The Last THT Daily
Major League News for October 2
Yesterday’s Results
Standings
Game of the Day
Yesterday’s Home Runs
Player News
Stats
Yesterday’s Results
American League BOS 9 BAL 0 (Recap and Boxscore) Hansack: 5 IP, 0 H TOR 7 NYA 5 (Recap and Boxscore) Lind: 2-3, HR, 3 RBI; TOR: 2 in 9th CLE 6 TB 3 (Recap and Boxscore) Lee: 9 IP, 3 R KC 10 DET 8 (Recap and Boxscore) 12 innings; I-Rod: 3-3, 3B MIN 5 CHA 1 (Recap and Boxscore) Silva: 5.1 IP, 1 R OAK 11 LAA 10 (Recap and Boxscore) See below SEA 3 TEX 2 (Recap and Boxscore) Woods: 6 IP, 2 R National League ATL 3 HOU 1 (Recap and Boxscore) Smoltz: 6 IP, 0 R FLA 3 PHI 2 (Recap and Boxscore) 11 innings; Myers: 6 IP, 2 R NYN 6 WAS 2 (Recap and Boxscore) CHN 8 COL 5 (Recap and Boxscore) Cedeno: 3B, 3 RBI; Atkins: 3-3, HR PIT 1 CIN 0 (Recap and Boxscore) Youman: 7 IP, 0 R; Belisle: 6 IP, 0 R MIL 5 STL 3 (Recap and Boxscore) Jenkins: 3-3, HR; Villanueva: 8.1 IP, 2 R SD 7 ARI 6 (Recap and Boxscore) Tracy: 3-3, 2 HR; Gonzalez: 4-5; Piazza: 2 2B LAN 4 SF 3 (Recap and Boxscore)
Standings
The graphics next to each team are called “sparklines.” They depict each team’s performance over the last month. Each “up” bar is a victory and a “down” bar is a loss. There are horizontal lines for home games and red bars represent games decided by two runs or less. “PWins” is short for Projected Wins, based on each team’s Run Differential, and is often a better measure of a team’s true strength. Other team graphs and stats can be found on our Team Page.
American League East Pwins Diff NYA 97 65 .599 0.0 96 1TOR 87 75 .537 10.0 86 1
BOS 86 76 .531 11.0 81 5
BAL 70 92 .432 27.0 69 1
TB 61 101 .377 36.0 65 -4
American League Central MIN 96 66 .593 0.0 93 3
DET 95 67 .586 1.0 96 -1
CHA 90 72 .556 6.0 88 2
CLE 78 84 .481 18.0 89 -11
KC 62 100 .383 34.0 62 0
American League West OAK 93 69 .574 0.0 85 8
LAA 89 73 .549 4.0 84 5
TEX 80 82 .494 13.0 86 -6
SEA 78 84 .481 15.0 77 1
National League East Pwins Diff NYN 97 65 .599 0.0 91 6
PHI 85 77 .525 12.0 86 -1
ATL 79 83 .488 18.0 85 -6
FLA 78 84 .481 19.0 80 -2
WAS 71 91 .438 26.0 69 2
National League Central STL 83 78 .516 0.0 82 1
HOU 82 80 .506 1.5 83 -1
CIN 80 82 .494 3.5 76 4
MIL 75 87 .463 8.5 71 4
PIT 67 95 .414 16.5 70 -3
CHN 66 96 .407 17.5 69 -3
National League West SD 88 74 .543 0.0 87 1
LAN 88 74 .543 0.0 88 0
SF 76 85 .472 11.5 76 0
COL 76 86 .469 12.0 81 -5
ARI 76 86 .469 12.0 80 -4
Wildcard Standings American League DET 95 67 .586 0.0 CHA 90 72 .556 5.0 LAA 89 73 .549 6.0 TOR 87 75 .537 8.0 BOS 86 76 .531 9.0 National League LAN 88 74 .543 0.0 PHI 85 77 .525 3.0 HOU 82 80 .506 6.0 CIN 80 82 .494 8.0 ATL 79 83 .488 9.0
Game of the Day
The Athletics took 10 innings to beat the Angels, 11-10, and avoid being swept in their last series of the year. The winning run scored on a Jay Payton liner that hit pitcher Brendan Donnelly in the stomach. Donnelly picked up the ball but threw wildly to first in an attempt to get Payton and the winning run scored.
Frank Thomas homered and had four RBI’s in only one official at bat and Jeff Mathis hit a double and triple with three RBI’s for the Angels. Rich Harden was ineffective in his final tuneup before the playoffs. And lifetime Angel Tim Salmon played the last game of his career.
OAKLAND (11) VS LA ANGELS (10) - FINAL IN 10 INNINGS OAKLAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg J Kendall c 3 1 1 0 0 0 3 .295 b-A Melhuse ph-c 1 0 0 1 1 0 3 .219 M Kotsay cf 2 2 2 1 1 0 0 .275 H Bocachica pr-rf 2 1 0 0 1 0 1 .231 M Bradley rf 3 1 2 1 0 0 1 .276 D Johnson pr-1b 3 1 0 1 0 1 1 .234 F Thomas dh 1 1 1 4 0 0 1 .270 a-J Brown ph-dh 4 1 2 0 0 0 1 .300 E Chavez 3b 3 0 1 1 0 1 0 .241 D Jimenez 3b 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 .183 J Payton lf-cf 5 0 3 1 1 0 1 .296 N Swisher 1b-lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 .254 B Kielty lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 M Scutaro ss 4 2 3 0 2 0 3 .266 M Ellis 2b 5 1 2 0 0 1 3 .249 Totals 41 11 17 10 8 3 22 a-grounded to first for F Thomas in the 4th; b-hit sacrifice fly to left for J Kendall in the 6th. BATTING: 2B - M Bradley (14, D Moseley); M Kotsay (29, D Moseley); M Ellis (25, J Romero); J Brown 2 (2, C Bootcheck, J Romero). HR - F Thomas (39, 3rd inning off D Moseley 2 on, 0 Out). S - B Kielty. SF - F Thomas , A Melhuse. RBI - F Thomas 4 (114), E Chavez (72), M Kotsay (59), M Bradley (52), A Melhuse (18), D Johnson (37), J Payton (59). 2-out RBI - E Chavez, M Kotsay, M Bradley, J Payton. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Scutaro 2, J Payton 1, A Melhuse 1, N Swisher 2. GIDP - J Kendall, N Swisher, M Ellis. Team LOB - 12. BASERUNNING: SB - M Kotsay (6, 2nd base off D Moseley/J Mathis), M Scutaro (5, 2nd base off D Moseley/J Mathis), M Ellis (4, 3rd base off J Romero/J Mathis). FIELDING: DP: 2 (M Scutaro-M Ellis-D Johnson 2). LA ANGELS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg M Izturis ss 5 1 2 1 1 0 1 .293 R Willits cf 3 1 1 0 2 1 0 .267 T Salmon dh 4 1 0 0 1 0 5 .265 A Kennedy 2b 3 1 1 1 2 1 0 .273 R Quinlan 3b-lf 5 1 2 2 0 0 3 .321 K Morales 1b 3 1 0 1 1 0 1 .234 C Pride lf 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 .222 D McPherson 3b 3 1 1 1 0 1 0 .261 J Mathis c 5 2 3 3 0 2 0 .145 T Murphy rf 4 0 1 0 1 1 1 .229 Totals 36 10 11 9 9 6 12 BATTING: 2B - J Mathis (2, H Street). HR - J Mathis (2, 4th inning off R Harden 2 on, 1 Out), D Mcpherson (7, 5th inning off B Halsey 0 on, 2 Out), R Quinlan (9, 7th inning off J Witasick 0 on, 1 Out). S - R Willits. SF - K Morales. RBI - A Kennedy (55), R Quinlan 2 (32), K Morales (22), J Mathis 3 (6), D McPherson (13), M Izturis (44). 2-out RBI - D McPherson. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - R Quinlan 2, T Salmon 1, C Pride 1. GIDP - K Morales, T Salmon. Team LOB - 7. BASERUNNING: SB - M Izturis (14, 2nd base off B Halsey/J Kendall). CS - T Murphy (1, 2nd base by R Harden/J Kendall). FIELDING: E - R Willits (1, throw); B Donnelly (1, throw). DP: 3 (M Izturis-A Kennedy-K Morales, A Kennedy-M Izturis-K Morales, D McPherson-A Kennedy-K Morales). ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND - 203 203 000 1 -- 11 LA ANGELS - 300 320 110 0 -- 10 ---------------------------------------------------- OAKLAND ip h r er bb so hr era R Harden 3 2/3 3 6 6 6 3 1 4.24 B Halsey 1 1/3 4 2 2 1 0 1 4.67 J Witasick (H, 2) 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 6.75 H Street (B, 11) 1 3 1 1 1 0 0 3.31 C Gaudin (W, 4-2) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.09 R Flores (S, 1) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.34 LA ANGELS ip h r er bb so hr era D Moseley 4 10 7 7 2 1 1 9.00 J Romero 1 2/3 3 3 3 1 0 0 6.70 G Jones 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.00 C Bootcheck (L, 0-1) 4 3 1 1 3 2 0 10.45 B Donnelly 1/3 1 0 0 1 0 0 3.94 G Jones pitched to 1 batter in the 6th. IBB - A Kennedy (by H Street). HBP - B Kielty (by B Donnelly). Pitches-strikes: R Harden 91-44; B Halsey 25-18; J Witasick 23-13; H Street 21-10; C Gaudin 10-7; R Flores 11-7; D Moseley 93-54; J Romero 28-12; G Jones 7-2; C Bootcheck 72-44; B Donnelly 13-7. Ground balls-fly balls: R Harden 4-3; B Halsey 2-2; J Witasick 3-2; H Street 1-2; C Gaudin 2-0; R Flores 0-2; D Moseley 6-5; J Romero 2-3; G Jones 0-0; C Bootcheck 3-7; B Donnelly 0-1. Batters faced: R Harden 19; B Halsey 8; J Witasick 7; H Street 7; C Gaudin 3; R Flores 3; D Moseley 22; J Romero 9; G Jones 1; C Bootcheck 17; B Donnelly 4. UMPIRES: HP--Ramon Armendariz. 1B--C.B. Bucknor. 2B--Mark Carlson. 3B--Wally Bell. T--3:45. Att--44,107. Weather: 75 degrees, cloudy. Wind: 8 mph, out to center.
The following graph tracks the game’s Win Probability, courtesy of Fan Graphs.

Yesterday’s Home Runs
The following stats are provided by Hit Tracker, which logs the projected distance of each home run (if it were to land uninterrupted at field level) and its “standard” distance, which is corrected for weather conditions. You can read their daily updates at the Hit Tracker Blog.
Hitter Pitcher True Dist Std. Dist. HR # Jackson, Conor ARI Hoffman, Trevor SD 466 455 15 Hinske, Eric BOS Ortiz, Russ BAL 406 440 13 Loretta, Mark BOS Manon, Julio BAL 398 430 5 Sexson, Richie SEA Tejeda, Robinson TEX 397 426 34 Lind, Adam TOR Farnsworth, Kyle NYY 415 418 2 Norton, Greg TB Lee, Cliff CLE 406 416 17 Francoeur, Jeff ATL Sampson, Chris HOU 413 414 29 Tracy, Chad ARI Williams, Woody SD 419 409 19 Lowell, Mike BOS Penn, Hayden BAL 377 407 20 Uggla, Dan FLA Myers, Brett PHI 396 403 27 Stairs, Matt DET Dohmann, Scott KC 410 401 13 Duncan, Chris STL Villanueva, Carlos MIL 423 397 22 Spiezio, Scott STL Cordero, Francisco MIL 416 396 13 Hollins, Damon TB Lee, Cliff CLE 375 392 15 Hunter, Torii MIN Vazquez, Javier CWS 395 390 31 Kinsler, Ian TEX Woods, Jake SEA 375 390 14 Mathis, Jeff LAA Harden, Rich OAK 410 384 2 Matsui, Kazuo COL Miller, Wade CHC 390 383 3 Posada, Jorge NYY Accardo, Jeremy TOR 375 383 23 Pujols, Albert STL Villanueva, Carlos MIL 425 380 49 Atkins, Garrett COL Howry, Bob CHC 393 378 29 Quinlan, Robb LAA Witasick, Jay OAK 395 372 9 Counsell, Craig ARI Williams, Woody SD 381 372 4 Loney, James LAD Schmidt, Jason SF 390 368 4 Fielder, Prince MIL Reyes, Anthony STL 396 367 28 McPherson, Dallas LAA Halsey, Brad OAK 379 361 7 Tracy, Chad ARI Hoffman, Trevor SD 369 360 20 Inge, Brandon DET Perez, Odalis KC 392 359 27 Ramirez, Aramis CHC Jimenez, Ubaldo COL 375 357 38 Thomas, Frank OAK Moseley, Dustin LAA 371 356 39 Jenkins, Geoff MIL Reyes, Anthony STL 363 354 17 Suzuki, Ichiro SEA Tejeda, Robinson TEX 337 344 9 Rivera, Mike MIL Sosa, Jorge STL 358 326 6
Player News
Player news items are provided by CBS SportsLine.com.
Devern Hansack threw no-hit ball for five innings before the game was called because of rain, giving Boston a 9-0 win over Baltimore — but not giving the Red Sox rookie official credit for a no-hitter. You have to pitch nine full innings to be credited with a no-no. However, Hansack does get credit for a complete game and a shutout.
Dontrelle Willis left the game in the second inning against Philadelphia because of a sore left triceps. X-rays were negative, and manager Joe Girardi and Willis said the injury wasn’t serious.
The Twins are the first team ever to participate in the postseason after taking sole possession of first place for the first time all season on the final day.
Randy Johnson was optimistic after a bullpen session that he will start Game 3 of the playoffs Friday night. Johnson threw 41 pitches Sunday under the watchful eye of manager Joe Torre, pitching coach Ron Guidry and bullpen coach Joe Kerrigan. “It was surprisingly good,” Johnson said. “Everybody was more pleased than I was, so I guess that’s a good thing. My only concern is a stiff back.”
Joe Mauer became the first catcher to win an AL batting title. In fact, no other AL catcher had even ranked second. Four catchers finished third in the AL batting race (in a season in which their primary fielding position was behind the plate): Bill Dickey (1936), Elston Howard (1964), Thurman Munson (1975), and Brian Downing (1979). (Source: Elias)
Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano became the second pair of keystone-position teammates in major-league history to post a batting average of .340 or higher in the same season (minimum: 100 games at shortstop and second base, respectively).
John Smoltz won his 16th game of the season to tie Aaron Harang, Derek Lowe, Brad Penny, Carlos Zambrano and Brandon Webb for the league lead in victories. Prior to this year, no more than four pitchers had ever finished a season tied for either the AL or NL lead in wins.
Carlos Zambrano became the third pitcher in major-league history to lead his league in wins (either tied or outright) in a season in which his team lost at least 90 games.
Chicago Cubs’ CEO Andy MacPhail announced his resignation.
The Red Sox finished in third-place after placing second in the AL East in each of the past eight seasons. Not only was that the longest streak of consecutive second-place finishes for any team in major-league history, but it’s also longer than any such streak in the NFL, NBA and NHL.
Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein announced that rookie ace reliever Jonathan Papelbon will be converted to a starting pitcher next year.
THT Stats
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