Rays Alone in 1st on Hellickson Shutout; Tulowitzki Leads Rockies Back to First Place

Players of the Day for Friday, May 13, 2011

American League

Jeremy Hellickson

Both the Baltimore and Tampa Bay bullpens got a game's worth of rest on Friday as Tampa's Jeremy Hellickson and Baltimore's Jeremy Guthrie locked into a heated pitching duel, eventually won by Hellickson and the Rays, 3-0.

The Rays, who surged into sole possession of first place on Thursday after they dropped Cleveland, 7-4, while the Yankees were hammered by Kansas City, 11-5, took a two-game lead in the division as Boston sent the Yanks to their third straight loss, 5-4.

Both Guthrie and Hellickson went the full route for their teams, but Hellickson proved better, giving up four hits and a walk while fanning three.

A rookie, having thrown just 38 innings in 2010, Hellickson recorded his first complete game shutout and boosted his career record to 8-2 and is 4-2 this season.

With a 2.98 ERA and 1.21 WHIP, Hellickson rounds out a very capable Tampa Bay starting rotation. Tampa Bay has the second-lowest ERA in the American League, at 3.16

National League

The National League West division is shaping up into what may be one of the best three-way pennant races in years.

Troy Tulowitzki

After giving up their dominance in the division on Thursday, Colorado re-tied the Giants for first place with a 12-7 win over San Diego while the Giants took an 11-4 beating from the Cubs on Friday. Los Angeles, meanwhile, snuck to within 2 1/2 games of the leaders with a 4-3 win over Arizona.

The Rockies' bats did the talking in their win over the Padres, banging out 16 hits against four San Diego hurlers. The Rockies scored in six of their eight innings at the plate.

Troy Tulowitzki singled home two runs in the first inning and added his 10th home run of the season in the 4th, a solo shot to left field. Tulowitzki finished 3-for-5 with three RBI, two runs and a stolen base, his third of the season.