The New York Mets win in grand style on a walk-off grand slam

The New York Mets defeated the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday afternoon.  The game took place at

Citi Field in Flushing, New York.  Dillon Gee started for the Mets and pitched well.  Ike Davis was the

offensive star for the Mets.  The Mets bullpen was also good which is a rarity.  The Mets offense

only managed six hits but the biggest one was the walk-off by Ike Davis. 

Gee pitched 7 1/3 innings giving up six hits and three runs with a walk and four strikeouts.  Scott Rice pitched 2/3 of an inning striking out one and Carlos Torres picked up his first win pitching an inning and giving up a hit and striking out two batters. 

Johnny Cueto pitched seven innings giving up five hits and two runs with three walks and nine strikeouts.  Sam LeCure pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout and J.J. Hoover didn't record an out and gave up a hit and four runs with two walks. 

Eric Young Jr. had a hit, Daniel Murphy had a hit and David Wright drew a walk.  Curtis Granderson had a hit and two RBI, Juan Lagares had a hit and drew two walks and Ruben Tejada had a hit and drew two walks.  Davis had a hit and four RBI.  Tejada hit a double, Granderson and Davis each hit a homerun.  The Mets were 1-4 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. 

Brandon Phillips had a hit and two RBI, Ryan Ludwick had a hit and an RBI and Todd Frazier had a hit and drew a walk.  Barnhart had two hits, Cueto had a hit and Heisey had a hit.  Heisey hit a double, Ludwick and Phillips each hit a homerun.  The Red were 1-2 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.  Phillips committed an error. 

Ludwick hit a solo homerun in the fifth to give the Reds a 1-0 lead.  In the sixth Granderson hit a two run homerun to give the Mets a 2-1 lead.  Phillips hit a two run homerun in the eighth to give the Reds a 3-2 lead.  In the ninth Davis hit a walk-off grand slam to give the Mets a 6-3 victory. 

The two teams will play the finale of their three game series on Sunday afternoon.  Jon Niese will be activated from the disabled list to make the start and try to give the Mets a three game sweep. 

 

New York Yankees are shutout in Toronto but Michael Pineda has a strong debut

The New York Yankees were defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon.  The game

took place at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada and the final score was 4-0 Blue Jays.  Michael

Pineda made his season debut and Yankees debut and was great.  David Phelps struggled in relief. 

The Yankees offense had plenty of chances but couldn't cash in. 

Pineda pitched six innings giving up five hits and a run.  He didn't walk a batter and struck out five, he was a hard luck loser.  Vidal Nuno walked the only batter that he faced and Phelps pitched two innings giving up three hits and three runs.  He had three strikeouts. 

R.A. Dickey started for the Blue Jays and picked up the win.  He pitched 6 2/3 innings giving up five hits and no runs with a walk and six strikeouts.  Aaron Loup pitched to one batter and retired him, Brett Cecil pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up a hit and a walk with a strikeout and Sergio Santos picked up his second save pitching 1 1/3 innings and giving up a hit and a walk with two strikeouts. 

Jacoby Ellsbury had three hits, Derek Jeter drew two walks and Francisco Cervelli had two hits.  Yangervis Solarte had two hits, Brian Roberts drew a walk and Cervelli hit a double.  The Yankees were 1-11 with runners in scoring position and left ten men on base.   

Melky Cabrera had two hits and an RBI, Colby Rasmus had a hit and Jose Bautista had a hit and two RBI.  Adam Lind had a hit and drew a walk, Josh Thole had a hit and an RBI and Robert Goins had a hit.  Jonathan Diaz had a hit, Lind, Goins, Diaz and Rasmus each hit a double and Cabrera and Bautista each hit a homerun.  The Blue Jays were 2-5 with runners in scoring position and left four  men on base.  Thole was caught stealing  and Rasmus had an outfield assist. 

In the second inning Thole hit an RBI single to give the Jays a 1-0 lead.  That score would hold until the eighth inning.  In the eighth the Jays would score three insurance runs to take a 4-0 lead and that would be the final score.  Cabrera hit a solo homerun and Bautista hit a two run homerun.  The two teams will play the rubber game of the three game series on Sunday afternoon.  CC Sabathia will make the start for the Yankees looking to bounce back from his poor first start.  The Yankees will then head home for their home opener on Monday afternoon against the Baltimore Orioles.  They will be looking to even their record at 3-3 on Sunday. 

The New York Yankees win in Masahiro Tanaka debut

The New York Yankees defeated the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night.  The final score was 7-3 and

the game took place at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada.  Masahiro Tanaka started off shaky but

pitched well and earned his first victory.  Jacoby Ellsbury had three hits and two stolen bases, Ichiro

Suzuki had three hits and Yangervis Solarte had two hits. 

Tanaka pitched seven innings giving up three runs with two of them being earned.  He walked none and struck out eight.  Matt Thornton pitched 2/3 of an inning with a strikeout, Dellin Betances struggled with his control in 1/3 of an inning and David Robertson finished it retiring all three batters that he faced. 

Josh McGowan lost his first game pitching 2 2/3 innings and giving up eight hits and four runs.  He walked one and struck out three.  Aaron Loup pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up two hits and a run with a walk and two strikeouts, Redmond pitched 1 2/3 innings giving up a hit and a walk with a strikeout and Brett Cecil pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit with a strikeout.  Delabar pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with a walk and a strikeout and Jeffress pitched an inning with three hits and a run with two strikeouts. 

Ellsbury had three hits and drew a walk, Brett Gardner had two hits and an RBI and Carlos Beltran had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk.  Brian McCann had a hit and an RBI, Mark Teixeira had a hit and an RBI but then came out of the game with a hamstring strain.  Brian Roberts drew a walk, Kelly Johnson had two hits and Suzuki had three hits.  Solarte had two hits and three RBI and Dean Anna had his first major league hit.  Ellsbury and Solarte each hit two doubles.  Johnson hit a triple and the Yankees were 9-24 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base.  Ellsbury had two stolen bases, Roberts and Gardner each had one stolen base.  Teixeira committed an error and the Yankees had their first two replay challenges.  Girardi won the first one which changed the game because Solarte had a two run double to give them the lead after the call was overturned.  The second one in the eighth inning the Yankees lost. 

Melky Cabrera had a hit and an RBI, Edwin Encarnacion had two hits and Dioner Navarro had a hit.  Brett Lawrie had a hit and Jonathan Diaz had a hit and two RBI.  Encarnacion hit a double and Cabrera hit a homerun.  The Blue Jays were 1-6 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.  Redmond committed an error and Cabrera had an outfield assist. 

The Yankees scored two runs in the first inning and then the Blue Jays answered back with one.  Beltran and Teixeira each had an RBI single.  Cabrera hit a solo homerun for the Blue Jays.  In the second Diaz hit a two run single to give the Jays a 3-2 lead.  Solarte hit a two run double in the third to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead.  McCann hit an RBI single in the fourth to give the Yankees a 5-3 lead.  The Yankees scored a run in the eighth on a Gardner RBI single to make it 6-3.  The Yankees finished the scoring with a Solarte RBI double in the ninth.  The Yankees will play game two of the series on Saturday afternoon with Michael Pineda making his first start. 

The New York Mets are swept in opening series of year

The New York Mets were defeated by the Washington Nationals on Thursday afternoon.  The final

score was 8- 2 and the game took place at Citi Field in Flushing, New York.  Zach Wheeler started for

the Mets and pitched pretty well.  The bullpen was bad once again and Curtis Granderson led the

offense with a couple of hits. 

Wheeler pitched six innings giving up seven hits and three runs with two walks and six strikeouts.  Wheeler lost his first game of the season, Scott Rice pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up two hits and two runs and Jeurys Familia pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up two hits and two runs but only one was earned.  He walked one, Carlos Torres pitched an inning giving up two hits and a run with two walks and a strikeouts and Gonzalez Germen pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout. 

Tanner Roark picked up his first win for the Nationals.  He pitched six innings giving up six hits and two runs with three walks and five strikeouts.  Russ Detwiler pitched two innings with a walk and a strikeout and Rafael Soriano pitched an inning giving up giving up a hit and striking out two. 

Daniel Murphy had a hit and drew a walk, David Wright had a hit and Granderson had two hits and an RBI.  Lucas Duda drew a walk, Juan Lagares had a hit and an RBI and Travis d'Arnaud drew a walk.  Ruben Tejada and Ike Davis each had a hit and Josh Satin drew a walk.  Granderson hit two doubles and Lagares hit a double.  The Mets were 1-8 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base.  Murphy committed two errors. 

Denard Span had two hits, an RBI and drew a walk for the Nationals.  Jayson Werth had a hit, an RBI and drew two walks, Adam LaRoche had three RBI and Ryan Zimmerman had four hits and two RBI.  Daniel Espinoza had two hits, he had two doubles and Span hit a double.  Zimmerman hit a homerun and the Nationals were 5-13 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base. 

In the first Granderson hit an RBI double and Lagares hit a sacrifice fly to give the Mets a 2-0 lead.  In the second Zimmerman hit a solo homerun to cut the Mets lead to 2-1.  In the fifth Span hit an RBI single to tie the game at two and Werth hit an RBI single to give the Nationals a 3-2 lead.  In the seventh LaRoche had a two run single, Zimmerman had an RBI single and Desmond grounded into a force out scoring a run.  The Nationals had a 7-2 lead and would add another run in the eighth on a walk.  The final score was 8-2.  The Mets got swept in the first series of the season.  They are 0-3 and will play a three game series at home against the Cincinnati Reds. 

The New York Yankees pick up first win and avoid sweep in Houston

The New York Yankees defeated the Houston Astros on Thursday night.  The final score was 4-2 and

the game took place at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.  Ivan Nova started and he battled

through the game without his best stuff.  The bullpen was very good and Ichiro Suzuki and Yangervis

Solarte led the offense. 

Nova pitched 5 2/3 innings giving up two runs and six hits.  He walked five and struck out on and picked up his first victory.  Adam Warren made his first appearance and pitched 1 1/3 perfect innings with two strikeouts, Shawn Kelley pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts and David Robertson picked up his first save with a 1-2-3 inning.  He had one strikeout. 

Oberholtzer started for the Astros and pitched 5 2/3 innings giving up five hits and three runs with a walk and five strikeouts.  He picked up the loss his first of the season, Brad Peacock pitched 3 1/3 innings giving up two hits and a run with three walks and four strikeouts. 

Brett Gardner had a hit, RBI and drew a walk, Derek Jeter had a hit, RBI and drew a walk and Carlos Beltran had an RBI.  Brian Roberts drew a walk, Suzuki had two hits and Solarte had three hits an RBI and drew a walk.  Solarte and Suzuki each hit a double and the Yankees were 3-7 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. 

Dexter Folwer had two hits and an RBI for Houston.  Jose Altuve had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk, Grossman had a hit and drew a walk and Presley and Villar each had a hit.  Villar hit a double, the Astros were 1-6 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base.  Altuve had a stolen base and Presley had an outfield assist. 

The Astros took a 1-0 lead in the first inning once again.  Altuve grounded into a forceout which scored a run.  In the third inning the Yankees scored two runs and took their first lead of the season.  Gardner hit an RBI single and Beltran hit a sacrifice fly.  It was 2-1 Yankees until the fifth when Jeter hit an RBI single to extend the lead to 3-1.  The Astros would get that run right back and cut the lead to 3-2.  Fowler hit an RBI single.  The Yankees would score the final run of the game in the seventh on a Solarte RBI single which was really a pop up in front of the mound that no one caught.  The final was 4-2 as Robertson closed it out easily for the Yankees first victory. 

The Yankees will head to Toronto and take on the Blue Jays in a three game weekend series.  Masahiro Tanaka will make his first start on Friday night and then Michael Pineda will make his first start on Saturday before the rotation turns back around with CC Sabathia on Sunday.   

The New York Yankees still searching for offense in loss to Houston

The New York Yankees were defeated by the Houston Astros on Wednesday night.  The game took

place at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas and the final score was 3-1.  Hiroki Kuroda started for

the Yankees and pitched well.  The bullpen was pretty good.  Brian Roberts led the offense with

three hits but the Yankees were 0-10 with runners in scoring position. 

Kuroda pitched six innings giving up two runs on three hits.  He walked one and struck out five, he took his first loss of the season.  David Phelps pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit and a run with two walks and two strikeouts, Matt Thornton got one out and walked another batter and Shawn Kelley retired the only batter that he faced. 

Cosart got the win for Houston pitching five innings and giving up no runs on four hits.  He didn't walk a batter and struck out three.  Jerome Williams pitched an inning giving up a hit and a walk and he struck out two, Kevin Chapman pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up a hit and a run with two walks.  Matt Albers pitched 1 1/3 innings giving up a hit and striking out four and Josh Fields picked up his first save pitching a perfect inning with a strikeout. 

Jacoby Ellsbury drew a walk, Derek Jeter drew a walk and Carlos Beltran had a hit.  Brian McCann had two hits, Brett Gardner had a hit and drew a walk and Roberts had three hits.  Beltran hit a double and the Yankees were 0-10 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base.  Ellsbury had a stolen base and Teixeira committed an error. 

Dexter Fowler had two hits and an RBI four Houston, Grossman and Dominguez had a hit and an RBI.  Fowler hit a triple and a homerun and Dominguez hit a homerun.  The Astros were 0-5 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.  Villar had a stolen base. 

In the first inning Fowler hit a leadoff homerun to give the Astros a 1-0 lead.  The Astros took a 2-0 lead in the third inning on an error by Teixeira allowing the runner to score from third.  In the seventh the teams exchanged runs to make it a 3-1 game and that was the final score.  The two teams will play the third and final game of the series on Thursday night.  The Yankees will be looking to avoid the sweep and get their first win of the season. 

The New York Yankees lose season opener in Houston

The New York Yankees were defeated by the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.  The final score was

6-2 and the game took place at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.  CC Sabathia started and was

awful in the first two innings, especially the first inning.  He then settled down and pitched four

scoreless innings.  The young guys in the bullpen pitched two great innings.  Derek Jeter had a hit

and got hit in his final opening day of his career.  The Yankees offense wasn't very good but they did

wake up late. 

Sabathia pitched six innings giving up six runs on eight hits.  He walked one and struck out six.  Sabathia did take the loss.  Dellin Betances pitched a scoreless inning with two strikeouts and Vidal Nuno pitched a scoreless inning giving up a hit but striking out the side. 

Jacoby Ellsbury drew a walk, Jeter had a hit and was hit by a pitch and Carlos Beltran had a hit.  Brian McCann had a hit and an RBI, Mark Teixeira had two hits, an RBI and drew a walk and Brian Roberts drew a walk.  Kelly Johnson had a hit which was a double, the Yankees were 2-8 with runners in scoring position and they left eight men on base.  Beltran committed an error and also had an outfield assist. 

Scott Feldman started for the Astros and pitched 6 2/3 shutout innings.  He gave up two hits and two walks with three strikeouts.  He earned the win, Kevin Chapman pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a run and a walk, Chad Qualls pitched an inning giving up three hits and a run and Matt Albers pitched an inning giving up a hit. 

Dexter Fowler had two hits, Jose Altuve had two hits and two RBI and Jason Castro had a hit and an RBI.  Jesus Guzman had a hit and two RBI, Chris Carter had a hit and L.J.  Hoes had a hit, an RBI and drew a walk.  Jonathan Villar had a hit, Fowler hit two doubles and Guzman and Hoes each hit a homerun.  The Astros were 2-9 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base.  Altuve had a stolen base.

In the first inning Altuve hit an RBI single, stole second and went to third base on a wild pitch.  Castro reached on a fielder's choice which scored a run and Guzman hit a two run homerun to give the Astros a 4-0 lead.  Hoes hit a solo homerun in the second and Altuve hit an RBI single to give the Astros a 6-0 lead.  The Yankees wouldn't score until the eighth inning.  McCann and Teixeira hit RBI singles.  Alfonso Soriano grounded into a double play to end the inning and the rally and that was it for the Yankees. 

The two teams will play game two of their three game series on Wednesday night.  Jeter will be honored pregame by former teammates Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens.  Hiroki Kuroda will get the start for the Yankees against Jarred Cosart.   

The New York Mets blow a lead and lose to the Washington Nationals

The New York Mets were defeated by the Washington Nationals on Monday afternoon.  It was

Opening Day of the 2014 baseball season.  The Mets lost to the Nationals by the final score of 9-7 at

Citi Field in Flushing, New York.  Dillon Gee pitched well, the bullpen was terrible.  Juan Lagares had

a couple of hits and David Wright had three hits to lead the offense. 

Gee pitched 6 2/3 innings giving up four hits and four runs with two walks and five strikeouts.  Carlos Torres walked the only batter he faced, Scott Rice walked the only batter he faced and Jose Valverde pitched 1 1/3 innings striking out three.  Bobby Parnell pitched an inning blowing his first save.  He gave up two hits and a run with a walk and a strikeout, Jeurys Familia pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up two hits and two runs with a strikeout.  Familia took his first loss of the season.  John Lannan pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a hit and two runs with a walk. 

Stephen Strasburg started for the Nationals and pitched six innings giving up five hits and four runs with two walks and ten strikeouts.  Drew Storen pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts, Tyler Clippard pitched an inning giving up a hit and a run with a strikeout and Aaron Barrett picked up his first win of the season.  He pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts.  Jerry Blevins pitched an inning giving up a hit and two runs with a walk and three strikeouts. 

Eric Young Jr. had an RBI, Lagares had two hits, an RBI and drew a walk and Wright had three hits and two RBI.  Andrew Brown had a hit and three RBI, Ike Davis drew a walk and Travis d'Arnaud drew a walk.  Ruben Tejada had a hit, Brown, Lagares and Wright each hit a homerun.  The Mets were 1-4 with runners in scoring position and left three men on base.  d'Arnaud had a passed ball. 

Denard Span had two RBI for the Nationals.  Adam Laroche had two RBI and drew two walks, Anthony Rendon had two hits and four RBI.  LaRoche and Rendon each hit a homerun.  The Nationals were 3-6 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. 

In the bottom of the first Brown hit a three run homerun giving the Mets a 3-0 lead.  LaRoche hit a two run homerun in the second to cut the Mets lead to 3-2.  Young Jr. hit a sac fly in the second to make it a 4-2 game.  In the seventh Rendon hit an RBI double to cut the lead to 4-3.  Span walked to tie the game at four.  In the eighth Lagares hit a solo homerun to give the Mets a 5-4 lead.  In the ninth Span hit an RBI double to tie the game at five.  In the tenth inning Ian Desmond hit a sacrifice fly and Rendon hit a three run homerun to give the Nationals a 9-5 lead.  The Mets would try to come back in the bottom of the tenth.  Wright hit a two run homerun to cut the lead to 9-7 but that would be the final score of the game. 

The Mets are 0-1 on the season and the Nationals 1-0.  The two teams will play game two of the their three game series on Wednesday night. 

 

New York Yankees notes as exhibition season ends

The New York Yankees were scheduled to finish their exhibition schedule with a game Saturday

afternoon.  They were set to face off against the Miami Marlins but the game was postponed due to

rain.  The Yankees had two pregame ceremonies, the first to give Masahiro Tanaka the James P.

Dawson award for outstanding rookie in camp and the second for Derek Jeter.  The Jeter ceremony

ended and they immediately called the game.  The Yankees were all packed up and ready to head to

Houston to start the season Tuesday night.  CC Sabathia will make the start and he is eager to erase

his worst year which was last year. 

The Yankees had an interesting lineup put out for the game Saturday and it looks like that will be the lineup on Opening Day.  It was Jacoby Ellsbury, Derek Jeter, Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann, Mark Teixeira, Alfonso Soriano, Brett Gardner, Brian Roberts, Kelly Johnson.  I assumed that Gardner would bat ninth to have the double leadoff but I guess Joe Girardi is thinking differently and we will see how it all works out on Tuesday and then moving forward.  It is a pretty good lineup however you look at it and much better than last year. The Yankees have power, speed and on base guys plus switch hitters which should be a huge help to them. 

There were some guys missing on the flight to Houston but they will eventually join the rest of the team.  Yangervis Solarte was just told he made the team and needed to go pack.  Eduardo Nunez in a bit of a shocker was optioned to AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre.  Michael Pineda will pitch in a minor league game on Sunday in prep for his start next Saturday in Toronto.  Brendan Ryan will stay behind to continue to work his way back from a sore back.  Ryan stated that he expects to be down there for at least a couple more weeks.  He said he expects to be activated by May 1st but they told him he is basically starting spring training over again. 

The pitchers who were scheduled today went inside and threw simulated games.  Steinbrenner Field which was formally Legends Field opened in 1996 which was Jeter first season.  He was given a key to the city of Tampa.  He said he lives in Tampa now and can do what he wants now.  He said he isn't sure for how long the key will unlock stuff but it is good to be recognized and he spends a lot of time in Tampa and will continue to do so, probably even more so now after retiring. 

The Houston Astros announced that they will honor Jeter with a pregame ceremony on Wednesday.  Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens will be among those honoring him.  Those two guys are both former teammates of his, Pettitte was a longtime teammate and fellow core four member. 

Solarte came to camp as a 26 year old with no big league experience.  He really opened some eyes and they are now giving him his shot.  He never made a roster before.  The Yankees also have Dean Anna who never even was invited to big league camp before, Dellin Betances who was never more than a September call up.  They also have Vidal Nuno who was nothing more than a September call up as well.  It is nice to see some infusion of young blood and we will now see how they can help and if they can stick with the team.   

The New York Mets drop final game in Montreal

The New York Mets were defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon.  The game took

place at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada.  The fans once again packed the place, this time to

the tune of 50,000 plus.  If there were ever a chance based on attendance I would say Montreal

would get a team back.  They drew close to 100,000 for the two games there this weekend.  Daisuke

Matsuzaka pitched five scoreless innings and then was optioned to AAA after the game.  The

offense only produced two hits. 

Matsuzaka pitched five scoreless giving up five hits and he struck out eight.  Kyle Farnsworth pitched a perfect inning with a strikeout, Jose Valverde pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up a walk and John Lannan pitched to one batter and retired him.  Cody Satterwhite pitched 2/3 of an inning giving up a hit and a run with a strikeout and he also took the loss.  Adam Kolarek pitched 1/3 of an inning giving up a hit and a run. 

Eric Young Jr. had a hit and drew a walk, Daniel Murphy had a hit and Ike Davis drew a walk.  Murphy was caught stealing and Curtis Granderson had an outfield assist.   The Mets finished the exhibition schedule and will now head home to New York.  They will open the season on Monday afternoon against the Washington Nationals.  Dillon Gee will get the start as Jon Niese and Matt Harvey are both injured.