Preview Roundups
August 09, 2014
Cleveland at NY Yankees 1:05 PM ET
After struggling at home during the first half of the season, the New York Yankees have won 11 of 15 games in the Bronx following the All-Star break. The Yankees vie for their seventh win in eight outings overall and attempt to hand the Cleveland Indians their eighth consecutive loss in New York when the teams continue their three-game series on Saturday afternoon.
Detroit at Toronto 1:07 PM ET
With a pair of late homers in their series-opening win over the Toronto Blue Jays, the Detroit Tigers may have done more than halt their recent woes away from home. The Tigers, who continue their three-game set in Toronto on Saturday, entered this series having dropped six of their last seven on the road. However, Detroit overcame a two-run deficit in the ninth inning of the opener while getting home runs by Nick Castellanos and Eugenio Suarez during a three-run rally to post a 5-4 victory.
St. Louis at Baltimore 4:05 PM ET
Less than 24 hours after conducting their own version of a home run derby, the Baltimore Orioles look to batter another new member of St. Louis' rotation when they host the Cardinals in the middle contest of their three-game interleague series Saturday afternoon. J.J. Hardy led the charge in Friday's 12-2 rout with a pair of blasts while Manny Machado, Adam Jones, Chris Davis and Ryan Flaherty also went deep as Baltimore belted a season-high six homers.
Tampa Bay at Chi. Cubs 4:05 PM ET
The Tampa Bay Rays are trying to stay in contention in the American League wild-card hunt as they continue their 10-game road trip with the second of a three-game series at the Chicago Cubs on Saturday afternoon. Rookie Kevin Kiermaier drove in the winning run in Friday's 10-inning victory after collecting three RBIs in Wednesday's series finale at Oakland. Second baseman Ben Zobrist has recorded consecutive three-hit games and is 23-for-52 over his last 13 contests.
NY Mets at Philadelphia 7:05 PM ET
The New York Mets are not in the middle of the pennant race but at least they can give their fans something to cheer about by taking out the rival Philadelphia Phillies. The Mets attempt to make it two in a row when they visit the Phillies for the second of a four-game series on Saturday. New York looked like it was cruising to victory in Friday’s opener before a wild ninth inning caused the Mets to sweat out Bartolo Colon’s 200th career win.
San Diego at Pittsburgh 7:05 PM ET
The Pittsburgh Pirates could be without the first three hitters in their lineup when they continue a three-game series against the visiting San Diego Padres on Saturday. The Pirates, already playing without reigning National League MVP Andrew McCutchen and second baseman Neil Walker, are holding their breath on lead-off hitter Josh Harrison, whose left ankle tightened up in the latter innings of Friday's game. Harrison has been on a tear, riding a 12-game hitting streak.
Washington at Atlanta 7:10 PM ET
It was only one game, but it ended differently than the past eight contests for the Atlanta Braves – although it was far from easy. The Braves host National League East-leader Washington on Saturday in the middle contest of a three-game series after blasting four homers in Friday’s 7-6 victory that pulled Atlanta within 3 ½ games of the division lead. Atlanta’s much-maligned offense, which mustered only 18 runs during the eight-game skid, scored six times in the first two innings Friday.
Miami at Cincinnati 7:10 PM ET
Brad Penny makes his first start in the major leagues in almost three years when his Miami Marlins visit the Cincinnati Reds in the second contest of a three-game series. The 36-year-old right-hander, who began his career with the Marlins in 2000, looks to provide veteran leadership for a pitching staff that has been ravaged by injuries. Giancarlo Stanton belted his second homer in two days and National League-leading 28th of the season in Miami’s 2-1 victory over the Reds on Friday.
Texas at Houston 7:10 PM ET
The Houston Astros have turned the tables on their in-state rivals in a big way, beating the Texas Rangers six consecutive times after losing 14 of their previous 15 matchups. The Astros go for their seventh straight win over the visiting Rangers on Saturday but may be without star second baseman Jose Altuve, who exited the series opener with discomfort in his neck. Chris Carter went deep in Friday's 4-2 win, giving him a major league-leading 12 homers since July 4.
LA Dodgers at Milwaukee 7:10 PM ET
The Milwaukee Brewers struck first in the battle of National League division leaders and attempt to clinch the three-game series when they host the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday. The Brewers exploded late against the Dodgers' bullpen on Friday for a 9-3 triumph and own a 1 1/2-game lead over Pittsburgh in the NL Central. Los Angeles, which sits 3 1/2 games clear of the San Francisco Giants in the West, had a three-game winning streak snapped in the setback.
San Francisco at Kansas City 7:10 PM ET
Billy Butler's blistering performance at the plate has kept the Kansas City Royals within striking distance of first place in the American League Central while improving their standing in the race for the second wild card. The Royals vie for their sixth consecutive win on Saturday when they play the second contest of a three-game interleague set against the visiting San Francisco Giants.
Colorado at Arizona 8:10 PM ET
The Arizona Diamondbacks try for their sixth straight victory over Colorado when they host the struggling Rockies on Saturday in the middle contest of a three-game series. Arizona prevailed 5-3 on Friday as Colorado fell to 2-19 in its last 21 road games and a major league-worst 17-40 away from home. The Diamondbacks' Miguel Montero continued his assault on Rockies' pitching with a three-run homer and has four homers and 13 RBIs in 10 games against Colorado this season.
Boston at LA Angels 9:05 PM ET
The Los Angeles Angels figured on an easy weekend against one of the worst teams in the American League to snap them out of their current funk. Things were not quite that simple in the opener, and the Angels will attempt to end a four-game slide when they host the Boston Red Sox again Saturday. Los Angeles’ skid has left it four games behind the Oakland Athletics in the race for first place in the AL West.
Minnesota at Oakland 9:05 PM ET
The league-leading Oakland Athletics look to remain perfect against Minnesota this year when they host the Twins in the third contest of their four-game series Saturday. Oakland improved to 5-0 in the season series with a 6-5 triumph Friday, jumping out to a big lead before withstanding a late comeback attempt. Scott Kazmir was perfect through four innings and held the Twins to a single over six frames before coming undone in the seventh as Minnesota rallied for five runs.
Chi. White Sox at Seattle 9:10 PM ET
The Seattle Mariners are playing like a team determined to secure their first playoff berth since 2001, while the Chicago White Sox postseason hopes are fading fast. The two teams continue their four-game series Saturday at Safeco Field with Seattle looking to match its longest winning streak of the season at five games. Second baseman Robinson Cano owns a 10-game hitting streak for the Mariners, who stand a half-game behind Kansas City for the American League's second wild card.