Print

Mail

wiki links

Webb dominates in Arizona win

Tampa Bay Devil Rays catcher Josh Paul loses his mask as he tags out Cleveland Indians baserunner Victor Martinez at home during the seventh inning of their game on Friday night in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Indians won 2-1. PHOTO: AP

Brandon Webb pitched his third straight shutout and stretched his scoreless streak to 42 innings, tossing a two-hitter to lead Arizona past Atlanta 4-0 on Friday.

Webb (13-8) became the first pitcher since Orel Hershiser in 1988 to go at least 40 innings without giving up a run and just the 21st in baseball history.

The result moved the Diamondbacks four games clear in the National League West, while the Braves lost ground on New York and Philadelphia in the East.

Webb was clinging to a 1-0 lead when Mark Reynolds gave Arizona breathing room with a two-run homer off Lance Cormier (0-3) in the eighth.

Nineteen years ago, Hershiser was with the Los Angeles Dodgers when he set the Major League Baseball (MLB) record of 59 straight scoreless innings. Webb is now tied with Rube Foster for the 12th-longest streak in baseball history. Since 1940, only Don Drysdale (58), Bob Gibson (47) and Sal Maglie (45) have longer scoreless innings streaks.

Mets 6, Nationals 2

In Washington, New York starter Tom Glavine (11-6) picked up win No. 301 by allowing one run over seven innings as the Mets downed Washington.

Damion Easley and Moises Alou homered off Nationals starter Matt Chico (5-7) as the first-placed Mets stayed three games clear of Philadelphia in the race for the NL East.

Cubs 2, Cardinals 1

In Chicago, Jacque Jones hit a two-run homer and made an outstanding catch as Chicago ended St. Louis' five-game winning streak.

The result moved the Cubs to the top of NL Central, leapfrogging Milwaukee. Chicago is now three games ahead of the Cardinals.

Phillies 11, Pirates 8

In Pittsburgh, Aaron Rowand and Pat Burrell hit home runs and Philadelphia downed Pittsburgh to win for the fourth time in five games and move into a tie with San Diego in the wildcard race.

Jimmy Rollins had three hits and scored three runs for the Phillies, who remain three games behind the Mets in the NL East.

Reds 8, Brewers 3

In Milwaukee, Bronson Arroyo and Cincinnati knocked slumping and error-prone Milwaukee out of first place in the NL Central.

The Brewers lost their season-high fifth straight at home, falling a half-game behind the Cubs.

Astros 3, Padres 1

In San Diego, Lance Berkman hit two home runs to lead Houston over San Diego.

The result gave the Astros some hope in the NL Central, while the Padres are now four games off the Diamondbacks in the West and tied for the wildcard spot.

odgers 6, Rockies 4

In Los Angeles, Eric Stults allowed just two hits over seven innings in his recall to the majors as Los Angeles won its third straight by downing Colorado.

The result saw the Dodgers move ahead of the Rockies in the NL West, with the teams two-and-a-half and 3 games respectively off the wildcard spot.

Giants 3, Marlins 0

In Miami, Barry Zito allowed only one hit in seven innings to lead San Francisco over Florida.

Zito (9-11) matched a season high with eight strikeouts and the Giants' bullpen did the rest.

Orlando Cabrera singled to tie the game and scored on a two-run double by Vladimir Guerrero on Friday as Los Angeles rallied in the ninth inning to beat Boston 7-5 and split a day-night doubleheader.

Clay Buchholz (1-0) gave Boston six strong innings in his major league debut to pace an 8-4 win in the afternoon.

Boston's Josh Beckett also came up short in his quest for win No. 16 in the night match.

Angels starter Ervin Santana pitched well in the night game in his return from the minors, retiring the first 13 batters he faced. Francisco Rodriguez (5-2) gave up the lead in the eighth inning but took the win as Los Angeles rallied.

Yankees 6, Tigers 1

At New York, Andy Pettitte pitched eight innings to win his fourth straight start and Jason Giambi homered twice, helping New York get back on track with a win over Detroit.

Andy Phillips hit a two-run double for the Yankees, who had lost three straight. The result keeps New York half a game behind Seattle in the wildcard race.

Indians 2, Devil Rays 1

At St. Petersburg, Florida, Paul Byrd held Tampa Bay to one run in six innings, allowing Cleveland to leapfrog Detroit and go top of the American League Central.

Byrd (11-5) worked out of several jams and limited Tampa Bay to going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Twins 2, Rangers 1, 10 innings

At Minneapolis, Nick Punto scored on a wild pitch with nobody out in the 10th inning to lift Minnesota over Texas and keep the Twins in playoff contention.

Rangers' Marlon Byrd struck out with two runners on in the top of the 10th and two outs. Then in the field, he misplayed a shallow fly ball from Nick Punto, allowing Punto to stretch a single into a triple.

Mariners 5, White Sox 4

At Seattle, the Mariners kept their noses in front of the Yankees in the wildcard race as starter Miguel Batista took a shutout into the seventh inning, setting up victory over Chicago.

Raul Ibanez continued his sudden surge with three hits for Seattle, including his seventh home run in 10 games -- he had six in his first 96 games.

Blue Jays 5, Orioles 2

At Toronto, A.J. Burnett won his second straight start and Frank Thomas hit his 506th career home run as Toronto extended its home winning streak against Baltimore to five games.

Burnett (7-6) gave up just three hits over six innings.

The right-hander is 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA since returning from the disabled list after missing 37 games with a sore shoulder.

Royals 9, Athletics 2

At Oakland, California, Emil Brown hit his first home run in over a month as Kansas City downed Oakland.

Brown's two-run home run highlighted a four-run rally in the first.

Brian Bannister (9-7) recorded his first career complete game for Kansas City. The right-hander leads all AL rookies with a 3.31 ERA. He's 9-0 when getting at least four runs of support.

Oakland's Dan Meyer (0-1) lost in his first major league start and his first major league appearance in three years.
This story has been viewed 943 times.