First to Home: July 5th MLB News and Notes
July 5, 2017
Yankees Continue to Fall: The Yankees lost to the Jays 4-1 on Tuesday, continuing their slide and widening the gap between them and the Red Sox at the top of the AL East. The Yankees are searching for consistent starting pitching, but are not finding answers. The 4 game difference between them and the Sox is the largest of the year.
Red Sox On Fire: The Red Sox have now won 6 games in a row after an 11-4 win in Texas on Tuesday. The Hero in last night’s thumping of All-Star ace Yu Darvish was Andrew Benintendi. HIs 5-5, 6 RBI night fueled the Red Sox offense. The Sox also have to be encouraged about David Price’s last two starts in which he has been far more effective.
Daniel Murphy Kills Old Team: Daniel Murphy is having a career year at the plate, posting a .333/14/55 line for one of the Nats. He has clearly been a force for the Nats regularly, but his performances against his old team the Mets are simply otherworldly. On Tuesday he enjoyed a 4 hit 6 RBI performance against the team who refused to resign him, as he continues to be the biggest thorn in the side of Mets supporters.
Kershaw Continues Dominance: Kershaw went 7 innings of brilliance on Tuesday, allowing 0 runs and only 2 hits to quiet the Diamondbacks’ lethal offense. The Dodgers’ lead in the NL West continues to grow behind their strong hitting and their starting pitching.
Rays beat up on Cubs: These are two teams who many thought their early season performances were an inaccurate representation of how things would unfold by the end of the season. Everyone expected the Cubs to turn it around and be great, while the Rays were expected to fall off. However, the Rays beat the Cubs again, 6-5 on Tuesday, to bring their record to 44-41. Meanwhile after the loss in another less than impressive John Lester start, the Cubs are a game under .500 at 41-42. They are fortunate to be in a mediocre division, so even with their porous first half, they can quickly reestablish themselves in the Central.
The Brewers: The Brewers now have a 3.5 game lead over the Cubs in the division and it seems like it just might continue to climb. Travis Shaw homered and Eric Thames homered twice on Tuesday to help lead the Brewers over the Orioles in Milwaukee.
Written by Paul McGovern