MLB Game Recaps: Josh Hamilton leads Texas Rangers route of Los Angeles Angels

Texas Rangers 10, Los Angeles Angels 3

Josh Hamilton just keeps on mashing, and the slugger smashed two home runs against an underperforming, future AL West powerhouse. He has eight homers this week and is slugging .873 on the season. Mitch Moreland had a home run in the seventh to give him four this year, and Chris Gentry had three hits- including a triple- from the No. 9 hole.

The Angels offensive attack was led by lead-off hitter Mike Trout, who walked twice and notched two hits. He hit a homer off of Yu Darvish in the third for his second round-tripper of the year, and Trout drove in two runs in the game. He led the team by seeing 25 pitches and has an OBP of .383 this season.

C.J. Wilson was taken out of the game after the lengthy rain delay, and he allowed one run and left the bases loaded after striking out Ian Kinsler to start the game. Jerome Williams was sent in, and the Rangers lived off of bloop singles for their first four first inning runs. Gentry hit his triple to the corner in left that featured a decent diving effort from Vernon Wells to get to it. It was too late, as Gentry knocked in two more runs to give Texas a six-run first inning.

The Baltimore Orioles are now one game up on the Tampa Bay Rays with this victory, and the team received a tenth save from Jim Johnson. Adam Jones homered for the tenth time this season, and the O’s overcame a quality outing from Jeremy Hellickson.

Yankees 6, Mariners 3

Justin Smoak smoked three hits, and Dustin Ackley and Jesus Montero homered in a loss to the Yankees. Raul Ibanez hit a nice shot off of Felix Hernandez, but it was Robinson Cano who had the big 4-4 day. Andruw Jones hit a pinch-hit homer that traveled 408 feet in the eighth. The Yanks received seven solid innings from Hiroki Kuroda, while Felix Hernandez allowed eleven hits in a rare off game (2.29 ERA this year).

Phillies 7, Padres 3

Leading the way for the Phillies in this nice offensive output was catcher Carlos Ruiz, who went 3-3 with three steaks, two runs, and a homer. John Mayberry Jr. had similar statistics, except he got two hits as opposed to three. Mayberry’s shot was the first of the season for him. Vance Worley struck out nine in a decent start, and it was certainly better than the outing that gave Clayton Richard his fifth loss of the year.

Astros 1, Pirates 0

In this low-scoring debut between NL Central teams, the Houston Astros emerged victorious for their 15th W of the year and are now one game up on the Pirates. Bud Norris was terrific through six innings, as he allowed just three hits and no runs or walks with eight Ks. Jason McDonald did all he could and was right there with Norris by allowing four hits, one run, and two walks in eight innings with eight strikeouts.

Red Sox 7, Indians 5

Second baseman Dustin Pedroia had three hits and three RBIs to avoid further anguish for Boston Red Sox fans amid the Josh Beckett saga. He received some help in the form of two-hit games from Adrian Gonzalez and the man in front of him, Ryan Sweeney. Pedroia doubled once, while Gonzo doubled twice in a game that saw six doubles but no other extra base hits for the Sox.

Nationals 7, Reds 3

Gio Gonzalez lasted five innings and struck out nine batters in the win for the Nats, while Mike Leake moved to 0-5 on the season and lasted just three innings with a Game Score of 22. Roger Bernadina homered and had two hits and three RBIs, Ian Desmond had two hits and runs apiece, Danny Espinosa homered, and Adam LaRoche had a single and a double for Washington. The Reds received a double from Jay Bruce, but there wasn’t much else for Cincy.

Marlins 6, Mets 5

Emilio Bonifacio and Greg Dobbs hit RBI singles to win it for the Marlins in the ninth, with Dobbs’s single to score Bonifacio being the game-winning hit. The Marlins were down 5-3, but Omar Infante made it 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth before Dobbs’s and Bonificio’s heroics. Heath Bell got his first relief win of the year, while Frank Francisco blew his second save of the year and has a 6.59 ERA.

White Sox 5, Royals 0

Gavin Floyd tossed 7.2 scoreless innings, and Adam Dunn doubled and homered for the 11th time this season. The Royals never had an extra-base hit, and only their lead-off hitter had a multi-hit game. The first three hitters in the White Sox order all had two-hit ballgames.

Brewers 8, Cubs 7

The Milwaukee Brewers beat their NL Central foes in 13 innings, and Vinnie Chulk received the win after he and Manny Parra had two innings apiece without allowing a run to shut down the Cubs. Lendy Castillo surrendered the final run for his first loss of the year, and it was Corey Hart who singled in Rickie Weeks for the game-winning hit. The Brewers did not undo a good start from Randy Wolf, but the same cannot be said for the Cubs and Matt Garza. Although, in all fairness, Wolf was better. Hart, by the way, went 4-7 with three RBIs and two runs in a monster game, and he homered and doubled. Not only that, but his two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth made this game go to extras.

Twins 7, Blue Jays 6

Joe Mauer, Denard Span, and Darin Mastroianni all did a great job of getting on base and helping to create runs for the Minnesota Twins, as the team had just two doubles and no other extra base hits. The Jays received a 3-4 game from Brett Lawrie, as well as two homers from Jose Bautista, and one apiece from Eric Thames and Edwin Encarnacion in a game that saw two subpar starts.

Braves 9, Cardinals 7

The Atlanta Braves prevailed over the team that took the Wild Card from them and eventually won the World Series in a 12-inning game. This game didn’t have many ramifications, but both teams know that every game matters. Both teams have 20 wins this year, but the Braves have one more loss (13 to 12).

Carlos Beltran went 4-5 with four RBIs and two homers, while Michael Bourn went 3-6 for the Braves at the top of the order. Beltran tied things up at 7-7 with a homer in the eighth (408 feet), but it was Jason Heyward who won it with the team’s second homer of the game in the 12th. It traveled just one foot less than Beltran’s and also scored in Chipper Jones.

Diamondbacks 5, Giants 1

The futile Giants offense was shut down by Patrick Corbin in a terrific outing for the 2-1 starter. He allowed just three hits, a run, and no walks in seven innings for a Game Score of 71. Paul Goldschmidt led the way for the D’Backs with three hits and a homer.

Athletics 11, Tigers 4

Josh Reddick is having some monster games for the Athletics and has hit well for the team. The former Boston Red Sox outfielder went 4-5 with four runs and five steaks, and the A’s also received four RBIs from former Detroit Tigers 3B Brandon Inge, who is also hitting better with his new team. Reddick homered twice and Inge once against his former team, while the under-appreciated Seth Smith had three hits for Oakland. Austin Jackson, who saw 28 pitches in this game from the lead-off spot, had a double that was the Tigers lone XBH.

Dodgers 7, Rockies 3

For the Dodgers, Chris Capuano has been something to behold early on this year and, as a soccer writer would say, has hit a rich vein of form. Capuano is now 5-0 this year after this performance, as he allowed just one run, no walks, and four hits in seven innings (GSC 68). He thoroughly outpitched Jamie Moyer, and only Michael Cuddyer homered off of him. That dinger, by the way, came with two outs in the seventh.

Mark Ellis had two runs, two hits, and three RBIs in another good game, and he has a .389 OBP this year. The underrated 2B might be finding his niche with the Dodgers, and he was once a very good second baseman in Oakland. We’ll see how he performs the rest of the year. Meanwhile, Andre Ethier had three hits, two runs, and two RBIs for the home side and doubled. Both he and Ellis homered, with the dinger being Ellis’s first of the year and came in the first inning.