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| Yes, the A's did it again. (AP) |
The Amazing A's did it again. And so did the Orioles. We can only guess as to what Sunday will bring ...
Full Saturday scoreboard with box scores and recaps for all games
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A's sense of the moment: What can you say about this team? Saturday's 7-4 win over the Mariners in 10 innings -- a game in which they trailed 4-0 at one point -- was Oakland's 14th walk-off win of this miraculous season. Perhaps this hashtag-heavy tweet from Travis Blackley summed it up best …
#bestgameieversaw #mossisaboss #comebackkings #believe #donaldsonintheclutch #everyonelovespie #ourbad #canwin #playoffpush #ilovethisteam
— Travis Blackley (@Travis_Blackley) September 30, 2012
Matt Moore, Rays: On Saturday in Chicago, the fading White Sox got a real taste of why Moore is one of the best young arms in the game. Moore was perfect through 4 1/3, and he ended his day with the following line: 5 1/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 4 K, 2 BB.
Justin Verlander, Tigers: Detroit needed an ace performance, and their ace gave it to them. Against the underrated Minnesota offense, Verlander gave up only one run over 7.0 innings pitched, and he struck out eight and walked two while allowing just four hits. The typical Verlander effort lowered his 2012 ERA to 2.64.
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Yankees offense: We could just as easily credit the Toronto bullpen for a job well done, but the Yanks obviously had more at stake in this one. New York allowed that bullpen to shut them out for six innings after starter Ricky Romero departed with an injury. Yes, that's the bullpen that owns the worst ERA in the AL. In the eventual one-run loss, the Yanks went 2-for-11 with RISP. With the stakes this high, you can't flail like that against such a bad pen.
Reds offense: Granted, the Reds probably aren't going all out these days, what with having clinched the division several days ago. But still … a total of five runs over their last four games? The postseason is certainly a reset, but they've averaged just 4.14 runs-per-game since the break.
Cardinals GIDPs: It may not turn out to be a defeat of any importance, but the Cardinals' 6-4 loss to the Nationals in 10 innings has the potential sting beyond the moment. What stings most of all is that Cardinal hitters grounded into three critical double plays on the night, including one courtesy of Allen Craig in the bottom of the 10th. Making matters worse is that the Cards' wild-card combatants, the Dodgers and Brewers, each won.
Duel: The first game of a key doubleheader in Arlington pits Zack Greinke of the Angels against Texas's Yu Darvish. Darvish will be under the microscope after being scratched from his last scheduled start because of neck stiffness. Greinke, meanwhile, is coming off an outing in which he whiffed 13 (!) in just 5.0 innings of work (!!). 1:05 pm ET
The miracle workers: Can those impossible Orioles keep it going? They'll wake up on the final day of September tied for first place in the AL East. They'll attempt to keep it going when Joe Saunders opposes Boston's Zach Stewart and his 7.91 ERA. 1:35 pm ET
Do or die: Can the White Sox hang on for dear life in the AL Central? Can the Rays continue yet another improbable charge toward the postseason? The fourth and final game of this critical-mass series on the South Side goes down Sunday. As a bonus, Rays ace and Cy Young contender David Price will go for his 20th win of the season. 2:10 pm ET
Sunday probables for all games
• Three Two guesses: So did the 2012 Dodgers fare better under the erstwhile "leadership" of Frank McCourt than they have under the new saviors led (publicly) by Magic Johnson? Bill Shaikin of the the Los Angeles Times has the answer.
• Field of dreams about chicken: Know who's investing in a youth baseball tournament to be held at the site of "Field of Dreams"? Hall-of-famer Wade Boggs, that's who. Bloomberg has the dirty.
• Made in New York: Who are New Yorkers' favorite New York-bred ballplayers? The New York Times presents a representative sample.
• A personal note: I'll make this quick. My niece and two nephews (my older brother's kiddos) are in a band (ahem, a Grammy-nominated band), and they recently paid a visit to the MLB Fan Cave. Here they are. That's all.
• Chipper's new … something: I'm not exactly sure what this is, but Mizuno added it to Chipper Jones's growing motherlode of retirement lucre. I suppose it could come in handy in some kind of rural post-apocalyptic scenario ...
#Braves Chipper in gift he was just presented by Mizuno, whose equipment he's worn entire career. yfrog.com/h8slqghdj
— David O'Brien (@ajcbraves) September 29, 2012
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