Cleveland Indians 4 Kansas City Royals 2- David Huff squandered two earned runs on seven hits in six innings as he picked up his 8th victory of the season. Grady Sizemore scored three runs, and Matt LaPorta hit a solo home run for the Indians, who improved to 56-70 on the season; it was LaPorta’s second long ball of the season. Mark Teahen and Miguel Olivo drove in the runs for Kansas City, who suffered Loss #78 of the year. Kerry Wood shut down the Royals in the 9th inning to earn his 16th save in 21 chances.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 4 Detroit Tigers 2- Joe Saunders allowed two earned runs on four hits in five innings as he joined the MLB’s 10-win club; Saunders gave up a two-run blast to Adam Everett, but managed to strike out six. Torii Hunter hit a two-run home run of his own in the 1st inning to lift the Angels to their 75th win of the season. Kendry Morales and Chone Figgins each drove in a run for Los Angeles, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Detroit fell to 67-59 on the year as Brian Fuentes earned his 36th save of the season.
Boston Red Sox 3 Chicago White Sox 2- David Ortiz’s second home run of the game lifted the Boston Red Sox to their 73rd victory of the season; it was Ortiz’s 10th career walk-off long ball and a franchise-record 9th with Boston. Alex Gonzalez also went deep for the Red Sox. Tim Wakefield, fresh off the disabled list, gave up one earned run on six hits in seven innings, but did not factor into the decision because Ramon Ramirez gave up a solo home run to Chicago’s Scott Podsednik in the 8th inning. Instead, it was Daniel Bard who earned his first victory of the season after pitching 1.1 innings of scoreless relief. Paul Konerko tripled in the other run for Chicago, who fell to 63-64 on the year.
San Diego Padres 12 Atlanta Braves 5- Behind a six-run 6th inning, the San Diego Padres won their 54th game of the season. Tim Stauffer squandered three earned runs on six hits in five innings as he improved to 2-6 as a starter. Kevin Kouzmanoff added a two-run bomb in the 7th inning for San Diego, who will attempt its first series sweep since May 22-24 when the Padres downed the Chicago Cubs. Brian McCann hit a three-run blast for Atlanta, but it was not enough as the Braves reached the 60-loss milestone; McCann ended the game with 4 RBIs.
Philadelphia Phillies 4 Pittsburgh Pirates 1- Ryan Howard’s three-run home run in the 10th inning lifted the defending World Series champions to their 73rd victory of the season. Chase Utley also went deep for Philadelphia, who won thirteen of its last sixteen games. Pittsburgh forced extra innings when Brandon Moss hit a pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the 9th inning. Despite blowing the save, Ryan Madson got credit for his 5th victory of the season. Pittsburgh fell to 52-72 on the year.
Florida Marlins 5 New York Mets 3- Josh Johnson scattered three earned runs on nine hits in six innings as he picked up his 13th win of the season; Johnson is now 19-2 in his career against the NL East. Ronny Paulino’s two-run blast in the 5th inning broke a 2-2 tie and lifted Florida to Win #67 of the year. Fernando Tatis, Anderson Hernandez, and Cory Sullivan drove in the runs for New York, who reached the 70-loss milestone. Leo Nunez shut down the Mets in the 9th inning to earn his 16th save of the season.
Chicago Cubs 9 Washington Nationals 4- Behind six runs in the 8th inning, the Chicago Cubs won their 63rd game of the season. Milton Bradley hit a home run and drove in three runs for Chicago. Angel Guzman was credited with his third victory of the season after pitching a scoreless inning of relief. Josh Willingham, Cristian Guzman, Wil Nieves, and Willie Harris drove in the runs for Washington, who fell to 45-82 and clinched a losing season.
St. Louis Cardinals 3 Houston Astros 2- Joel Pineiro allowed two earned runs on seven hits in eight innings as he improved to 13-9 as a starter. St. Louis scored all of its runs in the 1st inning on a Matt Holiday RBI single and a Mark DeRosa two-run double; the Cardinals improved to 74-54 on the season. Houston scored all of its runs in the 4th inning on Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee RBI singles. However, it was not enough as the Astros suffered their 65th loss of the year.
Los Angeles Dodgers 6 Colorado Rockies 1- Randy Wolf scattered one earned run on five hits in 7.1 innings as he picked up his 9th victory of the season; Wolf gave up a solo home run to Ryan Spilborghs. Los Angeles scored all of its runs off long balls as well: Andre Ethier drove in three runs with a pair of home runs while James Loney hit a three-run blast. The Dodgers improved to 75-52 on the season while the Rockies fell to 72-55. Los Angeles now has a three-game lead over Colorado in the NL West.
New York Yankees 9 Texas Rangers 2- Andy Pettitte tied Lefty Gomez for third place on the Yankees’ career win list, squandering two earned runs on five hits in seven innings; it was Pettitte’s 11th win of the year. Jorge Posada and Jerry Hairston Jr. hit the long balls for the Yankees, who won their 79th game of the season. The win, however, came at the expense of Jorge Posada, who left the game in the 8th inning after taking a foul ball off his hand. Daniel Murphy drove in both runs of the game for Texas, including one on a home run in the 7th inning. However, it was not enough as the Rangers fell to 70-55 on the season.
Toronto Blue Jays 3 Tampa Bay Rays 2- Trailing 2-1 in the middle of the 9th inning, Toronto scored two runs in the bottom half to earn Win #58 of the season. Rod Barajas tied the game on a pinch-hit home run off J.P. Howell, and Marco Scutaro won the game by touching home plate on a Howell wild pitch. It was Howell’s 7th blown save and 4th loss of the year. Two umpires got injured during this game: Jerry Crawford took a foul ball off his face mask while replacement Tom Hallion took a strikeout pitch on his chest. The Jays improved to 58-67 on the season while the Rays fell to 69-57.
Baltimore Orioles 5 Minnesota Twins 1- Jeremy Guthrie earned his 9th victory of the season after scattering one earned run on six hits in seven innings. Felix Pie hit a solo home run for the Orioles, who improved to 52-75 on the season. Justin Morneau doubled in the only Minnesota run of the game in the 4th inning; the Twins ended up losing their 64th game of the season.
Cincinnati Reds 4 Milwaukee Brewers 3- Darnell McDonald’s RBi double in the 10th inning lifted the Cincinnati Reds to their 54th victory of the season. McDonald also gunned down Ryan Braun at the plate in the bottom of the 9th inning. Laynce Nix hit a long ball for the Reds, who won their second straight game in extra innings. Milwaukee scored all three of its runs off home runs from Jody Gerut and Prince Fielder. It was not enough, however, as the Brewers fell to 61-65 on the season. Francisco Cordero recorded Save #27 of the year for Cincinnati.
San Francisco Giants 4 Arizona Diamondbacks 3- Bengie Molina’s three-run home run in the bottom of the 8th inning lifted the San Francisco Giants to their 69th win of the season. Juan Uribe also went deep for the Giants, who extended their winning streak to two games. Ryan Roberts hit a solo home run in the 1st inning for Arizona, but the Diamondbacks ended up suffering their 72nd loss of the year. Brandon Medders earned his first save of the season after shutting down the Diamondbacks in the 9th inning.
Seattle Mariners 5 Oakland Athletics 3- Luke French squandered three earned runs on six hits in 5.2 innings as he improved to 4-3 as a starter. Jose Lopez hit a two-run blast in the 1st inning for Seattle, who won its 66th game of the season. Oakland scored all three of its runs off long balls from Jack Cust and Kurt Suzuki, but it was not enough as the Athletics suffered Loss #71 of the year.
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