WASHINGTON — The Washington Nationals finally brought winning baseball back to the nation's capital. They also collapsed in the postseason in a way that will be tough to live down.Washington's historic season came to an end Friday night with a 9-7 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 5 of the NL Division Series. The Nationals sported the best record in baseball during the regular season, but the newfangled "Natitude" of a roster flush with young postseason neophytes blew a six-run lead against the experienced club that won the World Series a year ago.Closer Drew Storen took the mound with a two-run lead in the ninth and gave up four runs, allowing two-run singles to Daniel Descalso and Pete Kozma. Storen had the Cardinals down to their last strike with two outs, but he walked Yadier Molina and David Freese."We had it right there, and the most disappointing thing I'll say is that I just let these guys down," Storen said. "I know there's an unbelievable crowd and unbelievable support, but for the amount of adversity we dealt with this year, for it to come down to that was kind of tough."It was the largest comeback ever in a winner-take-all postseason game, according to STATS LLC. No other club in this sort of ultimate pressure situation had come back from more than four runs down.Storen threw five pitches with two strikes and two outs in the ninth. All were balls."I think he just tried to be too fine," Washington manager Davey Johnson said. "He's got a great-moving fastball. Just need to throw it over."Storen said he had no problems with the umpire's strike zone. The Cardinals were just disciplined at the plate when it counted."I made good pitches," he said. "I wouldn't change a thing. I have no regrets."The Nationals had been let down by their bats in the first four games of the series, scoring only nine runs. But they greeted Adam Wainwright with a double, triple and homer by Jayson Werth, Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman in the first inning and chased the St. Louis starter with home runs by Harper and Michael Morse in the third.The Cardinals battled back, cutting into the 6-0 deficit with a run in the fourth, two in the fifth, one in the seventh and one in the eighth. Descalso's solo homer in the eighth off Tyler Clippard made it a one-run game, but Washington pulled back ahead by two in the bottom of the inning on Kurt Suzuki's RBI single.But Storen, who regained the closer's job late in the season after Clippard struggled, couldn't finish the job. The season of Natitude was over.In the clubhouse afterward, part-owner Mark Lerner patted players on the shoulder and shook their hands. He wiped a tear from his eye as he spoke to Morse."Someone just said to me, 'We've learned to win now,' " Lerner said. "And that's no easy task."At least the series gave the local faithful an uplifting moment no one will forget anytime soon: Werth's bottom-of-the-ninth homer on the 13th pitch of an at-bat that gave the Nationals a 2-1 win in Game 4.
Showing posts with label Cards. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cards. Show all posts
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Gruff Ochiai needs to change if return is in cards
The Pacific League's Orix Buffaloes announced on Sept. 25 manager Akinobu Okada will not return to run the club next season, and speculation about his replacement indicates Japanese baseball Hall of Famer and former Chunichi Dragons skipper Hiromitsu Ochiai is one of the candidates who might be appointed as the Buffs' new field boss.
Attitude adjustment: Hiromitsu Ochiai's surly disposition won him few admirers during his time as a manager. KYODOOrix is scheduled to play its final game of the year on Monday, and Japanese teams usually do not delay in naming new managers, what with the amateur draft coming up in less than three weeks and a fall camp to be run.In considering Ochiai, the Buffaloes — or another Japanese team that might be looking for a new man to run the team, for that matter — will have to weigh his proven success as a manager against a reputation as a media-unfriendly guy who did not appear to emit a positive image as a symbol of the Chunichi ballclub.Sure, in eight seasons (2004-11) at the Dragons' helm, he led them to four Central League pennants and a Japan Series championship in 2007 after finishing second and winning the Climax Series. His Nagoya team narrowly lost last year's Japan Series in seven games to the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks and, with that kind of a record, the 58-year-old Ochiai should still be directing traffic from the Dragons bench.However, he was let go, and that decision was made in September of last year, even before Chunichi completed its 2011 season. The said reason for the team's parting with Ochiai was the fact his image was not helping the team's public relations and attendance figures for home games at Nagoya Dome.Having covered Japanese baseball for more than 37 years, I can tell you Ochiai has changed a lot since he broke in as a young infielder with the Lotte Orions in 1979. He soon became a star but would always say hello, pose for a photo if requested, and he was always polite and sociable.After winning three Triple Crowns with the Orions and achieving superstar status, he was traded in 1987 to the Dragons where he continued to perform as one of the best offensive players in Japanese baseball. He maintained his pleasant personality and continued friendly relations with the fans and media.Then he became a free agent and signed with the Yomiuri Giants in 1994, playing as the regular first baseman on that year's Japan Series-winning team. Ochiai seemed at that time to distance himself somewhat from his surroundings.In 1995, he banged out his 2,000th career hit but refused to join the Meikyukai Golden Players Club supposedly because he had been criticized during his career by Masaichi Kaneda, one of the leaders of the GPC. Ochiai wound up his brilliant playing career as a designated hitter with the Nippon Ham Fighters in 1997-98 before retiring as an active player.He later became part of the media himself, serving as a radio-TV commentator before being appointed the Chunichi manager in October of 2003.At the Japan Series that year, played between the Daiei Hawks and Hanshin Tigers, I happened to run into him in the press box at Fukuoka Dome a few days after he got the new job. As I passed behind where he was sitting, I tapped him on the shoulder and offered a few words of congratulations."Omedeto gozaimasu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu," I said, meaning, "Let's have a good relationship from next year."To my surprise, he responded with a backward wave of a hand that seemed to be shooing me away. He did not say anything.Except at press conferences when Chunichi played in the 2007 Asian Series, I never once had the opportunity to speak to him during his tenure as the manager of the Dragons. I often wondered if, by chance, I had passed him one-on-one in a corridor of the ballpark, he would even say hello.Ochiai seemed to make minimum appearances on the field during pre-game batting practice and, when he did come out of the dugout, he would head straight over and stand behind the batting cage, not making eye contact with beat writers and other media members hoping for the chance to ask a question or have a chat.Most Japanese managers "hold court," inviting radio and TV announcers and writers to join them on the bench during the pre-game warm-ups in a sort-of mini-press briefing for 10 minutes or so. I never saw Ochiai do this, but his successor, the current Dragons field boss Morimichi Takagi, does it all the time.For those eight seasons, the media covering Chunichi games must have had it tough, needing to write without being able to get comments from the team leader, and I wonder why Ochiai did not seem to be very cooperative.He is not a bad guy and, if he does get hired as manager by Orix or another Japanese team now or in the coming years, it would be great if he could somehow reverse the change he made several years ago and return to the smiling, amicable Hiromitsu Ochiai I knew as a player with Lotte those many years ago.I would like to congratulate him again if he gets another job and shake his hand. Next time, though, I would hope for a smile and a response on the order of something like, "Thanks, and I'll see you at the ballpark."Contact Wayne Graczyk at: Wayne@JapanBall.com
Attitude adjustment: Hiromitsu Ochiai's surly disposition won him few admirers during his time as a manager. KYODOOrix is scheduled to play its final game of the year on Monday, and Japanese teams usually do not delay in naming new managers, what with the amateur draft coming up in less than three weeks and a fall camp to be run.In considering Ochiai, the Buffaloes — or another Japanese team that might be looking for a new man to run the team, for that matter — will have to weigh his proven success as a manager against a reputation as a media-unfriendly guy who did not appear to emit a positive image as a symbol of the Chunichi ballclub.Sure, in eight seasons (2004-11) at the Dragons' helm, he led them to four Central League pennants and a Japan Series championship in 2007 after finishing second and winning the Climax Series. His Nagoya team narrowly lost last year's Japan Series in seven games to the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks and, with that kind of a record, the 58-year-old Ochiai should still be directing traffic from the Dragons bench.However, he was let go, and that decision was made in September of last year, even before Chunichi completed its 2011 season. The said reason for the team's parting with Ochiai was the fact his image was not helping the team's public relations and attendance figures for home games at Nagoya Dome.Having covered Japanese baseball for more than 37 years, I can tell you Ochiai has changed a lot since he broke in as a young infielder with the Lotte Orions in 1979. He soon became a star but would always say hello, pose for a photo if requested, and he was always polite and sociable.After winning three Triple Crowns with the Orions and achieving superstar status, he was traded in 1987 to the Dragons where he continued to perform as one of the best offensive players in Japanese baseball. He maintained his pleasant personality and continued friendly relations with the fans and media.Then he became a free agent and signed with the Yomiuri Giants in 1994, playing as the regular first baseman on that year's Japan Series-winning team. Ochiai seemed at that time to distance himself somewhat from his surroundings.In 1995, he banged out his 2,000th career hit but refused to join the Meikyukai Golden Players Club supposedly because he had been criticized during his career by Masaichi Kaneda, one of the leaders of the GPC. Ochiai wound up his brilliant playing career as a designated hitter with the Nippon Ham Fighters in 1997-98 before retiring as an active player.He later became part of the media himself, serving as a radio-TV commentator before being appointed the Chunichi manager in October of 2003.At the Japan Series that year, played between the Daiei Hawks and Hanshin Tigers, I happened to run into him in the press box at Fukuoka Dome a few days after he got the new job. As I passed behind where he was sitting, I tapped him on the shoulder and offered a few words of congratulations."Omedeto gozaimasu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu," I said, meaning, "Let's have a good relationship from next year."To my surprise, he responded with a backward wave of a hand that seemed to be shooing me away. He did not say anything.Except at press conferences when Chunichi played in the 2007 Asian Series, I never once had the opportunity to speak to him during his tenure as the manager of the Dragons. I often wondered if, by chance, I had passed him one-on-one in a corridor of the ballpark, he would even say hello.Ochiai seemed to make minimum appearances on the field during pre-game batting practice and, when he did come out of the dugout, he would head straight over and stand behind the batting cage, not making eye contact with beat writers and other media members hoping for the chance to ask a question or have a chat.Most Japanese managers "hold court," inviting radio and TV announcers and writers to join them on the bench during the pre-game warm-ups in a sort-of mini-press briefing for 10 minutes or so. I never saw Ochiai do this, but his successor, the current Dragons field boss Morimichi Takagi, does it all the time.For those eight seasons, the media covering Chunichi games must have had it tough, needing to write without being able to get comments from the team leader, and I wonder why Ochiai did not seem to be very cooperative.He is not a bad guy and, if he does get hired as manager by Orix or another Japanese team now or in the coming years, it would be great if he could somehow reverse the change he made several years ago and return to the smiling, amicable Hiromitsu Ochiai I knew as a player with Lotte those many years ago.I would like to congratulate him again if he gets another job and shake his hand. Next time, though, I would hope for a smile and a response on the order of something like, "Thanks, and I'll see you at the ballpark."Contact Wayne Graczyk at: Wayne@JapanBall.comSunday, May 20, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Gallardo can't handle Cards
ST. LOUIS — Milwaukee starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo is well aware of his struggles against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Elevation: Los Angeles shortstop Dee Gordon jumps over Washington's Adam LaRoche after forcing him out while unsuccessfully trying to complete a double play in the fourth inning on Friday night. The Dodgers downed the Nationals 3-2. APHe simply doesn't know how to correct the problem.Gallardo's woes continued Friday night as he gave up eight earned runs in a two-inning stint during a 13-1 loss at St. Louis. Gallardo fell to 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA in 13 career regular-season starts against the Cardinals."He wasn't locating the ball at all," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Everything went wrong."Gallardo (1-2) surrendered just four earned runs in three seven-inning starts prior to Friday's contest. But he gave up eight runs on seven hits in the third inning. He also gave up six earned runs in 3? innings of an 11-5 loss to St. Louis on April 6."In the two or three starts I had before tonight, I just went out there and pitched my game," Gallardo said. "I wasn't thinking about too much. Today, I tried to do everything. I tried to do a lot more than I am capable of."Dodgers 3, Nationals 2In Los Angeles, Clayton Kershaw won his 10th straight decision, Andre Ethier hit a two-run homer and the Dodgers beat Washington in a matchup of the top two teams in the National League.Kershaw (2-0) allowed three hits over eight innings with six strikeouts and a walk. The league's reigning Cy Young Award winner became the first Dodgers pitcher to win 10 consecutive decisions since Ramon Martinez from August 1995 through May 1996.Padres 5, Giants 3In San Francisco, Nick Hundley matched his career high with four hits to help San Diego beat the Giants.Cory Luebke (3-1) pitched six strong innings to win his third consecutive start. He gave up two runs and seven hits.Cubs 5, Phillies 1In Philadelphia, Paul Maholm outpitched Roy Halladay to lead the Cubs past the Phillies.Rockies 18, Mets 9In Denver, Carlos Gonzalez was at the center of an 11-run fifth inning, hitting a homer and a single to drive in five of his six RBIs, and Colorado overcame Scott Hairston's cycle in a wild win over New York.Diamondbacks 5, Marlins 0In Miami, Joe Saunders pitched a three-hitter, Jason Kubel tied a career best with four hits and Arizona sent the hosts to their sixth straight loss.Astros 6, Reds 4In Cincinnati, Jose Altuve drove in two runs with a triple and a double, leading Wandy Rodriguez and Houston past the Reds.Braves 6, Pirates 1In Atlanta, Tommy Hanson allowed one run in six innings, Dan Uggla and Chipper Jones came through in a four-run seventh and the streaking Braves defeated Pittsburgh.Atlanta won for the 13th time in 16 games after an 0-4 start.AMERICAN LEAGUEYankees 7, Tigers 6In New York, Derek Jeter scored on a passed ball with one out in the ninth inning and the Yankees rallied to hand the Tigers their fifth straight loss, hours after Detroit left fielder Delmon Young was arraigned on a hate crime harassment charge.Young was arrested early Friday — four hours after the team arrived in New York — for a fight at his hotel during which police say he yelled anti-Semitic epithets. He faces a misdemeanor aggravated harassment charge that entails targeting someone for his or her religious beliefs. If convicted, he could face up to a year in jail.Rays 8, Rangers 4In Arlington, Texas, Evan Longoria homered and drove in four runs to help Tampa Bay extend its winning streak to six games with a victory over Texas.Indians 3, Angels 2In Cleveland, Asdrubal Cabrera singled home the winning run with one out in the ninth inning to lift the Indians over struggling Los Angeles.Albert Pujols went 1-for-4 in the Angels' fifth straight loss. Pujols is homerless in 20 games since signing a $240 million, 10-year contract — his longest drought to start a season.Athletics 5, Orioles 2In Baltimore, Brandon McCarthy pitched seven strong innings for his first win this season and Eric Sogard hit a two-run home run in a three-run second as Oakland beat the hosts.Mariners 9, Blue Jays 5 (10)In Toronto, Michael Saunders hit two home runs, including a grand slam in the 10th, and Seattle rallied to beat the Blue Jays to extend its win streak to a season-high four games.Ichiro Suzuki was 0-for-5 for Seattle, while Munenori Kawasaki was 1-for-1 and scored a run.Red Sox 10, White Sox 3In Chicago, Darnell McDonald hit a tiebreaking three-run double and homered to help Boston rally past the White Sox.Royals 7, Twins 6In Minneapolis, Alex Gordon and Billy Butler each hit a two-run homer, and Kansas City beat Minnesota for its third straight win.
Elevation: Los Angeles shortstop Dee Gordon jumps over Washington's Adam LaRoche after forcing him out while unsuccessfully trying to complete a double play in the fourth inning on Friday night. The Dodgers downed the Nationals 3-2. APHe simply doesn't know how to correct the problem.Gallardo's woes continued Friday night as he gave up eight earned runs in a two-inning stint during a 13-1 loss at St. Louis. Gallardo fell to 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA in 13 career regular-season starts against the Cardinals."He wasn't locating the ball at all," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Everything went wrong."Gallardo (1-2) surrendered just four earned runs in three seven-inning starts prior to Friday's contest. But he gave up eight runs on seven hits in the third inning. He also gave up six earned runs in 3? innings of an 11-5 loss to St. Louis on April 6."In the two or three starts I had before tonight, I just went out there and pitched my game," Gallardo said. "I wasn't thinking about too much. Today, I tried to do everything. I tried to do a lot more than I am capable of."Dodgers 3, Nationals 2In Los Angeles, Clayton Kershaw won his 10th straight decision, Andre Ethier hit a two-run homer and the Dodgers beat Washington in a matchup of the top two teams in the National League.Kershaw (2-0) allowed three hits over eight innings with six strikeouts and a walk. The league's reigning Cy Young Award winner became the first Dodgers pitcher to win 10 consecutive decisions since Ramon Martinez from August 1995 through May 1996.Padres 5, Giants 3In San Francisco, Nick Hundley matched his career high with four hits to help San Diego beat the Giants.Cory Luebke (3-1) pitched six strong innings to win his third consecutive start. He gave up two runs and seven hits.Cubs 5, Phillies 1In Philadelphia, Paul Maholm outpitched Roy Halladay to lead the Cubs past the Phillies.Rockies 18, Mets 9In Denver, Carlos Gonzalez was at the center of an 11-run fifth inning, hitting a homer and a single to drive in five of his six RBIs, and Colorado overcame Scott Hairston's cycle in a wild win over New York.Diamondbacks 5, Marlins 0In Miami, Joe Saunders pitched a three-hitter, Jason Kubel tied a career best with four hits and Arizona sent the hosts to their sixth straight loss.Astros 6, Reds 4In Cincinnati, Jose Altuve drove in two runs with a triple and a double, leading Wandy Rodriguez and Houston past the Reds.Braves 6, Pirates 1In Atlanta, Tommy Hanson allowed one run in six innings, Dan Uggla and Chipper Jones came through in a four-run seventh and the streaking Braves defeated Pittsburgh.Atlanta won for the 13th time in 16 games after an 0-4 start.AMERICAN LEAGUEYankees 7, Tigers 6In New York, Derek Jeter scored on a passed ball with one out in the ninth inning and the Yankees rallied to hand the Tigers their fifth straight loss, hours after Detroit left fielder Delmon Young was arraigned on a hate crime harassment charge.Young was arrested early Friday — four hours after the team arrived in New York — for a fight at his hotel during which police say he yelled anti-Semitic epithets. He faces a misdemeanor aggravated harassment charge that entails targeting someone for his or her religious beliefs. If convicted, he could face up to a year in jail.Rays 8, Rangers 4In Arlington, Texas, Evan Longoria homered and drove in four runs to help Tampa Bay extend its winning streak to six games with a victory over Texas.Indians 3, Angels 2In Cleveland, Asdrubal Cabrera singled home the winning run with one out in the ninth inning to lift the Indians over struggling Los Angeles.Albert Pujols went 1-for-4 in the Angels' fifth straight loss. Pujols is homerless in 20 games since signing a $240 million, 10-year contract — his longest drought to start a season.Athletics 5, Orioles 2In Baltimore, Brandon McCarthy pitched seven strong innings for his first win this season and Eric Sogard hit a two-run home run in a three-run second as Oakland beat the hosts.Mariners 9, Blue Jays 5 (10)In Toronto, Michael Saunders hit two home runs, including a grand slam in the 10th, and Seattle rallied to beat the Blue Jays to extend its win streak to a season-high four games.Ichiro Suzuki was 0-for-5 for Seattle, while Munenori Kawasaki was 1-for-1 and scored a run.Red Sox 10, White Sox 3In Chicago, Darnell McDonald hit a tiebreaking three-run double and homered to help Boston rally past the White Sox.Royals 7, Twins 6In Minneapolis, Alex Gordon and Billy Butler each hit a two-run homer, and Kansas City beat Minnesota for its third straight win.Saturday, January 28, 2012
Tiger cards 70 in year's first round
Abu Dhabi — No momentous shots for Tiger Woods. No bogeys, either.The 14-time major winner opened his 2012 season with a solid first round Thursday at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, shooting a 2-under 70 that left him three strokes behind coleader Rory McIlroy, his playing partner."Hit the ball well all day today. It was a good ball-striking round," Woods said. "I had a hard time reading the greens out there. The greens were pretty grainy and I just had a hard time getting a feel for it. Toward the end I hit some pretty good putts but overall I got fooled a lot on my reads."McIlroy shot a 67, as did Robert Karlsson. But the best shots of the day came from Sergio Garcia (71) and Jose Manuel Lara (70) — each had a hole-in-one on the par-3 12th hole.Gareth Maybin, Richard Finch and Jean-Baptiste Gonnet were one shot behind the two leaders. Top-ranked Luke Donald, who played alongside Woods and McIlroy, shot a 71.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Huff the magic dragon blows away Cards with 3 HRs
ST. LOUIS — Aubrey Huff hit three home runs and matched his career best with six RBIs and the San Francisco Giants hammered a pair of rookie pitchers making their major league debuts in a 12-7 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night.
Three of a kind: San Francisco's Aubrey Huff launches a two-run homer in the ninth inning against St. Louis on Thursday night. The Giants beat the Cardinals 12-7. AP PHOTOHuff, who entered the game batting .219, hit two-run homers in the fourth and ninth and a solo shot in the seventh. He also had an RBI single in the sixth. Huff raised his average 14 points.Huff has four homers and seven RBIs the last two games after totaling four RBIs the previous 16 games.Freddy Sanchez added a homer and four RBIs to help San Francisco set a season high for runs."When Huffie gets going, he can carry the team. He did it last year," said Sanchez. "He's getting that confidence back and his swing is back."I don't think it's any coincidence that he's getting it going and we're getting going."Triple-A callup Lance Lynn needed 56 pitches to get through five innings working on three days' rest, but retired only one of four hitters to start the Giants' three-run sixth. Double-A reinforcement Mikail Cleto hit 158 kph several times on the stadium radar in the seventh but walked the first two hitters and surrendered consecutive homers to Sanchez and Huff in a five-run inning that made it 10-3.Jonathan Sanchez (4-3) allowed three runs in 5? innings, surviving a season-high six walks. Mets 9, Pirates 8In New York, Carlos Beltran's three-run homer started the Mets' rally from a seven-run deficit and New York pulled off its biggest comeback win in 11 years, beating Pittsburgh. Nationals 6, Diamondbacks 1In Phoenix, Jordan Zimmermann pitched seven impressive innings and Wilson Ramos drove in three runs, lifting Washington past Arizona. Astros 7, Padres 4In San Diego, Chris Johnson homered and Houston used a five-run third inning to beat the sloppy Padres in a matchup of the NL's two worst teams.The Astros (23-34), last in the NL Central, have won the first four games of a seven-game trip, their longest winning streak of the season. San Diego (24-33), last in the NL West, dropped to 9-21 at home, worst in the NL. They came in hitting a major league-worst .199 at home. AMERICAN LEAGUEMariners 8, Rays 2In Seattle, rookie Carlos Peguero hit two of the Mariners' season-high four home runs, all off James Shields, and Mariners ace Felix Hernandez cruised through seven innings.Peguero hit a three-run homer in a five-run second inning, and had a solo shot in the fourth.With eight runs, Hernandez (6-4) must have felt as if he got a month worth of run support. The AL Cy Young champ struck out 11 — his third time this season with 10 or more — and gave up five hits.Seattle leadoff hitter Ichiro Suzuki was 0-for-5. Rangers 7, Indians 4In Cleveland, Endy Chavez had his ninth career four-hit game and the Rangers overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Indians. Twins 8, Royals 2In Kansas City, Michael Cuddyer drove in two runs, Anthony Swarzak pitched six effective innings and Minnesota beat the Royals to snap a four-game losing streak.Denard Span, Matt Tolbert and Rene Rivera had RBI singles and Cuddyer hit a run-scoring double for the Twins.
Three of a kind: San Francisco's Aubrey Huff launches a two-run homer in the ninth inning against St. Louis on Thursday night. The Giants beat the Cardinals 12-7. AP PHOTOHuff, who entered the game batting .219, hit two-run homers in the fourth and ninth and a solo shot in the seventh. He also had an RBI single in the sixth. Huff raised his average 14 points.Huff has four homers and seven RBIs the last two games after totaling four RBIs the previous 16 games.Freddy Sanchez added a homer and four RBIs to help San Francisco set a season high for runs."When Huffie gets going, he can carry the team. He did it last year," said Sanchez. "He's getting that confidence back and his swing is back."I don't think it's any coincidence that he's getting it going and we're getting going."Triple-A callup Lance Lynn needed 56 pitches to get through five innings working on three days' rest, but retired only one of four hitters to start the Giants' three-run sixth. Double-A reinforcement Mikail Cleto hit 158 kph several times on the stadium radar in the seventh but walked the first two hitters and surrendered consecutive homers to Sanchez and Huff in a five-run inning that made it 10-3.Jonathan Sanchez (4-3) allowed three runs in 5? innings, surviving a season-high six walks. Mets 9, Pirates 8In New York, Carlos Beltran's three-run homer started the Mets' rally from a seven-run deficit and New York pulled off its biggest comeback win in 11 years, beating Pittsburgh. Nationals 6, Diamondbacks 1In Phoenix, Jordan Zimmermann pitched seven impressive innings and Wilson Ramos drove in three runs, lifting Washington past Arizona. Astros 7, Padres 4In San Diego, Chris Johnson homered and Houston used a five-run third inning to beat the sloppy Padres in a matchup of the NL's two worst teams.The Astros (23-34), last in the NL Central, have won the first four games of a seven-game trip, their longest winning streak of the season. San Diego (24-33), last in the NL West, dropped to 9-21 at home, worst in the NL. They came in hitting a major league-worst .199 at home. AMERICAN LEAGUEMariners 8, Rays 2In Seattle, rookie Carlos Peguero hit two of the Mariners' season-high four home runs, all off James Shields, and Mariners ace Felix Hernandez cruised through seven innings.Peguero hit a three-run homer in a five-run second inning, and had a solo shot in the fourth.With eight runs, Hernandez (6-4) must have felt as if he got a month worth of run support. The AL Cy Young champ struck out 11 — his third time this season with 10 or more — and gave up five hits.Seattle leadoff hitter Ichiro Suzuki was 0-for-5. Rangers 7, Indians 4In Cleveland, Endy Chavez had his ninth career four-hit game and the Rangers overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Indians. Twins 8, Royals 2In Kansas City, Michael Cuddyer drove in two runs, Anthony Swarzak pitched six effective innings and Minnesota beat the Royals to snap a four-game losing streak.Denard Span, Matt Tolbert and Rene Rivera had RBI singles and Cuddyer hit a run-scoring double for the Twins.
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