James Shields Throws 2nd Straight Complete Game; Halladay Fans 14 in Philly Win

Players of the Day for Sunday, April 24, 2011

American League

James Shields

Just in case anyone thought James Shields' complete game, 4-1 win over the White Sox last week was a fluke, "Big Game James" put that notion to rest with a sizzling, 4-hit, 2-0, shutout win on the road in Toronto.

Given a 2-0 lead - courtesy of a Ben Zobrist home run - before he even threw a pitch, Shields responded by not allowing a hit until the 5th inning, working over the Blue Jays for the full nine innings, walking two and striking out seven.

With back-to-back complete games, Shields (2-1) lowered his ERA to 2.35 and his WHIP to 0.93.

After a 1-8 start, the Rays have reeled off 10 wins in their last 13 games and moved into second place in the AL East, 3 games back of the Yankees.

National League

The Phillies have won five straight, keeping the red-hot Florida Marlins at bay in the NL East. Their latest victory was a not-so-subtle reminder to the rest of the league that they can beat you with hitting or pitching.

Roy Halladay

Sunday's sensational effort by Roy Halladay didn't result in a complete game as the Padres finally broke through for a run in the 9th inning. With two down in the inning, Wes Venable singled in Jason Bartlett and Halladay gave way to Antonio Bastardo, who promptly retired Nick Hundley for the 3-1 Philadelphia win.

The drama came after Halladay had already punched out 14 Padres on strikes, allowed just five hits and a walk over 8 2/3 innings for his third win of the season against one loss.

Halladay, a known workhorse, threw 130 pitches. His 14 strikeouts tied his career high.

The Philly pitching staff recorded two shutouts in the four game sweep of the flailing Padres and allowed just 3 runs over 36 innings. They lead the Marlins by 1 1/2 games in the division.