Just Baseball Highlight Reel: April 28th, 2022

All you need to know about what took place across the league on Thursday is right here in the Just Baseball Highlight Reel.

Brewers 3, Pirates 2

Andrew McCutchen had himself a day against his former team and it began on the first pitch of the game, as the Pirates former MVP blasted a leadoff homer.

Jose Quintana settled down from there for the Pirates, striking out nine over five innings of work without allowing another run. Freddy Peralta was better though for the Brewers, allowing just three hits over six scoreless innings pitched.

Once the Pirates got to face the Brewers bullpen they were finally able to get on the board, plating two runs in the bottom of the seventh to take a late lead. They were unable to make that hold up though, as McCutchen came through again in the ninth, driving in two on what ended up being the game-winning single.

Padres 7, Reds 5

Eric Hosmer might be good again. He is leading all of baseball with a .415 average and was back at it again yesterday, going 2-for-4. Hosmer’s RBI single in the first inning gave the Padres an early lead, which held up through the first four innings.

In the fifth, Padres starter Nick Martinez yielded a pair of Red runs that gave Cincinnati a 2-1 lead. As per usual on this young season, the Reds couldn’t hold that lead very long. The Padres put up four runs in the top of the sixth, with Ha-Seong Kim’s bases-clearing double capping the rally.

Kim’s hit put the Padres up for good, as they would tack on an additional run in the seventh and another in the eighth to cruise to the series sweep over the lowly Reds. Manny Machado was the player of the game for San Diego, as he went 4-for-5, with two runs scored and an RBI. Machado is second behind Hosmer in MLB right now with his .395 batting average.

Marlins 3, Nationals 2

The Miami Marlins certainly enjoyed playing the Washington Nationals this week. Three games, three wins and they now find themselves on a five-game winning streak that has them in second place in the NL East.

Last year’s NL Rookie of the Year runner-up Trevor Rogers has not gotten off to the best start this season, but facing the Nationals was a great way to turn that around. Rogers only struck out four, but allowed just one run over six innings pitched.

With the score knotted at one run apiece through six innings, Jesus Sanchez finally put the Marlins ahead in the seventh, driving in Brian Anderson with an RBI single. The Marlins would score another run that inning on a wild pitch, which ultimately proved to be the difference in the 3-2 game.

Rockies 1, Phillies 7

The Phillies did not take advantage of the Rockies band box when they visited Coors Field last week, but they certainly had no problem scoring in their own this week. Citizen’s Bank Park was very friendly to this lineup, as the Phillies scored at least seven runs in each game of their four-game sweep over the Rockies. Altogether, the Phillies outscored the Rockies 32-9 during this series.

Alec Bohm continues to swing a hot bat, as he added two more RBIs to his season total in this one. He also hit his second home run of the season, a solo shot in the fourth that put the Phillies ahead 3-0.

The Rockies certainly didn’t do themselves any favors in this game though. In the seventh inning, the Phillies scored four runs off just one hit. That might sound impossible, but it was made possible when the Rockies walked three batters, made an error and hit Bryce Harper with a pitch to self-destruct for an embarrassing loss.

Orioles 5, Yankees 10

The brooms were out a lot around baseball on Thursday and the Yankees were yet another team that enjoyed a sweep. For New York, it was their favorite punching bag that came into town, the Baltimore Orioles.

Baltimore actually got out to an early 2-0 lead in the series finale, but that would get erased in the fifth inning, when the Yankees put up a four-spot. The Orioles only have themselves to blame though, as they made FIVE errors in this one.

In that fifth inning, Baltimore made two of their errors which allowed Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton to all clean up with three consecutive RBI singles. Baltimore actually out-hit the Yankees 14 to 10, but were 4-for-15 with runners in scoring position, while the Yankees went 6-for-15. Aaron Judge put them away for good in the eighth, hitting his fifth home run of the season.

Based on their postgame fit, it would seem that Judge and Rizzo really enjoyed playing the Orioles this week.

Tigers 1, Twins 7

The Detroit Tigers just can’t get out of their own way right now. The Tigers made four errors on Thursday, which led to three unearned runs. It really didn’t matter though, because they only managed to score one run, despite racking up 11 hits. With respect to the Tigers fan base, we have chosen to avoid showing any highlights from their latest meltdown.

Mariners 1, Rays 2

Eugenio Suarez is not necessarily known for his wheels, yet he was able to leg out an RBI triple to start the game thanks to Manuel Margot misplaying this ball.

What you just saw was all the offense Seattle was able to muster however, as Tampa used six different pitchers to hold the Mariners to just one run in typical Rays fashion. Chris Flexen earned the tough loss for Seattle, allowing just two runs across 6 2/3 innings pitched.

In the seventh inning, Flexen allowed three singles, one of which he erased with a double play, but the Rays were still able to scratch across the game-winning run against him.

Astros 3, Rangers 2

Justin Verlander and Martin Perez really battled in this one. Each starter held the opposing team scoreless through the first six innings, before giving up one run apiece in the seventh. After they pitched to a draw, each team turned the game over to their bullpens in the eighth and that is when the ball started leaving the yard.

First, it was Kyle Tucker, who hit his fourth home run of the season, a two-run shot that put the Astros ahead for good.

Corey Seager was able to draw the Rangers closer in the ninth, hitting his second homer of the season, but it proved to be too little too late.

Royals 5, White Sox 2

Andrew Benintendi has gotten off to a great start for the Kanas City Royals this year. He went 2-for-3 in Thursday’s game, bringing his season average up to .393, the third-best mark in MLB. Benintendi opened up the scoring in this one, driving in Nicky Lopez with a double in the first inning.

Benintendi hit a sac fly in the fifth inning that gave the Royals the early 2-0 lead. That lead was erased though in the bottom of the eighth, when Benintendi was unable to make a strong throw on a sac fly off the bat of AJ Pollack.

This game ended up going into extras, where the Royals were finally able to pull away for good. Kyle Isbel had the clutch hit of the day, driving in two with a single in the 10th.

Red Sox 0, Blue Jays 1

The only run scored in this game was unearned, as there was no offense to see in the series finale between the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays. Alek Manoah was the story of the day for Toronto, pitching the Blue Jays to the series victory in the four-game set.

Manoah allowed just three hits and one walk, while striking out seven over seven scoreless innings. He is now 4-0 on the season.

Guardians 1, Angels 4

The Angels played small ball to a get a victory in this one, as they scored four runs on six hits, with only one of them going for extra bases. Unfortunately for the Guardians, there bats were even colder than the Angels, as they mustered just four hits and one run on a homer by Austin Hedges.

Cubs 1, Braves 5

The Atlanta Braves really needed this one. After a slow start to the season, the Braves may finally be turning the corner, as they got a series victory over the Cubs by taking this game. More importantly though, we saw the return of Ronald Acuna Jr.

Acuna went just 1-for-5 with a single in his first game back, but still showed why he is one of the most exciting players in the game by stealing two bases. Those steals certainly quelled any lingering concern about his health coming off that torn ACL from last season.

In this game though, it was the longball from the other Braves that proved to be the difference. First, it was Austin Riley.

Next it was Dansby Swanson, who finally hit his first homer of the season.

Travis d’Arnaud drove in a run with a double in the eighth inning and then was then driven in himself on a two-run homer by Adam Duvall, which put the Cubs away for good.

Diamondbacks 3, Cardinals 8

The Cardinals just singled the D-Backs to death in this one. Fifteen hits, all of which of the single variety. Yet that was more than enough to get a victory, as the Cardinals piled on eight runs in the first six innings.

Pavin Smith hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and Carson Kelly drove in a run in the ninth, but those runs proved to just be a footnote in what was a convincing win for St. Louis. These teams will be back at it later tonight, as they still have three more games left to play in this four-game set.