Braves (5) Go the Distance Again Before Sending Rockies (4) Packing in Round 2

Game 1: Rockies 6, Braves 3
Colorado used two-run innings in the first and third to cruise to an easy 6-3 victory in the opening game of its series against Atlanta. Trevor Story set the tone early with a 444-foot missile off Braves ace Mike Foltynewicz that turned an Atlanta 1-0 lead into a 2-1 deficit in the first. The Rockies extended their lead to 4-1 in the third on a Charlie Blackmon run-scoring double and a single by DJ LeMahieu that plated Blackmon. From there, each Atlanta score was answered by a Rockies tally, capped off by a solo homer by Nolan Arenado in the seventh. Carlos Gonzalez and Chris Ianetta rapped out three hits apiece to back the solid pitching of Kyle Freeland and three relievers who combined to allow one hit over the final three innings.

Game 2: Braves 4, Rockies 3
The Braves were able to salvage a split on the road thanks to homers by Freddie Freeman, Tyler Flowers and Lane Adams, and a second straight strong outing by starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez. Colorado struck first in the bottom of the first when Gonzalez singled in Ian Desmond who had doubled to lead off the inning. Atlanta knotted the game at 1-1 in the top of the second when Flowers doubled in Nick Markakis, then took a 2-1 lead in the fourth when Freeman homered down the right field line. The Braves increased their lead to 3-1 in the seventh on Flowers’ solo shot to deep left, but the Rockies tied the score at 3-3 courtesy of three singles, two groundouts, an error and a passed ball. Adams came off the bench and homered in the eighth to put Atlanta up 4-3 before Jonny Venters and Arodys Vizcaino wrapped up the win.

Game 3: Braves 18, Rockies 5
Believe it or not, this was a close game for 4 ½ innings before all Hell broke loose. Atlanta manufactured a run in the first when Ronald Acuna Jr. led off with a single, stole second and came home on Ozzie Albies’ double. The Braves were aggressive on the base paths, knowing they’d need to score early and often to compete against Colorado’s powerful lineup, and Albies was thrown out at home when he tried to score from second on a Freeman single. Colorado took a 2-1 lead in the top of the second when Blackmon hit one into the right field seats, but the Braves jumped ahead 4-2 in the bottom of the third on doubles by Albies and Markakis following a Julio Teheran single and walk to Acuna. Colorado scored again in the fifth, but that was as close as they’d get.
Atlanta sent seven men to the plate in the fifth and Johan Carmago plated three with a homer; sent nine to the plate in the sixth and scored five, three of which came home on a Flowers four-bagger; and sent 10 batters to the plate in the seventh and scored six runs, including four on a grand slam by Carmago who drove in seven runs. Teheran wasn’t sharp but didn’t need to be.

Game 4: Rockies 2, Braves 0
Rockies starter Antonio Senzatela delivered a performance the Rockies desperately needed, surrendering only three hits and two walks through 7 2/3 shutout innings, to earn the win. Braves hurler Kevin Gausman and two relievers also allowed only three hits, but two walks, a sacrifice bunt, a Desmond single and Gerardo Parra groundout in the fifth brought home two runs and that was all Colorado needed to send the series to a fifth game.
 
Game 5: Braves 4, Rockies 2
This was a team win in every sense of the word. After two subpar performances in his first two starts, Foltynewicz was given the ball with some reluctance, but he came through in a huge way, throwing six innings of two-hit ball while fanning nine. The Braves rapped out eight hits with every starter getting one except Folty; no one scored more than one run and no one drove in more than one. Acuna Jr. led off the first with a triple and came home on a Freeman single to give Atlanta a 1-0 lead. They doubled the lead in the fourth when Flowers doubled and scored on a Dansby Swanson single, then went up 3-0 in the seventh when Carmago and Adams walked, Carmago went to third on a deep fly by Acuna, and scored on a wild pitch.
The Rockies rallied in the bottom of the seventh to make things interesting, scoring two off Chad Sobotka on three hits and two walks before Max Fried fanned Story with the bases loaded to quash the uprising. The Braves added an insurance run in the eighth, then watched Venters and Vizcaino put the game and series on ice with one perfect inning each

--submitted by Mike Lynch--
http://seamheads.com/blog/2019/01/14/braves-5-go-the-distance-again-before-sending-rockies-4-packing-in-round-2/

Holiday Festival Round 2 Boston (1) takes out the Angels (8) 3-1

Game 1 LAA 0 – BOS 4

Sale and Ohtani lock up in a pitchers dual through the first five innings.  Once Ohtani’s day was done the Red Sox hit Bedrosian for four runs in 2/3’s of an inning.  Bogaerts lead off with a homer and Martinez hits a two run bomb to ice the game.   Workman and Smith close out the game.  Sale goes 6 2/3’s allowing two hits a walk and eight punch outs.

Game 2 LAA 7 – BOS 1

Heaney and Porcello square off and neither goes five innings, but Heaney was unscored upon and Porcello gave up a two run shot to Ohtani  to break things open.  He followed that up with a solo shot in the 7^th to help ice the game.  The Bullpen by Committee of Buttrey, Robles, Parker and Anderson spun 4 1/3 shut-out innings.

Game 3 BOS 5 – LAA 2

Game 3 was became the LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS.  Numerous crashes throughout the game killed the spirit of the game.  After the last restart the game seemed to have forgotten the DH Rule was in effect, at least for Boston.  In order to make a pitching change Boston had to put the pitcher in the line-up and remove the DH.

As far as the game went,  Price and Barria started the game.  Barria lasted four innings giving up three runs (two earned) and Price went six plus giving up two runs with eight K’s.  Kimbrel shut the door for the save.

Game 4 BOS 16 – LAA 2

Rodriguez and Richards squared off in the elimination game.  A three run second, a solo run in the third and then the flood gates opened in the fifth as Boston broke things open with a five spot.  Moreland and Devers  each had three hits and four RBI’s, with Devers homering twice.  

--submitted by Stan Skawinski--

ROUND 2: #2 Brewers sweep #7 Dbacks

2018-19 HF Tournament

National League Bracket

(7) Arizona Diamondbacks vs (2) Milwaukee Brewers

GAME 1 @ Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI

Zack Greinke (R) vs Jhoulys Chacin (R)

Milwaukee wins 7-1

WP: Jhoulys Chacin (1-0) 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K

LP: Zack Greinke (1-1) 5.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 4 K

SV: none

HR: ARZ- Pollock (1) MIL- Pina 2 (2), Aguilar (1)

Game MVP: Manny Pina (2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR)

Game Recap: AJ Pollock started the series off with a 1st inning HR to give Arizona and ace Zack Greinke an early lead.
 However, it was the Brewers bats that would do more damage the rest of the way as Milwaukee starter Jhoulys Chacin
settled in.  Manny Pina tied the game with a solo HR in the 2nd and then it was Jesus Aguilar that broke the game open
with a 3 run bomb in the 3rd to give Milwaukee the lead.  Pina added a 2nd homer in the 6th and a Christian Yelich 8th
inning single gave the home team a comfortable 7-1 lead in the series opener.  Chacin combined with 5 relievers to
keep the DBacks off the scoreboard after the 1st inning long ball.  

GAME 2 @ Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI

Patrick Corbin (L) vs Wade Miley (L)

Milwaukee wins 3-2 in 10 innings

WP: Corey Knebel (1-0) 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

LP:  Brad Boxberger (0-1) 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 K, Blown Save)

SV: none

HR: none

Game MVP: Wade Miley 5.1 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, No Decision

Game Recap: The game of the series was a nail biter throughout and a game the Diamondbacks needed to have.  
Both starters threw up zeroes while in the game, Wade Miley 5 1/3 innings for the home team and Patrick Corbin 6
innings for the visitors.  The Brewers pulled Miley as he got to 90 pitches in the 6th and handed the ball to flame-throwing
left Josh Hader.  Even though the score was still knotted at zero, you could feel the confidence in the Miller Park
sellout crowd as Hader entered from the pen.  As expected, Hader recorded the final 2 outs of the 6th to keep the
game tied.  But in the 7th the unexpected happened.  The DBacks pieced together a multi run inning against the
dominant Brewer reliever.  Nick Ahmed led off with a single, Alex Avila walked, Chris Owings singled to score a run
and then the 2nd run scored when Ketel Marte hit into a double play.  And just like that Arizona held a 2-0 lead and
hope to take control of the series.  With Owings having pinch hit for Corbin during the rally, Arizona handed the ball
to Yoshihisa Hirano in the 7th with the 2 run lead.  Milwaukee got a lead off single from Mike Moustakas followed by
a walk to Travis Shaw.  Game 1 hero, Manny Pina, followed with a well executed sac bunt to put the 2 runners in scoring
position with 1 out.  Domingo Santana was called on to pinch hit and drove in PR Keon Broxton with a ground ball to
short to cut the lead in half.  But, Hirano was able to settle down to whiff PH Tyler Saladino with the tying run on 2nd
to preserve the lead.  Both team bullpens worked there way thru the 8th innings and the Jeremy Jeffress completed a
2nd shutout inning by blanking the DBacks in the top of the 9th.  Arizona, clinging to a 1 run lead, handed the ball to
closer, Brad Boxberger, in the 9th.  Boxberger was not up to the challenge as he let the first 2 batters reach on a walk
and a single  Hernan Perez, who had the single, stole 2nd to give the Brewers 2 runners in scoring position with no outs
.  Boxberger got Shaw on strikes before issuing a free pass to Pina to bring up PH Brad Miller with the bases loaded.  
Miller worked a full count walk after fouling off 3 payoff pitches and the game was tied. Boxberger somehow regained
his composure to get the next 2 hitters to send the game to extras.  Milwaukee got a clean inning from closer
Corey Knebel which sent it to the bottom of the 10th still tied at 2.  Boxberger proved enough to be sent out again
and looked good by whiffing NL MVP Christian Yelich to open the 10th.  But a single by Jesus Aguilar would chase
Boxberger and bring TJ McFarland to the mound.  Unfortunately for the DBacks, the Brewers hitters were determined
to end the game and a single by Perez followed by another by Shaw pushed home pinch runner Jonathan Schoop
with the winning run.   The Brewers celebrated with their home fans knowing they were headed to Arizona only
needing 1 more to advance.

GAME 3 @ Chase Field, Phoeniz, AZ

Gio Gonzalez (L) vs Robbie Ray (L)

Milwaukee wins 2-0

WP: Gio Gonzalez (1-0) 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K

LP: Robbie Ray (1-1) 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 5 BB, 7 K

SV: Josh Hader (1) 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K

HR: none

Game MVP: Gio Gonzalez (7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, WIN)

Game Recap: The Chase Field crowd was fired up to support their team, but the Arizona bats could never give them
anything to get excited about once the game started.  Gio Gonzalez threw up all zeroes for the 1st 6 innings and allowed
just a lead off double to Ketel Marte in the 7th.  By that point, Milwaukee had put up a single run in the 2nd thanks to an
RI from that guy, Manny Pina.  And then another run in the 5th when Jesus Aguilar doubled home Gonzales, who had
drawn a walk from Robbie Ray.  Josh Hader came on in the 8th and got the final 6 outs, 5 by strikeout to close out the
game and the series.  

SERIES STARS

• Manny Pina – 4-10, 1 2B 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI
• Jesus Aguilar – 5-14, 2 2B, 1 HR, 1 R, 4 RBI
• Milwaukee Starting Pitchers – Combined 18 1/3 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 9 K, 2 WINS (Chacin, Miley, Gonzalez)

--submitted by Peter Daly--

Bracket Buster Alert: BAL (13) defeats NYY (3) in 5 game series.

In what would turn out to be a surprise of a series, the 47 win Baltimore Orioles battled the 100 win New York

Yankees and came away with a series win 3-2…..all games won  by the visiting team.

Game 1 O’s 8  Yanks 5

Game 1 had Alex Cobb of the O’s going against Al Severino for the Yanks.   

O’s got off to a fast start scoring three in the top of the first with Manny Machado driving in 2 with a

single following Craig Gentry reaching first on a throwing error by Yankee catcher Sanchez and a Joey Rickard

double.  Down 3-0 the Yankees wasted no time getting 2 of them back following a Brett Gardner single and

Didi Gregorius single with a Giancarlo Stanton 2 RBI double. In the bottom of the 2nd Garner put the Yanks

ahead 4-3 with a two run home run and in the bottom of the third the Yanks added another run to take the

lead 5-3 after 3 innings.

The O’s clawed their way back into the game with an Adam Jones solo shot in the 6th and added 2 more in the

7th with a D J Steward solo shot and a Mark Trumbo RBI single giving the O’s the 6-5 lead.  In the top of the

ninth the O’s added two more as  the O’s pen held the Yankees down over the last 4 innings giving up just 1

hit and three walks and giving the “O”ffense the chance to take the series lead 1-0.

Game 2 O’s 7 Yanks 3

Game two at Yankee Stadium saw O’s Ace Bundy  against Tanaka.  The O’s rookie catcher Austin Wynns struck

first with a solo home run in the top of the second but the Yankees answered back in the bottom of the 4th

with a Hicks sac fly to tie the game.  In the top of the 6th many Machado answered back with a sac fly putting

the O’s back on top 2-1 and in the 8th the O’s went up 3-1 on an Adam Jones RBI single.  Not willing to go away

easily, the Yankee tied the score in the bottom of the 8th on a Neil Walker two RBI single.  With the scored tied

3-3 in the top of the ninth the “O”ffense struck for 4 to give the O’s the 7-3 win on a Renalto Nunez RBI double

and Joey Rickard 3 run home run against Chapman.

Game 3 Yanks 4 O’s 2

Game three saw the series move to Camden Yards with the surprising O’s up 2 games to none, but the Yankee

had no plans of going away easily.  With A.J Happ set to face Kevin Gausman the Yankees got off to a 3-0 lead

with 1 in the first and 2 more in the third.  The O’s tried to fighting back with 2 in the bottom of the 4th on back

o back Machado and Jones home runs, but Happ had their number on this day.  The Yanks added 1 more in the

6th on a Luke Voit home run and that’s how it ended with the Yankees taking game 3 4-2.

Game 4 Yanks 14 O’s 13

Game 4 was a wild one to say the least as after 5 innings the O’s led 5-4 despite two Luke Voit solo home runs

and a Giancarlo solo home run.  The O’s owed their soon to be short lived lead to a two RBI double by Caleb

Joseph and an RBI double by Manny Machado and solo home run by Pedro Alvarez.  It was at this point the

Yankee bats exploded by scoring 9 runs in the top of the 6th to take 13-5 lead.  With two out in the top of the

6th the Yankees hung up two walks, 6 singles and 2 doubles against a tired Orioles bullpen.  This one appeared

over…….not so fast Bronx Bombers as the O’s would touch 4 Yankee relievers for 8 with some help from noted

Orioles (opps, Yankee reliever) Zach Britton  in the bottom of the 8th. Zach Britton entered the game with two

out and the bases loaded and 5 runs already in for the O’s.  Zach immediately threw two wild pitches and gave

up an RBI single to allow the O’s to tie the game at 13 after 8 innings.  Note:  Zach was immediately traded back

to Baltimore following the inning so he could throw 1 pitch for the O’s I the 14th and appear in game 5 of the

series after almost giving this one away (work with me people, this isn’t real life although getting Britton back

for real would have been  gentlemanly of the Yankees). Unfortunately the home crowd woud not leave happy

on this night as Luke Voit hit his THIRD solo home run of the game in the top of the 14th off Darren O’Day to

force the series back to Yankee Stadium for the deciding game.

Game 5 O’s 8 Yanks 2

So the series came down to one game, the 47 win Orioles looking to pull off the unlikely upset the 100 win

Yankees.  This time Aaron Judge got the Yankees off to a fast start with a solo home run in the bottom of the

1st.  The O’s answered back in the top of the third on Austin Wynns second home run of the series and a two

RBI double by Manny Machado. IN the top of the 4th the game got really weird as the O’s scored 4 more by

starting the inning with back to back to back homeruns by Johnathan Scoop, Mark Trumbo and Tre Mancini. 

Lading 7-2 after 4 the scoring in the game came to a close except for a D J Stewart solo homerun in the 8th.

Zach Britton, again acquired just the day before, got the last two outs in the bottom of the ninth sending the

#14 seed O’s into the next round of the KOD Holiday Tourney!

This was a fun and exciting series.  Alan got “Koched” more than once and deserved a better fate…but when

you’re one of the worst teams in baseball history, you gotta take ‘em where you can get ‘em!

--submitted by Mark Nixon--

LAA Angels (8) defeat the Minnesota Twins (9) in 4 games

Game 1 - LAA 8, MIN 4
Twins take a 4-3 lead into the bottom of the 8th. But suddenly the Halos' bats game alive, including HRs by Shoei Ohtani, Upton and Kinsler. LAA scores 5 times to win going away 8-4.  Cam Bedrosian gets the win in relief. Trevor May takes the loss.

Game 2 - LAA 3, MIN 1
Angels starter Jaime Barria tosses 6 strong innings, yielding only 4 hits and 1 run to get the win, with the help of 3 scoreless innings of bullpen help from 4 relievers.  A David Fletcher RBI single and a Shohei Ohtani bases-loaded walk provide all the offense that Barria needs. Twins starter Kyle Gibson takes the tough-luck loss.

Game 3 - MIN 4, LAA 2
LAA takes an early 2-0 lead behind solo HRs by Albert Pujols and Jose Fernandez. But the Twins erupt for 4 runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning against LAA starter Tyler Skaggs. Max Kepler's double and Jorge Polanco's 2-run single are the key hits to do most of the damage. Strong pitching on both sides shut down the hiters from that point on, Minnesota finishing on top. Kohl Stewart tosses a brilliant 5 innings of scoreless relief to pick up the win. Skaggs takes the loss.   

Game 4 - LAA 5, MIN 4 (12)
Minnesota looks to tie the series at 2 games, and appears to have it within their grasp. HRs by Eddie Rosario and Max Kepler give the Twins a 4-1 lead which they keep going to the top of the 8th thanks to a very strong 7-inning, 1-run start from Adalberto Mejia. Once again Shohei Ohtani works a bases-loaded walk to make it 4-2, but that was all the Angels can muster.  Fernando Rodney comes in to shut the door and retires the first batter. But Aldrelton Simmons launches a 2-run shot that suddenly ties the game and 4.  The game stays on edge through scoreless 10th, and 11th innings. But in the top of the 12th, Justin Upton doubles with 2 outs and Eric Young Jr knocks him in with a single. Keynan Middleton almost gives it right back, yielding a lead off double to Eddie Rosario in the bottom of the 12th. But he retires the next 3 hitters to preserve the victory and give series for the Halos.  Angels end up using 20 hitters and 10 pitchers!

Tribe (5) Whitewash Pale Hose (12)

Game #1
CLEVELAND -- Corey Kluber (1-0) pitched 7.1 strong innings and received scoreless relief from Oliver Perez and Brad Hand (1) to lift Cleveland to a 4-3 win in the opener. Jose Ramirez (1) swatted a 2-run homer in the 4th. He also plated another run with an RBI ground out in the 5th. The winning run came in the 7th when Francisco Lindor lead-off with a triple and scored on Michael Brantley's sac fly. All of the ChiSox tallies came via the long ball with Yoan Moncada (1), Yolmer Sanchez (1) and Daniel Palka (1) all going yard. Nate Jones (0-1) took the loss for the Sox in relief.

Game #2
CLEVELAND -- Edwin Encarnacion (1) blasted a solo home run off Hector Sanchez (0-1) in the bottom of the 11th to a power the Indians to a wild, thrilling, 10-9 victory. Six Tribe hitters clubbed homers in the game. Lindor (1) in the 1st, Brantley (1) in the 3rd, Ramirez (2) in the 6th, Yonder Alonso (1) in the 6th, Jason Kipnis (1) in the 10th to tie the game again, and Encarnacion in the 11th. Palka's 4 safeties led all batters. Tim Anderson's (1) 3-run blast in the 8th tied the game at 9-9. Sox DH Matt Davidson took the collar plus 1 with 5 Ks. Cleveland's George Kontos (1-0) got the W in relief.

Game #3
CHICAGO -- Melky Cabrerra (1,2) blasted a pair of HRs as Wampum power again guided the Tribe to a 3-game sweep with an 8-6 win. Catcher Yan Gomes (1) 3-run bomb in the 7th was the biggest difference maker. Alonso (2) also went deep for the Wahoos. Carlos Carrasco (1) started and won the game on the hill. Perez (1) closed it out.

The Tribe will face the another Central Division foe in the Royals, after they upset the A's.

Royals (13) upset A's (4) in 4

\Game 1 of the series between the Oakland Athletics and the Kansas City Royals went much like expected. Sean Manaea faced off against the Jacob Junis. The A's scored twice in the bottom of the second on a single by Khris Davis and a two run home run by Steven Piscotty putting the A's on top 2-0. Sean Manea pitched a great game only giving up one run on a solo shot by Adalberto Mondesi in the fourth inning. The A's tacked on an additional run in the bottom of the seventh off Kevin McCarthy, when he allowed a double by Matt Olson, a single by Piscotty and then a sacrifice fly by Nick Martini. The Royals scrambled in the bottom of the ninth off Blake Treinen when John Jay led off getting hit by a pitch, two fielders choice and an infield single by Mike Moustakas put the Royals within one, but they could manage no more. A's - 3  Royals - 2

The second game of the series pitted Brad Keller against Trevor Cahill. Kansas City scored in the top of the first on a walk, a single and a sacrifice fly to put them up 1-0. The Royals added two more in the top of the third with a Mondesi single, Jorge Soler walked and Alex Gordon doubled to right center scoring Mondesi. John Jay then singled to right center scoring Soler. Gordon tried to score from second as well but was gunned down by Mark Canha. The score remained 3-0 until the top of the seventh when Mondesi led off with a reviewed infield single, he promptly stole second base. Ryan O'Hearn then stepped up and sent a blast down the right field line barely clearing the fence, for a two run shot. Keller left after 8 innings of 2 hit shutout baseball. Herrera mopped up the ninth after Scott Barlow gave up two hits, one of them a four bagger to Franklin Barreto. Royals - 5 A's - 1

For game three, Kansas City got to host the series, Danny Duffy taking the hill for the home crowd and Erwin

Jackson hurling for Oakland. It was a tough game for the hitters as Duffy only gave up two hits and one run, however Jackson was a bit better allowing two hits but nothing crossing home plate. In the seventh, Oakland went to their bullpen and asked Lou Trevino to keep the game in check. The Royals were prepared, with one out Lucas Duda punched a home run over the right field wall to tie the score. Oakland wanting to take no chances reached into the bullpen once more and pulled out Ryan Buchter to try and close the door. However, Soler turned on the left handers fastball to blast one over the left field wall. Gordon then struck out but Jay singled up the middle. The A's gave the hook to Buchter and brought in Emilio Pagan, who gave up an infield single before striking out Moustakas.  McCarthy took the mound for the home team but he gave up a lead off single followed by a hard smash force out. KC summoned Wily Peralta to the mound. He was greeted by a three bagger by Marcus Siemen tying the score 2-2. It remained tied until the bottom of the twelfth. Both teams had counted on their bullpens and Oakland needed three more outs from Shawn Kelley. He walked the first man of the inning. The manager decided enough and he went to Chris Bassitt, on the second pitch Moustakas stunned the stadium by stealing second base. Meibrys Viloria then walked. Oakland gave the nod to Brett Anderson facing pinch hitter Alcides Escobar who promptly lined a single into left center field, bases loaded , one out. Oakland again went to the pen. Daniel Mengden ended the affair when he put a fast ball into Whit Merrifield's wheelhouse for a deep fly to center field scoring the  winner. KC - 3  Oakland - 2




The KC fans were ecstatic to think they might be able to pull off an upset, and perhaps Oakland was feeling the same.  The went to their game one starter Sean Manea to get them to game 5. The Royals put Heath Fillmyer on the mound and asked him to just keep it close. Manea had been fantasic in game one and the Kansas City are was full of concern. On this day, Manaea was not the overpowering pitcher he was in game one. He allowed solo home runs to both Jorge Soler (third inning) and Adalberto Mondesi (fifth). Fillmyer gave up five hits and two runs in his six and one third innings, a bit better than Manaea's three runs in five innings.  Oakland scored first in the third off a homer by Marcus Semien, and they tallied another score in the fifth when Martini walked, was wild pitched to second and then scored on a two single by Ramon Laureano. The Royals had pushed across a run in the fourth on a lead off single by Cheslor Cuthbert, a walk to Hunter Dozier a fielders choice moving them both up a base. Soler was then intentionally walked loading the bases with two outs. Alex Gordon then took one in the ribs for the team, forcing across Cuthbert.  The Royals, Salvador Perez then homered in the bottom of the eighth to finish the game scoring. KC - 4  Oakland -2 .  Kansas City went wild!!!!!!!!!

--submitted by Orion Bell--

Dbacks (7) "ex-Zach-t" victory over Phightins (10) in 4 games

Game 1-  Zach Greinke for Arizona and Aaron Nola face off in the Series opener and both pitch very well.  Philadelphia takes the early lead on a Cesar Hernandez Sacrifice Fly in the top of the 3rd.  Arizona is finally able to get to Nola in the 5th when AJ Pollock hit an RBI Double to tie the game.  Nick Ahmed puts Arizona ahead 2-1 in the 6th with a Solo HR and it would prove to be the game winner as the Diamondbacks Bullpen comes up strong with Brad Boxberger finishing it off with a scoreless 9th inning.  Greinke gets the MVP with 7 strong Innings giving up just 3 hits and 1 ER. Arizona leads Series 1-0

Game 2- Another good pitching matchup on tap for Game 2 with Patrick Corbin taking on Jake Arrieta.  Carlos Santana would quickly put a damper on Corbin's day with a 2 run HR in the 1st inning.  Maikel Franco added a solo shot in the 3rd to put Philly up 3-0.  Nick Ahmed hit a 2 run single in the bottom of the 4th to cut the lead to 3-2 but Franco hit another HR, this time a 3 run bomb that put Philly up for good with a 6-2 victory.  Series Tied 1-1

Game 3-  The Series shifted to Philadelphia with Robbie Ray taking the mound for Arizona versus Nick Pivetta.  Arizona jumped out to the lead in this one with a 4 run 4th inning led by Paul Goldschmidt's solo HR and a 2 RBI single by Alex Avila.  Philly got 1 back in the 5th after Ray lost his control and walked 3 batters but that would be all the scoring for the game as the Arizona bullpen would once again shut down Philly for a 4-1 win.  Arizona leads series 2-1

Game 4-  Zack Godley would take the mound to try to wrap up the series for Arizona versus Zach Elflin for the Phillies.  The Diamondbacks would jump on Elflin early with a 3 run first including a 2 RBI double from Eduardo Escobar.  The DBacks would add another run in the 4th inning and 3 more in the 5th on a 3 run HR by Escobar to grab a 7-0 lead.  The Phillies would get a couple off Godley including a solo HR by Odubel Herrera but the Arizona bullpen would once again shut it down for a series clinching 7-2 win.  Escobar ends the game 3-3 with 5 RBI and 3 Runs scored.  Arizona wins Series 3-1

Both Teams bullpens shine pitching  17 Innings of shutout baseball over the 4 Games.

--submitted by Andy Sexton--