Mark Teixeira’s double during the first at-bat of the eighth inning brought about the end of Hiroki Kuroda’s bid for a perfect game. It was his 70th pitch of the game. Manager Joe Torre told reporters, “You can't get much closer to being perfect than that," when describing the game. The win ties the Dodgers and Diamondbacks for first place in the NL West at one game below .500.
Maybe a change of scenery is what Brad Lidge needed. The Philadelphia Philles extended the closer three more years for $37.5 million, which locks him up until 2011. Lidge went through rough times in Houston and was traded to the Phillies in November. He has 19 saves and an 0.77 ERA this season.
Dodgers' SS Rafael Furcal will miss another two months after undergoing surgery on a herniated disk to alleviate the pressure in his back. This leaves L.A. in quite the bind because their current SS, Angel Berroa, isn't a Major-League-quality player. With this being said, Nomar Garciaparra went 3-3 last night in Triple-A, and he will return to SS - even though he hasn't played the position in three years.
After sweeping Boston in exciting fashion Wednesday night, one thing is now crystal clear. The Rays are threats to win the World Series. Tampa Bay scored six runs against the Red Sox' bullpen in the seventh inning, which they began trailing by three runs. Dan Wheeler then barely recorded a save with the help of a great catch by CF B.J. Upton. The Rays, amazingly, have a 3 1/2 game lead over Boston IN JULY! Wow.
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