ALDS: Didi Gregorius Slams Twins in Yankee Romp; Gerrit Cole Fans 15 in Houston Victory

Players of the Day for Saturday, October 5, 2019

Gregorious socks slam

American League

NY Yankees 8 Minnesota Twins 2

Didi Gregorius socked a third inning grand slam as the Yankees erupted for seven runs in the frame and never looked back, taking a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Masahiro Tanaka struck out seven over five innings of work, earning the win. Tanaka allowed three hits and one earned run.

With the win, New York is one game away from sweeping the Twins, champions of the AL Central division. The series resumes Monday in Minnesota.

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Houston Astros 3 Tampa Bay Rays 1

Cole: 15 Ks

Gerrit Cole fanned 15, dominating the Tampa Bay Rays over 7 2/3 innings, leading the Astros to their second straight post-season victory.

Cole gave up four hits, blanking Tampa until he was lifted with two down in the eighth inning after allowing a Kevin Kiermaier double and a walk to Willy Adames. Roberto Osuna struck out Yandy Diaz to end the threat.

Alex Bregman ripped a solo homer leading off the fourth to give Houston a 1-0 lead. RBI singles by Martin Maldonado in the seventh and Carlos Correa in the eighth padded the Astros' lead.

The Rays loaded the bases after scoring a run in the top of the ninth, but Will Harris struck out Travis d'Arnaud and got Kiermaier on a ground out to first.

The teams travel to Tampa Bay on Sunday, the series resuming Monday. Houston can move on to the AL Championship Series with a win.


National League

There were no National League games on Saturday. NLDS continues Sunday. St. Louis hosts Atlanta at 4:05 pm ET; Washington hosts the LA Dodgers at 7:45 pm ET. Both series are tied 1-1.

ALDS: Verlander Leads Astros, LeMahieu Powers Yanks; NLDS: Foltynewicz Hurls Braves to Win, Strasberg Solid for Dodgers

Players of the Day for Friday, October 4, 2019

American League

LeMaheiu powers Yanks

The New York Yankees opened their best-of-five divisional series against Minnesota at home with a bang, most of the noise provided by leadoff hitter DJ LeMahieu, who was 3-for-5 with two runs and four RBI in the Yankees' 10-4 triumph.

With his team down 2-0 in the third, LeMahieu, who was second in batting in the AL regular season with a .327 average, singled, and scored on Edwin Encarnacion's double. The Yankees would tally twice more in the frame and never look back. LeMahieu socked a solo home run in the sixth inning and ripped a bases-loaded double in the seventh, plating all three and completing the Yankees' scoring.

Game two of the series is Saturday at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

Verlander wins Game 1

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Justin Verlander got the ball for game one of the Astros' divisional series against the Rays and he did with it what he's been known for throughout his career, blanking Tampa Bay on one hit over seven innings in a dominant performance, fueling a 6-2 Houston win.

Verlander didn't allow a hit until the fifth inning, and struck out the side in the seventh to complete his day's work. He fanned eight and walked three. Verlander led the majors with a 21-6 record over the regular season. He and teammate Gerrit Cole are leading candidates for the AL Cy Young award.

The series picks up with game two in Houston on Saturday.

Foltynewicz leads Braves

National League

Atlanta tied its division series with St. Louis via a strong pitching performance from Mike Foltynewicz in a 3-0 game two victory.

The Braves scored a run in the bottom of the first and added two more on Adam Duvall's two-run pinch hit homer in the seventh.

Tied 1-1, the best-of-five series resumes Sunday in St. Louis.

Strasburg fans 10

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Evening their series in Los Angeles at a game apiece, Stephen Strasburg out-pitched LA starter, Clayton Kershaw, hurling the Washington Nationals to a 4-2 win over the Dodgers.

Strasberg allowed just one earned run on three hits over six innings, fanning 10. The Nationals scratched out a run in the first inning and two in the second off Kershaw, who was lifted in the sixth inning.

The Dodgers and Nationals resume their series in Washington on Sunday.

Aaron Judge Homers, Sends Yankees To ALDS Vs. Red Sox

Players of the Day for Wednesday, October 3, 2018

American League

Judge: HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI

Aaron Judge socked a two-run homer in the first inning and Luis Severino and the Yankee bullpen made it stand up as the Yankees downed the Oakland A's, 7-2, in the AL Wild Card game.

Judge, who was sidelined with a broken wrist much of the second half of the season, lifted a 2-1 pitch from Oakland's Liam Hendriks 427 feet into the left field stands. Andrew McCutchen, who walked to lead off the inning, was on first base when Judge set off his blast. Judge finished the game 2-for-3, adding a double and scoring in the sixth inning when the Yankees tacked on four more runs.

Severino only lasted into the fifth, but he didn't allow a hit through the first four, pitching out of a bases-loaded jam on an error and two walks in the fourth, the Yankee ace gave up two singles in the fifth before getting any outs and was replaced by Dellin Betances, who got the win, throwing two hitless, scoreless innings.

The Athletics finally struck in the eighth on a two-run homer by Khris Davis, but by then the Yankees had built the lead to six runs. Giancarlo Stanton finished the scoring with his first post-season home run, a solo shot in the Yankee eighth.

Boston, which finished the regular season with the best record in the majors (108-54), awaits their arch-rival in the division series which begins Friday at Fenway Park. Game time is 7:32 pm ET. Houston hosts Cleveland in the other division series. Game one is Friday at 2:05 pm ET.

National League

There were no games in the National League on Wednesday.

The NL division series starts Thursday. The Colorado Rockies play at Milwaukee (5:07 pm ET) and Atlanta is at Los Angeles (8:37 pm ET).

Cubs Advance to NLCS on Javier Baez Blast; Jose Bautista Leads Blue Jays over Rangers; Toronto to Meet Royals in ALCS

Players of the Day for Tuesday, October 13 and Wednesday, October 14, 2015

American League

Bautista Sends Jays to ALCS

A pair of game fives took place Wednesday in the ALDS, with Toronto moving on past the Texas Rangers, 6-3, and the Royals disposing of the pesky Astros, 7-2.

In Toronto, Jose Bautista had he game-winner, stroking a three-run blast in the seventh which broke open a 3-3 tie.

The Royals advanced to their second straight ALCS, riding the two-hit pitching of Johnny Cueto to the victory. Cueto's only mistake was a second-inning homer with a man aboard to Luis Valbeuna. The Royals hung in, took the lead in the fifth inning and polished off the Astros with three more in the eighth.

The Royals host Toronto in game one of the AL Championship series, which gets underway Friday, October 16.

National League

Baez puts Cubs in NLCS

The Mets and Dodgers will go to a decisive game five after LA came back to take game four in New York, 3-1. Game five is slated for an 8:00 pm ET start on Thursday in Los Angeles. Zack Greinke goes to the hill for the Dodgers, while the Mets will start Jacob DeGrom.

In Chicago, the Cubs took down the Cardinals, the team with the best regular season record, 6-4, advancing to the NL Championship.

The Cubs continued to employ the long ball as their major force, socking three home runs in the clincher against St. Louis, the unlikely hero of the game, shortstop Javier Baez, who unloaded for a three-run homer in the second inning off Cardinal starter, John Lackey. Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber also homered for the Cubs.

deGrom Fans 13 as Mets Take Down Dodgers in Game One; Ben Zobrist, Royals Rally Past Astros

Players of the Day for Friday, October 9, 2015

American League

Zobrist: game-winning RBI

Al Playoffs continued on Friday with two games in the ALDS. In the early game, it took the Texas Rangers 14 innings, but they finally defeated the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-4, taking a two games to zero edge back home to Arlington for game three on Sunday.

The later game saw a rally by the Royals erase a 4-2 Houston lead with two runs in the sixth and another in the seventh for a 5-4 victory as KC's relief star held off the Astros in the final innings.

Ben Zobrist (2-for-4) had the key hit in the seventh inning, driving in Yunel Escobar with the game-winning run with a sharp single to left center.

After Johnny Cueto was touched up for four early runs, he settled down and blanked the Astros through the fourth, fifth and sixth before Kelvin Herrera, Ryan Madsen and Wade Davis kept Houston off the basepaths on one hit over the final three innings. KC and Houston are tied a game apiece with the series heading to Houston for game three on Sunday.

deGrom: 7IP, 0ER, 13K

National League

A pair of NL divisional series began on Friday, with the Cardinals putting a stop to the Cubs in a big way, blanking Chicago, 4-0, behind seven scoreless innings from John Lackey, who allowed two hits, fanned five and issued one walk. Trevor Rosenthal allowed a walk and a hit in the ninth, but picked up the save, giving St. Louis a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Game two is Saturday at 5:30 pm ET in St. Louis.

The final game of the evening was a pitching matchup between there-time Cy Young Award winner, Clayton Kershaw and up-and-coming Mets' starter, Jacob deGrom, the victory going to the visiting New Yorkers as deGrom tossed seven scoreless innings, allowing five hits and a walk, fanning 13 for a 3-1 Mets' win.

DeGrom got support on a fourth-inning solo homer from Daniel Murphy and a single that delivered two runs off the bat of David Wright in the seventh. The Dodgers picked up a run in the eighth on a single by Adrian Gonzalez (who struck out three times versus deGrom), but the rally was stifled by Jeurys Familia who worked four outs for the save.

Game two of the series is slated for a 9:00 pm ET start in Los Angeles.

Jose Altuve Leads Astros to Game 1 Win at Royals; Rangers Down Toronto in ALDS

Players of the Day for Thursday, October 8, 2015

American League

Altus Leads Astros

The ALDS opened Thursday with a pair of games in which home field provided no advantage. In the early game, the Texas Rangers took care of Toronto and David Price, getting five runs in seven innings off the Blue Jay ace for a 5-3 win.

The evening match-up of Houston at Kansas City has a similar result as the visitors took Game 1, 5-2, as Astros' leadoff hitter, Jose Altuve ignited Houston, going 3-for-5, scoring once and driving in another run. His single to start the game resulted in a 1-0 lead when Colby Rasmus delivered him from third on a ground out, then, in the second inning, Altuve drove in a run with a scratch single to right for a 3-0 lead.

Kendrys Morales socked a pair of solo homers to get the score to 3-2, but solo homers by Springer and Rasmus, in the fifth and eighth, respectively, put the game away as the Houston relief corps kept the Royals in check the final three innings.

Game two of the Rangers-Blue Jay series is scheduled for Friday at 12:45 pm ET; the series in KC continues at 3:45 pm ET.

National League

There were no National League games on Thursday. The NLDS begins Friday with the Chicago Cubs at St.Louis Cardinals at 6:45 PM ET and the Mets at Dodgers at 9:45 pm ET.

Shane Victorino Leads Red Sox in 12-2 Win over Rays; Rookie Hurler Gerrit Cole Stuffs Cardinals in 7-1 Pirate Victory

Players of the Day for Friday, October 4, 2013

American League

Banging out 14 hits, the Boston Red Sox stopped the Tampa Bay road show at Fenway Park with a 12-2 win in the opening game of their best-of-five divisional series.

Victorino: 3-for-4

The Rays had won in Texas on Monday to get into the playoffs and then handled Cleveland on Wednesday night, taking claim of the wild card playoff, but the party ended in the bottom of the fourth when the Red Sox plated five runs after Tampa had taken an early 2-0 lead. The Sox tacked on three more in the fifth and four more runs in the eighth, turning the game into a romp for the team which finished with the best record in the AL.

All nine Red Sox batters had at least one hit; Shane Victorino had three, all singles, in four at-bats, with two RBI, a stolen base and a run scored. Boston didn't have any home runs. Nine of their 14 hits were singles; Tampa Bay pitchers issued five walks. Jon Lester took the win, going 7 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on just three hits, and three walks, whiffing seven Rays batters.

Game two is Saturday at Fenway, 5:37 pm EDT.

In the other AL divisional series, the Tigers got off to a good start by taking game one at Oakland by a 3-2 score. Max Scherzer got the win, striking out 11 over seven innings, walking two and allowing two runs on three hits. Game two is Saturday at 9:07 pm EDT.

National League

Gerrit Cole

Rookie hurler, Gerrit Cole, limited the St. Louis Cardinals to just two hits - one of them a fifth-inning, solo homer by Yadier Molina - over six innings, as the Pittsburgh Pirates evened the divisional series at a game apiece with a 7-1 victory at Bush Stadium.

Cole, who was 10-7 during the regular season and making his first post-season start, stymied the Cardinals throughout his six frames. After Carlos Beltran doubled with one out in the first inning, Cole set down the next 11 consecutive batters, retiring the side in order in the second, third and fourth innings. Molina's homer led off the fifth, but Cole got the next three batters and retired after an uneventful walk to Matt Carpenter in the sixth.

Manager Clint Hurdle made the move in the top of the seventh, pinch-hitting for Cole with a 6-1 lead. Three Pittsburgh relievers mopped up, each throwing a scoreless inning.

Tied at 1-1, the series moves to Pittsburgh on Sunday. Game time is 4:37 pm EDT.

Hanley Ramirez drove in all of the runs for the Dodgers, but he could have used some help as the Braves tied the series with Los Angeles at a game apiece with a 4-3 win at Turner Field in Atlanta. Mike Minor got the win for Atlanta, scattering eight hits over 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run. The series shifts to Los Angeles on Sunday at 5:07 pm PDT.

Today's Trivia: The Amazin' Mets, who captured the 1969 World Series, fielded two players who had won rookie of the year awards. Who were they? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: The three prior rookies of the year on the 1977 Yankees were Lou Pineilla (1969, KC), Thurman Munson (1970, Yankees), and Chris Chambliss (1971, Cleveland).