MLB Game Recaps: Brandon Morrow shuts down New York Mets

Toronto Blue Jays 2, New York Mets 0

Starting pitcher Brandon Morrow has the ability to be flat-out dominant on some days with his stuff, and this was one of those days. With Jeff Mathis (1-3, R) behind the plate, Morrow tossed a complete game shutout to help the Toronto Blue Jays win another one against the New York Mets. He allowed just three hits and a walk with eight strikeouts for a Game Score of 88.

The Mets starter was Miguel Batista, but he had to leave the game early due to a back injury. Jeremy Hefner was recently called up as the team’s middle/long reliever and could, I hope, take Manny Acosta‘s spot on the roster. The young reliever made his case by pitching five solid innings and allowed two runs, four hits, and no walks with five strikeouts. While he did get charged with the loss, Hefner was solid.

Reds 6, Yankees 5

Yankees No. 5 hitter Raul Ibanez doubled twice, but it wasn’t enough to defeat Homer Bailey and the Cincinnati Reds. Jose Arredondo got the final two outs to defeat the Yankees, as the Bombers were making a comeback in the ninth with RBI singles from Nick Swisher and Jayson Nix. Ivan Nova was mediocre through six innings and allowed five runs, but he did notch 12 strikeouts to just two walks. Joey Votto‘s three-run home run in the fifth was the most crucial hit of the game and did the Yankees in.

Indians 2, Marlins 0

Jeanmar Gomez tossed 6.1 scoreless innings with just three hits against him to help the Cleveland Indians defeat Anibal Sanchez and the Miami Marlins. Chris Perez saved his 13th game of the season, and Asdrubal Cabrera‘s solo shot to right field in the fourth was the only run for the Indians that came from a hit.

Pirates 4, Tigers 3

Pirates star CF Andrew McCutchen had a monstrous game with two hits, two runs, and four RBIs. Both of those hits were homers, and his shot in the first traveled an astounding 440 feet. He hit both of his homers off of Drew Smyly, and that was good enough to trump the offense that Prince Fielder provided for the Tigers.

Giants 4, Athletics 0

Ryan Vogelsong was absolutely lights out against the San Francisco Giants long-time, interleague rivals, and he allowed just one hit in seven scoreless innings. Angel Pagan led the way for the Giants on offense with two RBIs, and three Giants players had multi-hits (ten hits for the Giants in total). Meanwhile, the only hit the A’s got off was from Seth Smith.

Twins 5, Brewers 4

The Minnesota Twins are now 14-26 after pulling off an 11-inning victory on the road in Miller Park. Matt Capps recorded the save, as pinch-hitter Trevor Plouffe homered in the 11th to win it. Aramis Ramirez‘s two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth tied things up at 4-4 and sent it to extras.

Mariners 10, Rockies 3

It was a nightmare outing for Christian Friedrich, as the Rockies starter allowed nine hits and eight runs in five innings to run up his season ERA to an even 5.00. He had a Game Score of 16, but the same story cannot be said for Jason Vargas; he had a decent outing. Kyle Seager homered and had three hits and three RBIs in the game, Brendan Ryan had triple with two runs and two hits in total, and Jesus Montero had three hits to lead the way for the M’s.

Rays 5, Braves 2

Matt Joyce belted a grand slam in the third inning, and Sean Rodriguez sealed the deal three innings later with a solo home run. Alex Cobb allowed six hits, two runs, two walks, and struck out six in seven strong innings of work.

Royals 7, Diamondbacks 3

Both starters, Bruce Chen and Ian Kennedy, moved to 3-4. Chen got the win after an outing that was about par for course, while Kennedy was awful in 4.1 innings. The usually solid starter allowed eight hits and six runs, as Billy Butler had three RBIs with most coming from that two-run shot (426 feet) in the third. Mike Moustakas homered 419 feet an inning later.

White Sox 7, Cubs 4

Alfonso Soriano had three hits, including a double and a homer, as the Chicago Cubs made a last ditch effort and tagged Zach Stewart with four earned runs in the ninth. It wasn’t enough, as the White Sox’s offense was firing on all cylinders, as was starting pitcher John Danks. He had a Game Score of 70 in 6.1 scoreless innings of three-hit ball.

Astros 6, Rangers 5

Lucas Harrell and the Houston Astros defeated their in-state, interleague rivals 6-5, behind a nice performance from Justin Maxwell that included a 426 foot, two-run shot in the fifth. In the third, David Murphy hit an inside-the-park home run that also scored in Adrian Beltre and Michael Young, but the Rangers couldn’t overcome some huge offensive production in the middle innings (4-6) when Derek Holland was at his worst.

Orioles 6, Nationals 5

This rivalry actually means something these days, and the Baltimore Orioles are making the most of it. Adam Jones had three hits and a homer that traveled 434 feet and scored Nick Markakis. Yesterday’s hero, Markakis had another home run to run up his tally to eight on the season. The Orioles built up a 6-0 lead through five innings and never scored again, but it was just enough to hold on as Ryan Zimmerman hit a solo shot in the ninth.

Red Sox 7, Phillies 5

The Boston Red Sox hit homer after homer against Joe Blanton, who is having a solid season on the mound. Will Middlebrooks, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Mike Aviles, and David Ortiz were all involved in the four-homer fest. The Phillies had three players reach the three-hit plateau, but their only homer was a two-run shot from Freddy Galvis.

Padres 3, Angels 2

The San Diego Padres picked up Eric Stults after the White Sox DFA’d him, and they received a quality outing from him. The Padres took advantage of only an average outing from Dan Haren and gave the struggling ace his fifth loss of the year. Stults and Haren both went 6.2 innings, with Stults allowing just four hits and two runs in a decent performance. Erick Aybar did all he could for the Angels in a 4-4 game with a double and a triple, and he provided both of the team’s runs by scoring and driving in Howie Kendrick.

Dodgers 6, Cardinals 0

Clayton Kershaw had another dominant performance on the mound, and he tossed a complete game shutout to take down the defending champs. Kershaw allowed just six hits, and he was more impressive than the usually average Jake Westbrook, who was average in this game as well. Andre Ethier and A.J. Ellis both had two hits and a double apiece in the win.

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