Michael Cuddyer Leads Rockies over Giants in Tight NL West; Anibal Sanchez Hurls One-Hitter as Tigers Take AL Central Lead

Players of the Day for Friday, May 24, 2013

American League

Sanchez: 1-hitter

Joe Mauer can do a lot of things with a bat, but Tiger pitcher, Anibal Sanchez, probably wishes he hadn't been in the lineup Friday night when the Twins played the second of their four-game series in Detroit.

That's because, other than Mauer's one out single in the ninth inning, no other Twin was able to touch Sanchez in Detroit's 6-0 victory. Sanchez fanned 12, walked three and gave up just Mauer's one hit as the Tigers rolled to the top of the standings in the AL Central, 1/2 game up on Cleveland, thanks to Boston's 8-1 win over the Indians.

At 5-4, Sanchez has been a stoic performer for the Tigers after arriving in midseason from the Marlins. His 12 Ks on the night were good enough to get him to second in the AL in strikeouts, with 80, trailing Texas' Yu Darvish (91), but wasn't his best effort of the year. That was back on April 26, when he fanned 17 Braves over eight innings. His 2.38 ERA is fifth-best in the league. Friday's outing was Sanchez's first shutout and complete game of the season.

The Tigers continue their series with the Twins Saturday at 4:08 pm EDT.

National League

Michael Cuddyer

Tyler Chatwood threw six innings of shutout ball and Michael Cuddyer drove in three runs as the Rockies broke up a three-way tie for first place in the NL West with a 5-0 win at San Francisco.

With Arizona taking a 5-2 win over the Padres, the Rockies remained tied with the Diamondbacks in the division, with the Giants dropping one game back.

Chatwood gave up four hits as the Colorado starter, giving way to a parade of three relievers who kept the Giants in check through the final three innings.

Cuddyer socked his eighth homer of the season in the sixth inning of San Francisco starter, Tim Lincecum (3-4), who fanned eight but allowed four runs on seven hits over seven innings.

Victimizing Lincecum in the first inning, Cuddyer got the Rockies on the board with a two-out double, his 2-for-4 performance raising his batting average to .325.

The Rockies have won three straight and will go for their second straight over the Giants when they play the second in their three-game series Saturday at 4:05 pm EDT.

Today's Trivia: In 2012, only one National League player - a shortstop - played in all 162 games. Who was this modern-day iron man?

Yesterday's Answer: Jose Reyes led the majors in 2005, 2006, and 2008 with 17, 17 and 19 triples, respectively, and tied Shane Victorino for the major league lead with 16 in 2011.