Alfonso Soriano Belts Two Homers, Leading Yankees over O's; Michael Cuddyer Ties for NL Batting Lead as Rockies Stun Giants

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 10, 2013

American League

Alfonso Soriano

The Yankees knotted their series with Baltimore at a game apiece when Alfonso Soriano cranked a couple of home runs, leading to a 7-5 victory Tuesday night.

After Chris Davis launched his 49th of the year to give Baltimore a 4-1 advantage, Soriano hit the first of his two homers, a solo shot, cutting the lead to two runs.

In the eighth, after Robinson Cano singled home Alex Rodriguez to tie the game at 4-4, Soriano mashed his second of the game, putting the Yankees ahead for good, with a 6-4 lead.

Acquired from the Cubs prior to the July 31 trading deadline, Soriano has been a firebrand for the Yankees, hitting 15 homers with 47 RBI in 43 games. Including his stats with the Cubs, he has 32 home runs and 98 RBI on the year.

The win moved New York closer in the chase for the second wild card position, as Tampa Bay lost, 2-0, to Boston. The Yankees are two games out, while Baltimore and Cleveland are tied, 1 1/2 back of the Rays. Boston, meantime, has surged to an 8 1/2 game lead in the division, their magic number to clinch the title at 10.

The Orioles host New York in game three of their four-game set Wednesday night at 7:05 pm EDT.

National League

Michael Cuddyer is having one heck of a season at the plate for the Colorado Rockies. Unfortunately, the rest of the team is not enjoying the same success, mired near the bottom of the NL West with a 67-79 record, 19 games behind the LA Dodgers, who are streaking toward the playoffs.

Michael Cuddyer

Cuddyer socked his 19th and 20th home run of the season and added a single in five at-bats, raising his batting average to .330 and tying Atlanta's Chris Johnson for the NL batting lead. He drove in four runs and scored twice as the Rockies bumped off the Giants, 9-8, rallying from a 6-0 deficit.

Cuddyer's first homer came in the fifth inning, after the Rockies had already plated two runs. His three-run shot put Colorado down by a run, at 6-5. The two teams traded leads, eventually ending up in an 8-8 ties when Hunter Pence drove in a pari of runs for the Giants in the eighth, but Cuddyer provided the game-winner in the top of the ninth, a 427-foot bomb to left with the bases empty.

The Rockies and Giants will settle their differences in the series finale Wednesday afternoon at 3:45 pm EDT at San Francisco's AT&T Park.

Magic Numbers: The Dodgers need a combination of six wins or six Arizona losses to clinch the NL West, while the Braves knocked their magic number to clinch the East division down to seven with a 4-3 win over Miami. The Braves lead Washington by 12 games.

Today's Trivia: Who won more home run titles, Barry Bonds or Mike Schmidt? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Barry Bonds had 601 doubles in his major league career, compared to 401 for Mike Schmidt.

Alfonso Soriano Drives in Seven as Yankees Crush Angels; Pirates Down Cardinals on Francisco Liriano's Complete Game

Players of the Day for Wednesday, August 14, 2013

American League

Soriano: 2HR, 7RBI

The Yankees have been hampered by injuries this season, but to say that Jared Weaver and the LA Angels are having a rough year would be putting it lightly.

Weaver (6-7, 3.49) and the Angels were blown out by the Yankees, 11-3, as Alfonso Soriano and his teammates torched the LA starter for eight runs in the first two innings.

Soriano was 3-for-3, with two homers a double and seven RBI. After a first inning grand slam put the Yankees up 4-0, Soriano doubled in a pair of runs in the second inning as the Yanks plated four more. In the fifth, Soriano launched a solo shot for RBI number seven and in the seventh, the Angels wisely walked him, though he did come around to score on Chris Stewart's double.

The win was the fourth straight for the Yankees and third straight over the visiting Angels, now 16 games behind Texas in the AL West and hopelessly out of playoff contention. New York will try to finish off the series sweep Thursday at 1:05 pm EDT at Yankee Stadium.

National League

Liriano: CG, 4H, 1ER

After handing the Pirates their fourth straight loss and drawing to within two games of the NL Central leaders, the St. Louis Cardinals thought they might have Pittsburgh on the ropes before game two of their three-game series in the gateway city.

Enter Francisco Liriano to put an end to the speculation that the Pirates were about to fold.

With a complete game four-hitter, Liriano won for the eighth time in his last ten starts, sending the Pirates back to a three-game lead in the division with a crucial 5-1 road win.

Staked to an early 5-0 lead, Liriano throttled the Cardinals over the first eight innings, holding them scoreless until the ninth, when Carlos Beltran cashed in Matt Carpenter's double with a ground out to third for the lone St. Louis run of the game.

Otherwise, Liriano (13-5, 2.68) was in complete control, fanning six and walking one, needing just 94 pitches for the complete game win, his second of the season.

The Pirates and Cardinals will complete their three-game series Thursday afternoon at 1:45 pm EDT.

Today's Trivia: Who led the National League in steals three straight years, from 2005 through 2007? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: KC's Dan Quisenberry led the AL in saves four straight years, from 1982 through 1985.

Yankees Trip Up Angels, 14-7 on Alfonso Soriano's Two Homers, Six RBI; Paul Goldschmidt's Two Homers Lead D'Backs over Orioles in 11

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 13, 2013

American League

On a day which saw six games go into extra innings, the New York Yankees needed only 8 1/2 to tear up the LA Angels, 14-7, taking the second straight in the four-game series in the Big Apple.

Alfonso Soriano

Alfonso Soriano, picked up from the Cubs by the Yankees, just prior to the trading deadline, provided the bulk of the offense, smashing a pair of home runs and a single in six at-bats. Soriano's first homer came in the fifth inning, his two-run blast turning a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 Yankee advantage, one they would not relinquish, as they put up four runs in the sixth, four more in the seventh and two in the eighth.

Soriano singled in another run in the sixth and scored on Alex Rodriguez's double, then launched a three-run shot in the seventh to give the Yanks a commanding, 12-3 lead.

Adding some punch and variety to the injury-riddled Yankee lineup, Soriano has 10 RBI in eight games in pinstripes this season. He was originally brought up to the majors by the Yankees in 1999 and played full time for the Bombers from 2001 to 2003.

Trailing the Red Sox by 9 1/2 in the AL East, New York is also 5 1/2 behind Tampa Bay for the final wild card spot. The series with the Angels continues Wednesday night at 7:05 pm EDT in the Bronx.

National League

Paul Goldschmidt

It was home run derby in Arizona's 4-3, 11th-inning win over visiting Baltimore Tuesday, all of the runs save one coming off long balls.

Baltimore's Chris Davis belted his major league-leading 44th of the year in the fourth inning, to put Baltimore up 2-0. An inning later, J.J. Hardy made it 3-0 with his 22nd of the season.

Arizona didn't respond until the seventh, when Martin Prado got a run in on a ground-out and Gerardo Parra homered to cut the Orioles' lead to one.

After that, Paul Goldschmidt took over, making his case for NL MVP by hitting a solo homer leading off the bottom of the ninth to tie the game, then winning it in walk-off fashion with another solo belt leading off the 11th inning.

Goldschmidt earlier had a single to go 3-for-5 on the night, raising his average to .297. His two homers moved him past Pittsburgh's Pedro Alvarez to the NL lead, with 29 on the season. Goldschmidt also leads the league in RBI, with 93.

The Diamondbacks need every win they can muster as they try to run down the Dodgers in the West. LA leads them by 7 1/2 games. Arizona is also 5 1/2 behind Cincinnati for the second wild card slot. The Orioles have lost two straight and find themselves in thrid place in the AL East, six games behind Boston and two games behind Tampa Bay for the last wild card. The AL Wild Card race has six teams all within 5 1/2 games of each other, vying for two spots.

Arizona has taken two straight from the O's and will be seeking the series sweep at 3:40 pm EDT on Wednesday.

Today's Trivia: Who led the AL in saves each season from 1982 to 1985? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: The major league record of 1252 games by a pitcher is held by Jesse Orosco, who played 24 seasons on eight different teams. Eight of them were with the Mets and five with the Orioles.

Andres Torres Leads Mets Past Cardinals; Alfonso Soriano Blasts a Pair for Cubs

Players of the Day for Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Grapefruit League

The Mets lost speedster and leadoff hitter Jose Reyes to free agency - he ended up in Miami - but they acquired former San Francisco center fielder Andres Torres in the off-season and he may just turn out to be a good fit.

Torres singled and tripled in three at-bats and drove in three runs to lead the Mets to an 8-6 decision over world champion St. Louis.

While he may not possess the Reyes' blazing basepath speed, Torres did manage to swipe 45 bases over the last two seasons with the Giants. The batting average will have to improve if Torres is to become a solid lineup leader. He hit just 221 in 112 games last season, with 95 strikeouts.

Cactus League

Alfonso Soriano

The Chicago Cubs have disappointed their fans for over a century, last winning the World Series in 1908 when they beat the Detroit Tigers for the second straight year.

Well, they're back to try it again, getting their first win of the Spring in three tries with an 11-4 win over Colorado on Tuesday. Alfonso Soriano appeared to have his swing in med-season form, doubling and socking a pair of homers in three at-bats, cashing three RBI and scoring three times.

Soriano, who has been with the Cubs since 2007, was sent from the Yankees to the Rangers after the 2003 season, spent two years there and a year in Washington before arriving in Chicago.

Always a dangerous hitter with extraordinary power in his 6'1" frame, Soriano has hit 20 or more home runs in ten consecutive seasons, his best being 2006 when he blasted 45 for the Nationals.

Teixeira Sets Switch-Hit Homer Mark; Soriano, Ramirez Lead 6-Homer Assault on Pirates

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 2, 2011

American League

Mark Teixeira

Mark Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate for the second time this season and for the 12th time as a major leaguer, breaking a record held by himself, Eddie Murray and Chili Davis as the Yankees beat the White Sox for the second straight day, 6-0, in a rain-shortened game that lasted just long enough for "Big Tex" to get swings from both sides of the plate.

In the 4th inning, Teixeira unloaded a right-handed, two-run blast off starter John Danks for his 30th of the season and belted his 31st, batting left-handed in the top of the 7th, he victimized reliever Jason Frasor for number 31.

His three RBI gave Teixeira 82 on the season. He trails Boston's Adrian Gonzalez (90) for the AL RBI lead.

The Yankees scored another run in the 7th to make the score 6-0, just before relentless rain came to Chicago and the game was made official. Phil Hughes worked all six innings for the Yankees, allowing just three hits, fanning four without issuing any bases on balls.

The win kept the Yankees within one game of top-dog Boston in the AL East. The two teams meet in a weekend series beginning Friday at Fenway.

National League

Aramis Ramirez

The Pittsburgh Pirates were the darlings of baseball just a few weeks ago, rising to the top of the scrambled NL Central after decades of frustration.

Pittsburgh's Cinderella story looks like it may not have a fairy tale ending as the Priates have slumped of late, losing 10 of their last 13 games and five straight, including their second straight loss to the Cubs, 11-6, on Tuesday.

Alfonso Soriano

Their loss kept them 5 1/2 games behind first-place Milwaukee in the division, as the Brewers dropped a 10 inning decision to the Cardinals, 6-5.

While the Cubs have been out of the division race since June, they managed to bang six homers off the Pittsburgh pitching staff, including two solo shots - numbers 18 and 19 - by Alfonso Soriano and a two-run blast from Aramis Ramirez, his 20th.

Ramirez also drove in two runs with a single in the first inning to give him 67 RBI on the year.

TIGHT RACES: As the season quietly turned to August, pennant races have heated up in all but one division, the NL East, where the Phillies hold an imposing 8-game lead over Atlanta, the largest bulge, by far, in any divisional race.

In the NL Central, the Brewers hold a 2 1/2 game lead over the Cardinals, with Pittsburgh still lurking, 5 1/2 out, and the Reds 6 1/2 down. The NL West is now a shoot-out between Arizona and San Francisco. Each team holds a share of first place with identical 61-49 records. Arizona knocked off the Giants for the second straight day, beating them 6-1, and will be looking to sweep the series on Wednesday.

In the American League, all three races are tight. Boston leads the Yankees by one game in the East, while the Tigers cling to a three-game lead over the Indians in the Central, with the White Sox 5 1/2 back and Minnesota running out of time, eight games down.

The Al West has turned into another showdown between the Angels and Rangers, with Texas holding a one-game edge in the division. The two teams meet up in LA for a four-game series, August 15-18.

Zaun Slam Tops Tays; Soriano Blasts 3 HR to End Cubs Slide

Players of the Day from Saturday, September 6, 2008 American League Gregg Zaun spent a long night as catcher in the Blue Jays game with the Rays, but when he stepped to the plate in the bottom of the 13th, he ended it with a bang - a grand slam home run that gave Toronto a 7-4 win over first place Tampa Bay. Zaun handled all 229 pitches from 9 different hurlers in the marathon. He singled twice prior to his game-winning slam, and finished the night 3-for-5 with 4 RBI. While the Jays win didn't change the standings, as the Red Sox lost and the Yankees won, Toronto kept the pressure on the Rays, who remained 2 1/2 ahead of Boston. The Blue Jays are 10 1/2 back, but only 1/2 behind the Yankees. Finishing in third place in the tough AL East would constitute a moral victory for the Blue Jays, who have won 7 straight. Notes: The White Sox got a big win when Jim Thome swatted his 30th home run of the season, a solo shot in the bottom of the 15th, producing a 7-6 win over the Angels and giving Chicago some breathing room in the AL Central. Minnesota lost to Detroit, 6-4, and now trail the Sox by 2 1/2. With Texas beating Boston, 13-8, the Angels' magic number remained at 5 in the West. National League The Cubs had lost 6 straight before Alfonso Soriano led Chicago to a 14-9 win at Cincinnati with three home runs and five RBI. Soriano added a single and scored another run n the 8th. His line was 5 at-bats, 4 hits, 4 runs and 5 RBI. Milwaukee dropped San Diego, 1-0, as Ben Sheets tossed a 5-hit shutout, besting the Padres' Jake Peavy in a mound duel. The Brewers remain 4 games behind the Cubs and lead the wild card race by 4 1/2 over Philadelphia. Notes: The Dodgers beat Arizona for the second straight time and won their 7th straight overall to take command in the NL West by 1/2 game over the Diamondbacks. Manny Ramirez drove in five runs as the Dodgers won 7-2, preventing Brandon Webb from winning his 20th. Webb was 19-4 on August 21, but has lost each of his last three starts, allowing 21 earned runs in his last 13 2/3 innings. The Phillies and Mets were rained out and will play a day-night double-header at Shea Sunday. The Mets hold a 2-game edge on Philadelphia. New York's closer Billy Wagner, out since August 3 with a strained right forearm, may return as early as Tuesday, though Friday or Saturday seems more probable.

Quentin Leads AL Home Run Chase; Soriano Keeps Cubs on Top

Players of the Day from Monday, August 5, 2008 American League Carlos Quentin socked his 29th home run, drove in two runs and scored on Nick Swisher's 3-run shot in the bottom of the 14th, as Chicago outlasted Detroit, 10-8. Quentin leads the AL in homers and is third in RBI, with 86, behind Justin Morneau (89) and Josh Hamilton (108). The White Sox win was important, as Minnesota took an 8-7 loss at Seattle and are back in second place, 1 game out. Possibly more importantly, the Sox put the Tigers further behind. Detroit is now 7 1/2 games back and, at 55-57, likely out of the wild card race as well, unless they get hot soon. Notes: The Rays and Boston both won on Tuesday, keeping Tampa Bay 3 games clear of the Red Sox. The Yankees are falling out of the race, losing their second straight to Texas, 8-6. New York is 6 1/2 back. In the West, the Angels were blanked by the O's, 3-0, and now are a mere 10 1/2 games better than the Rangers. The Oakland A's lost their 8th straight, 4-3, at Toronto. National League Since his return from injury on July 23, Alfonso Soriano has provided a big bat in the leadoff spot for the Cubs, and he came through again on Tuesday with a single, double, 3-run homer and 4 RBI as the Cubs outsluggled Houston, 11-7.

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How important to the Cubs' success has Soriano been? Since his return, he's hit safely in 12 of 14 games and the Cubs are 10-4, including 4 straight over 2nd place Milwaukee last week. With a healthy leadoff batter of Soriano's stature, Chicago is steamrolling towards the NL Central title, 5 ahead of the Brewers and 5 1/2 past the Cardinals. Notes: Brandon Webb became the majors' first 16-game winner, as Arizona topped Pittsburgh, 3-1, and increased their lead over LA to 2 1/2 games. Webb pitched a complete game, fanning four without walking a batter. He allowed 9 hits and 1 earned run. In the East, Florida won, 8-2, at Philly, to move to within 1 1/2 games of the division leader. The Mets topped San Diego, 6-5, and are 2 games back.

Murphy 4-for-4 for Hit-Happy Rangers; Soriano, Jones Top NL Stars

Players of the Day from Tuesday, June 3, 2008 American League How many hot hitters can one team have? The Texas Rangers seem to have more than their fair share. Consider that in last night's 12-7 thumping of the Cleveland Indians, both Ian Kinsler and Michael Young extended their hitting streaks - to 19 and 20 games, respectively - Josh Hamilton homered for the 4th straight game, but rookie David Murphy's 4-for-4 night at the plate stole the show.

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Murphy singled twice, doubled, and socked his 7th homer of the season, drove in two runs and scored three times. It was the second time this season that Murphy had four hits in a game and his 18th multi-hit performance. He's batting .292 and is the leading candidate for AL Rookie of the Year honors. Notes: The highly-anticipated debut of Yankee Joba Chamberlain as a starter didn't come off as planned. After 62 pitches and 2 1/3 tortuous innings, Manager Joe Girardi pulled the kid after he had allowed 2 runs (1 earned) on a hit and four walks. Though his fastball was approaching 100 mph, Joba couldn't find the plate and was sent back to the hut... er, dugout. He didn't get the loss. That, ironically, fell to his reliever, Dan Giese, who was called up from AAA to replace Chamberlain in the bullpen and was the Yankees' best pitcher, allowing just one run on five hits over 3 2/3 innings. Toronto won, 9-3. Roy Halladay improved to 7-5. The Blue Jays tightened their grip on third place. The Yankees fell to last. National League Mr. Leadoff, Alfonso Soriano (left) led the Cubs to their 9th straight win, beating the Padres, 9-6. Soriano doubled, homered, scored twice drove in three runs and stole a base as the Cubs remained 3 1/2 ahead of the Cardinals in the NL Central. Meanwhile, in Atlanta, Chipper Jones (right) continued to assault baseballs without regard to the collective ERA of National League pitchers. After homering in the first to give the Braves a 3-0 lead, Jones singled and scored in the 8th, tying the game at 4, with Mark Teixeira scampering home behind him with the game-winner as the Braves topped the Marlins for the second straight night, 5-4. Chipper has 13 homers, 38 RBI and is continues to lead the world with a .409 batting average. Notes: Pedro Martinez came off the DL for his first start since early April on Tuesday and turned in a so-so performance, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits and three walks over 7 innings. The Mets won the game, 9-6, and while Pedro got his first win of 2008, the sad saga of Barry Zito continued as the high-priced starter lost his 9th game against just one win. Zito was horrible, lasting just 4 1/3 innings, giving up 5 earned runs on 7 hits and 5 walks. His ERA is an unacceptable 5.89.

Soriano's 5-for-5 Falls Short; Lowell Gets Sox Started

Players of the Day from Saturday, May 17, 2008 American League With Tampa Bay losing to St. Louis, 9-8, Boston had a chance to tie for first place in the AL East with a sweep of their double header with Milwaukee. After winning game one, 5-3, Mike Lowell got the Red Sox off early in game two, doubling in a pair in the first inning and cracking a two-run homer in the 3rd en route to a 7-6 win over the Brewers, who have now lost four straight. The Sox are percentage points behind the Rays in the standings, but the two teams are deadlocked in first with the Rays at 25-18 and the Sox at 26-19. Notes: The White Sox took a 1/2-game lead over the Indians in the AL Central with a 3-1 win at San Fran, joining the Cubs as same-state division leaders. With Florida and Tampa Bay tops in their respective divisions, if either the Dodgers or Giants catch Arizona, then California would own first place in both Western divisions. National League Despite losing, 7-6, to the Pirates on Saturday, the Chicago Cubs remain in first place in the NL Central. Even with the loss, the Cubs have won seven of their last nine and lead St. Louis by 2 games. And they didn't go down easily on Saturday. If Alfonso Soriano had gotten a little more help from his teammates - or maybe another at-bat - Chicago might have come away with the W. Soriano went 5-for-5, with a double and two solo homers, scoring three times and driving in three.

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It was the second straight game with two homers for Soriano and his 6th and 7th in his last six games. Prior to his 5-hit performance on Saturday, he had two hits in each of his last five games, and has raised his batting average from .223 to .295. His slugging percentage increased from .372 to .598. Soriano, who missed the last half of April due to injury, has returned with a vengeance, hitting safely in every game he's started since May 2 - 13 straight. Notes: Lance Berman continues to amaze, hitting his major league-leading 16th home run in Houston's 6-2 loss at Texas last night.

Cubs Back in 1st; Yanks End Streak

American League Tampa Bay 7 Seattle 8 - The Seahawks won for just the 3rd time in their last 9 games, scoring 5 times in the eighth inning to squeeze by visiting Tampa Bay. Other AL Scores LA Angels 0 Baltimore 3 NY Yankees 1 Toronto 2 - Yankees end 6-game win streak Texas 5 Oakland 6 National League Chi Cubs 6 Houston 2 - Alfonso Soriano (left) and Aramis Ramirez (right) staked Steve Trachsel to a first-inning 4-run lead and the Cubs took over first place in the NL Central by 1/2 game over the idle Milwaukee Brewers. Soriano led off the game with his 25th home run and three batters later, Ramirez launched a three-run shot - his 23rd - into the left field stands. Chicago added solo homers by Daryle Ward and Cliff Floyd. Houston's only runs also came via the long ball, as Carlos Lee and Mark Loretta each connected for solo shots off Trachsel in the 4th inning. Trachsel, recently re-signed by Chicago after being released by the Baltimore Orioles, won wearing a Cubs uniform for the first time since 1999. He worked 5 innings, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits. San Diego 3 LA Dodgers 6 - The Dodgers made the wild card chase a little more interesting with a win over San Diego and bolstered Arizona's lead in the AL West to 3 1/2 games. James Loney went 3-4 and drove in 4 runs as LA closed to within 2 1/2 games of the Padres, with Philly just 2 back and Colorado 3 behind. The Dodgers took 2 of 3 from San Diego during this series. The Dodgers face a brutal schedule down the stretch with 6 games against Arizona and 7 with Colorado before hosting the Giants in a 3-game season finale. Other NL Scores St. Louis 4 Cincinnati 5 - Cardinals lose 7th straight Colorado 4 Philadelphia 12

Soriano Gets Cubs Closer; Angels Soar over Tigers

American League Detroit 3 LA Angels 10 - Garrett Anderson blasted a three-run homer and the Angels won their 2nd straight over Detroit and third straight overall, maintaining their 4-game lead on 2nd place Seattle in the AL West. The Halos look for the sweep tonight on ESPN. Toronto 0 Chi White Sox 2 - Mark Buehrle (right) outdueled Toronto's Roy Halladay, hurling 8 innings of shutout ball, fanning 6. Bobby Jenks worked a perfect 9th for save #30. Boston 12 Tampa Bay 6, 12 innings - Manny Ramirez has come to life, with 13 RBI over his last 7 games, including a 2-run double in the 6-run 12th as the Red Sox stretched their lead over the struggling Yankees to 9 games. The Red Sox have won three straight while New York has lost 3 in a row. Tampa Bay has lost 8 straight. Other AL Scores Oakland 3 Seattle 4 Minnesota 3 Cleveland 2 NY Yankees 5 Baltimore 7 - Yankees fall 9 behind Boston Texas 5 Kansas City 6 National League Chi Cubs 8 Cincinnati 1 - Alfonso Soriano (right) singled and homered twice in five at-bats, driving in 5 runs and scoring 3, as the Cubs relentless 2nd half drive continued in earnest. Coupled with the Brewers dropping a pair at St. Louis, the Cubbies are now just 1 1/2 behind the crumbling Milwaukee squad. Die-hard Cardinals' fans will note that St. Louis is just 7 games behind, albeit with a losing record (48-53). Since July 1, the Brewers haven't exactly been playing like a first-place team, going 9-15. Over the same stretch, the Cubs are 15-8, and are tied in the loss column with the Brewers at 48. Milwaukee 6 St. Louis 7 Milwaukee 2 St. Louis 5 - The Cardinals scored three times in the bottom of the ninth to take the opener and began game two with another 3 run inning in the first, helping Anthony Reyes (1-10) to his first win of the season. Albert Pujols went 2-4 in each game, raising his batting average to .317 and his RBI total to 68. The Cards have taken 2 of 3 from the Brewers in this series and will look to draw even closer in the finale on Sunday. Pittsburgh 5 Philadelphia 10 - While the Mets were splitting a double-header with last place Washington, the Phillies were busy keeping Pittsburgh in the NL Central basement. Jimmy Rollins, who has moved from leadoff into the 3-hole because of the injury to Chase Utley, went 3-5, drove in three, stole a base and scored a run. Rollins has 64 RBI, not bad for a guy batting mostly leadoff. The Phillies are 3 1/2 behind New York. Philly has a tough stretch coming up, with four games at Chicago followed by 3 at Milwaukee beginning Monday. Near the end of August, Philly hosts LA and San Diego for three games each, followed by a 4-game home series with the Mets. Atlanta 3 Arizona 4, 10 innings - The Diamondbacks won their 8th straight and are just .001 behind the Dodgers in the NL West. LA Dodgers 2 Colorado 6 - Matt Holliday cracked his 19th homer and drove in two, giving him 81 RBI overall, and Jeff Francis allowed just 2 earned runs over 7 2/3rds as the Rockies clawed to within 4 1/2 of first place in the West. Other NL Scores Washington 1 NY Mets 3 Washington 6 NY Mets 5 San Diego 1 Houston 3 Florida 3 San Francisco 4

Penny Gets 10th; Sabathia Goes Distance for 11th

National League St. Louis 1 NY Mets 2, 11 innings - The New York Mets got only 3 hits off Mike Maroth and two Cardinal relievers, but two of them were home runs, the last a blast by Shawn Green to end the game with nobody out in the 11th. Maroth, recently acquired by the Cardinals from Detroit to shore up a dismal pitching staff, pitched more than well enough to win, allowing just 2 hits and 2 walks over 7 1/3 innings. The only run came on a Carlos Gomez solo shot in the 5th. Reliever Aaron Heilman picked up his 6th win against 3 losses, all in relief. Heilman won for the first time since May 25. He posted 4 wins in May. With Philly idle, the Mets assumed a 3 1/2-game lead in the NL East. LA Dodgers 8 Arizona 1 - Dodger starter Brad Penny (right) became the National League's first 10-game winner with another superior effort Monday night. Facing the D-Backs, who only yesterday took sole possession of first place in the NL West, Penny (10-1) dominated, allowing just 4 hits and 2 walks over 8 innings. The only run for Arizona came in the 4th, when Chris B. Young doubled home Conor Jackson who had singled off Penny with two outs. Jackson had 2 of the 4 hits allowed by Penny and singled in the ninth off reliever Jonathan Broxton to finish 3-4. With San Diego losing at San Fran, the Dodgers took over 2nd place, just 1/2 behind Arizona. The two teams continue their series with the 2nd of 2nd of 4, tonight. Colorado 9 Chi Cubs 10 - Leading 8-3 entering the ninth, the fun was just beginning for the Cubs and Rockies. Colorado scored 6 times in the top of the inning off relievers Scott Eyre and Bob Howry to take a 9-8 lead, but the Cubbies struck back with a pair in the final at-bat, on Alfonso Soriano's clutch 2-out single off closer Brian Fuentes, plating both the tying and winning runs. It was Fuentes' 4th blown save and 2nd straight, even though Monday's two runs were unearned as 2nd baseman Kazuo Matsui committed his first error of the season on what should have been the game's final out. Other NL Scores Washington 1 Atlanta 4 - Atl., more runs in last 5 games combined Houston 1 Milwaukee 6 - B. Sheets (W, 9-3); P. Fielder, HR (27, leads NL) San Diego 3 San Francisco 4, 11 innings - P. Feliz singles home B. Bonds with game-winner American League Oakland 2 Cleveland 5 - C.C. Sabathia (right) joined Josh Beckett as the only pitchers in the majors with 11 wins, as he went the full 9 innings and got Cleveland back to within a game of the AL Central-leading Tigers. Sabathia scattered nine hits, 4 of them in the 2nd inning when the A's scored their only runs of the game. Between the 2nd and 6th inning, Sabathia (11-2) put down 13 straight Oakland batters, including striking out the side in the 3rd. He finished with 8 Ks, boosting his season total to 108. Sabathia didn't walk a batter. He has issued only 17 free passes all season. Other AL Scores Texas 8 Detroit 3 - M. Byrd, 2-5, 3 RBI (19), .379 ba (39-103) Toronto 8 Minnesota 5 - Jays 10 games back of Boston in AL East Kansas City 5 LA Angels 3 - Angels, 10-3 at home in June Boston 4 Seattle 9 - Jeff Weaver (2-6), 2nd straight win Chi White Sox 5 Tampa Bay 4 - Sox, 3-7 on road in June Interleague Scoreboard (6/8 - 6/24 Final): Total: AL: 107 NL: 90 Best records (AL): California Angels (11-4), Detroit Tigers (11-4), Boston Red Sox (10-5) Worst records (AL): Chicago White Sox (3-12), Baltimore Orioles (4-11) Best records (NL): Colorado Rockies (9-6), Chicago Cubs (6-3) Worst records (NL): Atlanta Braves (3-9) San Diego Padres (4-8), San Francisco Giants (4-8), Pittsburgh Pirates (5-10)

Sosa Blanks Bengals; Drew Bombs D-Backs; Soriano, 3 Solos

Note: During interleague play, home teams are reported under their respective leagues. American League NY Mets 3 Detroit 0 - The Mets kept a tight hold on 1st place in the NL East as Jorge Sosa (right) blanked the Tigers on 4 hits and 2 walks over 8 innings, fanning 5. Sosa improved to 6-1, with a 2.64 ERA. The Mets are 4 1/2 clear of Atlanta - losers of 4 straight - in the division, 19-7 on the road (easily the best in the majors) and 3-1 against the American League. Washington 8 Minnesota 5 - Christian Guzman doubled, singled three times, scored 3 runs and had an RBI in 5 at-bats to lead the Nationals to a win at Minnesota to even their interleague record at 2-2. Guzman is batting .339, but, with only 121 at-bats, does not yet qualify as a league leader. He would be 2nd behind the Rockies' Matt Holliday. Houston 5 Chi White Sox 2 - Craig Biggio cracked a solo homer - his 4th of the season and 285th of his career - for hit #2980. Biggio, batting only .227 should reach the 3000-hit mark just prior to the All-Star break (July 9-12). Other AL Scores NY Yankees 5 Pittsburgh 4, 10 innings - D. Jeter, GW RBI Baltimore 4 Colorado 2 Kansas City 8 Philadelphia 4 - F. Garcia (L, 1-5) 1 2/3 IP, 7 H, 6 ER Texas 9 Milwaukee 6 - 4th loss in last 6, 1-3 vs. AL, P. Fielder HR (22) National League Chicago Cubs 9 Atlanta 1 - Maybe it's time to put Alfonso Soriano (right) in the #3 or 4 spot in the Cubs' batting order. The leadoff hitter smacked three home runs (10) and a single in 5 at-bats to lead the Cubs to their 3rd straight game and close to within 5 games of the struggling Milwaukee Brewers. With Milwaukee and St. Louis both losing on Friday, Chicago took over sole possession of 2nd place in the NL Central. The Cubs have two more at Atlanta before playing a single game at Houston, then moving on to interleague play, hosting the Seattle Mariners beginning Tuesday. Boston 10 Arizona 3 - Josh Beckett got his 9th win without a loss, allowing just 2 earned runs on 5 hits over 8 innings with 8 Ks, and J.D. Drew (right) went off the charts with a pair of 3 run homers and a run-scoring double for a 7 RBI night. An equal-opportunity masher, Drew victimized starter Doug Davis (4-7) with one blast, while reserving the other for reliever Edgar Gonzalez. Both Arizona pitchers allowed 5 earned in 4 innings. The Sox stayed 10 1/2 clear of the Yankees and O's in the AL East. With the Padres losing, the Diamondbacks remained a game out of first with the Dodgers 1 1/2 back. Florida 14 Tampa Bay 8 - The Florida Marlins may not make the playoffs, but they have some real juice in their bats.

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The Marlins are tied for the NL team RBI lead with Philly at 294, having added 14 on Friday. Jeremy Hermida totaled 4 with a grand slam home run, Josh Willingham added 3 with a pair of singles and a triple in 5 at-bats. Shortstop Hanley Ramirez drove in just 1 run, but stroked 4 singles in 5 at-bats, stole a base and scored 3 times. Other NL Scores Cincinnati 4 Cleveland 3 - K. Griffey Jr. HR (14) LA Angels 10 St. Louis 6 - Angels, 17 hits; 8-2 last 10 Seattle 6 San Diego 5, 11 innings - R. Ibanez, 4-6, GW HR (2) Oakland 5 San Francisco 3, 10 innings - Giants, last place LA Dodgers 4 Toronto 3 - O. Saenz, GW HR (3)

Angels, Matthews Crush Twins; Soriano Leads Cubs over Brewers

American League LA Angels 16 Minnesota 3 - Gary Matthews (right) drove in 5 runs with a grand slam and 3 sinlges in 5 at-bats as the Angels swamped the visitng Twins. Shortstop Orlando Cabrera also rapped out 4 hits, drove in a pair and scored 4 runs in the rout. The Angels knocked out 23 hits against 4 Minnesota pitchers to remain 5 1/2 clear of 2nd place Seattle in the West. Other AL Scores Tampa Bay 4 Kansas City 2 - C. Pena, 3-3, 2B, HR (12), 2 RBI Chicago White Sox 6 NY Yankees 4 - NY, 12-18 road record Oakland 5 Boston 4, 11 innings - E. Chavez, GW HR (8) Seattle 7 Baltimore 4 - I. Suzuki, 3-5, HR (5) National League Chicago Cubs 7 Milwaukee 2 - The Cubs had a rough go last week, losing 6 of 7, but with a chance to pick up some ground on the first place Brewers, they're not looking back. Alfonso Soriano (right) opened up the Cubs' 3-game set in Milwaukee with a bang - a 3-run homer in the 7th inning - to cap a 5 for 5 night and get the Cubs a within 6 1/2 of the Central division lead. Soriano's been on somewhat of a tear lately, with multiple hits in 7 of his last 11 games, though batting in the leadoff spot may not be the best use of his ability. Soriano, a dependable hitter, drove in 199 runs over the last two seasons. So far this year he has just 17. San Francisco 8 Philadelphia 1 - It's officially the dry season for Barry Bonds. Though the Giants won again on Monday to conclude their 4-game series in Philly with a split, Bonds failed to homer for the 7th straight game. In fact, Bonds has just 1 homer and 3 RBI in his last 22 games, well below his lifetime average of one every 3.9 games. Barry's lack of longball hasn't helped the Giants, who are 6 1/2 games behind the NL West-leading Dodgers. Other NL Scores Florida 6 Atlanta 4 - (R) Y. Escobar (ATL), 4-4, HR (1) LA Dodgers 6 Pittsburgh 5 - Dodgers lead NL West by 1/2