Nady, Johnson Winfree Torch Cubs; Aaron Hill Rounds Out Blue Jay Lineup

Players of the Day for Tuesday, March 29, 2011

American League

Aaron Hill

With the regular season just a few days from opening, the Toronto Blue Jays appear to have their starting lineup in good shape now that Aaron Hill has returned to action.

Sidelined for most of the exhibition season with tightness in his right quad, Hill returned to duty about a week ago and has been tearing up opposing pitchers.

In Tuesday's 7-4 win over Baltimore, the spunky second baseman went 3-for-4 with two singles and a double, scored twice and drove in three runs. That pushed Hill's average up to .524 (11-for-21) in seven Spring games.

One of Toronto's rising stars, Hill hit 36 homers and drove in 108 runs in 2009, before backtracking in 2010 with a .205 batting average with 26 homers and 68 RBI.

National League

Kelly Johnson

Xavier Nady

Not generally considered a team with a wealth of hitters, the Arizona Diamondbacks woke u their bats with a barrage of 19 hits in a 15-8 win over the Cubs.

Xavier Nady was 4-for-5 with three singles and a grand slam home run, scoring three times and driving in four runs against the team he played for last year.

Teammate David Winfree went 3-for-6 with two homrs and four RBI and Kelly Johnson added a 3-run shot in addition to his double and two singles in four at-bats.

The Diamondbacks finished last in the NL West in 2010 and are hoping that some of their power strokes translate into wins in 2011.