Dave Riggert – Page 721 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Wainwright falls again as St. Louis loses at Pittsburgh

Posted on August 27, 2014

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ike Davis wasn’t able to play meaningful late-season games during his time with the New York Mets. He’s making the most of his chance with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

“It’s the first time he’s been involved in games that have this kind of significance this late in the season,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said Wednesday after Davis’ long home run keyed a 3-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. “He’s showing up to the ballpark ready contribute any way he can.”

Davis hit a two-run drive off a speaker above the seats in right-center field in the second inning. A day earlier, Davis had a pinch-hit, tiebreaking, three-run homer in the eighth inning of Pittsburgh’s 5-2 win.

Davis arrived in the major leagues with the New York Mets in 2010 and was traded to Pittsburgh in April. The Mets finished with losing records in all of his seasons in New York.

“It’s hard when you’re mathematically eliminated,’ Davis said. “You hit a home run and it’s a great feeling still, but it’s kind of like it didn’t really matter. If you’re still in it, it definitely feels a little sweeter.”

Davis hit his 10th homer after Adam Wainwright (15-9) plunked Russell Martin on the left elbow with a pitch that Martin barely tried to avoid. Davis sent an 88 mph cutter clanking off a speaker raised on a pole, about 15 feet above the seats, a drive estimated at about 433 feet.

“I just got the barrel on it,” Davis said. “It just carried out today.”

Wainwright knew he made a mistake when he saw where his pitch was headed.

“I threw it right into Ike’s swing path, and he made a good swing on it,” Wainwright said. “I wanted to get the pitch higher, but I got it and down and in, and that’s a left-handed hitter’s honey spot right there.”

Davis also had an inning-ending lineout that left the bases loaded in the fifth.

Pittsburgh took two of three from the defending NL champions and has won five of seven overall. St. Louis (71-61) leads the NL wild-card race, with San Francisco (69-62) trailing by 1 1/2 games and the Pirates (69-64) one game back of the Giants for the second wild-card berth.

Jeff Locke (6-3) allowed one run and six hits in 7 1/3 innings, giving up Matt Holliday’s third-inning homer. Locke also singled in the third and scored on Andrew McCutchen’s sacrifice fly, just the 11th hit for the pitcher in 98 career at-bats.

Mark Melancon pitched a one-hit ninth for his 24th save in 28 chances.

Locke escaped trouble in the third, stranding Daniel Descalso on third when Josh Harrison made a diving stop on Randal Grichuk’s two-out grounder down the line and threw to first

Wainwright allowed three runs and eight hits in six innings. He gave up five runs to Philadelphia on Aug. 22 and has gone winless in consecutive starts for just the second time this season.

“Yo’ure not going to be at your best all time,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “Right now, he’s not at his best, but he showed some good signs today.”

— Associated Press —

Chiefs sign guard Mike McGlynn; waive Gottschalk

Posted on August 27, 2014

The Kansas City Chiefs announced on Wednesday that the club has signed guard Mike McGlynn. Additionally, the team has waived offensive lineman Ben Gottschalk.

McGlynn (6-4, 325) has played in 57 games (48 starts) in five NFL seasons with the Indianapolis Colts (2012-13), Cincinnati Bengals (2011) and Philadelphia Eagles (2008-10).

McGlynn was signed by Washington on March 28, 2014 and released by the club on Aug. 26. He originally entered the NFL as a fourth-round draft pick (109th overall) of the Eagles in the 2008 NFL Draft.

He spent three seasons with current Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid in Philadelphia where he played in 19 games (14 starts) with the team.

He played collegiately at Pittsburgh where he was a three-time All-Big East honoree and first-team all-conference. McGlynn prepped at Austintown-Fitch High School in Austintown, Ohio.

— Chiefs Media Relations —

Gordon’s two-run HR in ninth lifts KC past Minnesota 2-1

Posted on August 27, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Royals were trailing the Twins by a run in the ninth inning Tuesday night, and Kansas City manager Ned Yost was on the top step of the dugout, conferring with catching coach Pedro Grifol about the potential decisions he would have to make.

That’s when Yost heard a voice pipe up.

“The bat boy who never says anything turns around and says, `Esky is going to get a hit and Gordo’s taking him in the fountain,” Yost said. “I said, `OK. Sounds like a pretty good plan.”

One that worked out perfectly, too.

Alcides Escobar led off with a blooper to shallow right for a single, and Alex Gordon swatted the second pitch he saw over the right-field wall to give the AL Central-leading Royals a dramatic 2-1 victory over Minnesota — and help them avoid their first three-game skid since mid-July.

“Got a slider over the plate and put a good swing on it,” Gordon said. “Really didn’t have any offense going all night and was able to muster up something, so that was great.”

The Royals had been shut down all night by Ricky Nolasco, who scattered three hits over seven innings. But after going quietly in the eighth, they managed to break through against Perkins (3-1), who had converted 18 consecutive saves on the road.

“We had a really good game out of Ricky. I feel bad for him because he pitched seven shutout innings and threw the ball well,” Perkins said. “He and the team don’t have anything to show for it. It’s not a fun feeling.”

Wade Davis (7-2) earned the win with a perfect ninth inning in relief.

Danny Duffy was nearly as sharp for the Royals as Nolasco was for Minnesota. The left-hander allowed four hits and a pair of walks over 6 2/3 innings, but was in line for the loss after giving up a double to Brian Dozier and a slicing single to Joe Mauer to start the seventh.

The Royals had several chances to push a run across much earlier — and with much less drama.

Billy Butler was hit by pitches from Nolasco on two occasions, and the first time — in the second inning — he advanced to third before getting stranded. Christian Colon was left standing on second in the third inning, and Jarrod Dyson was picked off first base in the sixth.

Dyson was also picked off first base in Monday night’s 1-0 loss to the Yankees.

The Twins also had opportunities to push across an early run. Trevor Plouffe grounded into inning-ending double plays in the second and fifth, and Danny Santana was picked off first base in the fourth. Eduardo Escobar was stranded at second base in the sixth.

Those missed chances proved to be important when the ninth inning rolled around.

“I don’t think anybody saw that coming,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said, “a bloop and a blast and a big walk-off for them.”

— Associated Press —

Cardinals lose to Pirates on three-run homer in the 8th

Posted on August 27, 2014

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ike Davis didn’t complain when the Pittsburgh Pirates told him they were going to eat into his playing time by experimenting with Pedro Alvarez at first base. Call it the byproduct of spending four-plus seasons with the New York Mets.

“You kind of get immune to stuff after a while,” Davis said. “Kind of my career has been starting, not starting, so I’m used to it.”

Davis is simply happy to be in a pennant race at the moment. He provided a needed jolt in a pinch-hit appearance Tuesday night, connecting for a tiebreaking three-run homer off St. Louis reliever Seth Maness in the eighth inning of a potentially costly 5-2 victory.

Pirates star Andrew McCutchen left in the fifth inning because of discomfort in his left ribs. Recently on the disabled list because of a rib problem, the center fielder ran into the wall earlier in the game.

“Today caught up to him in a couple of different ways,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said of the reigning National League MVP. “Tonight got to be a point where we didn’t think we needed to push any farther than he did.”

It’s uncertain whether McCutchen will be available Wednesday, but Pittsburgh survived for a few innings without the four-time All-Star thanks in large part to Davis. The Pirates squandered six brilliant innings by Gerrit Cole when Tony Watson (9-1) couldn’t get out of a two-on, no-out jam in the seventh that allowed the Cardinals to tie the game.

No matter. Watson recovered to get out of the jam and retired the side in the eighth, and the Pirates wasted little time getting to Maness in the bottom of the inning. Gaby Sanchez singled with one out, and Starling Marte followed with his second hit of the night.

The Cardinals decided to stick with Maness (5-3) after a brief conference. It didn’t work.

Davis shook off a called strike that appeared to be below his knees and delivered a towering shot to right-center that landed in the last row of seats.

“We got into a good count, had a couple real nice pitches and left one up in the middle,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “That’s not going to turn out well.”

Josh Harrison also homered for the Pirates, and Mark Melancon worked the ninth for his 23rd save.

Jon Jay and Randal Grichuk each drove in a run for the Cardinals. Lance Lynn gave up two runs over six innings in a bid for his fourth consecutive win.

Pittsburgh, trying desperately to stay in the hunt for a wild-card slot, appeared in danger of a second straight disheartening defeat after a brilliant effort by Cole vanished.

The 23-year-old overwhelmed the Cardinals for long stretches in his second start since returning from the disabled list after being sidelined by right lat soreness. St. Louis didn’t get a hit until a two-out double just inside the first-base bag by Kolten Wong in the sixth. Cole responded by fanning Matt Holliday for his ninth strikeout of the game.

Hurdle decided to send Cole back out for the seventh with a 2-0 lead even though he had thrown 102 pitches. Trouble soon followed.

Matt Adams led off with a double, and Jhonny Peralta followed with a single. Watson, who has slipped a bit over the past month following a dazzling first half, came on but couldn’t quell the rally.

Adams scored on a sacrifice fly by Jay, and Grichuk — called up earlier in the day after outfielder Shane Robinson was placed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury — slapped a single up the middle to tie the game.

— Associated Press —

Royals get blown out by Yankees in make up of June rainout

Posted on August 25, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Michael Pineda kept throwing strikes. The Royals kept taking them, trying in vain to drive his pitch count up. When Yankees catcher Brian McCann looked up in the third inning, his right-hander had still thrown just 35 pitches.

He knew then that Pineda was in a groove.

Pineda wound up pitching into the seventh inning Monday night to win for the first time since April 16, helping New York beat the Kansas City Royals 8-1 for its fifth straight win.

“He’s got so much cut on his fastball,” McCann said. “I feel like he could literally throw it every pitch and be successful. When he’s like that, he’s as good as anybody.”

In the makeup of a game rained out in early June, Pineda (3-2) gave up a solo shot to Mike Moustakas leading off the third inning. But that was about it in Pineda’s third game back from the disabled list. He struck out five without a walk.

Jacoby Ellsbury drove in a run in the seventh inning with the 1,000th hit of his career, then added a two-run homer in the ninth. Derek Jeter added a pair of RBIs in his final scheduled trip to Kauffman Stadium, and Stephen Drew and Martin Prado had solo home runs.

“It’s nice when you have a lot of people contribute,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.

James Shields (12-7) allowed six runs over 6 2/3 innings for Kansas City.

“We’ve been playing really, really good baseball the last month or so. We’re definitely not going to let just one little game take care of us,” Shields said. “We’re going to move onto this next series and hopefully we’ll win it.”

If you’re willing to count the makeup against New York as a true series, it was the first time in their last 11 that the Royals have dropped one.

“It’s going to happen,” outfielder Alex Gordon said. “We’ll bounce back. We’ll be OK.”

Jeter, who is retiring after the season, answered a standing ovation as he stepped to the plate in the third inning with a groundout to shortstop that gave New York a 1-0 lead.

Moustakas tied the game with his 15th homer in the bottom half.

Drew gave the Yankees the lead back in the fourth with his home run, and they piled on four more runs off Shields in the seventh to put things out of reach.

The last of the runs was scored by Ellsbury, who came home on a sacrifice fly by McCann. Ellsbury initially was ruled out at the plate, but the call was overturned after a 2-minute video review showed his left leg sliding just under catcher Salvador Perez’s tag.

That was plenty of support for Pineda, who had gone through the ringer since his previous win. He served a 10-game suspension for getting caught with pine tar on his neck in a game against Boston, then landed on the DL with shoulder trouble that kept him out until mid-August.

Pineda was stuck with a pair of no-decisions in his first two starts back.

“I feel pretty good,” he said. “I feel like I have good power in my arm.”

— Associated Press —

Holliday’s hit lifts St. Louis over Pirates 3-2

Posted on August 25, 2014

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jon Jay already had a bat in hand before St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny even called his name.

A minute later the veteran outfielder was standing on second base after his pinch hit tied the game. Jay didn’t stay there long, racing home with the go-ahead run on Matt Holliday’s sharp single in a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night.

“He just sensed,” Matheny said of Jay’s precocious grab of the bat. “We hadn’t had any interaction at that point. He’s smart, he knows the game.”

And the Cardinals know a thing or two about coming through late. St. Louis scored all three runs off reliever Jared Hughes (6-4) with two outs in the seventh inning to back John Lackey and send the scuffling Pirates to their seventh loss in 10 games.

Lackey (2-1) worked out of trouble early to last seven innings in his second victory for the Cardinals after arriving in a trade from Boston on July 31. He was 11-7 with the Red Sox.

Trevor Rosenthal gave up a leadoff home run in the ninth to Andrew McCutchen but held on to earn his 39th save.

“I think guys know when we have a pitcher like Lackey on the mound, he’s going to keep us in the game,” Matheny said. “We’ve just got to keep fighting and figure out a way to get something going.”

Pedro Alvarez hit his 18th homer in the second off Lackey, but the Pirates managed little after that to fall further behind St. Louis and first-place Milwaukee in the NL Central race.

Pirates starter Francisco Liriano overwhelmed St. Louis for six-plus innings before leaving after Kolten Wong’s infield single led off the seventh. Hughes came on and promptly picked off Wong.

Things didn’t work out so well for the normally dependable right-hander, however, when he went to the plate.

Tony Cruz started the game-changing rally by turning an 0-2 count into a single, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a sharply hit single by Jay. Holliday then gave St. Louis the lead with a grounder past shortstop Jordy Mercer. St. Louis has 209 RBIs this season with two outs, tops in the National League.

“It was just a night where (Hughes) couldn’t get the ball where he wanted to go,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said.

The cushion was more than enough for Lackey, who had little trouble after navigating a choppy second inning. Alvarez hit a long home run to center with one out, and infield hits by Starling Marte and Jordy Mercer followed. The runners moved up on a sacrifice by Liriano, but Josh Harrison’s sharply hit fly to left went right to Holliday.

Lackey settled down following the reprieve, not allowing a runner past first base over his final five innings. He walked one and struck out three to improve to 3-0 against National League teams this season.

“I think Tony and I made some good adjustments after the first time through the lineup,” Lackey said. “The last three innings were as good as I felt.”

— Associated Press —

Kansas City drops series finale at Texas 3-1

Posted on August 24, 2014

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Scott Baker has found quite a niche with the Texas Rangers, and is winning again after Tommy John surgery.

Baker went five innings in a spot start to win as a starter for the first time in more than three years, helping Texas beat the AL Central-leading Kansas City Royals 3-1 on Sunday to avoid a series sweep.

“It’s still special because of the road that I’ve had to endure as far as injuries,” said Baker, who earned a win in relief in his previous appearance on Aug. 12. “It’s fun, regardless of whether you’re a starter or a reliever. And it’s a good team win.”

With Yu Darvish still on the disabled list and Miles Mikolas pushed back a day, Baker (2-3) threw 51 of his 71 pitches for strikes in difficult conditions with the temperature near 100 degrees. The only run on his line was Billy Butler’s leadoff homer in the fourth.

“He certainly went beyond the call of duty to have not been out there in 11 days, and to go out there and throw the strikes the way he threw them,” manager Ron Washington said.

Adrian Beltre put Texas ahead to stay with an RBI double in the first. Beltre had his fifth straight mulithit game, including all three games against Kansas City to extend his hitting streak against the Royals to 17 games.

Baker hadn’t pitched since that relief win against Tampa Bay. That was his first victory since a start for Minnesota against Detroit on July 23, 2011, and ended a string of 26 consecutive appearances in losses.

“It’s never been an issue, having that many days off from pitching, throwing the ball over,” he said. “I’ve always been able to do that.”

The 32-year-old right-hander missed all of 2012 after elbow surgery. He made three starts for the Chicago Cubs at the end of last season and has started five of his 22 games since joining the Rangers in June. He had made six relief appearances since his last start July 13.

Neftali Feliz worked the ninth for his sixth save in seven chances since reassuming the closer role a month ago after Joakim Soria was traded to Detroit.

Kansas City’s Jason Vargas (10-6) allowed 11 hits and walked four in his six innings, but allowed only three runs. The left-hander had walked only one in 25 1/3 innings previously this month.

Texas had five doubles off Vargas, including a run-scoring hit for Adam Rosales in the second. Alex Rios had a leadoff double in the third, and scored on a single by Robinson Chirinos.

Chirinos started after catcher Geovany Soto was a late scratch. The Rangers announced during the game that Soto was traded to Oakland for cash.

— Associated Press —

Masterson struggles again as Cards lose to Philadelphia

Posted on August 24, 2014

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A change of scenery has done Jerome Williams well.

Jimmy Rollins homered and Williams tossed eight strong innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 7-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.

“I’m just happy that I’m actually doing the job that I’ve been doing,” Williams said. “My stuff was there. It’s just I wasn’t using it right. I think I’m using it right now.”

Williams (2-0) continued his fine form with Philadelphia, his third team this season. The right-hander allowed one run on five hits while setting a season high for innings. He was claimed off waivers Aug. 10 from Texas and has a 1.77 ERA since coming to the Phillies after pitching to a 6.71 ERA prior to his arrival in Philadelphia.

Ben Revere had a pair of hits and an RBI for Philadelphia, which took two of three from the Cardinals for consecutive series wins for the first time since April.

Jhonny Peralta and Oscar Taveras had a pair of hits for St. Louis, which lost for just the third time in 11 games.

Justin Masterson (2-2) was lifted after giving up five runs and six hits in three innings. His ERA ballooned to 7.43 ERA in five starts since the Cardinals acquired him from Cleveland on July 30.

“It’s frustrating but I’m trying to stay positive,” Masterson said. “It’s my responsibility to pitch better. It’s a hard thing when you’re not doing it.”

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny stood behind Masterson.

“It was just one of those days,” he said. “We’ll continue to work with him. He’s a worker. He wants to help us do better.”

Chase Utley’s RBI single put Philadelphia in front in the first. The Phillies scored two more in the second on Williams’ bunt and Revere’s single, and Wil Nieves’ RBI single in the third made it 3-0.

Nick Greenwood relieved Masterson and retired 10 straight batters before Revere’s one-out single in the seventh. Rollins followed with a drive over the wall in left. It was the 16th homer for Rollins, who hit just six last season.

St. Louis got its lone run in the fourth on Taveras’ single. But the Cardinals couldn’t get anything else off Williams.

Revere, who began Sunday two points behind Justin Morneau for the NL batting lead, raised his average to .314 with his 26th multihit game since June 26.

— Associated Press —

Chiefs get dismantled by Vikings in third preseason game, 30-12

Posted on August 24, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Matt Cassel made a winning return to Arrowhead Stadium, even if it was just a preseason game.

The quarterback who was booed, benched and eventually released two years ago by the Chiefs, threw for 152 yards and a touchdown Saturday night, leading the Minnesota Vikings to a 30-12 win over a scuffling Kansas City team dealing with a rash of injuries and suspensions.

Cassel also threw an interception before turning things over to Teddy Bridgewater in the third quarter. The rookie quarterback, who is still challenging for the starting job, threw a pair of touchdown passes to tight end Allen Reisner less than 2 minutes apart to seal the win.

The Chiefs’ Alex Smith was just 14 of 24 for 124 yards with two red-zone interceptions, and the Chiefs’ first-team offense only managed a 21-yard field goal by Cairo Santos.

They still have not scored a touchdown in 16 possessions this preseason.

While the third preseason game is typically a dress rehearsal for the regular season, both teams sat plenty of star power due to injuries and personal reasons.

Running back Adrian Peterson, excused from practice this week, dressed for the Vikings but did not play. Chiefs counterpart Jamaal Charles, dealing with a foot injury, also dressed after returning to practice Thursday, but did not see the field.

Other noteworthy players missing included Vikings safety Robert Blanton (hamstring) and defensive tackle Linval Joseph (calf), and Chiefs safety Eric Berry (heel), wide receivers Dwayne Bowe (quad) and Junior Hemingway (hip), and linebacker Joe Mays (wrist surgery).

All the missing pieces allowed several players trying to secure starting jobs and roster spots a chance to shine with the first round of cuts due Tuesday.

Jeff Linkenbach and Ricky Henry alternated at left guard for the Chiefs in place of Jeff Allen, who shifted to right tackle. He took the place of Donald Stephenson, who will be suspended for the first four games of the regular season for violating the league’s drug policy.

Wide receiver Frankie Hammond also made a couple of nice catches for Kansas City. He started in place of Bowe, suspended for the season opener after his arrest last November.

Matt Asiata, starting in Peterson’s place, ran for 48 yards on 11 carries.

Not everything went perfectly for Cassel after his long touchdown pass to Patterson gave the Vikings a 7-0 lead. He was sacked on third down on their ensuing possession, and was stripped of the ball by the Chiefs’ Jaye Howard for a safety later in the first quarter.

The Chiefs moved the ball well in the first half, but two promising drives ended when Smith was intercepted by Captain Munnerlyn in the end zone and by Chad Greenway near the goal line.

Blair Walsh kicked a pair of field goals to extend Minnesota’s lead to 13-5, and both teams pulled their starters in the third quarter. Bridgewater and Reisner connected twice in a span of 1 minute, 44 seconds later in the quarter to put things out of reach.

— Associated Press —

Guthrie overcomes first pitch HR as KC defeats Texas to win another series

Posted on August 24, 2014

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — One pitch, one run. And then it was smooth sailing for Jeremy Guthrie.

Guthrie gave up a leadoff home run by Shin-Soo Choo, but didn’t allow another run over eight innings as the Kansas City Royals beat the Texas Rangers 6-3 Saturday night for their 24th win in 30 games.

Alex Gordon had two hits, including a first-inning homer for his 15th of the season, and made a diving catch in left field for the AL Central leaders.

Guthrie (10-10) won for the fifth time in six starts. After Choo’s homer, he retired 12 straight and gave up only four more hits. He struck out two, walked one and left after the eighth with a 6-1 lead.

“The mistakes I made, we got fortunate,” Guthrie said. “Not too many were hit hard. The biggest thing was I was trying to stay aggressive and keep the pitch count as low as I could and try to get deep.”

Royals manager Ned Yost had no quarrel with the pitch that gave Texas an immediate 1-0 lead.

“The first pitch was actually a pretty good pitch,” Yost said. “It was a fastball that was down. You’re trying to get ahead with the first pitch of the game.”

The Royals broke a 1-all tie by scoring three runs in the fifth inning, capitalizing on the wildness of Nick Tepesch (4-8). He gave up three four-pitch walks and two singles that inning.

Jarrod Dyson drove in three runs, matching a career high, with a bases-loaded walk and a two-run single for the Royals.

Aaron Crow worked the ninth for Kansas City, allowing two runs.

Tepesch allowed six runs on seven hits and three walks in 6 1/3 innings. With the bases loaded in the fifth, he walked Dyson and allowed a two-run single to Omar Infante on an 0-2 pitch.

“I felt like I was little all over the place all night,” Tepesch said. “I think that inning was just the worst of it.”

Dyson chased Tepesch in the seventh with the two-run single on which Lorenzo Cain slid in with the second run. The safe call was confirmed by video replay following a challenge by Texas manager Ron Washington.

“The more you win, the more you believe,” Dyson said. “It’s like routine to you. So that’s probably why we’re going so good right now.”

— Associated Press —