Matt Cain, Marco Scutaro, Angel Pagan Lead Giants Back to First Place; Prince Fielder Blasts O's in 5-3 Win

Players of the Day for Friday, August 17, 2012

American League

Fielder: 2HR, 4RBI

Opening a three game series critical to the wild card chase and divisional races in the East and Central, the Baltimore Orioles had a lead at Detroit, but lost it and the game when they failed to keep Prince Fielder in the yard.

Leading 3-1 in the sixth inning, Fielder unloaded for the first of two massive homers - both coming with Miguel Cabrera aboard - to tie the game, then blasted his second in the eighth, completing the 5-3 win.

The victory left the Tigers tied with the Orioles for the second wild card spot, a game behind Tampa Bay, in the #1 wild card position. The Tigers also picked up a game on Central division leader, Chicago, 4-2 losers at Kansas City, leaving Detroit 1 1/2 back in the Central.

Fielder's homers were his 21st and 22nd of the season. The first came off O's starter, Tommy Hunter, the second blow against reliever J. C. Romero. Miguel Cabrera's first inning hoemr - his 31st of the year - provided the only other run for Detroit.

The series resumes Saturday night, with the third game set for Sunday afternoon at Tiger Stadium.

Marco Scutaro

National League

Matt Cain, Angel Pagan and Marco Scutaro led the San Francisco Giants back into first place in the NL West, powering the Giants to to a lopsided, 10-1 win over the Padres, in the opener of a three-game weekend series in San Diego.

Angel Pagan

Scutaro got the Giants started in the first inning, staking Matt Cain (12-5) to an early advantage with a solo homer.

In the third inning, the Giants sent 14 men to the plate and scored eight runs to essentially put the game out of reach.

Matt Cain

Pagan drove in the first run of the epic inning with an RBI triple and was singled home by Scutaro, who later scored. Cain aided his own cause with a single in the inning which plated Brandon Belt.

Pagan finished up 3-for-5 with two RBI. Scutaro was 2-for-5 with two runs and two RBI, while Cain, who earlier this season tossed a perfect game, won his second straight start, allowing four hits and a single fifth inning run over eight, fanning six without issuing a walk.

The win gave the Giants a 1/2 game lead over the Dodgers in the West. LA dropped a 4-3 decision at Atlanta.

Felix Harnandez Blanks Yanks, 1-0; Angel Pagan Leads Giants to 11-6 Win over Rockies

Players of the Day for Saturday, August 4, 2012

American League

The rest of the Al East can thank Felix Hernandez for temporarily slowing down the Yankee express to the division title, as the Seattle hurler blanked New York on two hits, winning by a 1-0 score.

Felix Hernandez

Hernandez allowed a first inning double by Robinson Cano and a third inning leadoff single by Ichiro Suzuki, but did not allow a hit after that, issuing only a harmless pair of walks over the final six innings.

Following a double play that erased Ichiro in the third, Hernandez set down nine straight before walking Curtis Granderson in the 6th inning. A walk to Raul Ibanez with two down in the seventh was the last base runner the Yankees would have, as Hernandez closed out the game by getting the final seven batsmen in order.

Fanning five, Hernandez increased his league-leading strikeout total to 159. Always efficient, he threw 69 of 101 pitches for strikes for his third shutout of the season.

The Yankees' loss left them with a still-comfortable lead in the division, 6 1/2 games better than the O's and Rays, with Boston 10 back and Toronto trailing, 10 1/2 out.

The series concludes with the rubber match, Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.

National League

Angel Pagan

The offensive onslaught that started with a 16-4 slaughter on Friday, continued Saturday in Colorado, as the Giants topped the Rockies, 11-6, banging out 17 hits in the process.

Angel Pagan, who was 3-for-4 in Friday's game, went 4-for-6 on Saturday, socking a solo homer in the ninth after singling three times earlier. Pagan scored twice and drove in three of the Giants' runs.

The Giants were never threatened after building a 6-0 lead through five. Colorado scored in the sixth and added two in the seventh, but Pagan's RBI single in the top of the eighth ignited a four-run rally.

The win kept San Francisco in first place in the NL West, 1/2 game better than the Dodgers. Arizona fell three games off the pace, losing to Philadelphia, 3-0.

The series in Colorado concludes on Sunday afternoon.

NOTABLE: Red Hot Reds. Cincinnati took its second straight from the Pirates, Saturday, 5-4, for their fifth straight win and 15th of their last 16.

The Reds have been on a terrific roll; since July 6th they are a staggering 22-3 and lead the NL Central by 5 1/2 over Pittsburgh. The Reds will be looking to sweep their closest rival Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati.

Alex Rios Walks Off Angels in 8-6 Win; Buster Posey, Angel Pagan Lead Giants in 16-4 Romp

Players of the Day for Friday, August 3, 2012

American League

Alex Rios banged a pair of home runs - his 17th and 18th of the season - the second of which won the game in extra innings for the White Sox, defeating the Angels, 8-6.

Alex Rios

Rios singled home the White Sox's first run of the game in the opening inning, after the Angels had scored one in the top of the frame. He scored on A.J. Pierzynski's three-run blast later in the inning.

In the seventh, Rios connected off Zach Grienke with a solo shot, putting the Sox down by a run. Chicago tied the game on DeAza's ground rule double which plated Alexei Ramirez.

Neither team was able to score again until the tenth inning, when Rios went yard again, scoring himself and pinch runner Jordan Danks on a walk-off rip to center field.

Rios finished 3-for-5 with three runs and four RBI, the win keeping the White Sox 2 1/2 games up on the Detroit Tigers, who defeated Cleveland, 10-2.

The Angels dropped another game further off the pace being set by the Rangers in the West. Texas leads the A's by 4 1/2 and the Angels, losers of three straight, by six.


National League

Buster Posey

Angel Pagan

Leading a three-way race for the division crown in the NL West, the San Francisco Giants put on their best offensive showing of the year, blasting the Colorado Rockies, 16-4, as the trailing Dodgers and Diamondbacks each won, keeping the Giants' slim lead at 1/2 game over LA and two ahead of Arizona.

Their highest scoring output of the season was spearheaded by Buster Posey, who had four hits in five at-bats, including his 15th homer, a three-run shot to go with his three singles. Posey had four RBI in the contest.

Angel Pagan collected a single, double and triple in four at-bats, scored four times and drive in a run as the Giants opened the three game series in Colorado with a needed win.

The Rockies and Giants play again on Saturday night with a day game on Sunday. Meanwhile, the Dodgers host the Cubs while the Diamondbacks play at Philadelphia.

Mark Trumbo Eyeing AL Rookie Honors; Mets Complete 4-Game Sweep of Reds

Players of the Day for Thursday, July 28, 2011

American League

Mark Trumbo

Mark Trumbo went 3-for-5, missing hitting for the cycle for the absence of a single, as the LA Angels continued their relentless pursuit of the Texas Rangers with a 12-7 win at Detroit.

Trumbo, quietly having a smashing year (.256, 19, 53) as the Angels' rookie first baseman, socked his 19th homer in the 2nd inning to get the Angels on the board, then followed up with an RBI triple in the 4th and a run-scoring double in the 7th. He scored three times and drove in five runs.

The race in the AL west has come down to a contentious battle between the top two teams. The Angls have won three straight and seven of their last ten to pull to within two games of the front-running Rangers. Trumbo is looking more and more like the choice for AL Rookie of the Year.

National League

David Wright

Defending champions of the NL Central, the Cincinnati Red are looking less likely to repeat in the most competitive division in the majors, especially now that they've dropped a four-game home series to the NY Mets.

Angel Pagan

Playing without Carlos Beltran - traded to the Giants - the past two games, the middle of the Mets lineup quickly picked up the slack, taking the final two games of the series without much help from their pitching staff.

Following Wednesday's 8-2 romp, New York came through with a 9-8 squeaker, souring the local Reds fans with the sweep. David Wright, Angel Pagan and Jason Bay each collected three hits in the victory, sending the Reds to a 50-55 record, good for fourth place in the Central, 6 1/2 games behind Milwaukee with the Cardinals and Pirates tied for second, 1 1/2 back.

Jason Bay

Catching one team in a divisional race is hard enough, but rallying past three teams in August and September would amount to a Herculean achievement. Meanwhile the Mets continue to chase Atlanta and Philly in the East, though they remain 6 1/2 back of Atlanta and 11 1/2 behind the Phillies.

Wright and Pagan both went 3-for-5, all singles, and drove in a run apiece. Wright scored twice and Pagan three times. Bay was 3-for-4, with two doubles and a single, and drove in three runs.

STREAKS: Florida's Emilio Bonifacio extended his hitting streak to 26 games, going 2-for-4 with a run, an RBI and his 24th steal of the season as the Marlins topped the Nationals, 5-2.

In Boston, Dustin Peroia socked an 8th inning home run to extend his hitting streak to 25 games, though it was not enough to overcome the Royals, who won, 4-3.

Dan Haren Wins Duel with Nats' Zimmermann; Angel Pagan Leads Mets in 16-9 Triumph

Players of the Day for Wednesday, June 29, 2011

American League

Dan Haren

Yes, there is a pennant race in the AL West and the Angels are right in the thick of it, especially after winning their third straight over the Washington Nationals in a 1-0 nail-biter.

Dan Haren outdueled the most luckless starter in the majors, Jordan Zimmermann, who pitches eight innings without giving up an earned run. The game's only run was scored by LA in the 4th inning, ironically set up by a wild throw by third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmermann, the pitcher, is 5-7 with a 2.63 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP.

As for Haren, his 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball were enough to produce his 8th win against 5 loess. Haren allowed just two hits, walking one batter while striking out six.

The Angels trail Texas by 1 1/2 games.

National League

There were so many stars in the Mets' 16-9 thumping of Detroit, it was hard to single out one player, but Angel Pagan fit the bill.

Angel Pagan

The Mets hammered out 20 hits, four of them credited to Pagan, who had two singles and two doubles in six at-bats, drove in four runs, stole a base and scored three times.

Pagan has been instrumental the recent Mets' power surge, which has resulted in a team record 52 runs over their last four games, all wins. Oddly enough, there were four homers in the game, all hit by Detroit players.

While the Mets have climbed back over .500 (41-39), they still are playing in one of the toughest divisions in the majors, the NL East, where they trail the Phillies by 9 1/2 games, with Atlanta in second place, 4 1/2 out.

INTERLEAGUE TALLY: With each league winning seven games on Wednesday, the overall tally after 202 games is all even at 101 wins apiece.

Carlos Quentin Powers Sox to 7th Straight; Angel Pagan Lifts Mets

Players of the Day for Tuesday, June 22, 2010 American League Following a couple of rough months, the June version of the Chicago White Sox is beginning to look more and more like the contender everyone thought the team could be at the start of the season. Winning their 7th in a row with a 9-6 home win over the Braves, the Sox are 13-6 for June and have finally crossed the .500 mark, at 35-34, just 4 1/2 games behind the Central division-leading Twins, with the Tigers sitting in second place, 1 1/2 out. Chicago was 9-14 in April and 13-14 in May. One reason the Chisox have been getting their act together is the re-emergence of Carlos Quentin at the plate. Like the rest of the team, Quentin started out badly, with his batting average falling to a low of .154 nearing the end of April. Manager Ozzie Guillen never lost faith in the slugging outfielder, and his persistence has paid off. During Chicago's win streak, Quentin has hit safely in five of the last six, with 2 hits in four of those games and 7 RBI, including three on Tuesday night as he banged his 9th homer of the season with three aboard in the 4th inning after singling and scoring in the 2nd. Quentin is batting .391 (9-for-23) over his past six games. His homer put the White Sox up 9-3, chasing Atlanta starter, Tommy Hanson, who left after allowing 13 hits and all nine earned runs in just 3 2/3 innings. National League Atlanta stole the limelight in the NL East, emerging in May as the top team in the division, as the Phillies faltered. However, as the season cruises into the summer, the New York Mets are beginning to look like the team to beat, going 14-4 thus far in the month of June. Following a 7-2 road trip, the Mets opened a six-game home stand with a 14-6 rout of the Detroit Tigers and now trail the Braves by just a game and a half. Angel Pagan, who originally was used as a replacement for the oft-injured Carlos Beltran (right knee surgery, out until after the All-Star break) in center field, extended his hitting streak to ten straight, knocking out 4 hits in 6 at-bats, driving in 4 runs and scoring 3 times. Pagan singled twice, doubled and tripled. Pagan's solid defensive play and his plate explosion (.304, 41 runs, 35 RBI, 14 steals) will make Manager Charlie Manuel's decision a tough one when Beltran returns from the DL, though if both players perform well, one could easily end up in right field, with Jeff Francoeur taking a seat on the bench. Whatever the choices, Manuel has options so long as Pagan continues to produce.