Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Scherzer fans 10, pitches Nats over Reds in opener
CINCINNATI » Max Scherzer put on quite a performance for his new manager. Scherzer struck out 10 in six innings and the Washington Nationals made Dave Martinez’s dugout debut a success, opening with a 2-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday.
“The biggest thing for me is not becoming a fan,” Martinez said after cleaning up following a surprise clubhouse celebration. “I have to manage the game. It was hard not to be a fan of Scherzer.”
Martinez had never managed in the majors. He was the Cubs’ bench coach before he was hired in the offseason to replace Dusty Baker.
Bryce Harper got two hits for the NL East champions, but his string of five straight opening days with a home run came to an end.
A day after this opener at Great American Ball Park was postponed because of rain, Scherzer (1-0) picked up where he left off. The winner of the last two NL Cy Young Awards gave up five hits, walked one and permitted just one runner past first base.
The Reds put runners on second and third in the fourth, but Scherzer fanned Tucker Barnhart to escape. At one point, Scherzer struck out seven in a row.
“In spring training, you’re pretty much just throwing pitches,” Scherzer said. “Now, you’ve got scouting reports. We had a good game plan. (Catcher Matt) Wieters did a good job. In this ballpark you can’t make mistakes. We were able to avoid the big inning. It came down to executing and using all my pitches.”
Scherzer pitched without long sleeves in a game where the first-pitch temperature was 47 degrees. He felt the chill was beneficial.
“It made the ball a little slick, and I think that helped my changeup,” Scherzer said. PIRATES 13, TIGERS 10 » Gregory Polanco hit a three-run homer in the 13th inning to lift Pittsburgh to a victory over Detroit — about an hour after the Tigers spilled onto the field to celebrate what they thought was a game-winning hit of their own.
Nicholas Castellanos was initially called safe at home in the bottom of the 10th for the Tigers, but a replay review took the run away and the teams played on. Polanco’s drive to right-center on a 3-0 pitch from Alex Wilson (01) finally gave the Pirates a comfortable lead — or as comfortable as could be on a wacky day in which both teams scored four runs in the ninth. YANKEES 4, BLUE JAYS 2 » Masahiro Tanaka pitched six sharp innings and New York did fine without any pop from its sluggers, beating Toronto.
Giancarlo Stanton, who homered twice and doubled a day earlier in the opener, went 0 for 4. So did big hitters Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez. Yet the Yankees, under new manager Aaron Boone, improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2011. RED SOX 1, RAYS 0 » David Price was solid in his return to the Red Sox rotation, allowing four singles over seven scoreless innings of Boston’s victory over Tampa Bay.
The five-time All-Star, slowed by injury much of 2017, struck out five and walked none in his first start for the defending AL East champions since last July, when he went on the DL with elbow inflammation.
Yanks put Hicks on DL
TORONTO » The New York Yankees have put Aaron Hicks on the 10-day disabled list with a strained right ribcage in the latest injury to one of their outfielders.
The Yankees made the move Friday, a day after Hicks got two hits in a season-opening 6-1 win at Toronto. Hicks, who played the entire game, felt soreness between his third and fourth at bats, general manager Brian Cashman said.
Tulowitzki to have surgery
TORONTO » Blue Jays shortstop Troy Tulowitzki will have surgery Monday to remove bone spurs from both heels and is expected to miss eight weeks, general manager Ross Atkins said Friday.