Chris Davis goes deep twice, becomes first to reach 40 homers in Orioles win
The only way to beat the Toronto Blue Jays these days is to out slug them. One of the few teams equipped to do that is the Baltimore Orioles, and that’s exactly what they did Friday, riding the hot bat of Chris Davis to a 10-2 victory at Rogers Centre.
Davis came into the game with three home runs in Baltimore’s first two games during September. He added two more on Friday, connecting for a solo shot in the second inning and a two-run blast in the sixth. The second homer broke a 2-2 tie and gave Davis an even 40 on the season.
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For Davis, it’s the second time he’s topped 40 homers during his eight-year career. He led all of MLB with 53 in 2013. With a full month left, he still has a decent shot at reaching 50 again this season. He’s also the first player in MLB to reach the 40-homer plateau. Former teammate Nelson Cruz is one behind with 39.
Joining Davis in the fun was Adam Jones, who delivered his 25th home run in the eight inning, and Matt Wieters, who now has six. That trio combined for five runs and six RBIs in the win. Jonathan Schoop and Jimmy Paredes each had two hits.
Ubaldo Jimenez was charged with slowing down Toronto’s offense. He came through, limiting them to two runs over 5 2/3 innings. He played with fire, walking six batters, but avoided a disaster inning. Jimenez picked up his 10th victory.
PAIR OF WALKOFFS HELP NATIONALS
The only thing wilder than a Friday night around MLB is a Friday night around MLB in September.
For example, the National League East got far more interesting in the span of 30 minutes thanks to two late rallies and two big swings of the bat.
In Washington, the Nationals rallied to tie the Braves in the ninth inning by scoring one against Arodys Vizcaino. In the tenth, Michael A. Taylor sent the crowd home happy with a walk-off three-run homer to give Washington a 5-2 win. The walk-off blast was the first of Taylor’s career and his 14th home run overall this season.
Meanwhile, down in Miami, the Marlins were attempting to play spoiler against the division-leading Mets. Things were going according to plan early, as Miami jumped out to a three-run lead in the fourth inning. After the Mets rallied to take the lead on Yoenis Cespedes home run in the seventh, Miami quickly regained the edge in the bottom half. That set the stage for a dramatic ninth, which saw the Mets tie the score with two outs.
At this point, the Nationals were just settling into the clubhouse to enjoy their own victory. Within minutes, Martin Prado would give them reasons to celebrate again, doubling home Christian Yelich with his fifth hit to give Miami a 6-5 win.
The drama is real, folks, and the Nationals are making things interesting again. After Friday’s results, they’re five games back in the NL East with six games against New York still to come. In other words, their destiny isn’t out of their hands just yet, and a couple more nights like Friday will keep the pressure on tight.
YANKEES GAIN GROUND IN AL EAST
A rare Blue Jays loss meant a rare opportunity for the New York Yankees to gain ground. They took advantage on Friday, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 5-2 to move within one-half game of Toronto.
The Yankees used the long ball to create some distance. Alex Rodriguez started the scoring with a two-run homer in the second inning. That was A-Rod’s 27th home run of the season, which is a remarkable number, and No. 681 for his career.
Two innings later Brian McCann added a solo shot for New York. Rookie Greg Bird then capped the scoring with a two-run shot of his own in the eighth. Worth noting, McCann scored on all three of the home runs. He finished the game 1-for-1 with two walks.
Luis Severino pitched extremely well, limiting the Rays to one run over 6 1/3 innings. His only mistake was a solo home run allowed to Evan Longoria. After six starts, Severino’s ERA is a sparking 2.04. He’s providing a huge lift down the stretch and gives the Yankees a new dimension in the rotation.
GIANTS LOSE SEVENTH STRAIGHT, CONTINUE FADING
It appears as though the Giants odd (year) pattern will continue in 2015.
After winning World Series championships in 2010, 2012 and 2014, they went on to miss the postseason all together in 2011 and 2013, and are now positioned well outside the postseason picture this season after losing to Colorado 2-1 on Friday night.
Overall, the Giants have lost seven straight dating back to Aug. 29. That includes a three-game sweep at the hands of the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers earlier this week. That the Giants have since lost consecutive games to the last-place Rockies suggests they won’t have enough in the tank to make a late season run.
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With Friday’s loss and the Dodgers victory, San Francisco will be 7 1/2 games back in the NL West entering play on Saturday. They’re eight full games behind the Chicago Cubs for the second wild-card position. In fact, the Nationals have now leapfrogged them in those standings.
Crazier things have happened over the final four weeks of a season, but the Giants need things to turn around immediately. As in, Saturday.
Want to see more from Friday’s slate of games? Check out our scoreboard.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
