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Stephen Strasburg’s return for the Washington Nationals from the disabled list went smoothly but he was unable to prevent the Cleveland Indians from recording a 2-0 victory on Sunday. |
Strasburg, who had not pitched since May 31 due to a strained muscle in his back, appeared in solid form as he allowed just one run over five innings. Cleveland starter Corey Kluber outdid him though as he pitched eight scoreless innings and struck out eight batters.
Carlos Santana had an RBI single against Strasburg in the fourth inning and Jason Kipnis added a sacrifice-fly in the eighth to produce Cleveland’s runs in a game where they only got four hits.
In Baltimore, Chris Davis blasted his Major League-leading 23rd home run of the season to help the Orioles to a 6-3 win over the Boston Red Sox.
Davis, who is also second in the American League in batting average (.335) and RBIs (60), added an RBI double as Baltimore grabbed a 5-0 lead and ended Boston starter Jon Lester’s game after five innings.
Nick Markakis had four hits and Manny Machado extended his hitting streak to 14 games for the Orioles. Baltimore (40-30) inched closer to first-place Boston (42-29), who now hold a 1-1/2 games divisional lead.
In Los Angeles, the New York Yankees squandered most of their 6-0 lead in the final inning, before Mariano Rivera struck out Albert Pujols with the bases loaded to end the game and record a 6-5 victory over the Angels.
CC Sabathia worked eight scoreless innings but was charged with two runs in the ninth and then replaced before reliever David Robertson was charged with allowing two runs, and Rivera one before he completed his 24th save of the season.
Elsewhere, Taiwanese hurler Chien-Ming Wang, signed by Toronto this month to bolster a banged-up pitching staff, picked up his first MLB win in more than a year on Sunday.
Wang gave up seven hits in seven scoreless innings, struck out five and walked two. He was backed by three Toronto home runs in a 7-2 victory that completed the Blue Jays’ four-game series sweep of the Rangers.
Adam Lind hit a three-run homer, JP Arencibia added a two-run shot and Colby Rasmus also went deep for Toronto, who have now won five in a row. The Rangers, meanwhile, have lost six straight for the first time since April of 2010.
Wang, in his second start of the year, stranded a runner in scoring position in the second, fourth, fifth and seventh innings. The right-hander from Taiwan won 55 games over five years for the New York Yankees from 2005 before injuries disrupted his career.
He missed the 2010 season while recovering from shoulder surgery and pitched for the Washington Nationals for two years, going 6-6 with a 4.94 earned-run average in 21 games, until becoming a free agent.
Two strong outings for Taiwan in the World Baseball Classic helped him secure a minor league deal with the Yankees, but he opted out of that to sign with the Blue Jays earlier this month.
“He has given us a big boost, and he’s pitching great,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said of Wang, who had last been credited with a major league win with the Nationals last June.
“This is his opportunity, and he’s taking advantage of it,” Gibbons added. “He’s strong, he’s very confident and he’s had a lot of success in the big leagues.”
In Detroit, Torii Hunter belted his 300th career home run on Sunday to help the Tigers notch a 5-2 triumph over the Minnesota Twins. Hunter added an RBI double to go with his milestone homer, a two-run blast in the first inning.
Tigers pitcher Doug Fister threw 7 2/3 strong innings, taking a no-hitter into the sixth and giving up just two hits and two runs while posting seven strikeouts. “For me to be a part of (Hunter’s milestone), it’s such an honour for me,” Fister said.
PJ Walters surrendered the homer to Hunter, who powered a 2-0 pitch from Walters into the left-field seats.
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, who managed Hunter for six seasons in Minnesota from 2002-07, was disappointed with his team’s defeat, but proud of his former player — who hit 192 of his career home runs as a Twin.
“Not exactly happy when he does it against you, but I’m proud of (Torii),” Gardenhire said. “He started in this organization, he’s had a heck of a career. He still plays the game with all the enthusiasm that he played when he was here.”