Sunday's streaking and slumping pitchers
By JUSTIN BANKS
Streaking
Cliff Lee, Cleveland Indians (20-2, 2.32)
Lee is 3-0 and has a 1.52 ERA in his last three starts and has relinquished more than two earned runs just once in his last 10 starts.
Lee is 9-1 in his last 10 and has 50 strikeouts against eight walks in that period. He is also the first pitcher to reach the 20 victory plateau.
Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies (12-8, 3.01)
Hamels, despite an average record, has been pitching the lights out. He is 2-0 in his last three starts with a blistering 1.27 ERA and 0.84 WHIP.
Hamels has conceded three earned runs in his last three overall. In his last start he recorded six strikeouts against three walks in seven IP. He has a 3.27 career-ERA in five career starts against the New York Mets.
Slumping
Carlos Silva, Seattle Mariners (6-7, 5.58)
Silva is winless in his last nine and has relinquished 19 earned runs in his past 13.3 IP. He has a shaky 12.21 ERA in his last three overall.
Silva is 0-3 in his last four at home and is 2-7 overall at Safeco Field. He has also conceded at least one homer in each of his last six and is 1-4 and has a 9.20 career-ERA against the New York Yankees.
Tampa Bay activates Longoria off DL
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
TORONTO (AP) -Evan Longoria was activated off the 15-day disabled list Saturday after the Tampa Bay slugger said he felt ''almost 100 percent'' following 30 swings with a regular bat.
''I don't know how much better it could get,'' Longoria said. ''It felt great today.''
Longoria, out since Aug. 7 after being hit by a pitch from Seattle's J.J. Putz, had not swung a bat in four days because of lingering pain in his fractured right wrist.
Longoria is hitting .278 with 22 homers and 71 RBIs in 104 games and is considered a leading contender for the AL Rookie of the Year Award.
He'll likely be used as a defensive replacement for the time being, with manager Joe Maddon saying he wants Longoria to get two or three days of regular batting practice before he returns to the lineup.
The Rays have lost three of four, and entered Saturday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays with a 2 1/2-game lead over Boston in the AL East.
Longoria had only been swinging a whiffle-ball bat and a broomstick in the past week because the weight of a regular bat was too much for his wrist. That wasn't a problem on Saturday.
''I took about 15 swings with the fungo and it felt fine,'' Longoria said. ''Then I got about 30 swings with the regular bat and it felt pretty much the same as swinging the fungo, which is obviously a good sign.''
Outfielder Carl Crawford, who had surgery to repair a tendon in his right middle finger Aug. 14, visited his doctor in Arizona on Thursday and remains on schedule to return by late September.
''The Doc likes the progress,'' Maddon said. ''It's pretty much the same timetable that had been addressed before in regards to being able to see some action by the end of the month.''
A two-time All-Star and four-time AL stolen base champion, Crawford is batting .273 with eight homers, 57 RBIs and 25 steals.
Sunday Night Baseball: Phillies at Mets
Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets
Two of the best lefthanders in the National League will go head-to-head on Sunday Night Baseball this week, when the New York Mets host the Philadelphia Phillies in the finale of a pivotal three-game series.
Manager Jerry Manuel confirmed Wednesday night that Cole Hamels (12-8, 3.01 ERA) will take the ball for the Phillies, who have swapped places atop the NL East with the Mets since the end of July. Hamels has sparkled over his last three starts, putting up a 2-0 record with a stellar 1.27 ERA for Philadelphia bettors. The lanky southpaw hasn’t allowed more than two runs in an outing since August 1 against the St. Louis Cardinals, and is a bankable 6-2 with a 3.00 ERA on the road this season.
New York counters with ace Johan Santana (12-7, 2.71 ERA), who isn’t considered among NL Cy Young contenders despite some excellent numbers this season. The Mets are 18-11 against the moneyline when Santana takes the hill, including eight wins in his last ten starts. Like Hamels, Santana has been lights-out over his last three trips to the bump, putting up a 1-0 record with a 2.37 ERA.
Heading into the series, the Mets led the season series 10-5, although the teams split a two-game set last week at Citizens Bank Park. New York won 6-3 on August 27 as –165 favorites at BetJamaica.com, as Brian Stokes picked up the victory in relief of Santana for the Mets. Carlos Delgado went 3-for-4 with two homers and three runs batted in for New York, while Brian Schneider drove in two runs in the payday.
The Phillies cashed the opener, clipping the Mets 8-7 in ten innings. Jimmy Rollins went 5-for-7 with a big fly and three runs batted in for Philadelphia, which won as –125 faves at the window. Reliever Rudy Seanez got the win for the Phillies, while Ryan Howard smacked a two-run dinger for Philadelphia.
Hamels lost his only start against the Mets this season, allowing four earned runs over seven innings in the Phillies’ 6-4 loss as –101 home faves at BetJamaica.com. Santana was the winner that night, accounting for his only victory in four outings against Philadelphia on the year. New York is 2-2 against the moneyline this season when Santana starts against the Phillies, as Santana has three no-decisions in the four starts.
First pitch is slated for 8:05 PM ET, and can be seen nationally on ESPN. Be sure to check out BetJamaica.com’s baseball odds list this weekend for the latest lines on the game.