Here’s your
morning baseball briefing:
Game of the Day for Monday July 8, 2013:
Detroit Tigers 4, Cleveland Indians 2 (10 innings)
The
battle of the top two A.L. Central teams fittingly went to extra innings as the
division leading Tigers needed a Victor Martinez two-run double to beat the
Indians in Cleveland, taking three of four games in the series to hold a 3.5
game lead. Detroit starter Max Scherzer
(13-0) didn’t factor in the decision, but he remains unbeaten after striking
out seven in seven innings while allowing just the two runs.
Other scores:
Consecutive
days with a walk-off win (where the home team scores the winning run in the
ninth inning or later that immediately ends the game): 0. No
team walked-off winners on Monday as only four of the thirteen home teams won.
Record
Watch: Manny Machado has 39 doubles this season and is on pace for
70, which would break the all-time record of 67 set by Earl Webb in 1930.
A.L. MVP
Watch: Raul Ibanez, OF, Seattle Mariners. Ibanez is quietly up to 22 HRs after hitting
another one last night, and he’s on pace to hit 40 with 92 RBI.
N.L. MVP
Watch: Buster Posey, C, San Francisco Giants. Posey went 5-8 last night including a first-inning
two-run home run off Matt Harvey, and the reigning N.L. MVP is on pace to hit
.317 with 24 HRs and 93 RBI, nearly identical stats to last season.
A.L. Cy
Young Watch: Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners. Hernandez (9-4) beat the best offensive team
in baseball last night as he held the Red Sox to just two runs in seven innings
while striking out six. He’s on pace for
a 16-7 record with 247 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.65.
N.L. Cy
Young Watch: Matt Harvey, New York Mets.
Harvey (7-2) allowed three runs in San Francisco last night, striking
out six, but he didn’t factor in the decision as the Mets won in sixteen
innings. He’s on pace for a 13-3 record with
283 strikeouts and a 2.33 ERA.
News &
Notes: Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard will undergo surgery on
his left knee and miss 6-8 weeks.
The Dodgers placed outfielder Matt Kemp on the DL with
shoulder inflammation.
History –
1944 World Series
Winner: The St. Louis Cardinals beat the St. Louis Browns 4 games to
2.
The “St. Louis Showdown” as it was called featured the
Browns and the Cardinals in an improbable World Series that is the only the third
to be played entirely in one stadium - Sportsman’s Park (the others in 1921
& 1922 when the Giants and Yankees played at the Polo Grounds). World War II was in full swing during the
1944 season and the depleted rosters led to a surprising American League
champion. The Browns hit just .252 in
the regular season, but won the pennant on the last day of the season when outfielder
Chet Laabs hit two home runs to beat the Yankees and they finished one game
ahead of the Tigers. It was the first
and only World Series in team history, but most of their team was called to war,
and they fielded a bunch of factory workers and physical military rejects -
unfit for war, but fit for baseball. The
Cardinals were more fortunate as their roster wasn’t slashed liked the Browns,
and they cruised to 105 regular season wins.
The Browns came out swinging and won two of the first three games, and
it looked like the heavily favored Cardinals would blow it, but the American
League champions would lose the next three games and score just two runs as the
Cardinals won their fifth World Series title, and second in the last three
years. Overall the Cardinals outscored
the Browns 16-12 and outhit them 49-36.
Hall of famers in the series included for Cardinals: manager Billy
Southworth and
first baseman Stan Musial, and for the Browns: none.
Tomorrow: 1945 World Series – Detroit Tigers vs. Chicago Cubs.
Trivia -
Today’s Question: What player has hit the most World Series home runs?
Monday’s
Question: Homer
Bailey of the Reds takes the mound tonight looking to tie the MLB record of
consecutive no-hitters thrown by another Reds pitcher. Who is he?
Answer: Johnny
VanDer Meer in 1938.
Vegas Bet: Lastly, here’s an
actual bet you can make at a Las Vegas Sports Book:
Over/Under 4 combined
runs in the Yankees-Royals game tonight featuring starting aces James Shields
and C.C. Sabathia.
Monday’s
Bet: 18 combined strikeouts tonight by Matt Harvey and Tim Lincecum
when the Mets face the Giants in San Francisco.
Result: Under. They combined for 17 strikeouts (Harvey 6, Lincecum 11).
Standings
| American League East | National League East | |||||||||
| Team | W | L | GB | Strk | Team | W | L | GB | Strk | |
| Boston | 54 | 37 | - | L 3 | Atlanta | 51 | 38 | - | W 1 | |
| Tampa Bay | 50 | 40 | 3½ | W 5 | Washington | 46 | 43 | 5 | L 1 | |
| Baltimore | 49 | 41 | 4½ | L 1 | Philadelphia | 44 | 46 | 7½ | W 2 | |
| N.Y. Yankees | 48 | 41 | 5 | L 2 | N.Y. Mets | 38 | 48 | 11½ | W 2 | |
| Toronto | 43 | 45 | 9½ | W 1 | Miami | 32 | 56 | 18½ | L 4 | |
| American League Central | National League Central | |||||||||
| Team | W | L | GB | Strk | Team | W | L | GB | Strk | |
| Detroit | 49 | 39 | - | W 1 | St. Louis | 53 | 34 | - | W 3 | |
| Cleveland | 46 | 43 | 3½ | L 1 | Pittsburgh | 53 | 35 | ½ | L 3 | |
| Kansas City | 42 | 44 | 6 | W 1 | Cincinnati | 50 | 39 | 4 | L 2 | |
| Minnesota | 37 | 49 | 11 | L 2 | Chi. Cubs | 39 | 48 | 14 | W 3 | |
| Chi. White Sox | 34 | 52 | 14 | L 4 | Milwaukee | 36 | 52 | 17½ | W 1 | |
| American League West | National League West | |||||||||
| Team | W | L | GB | Strk | Team | W | L | GB | Strk | |
| Oakland | 53 | 37 | - | W 2 | Arizona | 47 | 42 | - | L 1 | |
| Texas | 52 | 37 | ½ | W 2 | L.A. Dodgers | 43 | 45 | 3½ | W 2 | |
| L.A. Angels | 43 | 45 | 9 | W 2 | Colorado | 43 | 47 | 4½ | W 1 | |
| Seattle | 40 | 49 | 12½ | W 2 | San Francisco | 40 | 48 | 6½ | L 2 | |
| Houston | 32 | 57 | 20½ | L 1 | San Diego | 40 | 50 | 7½ | L 10 | |
Tuesday 7/9 Schedule with
probable pitchers in parentheses. My picks to win are highlighted. Weekend
Picks: 25-20 Overall:
467-350
Times EST
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