Bunch of exciting games today. You know which one I watched, so the rest of you gotta help me out!

Mets 3, @Cubs 2: Thirty-four years ago Friday, visiting SP Randy Lerch homered to cap a 7-run Philly 1st. He was knocked out after 6 batters in the bottom half. This afternoon, Matt Harvey gave up some loud drives early and one infield hit that scored 2 runs in the 1st. But the wind was blowing in, and he retired 20 of the next 21.

The two Mets who can hit poked solo shots against the breeze, and with time running out for his first win in a month, Harvey backed himself with a 2-out tiebreaking hit in the 7th. Harvey left with 1 out in the 8th and a man on 2nd, and David DeJesus spanked a single through the hole to right. Darwin Barney steamed around third hoping to tie it, but Marlon Byrd swooped in and quick-released a perfect strike that reduced Barney’s hopes to rubble. (Watch the replay from 0:44 — Barney broke, stopped to make sure the sinking liner got through, then started again. Bad send by David Bell, with Starlin Castro and then Anthony Rizzo due up next.)

• I’ve vowed not to force any Seaver comparisons, but this is just an historical fact: Harvey’s hit was the latest go-ahead RBI by a Mets starting pitcher since Tom Seaver homered in the 8th off Bill Stoneman on June 24, 1971, in Parc Jarry. It was also the second go-ahead knock by a 2013 pitcher in the 7th or later (Kershaw homered in the 8th on Opening Day); there were none at all last year.
• Bobby Parnell worked a clean 9th. He has a 0.98 RA/9 and 0.71 WHIP (2 runs in 18.1 IP, 10 hits, 3 walks), but just 5 saves.
• The Cubs fell to 6-9 in one-run games, the most such games and losses in the NL.
• That’s why they play the games: DeJesus and pitcher Scott Rice owned combined left-on-left stats of 7 for 53 this year.

@Cardinals 7, Brewers 6: St. Louis hammered Wily Peralta early, but Aramis Ramirez brought the Brewers back with a pair of 2-run HRs off Jaime Garcia, matching his season RBI total. But they just couldn’t crest the hill: In the 6th, Carlos Gomez singled and stole off Yadier, but Betancourt bounced out (3 for his last 33, as reality sets in) and Weeks whiffed (.176, still). In the 8th, Braun ran on a full count to Ramirez, and both were gunned. (Braun was an 80% base stealer, but 2 for 7 this year.) And then they had to face the Mujica.

• The new-minted Cardinals closer got his first save chance on April 18, and one month later, converted his 12th in a row.
• This ball was in the air a looong time, but fell in for what proved a crucial run. Two outs and a man scoring, Carlos; you’ve gotta dive.
• Among career third basemen, Ramirez is 9th all-time with 795 extra-base hits, 14th in total bases and RBI.
• Garcia is the 3rd this year to win a “disaster start” (R>IP), all in the last week. There were 9 such games last year.

@Braves 8, Dodgers 5: Hits with RISP don’t come much bigger than this: a J-Up slam in the 6th off Paco Rodriguez for a 6-4 lead — the first HR ever allowed by Rodriguez, who came in with a .130 BA/.366 OPS in 22 career innings.

• Atlanta came home from their second 10-game trip; their 26 road games is tops in the majors (13-13). Their longest remaining trip is 7 games.
• 2 HRs for Scott Van Slyke, in his 32nd career game. Dad needed 571 games before his first 2-HR affair. His second victim from that game was current Atlanta pitching coach Roger McDowell. Andy also took Roger deep in the first game of that doubleheader, and owned him to the tune of 12-24, 1.446 OPS.
• B.J. Upton‘s now batting .141 in 154 PAs. You know who hit exactly .141 in 150 PAs just 2 years ago? Anthony Rizzo.

White Sox 3, @Angels 0: Mix crackling fastballs in and back-door breakers: Chris Sale‘s recipe for a 12-K game and 23 straight scoreless frames. Alex Rios and Adam Dunn each hit his 10th, in the first and last stanzas, and Addison Reed cashed his 14th in 15 chances.

@Rockies 10, Giants 9: SF rallied from 10-5, but time and Rafael Betancourt ran them down. You know about the Giants’ pitching woes, but the hidden story on the defending champs is their 112 OPS+, best in the NL by 11 points. So while they’ve already had 19 games allowing 6+ runs (only Houston has more), they’ve won 6 of those — while the Angels & Dodgers are 0-28 combined.

• Betancourt has recovered his put-away: 3 straight Ks tonight, 9 of his last 22 batters. He’s 10 for 10 in save tries.

@Indians 6, Mariners 3 (10): But the Tribe are the real offensive powerhouse, clear of the field with a 120 OPS+. Jason Kipnis kept up his RBI binge (19 in his last 14 games) with his first-ever game-ending HR, a 3-run drive off Lucas (Not a LOOGY) Luetge.

• Kipnis shook off the effects of his head-first take-out slide on Brendan Ryan that left both players down for a while (and left Kipnis out stealing); dunno what the M’s thought, but if you watch the replay from 0:25, the intent is obvious. But I’m no judge of the etiquette on such plays. (Meanwhile, can you believe Shoppach made that play from a slow, low curveball?)
• Seattle had a chance to reach .500 after 42 games for the first time since 2007, but they went 0-7 and a DP with RISP.

@Pirates 5, Astros 4: Houston had a day off to savor Wednesday’s win and carried a lead to the 8th. But the moments of reckoning are never far off for this unfortunate club. First, Pedro Alvarez took them to the river, for the tie; then they dropped themselves in the drink.

• The walk-off dogpile has become obligatory, but can’t you ever just shake hands and go to the clubhouse, if only for aesthetic reasons? No one can muster much bounce for an “attaway to pop up, bro!” celebration.
• Just 3 players on Houston’s roster have ever qualified for the batting title (11 seasons, 8 by Carlos Pena); only Jose Altuve has done it with the Astros. The Marlins have 9 such players totaling 31 seasons.

Tigers 2, @Rangers 1: What’s round on both ends and slightly higher in the middle? The line score shows 2 in the visitors’ 5th, the hosts’ answering volley, and a whole lotta doughnuts. Texas CF Leonys Martin frosted one of those goodies with this tasty toss that cut into Miggy’s ribby rampage, but Cabrera’s double to left was the creamy filling of Detroit’s 2-run rally. Rick Porcello stranded Martin’s 1-out triple in the 3rd (an all-around pretty play to watch), and the infield turned two twice as the Rangers went 0-8 with RISP.

• Martin has 3 triples (and 2 HRs) in his 23 hits, but no doubles. The record in this regard is 5, by Silent George Twombly, 1914. (He did finally get that double … 3 years later.)

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Thursday

Reliever horrors:

White Sox 5, @Angels 4: The Halos began the 8th with a 2-run lead, but the ChiSox quickly got the tying runs into scoring position on two singles and Trout’s pointless throw to 3rd that let the trail man move up. Adam Dunn‘s one-out single(!) tied the game, and Michael Kohn relieved. He issued three straight walks, the last on 4 pitches to the .188-hitting Jeff Keppinger, and the Angels came up empty in their last two chances.

• Keppinger’s walk was the 7th this year that forced in the go-ahead run in the 8th or later. There were just 8 all of last year. Four of this year’s batch came on 4 pitches; just two of those last year.
• Beautiful play by Alex Rios(?) to nail a runner at the plate.
• It’s a bad sign for your lineup when … Your starting left fielder is credited with two sac bunts. J.B. Shuck was probably bunting for a hit on one of those, but still.

Red Sox 4, @Rays 3: Fernando Rodney, working with a 2-run lead: Walk, walk (no swings yet), K, walk, K, 3-run double, walk, gone. He’s let the first batter reach in 9 of 16 games. Feels like time for a change, eh, Joe?

Nationals 6, @Padres 2: Groundball specialist Stephen Strasburg had never logged an out in the 8th inning, but he finished that frame with an easy roller on his 117th pitch (2 short of his career high). His first win since Opening Day (and first game in his hometown) was helped by a season high in run support. The former flamethrower fanned just 4, and none of the last 11 men.

• Walkin’ my BAbip back home: Adam LaRoche extended his career-best hit streak to 13 games, but all that’s really changed since May 1 (.129 BA) is his hit luck. He had a .154 BAbip through May 1, .500 since then. He’s still averaged a whiff a game during the streak.
• Another resurrected bat is Ryan Zimmerman, averaging 2 times on base in his last 11 games after a golden sombrero in his DL return. But his throwing remains a fairly big problem; his 8th error of the year came with 2 on and 1 out in the 5th, airmail to 2nd on a likely DP ball.
• “Cards speak,” as my poker pals like to say, and 2 runs in 8 IP is good work by any standard. But it’s interesting that Strasburg did not come up with strikeouts when they’d have helped him most, nor even get to 2 strikes in these spots: Bases loaded and 1 out in the 5th (run-scoring groundout on 2-1 count); man on 3rd and 1 out in the 6th (sac fly on 1-1 count); man on 2nd and 2 outs in the 3rd, scoreless game (groundout on 3-1 count). The Pads went 0-7 in ribby spots off Strasburg, but just one K. Applaud the 15 groundballs and the pitch efficiency that let him go deeper than ever. But can he be a special pitcher with this kind of K rate? Twenty-four balls in play might work in Petco, but when he goes to Coors next month, he’ll need to miss some bats.
• Edinson Volquez: 5 IP, 5 hits, 5 runs, and a 5.55 ERA for the year.

Mets 5, @Cardinals 2: Pete Kozma‘s 2-out RBI double in the 2nd said “here we go again”: the Cards would win their 13th in 15 games while handing the Mets a 7th straight loss, matching their longest in 10 seasons. But instead of buckling, as he’d done the last 2 starts, Jon Niese buckled down and retired 9 straight, and before the NL leaders could threaten again, the Mets had grabbed the lead.

• 2 outs, bags empty, leadoff man bunts for a hit. Silly play by Jordany Valdespin, but it started a 2-run rally. A player’s equivalent of pulling the lineup out of a hat?
• Adam Wainwright is 1-4, 6.11 ERA in 5 career starts against the Mets, all since 2010. (How did he miss them for his first 88 turns?)
• Ike Davis sank closer to the bottom of the WPA barrel: 0-5, 4 Ks, 0-3 with RISP.

Reds 5, @Marlins 3: The top of the 1st ended with a circus catch (half clown, half acrobat), and — “as usual” — that selfsame chap led off the next half with a wicked drive to where no one could pay him back. This particular round of the hoary cliche came just in time for Juan D’Vaughn to avoid his eighth 100-game homerless streak.

As the game wore on, Pierre and the Flying Fish seemed bound for glory. His second highlight grab choked off a Redleg run to end the 6th, and with 2 outs in the 9th, Marcell Ozuna tied it with a triple to hand Aroldis Chapman his first blown save. The rookie’s first 3-bagger would have been his first walk-off bomb in many other parks, but that “418” sign doesn’t lie and takes no prisoners.

In the end, luck was no lady tonight: The Reds solved Steve Cishek in his second inning, and when Pierre came up in the 10th as the tying run and Miami’s last bulwark against loss #30, there was no historic “first 2-HR game” in the cards. He tapped out to second, and the Marlins fell to 5-14 at home.

• The hit off Chapman cost Mat Latos a chance to tie Cincy’s 21st-century mark of 5 straight winning starts.
• Pierre has now homered in 12 of the 41 MLB parks he’s played in — a pretty good spread, for a total of 19 HRs. His favorite park on a ratio basis is Detroit, 2 in 24 games; he’s hit just 1 in 219 Coors contests.

Mariners 3, @Yankees 2: Quite the watchable ending. Brett Gardner singled off Tom Wilhelmsen with one away, then swiped 2nd and 3rd while Jayson Nix tried to do what no other righty has done against the Seattle closer this year. No luck there (now 0 for 30), but there was still Tuesday’s comeback hero, Robinson Cano. Four fouls and a funeral: Cano rolled to short, his first last out of the year.

• Not pictured: Throwing to 2nd from his crouch, Jesus Montero connected with the SS instead (who wasn’t really covering).
• Oliver Perez earned the win with a 5th-inning lifeboat, whiffing Gardner after Noesi got “cornered” with 1 away. He was the first of 4 straight M’s relievers who came in with 2 aboard, and all but 1 were stranded. Ollie’s stranded all 8 inherited runners, and he’s worked at least an inning in 14 of 16 games.
• Shawn Kelley fanned 5 of 8 batters (including a “whiff cycle,” from 0-2 through full count). He also gave up a thunderous HR and a double. He’s aced 30 of 72 this year (42%) and walked just 4, but allowed 5 HRs and 11 ER in 17.1 IP. Crazy! There’s been one pitcher season remotely like it: Josias Manzanillo, 1999.
• I hope this isn’t how Andy tweaked his “trap”.
• Whitey and Andy are #1-2 in Yankee starts, so it’s no shock that they’re also #1-2 in most starts of less than 5 innings. But this surprised me: Ford has the higher percentage of such early exits, 15.3% to 12.8% (67/438 vs. 53/416).
• Yankee radio team John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman are still trippin’ after all these years. I flipped on the car radio just as Andy Pettitte made another early departure with a muscle twinge, and those two kept carrying on about the uncanny “bad luck” that’s befallen Andy this year. Sterling went so far as to conjure some guy in a dark room sticking pins in a voodoo doll. Pettitte turns 41 next month, children.

Giants 8, @Rockies 6: Three early HRs off Matt Cain (13 in 56 IP) put the Jints in a 6-0 hole, but he lasted into the 7th, and the sticks (including his) came all the way back to get him a win. He’d allowed just 6 HRs in 11 prior Coors starts.

Random notes:

Two starts by Francisco Liriano: 11 IP, 12 hits, 5 walks … 2 runs, 2 wins.

After a short tune-up in the minors — his first farmwork in 11 years — Francisco Rodriguez made his first appearance and threw a 1-2-3 inning, with a first-pitch strike to all three. K-Rod was the youngest ever to reach 200 saves — 206 through age 26, when he set the season record with 62 in 2008 — and will still hold his age-group record comfortably even if he saves none this year, age 31. Whether he’ll ever get the 6 he needs for 300 is another matter.

Home teams are winning at a .530 clip so far, consistent with the past 2 seasons (.533, .526). That’s a far cry from the .555 average for 2008-10 — the difference between 86-76 and 90-72.

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Royals 9, @Angels 5: In which Barry Enright answers the question, “How can we make Joe Blanton look better?”

• KC is tied for last in both walks and HRs, with 5 regulars sporting exactly 1 dinger. But they’re average in scoring, thanks to a league-high .312 BA with RISP. Something’s gotta give.
• Mike Trout‘s on a tear, getting his OPS over .900 for the first time this year with a 15-game stretch at 1.264 (17 RBI, 13 runs).

Rangers 6, @A’s 2: OK, Texas, I’m listening. Nelson Cruz bruised the first pitch from reliever Jesse Chavez for 3 runs. That’s 35 HRs in 187 career IP for Chavez, whose 71 ERA+ is the worst of any active reliever with 100+ IP. No team has allowed more 3+ HRs than Oakland’s 9.

• Cruz later demonstrated the appropriate urgency on a 2-out, 2-on gapper.
• The A’s are 4-10 in May, batting .217 with 2.9 R/G; their 14-game streak with 5 runs or less is the longest in MLB this year.
• Dan Straily is the 5th this year to plunk consecutive batters, the 2nd to do it with consecutive pitches. Lance Berkman “defended” his mates in the best way possible, with a go-ahead 2-run single.

Red Sox 9, @Rays 2: David Price left halfway through Boston’s 8-run 3rd, capped by Stephen Drew’s slam off Jamey Wright.

@Cubs 6, Rockies 3:

• Chicago’s 3-run 7th started with a walk to the #8 man, Darwin Barney. He reached 3rd on a steal and a sac, and the inning slipped through the leaky gloves of Josh Rutledge and Todd Helton.

• 7 of the 8 HRs hit by pitchers this year drove in at least as many runs as the opposition scored all game.

Indians 10, Phillies 4: 6th HR for Jason Kipnis, all in the last 16 games.

Reds 4, @Marlins 0: Both teams had 11 hits, but the Fish suffered their 7th shutout — the first since 2010 with 11+ hits — and 15th game of 1 run or less, both tops in the majors. Of the 5 teams with 10 or more such games, Miami has the best OPS in those games. (Yeah, they’re thisclose to a breakthrough.)

• Who’ll give way when Johnny Cueto returns this Monday? All 5 current starters have ERA from 2.89-3.76, ERA+ at least 108. Tony Cingrani is the junior man, but also the only lefty, and has 37 Ks and 7 walks in 28 IP.
• Shin-Soo Choo has a league-best 1.054 OPS, also leads in OBP and OPS+. Paul Molitor (1987), Brady Anderson (1996) and Rickey Henderson (1990) are the only split-searchable seasons with 100+ games in the leadoff spot and OPS of 1.000 or more.
• In the ongoing quest to find good things to say about the Fish … Reliever Ryan Webb has been brilliant, if mainly in lost causes — just 9 hits in 22 IP, no HRs, stranded all 6 inherited runners. His 9-IP no-hit string was snapped Wednesday. And Derek Dietrich has hit in all 5 games of his young career, which has elevated him to the #3 spot in the order.

Padres 8, @Orioles 4:

• Manny Machado is 14 for his last 25, lifting his career BA to an even .300 BA while taking over the AL lead in WAR and hits. He’s the first Oriole in half a century with 300+ PAs by his age-20 season (and just the 4th ever).

Astros 7, @Tigers 5: One more galleta for breakfast (er, let’s make that one more bowl of Special K) … It must have been a leaden feeling for Houston fans to see Jose Veras load the bases without a hit to bring up Cabrera with 2 outs. But there is one little chink in Miggy’s armor this year: In late-and-close situations, he’s 4 for 26, all singles; he has no tying or go-ahead RBI after the 5th inning.

• Tremendous game for Carlos Corporan: Homered with 2 outs for an early lead; walked leading off the tied 7th; fired a nifty pickoff in the bottom half; and cracked open a Coke in the go-ahead 9th.
• Tigers are just 11th in AL HRs, but lead the majors with 12 shots worth 3+ runs.

Mariners 12, @Yankees 2: Our love for Hisashi Iwakuma grows and grows. Seattle’s second ace allowed 2 solo HRs and 8 hits overall in his 7 stanzas, but he was working with a fat cushion after the M’s touched down on Philip Hughes with 7 in the 1st. Raul “Love That Porch!” Ibanez broke it open with a big slam, and went the other way for a 2-run shot later. Iwakuma walked none for the 5th time in 9 starts and needed just 89 pitches. His average of 13.9 pitches per inning is lowest of any AL qualifier.

• First time in double digits for the M’s. ChiSox are the only AL team still without.

@Blue Jays 11, Giants 2: Ryan Vogelsong allowed 8 runs in 2 innings, making 27 in his last 4 starts (16 IP). He’s the first Giant since 1923 to yield 6+ in 4 straight starts. (And for a guy with a so-so career, Jack Bentley‘s name just keeps popping up.)

ChiSox 9, @Twins 4: It’s probably my fault, but I just can’t find much interesting abou the White Sox lineup, even when they score some runs.

• Birthday boys Justin Morneau and Brian Dozier ended the game playing 1B and 2B, and each had a putout in the 9th. Morneau had 2 hits, but made the last out, alas. He has generally enjoyed his birthday: 11 for 30, 4 HRs, 1.250 OPS. Dozier didn’t get to bat Wednesday, but last year he went 3-4 on his birthday, a week after his MLB debut.
• AL pitchers with the lowest percentage of swinging strikes (100 PAs): (1) Vance Worley, MIN, 7.15 ERA; (2) Joe Saunders, SEA, 5.51 ERA; (3) Mike Pelfrey, MIN, 6.57 ERA; (4) Kevin Correia, MIN, 3.35 ERA (and he’s coming back to earth) … (11) Pedro Hernandez, MIN, 5.79 ERA; (13) Scott Diamond, MIN, 4.08 ERA. The AL average is 16%; the 5 Twins starters range from 10-12%, and the entire staff is last in the majors at 13%. No surprise, they’re also last with 5.7 SO/9 — 2 full Ks (or 35%) below the league average. Even their modest 96 ERA+ cannot be sustained with this strikeout rate, no ifs. The correction’s already begun: In their last 13 games, a .314 BA, .518 SLG and 5.4 R/G.

@Dodgers 3, Nationals 1: Washington went 0 for 9 with RISP,

• Nats have allowed 9 runs in their last 4 games, but lost 3. They’ve been in 15 games where both sides scored 3 or less, going 6-9.
• If Brandon League keeps up his pace, he’ll be the 4th pitcher ever to save 30 in a season with less than 10.5% strikeouts. Quis did it 5 times, Todd Jones and Danny Kolb once each.

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Random Venting

“He don’t need a doctor. He needs a priest.” The Mets are ready for their exorcism. Despite the first good outing from Shawn Marcum (who added 2 hits) and a tying 2-run HR by Rick Ankiel (possibly with his own bat), they still managed to fall in St. Louis Wednesday, their 6th straight loss. Marcum had stymied the Cards into the 4th, but Jon Jay’s 2-out double (the first really well-struck ball) brought the game’s first run. On that play, Jay stopped dead in a rundown halfway to 3rd, but David Wright dropped the ball with a careless one-hand tag.

Of course it cost them. Tony Cruz pulled the emergency cord on a disappearing curve and somehow pulled it through the hole, as Jay trotted in. The Mets ran their way out of a 2-on threat in the 2nd when John Buck misread the outfield position on a liner right at Jay, then fell down trying to reverse, and was doubled off. They got a man to 3rd with 1 out in the 6th, Wright’s first chance to atone, but he went down swinging against Shelby Miller, and then Ike Davis batted. (What, do I need to finish that?)

Ankiel’s drive tied it in the 7th, but with 2 outs and the bases empty in the bottom half, Marcum walked Daniel Descalso (.197, 1 HR). Pete Kozma dunked one to CF, sending Descalso to 3rd, and Scott Rice donated the lead with a wild pitch. In the home 8th, LaTroy Hawkins gave a leadoff walk after a 1-2 count (his first walk of the year, just because the timing felt right), then got a custom-order DP ball that Ruben Tejada juggled just long enough to throw off the rhythm, and Daniel Murphy threw wild on the relay, sending the runner to 2nd. Sure enough, a 2-out hit scored the insurance run.