| Latos gets Bruce with shaving cream in the face following the walkoff bomb. (Getty Images) |
Good pitching and timely hitting -- mostly home runs -- seemed to be a common theme around baseball Tuesday night. At least for the winning teams. Without further ado ...
Full Tuesday scoreboard with recaps and box scores for every game
3 UP
Jay Bruce, Reds: Heading into the ninth, the Reds were 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and had left 14 runners on base in a scoreless game. To open the ninth, two runners got on base and then Bruce -- who has been struggling quite a bit in July and August -- stepped to the plate with two on and no out. Instead of just getting a game-winning single, Bruce went big fly, and the Reds won 3-0 on a walkoff home run.
Hiroki Kuroda, Yankees: A right-handed pitcher throwing a shutout against the Rangers in Yankee Stadium? Yes, he easily gets a spot here. Kuroda has thrown a one-hitter before, but this two-hit gem has to qualify as the best start of his career under the circumstances.
Chone Figgins, Mariners: Hey, he's hitting .186 and relegated to bench duty. So when he gets to pinch run and score the winning run on a walkoff single, let's give him his due. Congrats, Chone.
3 DOWN
Chris Volstad, Cubs: Giving up eight hits and four runs in five innings isn't always worthy of a spot here, but Volstad is now 0-14 in his last 23 starts. Also of note: His outing Tuesday came against the Astros, who aren't much different from a Triple-A team at this point.
Marlins' offense: They've gone 27 innings with scoring a run. Tuesday Kyle Kendrick threw seven shutout innings against Miami.
Chad Qualls, Phillies Yankees Pirates: Qualls has already been discarded by two teams this season and after getting torched Tuesday (1/3 inning pitched, four hits and four earned runs allowed), his ERA sits at 5.32 on the season. Qualls' saving grace here is he made a 6-0 deficit an 11-0 loss (one run he allowed was unearned), so it's not like he cost his team the game. Still, rough season.
Strasburg watch: His starts are the hottest topic in baseball due to an innings limit for the season, and Wednesday Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg (13-5, 2.90) takes the hill in pitcher-friendly AT&T Park. He'll be squaring off against Tim Lincecum (6-12, 5.35) and the Giants with the series on the line. 3:45 p.m. ET
O's rolling, Red Sox reeling (again): After a 7-1 Orioles' victory over Boston Tuesday evening, the Orioles have now won eight of their last 10 games and are in wild-card position. The Red Sox, meanwhile, have lost nine of 13 and are 6.5 games behind the Orioles for the final playoff spot. In addition to the losing, the Red Sox are having to endure more clubhouse drama, too. Wednesday, Aaron Cook (3-5, 4.70) will look to help get the Red Sox back on track against Miguel Gonzalez (4-2, 3.42) and the Orioles. 7:05 p.m. ET
A's in trouble? Since their amazing run, the A's are 6-9, but they're still only 1.5 games out of the wild card. They'll look to bounce back from a 5-0 loss to the Royals Wednesday in K.C. It's Brandon McCarthy (6-3, 2.68) against Will Smith (3-4, 5.48). 8:10 p.m. ET
Wednesday's probable pitchers
• Tough Break Jake: White Sox pitcher Jake Peavy should be a contender for the AL Cy Young award this season, but having a record around .500 (he's 9-8 now) could hurt him. And it isn't even his fault. Peavy's had a whopping 10 quality starts with either a loss or no decision. In his last 11 starts, the White Sox have provided Peavy with just 26 runs in support. On the season, Peavy ranks 59th in the AL in run support received (all stats from csnchicago.com, which has the full story). But hey, whenever I hear someone say "a pitcher's job is to win," I can just say, "yes, Jake Peavy really does need to find a way to make his offense score more runs for him." Right?
• Remembering Pesky: In the wake of Red Sox legend Johnny Pesky dying Monday, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Cardinals beat writer Derrick Goold shared his story about Pesky during the 2004 World Series. It's well worth a read.
• Colby's father: In a story about the upcoming Little League World Series, nationalpost.com interviewed Blue Jays' outfielder Colby Rasmus about playing in the event. Cardinals fans will love this quote from Rasmus: “I don’t think pressure really bothered us. We were more scared of my dad than anything."
• Faux-Harry Caray impersonations: New Rangers teammates Ryan Dempster and Derek Holland love doing impressions of legendary broadcaster Harry Caray. USAToday.com has video and voting on which does a better job. I'll pass. They're both just doing an impersonation of Will Ferrell's impersonation of Caray. This is actually what Caray sounded like in his Cubs years, for those interested. My colleague C. Trent Rosecrans and I fight this battle often, but it's worth fighting because too many people think Ferrell's impression is actually how Caray was.
• Frank Robinson, still at work: The Hall of Famer is doing everything he can to get the Urban Youth Academy built, and I love this quote from the 76 year old: "They tell me I should be standing on some golf course. I don't want to be standing on some golf course. I want to be out there, encouraging kids to get involved in baseball." Philly.com has the full story.
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