Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz celebrates as umpire Adam Hamari looks on after Ortiz hits his 500th home run during the fifth inning of the baseball game against Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday. (Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports)

The Sports Xchange/San Francisco


San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner retired the first 23 batters he faced before settling for a one-hit shutout in an 8-0 victory over the San Diego Padres on Saturday, with the Giants ace admitting the result was more important than personal glory.
“I’m not here to throw perfect games or no-hitters,” the reigning World Series Most Valuable Player assured after the third one-hit shutout of his career. “They’re special. But nothing is going to get in the way of winning the game.”
Center fielder Angel Pagan and first baseman Brandon Belt smacked solo home runs, and right fielder Marlon Byrd drove in three runs with three hits, helping the Giants (74-68) keep pace with the Los Angeles Dodgers (81-60) atop the NL West.
The Dodgers lead the Giants by 7 ½ games with 20 games remaining.
The home run for Belt, which capped the scoring in the seventh inning, was his career-high 18th of the season but he left no doubt over what he considered was the most powerful feat of the night.
“It felt like it to me, the way he was getting guys out,” Belt responded when asked if he thought this might be the night Bumgarner recorded the elusive no-hitter or perfect game. You know it’s something that’s going to happen. We’re just waiting on it.”
Bumgarner (18-7) took a perfect game two outs into the eighth before Padres pinch-hitter Melvin Upton Jr lined a single to center field on a 2-1 pitch. For Upton, it was a chance to keep from being on the losing end of a perfect game for a fourth time in his career.
“I was trying to get him on the plate, trying to have a good at-bat,” Upton said. “He threw fastballs and kind of left one over the plate a little bit, and I didn’t try to do too much with it.”
Bumgarner retired the next four Padres in order to finish off his fourth complete game of the season and second shutout. He had a complete-game three-hitter in a 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals on Aug 16.
He also took a perfect game into the eighth last season against the Colorado Rockies, only to surrender an inning-opening double to first baseman Justin Morneau.

Ortiz smashes 500th homer as Red Sox rout Rays
In Boston, David Ortiz was not supposed to play against Tampa Bay on Saturday but when manager Torey Lovullo texted his star designated hitter the morning of the game and asked how he felt, the slugger responded with two words: “I’m in.”
With Ortiz in the lineup at a Tropicana Field venue that has surrendered more long balls to him than any other visiting player, the Red Sox veteran smashed his 499th and 500th career home runs in a 10-4 victory over the Rays in St Petersburg.
As he circled the bases after becoming the 27th major leaguer to join the 500-homer club, his team mates flooded the top step of the dugout and poured onto the field to greet Ortiz.
“Every time he comes up we all kind of sit forward because he can do anything at any time,” Lovullo told reporters. “But that moment was a little extra special.”
Ortiz did not waste any time setting up his historic night, hitting a three-run homer in the first inning off Rays starter Matt Moore. In his second at-bat, Ortiz was given the green light on a 3-0 count and popped up but admitted afterwards there was no added pressure when he reached 499.
“Well, the last couple of weeks I think there was one day I was really trying to hit a homer and it was the day I went 0-for-4 with four punchouts,” he said. “So I’ve been just working on trying to put a good swing on the ball and whatever happens, happens.”
It happened in the fifth inning, again off Moore.
Ortiz has now hit seven home runs in his last 14 games as he continues to defy his soon-to-be 40 years of age. The homers were his 32nd and 33rd at Tropicana Field.
“To hit home runs, you need to have the good mojo going on,” he said.
Among active players, only Alex Rodriguez (684) and Albert Pujols (555) have more homers than Ortiz.
“You never want to be on that side of history,” Moore said.
“I’m probably going to see that swing quite a bit over the next however long. Didn’t execute. Same thing as his first at-bat. I think there were two strikes in both the at-bats and I wound up not executing.”
The Red Sox also got home runs from Mookie Betts, Dustin Pedroia and rookie Travis Shaw, and Rick Porcello continued to pitch well since coming off the disabled list.
Porcello pitched seven solid innings, the fourth straight game and fifth time in six outings he went at least seven innings. He allowed three earned runs, five hits and struck out eight to improve to 8-12 on the year.
“He did a good job. He in his Rick Porcello special way kept a steady, calm demeanor and made pitches when he had to. He’s on quite a run himself,” Lovullo said.

Tantrum proves costly for Nationals hurler Storen
A fit of pique has proved costly for Washington Nationals pitcher Drew Storen.  Nationals manger Matt Williams said Storen is expected to miss the rest of the Major League Baseball season after breaking his right thumb when he smacked his locker in frustration after giving up a go-ahead home run to Yeonis Cespedes of the New York Mets on Wednesday.
The injury was diagnosed after the right-handed hurler was unable to throw on Friday and told the team what had happened, Williams said.
Storen has 29 saves and a 3.44 ERA, but he has surrendered three runs in his past three innings over four games.
On Tuesday, Storen walked three to blow a save in what turned into an 8-7 loss to the Mets. The Mets’ sweep of their three-game series with the Nationals this week gave them a commanding lead in the National League East over the Nationals, whose playoff hopes were severely damaged.