Associated Press
Associated Press
SEATTLE — Ichiro Suzuki switched teams in Seattle after a momentous trade and singled his first time up with the New York Yankees during their 4-1 victory over the Mariners on Monday night.
In a surprising deal about 3½ hours before the game, Seattle sent Suzuki to the Yankees for a pair of young pitchers. After leaving the only major league team he’d ever played for, the 10-time All-Star held an emotional news conference and then joined his new teammates in the other clubhouse at Safeco Field.
Just like that, Suzuki went from last place in the AL West to first in the AL East. And he helped New York beat his former club by going 1 for 4 with his 16th stolen base.
Hiroki Kuroda (10-7) allowed three hits over seven sharp innings to help the Yankees bounce back from a four-game sweep in Oakland. The right-hander struck out nine and walked one.
Alex Rodriguez hit his 15th home run this season — the 644th of his career and 299th as a Yankee — in the eighth. He also had a double in the fourth and scored twice.
Mark Teixeira had three hits, including a pair of doubles, and an RBI.
David Robertson worked a hitless eighth and Rafael Soriano pitched the ninth for his 25th save in 27 chances. Fittingly, Suzuki caught the final out in right field.
Suzuki started in right field in place of injured Nick Swisher and batted eighth. It was the first time the 2001 AL MVP and Rookie of the Year started a game batting anywhere other than the top three spots in the lineup.
Fans at Safeco Field gave him a 45-second standing ovation when he came to bat with one out in the third inning. He doffed his helmet and bowed twice to the crowd before hitting a single and stealing second base.
The Yankees made the trade a few days after learning that speedy outfielder Brett Gardner would likely miss the rest of the season because of an elbow problem, and manager Joe Girardi said Suzuki will mostly play left field.
Suzuki was given No. 31 because the number he wore his entire career with the Mariners, No. 51, has not been worn by a Yankee since four-time World Series champion Bernie Williams last played.
“No. 51 is a special number to me, but when I think about what 51 means to the Yankees, it’s hard for me to ask for that number,” said Suzuki, who holds the major league record for most hits in a season.
When Suzuki trotted out to right field in the first, fans stood and applauded. He tipped his hat and waved it in a half-circle.
WHITE SOX 7, TWINS 4
CHICAGO — Adam Dunn hit his majors-leading 29th homer, Gavin Floyd went six innings after coming off the disabled list and the Chicago White Sox ended a five-game losing streak with a 7-4 win over the Minnesota Twins.
Paul Konerko and Alex Rios also homered off Twins left-hander Francisco Liriano (3-10) to help the White Sox win in their first home game following a 3-7 road trip after the All-Star break that knocked them out of first place in the AL Central.
Making his first start in 16 days after being sidelined by elbow tendinitis, Floyd (8-8) wasn’t sharp but benefited from four double plays. He walked six, gave up six hits and three runs — two earned. Addison Reed got his 16th save in 19 chances.
RANGERS 9, RED SOX 1
ARLINGTON, Texas — Scott Feldman, starting after Roy Oswalt was scratched with back tightness, threw seven strong innings to lead the Rangers to a victory over the Red Sox.
Feldman (4-6) won his fourth straight decision and pitched his longest outing since throwing eight innings on June 2, 2010. He gave up one earned run and seven hits with five strikeouts.
Just before the game started, it was learned Texas starting pitcher Colby Lewis will miss the rest of the season because of a torn flexor tendon in his right elbow that will require surgery.
Ian Kinsler went 3 for 4 and Craig Gentry went 2 for 4 with an RBI for Texas. Josh Hamilton and Mike Napoli both had two RBIs in the Rangers’ first home game since July 8.
Felix Doubront (10-5) pitched five innings and gave up six runs and eight hits.
INDIANS 3, ORIOLES 1
CLEVELAND — Justin Masterson, backed by three double plays, pitched 7 1-3 strong innings to help the Indians beat Baltimore and avoid a four-game sweep.
Masterson (7-8) struck out six as Cleveland broke a four-game losing streak. The right-hander gave up only one run and seven hits, improving to 5-2 over his last eight starts.
Chris Perez pitched the ninth for his 27th save in 29 chances.
Shin-Soo Choo put the Indians ahead 2-0 with a two-run homer in the third inning off Tommy Hunter (4-5).
GIANTS 7, PADRES 1
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Buster Posey hit a three-run homer, Ryan Vogelsong won for the first time in nearly a month and the San Francisco Giants opened their longest homestand of the season with a 7-1 victory over the San Diego Padres.
Ryan Theriot and Melky Cabrera had three hits apiece for the Giants, who benefited from an overturned call by the umpires. San Francisco improved to 8-2 since the All-Star break.
Vogelsong allowed one run and four hits over seven innings. The right-hander walked three and struck out six while lowering his ERA to 2.26.
Yasmani Grandal had two hits for San Diego, which has lost five of seven games to San Francisco this season.
Posey’s third home run in his last 11 games highlighted another stellar night from the Giants’ All-Star catcher.
NATIONALS 8, METS 2
NEW YORK — Bryce Harper homered his first time up in New York, then hit a tiebreaking single to key a six-run burst in the 10th inning that sent the Washington Nationals over the Mets 8-2.
Shortstop Ruben Tejada’s error on a potential double-play ball set up the big 10th. Ryan Zimmerman hit a three-run double and Michael Morse added a two-run homer as the NL East-leading Nationals broke away.
The Mets lost for the 10th time in 11 games. A day earlier, they gave up five runs in the 12th inning and fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-3.
Tom Gorzelanny (3-2) retired Jason Bay with a runner on second to end the ninth.
David Wright and Ike Davis homered for the Mets in their fourth straight defeat. Tim Byrdak (2-2) took the loss.
MARLINS 2, BRAVES 1
MIAMI — Josh Johnson pitched six scoreless innings and Emilio Bonifacio homered to lead Miami over Atlanta.
Four relievers combined to pitch the final three innings for the Marlins. Steve Cishek earned his third save to help Miami snap a five-game losing streak.
Johnson (6-7) retired his first 14 batters before Brian McCann singled in the fifth. Johnson struck out nine, allowed one hit and did not walk a batter. He threw 87 pitches before Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen pulled him as a precaution.
Carlos Lee had an RBI single in the first and Bonifacio led off the second with his first homer since Sept. 25, 2011, at Milwaukee.
Braves starter Mike Minor (5-7) allowed two runs and six hits in seven innings.
CUBS 2, PIRATES 0
PITTSBURGH — Jeff Samardzija gave up one hit over eight innings and Alfonso Soriano hit two run-scoring doubles as Chicago cooled off Pittsburgh.
Samardzija allowed only a fourth-inning infield single to Andrew McCutchen, the leading hitter in the majors with a .373 average. The ball ricocheted off Samardzija.
Soriano provided two big hits, scoring Starlin Castro both times, as Chicago ended its 28-inning scoreless streak that stretched to the second inning of last Friday’s game at St. Louis.
Samardzija (7-8) struck out five and walked one in ending Pittsburgh’s five-game winning streak. Carlos Marmol earned his 12th save.
Erik Bedard (5-11) allowed one earned run and two hits in seven innings while striking out 11. The Pirates lost for just the fifth time in their last 26 home games.
PHILLIES 7, BREWERS 6
PHILADELPHIA — Ty Wigginton hit a sacrifice fly to cap a four-run rally in the ninth inning against Francisco Rodriguez that lifted Philadelphia over Milwaukee.
The Phillies were 0-42 when trailing after eight innings before coming back against Rodriguez (2-5), who replaced John Axford as the closer last week.
Ryan Howard hit a two-run single on an 0-2 pitch in the ninth and Carlos Ruiz followed with an RBI single.
Carlos Gomez hit a three-run homer and the Brewers battered two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay. He allowed six runs and eight hits in six innings in his second start since returning from a nearly two-month stint on the disabled list.
Joe Savery (1-2) pitched a scoreless ninth for the win. It was the first time in 18 tries that the Phillies won a game Savery appeared in.
Utley and Howard hit consecutive homers for the last-place Phillies.