Yardwork: Grady Sizemore Homers in Comeback
By Tim Ryan
Dodgers 2, Cardinals 1 — Chad Billingsley threw eight scoreless and struck out 11. Chris Carpenter went seven scoreless, but the baton eventually went to Ryan Franklin, who generously served up a two-run, walk-off shot to Matt Kemp for his fourth blown save of the season. Yes, that makes four blown saves in six appearances. Thankfully, the Cards’ obscenely friendly fanbase will understand.
Twins 4, Rays 2 — The stumbling Twins got seven innings of two-run ball from Brian Duensing, and new closer Matt Kapps pitched a perfect ninth. Joe Nathan had given up six hits and walked five in 5 1/3 innings. I had no idea he was already 36 years old.
Angels 4, White Sox 2 — Mr. Dan Haren’s numbers to date: 31 IP, 18 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 27 K. That’s what we call very efficient.
A’s 5, Tigers 1 — Another pitcher off to a fantastic start is Trevor Cahill. Oakland is at a quiet 8-8, which is typical. They’ll make one of their trademark thunderous runs after the All-Star break.
Yankees 6, Rangers 5 — Arthur Rhodes at Yankee Stadium has never ended well. It truly is a pleasure to have him back in the AL.
Rockies 9, Cubs 5 — Over their last nine games, the Rockies have scored less than five runs just once, though it certainly helps that the teams they’ve played over that span were the Pirates, Mets, and Cubs.
Nationals 8, Brewers 4 — The following sentence should be read in Peter King Voice: I wish we were hearing as much about Jayson Werth’s struggles as we are about Carl Crawford’s.
Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 1 — Jon Lester, who’s had one forgettable start, finally got some run support, but it didn’t come without a flying vengeful bat.
Padres 8, Astros 6 — Mark Melancon’s unfortunate appearance in the eight inning was a mess, but he wasn’t exactly helped by his defense. Gonna be another long, depressing season for Astros fans. Hopefully they’ll find a little solace in close friend of the site, Screaming Cat: