Rain was a factor all throughout baseball on Tuesday night. A pair of games, Dodgers-Twins and Pirates-Orioles, were never started and postponed. Several other games, including Tigers-White Sox, Mets-Phillies, Cubs-Reds, and Blue Jays-Royals, all featured substantial rain delays. Nights like this suck – the evening just turns into a mess of rain and mud, turning games into sloppy, borderline unwatchable messes.
Game of the Night: Nationals 4, Astros 3. Nothing ever goes right for the Astros, does it? Houston led 3-2 after seven, and was looking to knock off the preseason darling Nationals. That all evaporated in the span of two batters in the eighth inning, when Jayson Werth lead the inning off with a single and scored on a double by Adam LaRoche. In the ninth, Washington put the cherry on top and took the lead when LaRoche singled in Denard Span, who reached base on a walk, stole second, and moved up to third on a ground out by Anthony Rendon. Houston put two men on in the bottom of the ninth, but Rafael Soriano forced Jose Altuve to fly out to end the game.
Pitching Lines of the Night: In Miami’s 9-0 thrashing of Atlanta, Jose Fernandez did Jose Fernandez things – two hits in eight shutout innings along with eight strikeouts and two walks. Matt Cain was scratched for the Giants, but Yusmeiro Petit stepped up in their 6-0 win over the Padres, allowing just three hits over six shutout innings, walking none and punching out four. The Mets topped the Phillies 6-1 in a rain-soaked Citizens Bank Park due in large part to Jon Niese allowing one run on four hits in seven innings, striking out five and walking one. John Lackey pitched well for the Red Sox in their 7-4 win over the Rays, giving up two runs on six hits in eight innings, punching out five and walking one. In Houston’s loss to Washington, Jarred Cosart allowed two runs on five hits in six innings, striking out six and walking a pair.
Hitting Lines of the Night: Sal Perez powered the Royals to a 10-7 win over the Blue Jays, going 2/4 with a double, a homer, two runs, and four RBI. Jarrod Saltalamacchia gave Fernandez and the Marlins all the offense they needed, going 3/4 with two runs, a double, and a homer. In Cincinnati’s 3-2 win over the Cubs, Billy Hamilton went 3/4 with his first career homer, two runs, a walk, and a stolen base. Shane Victorino went a perfect 4/4 for the Red Sox, picking up a double and two RBI. Troy Tulowitzki stayed molten to power the Rockies to a5-4 win in Arizona, going 2/3 with a homer, a walk, two runs, and two RBI.
Other Games: As I mentioned earlier, rain claimed the Dodgers-Twins and Pirates-Orioles clashes. The Tigers rallied to beat the White Sox 4-3. Oakland stomped Texas 9-3. The Mariners doubled up the Yankees 6-3. The Brewers edged out the Cardinals 5-4 in 11 innings. The Angels topped the Indians 6-4.
What You Missed: The week’s most exciting walk offs. Robinson Cano surprised Yankees fans on the Tonight Show, and then got booed for real at Yankee Stadium. Mike Minor will make his return for the Braves on Friday. Bryce Harper had his thumb surgery, and is doing juuuuuuuuust fine.
Today’s Games: Matt Garza starts for the Brewers in St. Louis. Max Scherzer gets the nod for the Tigers in Chicago. Chris Archer takes the hill for the Rays in Boston. Bartolo Colon starts for the Mets in Philly. C.J. Wilson and the Angels host the Indians. Aaron Harang and Nate Eovaldi will face off in Miami. Jordan Zimmermann starts for the Nationals in Houston. Zack Greinke takes the hill for the Dodgers in Minnesota. Tim Hudson and the Giants host the Padres.
National TV: Brewers-Cardinals (1:30, MLB Network), Tigers-White Sox (2 PM, MLB Network),
MLB.tv Free Game: Dodgers-Twins (8 PM)
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
