Sunday, September 24, 2006
9/24/06 recap
American LeagueThe Tigers, with their 11-4 victory over the Royals, clinched their first playoff spot since 1987. It was the second consecutive game that the Tigers had a scoring explosion in the early innings. Detroit sent 13 batters to the plate in a 9 run 2nd inning that included home runs by third baseman Brandon Inge (26th of the season) and outfielder Craig Monroe (27th). Royals starter Runelvys Hernandez is fortunate that 7 of the 8 runs he gave up in 1.2 innings on the mound were un-earned.
In the third game of the rivalry series between the A’s and the Angels, the Angels fought off elimination for at least one more game. Vladimir Guerrero hit his 31st home run of the season in the 6th, and he and third baseman Maicer Izturis each picked up 2 RBIs. The Angels are now 6 games behind the A’s with 7 games remaining for each team. For the Angels to make the playoffs, they must win every remaining game, while Oakland would have to at least lose all but one of their remaining games. This would create a tie for the lead, and a one-game playoff would result to decide which team goes to the playoffs.
The White Sox won 12-7 over Seattle in a game that featured 9 home runs between the two teams. Three of them were thanks to Sox first baseman Paul Konerko, helping lift the White Sox to victory. Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia was facing his former team, and allowed 4 earned runs in 6.2 innings, while the Mariners sent Ryan Feierabend to the mound for his first career start. He allowed 5 earned runs in 6 innings.
The Sox victory only allowed them to hang on just a bit longer, as the Twins were also victorious. First baseman Phil Nevin drove in 3 runs, including 2 on an 8th inning home run, to lead the Twins to their 92nd win of the year.
The White Sox and Mariners may have piled up 9 homers, but in the Blue Jays 13-4 victory over the Red Sox, the two teams also had an impressive performance in doubling 11 times, tripling twice, and homering twice. The Jays sent 9 runs across the plate in the 6th and 7th combined. In those two innings, first baseman Lyle Overbay hit two RBI doubles, and outfielder Alex Rios drove in 4 on a double and triple.
National League
All-Star Trevor Hoffman made history for the Padres, getting his 479th career save, passing Lee Smith for the all time lead. The Padres had another low-scoring duel with the Pirates, winning 2-1 thanks to solo shots by Russ Branyan and Josh Bard. Nothing changes in the close playoff races, however, as the Phillies and Dodgers both won.
The Phillies and Marlins did not want to be outdone by the White Sox and Mariners or the Red Sox and Blue Jays. They combined for 9 home runs, 4 doubles, and a triple as the Phillies were able to hang on to an early 8-4 lead to win 10-7. Philadelphia second baseman Chase Utley hit his 30th and 31st home runs of the season and drove in 4 runs, while Ryan Howard was denied a home run for the second day in a row.
In Dodger Stadium, the D-Backs and Miguel Batista, and the Dodgers and Hong-Chih Kuo engaged in a low-scoring pitchers duel that left the teams tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the 10th. The Dodgers got a runner to 3rd with 2 out, before two consecutive batters were walked, loading the bases for Nomar Garciaparra. He worked the count to 2-1 before Luis Vizcaino served up a fastball that Nomar struck deep to center, and outfielder Eric Byrnes could only observe as the ball sailed over the wall for the game winning grand slam.
Because the Phillies, Padres, and Dodgers all won, the standings stay where they were, with the Padres leading the Dodgers by 1.5 games in the NL West, and the Phillies leading the Dodgers by half a game.
The Astros, led by Roger Clemens, in what could possibly be his last ever start at Minute Maid Park, defeated the Cardinals 7-3. First baseman Lance Berkman grounded out to 2nd base with 1 out in the 7th, allowing the go-ahead run to score. After a Luke Scott walk, Aubrey Huff belted a home run to deep right field to break the game open. Astros relievers Chad Qualls and Dan Wheeler pitched the last two innings scoreless to wrap up the Astros 5th consecutive victory, and the Cardinals 5th consecutive loss. Houston is now only 3.5 games behind the Cardinals, and if they can get a few things to go their way, they can possibly take the division title.
The Rockies won 9-8 in another wild game with the Braves. The teams combined for 7 homers, 8 doubles, and 2 triples. There were 55 total runs between the teams in the 4 game series, as Colorado outscored Atlanta 28-27 and won the series. Rockies’ Juan Morillo struggled in his major league debut, going only 4 innings and allowing 7 runs on 8 hits, 3 walks, and 3 home runs.
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