Notables: BYOA (Bring Your Own Ace)
- Adam Wainwright improved to 15-6, after he pitched 7 innings of 1 run ball against the Pirates. He struck out 5, walked none, and allowed only 6 hits. His 2.19 ERA is second best in MLB, while his 147 strikeouts are 4th most in the NL.
- Francisco Liriano was nearly untouchable Sunday, against the Mariners. He struck out 11, walked 2, and allowed only 2 hits over 7 scoreless innings, in a win. Liriano has not allowed a run over his last 3 starts. His 155 strikeouts are 5th most in MLB.
- Jered Weaver won his 10th game, after he pitched 7 innings with 0 earned runs. He struck out 7, walked 3, and allowed 4 hits. He leads MLB in strikeouts with 162.
- Cliff Lee allowed 4 earned runs over 8 innings, in a complete game loss, opposite Weaver. He gave up 9 hits, had 4 strikeouts, and was pretty wild with his control as he allowed 2 walks. Lee is now up to 118 strikeouts to only 9 walks. Despite the 4 earned runs, Lee's 2.51 ERA still leads the AL, while his 0.92 WHIP leads all of baseball. He has now gone at least 8 innings in 14 of his 18 starts this season.
- James Shields struck out 11 Yankee batters, over 7.1 scoreless innings, in a win. He walked only 1 and allowed 4 hits. Shields has an 18/2 K/BB ratio over his last 2 games, but maybe more importantly, he's allowed zero homers over that stretch.
- CC Sabathia pitched 6.2 innings and allowed 3 earned runs, in a loss. He struck out 3, walked 3, and allowed 8 hits. Sabathia has now lost back-to-back games for the first time all season. He's got a 24/15 K/BB ratio over his last 5 games.
- Justin Verlander & Clay Buchholz both took no decisions, in their head-to-head match-up. Buchholz pitched 8 innings of shutout ball, before leaving in the 9th with 2 runners on and no outs. Jonathan Papelbon came in, but could not close things out. Buchholz ended the game with 5 strikeouts, 4 walks, 3 hits, and 2 earned runs. Verlander gave up 3 earned runs in the first three innings, but settled in after that to pitch 4 scoreless frames. Ultimately, he struck out 8, walked 3, allowed 6 hits, and gave up 3 earned runs.
- Josh Johnson allowed 5 earned runs over 5.2 innings, in a loss to the Padres. He struck out 5, walked 4, and allowed 7 hits. Johnson has a 10/7 K/BB ratio over his last 2 games. Expect better results next time out for MLB's ERA leader (1.96).
- Matt Cain pitched 7.2 shutout innings, in a win over Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. He struck out 7, walked 1, and scattered 4 hits. Cain is now 3-0 over his last 4 starts. Kershaw allowed 2 earned runs over 7 innings with 6 strikeouts and 4 walks, 3 of which were intentional.
- Gavin Floyd allowed 1 earned run over 7 innings, in a win. He struck out 5, walked 3, and scattered 4 hits. Floyd had a bad start to the season with a 6.23 ERA over April & May, but turned it around with a 1.75 ERA over June & July. It's probably no coincidence that his BABIP in April & May was .369 & .343, while it was .281 & .286 in June & July. His turn around however, is not luck as his K/BB has risen steadily from 1.92 in April to 3.57 in July. Congrats if you bought low.
- Gio Gonzalez, who faced Floyd & the White Sox, struck out 11 and walked none over 8 innings, in a loss. He allowed 4 earned runs on 6 hits. The 11 strikeouts are a career high.
- Edinson Volquez struck out 6 and allowed 1 earned run over 5 innings, against the Braves, in a win. He also had 5 walks and now carries a 22/15 K/BB ratio since coming off the DL. It make take some time for the control to come back to Volquez.
- Tommy Hanson, who pitched opposite Volquez, took the loss, after he pitched 7.1 innings of 1-run ball. He struck out 5, walked 1, and allowed 5 hits. Hanson is now 1-5 since June 22nd.
- Cole Hamels struck out 10 Nationals batters and walked none, in a no-decision. The game was tied 2-2, until he gave up a 2-run homer to Adam Dunn in the 6th inning. Hamels is now 2-5 with 6 no decisions, since May 21st.
- Dan Hudson won his first game in the NL, after he pitched 8 innings of 1 run ball against the Mets. Hudson struck out 4, walked 1, and allowed only 3 hits. He registered 13 fly balls to 8 ground balls and 2 line drives. It'll be interesting to see how his fly ball tendencies play, once he gets back to Arizona.
- Jorge De La Rosa allowed 3 earned runs over 6.2 innings to the Cubs, in a win. He struck out 5, walked 2, and gave up 8 hits. Since coming off the DL, De La Rosa has a 27/13 K/BB ratio. The win is his first since April 25th.
- Miguel Cabrera collected 2 more RBI to give him, a MLB leading, 93 on the season. He probably won't win the AL Triple Crown, but his .351 batting average and 26 homers aren't bad.
- Alex Gordon went 2-3 with his 3rd homer of the season. Over the four game series with the Orioles, Gordon was 5-16, with 3 runs, 2 HRs, and 5 RBI. Hopefully the Royals don't meddle with his playing time again.
- Adam LaRoche hit 2 homers and collected 6 RBI. The "second-half player" now has 16 HRs and 70 RBI on the season with a .257 batting average.
- Albert Pujols & Matt Holliday each went 1-4 with a homer. Pujols' was a 2-run bomb, while Holliday's was a solo shot.
Save Chances: That's Why You Bring a Wingman
- Brian Wilson, converted (31). Struck out 2 and walked 1, in a scoreless 9th.
- Rafael Soriano, converted (30). MFIKY allowed 1 hit in a scoreless 9th.
- Heath Bell, converted (30). Allowed 1 run on 1 walk and 2 hits.
- Joakim Soria, converted (29). Walked 1 and allowed 1 hit, in a scoreless 9th.
- Francisco Cordero, converted (29). Allowed 1 hit in a scoreless 9th.
- Bobby Jenks, converted (22). Struck out 2 in a clean 9th.
- Brian Fuentes, converted (20). Walked 1 and allowed 1 hit, in a scoreless 9th.
- Chris Perez, converted (12). Struck out 1 and allowed 1 hit, in a scoreless 9th.
- Brad Lidge, converted (11). Pitched a clean 11th.
- Brandon Lyon, converted (2). Pitched a clean 9th.
- Jonathan Papelbon, blown (5), win. He came on in relief of Clay Buchholz, who was trying for a complete game shutout, and gave up a 2-run double to Miguel Cabrera and then a 1-run single to Johnny Peralta, to tie the game. He received a vulture win, when the Darnell McDonald scored on a bunt and bad throw.
Other Closer Outings: Party on Wayne, Party on Garth
- Kevin Gregg struck out 1 in a clean 9th.
- Drew Storen pitched a clean 9th & 10th inning with 2 strikeouts.
- Carlos Marmol struck out 1 in a clean 8th.
- Huston Street gave up 3 earned runs on 1 hit, 2 walks, and 1 strikeout.
Non-Closer Outings: We're Going Streaking!
- Kerry Wood struck out 3, walked 1, and allowed 1 hit in his first appearance, a scoreless one, as a Yankee. He looked rather odd with no facial hair.
- Matt Thornton & J.J. Putz combined to pitch 1 scoreless inning with 1 strikeouts (Putz) and 1 hit (Thornton).
- Mike Gonzalez pitched a clean 8th.
- Brandon League struck out 1 and walked 1 in a scoreless 8th.
- Jon Rauch struck out 2 in a clean 8th.
- Matt Guerrier struck out 2 in a clean 9th.
- Fernando Rodney struck out 1 in a clean 8th.
- Jonny Venters got 2 outs, 1 via strikeout.
- Ryan Madson pitched 1.1 scoreless innings with 1 strikeout and 1 hit allowed.
- Jose Contreras received a vulture win, after he pitched a scoreless 10th with 1 strikeout and 1 hit allowed.
- Andrew Cashner walked 2 in a scoreless 7th.
- Luke Gregerson struck out 1 and allowed 1 hit, in a scoreless 8th.
- Octavio Dotel walked 1 in a scoreless 8th.
Tough Days: Who Invited Lindsey Lohan & Mel Gibson?
- Jonathon Niese served up two 3-run homers to Adam LaRoche. The details: 4.1 IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, & 2 K.
- Zach Duke was cruising along until the 5th inning came and he allowed 5 runs on 6 hits against the Cardinals.
- Carlos Zambrano made his second appearance, since his latest meltdown. He pitched 2 innings and allowed 2 earned runs on 2 walks & 4 hits.
- Brennan Boesch went 0-4 and is now batting .291. He was batting .340 at the start of July.
- Chone Figgins was 1-4 with 3 strikeouts. He's batting .238 this season.
- Russell Branyan went 0-4 with 3 strikeouts. He's batting .254 on the season.
- Casey Kotchman went 0-4 with 4 strikeouts for the Golden Sombrero (you knew we'd get there eventually). He's batting .219, but in his defense, no one really had a chance against Liriano on Sunday.
- Maicer Izturis was 0-3 as the Angels DH (really, DH?). He's 8-40 (.200), since coming off the DL on July 20th.
- Jeff Francoeur went 0-2 and is now batting .236. He hit .132 in the month of July.
- Jay Bruce was 0-3 with 1 strikeout to lower his batting average to .259. He was batting .283 after July 1st.
- Josh Willingham & Michael Morse (the Nats 5 & 6 hitters) went a combined 0-8 with 6 strikeouts.
- Pedro Alvarez went 1-4 with 3 strikeouts. He's 4-36 (.111), since he went on that 2-day power binge in mid-July.
- Casey Blake went 0-3 with 3 strikeouts. His .244 batting average is the lowest it's been since mid-May.
Lineup-ology/Injuries: Party Fouls
- Kila Kaaihue was recalled by the Royals. Hopefully he gets an extended look in the lineup.
- Robinson Tejeda was placed on the 15-Day DL with a right biceps tendon strain.
- Tyler Greene was placed on the 15-Day DL with a right hand contusion by the Cardinals.
- Russ Springer was called up by the Cardinals. Carlos Fisher was optioned to make room.
- Oscar Salazar was placed on the 15-Day DL with a strained right achilles tendon.
- Jeanmar Gomez was recalled by the Indians. Gomez pitched 5 innings and allowed 2 earned runs, in a win over the Blue Jays. No word if this is a spot start or he will join the rotation.
- John Lannan was recalled by the Nationals. Lannan pitched 5 innings and allowed 2 earned runs, in a no-decision against the Phillies.
- Alex Sanabia was optioned to the minors by the Marlins.
- Cole Gillespie was optioned to the minors by the Diamondbacks.
- Carlos Silva left Sunday's game with an irregular heartbeat. Silva got one before leaving the game against the Rockies. No word on if Silva will make his next start.
- Aramis Ramirez missed Sunday's game due to pain in his previously injured left thumb.
- Stephen Strasburg played catch prior to the Nationals game. No word on if he'll be activated when eligible on August 10th.
- Dexter Fowler bruised his left hip and ribs, when he ran into the wall to catch a fly ball. A trip to the DL is not out of the question.
- Randy Wolf took a line drive off of his wrist, but the injury is believed to be only a bruise.
- Martin Prado could be placed on the DL Monday with a broken right pinkie.
Home Runs: Chicks Dig the Long Ball
- Jose Bautista (32), Albert Pujols (25), Adam Dunn (25), Corey Hart (23), Matt Holliday (20), Alfonso Soriano (19), Luke Scott (18), Alex Gonzalez (18), Ty Wigginton (17), Adam LaRoche (15 & 16), Aaron Hill (15), Hanley Ramirez (14), Jason Michaels (7), Stephen Drew (5), Alex Gordon (3), Yunel Escobar (3), Jason Donald (3), Asdrubal Cabrera (2), & John Hester (1).
Stolen Bases: You Down with OPP?
- Scott Podsednik (32), Elvis Andrus (27), Ben Francisco (5), Omar Infante (4), Aaron Rowand (4), Wilson Valdez (4), Marco Scutaro (3), Asdrubal Cabrera (2), Mitch Moreland (2), Domonic Brown (1), & John McDonald (1).
Caught Stealing: Yeah You Know Me
- Matt Kemp (13), Andres Torres (6), Colby Rasmus (5), Felix Pie (2), Jason Kubel (1), & Rusty Ryal (1).