It was a wild day for four of the five NL Central teams. Pittsburgh started a series with the Tigers, the Cardinals & Reds played two in Cincinnati, and the Cubs hosted the White Sox for the first of three between those two clubs. And there’s a lot to digest from what happened on the 17th.
Cardinals & Reds play two in Cincy
The Cardinals and Reds started their five-game series in Cincinnati on August 17, as the two teams played a doubleheader. It was necessitated by a rainout from earlier in the year.
St. Louis won the first game 2-1, as Alec Burleson‘s two-run double in the first was all the Cardinals needed. Quinn Mathews struck out seven over four innings, while five pitchers combined to toss five scoreless frames.
In the ninth, the Cardinals had the chance to sweep, as St. Louis was up 5-4. Dane Myers tied the game with a solo home run. And in the tenth, Elly De La Cruz hit an RBI double to make it 6-5 Reds.
PCA re-joins 30-30 club
The Cubs took the first game of the Wrigley Field edition of the Crosstown Series 7-5 in 10 innings.
It was a seesaw game in Chicago, one that swung in the White Sox’s favor after Andrew Benintendi hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run to make it 5-4 in the eighth. But in the ninth, Nico Hoerner picked up an RBI single off Jordan Hicks to tie it.
One inning, Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a two-run shot to end it. With that home run, and the leadoff home run he belted off Luis Castillo in the first, the Cubs outfielder is the first in the Majors to a 30-30 season.
Arizona loses amidst Marte drama
The Red Sox blew out the Diamondbacks 11-1 in Fenway Park.
Boston had their way with Zack Littell, who came in to piggyback from Mitch Bratt. Littell allowed home runs to Willson Contreras and Mickey Gasper, part of an outing where he allowed 11 hits and was charged with six earned runs. Brayan Bello went 4.2 IP in long relief to pick up a win.
The subplot behind this game was Ketel Marte being placed on the restricted list after he did not show up to Fenway Park on August 17. Manager Torey Lovullo indicated after the game that Marte was away from the team on a personal matter. It’s unknown when Marte will rejoin the team.
Rays snap O’s win streak
The Rays stopped the Orioles from a four-game sweep in St. Pete, as Tampa Bay came back to win 7-6.
Yet again, the Orioles were in position to win. Pete Alonso and Christian Encarnacion-Strand each hit home runs in the fifth, giving Baltimore a 6-4 lead. But in the seventh, Jonathan Aranda cut the lead to one with a single. Later on, Jonny DeLuca hit a two-run single.
Former Oriole Bryan Baker struck out two and recorded the final five outs for the Rays.
Everything else
- Phillies def. Marlins 6-5
- Tigers def. Pirates 8-5
- Mets def. Padres 2-1
- Royals def. Athletics 9-5
- Twins def. Braves 4-2
- Dodgers def. Rockies 11-5
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