The Walk Off: Max Scherzer flirts with perfection in win over Cubs
Welcome to The Walk Off, the nightly MLB recap from Big League Stew. Here we’ll look at the top performers of the night, show you a must-see highlight and rundown the scoreboard. First, we start with a game you need to know about.
For over five innings, the best offense in baseball was held completely silent. The Chicago Cubs, who rank third in baseball in runs, and first in walks, couldn’t muster a single base-runner against Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer.
That perfection wouldn’t last, however. In the sixth inning, Addison Russell came through for Chicago, blasting a one-out solo home run to ruin the perfect game, no-hitter and shutout in one swing.
For Scherzer, that hit was just a slight blip in the road. The 31-year-old allowed just one more hit during the team’s 4-1 victory over the Cubs. Scherzer lasted seven innings, giving up just one run on two hits. He did not issue any walks and struck out 11 during the start.
It was pretty clear Scherzer had special stuff early on. To open the game the ace struck out nine of the first 10 batters he faced.
Following the contest, even Cubs manager Joe Maddon had to admit he was pretty impressed with the performance.
That’s high praise.
With the performance, Scherzer earned his eighth win. He now has a 3.40 ERA.
TOP PERFORMERS
Adam Eaton: The Chicago White Sox were going to need a lot of offense if they were going to overcome an early 7-0 deficit against the Detroit Tigers. Lucky for them, outfielder Adam Eaton was ready to deliver. Eaton turned in an exceptional performance, going 4-for-5, with two runs scored and two RBI. His biggest hit came in the bottom of the 12th, as he singled in the team’s winning run in the amazing 10-9 comeback.
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Jerad Eickhoff: Holding the tough Toronto Blue Jays scoreless over six innings would be difficult for any player, but that’s just what Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jerad Eickhoff managed to accomplish during the club’s 7-0 victory. Eickhoff kept Toronto off the board, giving up just three hits. He struggled a bit with his control, walking four, but also struck out five. With the win, Eickhoff now has a 3.40 ERA.
Khris Davis: Any time you score 14 runs, you’re bound to have some standout performers. For the Oakland Athletics, outfielder Khris Davis was that performer during the club’s 14-5 win over the Texas Rangers. Davis made the most of his two hits, driving in five runs for Oakland. He also scored all three times he was on base during the blowout. He finished 2-for-4, with three runs scored and five RBI.
MUST-SEE HIGHLIGHT
It’s pretty rare for San Francisco Giants outfielder Denard Span to hit a home run. It’s even more rare to see him absolutely crush a ball. That was the case Monday during the club’s 11-5 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
Span wasted no time getting to work. During his first at-bat of the night, Span launched the third pitch he saw for a home run. This was no ordinary blast, though. Span managed to hit the ball out of the park and into McCovey Cove out in right. Yes, Denard Span, whose career high in home runs in a single season is just eight, managed to knock the 70th splash hit since AT&T Park opened. It took 623 days to get to splash hit No. 69. It took just five days to get to splash hit No. 70.
THE REST OF THE SCOREBOARD
Royals 2, Indians 1: Whit Merrifield’s home run in the fourth inning was enough to push the Royals over the Indians.
Reds 9, Braves 8: Adam Duvall smashed his 18th home run of the year during the first inning. Tyler Holt walked to score the go-ahead run in the ninth.
Diamondbacks 3, Dodgers 2: Paul Goldschmidt and Jake Lamb homered for Arizona as Zack Greinke picked up his sixth-straight win.
Twins 9, Angels 4: Jered Weaver was tagged for six runs, five earned, over six innings. Byron Buxton, Robbie Grossman and Trevor Plouffe all hit home runs for Minnesota.
Marlins 13, Padres 4: Colin Rea lasted just 2 2/3 innings as the Marlins offense exploded despite Giancarlo Stanton receiving an off day.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
