1. Close but not quite: No pitcher has recorded a no-hitter in more than two years, since Randy Johnson was perfect in May 2004. But a very unlikely pitcher came very close to the feat yesterday. It was the Nationals’ Ramon Ortiz, who took a no-no into the ninth inning against the Cardinals. But it was broken up by an Aaron Miles leadoff single, and then by an Albert Pujols homerun (43). So perfection dodged yet another pitcher yesterday, and in the end this is just an insignificant last place over first place win for the Nats.
2. Back and forth: At one point in the season the Minnesota Twins weren’t even near the playoff picture. But now the Twins and the White Sox are trading around the Wild Card lead almost daily. Now the lead is in the hands on the Twins, who defeated the Devil Rays 2-1 yesterday. It was their 13th straight win against Tampa. Chicago is now right behind after a narrow 3-2 loss to the Red Sox, who witnessed the return of many key players yesterday. With Manny Ramirez, Trot Nixon, and Jason Varitek back in the lineup, the Sox defeated the Sox in extras. Chicago did see another great start by Jon Garland, who is 8-1 with a 2.83 ERA since the All Star break. Minnesota and Chicago won’t play each other again until the last series of the season, at the Metrodome.
3. Barry’s back: Barry Bonds had yet to catch his usual form this year, which could be his last as a Giant. But now he is in the groove like he was from 2001-2004, and he is hitting homeruns like there’s no tomorrow. Bonds went deep for the third straight game yesterday, helping the Giants to a 5-4 win in Cincy. In his last six games Bonds has 5 homers, 7 RBIs, and is slugging a preposterous 1.412. He’s only 25 back of Aaron now with 730 career homeruns. When will he catch him? Sometime next summer, if he plays.
4. Pitching=success: The Los Angeles Angels have remained in the playoff hunt, and it’s not because of their offense. It’s their pitching staff that’s carried them this season, like yesterday when they defeated the Orioles 1-0. Jered Weaver returned to form after two straight losses with 7 shutout innings. Then Francisco Rodriguez, also known as K-Rod, shut the door for his 39th save of the season. That ties him with Bobby Jenks for the major-league lead, and Rodriguez remains the most underrated closer in baseball. At age 24 he has 98 career saves and a 2.32 career ERA, including a 1.82 mark this year. The Angels are now 6.5 back of the A’s in the AL West even though they have won 3 straight. Their staff will need to carry them if they want to make the postseason again.
5. To return or not to return: The Twins, already leading the WC as mentioned before, could get a boost by the middle of the month. Francisco Liriano threw 78 pitches in a bullpen session yesterday, and said that he felt great. He will throw in batting practice on Wednesday and could return before mid-September. With their other injured starter, Brad Radke, there is more questions. Radke, who hasn’t thrown since August 25, has a stress fracture in his right shoulder. The doctors have told him not to pitch for a few weeks as he recovers, though no specific return date has been announced.
