Todd Frazier Leads Reds to 4th Straight W in 11-1 Rout of Marlins; Matt Wieters' Grand Slam Buries Rays

Players of the Day for Thursday, April 18, 2013

American League

Matt Wieters

In Baltimore's 10-6 victory over Tampa Bay, Matt Wieters was there at the start and delivered the final blow to end the game.

Down 3-0 in the second inning, Wieters doubled and scored on Chris Davis' single to center for Baltimore's first run. Davis then scored on on Nolan Reimold's two-run homer, tying the game.

The teams exchanged blows, eventually sending the game to extra innings at 6-6. In the bottom of the 10th, Wieters made his way to the plate with the bases chock full of Orioles and delivered a 376-foot blow to right field, clearing the wall for a walk-off, grand slam homer, his third long ball of the season. The win was Baltimore's 17th straight extra-innings triumph.

The Orioles took the home series, two games to one, over the Rays, leaving Baltimore at 8-7, two games behind the Red Sox in the AL East. Tampa Bay dropped to 5-10, six games out, in last place.

National League

Todd Frazier

By all appearances, the 3-13 Miami Marlins are the worst team in the majors, on pace to lose 130 games, and, while that number is probably a stretch, they look like sure 100-game losers, especially after the 11-1 beat-down by Cincinnati Thursday night.

Miami tied the game at 1-1 in the top of the fourth, but their pitching staff allowed four runs in the bottom of the frame, four more in the fifth and two in the sixth, completing the rout.

Third baseman Todd Frazier scored three times in the fray, reaching on a walk and scoring on a sac fly in the fourth, singling and scoring in the fifth and finally, belting his fifth home run of the season in the sixth inning with one aboard to complete Cincinnati's scoring barrage for their fourth straight win.

Frazier is batting .298 with 14 RBI thus far and should add to his totals shortly. The Reds have a clear path to first place in the NL Central with three more home games against the Marlins over the weekend. Cincinnati trails the Cardinals in the division by 1/2 game.

The Cardinals topped Philadelphia, 4-3, on Thursday, and have three more games with the Phillies through the weekend.