MLB
Saturday, July 10
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Hot Lines: Today's best MLB bets
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New York Yankees at Seattle Mariners (-105, 7)
The Yankees didn’t land ace pitcher Cliff Lee, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t going to keep rattling off victories.
New York has put together two come-from-behind wins the last couple of games to extend its winning streak to six. Even when the Yanks aren’t converting with runners in scoring position, they are still finding ways to come out on top.
"We have confidence we're going to come up with a big hit, but we left a lot of guys on base," Alex Rodriguez said after his team went 1-for-11 with RISP in a 3-1 win over Seattle on Thursday. "We're just thinking of one opportunity to win the game."
If Brian Cashman could have pulled Lee out of his magic hat wearing pinstripes, the Yankees could have been just handed the Commissioner’s Trophy. But even without the game’s top lefty, New York is still head and shoulders above every team and will have no trouble working over King Felix and a pathetic Mariners offense Saturday.
Pick: Yankees
Florida Marlins at Arizona Diamondbacks (-135, 10.5)
It’s not every day that a decision in one sport affects players in another, but when it involves the name LeBron James nobody is left emotionless.
Minutes before the first pitch of the Marlins-Diamondbacks game Thursday night, shortstop Hanley Ramirez help up a sign to the camera that read “Welcome LeBron.” Ramirez had a big, cheesy grin on his face and was giving the thumbs up.
"It's going to be big. It's going to be huge," manager Edwin Rodriguez said. "Not only in Miami, but the whole area. Everybody knows who LeBron is. The good athletes, no matter the sport.”
We're just guessing the vibes of ecstasy the city of Miami is exuding right now will carry over into the Marlins' clubhouse. Call it a hunch, take it or leave it.
Pick: Marlins
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Streaking and Slumping Pitchers
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Streaking
Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners (6-5, 3.01 ERA)
After struggling at the start of the year, the Mariners' ace is trying to head into the break on a high note. Hernandez is undefeated in his last five trips to the bump, posting a 3-0 record and giving up just seven runs over 42.2 innings of work. His most recent start lasted seven innings, in which he allowed two runs on six hits for a no decision in a 6-4 loss to the Kansas City Royals.
Gavin Floyd, Chicago White Sox (4-7, 4.43 ERA)
Floyd is another arm who got off to a slow start but has come around in his recent appearances. The ChiSox’s righty is 2-0 in his last four stars and has allowed only six earned runs over his last six trips to the mound. Floyd has won back-to-back starts for Chicago, recently giving up only one run on seven hits for a 9-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels.
Slumping
Scott Kazmir, Los Angeles Angels (7-8, 5.98 ERA)
The Halos southpaw has dropped three starts in a row, serving up a total of 17 earned runs while lasting only 14.1 innings during that span. He has a strikeout-to-walk count of 9-to-9 over those three starts, most recently walking five batters and giving up seven runs – including three home runs – in a 9-2 loss to the Chicago White Sox Monday. Kazmir is blaming his lackluster slider for those poor showings.
Returning
Matt Harrison. Texas Rangers (1-1, 4.47 ERA)
Harrison gets a crack at the Rangers’ fifth starter spot this weekend. He was brought up from Triple-A Oklahoma City and has made six big-league starts this season. In his last minor league start, the left-hander gave up three earned runs on nine hits in just under five innings of work Monday. His most recent MLB appearance was two innings of relief in which Harrison gave up one hit and walked a batter on June 27.
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This Day in Baseball
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On July 10 in Baseball History...
1919 - Cleveland manager Lee Fohl brings in little-used southpaw Fritz Coumbe to pitch to Babe Ruth with the bases loaded and a 7-4 lead in the ninth inning. Ruth's subsequent grand slam gives Boston an 8-7 win and gives the Indians a new manager. Center fielder Tris Speaker brings the Tribe home in second place and stays as skipper for seven years.
1920 - After banging out 11 straight hits, Tris Speaker is stopped by Tom Zachary of Washington. It's the record until Pinky Higgins of the Red Sox racks up 12 in a row in 1938.
1932 - To save train fare for the single-date appearance, Connie Mack takes along just two A's pitchers to Cleveland. Lew Krausse the A's starting pitcher, gives up four hits in the first inning and his replacement, Eddie Rommel pitches 17 innings in relief, giving up a record 29 hits, but wins 18-17. Cleveland's Johnny Burnett sets a major-league record by collecting nine hits in 11 at bats, while the A's Jimmie Foxx strokes six hits, including three home runs for a record-tying 16 total bases.
1934 - The second annual All-Star Game produces Carl Hubbell's amazing feat of striking out five future Hall of Famers in a row. After two batters reach in the first, he strikes out Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Jimmie Foxx. He adds Al Simmons and Joe Cronin to start the second. He leaves with the N.L. ahead 4-0, but the A.L. rallies for a 9-7 victory.
1936 - Philadelphia's Chuck Klein hits four home runs in five at bats in a ten-inning game at Forbes Field. His final home run beats the Pirates, 9-6.
1945 - The All-Star Game at Fenway Park is canceled because of travel restrictions enforced by World War II.
1951 - Exploding for four home runs, the N.L. trounces the A.L. 8-3 at the annual All-Star Game at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. Pittsburgh slugger Ralph Kiner hits a home run for the third year in a row.
1956 - In the All-Star Game, Ken Boyer of the Cardinals makes three sparkling plays at third base and gets three hits as the N.L. defeats the A.L. 7-3. Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams, and Stan Musial all homer. Mays' pinch-hit two-run home run off Whitey Ford is his seventh straight hit against the Yankee lefty.
1962 - Roberto Clemente has three hits as the N.L. wins 3-1 in the first of two All-Star Games of 1962 at Washington's D.C. Stadium.
1964 - Jesus Alou gets six hits against six different pitchers as the Giants beat the Cubs 10-3.
1968 - The N.L. announces plans to break into two divisions for 1969. The Eastern Division will feature New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Montreal, Chicago, and St. Louis. In the Western will be Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego, and Atlanta.
1982 - Rangers slugger Larry Parrish hits his third grand slam of the week in a 6-5 win over the Tigers, tying the major-league record set by Detroit's Jim Northrup in 1968. Parrish also hit grand slams July 4 against Oakland and July 7 against Boston.
1984 - On the 50th anniversary of Carl Hubbell's legendary five consecutive strikeouts in the 1934 All-Star Game, N.L. pitchers Fernando Valenzuela and Dwight Gooden combine to fan six batters in a row for a new All-Star Game record in the N.L.'s 3-1 triumph. After Valenzuela whiffs Dave Winfield, Reggie Jackson, and George Brett in the fourth inning, Gooden, the youngest All-Star ever at age 19, fans Lance Parrish, Chet Lemon, and Alvin Davis in the fifth.
1997 - Hideki Irabu wins his much-anticipated major league debut, striking out nine in 6 2/3 innings as the Yankees defeat Detroit 10-3. The Japanese-born pitcher receives a standing ovation from the sellout crowd of 51,901 at Yankee Stadium.
