Around the Baseball Diamond: March 2014

Monday, March 31, 2014

David Price outpitches R.A. Dickey as Rays top Blue Jays

Final

Series: Game 1 of 4

Rays 9

(1-0, 1-0 home)

65°
Clear

4:10 PM ET, March 31, 2014
Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
TOR	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	2	7	2
TB	1	2	1	0	2	0	0	3	-	9	11	0

W: D. Price (1-0)
L: R. Dickey (0-1)

Associated Press

Price, Rays Top Blue Jays

David Price struck out six over 7 1/3 innings to lead the Rays to a 9-2 win over the Blue Jays.Tags: David Price

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Rays raised another playoff banner to the roof at Tropicana Field, then went out and played like a team expecting to make another run at a postseason berth.
David Price set the tone by taking a shutout into the eighth inning, Desmond Jennings made a diving catch for the first out of the season, and Evan Longoria, Wil Myers and Matt Joyce delivered timely hits Monday as the Rays opened with a 9-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
"It feels good to go out and get the ball rolling in the right direction," Price said.
The hard-throwing lefty allowed two runs and six hits over 7 1/3 innings to beat R.A. Dickey in a matchup of 2012 Cy Young Award winners. The Tampa Bay ace walked one and struck out six before a crowd of 31,042 -- the Rays' ninth consecutive sellout for a home opener.
Before the game, the Rays raised a banner in left field in celebration of earning an AL wild-card spot last season. Senior baseball advisor Don Zimmer, beginning his 66th year in baseball, took part in the festivities, riding onto the field in golf cart and getting a hug from manager Joe Maddon and each Tampa Bay starter when the lineups were announced.
Joyce drove in three runs with a sacrifice fly and two-run double off Dickey (0-1), who yielded six two-out runs in five innings. Longoria got the Rays going with a first-inning RBI single and Myers drove in two more when he singled with the bases loaded in the second.
Price, meanwhile, limited the Blue Jays to four singles and had only allowed two runners past second base before Maicer Izturis opened the eighth with his second hit of the day. Pinch hitter Erik Kratz followed with a first-pitch, two-run homer over the center field wall.
"Outstanding performance," Maddon said of Price. "Good for us and for him. He's put so much into preparation for this season. ... It's validation of what he's done to get ready."
Toronto's Jose Reyes left the lineup after his first at-bat because of a tight left hamstring. The star shortstop led off the game and was robbed of a hit on a diving catch by Jennings. He was replaced in the field by Ryan Goins and was scheduled to undergo an MRI.
"If you're going to be optimistic, it's just one game, you got it out of the way, I guess," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "But it didn't start out good. They hit Dickey around pretty good. ... When you're facing Price, the great ones, they smell it."
The budget-minded Rays spent generously by their standards, boosting one of baseball's lowest payrolls from $62 million to a franchise-record of around $80 million in order to keep most of last year's AL wild-card roster together and make a run at a fifth playoff berth in seven seasons.
A decision to not trade Price -- instead signing him to a $14 million, one-year deal -- was a big part of that.
The 28-year-old lefty became the Rays' first 20-game winner and edged Justin Verlander in AL Cy Young balloting two years ago. He got off to a slow start in 2013, but finished strong after spending more than a month on the disabled list, leading the majors in innings, complete games and fewest walks per nine innings after July 2.
The Rays also won three times last year in games involving matchups of Cy Young winners, with Price beating Dickey on May 9 and CC Sabathia on Aug. 24, as well as going nine innings against Tim Lincecum without getting a decision in an extra-innings victory over the Giants on Aug. 3.
Dickey dropped to 14-13 with a 4.21 ERA last season after winning 20 games and NL Cy Young honors with the Mets two years ago. The 39-year-old knuckleballer is off to another shaky start after allowing six runs, five hits and walking six over five innings against essentially the same Tampa Bay lineup he went 3-1 against in 2013.
"Nobody is going to panic, but at the same time, there's certain things we're going to have to address," Dickey said. "Every team in a championship season has to work through some adversity. We're having to do that from day 1 here. It's one game. We have a long, long way to go."

Game notes

Reyes sat out several games during the final week of spring training with tightness in the same hamstring. He missed 66 games last season because of an injured left ankle. ... The Rays haven't lost a home series to the Blue Jays since April 2007. ... The latest renovations to Tropicana Field included the removal of about 3,000 seats, dropping regular-season capacity to 31,042.

Fernandez, Marlins beat Rockies 10-1

Final

Series: Game 1 of 4

Rockies 1

(0-1, 0-1 away)

Marlins 10

(1-0, 1-0 home)

70°
Scattered Clouds

7:00 PM ET, March 31, 2014
Marlins Park, Miami, Florida

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
COL	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	6	0
MIA	0	0	1	0	5	1	0	3	-	10	14	0

W: J. Fernandez (1-0)
L: J. De La Rosa (0-1)

Associated Press

Marlins Roll Rockies

Jose Fernandez struck out nine in the Marlins' 10-1 win over the Rockies.Tags: MLB, Coloroad Rockies, Miami Marlins, Jose Fernandez, Marcell Ozuna, Giancarlo Stanton

MIAMI -- Coming in from the bullpen to make his first opening day start, Jose Fernandez blew a kiss to his family in the stands. Nine innings later, he was hugging all of his teammates.
The Miami Marlins' opener became a lovefest Monday night, when Fernandez looked just as good as he did last year, and the batting order looked much improved.Fernandez struck out nine and allowed one run in six innings, and Marlins newcomer Casey McGehee drove in four runs with two doubles to help beat the Colorado Rockies 10-1.The sellout crowd of 37,116 was the largest for the attendance-challenged Marlins since their new ballpark opened two years ago. Will many of the fans be back to see a team that lost 100 games last year?"I hope so, because this team is special," Fernandez said. "I see that. Not because we scored 10 runs, but because this team is going to fight."The 21-year-old Fernandez earned the victory while becoming the youngest NL opening day starter since Dwight Gooden in 1986, according to STATS. And he picked up where he left off last season, when he went 12-6 and was voted NL Rookie of the Year."I didn't know how I was going to react to opening day," he said. "But it came out great."The right-hander's strikeout total matched Josh Beckett's team record for an opener. Fernandez threw 73 strikes and only 21 balls to 23 batters.The crowd included Fernandez's grandmother Olga, who lives in Cuba. She saw him pitch for the first time since he left that country at age 15.Her grandson improved to 10-0 in 16 career starts at Marlins Park with an ERA of 1.21."She told me, `Good pitching. You've got to throw a lot more strikes, though," Fernandez said.He threw plenty, given his improved run support. The Marlins, who finished last in the majors in most offensive categories last year, totaled 14 hits while scoring in double figures, something they did only four times in 2013.Marcell Ozuna homered, doubled, singled and scored twice. Giancarlo Stanton had an RBI infield single and a run-scoring double. Adeiny Hechavarria singled three times and drove in a run.The Rockies, who began their first season since 1996 without retired first baseman Todd Helton, could have used his pop. His replacement, Justin Morneau, went 1 for 4. Michael Cuddyer, who won the NL batting title in 2013, went 2 for 4.Carlos Gonzalez homered for the Rockies in the sixth, but by then they trailed 6-0. Even he tipped his cap to Fernandez."When a guy like that is pitching, you expect that kind of game," Gonzalez said. "He's one of the best."Jorge De La Rosa (0-1) allowed five runs in 4 1/3 innings in his first opening day start.The ballpark sound system malfunctioned during the national anthem, and Dan Marino's ceremonial first pitch was wide of the plate. But thereafter the boisterous crowd -- a rarity at Marlins Park since it opened -- had plenty to cheer about."The fans were into it," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "Last year this didn't happen a whole lot, but in the ninth I actually got to look around and take a breather from the game, and that was fun. The energy was off the charts."The hit parade was a big change from a team that totaled one run in its first three games a year ago. The victory put Miami above .500 for the first time since June 2012.

Game notes

Marlins INF Rafael Furcal, who began the season on the DL with a strained left hamstring, said he expects to play five or six games on a rehabilitation assignment. He hopes to be activated around April 14. ... Rockies manager Walt Weiss had two hits and two RBIs when he started at SS in the Marlins' first game 21 years ago. ... The Marlins' bid for back to back no-hitters ended with the second batter, when Cuddyer singled. Henderson Alvarez pitched a no-hitter for Miami on the final day of last season. ... Miami's Nathan Eovaldi is scheduled to start against Brett Anderson on Tuesday.

Nelson Cruz homers in debut as O's top champion Red Sox

Final

Series: Game 1 of 3

Red Sox 1

(0-1, 0-1 away)

Orioles 2

(1-0, 1-0 home)

3:00 PM ET, March 31, 2014
Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, Maryland

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
BOS	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	9	0
BAL	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	-	2	6	0

W: Z. Britton (1-0)
L: J. Lester (0-1)
S: T. Hunter (1)

Associated Press

Orioles Slip Past Red Sox

Nelson Cruz's home run was the difference in the Orioles' 2-1 win over the Red Sox.Tags: MLB, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Nelson Cruz, Grady Sizemore

BALTIMORE -- In case it wasn't evident before Opening Day, we now know why the Baltimore Orioles added another slugger to a team that led the major leagues in home runs last season.
Nelson Cruz celebrated his Orioles debut by hitting a tiebreaking home run in the seventh inning, and Baltimore beat Jon Lester and the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox 2-1 Monday.
Signed as a free agent in February, Cruz lined a solo shot into the left-field seats to put the Orioles ahead. He hit 27 homers last year with Texas during a season marred by a 50-game suspension from Major League Baseball in the Biogenesis drug scandal.

More Orioles-Red Sox Coverage

For Red Sox outfielders Grady Sizemore and Jackie Bradley, Monday's opener was both fairy tale and nightmare, Gordon Edes writes. Story
• Rapid Reaction
• Red Sox Blog | ESPN Boston

Cruz joins a batting order that features Chris Davis, who led the majors in 2013 with 53 homers and 138 RBIs. Davis went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts as the cleanup hitter, but it didn't matter because the guy in the 5-hole picked up the slack.
"It takes some of the pressure off everybody in the lineup knowing that you can pass the baton and the next guy can pick it up," Davis said. "We have to know as hitters going into the game that we can be patient, we can wait for our pitch, knowing that the guy behind us can pick us up."
Cruz, meanwhile, couldn't have been more delighted. Not only did the Orioles provide him with a fresh start, but the fans chanted "Cruuuuuz!" every time his name was announced.
"It was really neat, it was special," he said. "I made the right call to come and be part of this organization, be part of this town."
Cruz wasn't the only player to enjoy a successful start with his new team.
After missing two seasons to recover from knee surgery, Boston center fielder Grady Sizemore marked his return from a 922-day absence with a second-inning single for his first hit since September 2011. The three-time All-Star for Cleveland later hit his first home run since July 15, 2011, which also came at Camden Yards.
"Today was very exciting," Sizemore said. "I couldn't wait to get to the ballpark."
Zach Britton (1-0) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief and Tommy Hunter got three outs for the save. Hunter earned the job as closer this spring after the Orioles dealt away Jim Johnson during the offseason.
The Red Sox got two on with one out in the ninth before World Series MVP David Ortiz hit a fly ball and Jackie Bradley Jr. took a called third strike.
"It's life in baseball," Hunter said. "You've got to earn everything you get. One-run game to start the season off against the defending world champs."
Starting on the road for the fourth year in a row, the Red Sox got nine hits but stranded 12 and went 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
"We had a lot of opportunities, we had a lot of guys on," second baseman Dustin Pedroia said. "We just hit the ball right at people. It was one of those deals where we couldn't find a way to push runs across."
Making his fourth straight opening day start for Boston, Lester (0-1) gave up two runs, six hits and a walk in seven innings. He struck out eight.
Orioles starter Chris Tillman allowed one run, seven hits and a walk in five innings. The right-hander went 3-1 against Boston last year, but in this one he needed 104 pitches to get 15 outs.
Britton gave up a one-out double to Xander Bogaerts in the sixth and got three straight outs in the seventh, the only time all day that Boston went down in order.
Evan Meek walked two in the eighth before Brian Matusz retired A.J. Pierzynski on a comebacker.
Game-time temperature was announced at 60 degrees, but a stiff wind chilled many in the crowd of 46,685 -- the 23rd consecutive opening day sellout at Camden Yards.
Hopeful that the offseason acquisitions of Cruz and right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez will enable Baltimore to return to the playoffs after missing out last year, Orioles fans were out in force. Until recently, games against Boston often drew as many Red Sox backers as those rooting for the home team.
"Our crowd was legit," Hunter said. "That was awesome. I hope they come out like that every game for 80 more here."
The Orioles used a walk, a single by Matt Wieters and a double-play grounder to take a 1-0 lead in the second.
The Red Sox put runners at second and third with two outs in the third before Tillman struck out Mike Carp. In the fourth, Sizemore hit a 3-1 pitch over the right-field wall.

Game notes

Dustin Pedroia got Boston's first hit of the season, a one-out single in the first inning, to extend his hitting streak on opening day to eight games. ... After taking Tuesday off, the teams meet Wednesday night. John Lackey (13-5 lifetime against Baltimore) faces Jimenez in his Orioles debut. ... The Red Sox put RF Shane Victorino (hamstring) on the 15-day disabled list and recalled Bradley. ... Ortiz received his 12th opening day start at DH, tying Don Baylor's major league record at the position.

Jimmy Rollins' slam helps Phillies outgun Rangers on Opening Day

Final

Series: Game 1 of 3

Phillies 14

(1-0, 1-0 away)

Rangers 10

(0-1, 0-1 home)

71°
Clear

2:05 PM ET, March 31, 2014
Globe Life Park in Arlington, Arlington, Texas

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
PHI	0	6	0	1	2	4	0	1	0	14	17	0
TEX	0	4	3	0	1	0	2	0	0	10	14	1

W: C. Lee (1-0)
L: P. Figueroa (0-1)

Associated Press

Phillies Outlast Rangers In Opener

Jimmy Rollins hit a grand slam in the Phillies' 14-10 win over the Rangers.Tags: Jimmy Rollins

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Jimmy Rollins had a grand slam during his memorable Opening Day for the Philadelphia Phillies, who needed a lot of runs to get usually reliable ace Cliff Lee a victory in his return to Texas.
Rollins hit his 200th career homer and pinch hitter John Mayberry Jr. had a tiebreaking two-run double that put the Phillies ahead for good in a wild 14-10 victory over the Rangers on Monday.
Rollins matched Cal Ripken's major league record by starting his 14th consecutive opener at shortstop for the same franchise. He also became the 19th player in major league history with at least 400 doubles, 100 triples and 200 homers.

More Phillies-Rangers Coverage

Rangers starting pitcher Tanner Scheppers maintained a sense of humor after his career-worst performance on Opening Day, Jean-Jacques Taylor writes. Story

The bats couldn't rally the Rangers to an Opening Day victory, but with that production there will be plenty of wins this season, Richard Durrett writes. Blog
• Rapid Reaction
• Rangers Blog | ESPN Dallas

"J-Roll, with the big pop early, just really set the tone and got things going," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. "I think it was contagious after that."
The Phillies had 17 hits and their most runs in a season opener since 1900. It was more than enough to make up for a rough outing for Lee (1-0), who was unable to protect a 6-0 lead after Rollins homered in the second inning.
Rollins, whose wife is expecting their second child, flew to Texas on Sunday, a day after the rest of the team did.
"I didn't want to come here and then have to fly to Philadelphia," Rollins said. "The baby has let me go out and play ball for a few more days."
Marlon Byrd and Cody Asche also homered for the Phillies, who beat the Boston Beaneaters 19-17 in their 1900 opener.
Converted Rangers reliever Tanner Scheppers gave up seven runs over four innings. But the game was tied when Scheppers threw his last pitch.
Mayberry, a first-round draft pick by the Rangers in 2005 who never played for the big league club and was traded three years later, got his tiebreaking hit in the fifth against Pedro Figueroa (0-1) for a 9-7 lead.
Lee matched his career high by allowing eight runs and struck out only one, but the left-hander made it through five innings in another less-than-stellar opener for him in the Rangers' home ballpark.
"I don't like being on the pitching side of that, but fortunately we outscored them and got the win, the main thing," said Lee, who had a solid spring. "Jimmy hitting that grand slam busted it open. And we kept adding it on and we needed it, as it turned out."
Lee got a nice ovation before pitching in Texas for the first time since starting for the Rangers in Game 5 of the 2010 World Series. The lefty also made a season-opening start here for Cleveland in 2009, when the then-reigning AL Cy Young Award winner allowed seven runs over five innings in a 9-1 loss.
With starters Yu Darvish, Matt Harrison and Derek Holland on the disabled list, Scheppers became the first pitcher since Fernando Valenzuela for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981 to make his first career start on opening day. Scheppers, who had 76 relief appearances last season, struck out two and walked three.
"I was extremely disappointed. You bear down there. My pitches were around the zone," Scheppers said. "I was just trying to be too fine with everything, trying to hit corners. Unfortunately, I put the guys in a big hole."
Texas went ahead 7-6 on Alex Rios' three-run homer in the third, but Philly got even in the fourth on Chase Utley's RBI single, the first of his three hits.
Phillies leadoff hitter Ben Revere also had three hits, drove in three runs and scored twice. He hit .305 last season, but missed the entire second half with foot problems.

Game notes

It was the earliest interleague game in MLB history. ... The front-row seat by the Rangers dugout where Nolan Ryan used to sit was occupied by former Rangers and Phillies player Michael Young, who retired during the offseason. ... The national anthem was performed by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, 20 years after they accompanied the late Van Cliburn, an award-winning classical pianist who lived in Fort Worth, for a stirring rendition before the first regular-season game ever played at the stadium. ... Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt holds the Phillies record for consecutive starts on opening day with 16 (1974-89).

Alex Gonzalez singles in 9th to lift Tigers past Royals

Final

Series: Game 1 of 3

Royals 3

(0-1, 0-1 away)

Tigers 4

(1-0, 1-0 home)

40°
Clear

1:08 PM ET, March 31, 2014
Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
KC	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	7	0
DET	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	4	8	2

W: J. Nathan (1-0)
L: W. Davis (0-1)

Associated Press

Gonzalez Lifts Tigers In Debut

Alex Gonzalez drove in the game-winning run in the ninth inning of his Detroit debut to lift the Tigers to a 4-3 win over the Royals.Tags: MLB, Tigers, Royals, highlight, Alex Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera

DETROIT -- On a day of dandy Detroit debuts, Alex Gonzalez helped Brad Ausmus start his tenure as Tigers manager with a win.
Gonzalez lined an RBI single off Greg Holland in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Tigers a 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday in Ausmus' first game since replacing Jim Leyland. Victor Martinez homered for Detroit, and Justin Verlander was sharp aside from a three-run fourth inning that wasn't all his fault."There's two things that could have spoiled opening day for me," Ausmus said. "One, if we lost. And two, if the sun wasn't out. Because for me opening day, the sun is out, fans are having fun, they're eating their popcorn, drinking their beer. The energy is higher."Kansas City lost its sixth straight opener.Ausmus was upstaged a bit by another newcomer on a bright, pleasant day in downtown Detroit.Gonzalez was acquired by the Tigers in late March following an injury to shortstop Jose Iglesias. Detroit is just hoping he can fill in competently, and Gonzalez did not impress at first. His error in the fourth helped the Royals score an extra run, but he made up for that with a tying triple in the seventh.Gonzalez then singled with men on first and third in the ninth."I've played on a lot of opening days -- I don't even remember all of them -- but this one was special," Gonzalez said. "I was looking for a pitch that I could elevate, and I got one. I rounded first and all I saw was the whole team coming at me."Joe Nathan -- another new face on Detroit's roster -- pitched a scoreless ninth. Nathan (1-0) signed with the Tigers to become their closer, but he'll have to wait a bit longer for a save opportunity.Holland didn't have a save chance either after converting 47 of 50 last year. Instead, the right-hander came into a difficult situation in the ninth and couldn't get out of it. Wade Davis (0-1) yielded a one-out walk to Alex Avila and a single to Nick Castellanos before Holland allowed the single to Gonzalez."I get paid to get people out, and I didn't do it today," Holland said. "We're not here to fight and compete. We're here to win."Detroit's Tyler Collins made his major league debut as a pinch runner for Avila -- and ended up scoring the winning run.Salvador Perez had four hits for Kansas City.Although there were still a few patches of snow in the Detroit area Monday morning, the game was played under a sunny sky with temperatures in the 50s. With its recently re-sodded field, Comerica Park looked sharp.But the Tigers, coming off three straight AL Central titles, were sloppy at first.Right fielder Torii Hunter dropped a routine flyball in the second, and although Verlander pitched out of that jam, he couldn't escape the fourth. Salvador Perez tied it at 1 with a one-out RBI double off Verlander, and Lorenzo Cain slapped an RBI single through the hole into left field to put Kansas City ahead. After a two-out walk, Gonzalez bobbled Norichika Aoki's slow grounder for an error that loaded the bases.Verlander then walked Omar Infante, forcing in Kansas City's third run of the inning.Verlander had surgery in January after injuring his groin, but he pitched 20 scoreless innings during spring training. He allowed three runs -- two earned -- and six hits in six innings Monday, walking three and striking out two.That was enough for a no-decision. Verlander was making his seventh straight start on opening day, and he's only 1-1 in those games."I never seem to find a win on opening day, but the bullpen shut them down and we got one anyway. That's all that matters," Verlander said. "Every opening day is special, but this one meant a little more, because I had to really work and grind to get here for this one after the surgery."With Kansas City ahead 3-1 in the seventh, Austin Jackson hit a one-out triple and Avila drew a walk. Aaron Crow replaced starter James Shields and struck out Castellanos, but the third strike was a wild pitch that allowed Jackson to score. Gonzalez followed with a triple to the gap in left-center.Shields gave up three runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings.

Game notes

Infante received a hand from the Detroit crowd when he was introduced with the Kansas City players before the game. He left the Tigers and signed with the Royals in the offseason. ... The crowd of 45,068 was the second-largest in Comerica history. ... It was the fourth four-hit game of Perez's career. ... The Royals were 67-6 last year when leading by 2 or more runs at any point from the seventh inning on, according to STATS.