The Yankees’ primary concern on Tuesday night was Aaron Judge’s hand. The captain got plunked on the left hand and soon had to leave the game to undergo imaging. Tests at least came back negative and New York beat Baltimore, 4-2, to move 2.5 games ahead in the AL East.
Beyond the field, the sport was in mourning, as the Giants announced news of the legendary Willie Mays’ passing at 93 years old. The linked article from McCovey Chronicles discusses Mays better than I ever could. He was just an icon who will be deeply missed.
There’s no good way to segue from that sadness. So here’s today’s Rivalry Roundup.
Seattle Mariners (44-31) 8, Cleveland Guardians (44-26) 5
Welcome the Mariners to the main attraction of Rivalry Roundup! The defending champion Rangers have been enough of a muddled mess that we’re demoting them to the “Other Teams” section. Yes, they have the exact same record as Houston, but there’s enough recent animosity and wariness toward the Astros that they’re still worth keeping a close eye on. The Rangers... well, maybe if they can get healthy and rally, we’ll revisit.
The M’s lead the AL West at the moment by a commanding 10 games, so they get the spotlight. The Guardians don’t because 2024 records be damned, I do not fully respect the AL Central enough yet to make the staff cover a fourth team in the main section. If the Astros want to keep burying themselves, then I might eventually reevaluate. Anyway, you all probably don’t care about that. It’s just logistics and we’re bringing some kind of catch-up for all these teams anyway.
Despite their strong record, the Seattle offense hasn’t been much to write home about. No one told that to Cleveland starter Triston McKenzie. A two-run shot by J.P. Crawford gave Seattle a 2-1 lead in the third, and they made it 4-1 on RBI doubles from Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver. In addition to those three hits, McKenzie walked four M’s and was gone before the end of the third.
Dingers from Dylan Moore and Luke Raley—the latter amusingly dropped by his uncle—helped Seattle bolster the lead, and by the middle of the sixth, it was 7-1, Mariners.
It’s a good thing that they added insurance because Bryce Miller faded and left in a two-run sixth, and by the eighth, Cleveland had trimmed the lead to three. Andrés Muñoz entered in that inning to cut down the rally though, and he recorded the final five outs for his 13th save in 14 chances.
Chicago White Sox (20-54) 2, Houston Astros (33-40) 0
What was that I said just a few paragraphs ago?
Yes, [the Rangers] have the exact same record as Houston, but there’s enough recent animosity and wariness toward the Astros that they’re still worth keeping a close eye on.
Well, uh, losing to the rotting carcass that is the 2024 Chicago White Sox doesn’t exactly bolster my case. But I’m happy to accept the trade-off!
The White Sox only got two hits off Framber Valdez, and in fact, those were their only knocks of the entire ballgame. They managed to score in the third because Valdez loaded the bases on two walks (much to tossed skipper Joe Espada’s chagrin) and a hit, and a slow Andrew Vaughn grounder plated a run. The second run crossed on a similar scenario in the fifth, when Valdez issued a trio of free passes to load the bases and Vaughn once again hit a slow grounder to score the runner.
Exciting, huh? It worked out because rookie Jonathan Cannon silenced the Houston lineup. He carried a five-hit shutout on just 93 pitches entering the ninth and got the first two outs, though he couldn’t quite seal the deal. John Brebbia came in for the final out, but it was a terrific effort from the UGA product for his first career victory.
Other Games
- Boston Red Sox (39-35) 4, Toronto Blue Jays (35-38) 3: The Red Sox won their fourth game in a row as the Jays continued their atrocious season in the bullpen. A 3-2 Toronto lead in the eighth went poof when Tyler O’Neill slugged his 15th homer of the season to tie it against Brendon Little. After a couple grounders, Dominic Smith singled and Chad Green relieved Little. Pinch-runner David Hamilton swiped second and Ceddanne Rafaela drove him home to put Boston in front. Kenley Jansen worked a perfect ninth for his 433rd career save, tying longtime save leaderboard compatriot Craig Kimbrel for fifth all-time.
- New York Mets (35-37) 7, Texas Rangers (33-40) 6: The Mets lost a 2-1 advantage when Texas plated five in the fifth to pull ahead, 6-2, but thanks to some Grimace magic (or the aforementioned Rangers lousiness), they stormed back. A Francisco Alvarez double tied it in the eighth against former batterymate David Robertson and a two-bagger by Pete Alonso off Kirby Yates put the Mets ahead. The Mets have suddenly won seven in a row. Amazin’.
Sound 'em. pic.twitter.com/fBKhdpPAym
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 19, 2024
- Minnesota Twins (41-32) 7, Tampa Bay Rays (34-39) 6: It was bonkers through the first five innings of this contest at Target Field, with a 4-0 Rays lead falling apart in the fourth, only to see Tampa Bay jump back ahead 6-4 in the fifth ... and the Twins punch right back. The homers by Randy Arozarena, Brandon Lowe, and Josh Lowe all went for naught, as the Twins bore down to blank the Rays from the sixth onward, while Carlos Santana ultimately walked this one off in the ninth against the Rays’ eighth pitcher of the night, Phil Maton.
- Oakland Athletics (27-48) 7, Kansas City Royals (41-33) 5: Five days after no-hitting the Yankees through six innings and leaving with seven scoreless, Alec Marsh was throttled by the A’s. By the time the dust settled on his pitching line, it was 7-3, Oakland. Something, something baseball, Suzyn. The Royals did get it close again, which allowed us to have a fun Mason Miller vs. Bobby Witt Jr. battle for the game’s final out.
