DENVER -- St.
Chicago White Sox Jersey . Louis closer Edward Mujica appreciates a feel-good story as much as anyone. Only, he wasnt about to let this be Todd Heltons moment, not against him and especially not with his team in a tight playoff race. Mujica struck out Helton to end the game with the bases loaded as the Cardinals held off the Colorado Rockies 4-3 on Wednesday night to expand their lead in the NL Central race. "Unbelievable," Mujica said, shaking his head. The cheering crowd thought this just might be another unbelievable memory in a career full of them for Helton, who will retire at the end of the season. Even starting pitcher Adam Wainwright thought things were setting up too perfectly for it to be anything but the stage for Heltons heroics. "When we load the bases there, as much faith as I have in Mujica, you hear, Now coming up to the plate, Todd Helton, and you go, Oh, man," Wainwright said. "Its too perfect. But (Mujica) pitched him perfect. That last pitch, it was like a thing of art." In this case, that art was a high fastball. "You couldnt have asked for a better moment," Helton said. "You couldve asked for a lot better result. You just learn from it and go on." Wainwright (17-9) gave up two runs in the first and then found his groove to earn his 17th win, second-most in the NL this season. He went 3 for 3 with a double and two RBIs to help the Cardinals stretch their lead to two games over Pittsburgh after the Pirates lost 3-2 loss to San Diego. St. Louis also reduced its magic number for clinching a playoff spot to three with 10 games to play. "Were playing good ball at the right time," Wainwright said. Tyler Chatwood (7-5) allowed four runs in six innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. Chatwood is rounding back into form after missing nearly a month with an inflamed right elbow. The hard-throwing Wainwright allowed 10 hits and struck out eight before running into a jam with two on and two outs in the eighth. Reliever Trevor Rosenthal got Charlie Blackmon to ground out to end the threat. Mujica pitched his way out of a bases loaded mess in ninth for his 37th save in 40 chances. He set Helton up with a few splitters before throwing the high heat. "I was betting on Todd right there, to deliver the big hit like he has for years," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "He made a good pitch there." Michael Cuddyer remains the NL batting leader, keeping his average at .331 after going 1 for 3 on Wednesday. Cuddyer left the game shortly after making an inning-ending diving catch in the sixth. The team announced he was day-to-day with a bruised right forearm. St. Louis solved Chatwood in the third, stringing together four straight hits to tie the game at 2. Wainwright had an RBI double and Matt Carpenter followed with a run-scoring single. Carpenter now has 67 RBIs from the leadoff spot, the most by a Cardinals player since Lou Brock had 76 in 1967. The Cardinals took the lead for good in the fourth when Yadier Molina led off the inning with a double and was brought home by Wainwrights single. He now has five RBIs this season. "I always brag that the starting pitchers are the best athletes on the field," Wainwright said. "Usually, we dont back that talk up. Tonight, it was a good opportunity to back that up." The Rockies began the game with four straight hits off Wainwright, including a two-run single by Troy Tulowitzki. That was certainly more offence than the Rockies had off Wainwright in May, when the Cardinals ace took a no-hitter into the eighth and finished with a two-hitter during a 3-0 victory. Wainwright escaped more trouble in the first by getting Helton to hit into a 3-6-1 double play. Jordan Pacheco followed by lining out to Matt Adams to end the inning. This is Heltons last hurrah after announcing he was calling it a career after 17 years. Weiss said he plans to start Helton in each of the remaining nine games. "Im going to play him as much as hes physically able to do it," Weiss said. "Give the fans an opportunity to see him." Notes: Cardinals RHP Joe Kelly (right calf tightness) hopes to be ready for his next start. ... Adams left the game in the seventh with right elbow soreness. ... Rockies OF Carlos Gonzalez is visiting a hand specialist in Cleveland about his sprained right middle finger.
Mat Latos White Sox Jersey . -- Mixed martial arts fighter Cristiane Justino Santos has been suspended and fined for testing positive for steroids.
Early Wynn White Sox Jersey . The Blue Jays lost to the New York Yankees 3-1 Tuesday night, their seventh defeat in 10 games. Rasmus was put on the 15-day DL on May 15 because of a sore right hamstring. Hes hitting .222 with nine home runs and 19 RBIs.NEW YORK -- There was nothing mysterious about Michael Pinedas performance this time. Masahiro Tanakas dominant outing was pretty straight forward, too. A day that began with snow in the outfield ended with a double whitewashing. Pineda followed an overpowering outing by Tanaka with one of his own, pitching six innings of four-hit ball as the New York Yankees beat the Chicago Cubs 2-0 on a bitterly cold Wednesday night to complete its first doubleheader shutout sweep since 1987. "It just goes to show you how well our pitchers threw," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "When you shut out a team for 18 innings youre doing things right." Tanaka (2-0) struck out 10 and allowed just two bunt hits -- one replay aided -- over eight innings in a 3-0 win in the opener of the day-night twinbill. Carlos Beltran homered for a third straight game, off Jason Hammel in the first inning of the Cubs first regular-season game at the current Yankee Stadium. "That split is not something you want to sit on. Its not something youre going to be able to handle," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said. "But, as it was coming out of the hand, as the guys were coming in, they were saying, Gosh, it looks like a fastball. It ends up diving." Brett Gardner and Scott Sizemore had RBI singles off Travis Wood (0-2) in the nightcap, helping the Yankees win for the fifth time in six games and handing Chicago its fourth straight loss. New York had not won by shutout twice in one day since April 9, 1987, against Kansas City, according to STATS, and no team in the major leagues had done it since Minnesota swept Oakland on June 26, 1988. The Cubs had not been blanked twice on the same day since Larry Jackson and Ray Sadecki pitched complete games for St. Louis on June 27, 1962. Chicago was 9 for 61 (.148) at the plate, dropping its season average to .230, and struck out 17 times. Pineda (2-1) was pitching for the first time since he was spotted with brown goo on his right hand during Thursdays 4-1 win against Boston, touching off a debate about pitchers use of sticky substances to get better grips in cool weather. It was significantly colder Wednesday, with temperatures in the low-40s and a frigid wind, but Pinedas hand was clean throughout. "I didnt do nothing," Pineda said when asked if he used something to improve his hold on the ball. "I was focusing on throwing the ball good." And he did, despite pitching in some really harsh weather. In fact, he said it was the coldest hes ever pitched in. Anthony Rizzos triple with two outs in the sixth off Pineda was the Cubs only extra-base hit of the day. Chicago totalled six hits against a pair of 25-year-old power pitchers who rarely walk batters. Tanaka (2-0) and Pineda each gave up one free pass.
Mat Latos Jersey. "Both of them, they were good," said Emilio Bonifacio, who was 0 for 8 on the day. "Their breaking pitches, they were pretty good, so it was really tough." Shawn Kelley yielded a hit to Rizzo, who had three hits overall, in the ninth inning of the opener but secured his fourth save. Adam Warren put runners on second and third in the ninth inning of the nightcap, but finished for his first save. With Tuesdays rainout postponing Jackie Robinson Day festivities, the Yankees unveiled a plaque honouring Nelson Mandela before the second game. Players from both teams wore No. 42. The Cubs have yet to win in the Bronx. They were swept in the 1932 and 38 World Series and lost all three-games in 2005, their only interleague series in New York. After an overnight storm, the grounds crew used blowers to melt the ice on the tarp before removing the covering from the infield. Snow still covered the grass in right field while the Cubs took batting practice, and many players wore ski caps. But it wasnt too cold for Beltran. He connected on a 1-1 changeup from Hammel (2-1) with one out in the first. Dean Anna started again at shortstop for Derek Jeter and drove in his run with a fly to left field in the fourth. Jeter went 1 for 5 in the night game, his first action since Friday. New York added a run in the fifth when Junior Lake lost Gardners liner to left in the sun for a double. After Gardner advanced on Beltrans groundout, Jacoby Ellsburys bat made contact with catcher John Bakers glove before dunking a ball in front of the mound. Catchers interference was called but under rule 6.08 (c), the Yankees had the choice to reject the interference call -- it would have put runners at the corners -- and take the play as it unfolded on the field. The elected for the latter, with Gardner scoring and Ellsbury tagging out by Hammel. "With one out, you take the run," Girardi said. Lake got the first hit off Tanaka with one out in the second when he bunted toward the third base side, and the right-hander fielded it cleanly. Initially, first base umpire Manny Gonzalez called Lake out but Renteria requested a challenge and the call was overturned. Hammel was nearly as good as Tanaka. He yielded three runs and five hits, striking out five. NOTES: Cubs pitchers Edwin Jackson and Carlos Villanueva will swap start days. Jackson will pitch Saturday against the Reds and Villanueva on Sunday. ... Yankees 1B Mark Teixeira (right hamstring) is working out in Tampa, Fla. Girardi said he will play three innings Thursday. Teixeira is eligible to return from the DL Sunday. ... Yankees closer David Robertson (left groin strain) said he was going to pitch in a minor league game in Tampa on Saturday.
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