NATIONAL LEAGUE : With playoff collapse on mind, Cubs’ Lilly delivers
Posted on Saturday, May 10, 2008
CHICAGO — Instead of his glove and his temper, Ted Lilly got attention for his pitching and his bat.
After giving up a first-inning home run to Chris Young, Lilly regrouped and helped the Chicago Cubs beat Arizona 3-1 on Friday in the teams ’ first meeting since the Diamondbacks’ first-round playoff sweep seven months ago.
Lilly pitched seven innings and also singled in the tying run as the Cubs won for just the fifth time in 14 games.
Young homered off Lilly in Game 2 in October in Phoenix in Arizona’s 8-4 victory, prompting Lilly to slam his glove on the pitcher’s mound in frustration. Did Lilly think back to that game, one that saw him give up 6 runs and 7 1 hits in 3 / 3 innings and put the Cubs in an 0-2 hole ? “Maybe a little bit,” Lilly said. “I don’t want to admit it too much. You sort of let it go, but you don’t forget. And at the same time not try to come out of your game and do anything crazy.” Lilly (3-4 ) allowed only three hits against the top-scoring team in the major leagues and struck out 10 on a 46-degree day at Wrigley Field. Carlos Marmol got out of the eighth with the help of a double play when Arizona’s Eric Byrnes was called for interference at the plate. Kerry Wood pitched the ninth for his sixth save in nine chances. Mark DeRosa doubled with two outs in the fifth for the Cubs’ second hit. And after the Diamondbacks intentionally walked Reed Johnson to get to Lilly — a. 124 career hitter entering the game — he drove a 1-0 pitch up the middle for an RBI single. Alfonso Soriano followed with an RBI double past third for a 2-1 lead. BREWERS 4, CARDINALS 3 Rickie Weeks hit a bases-loaded, two-run single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth as host Milwaukee ended a sixgame losing streak and handed St. Louis its third consecutive loss. Cardinals closer Jason Isringhausen (1-4 ) recorded two outs on the first two pitches in the ninth. J. J. Hardy then singled, pinch hitter Gabe Kapler hit a blooper to right and Isringhausen walked Jason Kendall. Weeks hit Isringhausen’s second pitch to left field to score Hardy and Kapler. PIRATES 3, BRAVES 2 Freddy Sanchez, who went 2 for 4 with 3 RBI, singled home Brian Bixler with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, giving host Pittsburgh a victory over Atlanta. MARLINS 7, NATIONALS 3 Luis Gonzalez passed the 1, 400 career-RBI mark with a basesloaded double as Florida beat Washington for its fifth consecutive victory.
American League RAYS 2, ANGELS 0 James Shields (4-2 ) pitched a one-hitter and Evan Longoria hit a two-run, ninthinning home run as host Tampa Bay beat Los Angeles. The 26-year-old right-hander limited the Angels to Brandon Wood’s one-out single in the third and retired the last 17 batters he faced after hitting Erick Aybar with a pitch in the fourth. Shields struck out eight and walked none. Angels starter Jon Garland allowed no runs and four hits in eight innings. He walked three and struck out two before being replaced by Justin Speier (0-2 ), who gave up a leadoff single to B. J. Upton in the ninth before Longoria’s home run. RANGERS 4, ATHLETICS 0 Scott Feldman (1-1 ) and three relievers combined for host Texas’ third consecutive shutout and Brandon Boggs went 3 for 4 with a home run and three RBI against Oakland, which had won four consecutive. INDIANS 6, BLUE JAYS 1 Casey Blake and Ben Francisco hit two-run doubles in a six-run seventh inning to help C. C. Sabathia (2-5 ) and host Cleveland defeat Roy Halladay (3-5 ) and Toronto in a duel of Cy Young Award winners. TIGERS 6, YANKEES 5 Ivan Rodriguez had three hits and two RBI as host Detroit beat New York. ORIOLES 7, ROYALS 4 Steve Trachsel (2-4 ) earned his first victory since April 4 as Baltimore got its 11 th consecutive victory over host Kansas City. TWINS 7, RED SOX 6 Mike Lamb hit a two-run single in the ninth against closer Jonathan Papelbon (2-2 ) as host Minnesota beat Boston. Friday’s games NATIONAL LEAGUE Chicago Cubs 3, Arizona 1 Pittsburgh 3, Atlanta 2 Cincinnati at NY Mets, ppd., Florida 7, Washington 3 Milwaukee 4, St. Louis 3 Colorado at San Diego, (n ) Philadelphia at San Francisco, (n ) Houston at LA Dodgers, (n ) AMERICAN LEAGUE Detroit 6, NY Yankees 5 Cleveland 6, Toronto 1 Tampa Bay 2, LA Angels 0 Texas 4, Oakland 0 Minnesota 7, Boston 6 Baltimore 7, Kansas City 4 Chicago White Sox 4, Seattle 2
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