On this weeks podcast – August 5, 1979, Willie Mays is inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Mays slugged 660 homers, batted .302, and collected 3,283 hits in his 22-year career. Known for his all-around play, Mays won 12 Gold Glove Awards for his defense in center field. Former…
The Clearwater Threshers of the Florida State League are no-hit but still manage to win a game against the Tampa Tarpons. In the second game of a doubleheader, Deivi Garcia is perfect through the seven regulation innings for Tampa, striking out 12, but the 8th starts with a runner on second base against reliever Christian Morris, courtesy of the Schiller Rule. A throwing error and a fielder’s choice lead to a run, and Alberto Tirado shuts down the Tarpons in the bottom of the 8th to give Clearwater a 1 – 0 win.
The Mariners acquire 1B Yonder Alonso from the Athletics in return for young OF Boog Powell. Alonso is having a career year after playing in his first All-Star Game three weeks ago.
The Dodgers complete their first-ever season sweep of the Mets with an 8 – 0 win on a combined one-hitter by Hyun-Jin Ryu, Tony Cingrani and Kenley Jansen. New York only places two men on base all day: Travis d’Arnaud who hits a single in the 3rd, and Brandon Nimmo who draws a walk in the 9th. Meanwhile, Cody Bellinger hits his 32nd homer and Justin Turner, who also homers, improves his National League-leading batting average to .349. As the Associated Press puts it: “Los Angeles crushed the Mets like refuse in a trash compactor, outscoring them 57-15 over seven games and outhomering them 25-11.”
After a six-week search, the Padres, introduce their new General Manager, A.J. Preller, who was formerly the assistant GM of the Texas Rangers and spent most of his career in scouting.
With knuckleballer Steven Wright making his first major league start for Boston, catcher Ryan Lavarnway ties an unenviable record by allowing four passed balls in the 1st inning. Wright helps out with a wild pitch, two walks and a hit batsman as the Astros score three times, and he is removed in favor of Brandon Workman before the start of the 2nd inning. The game is far from over, however, and Lavarnway gets a chance to redeem himself with a two-run double that gives the Red Sox an 8 – 7 lead in the 5th. They will not relinquish it, eventually winning the game, 15 – 10.
Pitching is the name of the game today. The Angels’ Jered Weaver earns his major league-leading 15th win with a four-hit shutout of the Athletics, 4 – 0; he has now earned a win in 10 straight starts, tying a club record. In Detroit, Justin Verlander racks up 14 strikeouts to beat the Yankees, 7 – 2, a career-best and the most in the American League this season. And in Pittsburgh, Erik Bedard opens a crucial 11-game homestand for the Piratesby shutting out the Diamondbacks, 4 – 0, allowing 2 hits over seven innings without any walks.
The Red Sox defeat the Yankees, 10 – 4, in the second game of a three-game series at Fenway Park, to tie the two teams in first place in the AL East. Jacoby Ellsbury hits a three-run homer off CC Sabathia and drives in 6 runs to power the Red Sox. Sabathia is 0-4 against Boston this year, and 16-2 against all other teams.
The Phillies score a couple of runs in the 1st inning and then turn to Cole Hamels, who pitches a complete game, in beating the Giants, 2 – 1, outpitching Matt Cain. The Phillies have won a season-high nine consecutive games.
The Atlanta Braves honor pitcher Tom Glavine by retiring his uniform number 47 before today’s game with the Giants. San Francisco wins the game, 3 – 2, in 11 innings. They manage to tie the score in the 9th and score the winning run in the 11th without the benefit of any hits, taking advantage of two Braves errors in the 9th, and using a trio of walks and a sacrifice fly to score the game winner. Brian Wilson records the final out for his 32nd save at 12:32 a.m. after rain showers delay the start of the game by 90 minutes.