While teammates Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright are getting publicity for the Cy Young Award, Joel Pineiro is proving the Cardinals have something to offer a little deeper in the starting rotation. Pineiro won his fifth straight decision on Saturday night, allowing three runs pitching into the seventh inning of a 7-4 victory over the San Diego Padres.
As the most effective pitcher in the Los Angeles Angels' starting rotation, John Lackey has become a leader by example and a tutor by request. Lackey allowed one run in seven innings, and the Angels beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-1 on Saturday night to spoil the Camden Yards debut of rookie left-hander Brian Matusz.
Craig Counsell had three hits and drove in three runs, Mike Burns pitched seven solid innings and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Houston Astros 6-2 on Saturday night. The victory gave Milwaukee three consecutive wins for the first time since sweeping Cleveland June 15-17. Houston has lost five of six games.
Two days of rest and treatment was enough for Alex Rodriguez to feel better. He's jumping back into the New York Yankees lineup just in time to be welcomed back by the lustful boos that come with every visit to Seattle. Rodriguez was back in the Yankees lineup on Saturday night, batting fourth and playing third base after missing consecutive games with a sore elbow and back.
The Minnesota Twins are leaving too many men on base. Their pesky slap-and-run game is rarely getting off the ground despite a sharp increase in power this season. That's what happens when the starting pitching stops working. Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore hit early homers Saturday to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 7-3 victory over the Twins, another failure by Minnesota to create some…
Brad Lidge is still confident in his abilities, even as he continues to accumulate blown saves. Lidge committed two errors on one play to help set up Omar Infante's game-ending single and the Atlanta Braves rallied to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 on Saturday. Lidge (0-5) picked up his eighth blown save and second in five days, aiding Atlanta's rally by botching Matt Diaz's…
Now that they've proven they can win in Oakland, the Chicago White Sox are hoping to make believers out of the rest of the American League. Jayson Nix and Jim Thome each homered, Gavin Floyd pitched seven strong innings and the White Sox beat the Athletics 8-1 on Saturday for their third straight road win after managing just five all of July.
A masterful pitching duel turned ugly after David Wright was hit in the helmet by a pitch from Matt Cain, and Bengie Molina homered in the 10th inning to give the San Francisco Giants a 5-4 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday. Cain and fellow All-Star Johan Santana were locked in a scoreless matchup at Citi Field until the forth inning, when Cain nailed Wright with a 94 mph fastball.
Tom Gorzelanny doesn't mind pitching close to home one bit, especially when he's going against his former team. Gorzelanny tossed five effective innings, Jeff Baker homered and drove in two runs and the Chicago Cubs defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-1 on Saturday. Gorzelanny, who grew up in the south suburbs of Chicago, was pitching for the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis…
The Philadelphia Phillies say right-hander Brett Myers has changed his description of how he sustained an injury that forced him to miss his first scheduled rehab start. The Phillies originally said Saturday that Myers injured an eye while playing catch with his 4-year-old son. Later in the day, Phillies spokesman Kevin Gregg said Myers told general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.
