#12 Redbirds dispatch #13 Dodgers in 4

GAME 1 - Busch Stadium
Kershaw vs Lynn
Cardinals 2, Dodgers 0

Lance Lynn bested Clayton Kershaw in the opener with 6 2/3 shutout innings of 4 hit ball.  St. Louis scored a pair of solo runs in the 3rd and 6th.  Carlos Beltran singled home Furcal to make it 1-0.  Yadier Molina doubled home Beltran in the 6th as pitching dominated this rainy day in the Gateway city. 

Cardinals lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - Busch Stadium
Beckett vs Garcia
Dodgers 5, Cardinals 4

For 7 innings the story was once again St. Louis' dominant pitching and LA's lack of offensive prowess.  That all changed in the top of the 8th when the Dodgers exploded for 4 unanswered runs off of L.Salas all with 2 out.  Jerry Hairston's 2 out double started off the scoring, which finished with a run scoring on a wild pitch.  Brandon League, Randy Choate and K.Jansen combined to get 3 outs in the 9th.
Series tied 1-1

GAME 3 - Dodger Stadium
Lohse vs Billingsley
Cardinals 4, Dodgers 0

The pivotal game 3 will forever be known as the Kyle Lohse show.  The Cardinal righthander upped his tournament record to 3-0 by tossing a nifty 2 hit shutout.  After Dee Gordon led off the game with a drag bunt single the Dodgers did not get another hit until James Loney's double in the 8th.  St. Louis scored all 4 of their runs in the top of the 4th via a pair of two run homers.  Carlos Beltran broke the ice with the first 2 run shot and David Freese followed suit 2 batters later.
Cardinals lead series 2-1

GAME 4 - Dodger Stadium
Wainright vs Lilly
Cardinals 4, Dodgers 1

The Dodgers broke the ice by scoring on a Luis Cruz groundout in the bottom of the second to score Hanley Ramirez.  After that the boys from Chavez Ravine went quietly into the night.  The Cardinals tied it up in the 4th on David Freese's second long ball in as many days, then went ahead for good on a RBI single by Freese.  Matt Holliday's 2 run blast off of Lindblom in the 8th shut the door on a Dodger team that had trouble scoring runs all series.
Cardinals win series 3-1

#11 Halos defeat #14 Chisox in 4

GAME 1 - Angel Stadium
Peavy vs Weaver
Angels 3, White Sox 2

Peavy and Weaver dueled to a draw after 7 innings of action until Prince Albert hit a solo shot to lead off the 8th to break the deadlock.  Walden and Frieri were perfect in the 8th and 9th to close out the Pale Hose
Angels lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - Angel Stadium
Sale vs Santana
White Sox 1, Angels 0

Chris Sale shut the door on the Halos for 8 innings.  He fanned 9 and walked none.  The bullpen continued the dominance.  Chicago scored the game's lone run with an RBI double from Adam Dunn in the top of the 1st.
Series tied 1-1

GAME 3 - U.S. Cellular
Wilson vs Floyd
Angels 6, White Sox 5

Chicago looked to be in the "catbird seat" after scoring 5 unearned runs in the bottom of the 5th off of C.J. Wilson.  The Angels never threw in the towel and began chipping away at the lead with solo runs in the 5th and 6th and 2 runs in the 7th.  With momentum squarely on the Halos side the stage was set for some 9th inning heroics.  Back to back 2 out singles by Pujols and Callaspo plated the tying and the go ahead runs as the Chisox pen could not stop the Halos.
Angels lead series 2-1

GAME 4 - U.S. Cellular
Haren vs Quintana
Angels 5, White Sox 4

Once again the South Side Pen failed to come through.  With the score tied 4-4 the Angels manufactured the go ahead run thanks to two key errors and a timely 2 out single by Howie Kendrick, which scored Pujols.  Frieri, who is the antithsis of his White Sox counterparts, was automatic once again notching his 6th save of the tournament.
Angels win series 3-1

#2 Motown need 5 games to get past #7 Oak to get to final 4

Game 1: Oakland 5, Detroit 4

The Tigers wasted a 12-strikeout performance by starter Justin Verlander when Jose Valverde blew the lead in the ninth. The Tigers knocked A’s starter Tommy Milone out in the 5th, but the A’s bullpen slammed the door the rest of the way. Andy Dirks continued his torrid tournament pace, with 3 hits and 3 RBI’s. Kurt Suzuki singled home the winning run in the 10th off Duane Below and the Tigers were unable to counter off closer Grant Balfour.

Game 2: Detroit 4, Oakland 3

Max Scherzer started for the home team and fanned 9 before giving way to Octavio Dotel who would eventually get credit for the win. A Prince Fielder 2-run homer in the 7th put the Tigers in the lead for good. Joaquin Benoit tossed 1 2/3 perfect innings to get the save. 5 Tigers had multi-hit games in the win. Seth Smith homered for Oakland, while Jim Miller took the loss.

Game 3: Oakland 4, Detroit 1

A Yoenis Cespedes 3-run homer in the 8th off Benoit gave the victory to the Athletics. Cespedes also homered in the 2nd and finished the game with 3 hits and all 4 Oakland RBI’s. Doug Fister took the loss for Detroit, while Daniel Straily netted the win. Andy Dirks recorded his third straight multiple hit game.

Game 4: Detroit 6, Oakland 4

Miguel Cabrera pounded 4 hits and Prince Fielder 3 to pace the Tigers attack. A Cabrera solo shot and an Alex Avila RBI single in the 5th put Detroit in the lead for good. Anibal Sanchez picked up the win, with Jarrod Parker getting the loss. Jose Valverde slammed the door to earn the save. Seth Smith had a homer and 3 RBI’s in the losing cause.

Game 5: Detroit 8, Oakland 4

Justin Verlander spotted the A’s 4 runs in the first 2 innings, but held tight after to give his offense a chance to recover. The Tigers picked up 2 in the 3rd, then a singular run in the 4th, before a Jhonny Peralta 3-run bomb in the 5th capped a 4-run inning. Verlander lasted 6 1/3, fanning 12, before the trio of Phil Coke, Benoit and Valverde finished the game. Dirks recorded his 4th multi-hit game of the series, going 3 for 4 and raising his tournament average to .545. Tommy Milone for Oakland got nailed for 7 earned runs in the loss. Brandon Moss hit a 3-run homer in the 1st to put the A’s out front early. 
--submitted by Matt Dickendesher--

Round 3 Preview

Here are the matchups for the "Elite 8" round.  Reply here on the blog if you have any predictions.

 (1)SFG vs TEX(9)-L.Reeves vs M.Angle

 (12)STL vs LAD(13)-S.Needle vs M.Weiss

 (14)CHW vs LAA(11)-D.Holm vs D.Zaner

(7)OAK vs DET(2)-K.MacDonald vs M.Dickendesher

#9 Texas defeats #8 Baltimore in 5 game epic series

GAME 1 - Camden Yards
C.Lewis vs Saunders
Rangers 6, Orioles 4

All tied up a 4 apiece, after 6 innings of play, the Rangers took control with 2 runs in the top of the 7th off off reliever Kevin Gregg.  Back to back jacks by Elvis Andrus and Josh Hamilton did the damage.  For Hamilton that was his 2nd homer on a day where he'd go 3 for 5 with 3 RBI.  Nathan would come in from the pen to get the final 2 outs in the 9th for the save.  Texas would log 17 hits and live 8 runners on base, which is why they won by just 2.  Credit Baltimore's five pitchers on the day for getting a lot of big outs to keep it close.
Rangers lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - Camden Yards
M.Harrison vs Hammel
Orioles 4, Rangers 0

Credit Jason Hammel for pitching 7 shutout innings and fanning 10 before handing it off to O'Day and Johnson, who were perfect out of the pen.  The O's broke the ice with a solo shot by Nick Markakis to lead off the home half of the 4th.  RBI singles by Pearce and Quintanilla gave Hammel a 3-0 lead.  Adams Jones scored on Pearce's ground out in the sixth to make it 4-0, which is how it finished.
Series tied 1-1

GAME 3 - Rangers Ballpark
Chen vs Darvish
Rangers 3, Orioles 2

An impressive pitcher's duel between Wei-Yen Chen and Yu Darvish saw the Rangers up 3-0 heading into the 9th.  Darvish, who fanned 8 and gave up just 3 hits in 7 innings of work put his fate in the hands of the pen.  Both Alexi Ogando and Joe Nathan had their difficulties in the top of the 9th with 2 out.  Markakis led off with a single, but Jones and Davis both went down swinging for 2 outs.  Future HOF'er Jim Thome lined a single as a pinch hitter, which was followed by an RBI single from Wilson Betemit.  McLouth walked to load the bases and Hall walked to force in a run.  It all ended when Nolan Reimold lifted one that Snyder easily tracked down on the warning track in left.

Rangers lead series 2-1

GAME 4 - Rangers Ballpark
Tilman vs Feliz
Orioles 3, Rangers 2

Same score as the previous game, just a different result.  Tied up a 2-2 and heading into the 9th the O's needed a run desperately to stave off elimination.  With the bases loaded and 2 out Nolan Reimold stepped up to the plate with a chance to make up for making the final out the day before.  In a classic Hollywood script he would have hit a homer that barely cleared the outfield fence.  In reality he took ball four and the go ahead run crossed the plate.  Still a run is a run.  Oriole closer Jim Johnson didn't make the bottom of the 9th easy on Oriole fans watching at home on MASN.  Michael Young led off with a single, but was quickly erased on a DP.  Mike Napoli followed with a walk.  Moreland had a 2-1 hitters count and hit a one hop bullet that luckily wound up in the glove of shortstop Hardy's glove for the game ending force play at second.
Series tied 2-2

GAME 5 - Camden Yards
C.Lewis vs S.Johnson
Rangers 10, Orioles 4

No classic game 5 nail biter here.  Texas' offense shifted into high gear and scored 10 runs on 13 hits.  Oriole starter Steve Johnson couldn't even make it out of the 2nd inning after giving up 4 runs.  His replacement, Gonzalez, didn't fare much better giving up 4 runs himself.  Adrian Beltre (3-5) set the tone with a 3 run shot in the first.  Catcher Mike Napoli had 3 hits and 3 runs scored while batting out of the 8 hole.
Rangers win series 3-2

#7 Oakland defeats #10 Rays in 4

Game 1 played Sept. 23rd
This game was scoreless until the 6th inning when B.J. Upton doubled to bring Desmond Jennings home from first. The Rays rally was cut short when Upton was thrown out at home trying to score after Ben Francisco singled with two outs. The Oakland offense finally awoke in the 8th as Josh Reddick hit a sacrifice fly to bring Coco Crisp home to tie the game at 1. But the Rays struck in the bottom of the 8th as Sam Fuld scored on a Sean Rodriguez groundout. Fernando Rodney came in to save the game only giving up one walk. TB leads the series 1-0.

Game 2 played Sept. 24th
Tampa jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead with a run in the first and another in the second including a B.J. Upton homerun. Oakland exploded in the 4th inning and scored 4 runs as Kurt Suzuki (2), Stephen Drew, and Coco Crisp picked up RBI's. Oakland then scored again in the 5th as Seth Smith hit a two-run homer. The rest of the game was quiet and Oakland won 6-2 to tie the series at 1.

Game 3 played Sept. 25th
A quiet start to the game resulted in a 1-1 tie after 5. But then the Oakland bench provided some major sparks in the 6th as Adam Rosales pinch hit for Stephen Drew and hit a 3-run bomb. Tampa responded with a solo Luke Scott homer in the top of the 7th. The Oakland bench followed up in the bottom of the 7th as Collin Cowgill pinch hit for Brandon Inge to make it a 5-2 lead, which the A's rode to the finish line and a 2-1 series lead.

And now we get in our time machine

Game 4 played Sept. 20th
Bartolo Colon and Jim Miller put together a strong performance to wrap up the series for the A's. The Rays tried to stop the bleeding by using 4 pitchers in the 6th inning, but the A's benefited from two HBP to take a 5-1 lead and the series
--submitted by Keith MacDonald--
Note: These games were played out of order because the host (me, Keith) failed to pay attention to how a calendar works. So we played games 3,4,5 and then game 1.

#2 Seed Tigers dispatch #18 Bucs in 4

Game 1:  Detroit 7, Pittsburgh 3

Austin Jackson paced the Tigers offensive attack with two bombs among his four hits. Prince Fielder smacked three hits, while three other Tigers delivered multi-hit games. Justin Verlander proved solid on the mound for the home team, pitching seven shutout innings after a rocky 1st. Verlander finished the day with 10 strikeouts. Andrew McCutchen picked up two hits and scored two of the Pirates three runs. Brad Lincoln took the loss for the Pirates.

Game 2:  Pittsburgh 4, Detroit 0

AJ Burnett tossed eight and a third scoreless innings to lead the Pirates to victory. Burnett struck out six Tigers, while only walking one. Joel Hanrahan shut the door in the ninth, dusting off both batters he faced. Neil Walker’s second inning homer off Detroit starter Max Scherzer proved to be all the offense the visitor’s would need. Scherzer fanned nine in a losing cause, but couldn’t escape the 6th. Andy Dirks delivered three hits in the loss.

Game 3:  Detroit 6, Pittsburgh 5

Both starters looked shaky, with Tigers hurler Doug Fister lasting only five, while the Pirates James McDonald pitched only three innings. Back to back homers from Neal Walker and Michael McKenry in the 2nd put the Pirates in the lead. Detroit stormed back in the top of the 3rd, as three walks contributed to a three run inning. The Tigers picked up another run in the 4th before the home squad saw McKenry hit another homer – this time with two men on base – to regain the lead. Trailing by one in the 9th, Andy Dirks tripled off Joel Hanrahan, scoring two runs and putting Detroit in the lead. Jose Valverde slammed the door in the 9th, to give Detroit a 2-1 series lead. Joaquin Benoit got credit for the victory after pitching a scoreless 8th.

Game 4:  Detroit 9, Pittsburgh 4  (14 innings)

Elevated pitch counts pushed both starters, Anibal Sanchez, and Wandy Rodriguez, from the game prior the conclusion of the 6th inning. Each team delivered three innings of singular runs, sending the game into OT. The 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th innings passed with no runs, but lots of relief pitchers plying their trade. The Tigers busted the game open in the 14th, putting up a six-spot capped by an Alex Avila pinch hit three run homer, to put the game out of reach or Pittsburgh. Starling Marte finished the night 5 for 7 in a losing cause. Another Marte, Luis, earned the win for Detroit, with Jeff Karstens taking the loss.
--submitted by Matt Dickendesher--