MLB Hoosiers (Aug. 6): All 4 Former Indiana Stars Play Thursday, to Mixed Results
Kyle Schwarber went 1-for-3 Thursday night, but the Chicago Cubs, who have more wins than anyone in the National League, got blasted 13-2 by the Kansas City Royals.
Schwarber started in left feld, and he continued a trend of hitting better when he starts in the outfield instead of at designated hitter. He's had a hit in eight of his 10 games as a left fielder.
Schwarber is one of four Indiana players in the big leagues. All four played on Thursday for just the second time all season.
Here's our daily Schwarber OF/DH tracker through the games of Aug. 6:
- Outfield (10 games): 9-for-33 (.273 average), 2 doubles, 2 home run, 5 runs, 6 RBIs.
- DH (3 game): 1-for-12 (.083 average), single 7 strikeouts
- Total (13 games): 10-for-45 (.222 average)
The Cubs are now 10-3 now in this shortened season and, despite the loss, still have more wins in the National League than anyone. They also have a 3.5-game lead in the NL Central, and are the only team in the five-team division with a winning record.
Cubs backup catcher Josh Phegley, one of four Hoosier in the pros, came into the game in the fourth inning on Thursday. He popped out during his first at-bat, bu then was hit by a pitch in the ninth inning and later scored on a Victor Caratini single. Phegley, though 0-for-6 on the season in limited playing time, has scored three runs.
The other two Hoosiers in the pros are Alex Dickerson and Caleb Baragar of the San Francisco Giants. Dickerson, who's hitting .265 on the season, pinch-hit and walked in the Giants' 6-4 loss to the Colorado Rockies in Denver. The Giants are 6-8 on the season and have lost four of their last five games.
Baragar had a rough night. He came in during the seventh inning when the Rockies were rallying and he couldn't stem the tide. He got two outs, but also allowed an infield hit and then a massive 434-foot home run by Charlie Blackmon.
This was Baragar's sixth appearance on the season. He's pitched 6 2/3 innings and allowed four earned runs thus far. He has a 5.40 earned run average but just a 0.75 WHIP. He has a 2-0 record, the only Giants pitcher with two wins thus far.
Thursday's Results
- Philadelphia 5, New York Yankees 4
- Miami 8, Baltimore 7
- Pittsburgh 6, Minnesota 5
- Atlanta 4, Toronto 3
- Cleveland 13, Cincinnati 0
- Kansas City 13, Chicago Cubs 2
- Milwaukee 8, Chicago White Sox 3
- Colorado 6, San Francisco 4 at
- Arizona 5, Houston 4
- Oakland 6, Texas 4
- Los Angeles Angels 6, Seattle 1
Friday's games
- Baltimore at Washington, 6:05 p.m. ET
- New York Yankees at Tampa Bay, 6:40 p.m.
- Atlanta at Philadelphia, 7:05 p.m.
- Detroit at Pittsburgh, 7:05 p.m.
- Miami at New York Mets, 7:10 p.m.
- Toronto at Boston, 7:30 p.m.
- Minnesota at Kansas City, 8:05 p.m.
- Cleveland at Chicago White Sox, 8:10 p.m.
- Cincinnati at Milwaukee, 8:10 p.m.
- Chicago Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals, 8:15 p.m.
- Los Angeles Angels at Texas, 9:05 p.m.
- Houston at Oakland, 9:10 p.m.
- Arizona at San Diego, 9:10 p.m.
- San Francisco at Los Angeles Dodgers, 9:40 p.m.
- Colorado at Seattle, 9:40 p.m.
Baseball video of the day
A serious statistical breakdown show that first basemen are really starting to lose productivity, with their hitting numbers dropping dramatically in the past three years. It's a sign of aging players at that position reaching the end of their productivity.
Related baseball stories
- HOOSIERS IN THE PROS: There are four former Indiana players on major-league rosters on Opening Day, and three others have been assigning to alternate locations, hoping for a chance to get called up. CLICK HERE
- MLB NEWS: Nationals' early-season woes strike again. CLICK HERE