Mike Fiers Fires No-Hitter for Houston Astros; Ben Revere 4-for-5 as Blue Jays Close In On Yankees

Players of the Day for Friday, August 21, 2015

American League

Revere: 4-for-5

Fiers: No-Hitter

Toronto closed to within 1/2 game of the AL East-leading Yankees with a 9-2 win over the Angels Friday night in Los Angeles.

Ben Revere, a recent addition to the already-stoked Blue Jay lineup, went 4-for-5, scored twice and drove in a run to pace Toronto in the first of three-game set against the Angels.

Getting off to a fast start with four runs in the first inning, the Blue Jays kept adding to their advantage while starting pitcher, David Price, mowed down the opposition, allowing two runs on six hits over eight innings, fanning nine.

Earlier, the Yankees lost a 7-3 game at Yankee Stadium, allowing the Jays to gain in the standings.

Game two of the pivotal series for both teams is Saturday at 9:05 pm EDT.

National League

A day after being one-hit by Tampa Bay's Chris Archer, the Houston Astros got an even better performance by one of their own, as Mike Fiers, acquired from Milwaukee prior to the trade deadline, tossed the fifth no-hitter of the season, in a 3-0 Houston win.

The victory was the first for Fiers in a Houston uniform. his previous two starts for the Astros were solid, allowing 10 hits and just one earned run in 12 innings, but he received no decision in either of those games.

Friday night's gem yielded a different result, as he went the distance, throwing 88 of 134 pitches for strikes, getting his first career complete game, shutout and no-hitter.

Astros' right fielder Jake Marisnick staked Fiers to a lead early, socking a second-inning, two-run homer. Fiers made it stand up, striking out 10 and walking three, retiring the last 21 batters in a row after issuing walks in each of the first three innings.

On the season, between Milwaukee and Houston, Fiers is 6-9, with a 3.63 ERA.

The Houston win left them 3 1/2 games up on the Angels in the AL West after LA dropped a 9-2 decision to the Blue Jays. The Dodgers saw their NL West lead shrink to a mere game-and-a-half as the Giants dropped Pittsburgh, 6-4.

Game two of the three-game series between Houston and the Dodgers is Saturday at 7:10 pm EDT.