Cubs 11, Reds 4

- Reds' fans nearly had their vicarious lives flash before their eyes when Brandon Phillips clipped Drew Stubbs while the two chased after a dying quail off the bat of Reed Johnson. Phillips didn't move for a few minutes after the near-collision but has been diagnosed with nothing worse than a sprained ankle, and may not even need a DL stint.
- the rest of Cinci's day wasn't any better. Johnny Cueto got slammed for five runs on seven hits and three walks over just 3.2 innings. Sam LeCure came into the game with a 2.42 ERA, and coughed up a five-spot in 1.1 frames. The only real bright spot came from Yonder Alonso, who went 2-for-2 with a walk, two RBI and his first career home run.
- Carlos Zambrano barely scraped out a quality start, allowing three runs on six hits and four walks over six innings with six K's, but he made up for it with a solo shot off Cueto. It's his 23rd career home run, putting him in the top 10 all-time for pitchers.
- Starlin Castro also went 2-for-5 with a double, two runs scored and four RBI, while Carlos Pena went 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBI.
W: Zambrano (9-6) HR: Zambrano (2)

Phillies 2, Giants 1

- playoff preview, postseason atmosphere, tension so thick you could cut it with a yadda yadda yadda. The Phillies didn't seem to feel whatever pressure there was, scoring twice in the top of the first and then handing the ball to Cole Hamels. Boom. Ballgame. Hamels took a shutout into the final inning, only to have Pablo Sandoval go and ruin it with a solo home run.
- Matt Cain almost matched Hamels, giving up just one earned run over eight innings on three hits with an 8:2 K:BB ratio.
- Hunter Pence kept his hitting streak as a Phillie alive, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. He's now hitting .382 (13-for-34) with eight RBI in eight games sporting his new uni.
W: Hamels (13-6) HR: Sandoval (12)

Red Sox 10, Yankees 4

- the Sawx remain C.C. Sabathia's kryptonite, as they rung up seven runs on nine hits in six innings off the big man. Sabathia did manage a 6:1 K:BB ratio. He's now 0-4 this season against Boston with a 7.20 ERA.
- John Lackey flirted with trouble but ended up putting together a decent line, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks over six innings with five K's.
- believe it or not, Carl Crawford had a good game. He went 4-for-4 with a double, RBI, three runs scored and a steal, and is now hitting .333 (11-for-33) over his last eight games.
- Jacoby Ellsbury had the biggest stick for Boston though, going 2-for-4 with a home run and six RBI.
- in case you hadn't noticed, Curtis Granderson is going to win a lot of fantasy leagues for people, especially given his price tag after his injury-marred 2010. His line so far: .275-28-86-100-21. He's already put together a great 5x5 season, and there's still seven or so weeks left on the calendar.
W: Lackey (10-8) HR: Mark Teixeira (32), Ellsbury (19) SB: Granderson (21), Crawford (13)

Brewers 7, Astros 5

- Prince Fielder went 3-for-3 with two walks, a double, a home run, two runs scored and four RBI. Clearly, Houston needed to walk him more.
- neither starter was terribly effective. Chris Narveson got the win by default, giving up four runs in 5.1 innings, while Brett Myers earned his loss by getting tagged for six runs (five earned) on 11 hits and a walk over six innings.
- John Axford gave up his first run since July 16th, a run of nine straight scoreless appearances. Francisco rodriguez can probably kiss that 'games finished' option in his contract good-bye.
- Astros kiddie corps watch: mighty mite Jose Altuve went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored, and sports a .316/.344/.368 line through his first 16 big league games. J.D. Martinez went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run, his second home run in three games. Four of his first seven hits in the bigs have gone for extra bases. Martinez was a hitting machine in the minors, despite getting little respect from scouts, and he's barely slowed down after being called up.
W: Narveson (8-6) SV: Axford (32) HR: Fielder (25), Jonathan Lucroy (8), Carlos Lee (11), Martinez (2), Clint Barmes (8) CS: Jimmy Paredes (1)

Padres 13, Pirates 2

- speaking of guys who were minor league hitting machines, Jesus Guzman went 2-for-5 and is now slashing .343/.384/.600 in 37 games for San Diego. You can see why the Giants had no room for him in their lineup a couple of years ago, what with Travis Ishikawa and Rich Aurilia being locked in at first base and all.
- other Friars who had good days at the plate: Kyle Blanks went 2-for-5 with a grand slam (and five RBI total), while Orlando Hudson went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and an RBI. In fact every Padre starter got at least one hit, and either crossed the plate or drove in a run. That includes Cory Luebke, who went 2-for-3 with a run scored.
- Luebke wasn't bad at the other half of his job either, stingily giving up just one run on five hits over seven innings with nine strikeouts.
- Paul Maholm was the guy who brought shame to his family by giving up seven runs in 6.2 innings to the Padres.
W: Luebke (4-6) HR: Blanks (2), Garrett Jones (13) SB: Chase Headley (13), Rob Johnson (3) CS: Andrew McCutchen (7)

Orioles 6, Blue Jays 2

- Brandon Morrow might have pitched a shutout if Adam Jones had been given the night off. Morrow was perfect through five innings but ended up allowing six runs (three earned) on just four hits and a walk over 7.2 frames, with six K's. Jones was his nemesis though, going 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI.
- Chris Tillman was fairly sharp, giving up two runs on four hits and a walk over seven innings, striking out five.
- Colby Rasmus went 1-for-3 with his first home run as a Blue Jay. After a bit of a rough start in Toronto, he's hitting .320 (8-for-25) over his last six games.
W: Tillman (3-4) HR: Rasmus (12), Jones (20)

Mets 11, Braves 7

- something is very not right with Tommy Hanson. Seven runs on eight hits, including four home runs, in 3.1 innings is bad enough, but an 8.10 ERA over his last five starts is worse. The strikeouts are still there (5:2 K:BB ratio in this one, and 33:11 over those five awful starts) but when Justin Turner takes you yard twice in the same game, that's more than just bad luck.
- Jonathon Niese got the win but probably still isn't sure how, as he got hammered for five runs on 10 hits over five innings.
- aside from Turner's two homer day, Jason Bay and Josh Thole were the other two Mets to yank Hanson offerings into the seats.
- Dan Uggla went 3-for-5 with a home run to extend his hitting streak to 27 games, while Freddie Freeman bumped his own streak to 20 games. Newest Brave Michael Bourn also went 3-for-4 with a steal and a run scored.
W: Niese (11-8) HR: Uggla (24), Turner 2 (4), Bay (8), Thole (2) SB: Bourn (41), Jose Reyes 2 (34), Angel Pagan 2 (22) CS: Bourn (8)

White Sox 6, Twins 1

- Zach Stewart looked pretty good in his Chicago debut, allowing just one run on eight hits and a walk over 6.1 innings, striking out two.
- Carl Pavano was only a little worse, giving up two runs (one earned) over eight innings on nine hits and a walk with five K's.
- Juan Pierre went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two steals, while Alexis Rios went 3-for-5 with a steal of his own.
- Joe Nathan clearly has his closer mindset back, as he gave up two runs in two-thirds of an inning in a non-save situation.
W: Stewart (1-1) HR: Brent Lillibridge (8) SB: Rios (9), Alejandro De Aza (2), Pierre 2 (18), Denard Span (6)

Tigers 4, Royals 3

- the Royals' season in a nutshell: Alex Gordon takes Justin Verlander's first pitch for a ride just over the center field fence. Unfortunately for Gordon, Austin Jackson went along for the ride and caught the damn thing. KC then lost the game by the one run Jackson stole.
- Verlander ended up having (for him) an off-night, allowing three run on five hits and two walks over seven innings, whiffing eight.
- Danny Duffy struggled with his command, giving up three runs on five hits and three walks in five frames, striking out four.
- Victor Martinez went 3-for-4 with two RBI, while Miguel Cabrera went 2-for-5 with two doubles, a run scored and an RBI. Miggy's quietly having another stellar season, slashing .316/.424/.554 with 22 HR, 70 RBI and 76 runs. The trade with Florida has become one of the great baseball heists of the last 50 years.
W: Verlander (16-5) SV: Jose Valverde (32) HR: Jeff Francoeur (15) CS: Eric Hosmer (3)

A's 8, Rays 0

- this just in: Robinson Chirinos is not a major league catcher. The A's were 7-for-7 in steal attempts off him, with two different pitchers on the mound. Sure, he's hitting .300/.378/.425 through his first 15 games with Tampa, but that hardly makes up for those extra bases.
- Alexander Cobb was on the hill for five of those steals, but he wasn't much better throwing the ball than he was keeping runners close. Cobb coughed up five runs on seven hits and four walks in just 4.1 innings, striking out four, and got taken to the hospital after the game to have his right hand looked at.
- Brandon McCarthy was awesome, scattering five hits over eight shutout innings while striking out five.
- Coco Crisp had four of Oakland's swipes while going 2-for-5 with two runs scored. David DeJesus also went 2-for-5 with two solo homers.
W: McCarthy (5-5) HR: DeJesus 2 (7) SB: Crisp 4 (37), Scott Sizemore (2), Cliff Pennington 2 (8)

Cardinals 2, Marlins 1

- poor Marlins. Rafael Furcal leads off the game with a sinking line drive that Mike Stanton catches, but it's ruled a trap by the umps. Two batters later, Albert Pujols blasts a homer, and Florida ends up losing the game on Furcal's run.
- of course, if Chris Carpenter hadn't held the Marlins to one run on five hits and two walks over 6.2 innings with seven K's, Furcal's tainted run might not have mattered.
- Ricky Nolasco was solid too, other than the one pitch to Pujols. He gave up 10 hits with a 3:1 K:BB ratio over seven innings.
- Daniel Descalso, back at third base, went 3-for-4 with a double. It seems just a matter of time before Tony LaRussa starts giving his new lucky superutilityman charm at-bats in the outfield too.
W: Carpenter (7-8) SV: Fernando Salas (21) HR: Pujols (26) CS: Emilio Bonifacio (6)

Indians 7, Rangers 5

- in a tale of two shaky closers, Neftali Feliz coughed up three runs in the top of the ninth on three hits. He was pitching for the third consecutive day though, so he should probably be cut some slack for this one. Chris Perez then came out in the bottom of the ninth and gave up a run on two hits before slamming the door, one night after a blown save of his own. Perez has now been scored on in six of his last nine appearances. If you're a Perez owner, I'd recommend grabbing Vinnie Pestano before it's too late.
- C.J. Wilson was solid though (three runs, two earned, on five hits and two walks over 6.2 innings with nine K's). Some shaky defense saved Fausto Carmona's line (four runs, two earned, on six hits and a walk over 6.1 innings with two K's.)
- Jason Kipnis went 2-for-5 with his fifth home run in his last seven games. Not bad, kid.
W: Frank Herrmann (2-0) SV: Perez (23) HR: Kipnis (5) SB: Ian Kinsler (21)

Dodgers 5, Diamondbacks 3

- let's get the introductions out of the way. Nathan Eovaldi, the whole world. World, Nathan Eovaldi.
- the 21-year-old did as well as anyone could have hoped after his promotion from Double-A, giving up two runs and striking out seven over five innings.
- the only guy he had a problem with was Joe Saunders, who went 2-for-2 with two RBI. Unfortunately for the D-backs Saunders didn't pitch as well as he hit, allowing four runs on eight hits and a walk in 5.1 frames.
- Rod Barajas went 3-for-4 with two RBI, his third straight multi-hit game. He's on a bit of a roll, bumping his batting average from .206 to .230 over his last six games. He's no Dan Uggla, but it's something.
W: Eovaldi (1-0) SV: Scott Elbert (2) CS: Matt Kemp (5), Kelly Johnson (3)

Rockies 15, Nationals 7

- humidor, schumidor. The two teams combined for 33 hits as Livan Hernandez couldn't get his curveball to bite, and Jhoulys Chacin couldn't get anything to work due to cramping in his hand. Chacin, at least, only allowed three runs in his five innings despite five hits and five walks. Hernandez got pummeled for nine runs (seven earned) on nine hits in just 3.2 innings.
- among the big sticks: Chris Iannetta went 4-for-5 with a solo home run and three runs scored, Troy Tulowitzki went 3-for-3 with two doubles and three RBI; and Mike Morse went 4-for-5 with a double and three RBI.
- on the flip side, Ian Desmond and Chris Nelson each went 0-for-5 and left eight men on base between them.
W: Chacin (9-8) HR: Rick Ankiel (7), Ty Wigginton (14), Iannetta (12) CS: Ankiel (3)

Mariners 5, Angels 1

- earlier this year, Michael Pineda set a Seattle rookie record with five straight quality starts. The record lasted, oh, four months, as Blake Beaven recorded his sixth straight by allowing just one run on eight hits over eight innings, striking out two without walking anyone. He'll never be great, but with Safeco as his home park Beaven figures to be a plenty useful pitcher.
- Tyler Chatwood struggled again, getting tagged for five runs on seven hits and a walk over 6.1 innings. He did strike out six though, as he continues to tease his potential.
- Trayvon Robinson cracked his first big league home run. That noise you just heard was the shrieks of outraged Dodger fans.
W: Beaven (3-2) HR: Robinson (1) SB: Ichiro Suzuki (29), Peter Bourjos (15) CS: Miguel Olivo (4), Torii Hunter (6)