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| Pablo Sandoval scored the winning run over the Astros on Hector Sanchez's 12th-inning single. (Associated Press) |
Just when you think you've seen everything, you see the way the Dodgers and Giants gave up ninth-inning leads on Saturday. One team came back from the mistake, another did not.
Full Saturday scoreboard with box scores and recaps from all games
3 UP
Hector Sanchez, Giants: Sanchez was already penciled in for "3 Down," but then his fourth hit of the night knocked in the winning run for the Giants in the 12th inning. In the ninth, Giants closer Santiago Casilla had already given up one run and with a runner on second, he struck out Chris Snyder with two outs -- but the throw was wild and Sanchez tracked it down and threw wild to first to try to get the final out of the game. However, his throw was off target and Houston right fielder Justin Maxwell was able to score all the way from second to tie the game and cost Tim Lincecum his fourth win of the season. Casilla came through in the 13th with a single to right, scoring Pablo Sandoval from second. The win, coupled with the Dodgers' loss (see below), put San Francisco a half-game up in the NL West.
Ryan Ludwick, Reds: The Reds outfielder did in his former team on Saturday, hitting a solo walk-off homer in the 10th inning off of Victor Marte. In 20 games against his former teams this season (St. Louis, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and San Diego) Ludwick has six home runs and an OPS of .900. The only one of his five former teams he hasn't played against this season is the Rangers.
Taylor Teagarden, Orioles: Teagarden made quite the impression in his Baltimore debut. Activated from the 60-day disabled list before the game, Teagarden entered the game after starting catcher Matt Wieters left for a pinch runner in the 10th inning. He struck out with two on and two out in the 11th in his first at-bat, but made up for it with the two-run homer in the 13th, giving the Orioles the 8-6 victory.
3 DOWN
Ubaldo Jimenez, Indians: Jimenez gave up eight runs, matching a career high, in Cleveland's 11-9 loss to the Blue Jays. Jimenez lasted just 2 1/3 innings, allowing two in the first and six in the third. Edwin Encarnacion and Yunel Escobar both hit two-run homers in the Blue Jays' third. With the outing, Jimenez's ERA rose to 5.09 and he took over the American League lead with 62 walks. Unfortunately for the Indians, Jimenez's two eight-run outings have both come in the less than a year he's been in Cleveland. He allowed eight runs on Aug. 21, 2011, against the Tigers.
Bobby Parnell, Mets: There's a section of baseball fans who don't want to wait until the ninth inning for a manager to call in his best reliever, instead wanting the best used in the highest leverage situation. Holding onto a two-run lead with two on and one out in the eighth inning, bench coach Bob Geren, in for an ejected Terry Collins, brought in his closer, Parnell. After striking out Juan Francisco, Parnell gave up back-to-back-to-back singles to Michael Bourn, Martin Prado and Jason Heyward to give Atlanta an 8-7 lead. Pitching the ninth, the Braves' closer, Craig Kimbrel, sealed the victory for the home team.
Kenley Jansen, Dodgers: Jansen's obliviousness cost the Dodgers Saturday's game against the Padres, as well as first place in the division. With runners on second and third with two outs and a 2-2 count on Alexi Amarista, Jansen was pawing at the mound and had his back turned to home plate, looking down at the baseball. Everth Cabrera, on third, noticed Jansen wasn't paying attention broke for home. Jansen tried to throw home to A.J. Ellis, but the throw was high and wet to backstop. He was then slow to cover home, as Will Venable came in to score the go-ahead run.
This one goes to 11: The Angels' Jered Weaver and the Yankees' Ivan Nova both look for their 11th victory of the season. Weaver is 10-1 with a 1.96 ERA and Nova is 10-3 with a 3.92 ERA. As good as Weaver's been this season, he's struggled in his only two appearances at new Yankee Stadium. In 13 1/3 innings, he's allowed nine earned runs. Both starts were in 2009. 1:05 p.m. ET
Welcome back: Former Brewers ace Ben Sheets will be making his first big-league start since 2010 when he faces off against another comeback kid, the Mets' Johan Santana, at Turner Field. Sheets hasn't pitched in the big leagues since July 19, 2010, when he was a member of the A's. He was put on the disabled list for the seventh time in his career after that game and underwent elbow surgery. The Braves signed him to a minor-league contract on July 1. The 34-year-old right-hander made two starts at Double-A Mississippi before being recalled up. He's 90-92 with a 3.79 ERA in 241 career starts for the Brewers and A's. 1:35 p.m. ET
Sweep shot: The Reds have won five in a row to pull even with the Pirates atop the NL Central and have a shot at sweeping the third-place Cardinals. However, instead of Johnny Cueto on the mound for the Reds, it'll be Homer Bailey. Cueto was scratched with a blister, but is still scheduled to start Tuesday against the Diamondbacks. Bailey is 2-6 with a 5.72 ERA in 10 career starts against the Cardinals, including a loss on April 9. Cueto is 4-4 with a 4.66 against St. Louis, including two no-decisions earlier this season. 8 p.m. ET
Sunday's probables for all games
• Nice catch: The difference between glory and unspeakable pain is sometimes as little as a couple of inches. [Big League Stew]
• Juan Pierre, public enemy No. 1: The either overrated or underrated Juan Pierre, depending on your perspective. [Philadelphia Daily News]
• No pitching, just a pitch: Five baseball stadiums -- Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium, Citi Field and Rogers Centre -- will host games in the World Football Challenge. A total of 28 matches will be held across North America, starting Wednesday. [New York Times]
• Time for Glass to make a move: David Glass is one of the most reviled owners in baseball -- at least by fans of his team -- but he has a chance to change that, Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star writes.
• Stat nerd porn: Baseball Prospectus and Brooks Baseball have introduced PITCH f/x-driven Hitter Profiles. [Baseball Prospectus]
• Homer happy: The Yankees are just 2-14 in the games that they don't homer this season, but the good news for the team is that they've homered in the majority of their games this season. The Bronx Bombers have lived up to their nickname, homering in 71 of their 87 games this season, 81.6 percent. The team could break the record for highest percentage of games with a home run, 80.9 percent, set by the 1994 Tigers. [New York Daily News]
• And you thought the Padres' bats were dead: Petco Park was taken over by Zombies this weekend as part of San Diego Comic-Con. Baseball and The Walking Dead, sounds pretty much like my weekend. [G4TV.com]
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