ST. PETERSBURG -- Johan Santana announced his intentions for another Cy Young with an overpowering performance against Tampa Bay on Tuesday.
The 2004 American League winner allowed a pair of hits to rookie Delmon Young in eight innings as the Twins held on to their lead in the AL Wild Card race with an 8-0 victory over the Devil Rays in front of 8,256 at Tropicana Field.
The 27-year-old lefty already had solid credentials considering he's leading the AL in ERA and the Majors in strikeouts. And just like in 2004, Santana has been red hot since the All-Star break. His league-leading 17th win on Tuesday was his eighth straight after the break and included 12 strikeouts in eight innings.
The Twins (80-57) won their 14th straight game against the Devil Rays and can sweep the season series for the second straight year with a win Wednesday. Minnesota took the lead for good in the fourth inning, scoring three times. The Twins were aided by a pair of Tampa Bay errors. They scored three more times in the seventh, including on a double from Michael Cuddyer that appeared to have been a home run.
The ball looked to have carried over the yellow railing in left-center field, where it bounced out of a fan's glove and fell onto the field. Joe Mauer raced all the way home from first on the play, but Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was ejected after an unsuccessful argument. Cuddyer later scored when Justin Morneau tripled off the wall in left.
PHILADELPHIA -- The positive news flowed regarding Ryan Howard on Tuesday.
The Phillies' prolific slugger was named the National League Player of the Week and Month, and was also included on a list of Major Leaguers headed to Japan to participate on a barnstorming tour of U.S. Major Leaguers in the offseason. Things were all good in Howard's world.
Then came the alleged performance-enhancing drug use, as Howard found himself defending himself against pontificators who suggested that his accomplishments might not be legitimate.
"Is Ryan Howard juiced?" began Yahoo columnist Dan Wetzel. "Don't blame me for wondering. It might not be fair, but it isn't my [or your] fault for asking before plunging headlong into another home run chase. Blame baseball, blame society, blame a summer that has given us Floyd Landis, Justin Gatlin, Marion Jones, Barry Bonds and a host of other drug cheats who can make a cynic out of anyone."
To be fair, Wetzel isn't accusing Howard of anything. He's merely saying that it's tough to blindly assume that a player isn't cheating, especially amid the recent homer seasons of Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire, three players who have stormed past Roger Maris under a cloud of suspicion.
Wetzel isn't the first. Jason Whitlock, a columnist for The Kansas City Star, also made similar comments recently on ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption."
"With Howard, what he hits is legit, and everything about it is because he's totally dedicated to his hard work," Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel said last week.
Howard brushed off inquiries when asked if he questions the validity of the home runs hit by Bonds and others.
"That's not for me to do," he said. "They know whether they did it or not. If they said they didn't do it and until it's proven that they did, then that's how it is.
"My whole thing is this," Howard said. "We have tests. People take the tests. Either you pass or you fail. If you fail, you get busted. If you don't fail, you're not doing it."
For further proof of Howard's natural largess, one only need to look at his family. His oldest brother, Chris, is a hulking man, and Ryan's twin brother, Corey, is also bigger than Howard's listed weight of 250 pounds.
Still, there Howard was, discussing such topics. Houston manager Phil Garner suggested that 61 homers in a season is the "legit" record, and Howard is eight away from surpassing it.
"How magical is it?" Howard said. "I think it's still pretty magical. If you can hit 60 home runs in a season or 61 or whatever. Just to put a '6' in front of it is magical. That's a lot of home runs. There's a select few that have done that."
Five to be exact: Bonds, Sosa, McGwire, Maris and Babe Ruth.
"Would I take a sense of pride in it? If I did it clean?" Howard said. "I would. How much would it mean to me? If it happens, it happens. But if I were to do something like that and wake up and reflect on the season one day at home in the offseason, I wouldn't believe it."
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 220.143.96.82