THT Daily: Cubs Win! Cubs Win!
Major League News for September 15
Yesterday’s Results
Today’s Games
Standings
Game of the Day
Yesterday’s Home Runs
Player News
Stats
Yesterday’s Results
American League BOS 6 BAL 5 (Recap and Boxscore) BOS bullpen: 5.1 IP, 0 R NYA 7 TB 4 (Recap and Boxscore) Baldelli: 3B, 2 HR; Rasner: 4 IP, 0 R in relief MIN 9 CLE 4 (Recap and Boxscore) Hunter: 4 RBI, White: 2 2B, HR KC 10 SEA 8 (Recap and Boxscore) Shealy: 2 HR, 5 RBI LAA 2 TEX 1 (Recap and Boxscore) Both bullpens: 9 IP, 0 R National League ATL 4 PHI 1 (Recap and Boxscore) James: 7 IP, 0 R, 7 K CHN 6 LAN 5 (Recap and Boxscore) See below SD 4 CIN 2 (Recap and Boxscore) SD now half game out of first SF 5 COL 0 (Recap and Boxscore) Cain: 8 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 7 K
Today’s Games
Visitors Home Starts CIN - Arroyo B. (13-9, 3.29) CHC - Mateo J. (1-3, 4.75) 2:20 MIN - Santana J.* (18-5, 2.75) CLE - Carmona F. (1-9, 6.24) 7:05 NYM - Martinez P. (9-5, 3.84) PIT - Maholm P.* (7-10, 4.90) 7:05 MIL - Ohka T. (4-5, 4.83) WAS - Ortiz R. (10-13, 5.19) 7:05 BOS - Beckett J. (14-10, 5.09) NYY - Karstens J. (1-1, 4.08) 7:05 BAL - Penn H. (0-2, 36.82) DET - Bonderman J. (11-8, 4.18) 7:05 TB - Seo J. (1-6, 4.65) TOR - Halladay R. (16-5, 3.21) 7:07 FLA - Willis D.* (10-11, 3.75) ATL - Cormier L. (3-4, 4.80) 7:35 PHI - Myers B. (10-6, 4.05) HOU - Clemens R. (6-4, 2.27) 8:05 SF - Schmidt J. (11-8, 3.45) STL - Suppan J. (11-7, 4.25) 8:10 SEA - Cruceta F. (0-0, 6.75) KC - Hudson L. (7-5, 5.25) 8:10 LAA - Weaver J. (11-2, 2.30) TEX - Tejeda R. (4-3, 5.22) 8:35 COL - Kim B. (8-10, 5.37) ARI - Webb B. (15-6, 3.00) 9:40 CWS - Garland J. (17-4, 4.28) OAK - Loaiza E. (9-8, 4.95) 10:05 SD - Wells D.* (0-0, 4.09) LAD - Maddux G. (12-13, 4.38) 10:40
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 89 56 .614 0.0 87 2BOS 78 68 .534 11.5 73 5
TOR 76 70 .521 13.5 77 -1
BAL 63 83 .432 26.5 63 0
TB 57 89 .390 32.5 58 -1
American League Central DET 87 59 .596 0.0 86 1
MIN 86 60 .589 1.0 83 3
CHA 84 62 .575 3.0 83 1
CLE 68 77 .469 18.5 79 -11
KC 57 90 .388 30.5 57 0
American League West OAK 83 62 .572 0.0 77 6
LAA 79 68 .537 5.0 76 3
TEX 74 73 .503 10.0 78 -4
SEA 69 77 .473 14.5 69 0
National League East Pwins Diff NYN 90 55 .621 0.0 84 6
PHI 74 72 .507 16.5 75 -1
FLA 73 73 .500 17.5 74 -1
ATL 70 76 .479 20.5 75 -5
WAS 63 83 .432 27.5 62 1
National League Central STL 77 68 .531 0.0 73 4
CIN 72 74 .493 5.5 70 2
HOU 71 74 .490 6.0 73 -2
MIL 66 80 .452 11.5 64 2
PIT 60 87 .408 18.0 63 -3
CHN 59 88 .401 19.0 60 -1
National League West LAN 77 69 .527 0.0 79 -2
SD 76 69 .524 0.5 76 0
SF 74 72 .507 3.0 74 0
ARI 69 77 .473 8.0 72 -3
COL 68 78 .466 9.0 73 -5
Wildcard Standings American League MIN 86 60 .589 0.0 CHA 84 62 .575 2.0 LAA 79 68 .537 7.5 BOS 78 68 .534 8.0 TOR 76 70 .521 10.0 National League SD 76 69 .524 0.0 PHI 74 72 .507 2.5 SF 74 72 .507 2.5 FLA 73 73 .500 3.5 CIN 72 74 .493 4.5
Game of the Day
The Cubs tallied four runs in the seventh inning to beat the Dodgers, 6-5. The big blow was Aramis Ramirez’s three-run homer off Brett Tomko. Ramirez now has 100 RBI’s for the season. He had only 25 through the end of May (57th in the league at the time), but his 75 RBI’s since June 1 are tied for fifth-most in the NL. The Cubs may regret that player option they gave him.
The Dodgers return home after a series in which they lost twice by blowing leads at Wrigley Field. Los Angeles begins a key four-game series Friday with second-place San Diego, which beat the Reds 4-2 yesterday.
LA DODGERS (5) VS CHICAGO CUBS (6) - FINAL
LA DODGERS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
R Furcal ss 4 0 0 0 0 2 2 .296
K Lofton cf 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .302
N Garciaparra 1b 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 .308
J Drew rf 2 2 1 3 2 0 0 .276
J Kent 2b 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .277
W Betemit 3b 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .270
b-O Saenz ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .289
R Martinez 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .284
M Anderson lf 2 1 1 2 2 0 0 .281
R Martin c 4 0 0 0 0 0 3 .288
H Kuo p 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000
a-J Lugo ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .220
B Tomko p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .120
J Broxton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
c-A Ethier ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .320
Totals 30 5 4 5 5 7 9
a-grounded to third for H Kuo in the 7th; b-struck out swinging for W Betemit
in the 8th; c-struck out swinging for J Broxton in the 9th.
BATTING: HR - M Anderson (7, 2nd inning off W Miller 1 on, 2 Out), J Drew (16,
6th inning off C Marmol 2 on, 0 Out). S - H Kuo. RBI - M Anderson 2 (28), J
Drew 3 (85). 2-out RBI - M Anderson 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out
- R Furcal 2. Team LOB - 4.
CHICAGO CUBS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Pierre cf 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 .289
R Theriot 2b 4 1 2 1 0 0 0 .310
C Izturis ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .249
A Ramirez 3b 4 2 2 3 0 1 1 .285
D Lee 1b 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 .287
M Murton lf 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 .299
A Pagan rf 4 0 1 2 0 1 1 .265
H Blanco c 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .267
R Cedeno ss-2b 3 1 1 0 0 1 3 .246
W Miller p 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000
a-F Bynum ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .258
C Marmol p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .261
S Eyre p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
b-J Jones ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .283
M Wuertz p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
W Ohman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000
B Howry p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000
Totals 34 6 11 6 0 9 9
a-struck out swinging for W Miller in the 5th; b-struck out looking for S Eyre
in the 7th.
BATTING: 3B - A Pagan (2, H Kuo). HR - A Ramirez (33, 7th inning off B Tomko 2
on, 2 Out). RBI - A Pagan 2 (17), R Theriot (11), A Ramirez 3 (100). 2-out RBI
- R Theriot, A Ramirez 3. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - R Cedeno 1.
Team LOB - 4.
BASERUNNING: CS - J Pierre (19, 2nd base by H Kuo).
----------------------------------------------------
LA DODGERS - 020 003 000 -- 5
CHICAGO CUBS - 000 200 40x -- 6
----------------------------------------------------
LA DODGERS ip h r er bb so hr era
H Kuo 6 7 2 2 0 6 0 4.25
B Tomko (L, 8-7; B, 3) 1 4 4 4 0 1 1 5.00
J Broxton 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 2.55
CHICAGO CUBS ip h r er bb so hr era
W Miller 5 1 2 2 3 3 1 6.75
C Marmol 1/3 3 3 3 0 0 1 5.68
S Eyre (W, 1-2) 1 2/3 0 0 0 1 2 0 2.95
M Wuertz (H, 6) 2/3 0 0 0 1 0 0 3.00
W Ohman (H, 9) 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 0 4.23
B Howry (S, 5) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.28
Pitches-strikes: H Kuo 93-65; B Tomko 25-18; J Broxton 10-7; W Miller 81-49;
C Marmol 11-6; S Eyre 26-17; M Wuertz 17-9; W Ohman 5-3; B Howry 16-11. Ground
balls-fly balls: H Kuo 6-5; B Tomko 1-1; J Broxton 0-1; W Miller 6-6; C Marmol
0-1; S Eyre 2-1; M Wuertz 0-2; W Ohman 0-0; B Howry 1-1. Batters faced: H Kuo
24; B Tomko 7; J Broxton 3; W Miller 19; C Marmol 4; S Eyre 6; M Wuertz 3; W
Ohman 1; B Howry 3.
UMPIRES: HP--Jim Wolf. 1B--Joe West. 2B--Ed Rapuano. 3B--Tony Randazzo.
T--2:39. Att--31,361.
Weather: 70 degrees, sunny. Wind: 12 mph, in from 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 # White, Rondell MIN Cabrera, Fernando CLE 414 439 7 Baldelli, Rocco TB Karstens, Jeff NYY 421 437 13 Jones, Andruw ATL Moyer, Jamie PHI 439 427 34 Marte, Andy CLE Crain, Jesse MIN 404 427 3 Ramirez, Aramis CHC Tomko, Brett LAD 401 426 33 Molina, Jose LAA Volquez, Edinson TEX 436 425 4 Hunter, Torii MIN Cabrera, Fernando CLE 405 423 25 Shealy, Ryan KC Washburn, Jarrod SEA 423 413 5 Drew, J.D. LAD Marmol, Carlos CHC 376 402 16 Matsui, Hideki NYY Shields, James TB 401 401 6 Prado, Martin ATL Moyer, Jamie PHI 396 398 1 Anderson, Marlon LAD Miller, Wade CHC 374 387 7 Baldelli, Rocco TB Karstens, Jeff NYY 365 386 12 Shealy, Ryan KC Fruto, Emiliano SEA 401 382 6 Suzuki, Ichiro SEA Perez, Odalis KC 375 375 8 Beltre, Adrian SEA Nelson, Joe KC 357 333 18
Player News
Player news items are provided by CBS SportsLine.com.
Francisco Liriano and the Minnesota Twins are somewhat relieved, yet mostly mystifed over the rookie left-hander’s latest test results. “The MRI came back exactly the same as the previous one,” Twins general manager Gerry Ryan said Thursday. “He has a ligament strain, but there is no structural damage. That’s the good news. Now we have to find out why he’s having pain. We’re not going to mess around with his future.” Ryan said the Twins will take an ultra-conservative approach with Liriano, who made only 28 pitches Wednesday against Oakland in his first start in more than a month – then walked off the mound, saying he heard a pop in his elbow.
The Arizona Diamondbacks told left fielder Luis Gonzalez they will not bring him back next season. “Obviously, this is a very difficult day for the organization,” general manager Josh Byrnes said during a news conference. “Gonzo’s done about everything you can in this market as a player and as a person. “Change isn’t easy, but we feel very good about the cast that will continue to wear the uniform.” Byrnes, managing partner Jeff Moorad and assistant general manager Peter Woodfork informed Gonzalez and his representatives of the club’s decision during a breakfast meeting. Moorad used to be Gonzalez’s agent, and he negotiated the player’s current contract. Byrnes said Eric Byrnes, who has played center field this year, would become the team’s everyday left fielder next season. Chris Young, who was recently promoted from Triple-A Tucson, will take over in center. Another rookie, Carlos Quentin, is penciled in for right field.
Matt Cain allowed two hits in eight superb innings to win his fourth straight start, and the San Francisco Giants gained ground in the NL West race with a 5-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday. Cain (13-9), their dominant rookie right-hander, made it easy with another standout performance. Cain retired 10 of Colorado’s first 11 hitters, then retired 13 straight after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning. He had seven strikeouts and never tired in a 118-pitch outing, beating the Rockies for the third time this season. Cain has allowed no more than one run in each of his last six starts. In the last 50 seasons only one other rookie pitcher had a streak of at least that length. Fernando Valenzuela surrendered one or no runs in seven consecutive starts in 1981.
With light rain falling and showers in the forecast, Yankees manager Joe Torre scratched starter Chien-Ming Wang and picked rookie Jeff Karstens to pitch on Thursday against Tampa Bay. Karstens pitched five innings, giving up four runs, six hits and a walk for a no-decision.
Derek Jeter extended his hitting streak to 23 games on Thursday against Tampa Bay. Jeter’s hitting streak is the longest by a Yankees player since Don Mattingly’s 24-game string in 1986.
Hideki Matsui lined his first home run since missing more than 100 games because of a broken left wrist on Thursday against Tampa Bay.
Mike Cameron’s two-run single on a 3-2 pitch broke a scoreless tie in the seventh inning and ignited the Padres to a 4-2 win over the Reds. Clay Hensley (9-11) struck out a career-high seven batters and retired 14 in a row over one stretch in a win on Thursday at Cincinnati. The right-hander gave up a pair of runs in 6 2/3 innings.
Trevor Hoffman struck out two in a perfect ninth for his 474th career save on Thursday at Cincinnati, leaving him four shy of Lee Smith’s record. Hoffman has converted 38 of his 42 chances this season, a big reason why the Padres are still in playoff contention.
Jarrod Washburn had a 1.49 ERA, best in the majors among active pitchers with at least six starts, and a 4-0 record in six previous career starts in Kauffman Stadium. It went up to 2.66 after Thursday night’s outing, in which he gave up six runs and 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings in a loss.
Los Angeles Angels starter Kelvim Escobar left Thursday night’s game at Texas with a sore left knee. Escobar allowed one run and two hits over four innings with three walks and two strikeouts. He was replaced by Hector Carrasco at the start of the fifth inning.
Rocco Baldelli homered twice and tripled for the Devil Rays on Thursday against the Yankees.
Twins OF Rondell White hit his seventh home run of the season on Thursday as the Twins beat the Indians 9-4. His homer came in the eighth after Torii Hunter hit a two-run homer.White also had two more hits in the game and finished with two RBI.
Indians SP Cliff Lee pitched only four innings on Thursday and had a pitch count of 102, but got a no-decision as the Indians lost 9-4 to the Twins. Despite the high pitch count, Lee only surrended one run, five hits, walked two and struck out three.
The Indians used nine pitchers in their 9-4 loss to Minnesota, one shy of the major-league record for a nine-inning game (10 by the Orioles on Sept. 12, 2004, against the Yankees). Cleveland’s hurlers threw 218 pitches, the third-most in any nine-inning American League game this season. (Source: Elias)
Minnesota SP Boof Bonser pitched 5 2/3 innings, gave up three runs, five hits and struck out six on Thursday. The Twins beat the Indians 9-4 but Bonser got a no-decision.
Phillies LHP Randy Wolf is likely to start on three days rest Sunday at Houston after throwing just 52 pitches and leaving with a 5-0 deficit after two full innings Wednesday against Atlanta.
Devil Rays starter James Shields left before the sixth because of cramping in his right hamstring on Thursday against the Yankees. Shields pitched five innings, giving up four runs, six hits and a walk.
Braves RP Bob Wickman recorded his 14th save for the Braves in Thursday’s 4-1 win over the Phillies. It was his 29th save on the season (15 with the Indians).
Atlanta SP Chuck James pitched seven shutout innings as the Atlanta Braves beat Philadelphia 4-1 on Thursday. James (10-3) allowed five hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. The rookie left-hander has won four straight starts and is 6-0 with a 1.69 ERA in his last eight games.
Kris Benson intends to talk the Baltimore Orioles’ front office during the offseason before making a decision on returning to the team in 2007. Benson was traded from the New York Mets in January. Because he has at least five years of major league experience and was dealt in the middle of a multiyear pact, he has the right to request a trade during the upcoming offseason. The right-hander signed a three-year, $22.5 million contract with New York before the 2005 season. The deal also included a $7.5 million club option for 2008. “As far as my future with the team, right now I’m returning,” Benson said Thursday. “As far as any other turn of events, that’s just going to have to wait until the offseason.”
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Carlos Zambrano (back) could return soon, although he’s not expected to pitch this weekend. “He just had his first bullpen [throwing session Thursday],” manager Dusty Baker said. “You can’t not pick up a ball for 10 days and all of a sudden just go pitch. It’s not fair to him, especially if he’s already worried about his back and potentially worried about his shoulder.”
Chicago’s Wade Miller, in his second start of the season after off-season shoulder surgery, allowed two runs on one hit and three walks in a no-decision on Thursday against the Dodgers.
The Atlanta Braves put third baseman Chipper Jones on the 15-day disabled list Thursday night so their insurance company will pay a portion of his $13.6 million salary. Jones hasn’t played since sustaining another strain to his oblique muscle on his left side Sept. 3. The move was made retroactive to Sept. 4.
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