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It was a lighter day on the diamond Thursday, as only 18 of the 30 teams in Major League Baseball played. And for the fifth consecutive day, there was at least one game that featured a shutout.
Heading into Friday’s games, five teams remain undefeated after sweeping their season-opening series. However, that will drop to four as two of those teams play each other this weekend.
Take a look at some of the news, notes, highlights and numbers from Thursday, April 9th. All of Friday’s matchups listed are Eastern time.
April 9th Recap & Player Notes
- The Cincinnati Reds (3-0) swept National League Central rivals Pittsburgh Pirates (0-3) 3-2 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, the third series sweep of the young season. Third baseman Todd Frazier scored on an error in the bottom of the ninth inning for the victory. First baseman Joey Votto hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning to tie the score 2-2. … The Reds host another NL Central rival, the St. Louis Cardinals, at 7:10 p.m. Friday, while the Pirates travel to divisional rival Milwaukee to play the Brewers at 8:10 p.m.
- The New York Mets (2-1) won their first series against the Washington Nationals (1-2) since 2013 with a victory Thursday, 6-3, at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. … New York goes on to face NL East rival Atlanta with a 7:35 p.m. Friday start slated against the Braves. The Nationals hit the road to play the Philadelphia Phillies, with a game scheduled at 7:05 p.m.
- The Detroit Tigers (3-0) swept the Minnesota Twins at Tigers Stadium in Detroit on Thursday with a 7-1 victory. Center fielder Anthony Gose went 3-for-5 and scored three runs, while right fielder J.D. Martinez knocked in three RBIs to lead the Tigers. Twins first baseman Joe Mauer scored Minnesota’s only run – of the game, the series and the season – in the seventh inning, ending a 34-inning scoreless streak. Detroit faces the Cleveland Indians on the road at 4:10 p.m. Friday, while the Twins travel to Chicago to play at the White Sox at 4:10 p.m. Friday. Both the Twins and White Sox are seeking their first victory of 2015.
- The Kansas City Royals (3-0) remained undefeated with a 4-1 victory Thursday over the White Sox (0-3) at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Royals catcher Salvador Perez went 1-for-3 with two RBIs. The White Sox scored only one run twice in the three-game series. Kansas City’s first road game is at 10:05 p.m. Friday at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and the White Sox host the Twins at 4:10 p.m.
- Cleveland (2-1) allowed only one hit to Houston (1-2) in a 5-1 victory Thursday at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Cleveland scored in fifth different innings, and had four players with multi-hit games. One of those was catcher Roberto Perez, who went 2-for-4 with a run and two RBIs. Houston’s Jed Lowrie broke up Cleveland’s no-hit bid in the bottom of the ninth, homering with one out for the Astros’ only hit and run. Four pitchers had combined for the one-hitter, as Indians starter Trevor Bauer went only six innings with 11 strikeouts and four walks. … Cleveland’s home opener is at 4:10 p.m. Friday against the Tigers, while the Astros are at intrastate rival, the Texas Rangers, at 4:05 p.m.
- A day after they were shut out in a 10-0 pounding, the Texas Rangers (2-2) came away with a series tie with the Oakland Athletics, as Texas won Thursday, 10-1, at O.co Coliseum in Oakland. Texas scored three runs each in the first and fourth innings, and four players had multi-hit games for the Rangers, who had 12 hits. Leading the way was right fielder Shin Soo Choo, who went 2-for-5 with three RBIs. Oakland second baseman Eric Sogard had a hit and the Athletics’ only run. … Four Texas players hit their first homeruns Thursday. … Texas hosts Houston at 4:05 p.m. Friday, while Oakland hosts the Seattle Mariners at 10:05 p.m. Friday.
- San Francisco (3-1) won its series opener Thursday against San Diego (1-3) in extra innings, 1-0, at Petco Park in San Diego. … Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford reached second base on a Padres error in the 12th inning, then scored on a single by pinch hitter Justin Maxwell. … Giants reliever Santiago Casilla has three saves in four games. … The two teams play game two at 10:10 p.m. Friday.
- The Toronto Blue Jays (2-1) won their opening series on the road against the New York Yankees (1-2) with a victory Thursday, 6-3, at Yankees Stadium. The Blue Jays scored four runs in the second inning and were never challenged thereafter. Leading Toronto were designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion and third baseman Josh Donaldson, who each went 2-for-4 with two runs; Encarnacion also had an RBI. ... Yankees catcher John Ryan Murphy had two hits and a run to lead New York. … New York host Boston at 7:05 p.m. Friday at Yankees Stadium, while the Blue Jays head to Baltimore to face the Orioles at 3:05 p.m. Friday.
- The Boston Red Sox (2-1) scored all six of its runs in the third inning to win the series and Thursday’s game 6-2 against the Philadelphia Phillies (1-2) at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. … Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts was 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a run. Philadelphia shortstop Freddy Galvis was 2-for-4 with a run. The Red Sox play the Yankees at 7:05 p.m. Friday, while the Phillies are at home against the Nationals at 7:05 p.m. Friday.
- Other matchups Friday include:
- Chicago Cubs at Colorado Rockies, 4:10 p.m.
- Tampa Bay Rays at Miami Marlins, 7:10 p.m.
- Los Angeles Dodgers at Arizona Diamondbacks, 9:10 p.m. - Teams combined for 131 hits Wednesday, bringing the total to 676 hits on the season. Leading Thursday’s games were the Tigers with 12; the Indians and Red Sox each had 11 hits.
- Five teams swept their season-opening series and are undefeated: Colorado Rockies, Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Cincinnati Reds.
- Ten of the 46 games (21.7 percent) this season have been decided by one run.
- Fourteen of the 46 games (30.4 percent) played this year have resulted in a shutout, and there has been at least one shutout in each of the first five days of this season. The Rangers and Twins have been shut out twice each. Also shut out once have been the Cubs, Brewers, Phillies, Indians, Mariners, Cardinals, Orioles, Marlins, Astros and Padres. That makes half of the 30 teams in MLB to be shut out in the first week of play.
- Twelve players hit their first home run Thursday: Pedro Alvarez (Pirates); Joey Votto (Reds); Salvador Perez (Royals); Roberto Perez (Indians); Jose Ramirez (Indians); Jed Lowrie (Astros); Mitch Moreland (Rangers); Shin Soo Choo (Rangers); Adrian Beltre (Rangers); Rougned Odor (Rangers); Alex Rodriguez (Yankees); Mark Teixeira (Yankees). A total of 63 players have hit at least one homerun this season.
