Elias Says...

MR. WEBB, MEET MR. REINEKE
If Brandon Webb didn't know Chad Reineke before Tuesday night's 9-2 loss to the Padres, it's a safe bet that he knows him now. Reineke earned only his second major-league win, and in doing so he denied Webb his 20th victory of the season.

Over the last 50 years, only three other pitchers with fewer than two career wins defeated an opposing starter seeking his 20th victory of the season: Wayne Franklin vs. Roy Oswalt (2002), Rick Kreuger vs. Ed Figueroa (1976), and Bill Gogolewski vs. Jim Palmer (1970). Note that Franklin recorded his first and second wins in consecutive starts against Oswalt, who finished the season at 19-8.
Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres

PHILLIES KNOCK METS FROM 1ST PLACE WITH HISTORIC RALLY
The Phillies rallied from a 7-0 deficit to take over first place in the NL East with an 8-7 win over the Mets in 13 innings. No other team in major-league history assumed possession of first place this late in the calendar year by winning a game in which they trailed by six or more runs.
Philadelphia Phillies

COSTE COMES OFF THE BENCH FOR A PERFECT NIGHT
Chris Coste, who delivered the walkoff hit for the Phillies, went 4-for-4 even though he didn't enter the game until the eighth inning. Over the last 15 seasons, only one other player went 4-for-4 or better in a game in which he pinch-hit: Shawn Wooten of the Angels in 2002.
Philadelphia Phillies

MARTINEZ BLOWS SEVEN-RUN LEAD
Pedro Martinez was the starting pitcher who couldn't make the Mets' 7-0 lead stand up in their loss to the Phillies. Martinez has a 112-0 career record with seven no-decisions when given a lead of four or more runs.
New York Mets

JONES AND COX CELEBRATE THEIR 2000TH GAME TOGETHER
Chipper Jones played the 2000th game of his major-league career on Tuesday night. Jones is the 213th player to reach that level, but the first to do so playing for only one manager - Bobby Cox. Prior to Jones, the most games played before a change of manager (or the player's retirement) was 1952 by Willie Davis for Walter Alston with the Dodgers from 1960 to 1973. Alston out-lasted Davis in Los Angeles when the center fielder was traded to the Expos for Mike Marshall.
Atlanta Braves

GREGG BLOWS AN EASY ONE
Kevin Gregg squandered a three-run lead in the ninth inning as the Braves rallied for a 10-9 win over the Marlins. Gregg blew the closer's equivalent of a slam dunk, entering with a three-run lead to start the ninth inning. Among the active pitchers who've never blown such a save: Joe Nathan (196 career saves), Tom Gordon (158), and Brad Lidge (154) .
Florida Marlins

LEE WINS 19TH, INITIATES TIGERS ROOKIE
Welcome to The Show, Chris Lambert. The Tigers rookie made his major-league debut Tuesday night against Cliff Lee, who came into the game with an 18-2 record and left as the American League's first 19-game winner. Lambert was only the second pitcher during the live-ball era to start his MLB debut against an opponent more than 15 games above the .500 mark. The other was Ron Reed, whose 19-year career began in 1966 with a start against Juan Marichal (23-6)
Cleveland Indians

SEVEN RBIs BY A ROOKIE CATCHER - IT'S ALL THE RAGE!
Geovany Soto drove in seven runs, including one with his 20th homer of the season, in the Cubs' 14-9 win at Pittsburgh. Last season, J.R. Towles had an eight RBI game and Jarrod Saltalamacchia drove in seven in a game. Prior to that, only one other rookie catcher in major-league history drove in at least seven RBIs in one game: Rudy York in 1937.

Incidentally, Soto became the first rookie catcher to reach the 20-homer mark since Mike Piazza hit 35 home runs in 1993.
Chicago Cubs

ZAMBRANO SETS A RECORD WITH HIS BAT
Carlos Zambrano lasted only 4 1/3 innings in the Cubs win, but he extended two streaks by going 1-for-2 with an RBI:

Zambrano has driven in at least one run in each of the last eight starts in which he has batted, the longest single-season streak by a pitcher in major-league history. (RBIs have been compiled as an official statistic since 1920).

Zambrano has now hit safely in each of the last 13 starts in which he has batted, the longest such streak by a pitcher in a single season since Wilbur Cooper posted a streak of 15 starts with a hit in 1924.

Zambrano started the season 0-for-9, but he is 26-for-63 since then (.413).
Chicago Cubs

PETTITTE CAN'T HOLD LEADS, LOSES TO RED SOX
For only the second time in the last seven seasons, Andy Pettitte suffered a loss in a game in which he was given at least two leads, as the Red Sox defeated the Yankees, 7-3. Pettitte's other such loss during that time came in 2005, when he was pitching for the Astros. His last for the Yankees came on September 20, 2001 against the White Sox.
New York Yankees

A-ROD'S NIGHT TO FORGET
Alex Rodriguez went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts and two double-play ground outs in the Yankees' loss. It was the first time in A-Rod's career that he had multiple strikeouts and GDPs in the same game. His total of nine DP ground outs in August already matches the highest total by any player in any month this season, and it's his highest total in any month of his career.
New York Yankees

BREWERS WIN BIG AT BUSCH
The Brewers defeated the Cardinals, 12-0, at Busch Stadium, posting their largest shutout victory on the road since an 18-0 win at Fenway Park on Patriots' Day in 1990. Terry Francona went 0-for-2 for the Brewers in that game, taking over at first base for Greg Brock, who had gone 4-for-4.
Milwaukee Brewers

DODGERS EXTEND UN-TORRE-LIKE SLUMP
The Dodgers lost to the Nationals, 2-1, in their first game after suffering a four-game sweep to the Phillies. That was the first sweep of four or more games against Joe Torre this late in a season since Torre's fifth-place Mets lost four games at San Diego in September 1980. The Dodgers' five-game losing streak is the longest by a Torre team this late in a season since the Yankees lost their last seven games of the 2000 season - before winning the World Series.
Los Angeles Dodgers

ZIMMERMAN STARTS FOUR DP's
Ryan Zimmerman started four double plays in the Nationals' win. Since 1990, only two other third baseman started four DP's in one game: Scott Brosius (2000) and Alex Rodriguez (2008), both for the Yankees.
Washington Nationals

HALLADAY JOINS BURNETT AT 16 WINS
Roy Halladay earned his 16th win of the season in the Blue Jays' 6-2 win over the Rays, tying A.J. Burnett for the team lead in victories. It's the first time in Jays history that two pitchers won more than 15 games each by the end of August. The only other team to do so over the last six seasons was the 2007 Red Sox (Josh Beckett and Tim Wakefield).
Toronto Blue Jays

ARROYO HOLDS ASTROS TO 5 SINGLES
Bronson Arroyo allowed five hits, all singles, in a complete-game victory over the Astros. It was the second consecutive start in which Arroyo didn't allow an extra-base hit. Arroyo made two straight starts without allowing a "long hit" only once previously (Sept. 5-10, 2006).
Cincinnati Reds

ROYALS FIND ANOTHER WAY TO LOSE
The Royals suffered their 16th defeat in 19 games, losing 2-1 to the Rangers on Tuesday. But give the Royals credit for keeping things fresh. It was the Royals' first loss without allowing an earned run since 1998, and since we're talking Royals, you know that's a lot o' losses - 948 since their last such loss, to be exact.
Kansas City Royals