By Ron Kaplan, contributor
Alex Bregman had just one of the 17 hits by the Houston Astros (99-60), but it went for his 18th home run in a 12-2 pasting of the host Boston Red Sox, a possible opponent in the post-season. The shot over the Green Monster was good for two runs in the second inning. Bregman also walked and scored an additional run.
Ryan Braun was 1-for-4 and with an RBI in a must-win game for the Milwaukee Brewers (84-75), 4-3, over the visiting Cincinnati Reds.
For his second straight outing, Cleveland Indians reliever Craig Breslow was the victim of poor relief. He came in for the top of the ninth with one out and gave up a single to Max Kepler for the Minnesota Twins (who secured a Wild Card spot the night before despite losing to the Indians). Breslow then struck out Robbie Grossman before being replaced by Nick Goody who hit the next batter and then gave up a triple. So Breslow gets charged with an earned run, pushing that stat — undeservedly — to 5.09. (By the way, the Indians came out on top of this one anyway, 5-3, picking up their 100th win.) Two days earlier, Breslow retired the first two batters he faced in the eighth inning before giving up a double. His replacement gave up an RBI single and, again, the run was charged against Breslow. So he gets the punishment for other relievers not doing their jobs? Where’s the justice in that? Have to get back to Keith Law’s engaging book, Smart Baseball: The Story Behind the Old Stats That Are Ruining the Game, the New Ones That Are Running It, and the Right Way to Think About Baseball.
Ryan Sherriff allowed one hit and struck out one in an inning of scoreless relief for the St. Louis Cardinals (82-77), who lost to the visiting Chicago Cubs, 2-1, in 11 innings.
Posting late and getting ready for Yom Tov so I’ll just say that no other MOTs played last yesterday.
For those of you who observe, have an easy fast.
Ron Kaplan (@RonKaplanNJ) hosts Kaplan’s Korner, a blog about Jews and sports. He is the author of three books, including The Jewish Olympics: The History of the Maccabiah Games and Hank Greenberg in 1938: Hatred and Home Runs in the Shadow of War.
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