By Ben Cowlishaw
Online Copy Editor
The greatest facets and events of baseball were exploited over the past week in ballparks across America.
Philip Humber of the Chicago White Sox threw the 21st perfect game in MLB history after retiring all 27 Seattle batters in a row. The game ended on a controversial check-swing call by the home plate umpire that had the final put out at first base. After the 27th out was recorded, Humber collapsed in the infield, surrounded by his teammates and to a standing ovation by the home crowd in Seattle.
The Red Sox, up a seemingly safe 9-0 to the Yankees while celebrating the 100th anniversary of Fenway, ended up losing to the pinstripers 15-9. The Red Sox have one of the worst, if not the worst bullpens in the majors, although the Rangers could have told the Yankees that.
The Rangers took the win in both of their games in Boston, one an 18-3 blowout that saw the Boston starter Jon Lester leaving without getting an out in the 3rd inning. Mark Melancon, a Boston reliever, was booed off the mound at Fenway after giving up six runs, including three home runs, without recording a single out.
Tonight, the Rangers are in Arlington taking on the Yankees after a nine game road trip. They swept the Twins and the Red Sox and only lost once to the 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander, making Texas’ road record 8-1, 13-3 overall – the best in baseball. The Rangers are playing like they’re in a league of their own: they have the most runs scored, the highest batting average and the second most home runs across the majors. Their pitching is solid throughout, with no loss coming by more than a single run.
Perhaps a bigger story than the Rangers over-performance is the Angels lack thereof. Albert Pujols is yet to serve up a home run for Anaheim, and the Angels sit last in the AL West with a 6-10 record, seven games behind the Rangers. While I would love nothing more than to eat my own words (I have the Angels taking the West come the end of the season), with roughly 145 games left, it’s still too early to make any determinations about the outcome of the season for any team.
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Before tonight’s game against the Yankees in Arlington, the Rangers will honor Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez in his retirement with the club. First pitch of Sabathia v. Holland is at 6:05, with the ceremony at about 5:40. The game is expected to come close to selling out. Pudge spent much of his career playing for Texas, and is one of the most decorated catchers of all time.
