Julio Teheran, Nick Markakis Lead Braves In 13-0 Rout Of Washington; Alex Cobb Tames Red Sox; Rays Win 1-0

Players of the Day for Saturday, July 8, 2017

American League

Cobb stymies Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox might have recently pulled away from the rest of the teams in the AL East, but, thanks to a trip to Tampa, they're not expanding their lead in the division. On Saturday, the Rays took the measure of Boston, 1-0, as Alex Cobb tossed a scoreless 7 2/3 innings for his seventh win against six losses. All the other teams in the division also were winners on the day, including the Yankees, who enjoyed a three-run, bottom of the ninth inning homer by Clint Frazier to secure their 5-3 win over Milwaukee.

In the Tampa game, Cobb was touched for just two hits, but they were harmless two-out singles in the first and third innings. After that, he put down 11 straight Red Sox batters, until Mitch Moreland reached on an error in the seventh. Cobb got through that inning and worked into the eighth, leaving with a man aboard on the only walk he allowed - to Sonny Leon - with two down in the frame.

Alex Colome came on and retired the next batter, but ran into trouble in the ninth, eventually putting two on before getting Hanley Ramirez on strikes, then intentionally loading the bases to get Chris Young on a pop up for the final out and his 24th save.

Cobb threw 111 pitches, walked one and struck out three, lowering his ERA to a respectable 3.75 in the process.

Tampa's victory moved them closer to the Red Sox and on pace with the Yankees. Boston leads New York by 3 1/2 and Tampa by 4 1/2 in the hotly-contested division.

Now that Tampa Bay has taken two of the first three in the series, the Red Sox and Rays will take the field for game four at Tropicana Field, 1:10 pm ET. All teams break for the all-star game following Sunday's contests.

National League

While having possibly convinced many baseball reporters and writers that they are the best team in the NL East, the Atlantas Braves are not convinced that the Washington Nationals are so far superior in the division.

Markakis: 3-4, 4R, 2RBI

The Braves hammered the Nats, 13-0, Saturday at Nationals Park, taking a 2-1 edge in their four-game series.

Teheran: 7IP, 0ER, 2-2, 3RBI

While Julio Teheran, Rex Brothers, and Akeel Morris were keeping the Nationals off the base paths and the scoreboard, Braves batters were lighting up Stephen Strasburg and the Washington relief staff for 15 hits. Strasburg lasted only three innings, allowing six runs (three earned) on seven hits and a pair of walks. He did not strike out a single batter.

Nick Markakis had a field day, going 3-for-5 with a single, double and a solo home run, driving in two, scoring four times. The Braves right fielder seemed to be always on base, scoring in the second, third, seventh and ninth. His home run was in the seventh inning, his fourth of the season.

Teheran also pitched in at the plate, going 2-for-2 with three RBI. He worked seven scoreless innings, giving up four hits and two walks, fanning five. His record stands at 7-6.

With the win, Atlanta moved a game closer to the Nationals who now lead Atlanta by 8 1/2. With the all-star break following Sunday's games, the Braves will be looking to creep a little closer when the teams take the field at 1:35 pm ET.

Alex Cobb, Desmond Jennings Launch Rays into Divisional Playoffs with 4-0 Win at Cleveland

Players of the Day for Wednesday, October 2, 2013

American League

Alex Cobb

The Tampa Bay road show keeps rolling along.

After winning at Texas, 5-2, Monday night, in a tie-breaker for a wild card spot, the Rays headed to Cleveland to face the Indians, winners of 10 straight down the stretch and owners of the top wild card spot, thus the home field edge.

Desmond Jennings

Though the overflow crowd (43,579) of Cleveland fans had other ideas, it didn't take the Rays long to establish themselves as a playoff darling. Starter Alex Cobb kept the Indians off the scoreboard and Delmon Young cracked a third-inning, solo homer to put the Rays up a run.

In the fourth, Desmond Jennings made it a 3-0 game driving in a pair of runs with a two-out double to left, scoring James Loney and Evan Longoria.

Cobb continued to work out of trouble, thwarting the Indians' attempts to get back into the game, leaving Cleveland with the bases loaded in the fourth inning and stranding runners on second and third in the fifth, after the Indians had players on first and third with no outs.

Cobb worked into the seventh, leaving runners on first and second with two down for reliever Joel Peralta, who got Nick Swisher swinging on strike three to end the inning. Cobb won his first post-season start, scattering eight hits over 6 2/3 innings, walking one and fanning five.

Jennings finished 2-for-3 with two RBI. The Rays tacked on a run in the top of the ninth when Yunel Escobar singled home Ben Zobrist.

Closer, Fernando Rodney, struck out two and didn't allow a baserunner in the ninth, a non-save situation, for the 4-0 victory.

With the win, the Rays earned the right to continue traveling on to Boston, where they will open the best-of-five divisional series with the Red Sox on Friday.

National League

There were no games in the National League on Wednesday.

Best-of-five divisional series begin Thursday. Pittsburgh is at St. Louis beginning at 5:07 pm EDT, with A. J. Burnett facing Cardinals' ace, Adam Wainwright.

The LA Dodgers play at Atlanta, first pitch slated for 8:37 pm EDT. LA's Clayton Kershaw opposes the Braves' Kris Medlen. Both games will be broadcast by TBS.

Today's Trivia: What National League team fielded five rookies of the year in a row in the 1990s? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Ryan Howard was NL rookie of the year in 2005 and won the MVP award in 2006. Boston's Dustin Pedroia was the 2007 AL rookie of the year and league MVP in 2008.

Alex Cobb Shuts Down Yankees in 4-0 Tampa Win; Jason Heyward 5-for-5 as Braves Tie Cards for Best NL Record

Players of the Day for Thursday, September 26, 2013

American League

Alex Cobb stymied the Yankees on three hits over seven scoreless innings as the Rays completed their sweep of the Yankees with a 4-0 victory, Tampa's seventh in a row.

Efficient, throwing 61 of 96 pitches for strikes, Cobb improved to 11-3, walking two and striking out four. Evan Longoria went 3-for-4 and drove in three of Tampa's runs, the other coming off the bat of Delmon Young, who hit a solo shot in the seventh inning off Yankee starter, Ivan Nova.

Alex Cobb

Joel Peralta and Jake McGee finished up, pitching perfect eight and ninth innings, respectively.

It was an emotional night for Mariano Rivera, who set down four batters in order between the eighth and ninth innings in his final appearance at Yankee Stadium. Manager Jo Girardi pulled him with two out in the ninth so that the crowd could deliver one final standing ovation to a Yankee favorite.

The Rays remained a game ahead of Cleveland and in position for the first wild card, which would give them home field for the one-game playoff. The Indians and Rangers also were winners Thursday, with the Rangers a game behind Cleveland with just three games left to play.

The Rays close out the regular season with three games at Toronto, while Texas finishes at home against the Angels and Cleveland plays their final three in Minnesota.

AL Wild Card Standings (through 9/26)

Team	GB
Tampa Bay	+1
Cleveland	--
Texas	-1

National League

Heyward: 5-for-5

With the three playoff entrants from the Central division - St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati - all getting a day off, there was no change in the division or wild card races.

Atlanta, however, tied St. Louis for the best record in the league with a 7-1 win over the Phillies in the first game of their season-ending, four-game series. The Braves and Cardinals have identical 95-69 records with three games remaining.

Jason Heyward had a big night for the Braves, going 5-for-5 with three doubles, a single and a solo home run. Heyward drove in one and scored twice as the Braves scored all seven runs in the first two innings.

The Cardinals close out the regular season at home, hosting the Cubs for three games, while the Reds and Pirates face each other for the final three games, in Cincinnati.

Today's Trivia: Nolan Ryan led the AL in strikeouts seven times in the eight seasons from 1972 to 1979. In 1975 his streak was interrupted by a teammate. Who was it? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Sandy Koufax struck out 382 batters in 1965, pitching for the LA Dodgers.

Rays Win as Alex Cobb Blank Yanks; Jordany Valdespin Slams Dodgers in 10th for Mets' Victory

Players of the Day for Wednesday, April 24, 2013

American League

Alex Cobb

Tampa Bay took another step toward being a .500 ball club with a 3-0 win over the visiting Yankees Wednesday night, earning a 2-1 split in their three game series.

The Rays put up two runs in the fifth and another in the sixth inning off losing pitcher, Andy Pettitte, who was out-dueled by Tampa's Alex Cobb, who improved to 3-1 on the season, keeping the Yanks under wraps on three hits over 8 1/3 innings.

Cobb allowed just one baserunner from the third through eighth innings, threw 72 of 106 pitches for strikes, walked just one batter and fanned seven.

After allowing a one-out single in the ninth to Brett Gardner, Cobb handed the ball over to Fernando Rodney, who picked up his third save of the season, a night after blowing a chance in a 5-4 Yankees win.

The Rays improved their record to 10-11, but remain four game behind Boston in the East. The Yankees are 2 1/2 out; Baltimore holds second place, two games back of Boston.

National League

Jordany Valdespin

Evening their series with the Dodgers at a game apiece with a 7-3 win, the Mets continue to battle in the contentious NL East, staying in second place, four games behind the Braves.

Victory was anything but assured for the Mets, who trailed the Dodgers 3-1 in the sixth inning after Mett Kemp launched a two-run homer, his first of the season, but responded with a run in the bottom of the frame and tied the game at 3-all on David Wright's run-scoring single in the bottom of the ninth.

An inning later, Jordany Valdespin, who entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning with two down and Marlon Byrd on third but grounded out to end the inning, reappeared with the bases loaded after staying in the game in center field.

This time, Valdespin did not disappoint, scorching his first home run of the season, a grand slam, walk-off finishing touch.

The Mets and Dodgers will settle up in the series finale, Thursday at 1:10 pm at Cit Field.

David Freese, Matt Holliday Lead Cards to Sweep of Astros; Rays Win 5-0 Over A's on Alex Cobb Shutout

Players of the Day for Thursday, August 23, 2012

American League

Tampa Bay just keeps on winning, getting their 14th victory in the last 17 games, courtesy of a four-hit shutout by Alex Cobb - the first shutout of his career - in a 5-0 blanking of the Oakland A's.

Cobb: 4-hit shutout

Cobb struck out eight, walked a pair and didn't allow any runners past second base, throwing 79 of 113 pitches for strikes while getting two double plays from his infield.

Cobb evened his record at 8-8 with his second career complete game, both of them coming this season.

The Rays scored all of their runs in the fifth inning and Cobb continued mowing down A's, as the Rays reached to within 2 1/2 games of the idle Yankees in the AL East, the closest they've been since June 16.

New York, which opens a thee game series at Cleveland Friday, has dropped three straight and five of their last seven.

The Rays opened home series with a win and hope to keep winning when they host the A's Friday and Saturday, followed by a rare Sunday day off.


National League

Matt Holliday

Heating up at the right time, the St. Louis Cardinals won their third straight, sweeping the Houston Astros with a 13-5 trouncing in the series finale Thursday.

David Freese

MVP of last season's World Series, David Freese drove in four runs with a three-run homer and a pair of singles in four at-bats. Matt Holliday also drove in four with a bases-loaded double in the fifth inning and an RBI single in the eighth.

Having taken over second place from the Pirates, St. Louis trails Central division leader, Cincinnati, by seven games, but is in line for the second wild card spot, trailing wild card leader Atlanta by 2 1/2 games.

The Cards begin a tough stretch on Friday, with three games at Cincinnati, three at Pittsburgh, and finally finish the 10-game road trip with four at Washington.