Mike Trout, Mark Trumbo Lead Angels Win; Josh Harrison, Andrew McCutchen Shine for Pirates

Players of the Day for Tuesday, June 19, 2012

American League

Keeping pace with the Texas Rangers in the quest for dominance in the AL West, the LA Angels bounced back from a 5-3 loss in the opener of their home series with the Giants, pounding the visitors from up the coast, 12-5.

Trout: 4-4, 4R

Mike Trout, odds-on favorite to win the AL rookie of the year award, had a second four-hit game in his brief major league career (87 games), going 4-for-4 with three singles and a double and scored four times out of his customary leadoff spot.

Trumbo: 5 RBI

Further down the order, cleanup hitter Mark Trumbo went 3-for-5 - a triple and two singles - driving in five of the Angels' runs.

While the addition of Albert Pujols (who drove in four runs) grabbed all the headlines, Trout and Trumbo have been instrumental to LA's success and their bounce-back from a poor start to the season.

Trout is batting .337 - second in the AL - and has 19 steals to go with his 40 runs, while Trumbo's 47 RBI are tops on the team. He is batting a very solid .326, fourth-best in the league, with 16 homers.

The Angles and Giants conclude their three-game set Wednesday night in Anaheim.


National League

The Pittsburgh Pirates won their third straight, opening their home stand with a 7-2 win over the hapless Twins.

Andrew McCutchen

Josh Harrison

Pittsburgh ended a four-game road skid with a pair of wins at Cleveland and now trail the Reds by just 2 1/2 games in the NL Central. Cincinnati dropped a 3-2 decision at Cleveland on Tuesday.

Second-year player, Josh Harrison, provided the catalyst with a first inning solo homer and added a pair of singles and two steals in a 3-for-5 effort, scoring three of Pittsburgh's runs.

Andrew McCutchen sealed the win with a two-run shot in the seventh - his 12th of the year - and added a couple of singles in four at-bats to raise his average to .332, sixth-best in the National League.

INTERLEAGUE SCOREBOARD: The American League continues to dominate the games between the leagues, notching a 10-4 record on Tuesday, upping their lead to 108-82 over their National League counterparts.