BASEBALL GAME RECAPS 8-18-08

Bay homers twice to back Lester's strong outing as BoSox drop O's

BALTIMORE (AP) -- Before he came to the Boston Red Sox, Jason Bay didn't know much about Jon Lester.

Bay likes what he's seen. And, to be sure, the Red Sox are also pretty pleased about what they've witnessed thus far from their new left fielder.

Lester outpitched Jeremy Guthrie, and Bay homered twice and drove in four runs to help Boston beat the Baltimore Orioles 6-3 on Monday night.

Lester (12-4) allowed one run, four hits and a walk in seven innings to improve to 5-0 lifetime against the Orioles. The left-hander is 9-1 since May 25.

"I don't think my mind-set has changed any since April," Lester said. "More consistent, pound the zone. If you can show guys you're ahead in the zone, they're going to swing at pitches early in the count that aren't necessarily good pitches to hit. I was able to do that tonight."

He also enhanced his stature in the eyes of Bay, who never played in the AL before coming from Pittsburgh on July 31 in the three-team trade that sent Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

"I'll be honest, I didn't know a lot about him before I got here," Bay said of Lester. "But it's pretty obvious to me after being here that he's one of the better pitchers in this league."

Bay, meanwhile, is quickly becoming one of the AL's most dangerous hitters. In 16 games with the Red Sox, Bay is batting .348 with three homers and 16 RBIs.

"That's part of my job, driving in runs, and you've got to have guys on base to do that," he said. "It's a testament to those guys. [I'm] just trying to be a complement to the puzzle."

Jason Varitek also homered for the Red Sox, who have won eight of 12 and lead the AL wild-card race.

Manny Delcarmen issued two two-out walks in eighth before Jonathan Papelbon gave up a double to Aubrey Huff that cut Boston's lead to 4-3. After David Ortiz hit an RBI double in the ninth and scored on a grounder by Bay, Papelbon finished for his 33rd save in 37 tries.

Guthrie (10-9) gave up two runs and five hits in seven innings, but was victimized by a familiar lack of support: Baltimore has totaled 14 runs in his nine losses. The right-hander had won each of his previous four starts, permitting only one run in each.

In this one, however, Guthrie matched his season high with five walks and found it difficult to keep pace with Lester.

"Probably the biggest struggle I've had all season with my stuff," Guthrie said. "My fastball command was not there; I walked a lot of guys. It might have been the toughest outing of the season for me as far as laboring. I had to work hard to get through five and get a couple more."

Huff hit his 27th home run, drove in three runs and finished with two of Baltimore's five hits.

"We've been coming back all year long and so were expecting one of those games," Huff said. "You're not going to win them all, but obviously that's one of the better teams in the American League East and the American League for that matter. They've got a great bullpen and Lester gave them a great start tonight."

Bay homered leading off the second, and Varitek added a long drive over the scoreboard in right later in the inning to interrupt a lengthy slump. Boston's captain was batting .164 with only two home runs in his previous 63 games.

Huff connected in the fourth to get Baltimore to 2-1. His second homer in two games left him seven short of matching his career high, set in 2003 with Tampa Bay.

Except for that hit, the Orioles didn't get a runner into scoring position until the seventh, when Kevin Millar hit a one-out double. Luke Scott then struck out on a 3-2 pitch and Jay Payton grounded out.

Boston went up 4-1 against Rocky Cherry in the eighth. After Millar booted a grounder to first for an error, Bay hit his 25th homer of the season, 22 with the Pirates.

Game notes
Attendance was 40,429, leaving the Orioles 2,861 fans shy of reaching the 50 million mark at Camden Yards. ... Boston is 7-15 against the AL East on the road, including 4-3 against Baltimore. ... It was Bay's 12th career two-homer game, the first as an American Leaguer.




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Upton's baserunning gaffe overshadows Rays' win against MLB-best Angels

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- B.J. Upton slipped away from Tropicana Field without speaking to reporters, leaving others to answer questions about another baserunning gaffe that overshadowed a big Tampa Bay victory.


The first-place Rays beat the Los Angeles Angels 6-4 Monday night, but the postgame buzz was more about Upton getting caught jogging on the bases again instead of the AL East leaders improving to 5-2 against the team with the top record in the majors.

"I'll tell you one thing about tonight, he's hurting," said designated hitter Cliff Floyd, who hit a two-run homer to help right-hander Andy Sonnanstine get his team-leading 13th win. "He's hurting bad."

The speedy center fielder, who has been benched three times in the last two weeks for not hustling, was thrown out at second base on what should have been a routine double in the fourth inning.

But unlike last Friday at Texas, Upton wasn't removed from the game by manager Joe Maddon.

"That's a mental mistake he made right there. It's not a lack of effort," Maddon said, explaining why he didn't take action.

"It's one of those situations where he assumed. We've talked about assumptions. That's an assumption on his part. That's part of his game we've got to get rid of."

Floyd, whose locker is three cubicles away from Upton's in the clubhouse, said that will be done.

"I think everybody in here will do everything possible to make sure it doesn't happen again. It's not in Joe's hands any more. It's in nobody's hands but ours," the 14-year veteran said.

"It bothers me. You get choked up a little bit because it's like, 'Man, we've got something real special here.' We don't need to be talking about this stuff."

Eric Hinske also hit a two-run homer and Sonnanstine (13-6) allowed three runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings to pull within one victory of the Rays' single-season record. Rolando Arrojo won 14 in 1998, and Sonnanstine's total matches the 13 Scott Kazmir won a year ago.

Dan Wheeler, the sixth Tampa Bay pitcher, worked a perfect ninth for his sixth save in seven opportunities, enabling the Rays to maintain their 4½-game lead over Boston in the division.

Hinske hit his 19th homer in the second and Floyd added his ninth in the third, both coming off right-hander Jon Garland (11-, who allowed five runs and 10 hits in six innings.

The Rays made it 5-1 in the third when Willy Aybar scored from first after Hinske singled and the ball rolled between Vladimir Guerrero's legs in right field for a two-base error.

Back at Tropicana Field after going 7-3 on a season-high 10-game trip in which they thrived despite the benching of Upton and losing Carl Crawford, Evan Longoria and Troy Percival to injuries, the Rays improved the best home record in the majors to 46-17.

The Angels have the best road mark in baseball (39-24) but are 0-4 in the Rays' ballpark this season.

Juan Rivera homered and Garret Anderson extended his hitting streak to a season-best 21 games with a sixth-inning RBI double for Los Angeles. Guerrero added an RBI single off Grant Balfour in the seventh, cutting Tampa Bay's lead to 5-4.

"What's hurt us here is what's happened in the batter's box. We just haven't swung the bats well in what's invariably a hitter's park," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.

Upton drew a mixed reaction from fans in his first plate appearance after hitting a fourth-inning drive to left off Garland and breaking into a trot out of the batter's box, apparently thinking it would be a home run.

Instead, the ball hit the fence on a hop.

Upton casually rounded first and jogged toward second with Angels first baseman Mark Teixeira following up the line to meet left fielder Rivera's throw to an uncovered base. Teixeira fielded the ball on a bounce and made the tag just before a surprised Upton touched the bag.

With the inning over, Upton dropped his head and bent over at second base for a few moments before taking his position on defense.

Upton was benched for one game on Aug. 6, the day after he failed to run hard on a grounder back to the mound against Cleveland. Maddon removed him in the middle of an inning at Texas for not hustling on a double-play grounder Friday, then left him out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rangers.

"He's going to get it right, trust me," Floyd said. "He's going to be, in my mind, one of the best players to play the game. You don't want anybody looking at you like you really don't want it."

The game drew an announced crowd of 15,896, despite the approach of Tropical Storm Fay, which is expected to make landfall along Florida's Gulf Coast -- south of the Tampa Bay area -- on Tuesday.

Tuesday night's game between the division leaders is still scheduled, however Rays president Matt Silverman said that could change if the storm deviates from its projected path. If there's a postponement, it likely will be rescheduled as part of a Wednesday doubleheader.

Game notes
Hinske has three homers in his last seven games. ... Angels OF Reggie Willits, on the 15-day disabled list since Aug. 9 because of a mild concussion, could start a minor league rehab assignment Wednesday or Thursday at Class A Rancho Cucamonga. ... Percival, Tampa Bay's closer, opted not to have surgery on his injured right knee and hopes to resume throwing off a mound in four or five days.





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Sheffield and Granderson's bats help Tigers edge Rangers

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Gary Sheffield moved into familiar company with career homer No. 493.

Sheffield hit a two-run drive in Detroit's four-run seventh, Curtis Granderson added two triples and four RBIs and the Tigers held on for an 8-7 victory over the Texas Rangers on Monday night.

Sheffield went 3-for-5, scored two runs and tied New York Yankees Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig and Fred McGriff for 25th on the career home run list. Sheffield and McGriff were teammates with the San Diego Padres in 1992-93 when Sheffield was in his mid-20s.

Sheffield, who also played for the Yankees for three seasons, said the homer was a tribute to McGriff.

"It feels good, but it's hard to explain," Sheffield said. "It's more about McGriff than anybody else. I know I always looked at and admired him most."

Sheffield's homer came on a sinker by Scott Feldman, who used the same pitch to retire the slugger on a popup to end the fourth.

"The guy pitched a great game," Sheffield said. "He made very little mistakes. He made one against me. He's been getting me out with that pitch before. It was a hard sinker in. Basically I just made an adjustment so I was able to get out in front of it and keep it from getting in on the handle."

Said Feldman: "I wish I could have had that one back."

The slumping Tigers won for the third time in eight games.

"Two good things came out of it," manager Jim Leyland said. "The fact that we came back after being down with their guy pitching a good game. And it looked like we could have given it up. We could have come in [to the clubhouse] a real sad bunch, but we didn't. To come on the road and win against a team that can really hit I thought was pretty good."

The Tigers trailed 3-0 before the big seventh, and added four more in the eighth to make it 8-3. Brandon Inge tied it with an RBI single off Frank Francisco (2-5) in the seventh and Granderson's triple to right-center made it 4-3.

Granderson came up with bases loaded in the eighth and hit a two-out triple to center, his ninth of the season.

All four Detroit runs in the eighth were unearned. Third baseman Travis Metcalf's error on Edgar Renteria's grounder allowed Sheffield to score and set up Granderson's triple.

"We make that play and it's a different game," Rangers manager Ron Washington said.

Texas scored four runs in the bottom half. Pinch-hitter Frank Catalanotto had a two-run double, Joaquin Arias had a pinch run-scoring double and Michael Young drove in a run with a groundout.

Fernando Rodney struck out Josh Hamilton, leading the majors in RBIs, to end the eighth and got the final three outs for his fifth save in nine chances.

Kenny Rogers (9-10) benefited from the seventh-inning rally against his former team, snapping a personal four-game losing streak. He allowed three runs and eight hits in six innings.

Feldman, knocked around for 12 runs and 10 hits in 2 2/3 innings in his previous start at Boston on Aug. 12, gave up three runs and five hits in six-plus innings.

The Rangers (62-64) lost for the 10th time in 12 games, slipping two games under .500 for the first time since they were 31-33 on June 7.

The Rangers were without All-Star second baseman Ian Kinsler, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sports hernia. Kinsler will visit a specialist on Tuesday and could be headed for season-ending surgery.

Game notes
Rangers LF Brandon Boggs left the game in the seventh with a sore right shoulder. He's day to day. ... Tigers RHP Armando Galarraga, a Fort Worth native and ex-Rangers farmhand, makes his first start against his former club in Texas on Tuesday night. Leyland knows Galarraga, traded by the Rangers to the Tigers in February, will be pumped up, "but it would be the biggest mistake of his life if he goes on the mound hoping to show the Rangers something. That's high school [stuff]." ... Rangers DH Milton Bradley was back in the lineup after missing the previous two games with back and sinus problems. ... Rangers RHP Brandon McCarthy pitched seven innings of three-hit shutout ball for Triple-A Oklahoma on Sunday night and has 13 scoreless innings in two outings. That sets up McCarthy for a possible start Friday night against Cleveland. McCarthy has been out all season with right forearm inflammation. If McCarthy gets Friday night's start, rookie Matt Harrison would be pushed back to Saturday.






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Saarloos shoulders load for A's as Twins fall behind ChiSox in Central


MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Thanks to Kirk Saarloos, the struggling Oakland Athletics managed to take something positive out of Monday night's game against the Minnesota Twins.

Saarloos pitched 3 2/3 shutout innings after Justin Duchscherer left with a hip injury and the A's held on for a 3-2 win.

"That's the job that he was brought up here to do," A's manager Bob Geren said. "I can't say enough about what he did."

Duchscherer will fly back to Oakland to have his right hip examined. He had season-ending surgery on the same hip midway through last season and said he first felt discomfort during his last start.

"I felt that if I kept pushing off, I'd make it worse," said Duchscherer, who represented the A's in this year's All-Star Game.

Mark Ellis homered and Kurt Suzuki had two RBIs for Oakland, which got a nice effort from Saarloos after he was called up from Triple-A Sacramento earlier in the day to bolster a struggling A's bullpen that was 1-5 over its last 18 games.

Oakland is 6-23 since the All-Star break and blowing a three-run lead to Minnesota after its ace left with an injury could've made a bad second half even worse.

"We're going to have the opportunity to be spoilers," Ellis said. "We need to get back to playing how we played the first month and start scoring some runs. It was nice to get out early tonight."

Saarloos wants to be a starter, but is happy to be back in the majors for now. This is Saarloos' second stint with the A's this season. He last pitched in the majors on April 17.

"I see myself as a starter, but this is what I am here for," he said. "You just have to be ready."

A's right-hander Brad Ziegler surrendered an RBI triple to Joe Mauer in his first outing since his career opening scoreless streak of 39 innings was snapped on Thursday against Tampa Bay. Ziegler tied a 59-year-old major league record for relievers with his streak.

Mauer scored when left fielder Eric Patterson's throw skipped into Minnesota's dugout, cutting Oakland's lead to 3-2. Justin Morneau followed with a single but Ziegler got Jason Kubel to ground into an inning-ending double play.

Ziegler also worked the ninth for his third save in as many chances.

"The damage was done early and they held on," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said.

Saarloos, a 29-year-old who has spent time with Houston, Cincinnati and Oakland, retired 11 of the 13 batters he faced, baffling a Minnesota team that now trails the White Sox by one game in the AL Central. Chicago beat Seattle 13-5 on Monday.

"We feel pretty good with ourselves. We're not going to quit and we got back into it," Gardenhire said. "With our ballclub you feel like you're going to find a way to get a big hit and tie the ballgame. We just couldn't come up with one."

The Twins didn't get a runner past second base until Kubel reached third on Randy Ruiz's two-out double in the seventh. Huston Street then got Brendan Harris to line out to shortstop to end the threat.

Ellis went deep on Nick Blackburn's first pitch for his third career leadoff homer and first since Aug. 25, 2005, against Detroit. It was the second straight game Blackburn gave up a leadoff homer.

"That's frustrating. I think I'm going to have to be more dialed in when I come into the game," he said. "I can't be starting a game off like that."

Suzuki's fourth-inning single scored Frank Thomas and Jack Cust.

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for Minnesota and wasted a good start from Blackburn (9-7).

The rookie pitched eight innings, allowing six hits and three runs.

Game notes
Twins 2B Alexi Casilla began a rehab assignment with Class A Beloit on Monday. If all goes well, he could be activated by Wednesday. ... Saarloos, who was 9-4 with a 4.22 ERA for Sacramento, replaces Dan Meyer in the A's bullpen. ... Gardenhire didn't start CF Carlos Gomez for the second day in a row. Gomez leads the team with 112 strikeouts and his on-base percentage has dropped to .286. "I want him to think about those things, and continue to work hard. He'll be fine. He's game on, no matter what we do," Gardenhire said. Gomez pinch ran in the ninth. ... Oakland's game on Sept. 7 against Baltimore has been moved to Sept. 6 as part of a day/night doubleheader. ... Twins SS Adam Everett left the game in the sixth after getting hit on the hand in the dugout by a Nick Punto foul ball. X-rays were negative and he should be available Tuesday.





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White Sox's offense pops with four homers, lead Central by one game

CHICAGO (AP) -- White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said he thinks the AL Rookie of the Year is on his team. He's reserving judgment on whether a White Sox player should also win the MVP award.

Rookie Alexei Ramirez hit a three-run home run and Carlos Quentin hit his major league-leading 35th home run in the eighth to help the Chicago White Sox beat the dismal Seattle Mariners 13-5 on Monday night.


With the win, the White Sox took a one-game lead in the AL Central over Minnesota, which lost 3-2 to Oakland.

Ramirez also hit a grand slam on Sunday, Quentin has homered in seven of his last 12 games and owns a .293 batting average with 96 RBIs. There was chants of MVP from the sellout crowd after his homer.

"On my team, yes. I have a couple of guys out there," Guillen said. "I think the Missile [Ramirez] should win it. The MVP, we still have a month to go. It's kind of early to say who should be MVP."

Guillen said Ramirez has a shot because his main competition, Evan Longoria of Tampa Bay, is hurt.

The 26-year-old Ramirez is hitting .308 with 13 homers and 51 RBIs. Not bad for a guy who hit .121 in limited action in April.

Teammate Jermaine Dye is not surprised by the success that Quentin and Ramirez has had.

"Not at all. Those guys have put up numbers before," Dye said. "Whether Quentin has done it in the minor leagues and Alexei has done it in Cuba, these guys are capable of being great ballplayers and they are doing a heck of a job for us this year."

Nick Swisher hit a two-run home run and Orlando Cabrera started a six-run fifth inning with another two-run shot for Chicago, which improved to 43-19 at home.

Dye doubled twice and drove in two runs for the White Sox, who have won six of their last seven games.

The White Sox lead the majors with 182 homers. They hit four homers for the second straight game.

Yuniesky Betancourt hit a solo homer in the sixth inning for the Mariners, who have lost four straight and own the worst record in the AL.

White Sox starter Mark Buehrle (11-10) survived a shaky performance to improve to 8-3 at home. He allowed five runs and 11 hits in 5 2/3 innings. Buehrle appreciated the offensive output.

"Especially when I go out there and pitch the way I did," Buehrle said. "That's the reason why I hate this game sometimes. When you go out there and make your pitches and they find holes, infield hits, bunts, right over the infielder's head. That's why this game sometimes is frustrating."

Trailing 4-3 in the fifth inning, the White Sox pounded Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn, who couldn't hold his second lead of the game. The White Sox brought 12 batters to the plate and scored six runs on six hits.

Washburn walked Juan Uribe and then Cabrera homered to give the White Sox a 5-4 lead. It was his seventh of the season and first since June 19th.

After A.J. Pierzynski walked, Quentin singled and Dye ended Washburn's night with a two-run double to make it 7-4.

"The ball definitely flies here," Washburn said. "But I've thrown some good games here and I'm not blaming the park at all. I didn't throw the ball good."

Mariners reliever Miguel Batista didn't fare well either. He walked Jim Thome and hit Paul Konerko with a pitch. Then Swisher and Ramirez followed with consecutive RBI singles to give Buehrle and the White Sox a 9-4 lead.

Ramirez padded the lead in seventh with a three-run homer off Mariners reliever Jake Woods to make it 12-5. Ramirez has eight RBIs in last two games.

Ramirez homered in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.

The White Sox have scored 26 runs in the last two games. They've done it with just 20 hits, in part because they've walked 13 times.

Washburn (5-13) allowed eight runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings.

"Our pitching was going good for quite a while and we were struggling with the bats," Mariners interim manager Jim Riggleman said. "Now it seems like we're getting 12 or 15 hits a night and the pitching is starting to struggle or has been struggling for a little while."

Game notes
There is no timetable on a possible return for White Sox 3B Joe Crede, who has been on the disabled list with an injured back since July 25th. "You know what, to be honest, I come to the ballpark I don't ask about Joe Crede," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "I'm not going to say he's out of my mind, but he's out of my picture. That's the way I'm going about my job. I've got 25 problems, I don't need 26." ... Before the game, Guillen said LHP Clayton Richard will start on Tuesday against the Mariners. ... Mariners RHP R.A. Dickey will start Wednesday against the White Sox. ... White Sox OF Ken Griffey Jr. had the night off against his former team. ... ... Mariners C Jeff Clement had a career-high three hits.






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Pirates snap four-game skid, end Mets' six-game win streak

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Steve Pearce was coming to bat against the New York Mets with the bases loaded in a tie game, and Pittsburgh teammate Jack Wilson wanted to have a word with the rookie.

"I reminded him he's been in that situation before," Wilson said. "It's important for young guys to know they can come up big in those situations."

Pearce again delivered against the Mets, hitting a go-ahead single in the eighth inning that led the Pirates to a 5-2 victory Monday, ending New York's six-game winning streak.

The loss left the Mets with a 1½-game lead over idle Philadelphia in the NL East.

Adam LaRoche homered and Wilson hit a two-run double as the Pirates stopped a four-game losing skid.

Last Monday in New York, Pearce's two-run single in the ninth broke a tie and helped the Pirates rally for a 7-5 victory. The 25-year-old is hitting .222 with 13 strikeouts in 54 at-bats this season but is 4-for-10 in three games against the Mets over the past week.

"He's making progress," Pittsburgh manager John Russell said. "He's been working with our hitting coach Don Long and is getting better. He worked to get a good pitch to hit. I'm sure it was a nice boost to get that."

Pearce's hit helped the Pirates, who trailed 2-0, record their 29th comeback victory.

"It seems like we're always in the game," Pearce said. "If we hang around long enough, we have the ability to get it done."

Sean Burnett (1-1) got Carlos Delgado to pop out with the bases loaded, ending the Mets eighth and preserving a 2-all tie. John Grabow pitched the ninth for his fourth save.

LaRoche singled with one out in the eighth off Pedro Feliciano (2-3). Duaner Sanchez relieved, and a single by Jason Michaels and an intentional walk to Andy LaRoche loaded the bases.

Pearce followed with a single past the dive of drawn-in third baseman David Wright, and Wilson hit his double.

"We took advantage of a couple of mistakes to push across some runs," Russell said. "It was a nice win for us."

Mets starter John Maine, making his second start since coming off the disabled list, pitched five scoreless innings. He gave up two hits, walked four and was lifted after throwing 96 pitches.

"It was just a lot of pitches, a lot of pitches," New York manager Jerry Manuel said. "We've got to find a better way of economizing those pitches at some point."

Maine said he's still dealing with the effects of a mild strain to his right rotator cuff.

"It's not getting any worse but it's not getting any better," he said "It's a little sore but I just think I have to keep doing my stuff between starts. It's going to get better. It's not getting any worse.

Brian Stokes relieved Maine in the sixth and Adam LaRoche tied it with a two-run homer.

Paul Maholm pitched at least six innings for the 19th straight start, the longest streak by a Pirates pitcher since Doug Drabek in 1992. Maholm gave up two runs and five hits in seven innings.

"We had some opportunities, but you have got to give their left-handed pitcher credit, too," Manuel said "He really made the pitches he had to when we had men in scoring position. He's probably their hottest pitcher right now. It was a difficult battle."

Manuel was ejected for the fourth time as Mets manager for arguing after an unusual double play in the third inning.

Argenis Reyes was safe when Wilson's throw to first sailed to the railing, and umpire Joe West ruled the Mets rookie made a slight turn toward second after crossing the bat. Reyes was tagged out by Pirates catcher Ryan Doumit, who was backing up the play.

"If that's the interpretation, then he was right," Manuel said.

For the eighth time in 11 games, the Mets scored in the first inning. Reyes led off with a single, Nick Evans hit the first of his two doubles and Carlos Beltran had a sacrifice fly.

Delgado's RBI grounder in the fourth made it 2-0.

Game notes
The Pirates placed Doug Mientkiewicz on bereavement leave after the game and recalled outfielder Nyjer Morgan from Triple-A Indianapolis. ... Before the game, the Mets optioned rookie right-hander Eddie Kunz to Triple-A New Orleans to make room for reliever Luis Ayala, acquired in a trade with the Washington Nationals on Sunday. ... Sandy Alomar Sr. managed the Mets following Manuel's ejection. ... Mets shortstop Jose Reyes was given the day off. ... New York won the season series 4-3. ... Mets starters allowed one run in 28 innings in the four-game series against the Pirates. ... Pittsburgh closer Matt Capps (right shoulder bursitis) will make a rehab appearance for Double-A Altoona on Wednesday and throw a side session Thursday. The right-hander has been out since July 2. ... Pirates outfielder Brandon Moss said tests to his sprained left ankle Monday showed no further damage. Moss, who was hurt Sunday, is day-to-day. ... The four-game series drew 129,473 fans, a PNC Park record.





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Braves struggle during homestand, fall to Zito, Giants

ATLANTA (AP) -- Barry Zito has a new approach to pitching: stay in the moment, and stop forcing things.

Whatever he's doing worked Monday. Zito won for just the third time since the All-Star break, leading the San Francisco Giants over the Atlanta Braves 5-0.

"I got caught up with trying to make things happen," he said. "You can't do that. Hitters make things happen."

Zito (7-15) allowed five hits in seven innings, combining with Keiichi Yabu and Sergio Romo on a seven-hitter. The left-hander pitched out of trouble, stranding two runners each in the third, fifth and seventh innings.

"I had some pitches working today," he said. "My off-speed stuff was pretty good. I made a couple of good pitches to lefties."

The major league leader in losses, Zito has won just 18 of 58 starts since signing a $126 million, seven-year contract with San Francisco before the 2007 season.

He improved to 97-5 in his career when receiving four or more runs of support, including 12-1 with the Giants. San Francisco has scored no more than one run in 24 of his starts.

"There's no question that he's pitching with so much more confidence than he did earlier this year," manager Bruce Bochy said.

San Francisco pitched its ninth shutout, one fewer than the Los Angeles Dodgers, who lead the NL with 10.

Aaron Rowand homered and drove in two runs for the Giants, who won their first road series against the Braves since 1993 by taking three of four games.

Two weeks ago at home, San Francisco took two of three from Atlanta.

"They pitched really well," Braves third baseman Chipper Jones said. "We played San Francisco seven times and we got [Tim] Lincecum twice, [Matt] Cain twice and Zito. They're good. They're tough."

Atlanta has lost six of seven and was outscored 47-22 during a seven-game homestand.

"It's the point in the season where you're going bad and you're falling out of it," Jones said. "You've really got to bear down and take some ... pride. We had a couple games this homestand that were pretty embarrassing."

The Braves were hurt by poor hitting with runners in scoring position, with Jones' popout ending the third, Mark Kotsay hitting into an inning-ending forceout in the fifth and Yunel Escobar hitting into a forceout that ended the seventh.

Jorge Campillo (7-6) gave up five runs and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Rowand hit a sacrifice fly in the first after Dave Roberts' triple, and Rich Aurilia and Pablo Sandoval followed with RBI singles.

"We're trying to be consistent," Rowand said. "We had a tough series in Houston and to come in here and win three of four was pretty good."

Rowand's homer made it 4-0 in the sixth. San Francisco scored another run in the seventh when Campillo loaded the bases by bouncing ball four to Roberts and catcher Brian McCann, apparently losing track of the count, threw the ball into left field for an error as Emmanuel Burriss sprinted to third.

"Bad, bad baseball," Jones said. "A lot of mental mistakes. Forgetting outs. Forgetting counts. It's everybody."

Game notes
Braves LHP Tom Glavine has an appointment Wednesday to be have his left elbow examined by Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala. ... Braves manager Bobby Cox said LHP Jo-Jo Reyes will be brought up Tuesday from Triple-A Richmond to take Glavine's turn in the rotation at the New York Mets. ... Giants RHP Kevin Correia, who faces Florida in San Francisco on Tuesday, is 0-1 with a 7.65 ERA in two starts and seven relief appearances against the Marlins.





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CC improves to 8-0 with five complete games in nine starts for Brewers


MILWAUKEE (AP) -- CC Sabathia often talks about how much he likes to hit. He just hadn't done much at the plate with the Milwaukee Brewers until Monday night.

Sabathia improved his perfect record with the Brewers, pitching another complete game in a 9-3 victory over the Houston Astros. He also hit a two-run single in a five-run fourth inning.

"I like to hit, but I think since I've been here the more I hit, the worse I've been getting," said Sabathia, who was batting .160 (4-for-25) with the Brewers before Monday.

It's been quite the opposite on the mound.

Sabathia is 8-0 with a 1.60 ERA and five complete games in nine starts for the Brewers since they acquired him from Cleveland in a July 7 trade. Last year's AL Cy Young Award winner has won 11 straight decisions overall.

Sabathia struck out nine, walked two and gave up 11 hits in 130 pitches as the Brewers moved 2½ games ahead of idle St. Louis in the wild-card race. They also pulled within five games of the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central.

Houston, which had won nine of 11, dropped to 14-4 in August.

"He showed he's a horse," Astros manager Cecil Cooper said. "I guess they're going to hitch their wagon to him and just ride him off into the sunset."

Corey Hart singled, doubled and homered for Milwaukee, and Ray Durham had three hits and three RBIs.

Randy Wolf (2-1) allowed six earned runs and five hits in four innings, his shortest outing in five starts since joining the Astros on July 22.

The Brewers got a run in the first on Hart's two-out RBI double and put the game away with five more in the fourth, two on Sabathia's two-out single.

Milwaukee batted around in the fourth.

Prince Fielder walked to lead off the inning, and Hart singled. Both advanced on a deep fly to center by Bill Hall but had to stay at second and third as Mike Cameron hit a short fly to right.

Wolf intentionally walked Jason Kendall, bringing up Sabathia, who came into the game hitting .246 in his career with nine RBIs, three this season. On the first pitch, Sabathia lined a base hit between shortstop and third base.

"I was just looking for something out over the plate, trying to put a good swing on it, put it in play," he said. "He threw me a curveball, and I was able to flip it to left."

Said Wolf: "I've got to tip my cap because it was a slider down and away. I've looked at the video 100 times, and I'll probably see it 100 times when I'm not sleeping tonight. He really helped himself out there. It's frustrating when something like that happens."

Durham then doubled home Kendall, as Sabathia narrowly avoided the tag at third with a feet-first slide.

"It felt good," Sabathia said of the slide. "It was a little awkward, but I was just trying to get in scoring position. I told [third base coach] Dale [Sveum] when I got up, 'This is fun, running the bases, getting a hit.'"

Durham and Sabathia scored on J.J. Hardy's single.

"I always knew he was a good athlete, but most pitchers, let's be honest, can't hit," Durham said. "He can swing the bat a little bit. I just wish I could have hit some home runs in front of him instead of making him run like that."

Still, the five runs were all Sabathia needed. He gave up solo home runs to pinch-hitter Reggie Abercrombie in the fifth and Ty Wigginton in the sixth.

"We just can't let them get away with us right there," Cooper said. "And they got away. The five runs is really unacceptable. We can't let that happen there."

Wigginton's homer extended his career-best hitting streak to 15 games. He has seven home runs since the streak began Aug. 3.

Sabathia came in leading the NL in wins, ERA, complete games, shutouts and innings pitched since joining the Brewers. He added a single in the sixth and a sacrifice in the eighth to move to 6-for-28 (.214) with Milwaukee.

Sabathia has two home runs this season, including one in his second start for the Brewers on July 13.

"He's definitely confident in his hitting abilities, and for the right reason -- he's a good hitter," Brewers manager Ned Yost said.

Milwaukee slugger Ryan Braun left in the sixth with tightness in his lower back -- the same injury that kept him out of six games recently -- after reaggravating it on a swing. Braun pinch hit Saturday and returned to the starting lineup Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He batted four times against the Astros on Monday, striking out twice.

Braun appeared to be in pain after swinging and missing in his final at-bat in the sixth.

Game notes
Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks was out of the lineup after leaving Sunday's game with a sprained left thumb. Weeks saw team doctor William Raasch on Monday, and he confirmed the diagnosis. Weeks is day to day. Ray Durham, who came in 8-for-43 since being acquired from San Francisco on July 20, started in Weeks' place. ... The crowd of 41,991 gave Milwaukee its 16th straight Miller Park sellout and 32nd this season, a new team record, eclipsing the 31 sellouts of 2007.




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TGHAWKSFAN#1 wrote:

White Sox's offense pops with four homers, lead Central by one game

CHICAGO (AP) -- White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said he thinks the AL Rookie of the Year is on his team. He's reserving judgment on whether a White Sox player should also win the MVP award.

Rookie Alexei Ramirez hit a three-run home run and Carlos Quentin hit his major league-leading 35th home run in the eighth to help the Chicago White Sox beat the dismal Seattle Mariners 13-5 on Monday night.


With the win, the White Sox took a one-game lead in the AL Central over Minnesota, which lost 3-2 to Oakland.

Ramirez also hit a grand slam on Sunday, Quentin has homered in seven of his last 12 games and owns a .293 batting average with 96 RBIs. There was chants of MVP from the sellout crowd after his homer.

"On my team, yes. I have a couple of guys out there," Guillen said. "I think the Missile [Ramirez] should win it. The MVP, we still have a month to go. It's kind of early to say who should be MVP."

Guillen said Ramirez has a shot because his main competition, Evan Longoria of Tampa Bay, is hurt.

The 26-year-old Ramirez is hitting .308 with 13 homers and 51 RBIs. Not bad for a guy who hit .121 in limited action in April.

Teammate Jermaine Dye is not surprised by the success that Quentin and Ramirez has had.

"Not at all. Those guys have put up numbers before," Dye said. "Whether Quentin has done it in the minor leagues and Alexei has done it in Cuba, these guys are capable of being great ballplayers and they are doing a heck of a job for us this year."

Nick Swisher hit a two-run home run and Orlando Cabrera started a six-run fifth inning with another two-run shot for Chicago, which improved to 43-19 at home.

Dye doubled twice and drove in two runs for the White Sox, who have won six of their last seven games.

The White Sox lead the majors with 182 homers. They hit four homers for the second straight game.

Yuniesky Betancourt hit a solo homer in the sixth inning for the Mariners, who have lost four straight and own the worst record in the AL.

White Sox starter Mark Buehrle (11-10) survived a shaky performance to improve to 8-3 at home. He allowed five runs and 11 hits in 5 2/3 innings. Buehrle appreciated the offensive output.

"Especially when I go out there and pitch the way I did," Buehrle said. "That's the reason why I hate this game sometimes. When you go out there and make your pitches and they find holes, infield hits, bunts, right over the infielder's head. That's why this game sometimes is frustrating."

Trailing 4-3 in the fifth inning, the White Sox pounded Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn, who couldn't hold his second lead of the game. The White Sox brought 12 batters to the plate and scored six runs on six hits.

Washburn walked Juan Uribe and then Cabrera homered to give the White Sox a 5-4 lead. It was his seventh of the season and first since June 19th.

After A.J. Pierzynski walked, Quentin singled and Dye ended Washburn's night with a two-run double to make it 7-4.

"The ball definitely flies here," Washburn said. "But I've thrown some good games here and I'm not blaming the park at all. I didn't throw the ball good."

Mariners reliever Miguel Batista didn't fare well either. He walked Jim Thome and hit Paul Konerko with a pitch. Then Swisher and Ramirez followed with consecutive RBI singles to give Buehrle and the White Sox a 9-4 lead.

Ramirez padded the lead in seventh with a three-run homer off Mariners reliever Jake Woods to make it 12-5. Ramirez has eight RBIs in last two games.

Ramirez homered in back-to-back games for the first time in his career.

The White Sox have scored 26 runs in the last two games. They've done it with just 20 hits, in part because they've walked 13 times.

Washburn (5-13) allowed eight runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings.

"Our pitching was going good for quite a while and we were struggling with the bats," Mariners interim manager Jim Riggleman said. "Now it seems like we're getting 12 or 15 hits a night and the pitching is starting to struggle or has been struggling for a little while."

Game notes
There is no timetable on a possible return for White Sox 3B Joe Crede, who has been on the disabled list with an injured back since July 25th. "You know what, to be honest, I come to the ballpark I don't ask about Joe Crede," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. "I'm not going to say he's out of my mind, but he's out of my picture. That's the way I'm going about my job. I've got 25 problems, I don't need 26." ... Before the game, Guillen said LHP Clayton Richard will start on Tuesday against the Mariners. ... Mariners RHP R.A. Dickey will start Wednesday against the White Sox. ... White Sox OF Ken Griffey Jr. had the night off against his former team. ... ... Mariners C Jeff Clement had a career-high three hits.






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Surprise Surprise the M's lose again, maybe they should just give up and forfeit the rest of the season.