Grapefruit League game roundup: March 16
Recaps from March 16 action in the Grapefruit League.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Brennan Boesch made his Yankees' debut, starting in right field and going 0 for 3 Saturday as a New York split squad lost 7-0 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.
New York agreed to a one-year contract with Boesch on Friday. The Yankees will be without outfielder Curtis Granderson until at least May due to a broken right forearm.
Domonic Brown hit his fourth spring training homer, a three-drive in a four-run fourth against Hiroki Kuroda, who allowed four runs -- two earned -- and six hits in six innings.
Philadelphia opening-day starter Cole Hamels didn't make the trip and instead pitched in a minor league intrasquad game, where he gave up four earned runs and six hits over five innings during an 84-pitch outing.
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) -- Placido Polanco was 2 for 3 with a double in his return from an oblique strain that had sidelined him since March 1, and the Miami Marlins beat the Mets 4-2 Saturday as Justin Turner became the latest New York player to get hurt.
Turner, the leading candidate to replace injured third baseman David Wright, sprained his right ankle in the fourth inning.
Chris Coghlan was 2 for 4, including a RBI triple in the fourth off Shaun Marcum. Marlins prospect Christian Yelich added an opposite-field home run to left in the eighth against Jeurys Familia.
Marlins starter Henderson Alvarez, in his return from the Venezuelan team at the World Baseball Classic, gave up one run and three hits in 3 2-3 innings. Kevin Slowey, who is competing for a rotation spot, gave up one run and two hits in 4 1-3 innings with four strikeouts and a walk.
Marcum allowed two runs and five hits in four innings.
Top prospect Gerrit Cole allowed one run and five hits in four innings Saturday in the Pittsburgh Pirates' 2-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins.
Cole, the top pick in the 2011 amateur draft, struck out four and walked none. He has a 3.60 ERA this spring training in three appearances over 10 innings.
Twins starter Cole De Vries, trying to earn a spot in Minnesota's rotation, gave up one run and three hits in four innings.
Gaby Sanchez hit a sacrifice fly in the first, but Josh Willingham's RBI grounder tied the score in the bottom half. Brandon Boggs, a non-roster invitee to Twins camp, hit a go-ahead single off Kris Johnson with two outs in the eighth.
Twins centerfield prospect Aaron Hicks led off the game with a single, stole second and scored on Willingham's grounder. Hicks is batting .333 (15 for 45).
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (AP) -- Alfredo Aceves hit Tampa Bay's Sean Rodriguez with a pitch and the two had a heated exchange that nearly escalated into a fight in the fifth inning of the Boston Red Sox's 9-2 victory over the Rays on Saturday.
Rodriguez hit his third home run of spring training off Aceves in the third inning after Desmond Jennings reached on a bunt single. With one out in the fifth things turned nasty. After being hit by Aceves, Rodriguez had to be restrained near first base.
The Red Sox then removed Aceves from the game. He gave up six hits and two runs.
Lyle Overbay, Ronald Bermudez, Blake Swihart and Mauro Gomez drove in two runs each for the Red Sox, who had 15 hits.
JUPITER, Fla. (AP) -- Shawn Hill allowed one hit in four innings, and Matt Tuiasosopo hit a long homer to lead the Detroit Tigers over the St. Louis Cardinals 3-0 Saturday.
Hill, likely to start the season at Triple-A, struck out thee and walked one. Bruce Rondon, Jose Alvarez and Luke Putkonen finished the four-hitter as the Cardinals were shut out for the third time in six games.
Left-hander Jaime Garcia gave up all three runs and six hits in five innings for the Cardinals.
Nick Castellanos' RBI double with two outs in the fourth put Detroit ahead, and Tuiasosopo homered leading off the fifth. Ramon Santiago hit a sacrifice fly later in the inning.
Rondon made his fourth consecutive scoreless appearance, striking out Oscar Taveras, Ty Wigginton and Ronny Cedeno around Tony Cruz's walk in the fifth. Rondon, a possible closer, had allowed three runs over consecutive outings on March 1 and 3.
DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) -- Jake Arrieta worked into the fifth inning without allowing a run as he tries to win the No. 5 spot in the Orioles' rotation, leading Baltimore to a 3-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday.
In his last two outings, Arrieta has pitched five scoreless innings in 9 2-3 innings. Arrieta struck out two and walked three in 4 2-3 innings.
J.A. Happ, who's still not a contender for the Blue Jays' fifth starter role despite Ricky Romero's struggles, allowed two runs on four hits in 3 2-3 innings while striking out six and walking none. All the Orioles hits against Happ were doubles.
Mark DeRosa drove in Toronto's run with a sixth-inning sacrifice fly.
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) -- Paul Maholm pitched two-hit ball for six innings and Juan Francisco homered to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 4-0 victory over a New York Yankees split-squad on Saturday.
Maholm, who struck out four and walked one, has not allowed a run over 14 2-3 innings in his past three spring starts.
Francisco's two-run drive in the fifth inning off David Phelps was his fourth homer of the spring, and the third baseman also had a single.
Phelps, who is competing for a spot in the Yankees rotation, had a 0.64 ERA in his previous four starts, but he allowed seven hits and four runs in five innings. He struck out six and walked one.
Justin Upton, hitless in his previous nine at-bats, had two hits for the Braves. The Yankees finished with just three hits.