Preview Roundups
September 09, 2016
Tampa Bay at NY Yankees 7:05 PM ET
Some bargain-basement pieces are paying huge dividends for the New York Yankees, who have surged into postseason contention after unloading some of their higher-priced talent at the trade deadline. New York looks to extend its winning streak to six games when it continues a four-game series against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night.
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh 7:05 PM ET
Even though the Pittsburgh Pirates started a stretch of 15 straight games against teams with losing records, 11 are on the road, leaving little margin for error in their four-game set against the skidding Cincinnati Reds. Pittsburgh goes for its third straight victory and second in a row over the visiting Reds on Friday.
Philadelphia at Washington 7:05 PM ET
Tanner Roark looks to continue his domination of National League East rival Philadelphia when the Washington Nationals host the Phillies on Friday in the second contest of their four-game series. Roark takes a 3-0 record and 0.64 ERA versus the Phillies this season into Friday's outing, having held them scoreless in three of his four starts.
Boston at Toronto 7:07 PM ET
Rick Porcello attempts to become the major league’s first 20-game winner when his Boston Red Sox visit the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday for the opener of a critical three-game set. Porcello is a dazzling 8-1 since the All-Star break and has won five contests in a row for the first-place Red Sox, who lead Toronto by one game in the American League East.
Baltimore at Detroit 7:10 PM ET
The Baltimore Orioles look to improve their postseason standing at the expense of one of their closest challengers on Friday as they open a three-game series at the Detroit Tigers. The Orioles, who hold a one-game lead over the Tigers in the race for the American League's second wild card, erupted for six homers and 22 runs en route to winning three of the four meetings at Camden Yards in May.
LA Dodgers at Miami 7:10 PM ET
Clayton Kershaw hopes to make a triumphant return from a two-month absence due to injury on Friday when the Los Angeles Dodgers begin a season-high 10-game road trip with the first of three contests against the Miami Marlins. Kershaw, who has been sidelined since June 26 with a herniated disk, looked no worse for wear during a rehab start at High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Saturday - allowing one hit and striking out five in three scoreless innings.
NY Mets at Atlanta 7:35 PM ET
The road to a potential National League playoff berth takes the New York Mets to Atlanta for a three-game weekend series with the Braves starting Friday, and rookie Robert Gsellman gets another opportunity to help New York keep pace in the opener. The fact the Mets are in a playoff race is impressive given the injuries that wrecked their starting rotation, but New York starts the weekend riding a five-game winning streak and Gsellman has provided a much-needed boost.
Kansas City at Chi. White Sox 8:10 PM ET
With losses in five of their last eight contests, the Kansas City Royals look to regain their footing and reignite their march toward a postseason berth on Friday when they visit the Chicago White Sox for the opener of a three-game series. Kansas City, which resides four games behind Baltimore for the second wild-card spot, has won nine of 12 meetings with Chicago this season - including four of six at U.S. Cellular Field.
Cleveland at Minnesota 8:10 PM ET
As the Minnesota Twins put the finishing touches on their worst season in at least this century, no one will excuse Brian Dozier if he doesn't want it to end. Dozier, who has a major league-most 25 home runs since the All-Star break and seven in September to increase his total to 39, continues his pursuit for the most in a season by a second baseman when Minnesota hosts the Cleveland Indians in a three-game series beginning Friday.
Chi. Cubs at Houston 8:10 PM ET
The Chicago Cubs continue their nine-game road trip with the first of three against the Houston Astros on Friday and are not content with having the best record in baseball or a huge lead in the National League Central. “The cool thing for me is that when you've got this kind of lead this late in the season, guys are still not giving away (at-bats) late in the game,” Chicago catcher David Ross told reporters. “That's a sign of guys just focused on what's going on, on the field. Nothing else.”
Milwaukee at St. Louis 8:15 PM ET
Carlos Martinez dominated the Milwaukee Brewers in late August, and the St.
Louis Cardinals could use another strong outing from the right-hander
when they host their division rivals on Friday. Martinez recorded a career-best
13 strikeouts while allowing one run and four hits in six innings in a
no-decision against Milwaukee on Aug. 29.
San Francisco at Arizona 9:40 PM ET
The San Francisco Giants hope to begin snapping out of an extended slump with their next six games against the bottom two teams in the National League West. The Giants, who are a demoralizing 17-32 since the All-Star break, send ace Madison Bumgarner to the mound Friday when they visit the fourth-place Arizona Diamondbacks to begin a three-game set.
Texas at LA Angels 10:05 PM ET
Yu Darvish has defeated the Los Angeles Angels more times than any other
team and he looks to add to the victory count when the Texas Rangers
open a three-game road series at Angel Stadium. Darvish is 7-2 with a
4.00 ERA in 12 outings against the Angels and he has fanned 97 batters
in just 74 1/3 innings.
Seattle at Oakland 10:05 PM ET
The Seattle Mariners scored 35 runs while winning three of four games
from the Texas Rangers and attempt to remain productive when they open a
three-game series against the host Oakland Athletics on Friday. Seattle
has little margin for error with 22 games remaining as it stands 4 1/2
games behind the Baltimore Orioles for the American League's second
wild-card spot.
Colorado at San Diego 10:40 PM ET
The San Diego Padres attempt to continue their offensive surge when they host the Colorado Rockies on Friday for the second contest of their four-game set. San Diego matched its run total from its previous six games in the series opener as it rolled to a 14-1 triumph to improve to 2-2 on its seven-game homestand.