American League notes
AL EAST Baltimore Orioles
2B-OF Stevie Wilkerson became the first position player to record a save since it became an official statistic in 1969. Even though his average velocity was only 56 mph, Wilkerson pitched a perfect 16th inning in the Orioles’ win over the Los Angeles Angels on July 25 at Anaheim, California.
Manager Brandon Hyde told The Baltimore Sun that when he looked at Wilkerson before the historic inning, “he kind of gave me a wink, like, ‘I got this.’ ”
Wilkerson said the extent of his pitching experience, before his three outings with the Orioles this year, was one inning in high school.
❚ The Orioles set a major league record when they hit at least two homers in 10 straight games. The previous mark of nine had been reached by five teams, including Baltimore in 1987 and 1996.
Boston Red Sox
In their first four games against the New York Yankees this season, the Red Sox scored just seven runs and went 0-4.
In the teams’ next six games, Boston scored 67 runs and went 4-2, scoring at least eight runs in each game, to cut into the Yankees’ AL East lead.
The Red Sox had never scored that many runs in even five straight games against the Yankees.
“We’re good just like them. We have a good offense,” manager Alex Cora said. “The difference between us now and earlier in the season is hitting with men in scoring position . ... Early in the season we were bad at it.”
❚ In RHP Rick Porcello’s five starts between June 29 and July 25, his offense gave him at least 10 runs of support in each. The last time that happened in major league history was 1896, by the Baltimore Orioles’ Bill Hoffer. Porcello was 4-0 in those games despite a 9.78 ERA.
New York Yankees
For the first time in franchise history, the Yankees allowed at least seven runs in seven straight games.
The total damage was 73 runs – including 19 in one game against the Red Sox, the most Boston has ever scored against the Yankees – for a 10.95 ERA in that span. The starters gave up 18 homers and 48 runs in just 26 innings.
RHP Masahiro Tanaka became the first Yankees pitcher since 1923 to give up 12 earned runs in a game, and LHP CC Sabathia’s ERA in his two starts during that stretch was 11.82. The game at Boston marked the first time since 2013 that Sabathia has given up five runs to the Red Sox.
Sabathia then went on the injured list July 28 because of his problematic right knee. ❚ Kyle Higashioka’s first home run of the season, July 25 at Boston, gave the Yankees a major league-high 21 players with homers this year.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays’ understaffed rotation took another hit when LHP
Blake Snell, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, needed arthroscopic surgery to remove loose bodies from his left elbow.
The Rays are optimistic that Snell, who was 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA in his last four starts before the surgery, will return before the end of the season.
That left RHPs Charlie Morton and Yonny Chirinos as the only regular members of the rotation. The rest of the games were being started by openers or fill-ins. “They’ve been great, but they’re going to have to be that much better now going forward,” manager Kevin Cash said.
❚ When LHP Colin Poche earned his first career save July 26 against the Blue Jays at Toronto, he became the eighth pitcher to earn a save for the Rays this season. That tied the Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles for most in the majors.
Toronto Blue Jays
When IF-OF Eric Sogard got a day off July 26, manager Charlie Montoyo had 2B Cavan Biggio, who normally bats fourth or sixth, in the leadoff spot.
Biggio figures to be at the top of the lineup a lot more often now that Sogard has been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for two players to be determined.
“He sees a lot of pitches,” Montoyo said. “He’s got what it takes to be a good leadoff guy.”
❚ Toronto’s 10-9 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on July 27 snapped its second five-game streak of the season in which it scored three or fewer runs in each game. The Blue Jays had scored three or fewer runs 52 times through July 28, which ranked fourth in the majors.
AL CENTRAL Chicago White Sox
The White Sox became the first major league team to host a game with netting from foul pole to foul pole. The safety measure had been announced last month after a woman was hit in the head by a foul ball at Guaranteed Rate Field.
RHP Evan Marshall said, “Finally, the players are speaking out because everybody is tired of seeing people get hit.”
❚ LF Eloy Jimenez (bruised right elbow) returned from the injured list but was limited to being the designated hitter. SS
Tim Anderson (sprained right ankle) was expected to be activated this week after missing more than a month.
Cleveland Indians
The Indians added to their depth when they acquired IF
Christian Arroyo and RHP Hunter Wood from the Tampa Bay Rays for low Class A OF Ruben Cardenas and international bonus pool money.
Arroyo, a former first-round draft pick of the San Francisco Giants, was the key piece in the December 2017 trade that sent 3B Evan Longoria from the Rays to the Giants.
Wood had a 2.48 ERA for the Rays this season in 19 games, including two as the opener.
❚ RHP Trevor Bauer apologized for throwing the ball over the center-field fence July 28 as he was being removed from the game. “It was childish, unprofessional,” he said.