Nicholas Castellanos Leads Tigers Over Pirates, 13-10; Matt Adams Drives In Six As Nationals Crush Giants, 15-2

Players of the Day for Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Castellanos: 4-5, HR, 4RBI

American League

Francisco Cervelli drove in six runs for the Pirates, but, in Detroit's 13-10 victory at Pittsburgh, the top of the Tiger lineup decimated Pittsburgh pitching, with the first four batters a combined 13-for-23. Miguel Cabrera had three doubles and a single in six at-bats, but Nicholas Castellanos had the most productive outing, going 4-for-5, including a two-out, two-run homer that unknotted a 6-6 tie and put the Tigers in the lead for good.

Castellanos, a proven power hitter with 26 HRs and 101 RBI last season for the Tigers, has cut down his swing a bit in order to limit his strikeouts (142 last season), and it seems to be working, as he's batting .333 (30-for-90) and has fanned only 17 times this year.

The Tigers continue to plug along in the AL Central, chasing the Indians. At 13-9, Cleveland is the only team in the division above .500, at 13-9. The Tigers are in second place after dropping the second game of their double-header against the Pirates, 8-3, three games out with a 10-12 mark.

Detroit will finish out their three-game series in Pittsburgh with game three scheduled for 12:35 pm EDT on Thursday.

National League

Max Scherzer went to the mound for the Nationals in game three of their series at San Francisco, looking to avoid being swept after the Giants won the first two games, 4-2, and 4-3. Scherzer would give Washington a solid outing, meaning that the Nats probably wouldn't need to score many runs.

Adams: 3-5, HR, 6 RBI

Matt Adams made sure they had plenty as the Nationals posted a 15-2 crusher, hammering Giants' starter, Jeff Samardzija and four relievers for 18 hits.

Off to a horribly slow start (37 AB, 2 HR, 4 RBI) after being plucked from the Braves in the off-season, Adams exploded for six RBI, with a single, double and home run in five at-bats.

Getting the Nationals off to a fast start, Adams singled in a run and scored in the first inning as Washington put up three, more than enough for the capable Scherzer, who improved to 5-1, striking out 10.

Adams scocked a three-run homer in the fourth and completed the scoring with a two-run double in the eighth.

Even with the win, the Nationals find themselves still looking up at NL East rivals. The Mets lead the division by a 1/2-game over the Phillies, with Atlanta 2 1/2 back. At 11-14, Washington is 5 1/2 out.

The Nationals get a travel day Thursday, prior to opening a series at home against the Braves on Friday, 7:05 pm EDT.