Something sort of interesting happened last night when all of the games were finished – the Mets were just as close to a Wild Card spot as the Yankees. Sure, both teams are 5.5 games out, which isn’t exactly a small deficit, but it’s kind of wild that people (myself included) talk about the Yankees still technically being alive when…well, the Mets are in the exact same boat, and everyone laughs at them for being the Mets. Per Baseball Prospectus, the Yankees still do have better odds at making the Postseason than the Mets – 0.7% to 0.2% – but combined, that’s less than 1%. Neither team is going to get there. But just think about it for a second – when was the last time that the Yankees were nearly as hopeless as the Mets in September? The winds of change…yeah, they’re blowing pretty strong.
Game of the Night: Marlins 6, Brewers 3. We may look back at this game as the one that effectively ended Milwaukee’s season. With the game tied at three in the eighth with no one out, Jean Segura reached first base after a sac bunt attempt resulted in an error on Bryan Morris. That loaded the bases for the Brewers’ 9, 1, and 2 hitters. Disaster unfolded. Rickie Weeks pinch hit for Jonathan Broxton, and grounded into a fielder’s choice force out at home. One out. Carlos Gomez stepped up, and did the SAME THING. Two outs. It was all up to Scooter Gennett to get a run in, and he flew out (which if done by Weeks or Gomez, would have driven in a run) to end the inning. In the ninth, K-Rod came onto the hill for the Brewers and got lit up. He retired both Christian Yelich and Donovan Solano to start the inning, then walked Giancarlo Stanton…and gave up a go-ahead, two-run homer to Casey McGehee. Marcell Ozuna followed up with a homer of his own to make it a three-run lead for the Marlins. The Brewers actually put two men on with one out in the ninth, but Steve Cishek got Khris Davis to line out and Jason Rogers to fly out to end the game in painful fashion for the Brew Crew.
Pitching Lines of the Night: In the Mets’ 2-0 win over the Rockies, Jacob deGrom strengthened his Rookie of the Year case, tossing eight shutout innings while allowing three hits, striking out nine without a walk. Yusmeiro Petit shined once again for the Giants in their 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks, giving up just one run on four hits in a complete game victory, striking out nine and walking none. Collin McHugh shut down the Mariners in Houston’s 2-1 win, allowing one run on two hits in eight innings, punching out four without a walk. Jon Lester helped the A’s beat the White Sox 11-2, allowing two runs on seven hist in eight innings, striking out eight and walking a pair.
Hitting Lines of the Night: In Baltimore’s 4-1 win over Boston, new acquisition Alejandro de Aza went 3/4 with a double, two homers, three RBI, and a walk. Josh Donaldson helped the A’s end their funk, going 5/6 with a double, two runs, and four RBI. Freddy Galvis went 3/3 with a double, a solo homer, three runs scored, and a stolen base in Philly’s 4-3 win over Pittsburgh. In the Reds’ 9-5 win over the Cardinals, Devin Mesoraco went 2/3 with a double, a homer, three runs, three RBI, and two walks. Marcell Ozuna went 3/3 with a homer, two runs, two RBI, and two walks in Miami’s win in Milwaukee. In the Rangers’ 9-3 loss to the Angels, Adrian Beltre went 3/3 with a solo homer, a walk, and two runs scored. James Loney went 3/4 with a homer and two RBI in Tampa Bay’s 4-3 win over the Yankees.
Other Games: The Nationals beat the Braves 6-4. The Twins edged the Indians 4-3. The Blue Jays stomped the Cubs 9-2. The Tigers doubled up the Royals 4-2. The Padres defeated the Dodgers 6-3.
Today’s Games: Wei-Yin Chen starts for the Orioles in Boston. Stephen Strasburg and the Nationals look to sweep the Braves and effectively end their hopes of an NL East crown. James Shields and Rick Porcello will duel in Detroit. Jake Odorizzi gets the nod for the Rays in the Bronx. Jarred Cosart starts for the Marlins in Milwaukee. Matt Shoemaker and the Angels take on the Rangers. Jeff Samardzija takes the hill for the A’s in Chicago against the White Sox. Ryan Vogelsong and the Giants host the Diamondbacks. Hisashi Iwakuma and the Mariners take on the Astros. Ian Kennedy starts for the Padres in Los Angeles against the Dodgers.
National TV: Braves-Nationals (4 PM, MLB Network), Royals-Tigers (7 PM, ESPN), Diamondbacks-Giants (10 PM, ESPN)
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
