In Chapman, the Cubs added the game’s most intimidating closer to a team that nearly had a 99-percent chance to make the playoffs and is now 58-1 when leading entering the ninth inning. After Heyward moved to third on Willson Contreras’ sacrifice fly, pitcher Jon Lester, the second Cubs pitcher to pinch hit in the game, laid down a ideal squeeze bunt to give the Cubs an improbable 7-6 victory.
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Martin hit a go-ahead, two-run double off new Cubs closer in the eighth inning, lifting the Seattle Mariners over Chicago 4-1 Saturday. Jason Heyward, who opened the inning with a double, raced across to score the winning run.
Hector Rondon (2-2) pitched two ideal innings for the win.
That meant closer Steve Cishek inherited a 6-3 lead to start the ninth. Addison Russell’s RBI single made it 6-4 before Heyward was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Jones hit the first pitch for his 20th homer of the season to give Baltimore a four-run cushion.
In Anaheim, California, Albert Pujols hit a two-run homer and Hector Santiago survived a rocky five innings.
Rangers 2, Royals 1 • Mitch Moreland hit a game-ending homer with two outs in the ninth inning and Texas beat visiting Kansas City. “He threw some nice pitches, but obviously they got to him pretty firmly”. In one relief appearance with the Orioles this season, Miranda worked two innings, allowing three runs on four hits and no walks while fanning four batters. The Mariners are 2-7 their last 9 Sunday games.
As simple math shows, Rondon needed just one more out of any fashion to get out of the inning unscathed, one more out to keep the score at 1-0.
The Chicago Cubs rallied from an early six-run deficit, tied the game with three runs in the ninth and won it on pinch hitter Jon Lester’s bunt in the 12th during a 7-6 victory over the Seattle Mariners in Sunday night.Lester, a pitcher with an.051 career batting average, bunted on a 2-2 count with a runner at third base and one out. In the majors, he is 3-5 with a 7.27 ERA in 27 career games (two starts) with Atlanta, Oakland and Seattle.
On the other hand, Miley is coming off an incredible start Saturday, as he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and struck out nine batters in a win over the Cubs Saturday. For a Wild Card spot, the Mariners are climbing the ladder.
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Over a two year span covering 2012 and 2013, Wade Miley posted a 3.44 ERA over 397 1/3 innings, and looked like one of the more intriguing young pitchers in the game. Chapman stepped off the rubber and threw high to third base, allowing Martin to slide in safely. Whereas Chris Tillman has indeed put together a most commendable bounce-back season, the rest of the starting five have been sketchy at best. The mighty Yankees became sellers for the first time in a generation, sending an All-Star reliever (Andrew Miller) to the Cleveland Indians in another 4-for-1 deal. He’s pitched well lately, putting up a 3.45 ERA in July. All eyes, however, will be on Ichiro, who comes to Chicago just two hits short of 3,000.
