White Sox@Orioles – Orioles win most unusual game

• The unrest in Baltimore resulted in the postponement of the first two games of the series and the finale being played in an empty stadium.
• ESPN reported today that the pace of play rule changes have resulted in average 9-inning game times dropping by more than 7 minutes from the same point in the schedule last year. That effect may have been enhanced by the empty stadium as the Orioles thumped the Sox 8-2 in just 2:03, the shortest 9-inning Oriole home game when scoring 8+ runs since the O’s beat the Tigers 8-1 on Sep 24, 1975 (a game similarly lacking in onlookers, with fewer than 5,000 on hand).

More after the jump.

Rays@Yankees – Pitching shines as Yanks take two of three

• New York took the first two games by 4-1 and 4-2 scores, with Brian McCann collecting two hits in each. It’s the first time McCann has done that in consecutive Yankee home wins.
• The Rays salvaged the finale with a 3-2 win in 13 innings. Keeping with the pace of play theme, it was just the second Yankee home game of that length (out of 27 over the past 31 years) that was completed in under four hours, and the first ever of that length completed so quickly when New York uses 7+ pitchers.
• Neither team reached double figures in hits in any of the games. In three consecutive games in a Yankee home series, it’s the first time both teams have done that while scoring four runs or less since the White Sox took two of three from August 8th to 10th, 2005.

Tigers@Twins – Detroit takes two of three in closely contested series

• David Price got the W in the opener as the Tigers jumped to a 4-0 first inning lead and then hung on for the 5-4 win.
• In the middle game, Annibal Sanchez nursed a 2-1 lead into the 7th inning, but the Twins rallied for a pair of runs and a 3-2 win. Brad Ausmus stuck with Sanchez through the entire 7th inning despite 31 pitches in the frame and four hits allowed.
• In the finale, Minnesota took a 7-3 lead into the 6th inning, but it was the Tigers’ turn to rally with four in the 6th and three more in the 8th and 9th for a 10-7 win. Those four 6th inning runs came on three home runs, only the second searchable occasion that, with a lead, Minnesota has allowed three 6th inning home runs playing at home, and the first time in which that lead was surrendered as a result.
• The last of those 6th inning home runs was an inside-the-park shot by James McCann. Perhaps surprisingly given the big dimensions at Target Field and, earlier, at Griffiths Stadium, it’s the first searchable IP home run by a Tiger playing against the Senators/Twins in Washington or Minnesota (if you’re wondering about the data coverage for the Senators’ games, it’s non-existent prior to the late 1930s and spotty up to the late 1940s, but fairly complete for the 1950s).

Royals@Indians – Royals roll on, taking two of three from the Tribe

• Corey Kluber took the loss in the opener, remaining winless through 5 starts (the Tribe scored more than twice in only one of those games). Kluber has more strikeouts than innings pitched in just one of those starts after doing so 20 of 34 times last season. His SO/9, though, has dropped only slightly (from 10.3 to 9.5), so better results are likely ahead.
• In the middle game, Cleveland took a 5-3 lead into the 7th inning but three Indians’ relievers were each charged with runs allowed in a 6-run uprising in that frame. In all, four Cleveland relievers were charged with an earned run, one of just 28 such searchable home games, but the first with the Royals in town since 5 Tribe relievers got tagged on Apr 17, 1982.
• In a see-saw finale, Cleveland took the lead for good when 3 successive 6th inning doubles led to three runs. Carlos Santana, whose 113 walks in 2014 led the majors, drew three free passes for the Indians to take the early league lead in walks for this season. Santana is just the 15th player since 1901 to walk in 15% of 2000+ PAs over the first 5 seasons of a career. He’s also one of only 8 players with 90 walks in 4 of those first 5 seasons.

Blue Jays@Red Sox – Toronto drops two of three as tough road trip continues

• After taking 4 of 6 on the road to start the season, Toronto’s next foray into enemy territory hasn’t gone so well, falling to last in the East after dropping 5 of the first 6 in a 10-game road swing.
• In the opener, Toronto took a 5-4 lead into the 8th inning, but the Blue Jay kiddie corps of Roberto Osuna and Miguel Castro surrendered singletons in the 8th and 9th as Boston rallied for a 6-5 win. Toronto called on the pair for a combined 20 relief appearances in the team’s first 20 games, the most such searchable relief games for under-21 pitchers in a debut season. The 1965 Mets (50-112 record), with Jim Bethke and Tug McGraw, are the only other team to start a season giving 5 relief outings to two pitchers so young.
• In the middle game, Boston handed Clay Buzhholz a 4-0 lead to start the 3rd inning, but Buchholz promptly gave it up, failing to get out of that frame. Buchholz has been a Jekyll-and-Hyde pitcher this season with 3 quality starts to go with two stinkers. Toronto prevailed 11-8 in a game lasting 4:01, the second 9-inning game game this season to go past the four-hour mark.
• The Red Sox took the rubber match 4-1 behind Rick Porcello‘s 7 innings of two-hit ball. Toronto had just 3 knocks for the game, the fewest in franchise history playing at Fenway.

Angels@Athletics – West Coast rivals split first two of three

• In the opener, Oakland spotted the Angels two first-inning runs, then jumped on Jered Weaver for 5 of their own en route to a 6-2 win. Weaver righted the ship after that first inning barrage, yielding just one more tally in 6 innings of work. But, the damage was done as Weaver fell to 0-3 on the season with a 5.83 ERA. The Angel ace has seen his ERA+ drop steadily, from a lofty 156 mark in 2011 to 135, 115 and 102 last season, a decline masked by a 49-22 record the past 3 years that ranks top 5 in the majors in wins and W-L%.
• In game 2, Oakland battled back from an early 3-0 deficit to tie 3-3 after 6 innings. But, Mike Trout‘s two-RBI double in the 7th was the difference in a 6-3 Angel win.
• Chris Ianetta‘s .093/.206/.111 slash is the worst (so far) for an Angel catcher in 50+ PA over his team’s first 25 games, easily outclassed by Buck Rodgers‘ next lowest .158/.210/.351 mark in 1963.

Mariners@Rangers – M’s sweep as Ranger bats fall silent

• In the opener, Taijuan Walker collected his first W of the season, allowing just a run over 7 innings in a 3-1 win. Yovani Gallardo took the loss, his 5th decision in as many starts, one of 7 such pitchers this season.
• In game 2, J.A. Happ turned in another strong outing, making Rickie Weeks‘ 4th inning two-run homer stand up for a 2-1 win. It was Happ’s fourth straight start allowing two runs or less in 6+ IP, tied with Randy Johnson and Erik Hanson for the longest such Mariner streak to begin a season.
• Felix Hernandez completed the sweep, allowing just two runs over 6.2 IP to reach the 4-0 mark for just the second time in his career. Despite surrendering just 5 hits and a walk, it was tough slogging for Hernandez who made 114 pitches, his career high in winning starts under 7 innings with 8 or fewer baserunners allowed. Seattle first baseman Logan Morrison broke out of a 1 for 23 slump with four hits, his first multi-hit game of the year.
• Both teams were held to single-digit hit totals in each game. For Seattle, it was only the fifth time doing that while beating the same opponent in 3 straight road games, and the first time in Texas since Sep 22-24, 1981.