Holliday Delivers Game Winner For Cardinals, ML Roundup

Holliday, Cards Walk-Off On Pirates

(St. Louis, MO) -- Matt Holliday delivered a game-winning RBI-single in the bottom of the 12th inning to lift the Cardinals over the Pirates 6-5 at Busch Stadium. Holliday finished 2-for-5 with two RBI and Matt Carpenter went 4-for-5 with two runs while driving in one. Kevin Siegrist threw a perfect 12th to earn his first career win. St. Louis took two-out-of-three in the series and pulled within two games of Pittsburgh in the NL Central.  Bryan Morris suffered his sixth loss of the season. Clint Barmes hit a two-run homer and Russell Martin added a solo shot for the Bucs, who have dropped five-of-six.

Twins Walk-Off On White Sox

(Minneapolis, MN) -- Chris Herrmann singled in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Twins walked off the White Sox 4-3 at Target Field. Trevor Plouffe lifted a solo home run for Minnesota, which snapped a two-game skid. Jared Burton picked up the win in relief. Paul Konerko was 2-for-3 with an RBI for Chicago, which built a 3-0 lead, but lost for the second straight night. Ramon Troncoso suffered the loss out of the bullpen.

Giants Rally Past Nats

(Washington, DC) -- Pinch-hitter Hector Sanchez smacked a go-ahead three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning to lift the Giants past the Nationals 4-3 and avoid a three-game sweep in DC. Brandon Belt hit a solo shot in the sixth inning for San Francisco, which snapped a three-game skid. Javier Lopez picked up the win, while Sergio Romo posted his 29th save. Ian Desmond had a two-run double and Adam LaRoche singled in the other run during a three-run third for the Nats, who saw their five-game winning streak come to an end. Rafael Soriano fell to 2-3 with his fifth blown save.

Reds Edge Brewers

(Milwaukee, WI) -- Joey Votto hit a go-ahead solo homer in the sixth inning as the Reds edged the Brewers 2-1 in the opener of a four-game series at Miller Park. Zack Cozart plated the other run in the fifth for Cincinnati, which has won five in-a-row and eight of its last nine games. Tony Cingrani struck out nine over 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball as he improved to 6-2. Aroldis Chapman pitched a scoreless ninth for his 30th save. Khris Davis went deep for the Brewers, who have dropped three-of-four. Kyle Lohse allowed two runs, one earned, in seven frames as he fell to 8-8 with the tough-luck loss. Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez left in the fourth inning with a sprained right knee.

Byrd Lifts Mets Past Padres

(San Diego, CA) -- Marlon Byrd hit a go-ahead two-run double in the top of the eighth inning to lift the Mets past the Padres 4-1 in the opener of a four-game series at Petco Park. John Buck added a solo homer in the ninth, while Josh Satin plated a run in the fourth for the Mets, who were coming off a three-game sweep by the Dodgers in LA. Zack Wheeler struck out 12 over six innings of one-run ball but did not factor in the decision. Scott Atchison picked up the win in relief, while Gonzalez Germen earned his first career save. Jaff Decker drove in the lone run for the Friars, who have dropped seven-of-nine. Luke Gregerson fell to 5-7 with the loss.

Angels, Nelson Slam Yankees

(Bronx, NY) -- The Angels used a five-run eighth inning, capped off by a Chris Nelson grand slam, to put away the Yankees 8-4 at Yankee Stadium.  Nelson, who played for New York earlier this season, went 2-for-4 with two homers five RBI. Starter C.J. Wilson was knocked around for 11 hits, but surrendered only one run in 6 2/3 innings for his 13th victory as the Angels ended a four-game losing streak. Yankees starter Phil Hughes suffered his 12th loss, gave up three runs in six innings. Alfonso Soriano stayed hot at the plate, going 4-for-5 with an RBI. The loss ends the Bombers' four-game winning streak.

Gray Deals, Oakland Shutout Astros

(Oakland, CA) -- A's rookie hurler Sonny Gray shut down the Astros for eight innings as Oakland blanked Houston 5-0 from O.co Coliseum. It was Gray's first major-league victory as he gave up just four hits and struck out nine. Nate Freiman went 4-for-4 with a homer and drove in four at the dish.  With the win, the A's avoid the three-game sweep and are now a 1 1/2 game behind AL West-leading Texas. Erik Bedard suffered his ninth loss, lasting only four-and-two-thirds innings and allowed five runs on seven hits. Robbie Grossman went 2-for-4 for the Astros, who had lost six straight coming into this series.

Blue Jays Clip Red Sox

(Toronto, Ontario) -- A two-run seventh inning was all the Blue Jays needed as they pulled past the Red Sox 2-1 to take two of three at the Rogers Centre. A Brett Lawrie RBI single tied the game at one and Mark DeRosa's RBI sac-fly gave Toronto the lead. Mark Buehrle picked up the win, allowing only one run in seven innings despite allowing 10 hits. Casey Janssen earned his 22nd save.  The Blue Jays are 56-65. Dustin Pedroia had three hits and Jacoby Ellsbury drove in the only Red Sox run. Jake Peavy fell to 9-5 after not recording an out in the seventh inning. Boston is 72-51.

Tigers Top Royals

(Detroit, MI) -- Prince Fielder clubbed a two-run homer as the Tigers topped the Royals 4-1 in the opener of a five-game series at Comerica Park.  Torii Hunter and Miguel Cabrera also plated a run each and Andy Dirks went 4-for-4 with two runs scored for the Tigers, who have won two in-a-row after a three-game skid. Anibal Sanchez tossed 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball as he improved to 11-7. Joaquin Benoit closed it out for his 16th save. Alex Gordon singled in the lone run in the first inning for KC, which has lost three straight. Jeremy Guthrie gave up four runs and 13 hits in seven frames as he slipped 12-9.

Rays Roll Mariners

(St. Petersburg, FL) -- Wil Myers was 3-for-4 with four RBI and two runs scored as the Rays rolled the Mariners 7-1 in St. Petersburg.  Evan Longoria lifted a two-run homer for Tampa Bay, which won the final two of this three-game series. Alex Cobb struck out six over five innings of one-run ball for the win. Cobb had been out the last two months after he was hit in the head by a liner. Raul Ibanez belted a solo home run for Seattle, which has lost four-of-six. Joe Saunders allowed five runs in just over four frames for the loss.

MLB To Add Full Scale Instant Replay In 2014

(Cooperstown, NY)  --  Full scale instant replay is coming to Major League Baseball.  Commissioner Bud Selig [[ SEE-lig ]] has announced that replay will be implemented for virtually all plays other than balls and strikes beginning in 2014.  Managers will be allowed up to three challenges each game.  Owners are expected to approve the change in November.  Managers will get one challenge in the first six innings, and two more from the seventh inning on.  If the challenge is successful, the team will not be charged with a review.  Replays will be monitored remotely by the MLB Advanced Media offices in New York, with a ruling coming from there rather than the umpires on site.  If a club's three challenges have been used, umpires can still review home runs calls on their own.  MLB has already had replay reviews in place for home runs since 2008.

Selig Talks About A-Rod Appeal

(Cooperstown, NY)  --  Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig is speaking out about the 211-game suspension handed down to New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez.  Selig says he's not second guessing his decision and is very comfortable with the punishment handed down.  He added that he can't control what people are saying about the suspension and is focused solely on cleaning up the game.  A-Rod is appealing the 211-game suspension handed down last week by MLB for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal.  The clinic was investigated by the league for allegedly distributing performance-enhancing drugs.

MLB NL

St. Louis Cardinals 6, Pittsburgh Pirates 5 (12 inn)

San Francisco Giants 4, Washington Nationals 3

Cincinnati Reds 2, Milwaukee Brewers 1

New York Mets 4, San Diego Padres 1

MLB AL

LA Angels of Anaheim 8, New York Yankees 4

Oakland Athletics 5, Houston Astros 0

Toronto Blue Jays 2, Boston Red Sox 1

Detroit Tigers 4, Kansas City Royals 1

Tampa Bay Rays 7, Seattle Mariners 1

Minnesota Twins 4, Chicago White Sox 3

MLB Interleague

No Games Scheduled

Friday, August 16 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB NL

3:05 p.m. - St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs

6:05 p.m. - Los Angeles Dodgers at Philadelphia Phillies

6:05 p.m. - Arizona Diamondbacks at Pittsburgh Pirates

6:10 p.m. - San Francisco Giants at Miami Marlins

6:30 p.m. - Washington Nationals at Atlanta Braves

7:10 p.m. - Cincinnati Reds at Milwaukee Brewers

9:10 p.m. -New York Mets at San Diego Padres

MLB AL

12:08 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers (Gm 1)

6:08 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers (Gm 2)

6:10 p.m. - New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox

6:10 p.m. - Toronto Blue Jays at Tampa Bay Rays

7:05 p.m. - Seattle Mariners at Texas Rangers

7:10 p.m. - Chicago White Sox at Minnesota Twins

9:05 p.m. - Houston Astros at LA Angels of Anaheim

9:05 p.m. - Cleveland Indians at Oakland Athletics

MLB Interleague

6:05 p.m. - Colorado Rockies at Baltimore Orioles