The Juice is back for its fifth season of fun! Stop by each weekday for an ample serving of news from the action, plus great photos, stats and video highlights.
Go the Distance: Atlanta Braves pitcher Brandon Beachy put Fredi Gonzalez in a little bit of a bind after throwing 110 pitches over eight scoreless innings on Thursday night. Should the Braves manager call it a night for the 25-year-old arm or should he let Beachy enter the ninth for a chance at the first complete game of his career?
Gonzalez ultimately decided on the latter and Beachy did not disappoint, needing only 12 more pitches to seal a 7-0 shutout victory over the Miami Marlins at Turner Field.
''Roger (McDowell) and I were hanging on every pitch,'' Gonzalez said. ''You want the kid to be successful. You want him to have the complete game. You want him to have the shutout, but you want to keep him healthy.''
Beachy's scoreless scoresheet allowed him to drop his major-league best ERA from 1.60 to 1.33. The right-hander has won five straight decisions for the Braves and one would think that he's closing in on the first All-Star appearance of his career.
O, Mama!: Another morning, another opportunity to see the Baltimore Orioles atop the AL East standings. The early surprise team of 2012 moved to 25-14 with a 5-3 win over the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Adam Jones hit his 13th homer of the season as the O's turn toward a DC-Baltimore rarity — a relevant interleague series between the Orioles and Nationals. (Washington fell 5-3 to Pittsburgh on Thursday, but sit in second place in the NL East with a 23-15 record.)
Tribe time: The Cleveland Indians pulled off not one, but two comebacks in a 6-5 victory over Seattle at Progressive Field. The final one came in the bottom of the 11th inning as Carlos Santana completed a two-run inning with a walkoff RBI single. The Indians are 22-16 and hold a four-game lead over the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central.
A Winner is Halladay: The Phillies bullpen almost blew it, but Roy Halladay picked up his first pitching win since April 16 in an 8-7 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. The good Doctor had lost three straight decisions — a career high! — but was helped out by Carlos Ruiz's 4-for-5, three-RBI night. Chris Volstad, meanwhile, might want to take notes about stopping streaks. The Cubs starter suffered another loss and hasn't earned a win in any of his last 19 starts.
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Quote of the Day: ''I'm not going to look at the scoreboard now. You drive yourself crazy if you start looking at the scoreboard in the middle of May." — Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter after a 4-1 loss to the Blue Jays. New York currently occupies fourth place and are 4 1/2 games behind first-place Baltimore.
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Photo of the Day: The Big Time
Rich Thompson, the Rays' 33-year-old rookie, finally got his first big league start on Thursday. And while Tampa Bay fell 5-3 to the Red Sox, Thompson made the most of his opportunity, stealing two bases and becoming the oldest player in over 40 years to collect his first major league hit.
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Three Facts for the Water Cooler
• C.J. Wilson tied a career-high with six walks surrendered in the Angels' 6-1 loss to the White Sox.
• Aroldis Chapman finally allowed a run during the Reds' 9-4 loss to the Mets, but it was of the unearned variety. The reliever still sports a perfect 0.00 ERA after 20 1/3 innings.
• The Cardinals committed three errors in a game for the second time this week, falling 7-5 to the Giants.
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