Marlins End Braves Win Streak in 1-0 Win

Be smart and keep your mouth shut. That was the lesson that Atlanta Braves third basemen Chris Johnson learned today in the Braves 1-0 loss to the Miami Marlins ending their 14-game win streak. After Marlins pitcher Nathan Eovaldi struck out Johnson to end the first inning, he spiked his bat and helmet before staying some words to home plate umpire Jim Joyce. Joyce pointed to him and seemed to be asking Johnson if he was talking to him. Joyce followed by pointing at him and tossing him out of the game. Little did Johnson know that if he stayed in the game he would be up in the bottom of the ninth with the tying run on first and two outs.

Earlier in the ninth inning Braves reliever Jordan Walden, who had been fairly solid all season, allowed a triple to Adeiny Hechavarria on a line drive to left-center field. Braves center-fielder BJ Upton never seemed to be at a full sprint on Hechavarria's triple. He probably figured that the ball would bounce nicely off the wall and go straight to him. The ball hit the wall and bounced only slightly off the wall giving Hechavarria a couple more steps toward his triple. Upton threw the ball in well hitting his cutoff man, Andrelton Simmons who turned and fired offline to third base. The skipped past third basemen Paul Janish but, fortunately for the Braves, rolled straight to Jordan Walden, who was backing up third on the play.

The triple tired out to be the decider in the game after Walden threw a wild pitch in the dirt past catcher Evan Gattis. Hechavarria was able to score standing giving the Marlins the lead 1-0 in the top of the ninth. Walden was able to get two outs of the inning without any more damage but had to leave after taking a line drive to the back of his throwing hand. The Braves were able to get out of the inning and went into the bottom of the ninth seeking at least one run.

Marlins closer Steve Cishek came into the ninth and retired BJ Upton and Freddie Freeman before Evan Gattis singled. Paul Janish came to the plate with Gattis on first, the tying run, and two outs. Janish had come into the game to replace the ejected Chris Johnson. The importance of Johnson's ejection really came into play when Janish stepped up to the plate. Johnson has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball for the past month. He batted .381 in July and is batting .303 in August while leading the National League with a .339 average. Instead of having a spectacular hitter up in a situation where the Braves really need a hit, they had Janish, who was 0 for is last 23 at bats. Janish was called out of a borderline strike to end the game and the win streak for the Atlanta Braves.

For the Marlins, Nathan Eovaldi (2-2) threw a complete gem against the Braves tossing seven inning of one hit ball while striking out eight. After the Braves left a runner on first and second in the first inning, Eovaldi never allowed a runner to reach second base. Freddie Freeman's single in the first inning turned out to be the only hit allowed for Eovaldi in his no-decision gem.

Rangers Acquire Alex Rios from White Sox

With the Rangers losing Nelson Cruz to suspension after his connections with a Biogenesis clinic in Miami, the Rangers were in need of an everyday veteran right fielder to take Cruz's spot in the lineup and field. Alex Rios was their man before the trade deadline and they were able to acquire him for a player to be named. The player will most likely be infielder Leury Garcia who is currently playing with the Rangers and is on the 40-man roster.

Rios is expected to be playing in right field everyday to cover Nelson Cruz while batting sixth in the lineup. For the White Sox this season, the 10-year veteran is batting .277 with 12 homers and driven in 55 while stealing 26 bases. Speed, arm and range have been the keys to success for Alex Rios and has made him one of the most sought after players available before the trade deadline.

There is a possibility that the Rangers will not be re-signing Nelson Cruz following his suspension after they have acquired Rios for the job in right field which was the place he has mainly played with the White Sox and Toronto Blue Jays. Jon Daniels, the Rangers general manager, said "We'll make a decision about [Cruz's] potential return to the club at the appropriate time, and that not now. RIght now, we're focused on putting the best club out there as we can. It's an unrelated situation."

Tigers, Scherzer Win 12th Straight Game

Before Max Scherzer had 9 outs in the Cleveland Indians vs. Detroit Tigers game, he already had a 6-0 lead going into the bottom of the third. Run support like that can always bring positive energy to a team and propel a hot team to their 12th consecutive win. Scherzer (17-1) had a fantastic start throwing 71 out of 100 pitches for strikes while striking out five in seven inning. He gave up only two runs to the Indians after Asdrubal Cabrera had two RBI doubles.

The Tigers six-run third inning began with Miguel Cabrera's bases loaded walk to bring up Prince Fielder with the bases juiced. Fielder muscled a ball to a similar spot that he did last night for a two-run double giving the Tigers a three run lead. Victor Martinez added to lead with a double to score Cabrera and Fielder. Miguel Cabrera added onto the lead with a two-run single in the fifth.

Detroit is now 68-45 and leading the AL Central by seven games over Cleveland. Successful pitching and run support has kept the Tigers among the top teams in the major leagues.

Braves Beat Nats for 13th Consecutive Win

The Braves came out swinging and pitching and those have been the two components that have won ball games recently. With Jordan Zimmerman on the mound for the Washington Nationals today, the Braves were in for a challenge but didn't choke. In the top of the first inning, Jason Heyward led off the game with his 15th double of the season. With out out, Freddie Freeman lined a single to center scoring Heyward from second. Braves pitcher Kris Medlen had a perfect three innings to start the game against the Nationals and even helped himself out with a sac fly in the fourth to give him a 2-0 lead. The Nationals fought back to tie the game in the bottom of the fourth with Nationals right fielder Jayson Werth's two run homer to right center field. The game remained tied until the seventh when Braves outfielder Justin Upton hit out his 21st home run, a solo shot, to give the Braves the lead again. But once again the Nationals fought back when Ian Desmond reached on a fielder's choice. Desmond's knock came with runners on the corners and one out. He hit a soft grounder to short which was fielded cleanly and the Braves got the runner at second. The throw to first was wild and the tying run came in to score.

The Braves were not ready to give up. In the eighth inning, a two-out rally began when their eighth hitter, Andrelton Simmons, doubled. Pinch hitter Joey Terdoslavich walked, and Jason Heyward delivered the big hit with a go-ahead single to right field. Justin Upton proceeded to double in Terdoslavich and Heyward to give the Braves a 6-3 lead going into the bottom of the eighth. Although the bottom of the eighth went smoothly, closer Craig Kimbrel found himself in some trouble with the Nationals in the ninth. After giving up a double and two walks, he had the bases loaded and Wilson Ramos at the plate. The winning run was at the plate and the tying run at first. Anything to a gap could tie the game. Kimbrel hit his spot perfectly at 99 miles per hour and got Ramos to reach for a pitch a line one to right field. Heyward made the catch and the game was over.

The Atlanta Braves have now won 13 straight and are up fifteen and a half games in their division and have the best record in baseball. They are also the first team to reach 70 wins.

Chris Davis Hits His 41st Homer of the Season

The entire year for Orioles first basemen Chris Davis has been a success. In the first five games of the season, he launched five home runs and put the Orioles on the right page to start the season. Davis's home run streak did end but not his hot streak. He has still been on a rampage of home runs and has even tied Reggie Jackson's record for the most home runs before the All Star Break.

Today was another day that a pitcher regretted pitching to Chris Davis as he launched a moonshot at Petco Park against the Padres in the Orioles 10-3 win this afternoon. Not only was this home run his 41st of the season but it was also the second longest homer ever hit in Petco Park's 10 years of existence. The massive 453-foot shot came off of San Diego reliever Colt Hynes first pitch, a 79 mile per hour slider that hung over the plate. Davis didn't even look like he put his best swing on the ball but was still able to blast it out of the park. The eighth inning go-ahead shot put the Orioles up by three which gave them enough to finish off the Padres and secure the victory.

Chris Davis's home run today put him in line to hit 58 home runs by the end of the regular season. The Orioles are now 63-51 and are in the third place in the AL East. The O's are back five and a half games to the Red Sox and the Rays are right on Boston's tail. If the Orioles want to have a shot for the playoffs they will really did to do something incredible since they are playing in the hardest division in baseball.

Carlos Gonzalez Placed on DL with Sprained Middle Finger

Carlos Gonzalez is finally going to sit out for at least 15 days to recover from a sprained finger. The Rockies announced today that their All Star outfielder has been placed on the 15-day disabled list. CarGo, as he is known as in Colorado, has had injury issues all through his time with the Rockies. Already this year he has rolled his left ankle while running to first, hurt his left ankle again getting hit by a foul in the on-deck circle, injured his back on a strikeout swing, hurt his left foot getting hit by a pitch, and now has been placed on the disabled list for a sprained middle finger. The issue of Gonzalez's middle finger sprain has come up multiple times when has swung a missed at a pitch. He left a game last month with the same issue on a foul ball swing, he dropped the bat and began to walk around aimlessly in pain. When the Rockies were in Atlanta last week, CarGo experienced the same pain on a swing and a miss in which he dropped his bat on the follow though hitting both catcher Brain McCann and the home plate umpire.

Despite all the injuries Gonzalez has had another incredible year as he is among the top 20 in hit, doubles, triples, home runs, runs batted in, walks, stolen bases, batting average, on-base percentage, and OPS. He leads the National League in slugging percentage with a .591.

The Rockies called up veteran left-handed pitcher Jeff Francis to the majors due to CarGo's injury. Francis will be available for tonight's game against the New York Mets. The Rockies are likely to use him as a reliever.

Benches Clear in Washington

It's not the first time in Bryce Harper's career that he has been thrown at, and it certainly won't be the last. In a 1-0 game, the Washington Nationals had Anthony Rendon on second with one out in the bottom of the fifth against the Atlanta Braves. The Braves were trying to hold on to their eleven game win streak and the tension was building. In the third inning, Bryce Harper launched a home run to straight away centerfield. The ball was absolutely crushed. After Harper hit the ball, he took a few steps down the line, watching the ball, before he tossed his bat to the side to begin his trot around the bases.

Bryce Harper dug into the batter's box in the fifth inning looking to add a much needed insurance run against the dominating Julio Teheran who had been accurate and affective all night. The first pitch to Harper hit him square in the right thigh at 94 miles per hour. Bryce Harper tried to avoid the pitch it came so far inside that he had no chance of getting out of the way of the pitch.

Harper began to yell and point in Teheran's direction letting him know his displeasure in getting hit. He removed his batting helmet while continuing to bark at Teheran. Braves catcher Brain McCann took offense to the words Harper used against his pitcher. Harper was restrained by the first base umpire and continued to walk down to first base. The benches and bullpens both emptied but quickly went back since no physical contact was made by either team.

There are many reasons why Bryce Harper reacted in that manner and why the incident happened. The day before Braves outfielder Justin Upton hit a go-ahead homer in which he took 28 seconds to jog around the bases which completely showed up the Nationals. Upton hadn't even reached first base before the ball had reached the stands. Bryce Harper took 24 seconds to get 360 feet around the bases for his home run. The Nationals didn't throw at anyone when Upton showed them up but when the 20 year old Bryce Harper hits a home run and takes forever to get around the bases, the Braves choose to throw at him.

Bryce Harper was asked about the incident after the game and he responded by saying,"It was something he's got to do. It's part of the game." When a reporter asked if he expected that from the 22 year old Teheran and he said, "I hit that ball pretty far off him so, no, not really." Harper also said he wasn't going to go any farther than what he did. He said that being 14.5 games back in the NL East is something he has thought about and needed to stay in the lineup even if the pitchers are going to throw at him. He explained that he would just go down to first base and say some choice words before moving on. Harper also said that he would have done the same thing that McCann did as a catcher to go out an stand up for his pitcher.

The incident was not only a problem on the field but also off the field and on Twitter. The official Twitter account of the Atlanta Braves (@Braves) tweeted "Clown move bro". They were referring to the time that Harper responded to a question about drinking in Canada by saying "That's a clown question bro." The social media blew up after the National account responded by saying "@Braves Which part, giving up the home run, or drilling the 20-year-old on the first pitch his next time up?"

Back to Baseball

After taking a long break, Around the Majors is back to bringing you up-to-date information around the major leagues. Although the season is in its last three months there is still a lot to cover. The trade deadline has passed so almost all the players are on the teams they will be on for the rest of the season. The team that holds up the best and focuses on getting run support to back impressive pitching will walk away with a World Series ring. Around the Majors is returning to keep you up to date with all the big up and coming players along with the soon-to-retire veterans. So sit back and enjoy the rest of the summer and baseball season! Enjoy!

Cardinals Have No Right to Advance Any Farther

The St. Louis Cardinals advanced to the NLCS late last night after beating the Washington Nationals in a miraculous comeback. Closer Drew Storen had the Cardinals down to their last strike when he threw two balls and walked two batters in a row. The poor pitching by Washington and the luckiest call in the postseason is why the Cardinals have reached the NLCS and deserve to go home after that. Why?

In the Wild Card play-in game about a week back, there was the most controversial call in at least this year's playoffs, possibly the the most controversial call in the history of the postseason. When Braves shortstop Anderton Simmons popped a ball up in the eighth inning rally against the Cardinals, shortstop Pete Kozma and Matt Holiday looked at each other expecting other one to catch the can of corn. Kozma backed away from the ball allowing Holiday to catch who was standing ten feet away. The play happened when the Braves were down 6-3 and there were runners on first and second. Veteren umpire, Sam Holbrook, the left field ump signaled that the ball was an infield fly meaning that Kozma was camped under the ball at its climax. The call was late and wrong. All the base runners were confused and Freddy Gonzalez came bolting out of the dugout to argue the call. After the sellout crowd figured out what had happened a responded by tossing beer bottles and other items onto the field causing an 19-minute delay as the grounds crew had to clean up the field. Do we now need replacement umps?

Here is the problems with that call:

1. Pete Kozma was not camped under the ball at its climax and was not under the ball when it fell.

2. The call was too late to be correct. It needs to be called earlier to protect the base runner and let them know what is going on.

3. Is it really the left field ump's call? There is no rule against it yet but when the ball is out that far it is the left fielders' ball and not the shortstops'.

If this call wasn't blown the outcome of the game could be completely different. The Cardinals got lucky when the Braves had three errors of their own allowing them to score. Although the Braves didn't play like a playoff type team, nor did the Cardinals. The Cardinals took advantage of that and had only one solid hit in the entire game. If Drew Storen could throw some more strikes the Cardinals wouldn't be in the position they are in right now. This is all due to the infield fly call heard 'round the world.

Strasburg Shut Down for the Season

The Washington Nationals lead by Davey Johnson decided to shutdown star pitcher Stephen Strasburg for the season. In a game on August 28, he gave up seven runs in five innings in the 9-0 to the Miami Marlins. On Friday, he lasted only three innings throwing 67 pitches, 37 strikes. He gave up five runs on six hits in the loss. Strasburg pitches in 28 game and had a 15-6 record with a 3.16 ERA and 197 strikeouts.

Manager Davey Johnson claimed it was more of a mental reason than a physical reason that Strasburg was shut down early before the postseason.