Anibal Sanchez made his Tigers debut yesterday, and well….it wasn't exactly what Detroit was hoping for. Sanchez pitched into the seventh inning, but didn't get an out before getting pulled. He allowed eight hits and five runs, walking three and striking out three. The major sticking point for Sanchez's debut: he allowed three homers to Toronto, leading to a 5-1 loss against the Blue Jays. Omar Infante, who came to the Tigers along with Sanchez in the trade, is also struggling, with a 2/17 mark with no extra base hits and just one walk since being dealt. You can't judge a deal in the week it's made, but so far, neither player has lived up to the hype brought upon to them by many people, myself including.
Game of the Night: Red Sox 8, Yankees 6. Yankees-Red Sox, blah blah blah. This was one of their typical long games, extended by a two hour rain delay, but it was a good one. Boston jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first off of CC Sabathia, and after an Adrian Gonzalez three-run homer in the fifth, it was a 6-1 game. Of course, the Yankees battled back, getting three in the sixth to make it a 6-4 game, and two in the eighth on a Mark Teixeira homer to tie the game. The Red Sox would rally in the ninth against New York closer Rafael Soriano, scoring one on a Pedro Ciriaco RBI triple, and one more on a Dustin Pedoria sac fly. Alfredo Aceves shut his former team down on just eight pitches in the bottom of the inning, and that was that for the Yankees.
Pitching Lines of the Night: Mike Minor of the Braves allowed just one run over eight in a 2-1 win over the Phillies, giving up four hits and striking out nine without a walk. Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley threw 7 1/3 shutout innings in a 10-0 blowout win over the Dodgers, allowing four hits and striking out a pair of batters without a walk. How about another bizarre start from an unheralded Twins starter? Samuel Deduno went seven in a 12-5 Twins win over the Indians, allowing one run on two hits, walking five and striking out six.
Hitting Lines of the Night: Ike Davis of the Mets went 4/4 with a walk and three solo homers, but the Mets still lost 6-3 in Arizona. Matt Kemp powered the Dodgers offense in that blowout win in San Francisco, going 4/5 and scoring three runs, driving in four, doubling twice, and hitting his 15th homer of the year. Adrian Gonzalez went 3/5 with two runs, four RBI, doubling, and homering. In a 9-7 Reds win over the Rockies, Ryan Ludwick went 2/4 with a pair of solo homers. The A's beat the Orioles 6-1, and Yoenis Cespedes went 2/4 with two runs, three RBI, a triple, and a homer.
Other Games: The Cubs edged the Cardinals 3-2. The Pirates had another comeback win, beating the Astros 4-3. The Mariners beat the Royals 4-3 to knock Kansas City into the basement of the AL Central. The Nationals hit three homers in a 4-1 win over the Brewers. Nate Eovaldi won his Marlins debut, 4-2 over the Padres. The White Sox scored early in Texas, and hung on to beat the Rangers 5-2. The Rays shut out the Angels 3-0.
Today's Games: Doug Fister starts for the Tigers in Toronto. Josh Johnson possibly makes his final start as a Marlin, as Miami hosts San Diego. Roy Halladay looks to help the Phillies avoid a sweep at the hands of Tim Hudson and the Braves. Pirates ace James McDonald starts in Houston. Gio Gonzalez starts in Milwaukee against Mark Rogers, making his major league debut. Zack Greinke makes his Angels debut, at home against Jeremy Hellickson and the Rays. Felix Hernandez starts for the Mariners against the Royals. Adam Wainwright starts for the Cardinals at Wrigley Field against the Cubs. Mat Latos starts for the Reds in Colorado against Jonathan Sanchez. Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers take on Ryan Vogelsong and the Giants. RA Dickey will start for the Mets in Arizona.
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
