Rays 4 - Red Sox 0
- David Price twirled 8 shutout innings on 3 hits and 3 walks with 6 strikeouts for his 11th win. He was staked to a 1 run lead in the first inning and never looked back. Over his last two starts he's taken on the Yankees and Red Sox on the road and come away with 16 innings pitched and 2 earned runs allowed with 10 strikeouts and 5 walks. I'd say that's pretty… pretty… pretty good.
- John Lackey was up to John Lackey things as he allowed 4 runs (3 earned) over 6.2 innings for his 9th loss. He gave up 6 hits and 3 walks with 7 strikeouts. Any way you slice it, Lackey has been terrible this season with a 6.02 ERA over 122.2 innings and yet he has the same amount of wins as Price (11).
- B.J. Upton went 2-4 with a double and solo shot homer. He's hitting .231/.309/.402 this season, which is disappointing for someone with his raw talent and skills.
- Ben Zobrist went 2-4 with 2 doubles and raised is batting line to .283/.371/.499. Whether he gets MVP votes or not, he's been pretty special this season.
- W: David Price (11-10), L: John Lackey (11-9)
- HR: Evan Longoria (19), B.J. Upton (17)
- SB: Jacoby Ellsbury (32)
A's 6 - Orioles 5
- Brandon McCarthy evened his record at 6-6, after he pitched 6 innings and allowed 4 earned runs. He did so on 8 hits with 2 walks and 3 strikeouts. McCarthy is now 5-1 over his last 7 starts with a 4.10 ERA, 31 strikeouts, and 6 walks.
- Alfredo Simon got roughed up for 6 runs (5 earned) over 5.1 innings on 8 hits and 2 walks. Kurt Suzuki did the most damage as he took him deep twice for two solo shots. Simon has now made 8 starts this season with a 4.70 ERA, 26 strikeouts, and 13 walks over 46 innings.
- Nick Markakis went 3-4 with a double, homer, 2 RBI, 2 runs, and a walk. That's now 3 homers over his last 7 games, which is hot by his standards. Markakis' slugging percentage the last four seasons: .491, .453, .436, and .408 this season… not good.
- Brandon Allen went 1-2 with a triple, RBI, run, walk, and sac-fly. He's 8-15 with a double, two triples, and five runs since joining the team.
- W: Brandon McCarthy (6-6), L: Alfredo Simon (3-6), SV: Andrew Bailey (15)
- HR: Nick Markakis (13), Kurt Suzuki (11, 12)
- CS: Mark Reynolds (3)
Twins 6 - Tigers 5
- Carl Pavano pitched 7 innings with 3 earned runs, in a no-decision. He struck out 4 with 2 walks and 9 hits as he lowered his ERA to 4.52. He's been better as of late with 5 earned runs allowed over 22.1 innings with 13 strikeouts and 3 walks. Still, he came into today with a 5.77 road ERA.
- Brad Penny turned in a quality start as he allowed 3 earned runs over 6 innings, also in a no-decision. He walked 3 with 5 hits and 2 home runs given up, which leads me to believe things could have been much worse. He came into this game with a 3.98 home ERA, which is much lower than his 6.40 road ERA. Either way, a 4.97 ERA on the season isn't pretty.
- Joe Nathan gave up a run as he nailed down his 11th save this season. He was lights out in July with 9 strikeouts, no walks, 6 hits allowed, and only 1 earned run over 11.1 innings. August hasn't been as kind as he's up to 4 strikeouts, 2 walks, 6 hits allowed, and 4 earned runs over 5 innings.
- Jim Thome made his push for 700 homers with a solo shot in a 2-3 effort at the plate.
- Delmon Young went 1-4 with a sac-fly and is now 5-13 with the Tigers… beginner's luck?
- W: Matt Capps (4-6), L: Jose Valverde (2-4), SV: Joe Nathan (11)
- HR: Jim Thome (12), Rene Tosoni (3), Jhonny Peralta (17)
- CS: Ben Revere (7)
Indians 4 - White Sox 1
- Fausto Carmona held the White Sox to 1 run over 8.1 innings as he picked up his 6th win. He gave up 4 hits with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. The lone run came on an Alexei Ramirez solo shot as the Indians moved to within 2 games of the Tigers for the division lead. It was Carmona's first win in nearly a month.
- Mark Buehrle gave up 12 hits as he allowed 4 earned runs over 7.1 innings. It's pretty tough to give up 12 hits and 2 walks and only have four runs score, so consider Buehrle lucky. He's now 10-6 with a 3.14 ERA, 86 strikeouts, and 34 walks over 163.1 innings this season… not bad if you drafted him on the cheap in an AL only league.
- Zach Stewart faced 6 batters and struck out 5 of them with 1 walk. It was his first appearance out of the bullpen this season at any level and an electric one at that. To give some context, he was at Double-A and Triple-A this season and with the Blue Jays, prior to coming over in the Edwin Jackson trade.
- Shin-Soo Choo went 3-5 with a RBI. He's now 5-18 with no extra-base hits, 1 RBI, 3 runs, 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts since coming back from the DL (thumb).
- W: Fausto Carmona (6-12), L: Mark Buehrle (10-6), SV: Chris Perez (26)
- HR: Alexei Ramirez (13)
- CS: Shin-Soo Choo (5)
Royals 5 - Yankees 4
- Bruce Chen allowed 3 earned runs over 6 innings for a quality start and a win. He gave up 2 homers, but luckily they were both solo shots. In home starts this season he has a 3.63 ERA.
- Bartolo Colon was knocked around for 5 earned runs over 5 innings as he fell to 8-7. A 3-run homer from Alex Gordon and solo shot from Billy Butler in the fourth inning was the beginning of the end for him. His 3.54 ERA, the fatty's spot in the Yankees rotation should be safe.
- Mike Moustakas broke out with a 3-3 effort that included a double and run. The double is his first extra-base hit of the month. Hopefully this will spur him on to bigger things as the season comes to a close. He's batting .194/.248/.244 this season over 220 plate appearances.
- Curtis Granderson continued his assault on the American League with a single, double, homer, RBI, 2 runs, and walk. That's now 12 homers of lefties, which is more than he's had the last 3 season combined. With 34 homers, 95 RBI, 111 runs, 22 stolen bases and a .277/.371/.588 batting line, he's been a roto-moster this season… and he's not done yet.
- W: Bruce Chen (8-5), L: Bartolo Colon (8-7), SV: Joakim Soria (22)
- HR: Curtis Granderson (34), Russell Martin (13), Alex Gordon (15), Billy Butler (15)
- CS: Derek Jeter (5)
Rangers 4 - Angels 3
- C.J. Wilson pitched 7 innings of 1-run ball on 5 hits, 1 walk, and 6 strikeouts. In August (19.2 innings), he has 22 strikeouts, 6 walks, and 4 earned runs allowed. Over the last two seasons (378.1 innings), he has a 3.28 ERA. The fact that he's held up this well this season surprises me.
- Ervin Santana's streak of lights out starts ended as he gave up 4 runs (3 earned) over 7.1 innings, in a loss. He gave up 10 hits with 4 walks and 4 strikeouts. All good things must come to an end, right? He was in line for a no-decision, till he gave up a 2-run single to Ian Kinsler in the top of the 8th inning.
- Howie Kendrick went 2-4 with a solo homer, 2 RBI, and a run… And he hit 3rd for the Angels! Maybe Mike Scioscia is finally hearing my pleas for him to move Kendrick out of the 6th & 7th spots in the lineup. Then again, Bobby Abreu didn't play in this game, so who knows. The 2B is batting .293/.347/.437 this season.
- Michael Young went 3-5 with a double. He's batting .342/.378/.501 this season and playing 3B as Adrian Beltre deals with a hamstring issue on the DL.
- Mike Napoli went 2-5 with 2 doubles and a run. He's hitting .294/.386/.592 and surely has Angels fans wondering what might have been, if the team had kept him and Mike Scioscia had not jerked with his playing time. As is, they get to deal with Bobby Wilson and Jeff Mathis.
- W: C.J. Wilson (12-5), L: Ervin Santana (9-9), SV: Neftali Feliz (24)
- HR: Mitch Moreland (14), Howie Kendrick (9)
- SB: Josh Hamilton (7); CS: Endy Chavez (4), Maicer Izturis (6)
Blue Jays 5 - Mariners 1
- Brandon Morrow struck out 12 Mariners batters as he held them to 1 run over 6 innings for his 9th win. He gave up just 3 hits with 2 walks as he lowered his ERA to 4.41. Morrow has been fantastic this season on the road with a 2.83 ERA, 72 strikeouts, and 19 walks over 63.2 innings.
- Blake Beavan wasn't so hot as he pitched 5 innings and allowed 5 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks. Giving up 3 homers didn't help matters much. That's now back-to-back rough outings (11.1 IP, 11 ER) for the former Rangers prospect.
- Edwin Encarnacion, aka E5, hit his 12th homer of the season, a solo shot. Over the last month he has 6 homers, 14 RBI, and 22 runs.
- Colby Rasmus also hit a solo homer, his second as a member of the Blue Jays. Somewhere, Tony LaRussa still doesn't care.
- W: Brandon Morrow (9-7), L: Blake Beavan (3-4)
- HR: Adam Lind (22), Edwin Encarnacion (12), Colby Rasmus (13)
- SB: Aaron Hill (16); CS: Edwin Encarnacion (1)
Astros 4 - Cubs 3
- Bud Norris pitched 5 innings with 3 earned runs on 6 hits, 3 walks, and 5 strikeouts. He received his first win since July 6th, which should come as no surprise considering the Astros offense. On the season he's 6-8 with a 3.61 ERA, 145 strikeouts, and 59 walks over 152 innings.
- Casey Coleman got beat around for 4 earned runs over 3.2 innings on 10 hits and 2 walks. You know you're not performing well when the Astros take you to the shed. Coleman came up from Triple-A to take the spot of Carlos Zambrano.
- Jose Altuve went 1-4 with 2 runs. The little guy is batting .314/.330/.371 this season over 110 plate appearances. Can't wait to meet him this weekend at the Astros social media event.
- Brian Bogusevic stayed hot with a 1-4 effort, a double, and 2 RBI. The Astros wrapped out 10 hits, only one of which was for extra bases. Why am I not surprised?
- Aramis Ramirez went 2-4 with a 2-run homer and a walk. The 3B is batting .297/.340/.513 this season. Why didn't he waive his no-trade clause again?
- W: Bud Norris (6-8), L: Casey Coleman (2-5), SV: Mark Melancon (12)
- HR: Aramis Ramirez (23), Geovany Soto (13)
- SB: Starlin Castro (13), Darwin Barney (6), Tony Campana (15)
Mets 7 - Padres 3
- Dillon Gee improved to 11-4 as he pitched 6.2 innings and allowed 1 earned run. He struck out 5 batters with 4 walks and 5 hits allowed. Gee had been terrible in his last two outings (10 IP, 9 ER) and likely would've suffered a similar fate in this game, if the Friars had been able to string any of their hits together. His 3.92 ERA tells more about how's performed this season than his record does.
- Mat Latos turned in a quality start with 6 innings pitched and 3 earned runs allowed, yet fell to 6-12 on the season. He managed to strikeout 6 hitters with 2 walks and 4 hits. Unfortunately, one of hits he gave up was a 3-run homer to David Wright. After that the Mets never looked back. 9 of Latos' last 10 starts have been quality starts.
- Angel Pagan went 2-5 with 3 RBI, a run, and a stolen base. He's hitting .255/.318/.368 this season, which isn't great by any stretch, but his 25 stolen bases have been plenty useful.
- Cameron Maybin went 1-3 with a double and walk. The CF is batting .275/.330/.406 this season.
- W: Dillon Gee (11-4), L: Mat Latos (6-12)
- HR: David Wright (10)
- SB: Angel Pagan (25), Ruben Tejada (2)
Reds 2 - Nationals 1
- Johnny Cueto pitched 8 innings of 1-run ball and in the process lowered his ERA to a MLB low 1.89. He gave up 6 hits with no walks and 5 strikeouts for his 9th win. A regression is likely coming (.227 BABIP coming into this game), but recognize that he has improved his ground ball rate from 41.7|PERCENT| last season to 52.6|PERCENT| this season.
- Ross Detwiler held the Reds to 1 run over 6 innings, but took the loss. He gave up 7 hits with 2 walks and 7 strikeouts, in what was the best start in his brief stint as a starter this season. Detwiler is expected to remain in the rotation for the foreseeable future with Tom Gorzelanny now in the bullpen.
- Ryan Zimmerman went 2-4 with a solo homer. That's now back-to-back games and 3 out of his last 5 games that he's homered in. The 3B is batting .300/.370/.466 over 276 plate appearances.
- W: Johnny Cueto (9-5), L: Ross Detwiler (1-3), SV: Francisco Cordero (24)
- HR: Joey Votto (20), Ryan Zimmerman (8)
- CS: Miguel Cairo (3)
Phillies 9 - Diamondbacks 2
- Cliff Lee helped the Phillies win their MLB best 79th game as he pitched 7 innings and allowed 2 earned runs on 3 hits, 2 walks, and 7 strikeouts. He's now given up just 1 earned run over his last 3 starts (24 innings) with 25 strikeouts and 4 walks. Lee is 2nd in the NL in innings pitched (179.0), 2nd in strikeouts (184), 5th in WHIP (1.07), and 8th in ERA (2.82).
- Joe Saunders pitched 6 innings and allowed 5 earned as the D-Backs lead in the NL West fell to 2.5 games. He gave up 5 hits with 4 walks and 3 strikeouts. I'm surprised Saunders has made it this far (159 innings) with a 3.91 ERA.
- Paul Goldschmidt went 1-2 with a 2-run homer and a walk. He's 12-44 since coming up with 2 doubles, 3 homers, 7 runs, 9 RBI, and 4 walks.
- Jimmy Rollins went 2-3 with a solo homer, sac-fly, walk, and stolen base. He's hitting .267/.340/.402 with 14 homers and 28 stolen bases in this, a contract year.
- John Mayberry went 3-4 with a RBI and 2 runs. In the month of August he has 3 homers and 6 RBI, while splitting time in LF with Raul Ibanez and pinch hitting.
- W: Cliff Lee (13-7), L: Joe Saunders (8-10)
- HR: Paul Goldschmidt (3), Jimmy Rollins (14)
- SB: Jimmy Rollins (28), Shane Victorino (16); CS: Jimmy Rollins (7)
Cardinals 7 - Pirates 2
- Kyle Lohse struck out 7 batters over 7 innings as he allowed 2 earned runs in a win. He walked only 1 as he lowered his ERA to 3.33 and improved his record to 11-7. Lohse has back-to-back wins for the first time since late May.
- Paul Maholm pitched 5 innings and allowed 3 earned runs on 8 hits, 1 walk, and 1 strikeout. Giving up 3 runs in the first inning was his undoing, but he did manage to settle down for 4 scoreless innings afterward. Over his last 7 starts he has 1 quality start.
- Allen Craig went 4-5 with a double, two homers, 3 RBI, and 2 runs. This was his first offensive production, since coming off the DL with a knee injury. He'll likely spend the remainder of the season in the OF with Matt Holliday, Jon Jay, and Lance Berkman.
- Jose Tabata went 1-4 with a 2-run homer. It was his second game since coming off the DL with a quad injury.
- W: Kyle Lohse (11-7), L: Paul Maholm (6-14)
- HR: Allen Craig (5, 6), Jose Tabata (4)
- SB: Yadier Molina (3)
Giants 7 - Braves 5
- Matt Cain held the Braves to 1 run (unearned) over 8 innings for his 10th win. He gave up just 5 hits with 1 walk and 9 strikeouts. He's 5th in NL in innings pitched (173.0), 10th in strikeouts (143), 7th in WHIP (1.09), and 9th in ERA (2.86).
- Jair Jurrjens pitched 6 innings and allowed 5 earned runs as his ERA rose to 2.84. He gave up 8 hits with 2 walks and just 1 strikeout. It was his first start since coming off the DL with a knee injury.
- Nate Schierholtz went 2-5 with a run. For the month he's hitting .290/.389/.548 over 31 at-bats.
- Pablo Sandoval went 2-4 with two doubles, a sac-fly, and 2 RBI. Panda is batting .311/.351/.518 this season and .327/.368/.558 this month.
- Martin Prado went 2-5 with a double and 2 RBI. He's hitting .275/.318/.411 this season with 48 RBI.
- W: Matt Cain (10-9), L: Jair Jurrjens (12-5)
- CS: Eli Whiteside (1)
Brewers 3 - Dodgers 1
- Zack Greinke pitched 7 innings of 1-run ball as the Brewers maintained their 7 game lead in the division. He struck out 8 with 3 walks and 5 hits and lowered his ERA below 4.00 in the process. In his last 8 games he's allowed 2 earned runs or less.
- Nate Eovaldi pitched 6 innings and allowed 2 earned runs on 5 hits and 3 walks with 2 strikeouts. Over his first three starts (17 innings), he's given up 4 earned runs with 12 strikeouts and 9 walks.
- Tony Gwynn Jr. went 3-5 with a homer. It was his 6th career homer and first of the season.
- Jerry Hairston Jr. went 1-3 with a 2-run single. Between him and Gwynn Jr., it must have been Punch and Judy Jr. day at the park.
- W: Zack Greinke (12-4), L: Nate Eovaldi (1-1), SV: John Axford (36)
- HR: Tony Gwynn Jr. (1)
- SB: Justin Sellers (1); CS: Aaron Miles (1), Craig Counsell (1)
Rockies 12 - Marlins 5
- Aaron Cook pitched a season high 7.2 innings with 3 earned runs allowed on 9 hits and no walks. He really didn't have to do much, but hang around and throw strikes as the opposing pitcher did most of the work….
- Ricky Nolasco was destroyed for 11 earned runs over just 3 innings on 11 hits and 1 walk. Those new to owning him will be shocked by his disastrous outing, but those of us who are on our 2nd or 3rd tour of battle with him know this is par for the course. I fully expect for him to turn around and strikeout 11 or more batters in his next start or two. It's what he does… tease.
- Carlos Gonzalez went 2-4 with a homer, 4 RBI, and 2 runs. The reigning NL batting champ is hitting .287/.355/.510 this season with 20 homers, 71 RBI, 74 runs, and 16 stolen bases.
- Mike Stanton went 2-4 with a double and 2-run homer. He's on fire with a home run in 4 straight games.
- Chris Iannetta also went 2-4 with a double, 4 RBI, and 1 run. The catcher is hitting .239/.380/.425 this season. Wilin Rosario could do that, right?
- W: Aaron Cook (3-7), L: Ricky Nolasco (9-9)
- HR: Mike Stanton (29), Jose Lopez (3), Carlos Gonzalez (20)
- CS: Emilio Bonifacio (8)