Manny Parra gave up just two runs on seven hits over 7.2 innings, while also helping out his cause with the bat by singling home a run in the second. Ryan Braun also killed the Giants with his bat, knocking in five RBI on the day. The Brewers are now just three games back in the NL Central, after being six back at the start of the second half.

– The Chicago Cubs got back on track with a 9-0 victory over the Houston Astros. Ryan Dempster (8.0 IP, 0 R, 6 H, 7 K) got his first road win in two years and Mike Fontenot chipped in with his eighth homer of the year.

– Andy Pettite was once again lights out for the Yankees, striking out nine and giving up just one run on four hits over eight innings as New York beat the Oakland A’s 2-1. The Yankees have now chipped into Tampa Bay’s lead in the AL East and now sit 4.5 games out of first.