Tigers Blank Blue Jays Second Straight Day; McCutchen Leads Pirates Past Rays

Players of the Day for Sunday, February 27, 2010

American League

Brad Penny worked two strong innings, allowing one hit, no walks, fanning one batter and his Tiger teammates continued their domination over the Blue Jays, posting their second straight shutout, a 1-0 win, as the Tigers scratched out a run in the 6th.

Penny was 3-4 with the Cardinals last season after bouncing from Boston to the Giants in 2009. If he regains some of his prior form, he could add valuable innings to a Detroit staff that is already pretty good.

Through two games, no Blue Jay has touched home plate and Tiger pitching has limited the punchless bunch to 8 hits total.

National League

Possibly the best player in Pittsburgh's camp, Andrew McCutchen went 3-for-3 with a solo homer, single and double, driving in two runs and scoring three times as the Pirates blasted the Rays, 10-3.

The third-year pro blossomed in 2010, batting .286 (same as 2009) with 16 homers, 56 RBI, 94 runs and 33 stolen bases. McCutchen has all the tools, but, as has been the cae in Pittsburgh for pretty much the past 20 years, he doesn't have much quality around him. The Pirates sem content to develop talent and then ship it off to contending teams, rather than keeping it at home. That's led to seasons of sorrow for many once-loyal fans.

Maybe this will be the year the Pirates' management gets serious about actually building a contending team, though betting on that probability has been a losing proposition for many years.

Mike Sweeney, M's Clobber Padres; Brad Penny Slams for Cardinals

Players of the Day for Friday, May 21, 2010 American League For most of the years he spent with the Kansas City Royals, Mike Sweeney was regarded as one of the best pure hitters in the game. But then came the back problems after 2002, which began to limit both his playing time and overall effectveness at the plate. The condition worsened, to the point that, beginning with the 2006 season, Sweeney has played in less than half the games he could have. After the 2007 season, Sweeney was shuffled off to Oakland, and then, a year later, to Seattle. Sweeney's played in just 19 games this season, but has been in the lineup regularly since May 13. In that game he hit a home run, and another the next game and another in the game after that. In Friday's 15-8 slaughter of the visiting San Diego Padres, Sweeney rekindled some of that old fire, blasting a pair of homers and two singles for a 4-for-5 night at the plate with 6 RBI. Since that May 13 start, Sweeney is batting .417 (10-for-24), with 5 home runs and 10 RBI. The mariners have not taken advantage of Sweeney's hot bat, going 3-6 during that span, 3-3 in the games he has started. National League Brad Penny didn't pitch very well, but his grand slam in the third inning helped propel the St. Louis Cardinals to a 9-5 win over the LA Angels and the pitcher Penny replaced on the Cardinal roster, Joel Pineiro. Penny allowed four runs over three complete innings, but was forced to leave the game suffering from back problems. That wasn't until after manager Tony LaRussa decided to let the big man hit with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third. Penny launched a drive into the left field seats that put the Cardinals up, 9-4, and pretty much finished off Pineiro, who was released by the Cardinals after winning 15 games for them in 2009. Pineiro had entered the game with a scoreless streak of 17 1/3 innings, but Penny and the St. Louis regulars put that to an early end, scoring twice in each of the first two innings before tacking on five more in the third. After Penny's blast, Pineiro gave up a solo shot to Felipe Lopez, walked Ryan Ludwick, but got out of the inning by getting Holliday to ground into a fielder's choice. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the 4th after being tagged for nine hits and nine runs. Penny tried to start the fourth inning, but was relieved after throwing just a few warmup pitches. His homer was the thrid of his career, and his first grand slam. QUICK HITS: Andre Ethier, the Dodger slugger who has been putting up Triple Crown-worthy stats, was placed on the 15-day disabled list and will miss between two to six weeks with a broken finger. Edwin Encarnacion, recently returned from the DL, blasted three sol homers for the Blue Jays - who hit six as a team - in their 8-6 loss to Arizona.

Penny Stop Phils on 5 Hits; A-Rod Gets Hit #2500 in Yankee Win

Players of the Day for Wednesday, September 2, 2009 American League At first glance, with just 23 home runs, 75 RBI and a .274 batting average, it appears that Alex Rodriguez is not having one of his better years. Of course, the numbers are down mostly due to A-Rod having missed all of April and the first week of May due to hip surgery, so having played in just 99 games, he's not doing badly, especially considering that he collected his 2500th base hit in the fifth inning against the Orioles, extended his hitting streak to ten games with a 3-for-5 effort and drove in 4 runs as the Yankees won their 6th straight, beating Baltimore, 10-2. The 12-time all star is still 25 RBI from the century mark, a level he has achieved in 11 straight seasons. A-Rod will have to drive in an average of just about 0ne run per game the rest of the way to make it to 100. The numbers don't really seem to be on Rodriguez's mind, however, as the Yankees cruise toward another AL East title. Their win, coupled with Boston's 8-5 loss at Tampa Bay, pushed their lead to 7 1/2 games in the division and reduced the magic number to 23. With a 34-11 record since the all star break, the Yankees have been the hottest team in the major leagues. With 2502 hits, Rodriguez ranks 88th all-time on the hit parade and is 4th among Yankees, trailing Lou Gehrig (2721), Derek Jeter (2713) and Reggie Jackson (2584). The caveat is that Gehrig and Jeter got all their hits as Yankees, while Jackson and A-Rod acquired theirs with a number of teams. Still, the thought of both Jeter, who is 35, and Rodriguez, 33, both reaching the 3000-hit plateau, is stunning. Jeter and A-Rod could just be the best left side infielders to ever take the field together. National League Brad Penny didn't fare well in Boston. Like so many National League hurlers, he simply found the transition to the AL more demanding than expected, so, after going 7-8 with a 5.61 ERA in 25 starts with the Red Sox, he hitched on with the Giants and viola! he's back in the National League throwing 8 innings of shutout ball against the Phillies in a 4-0 San Francisco win. Penny seemed at ease and in complete control of all his pitches, limiting the hard-hitting Phillies to just 5 hits, walking one and striking out two. Penny threw 102 pitches, getting 14 batsmen on ground outs and 8 on fly balls. It was just the boost the Giants needed, as the Rockies remained one game ahead in the wild card race with a 5-2 win over the Mets. The Braves are 4 back and the Marlins 5 off the pace. With Penny, the Giants have solidified an already stellar pitching staff which includes Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum and Barry Zito. With 29 games left on the schedule, each of the top four starters could get 7 starts, a huge edge in a short period of time. NOTES: The Texas Rangers simply won't go away. They continue to dog both the wild card leader, Boston, and the AL West-leading Angels. Texas trails the Red Sox by just 2 1/2 after knocking off Toronto, 6-4, on Wednesday, and are just 3 1/2 behind the Angels. LA hasn't been able to quite put away the Rangers and they run the risk of losing their grip on the division as they face Texas 7 times in the final two weeks of the season. The two teams hook up at Arlington on September 18, 19 and 20, and then meet again in LA on the 28th, 29th, 30th and October 1. Those games should decide the division, especially since the Angels have, directly preceding the first series in Texas, a make-up game at the Yankees followed by a 3-game series in Boston. The Rangers could make the race a tight one.

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)

Santana, Penny, Peavy, Beckett All Winners; Phils Have Howard Power

American League LA Dodgers 10 Toronto 1 - Brad Penny improved to 9-1 with another dominating performance, allowing 6 hits and 1 earned over 7 innings for his 4th win in a row. Luis Gonzalez drove in 4 with a double and a pair of singles to lead the Dodgers attack. LA remained 1 1/2 behind the Padres in the turbulent NL West. Philadelphia 9 Cleveland 6 - Ryan Howard (right) smashed his 16th home run, singled twice, scored 3 times and drive in 4 runs in 5 trips to the plate, leading the Phiilies over Cleveland. The win left the Phillies just 2 games behind the Mets in the NL East, while Cleveland's loss allowed Detroit to claim a share of first place with the Indians in the AL Central. Howard, who started out slowly and spent some time on the DL, has 5 home runs and 10 RBI over his last 9 games. Other AL Scores Pittsburgh 5 Seattle 3 - Seattle loses 6th straight Houston 9 LA Angels 5 - C. Lee, HR (12), 4 RBI (59, tied for NL lead) Florida 7 Chi White Sox 5 - Chicago, 3-7 last 10 Chi Cubs 5 Texas 4 - Cubs trail Brewers by 7 in NL Central National League Detroit 15 Washington 1 - The Tigers finally caught the Indians in the AL Central and they made sure everybody in baseball noticed, banging out 17 hits in a road rout of one of the worst squads in the majors. Six different Tigers had 2 hits or more and 7 different players had extra base hits. Magglio Ordonez (right) went 3-3, scoring 3 times and driving in 2 and Sean Casey knocked a double and a 3-run homer in 4 at-bats, accounting for 4 RBI. The Tigers and Indians are all even at 41-29. Boston 4 Atlanta 0 - Josh Beckett became the AL's 2nd 10-game winner - joining the Angels' John Lackey - and the Red Sox extended their lead in the AL East to 9 1/2 games over the Yankees. Beckett (10-1) worked 6 innings and didn't return after a rain delay, allowing 4 hits and 2 walks for the win. Colorado 3 NY Yankees 1 - The Rockies continued to stay in the NL West hunt, 5 1/2 behind San Diego, and set the Yankees back in their chase of Boston. Rockies' starter Josh Fogg (3-4) outdueled Mike Mussina, giving up 4 hits and one run over his 7 innings of work. Minnesota 9 NY Mets 0 - Johan Santana (7-6) twirled a 4-hit shutout, silencing the Mets' bats. Santana pitched perhaps his best game of the season, not allowing a walk, though he struck out only 1 batter. Despite the unimpressive record, Santana is still among the elite pitchers in the majors with a 2.91 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 102 innings. The loss tightened the race in the NL East, as the Phillies trail by just 2 games, 1/2 behind Atlanta. Minnesota is 5 1/2 back in the AL Central. Arizona 10 Tampa Bay 8, 10 innings - Down 8-2 after 5 frames, the Diamondbacks kept chipping away, scoring 2 runs in the 6th, 7th and 9th and ending it on a 2-run shot by rookie centerfielder Chris B. Young, who finished the night 3-6, with a pair of RBI and 2 runs scored. The D-Backs kept pace in the NL West, 1 1/2 behind San Diego Other NL Scores Milwaukee 6 San Francisco 2 St. Louis 5 Kansas City 1 Cincinnati 5 Oakland 2 - K. Griffey Jr., HR (19) San Diego 12 Baltimore 6 - J. Peavy, W, 9-1; K. Greene, 4-5, 3 RBI Interleague Scoreboard: Friday (6/8): AL 8, NL 6 Saturday (6/9): AL 10, NL 4 Sunday (6/10): AL 9, NL 5 Monday (6/11): AL 0, NL 2 Tuesday (6/12): AL: 8, NL: 6 Wednesday (6/13): AL: 6, NL: 8 Thursday (6/14): AL: 7, NL: 5 Friday (6/15): AL: 6, NL: 8 Saturday (6/16): AL: 5, NL: 9 Sunday (6/17): AL: 9, NL: 5 Monday (6/18): AL: 7 NL: 3 Monday (6/19): AL: 3, NL: 11 Total: AL: 78 NL: 72 Note: During interleague play, home teams are reported under their respective leagues.

Phillies Tie for 2nd Place; Yankees Win 8th in Row

Note: During interleague play, home teams are reported under their respective leagues. National League Philadelphia 8 Chi White Sox 4 - Just after the Phillies took a 4-3 lead in the 7th inning, Aaron Rowand broke the game open with a pinch hit grand slam to send the reeling White Sox to their 10th loss in their last 12 outings. The Phillies won for the 9th time in their last 12 games, sweeping the White Sox in their 3-game series in Philly. With Atlanta and the Mets both losing on Wednesday, the Phils are now tied with the Braves, 2 games behind NY in the NL East. After starting out the 2007 campaign a woeful 4-11, the Phillies have gone 31-20 since and are now contending for post-season position. With no offensive shortage - Philadelphia leads the NL in runs (334), RBI (321), and are third in home runs with 74, sporting a .263 batting average (5th) - the Phillies rank 2nd worst in ERA (4.66). Only St. Louis trails them in that category at 4.81. If the Phillies can continue playing well, they'll have another shot at the Mets, hosting them for 4 games June 29 - July 1. The Phillies swept the Mets in New York just a week ago and are now poised to make a run for the top spot in the division. LA Dodgers 9 NY Mets 1 - Helping the Phillies' push are the LA Dodgers, who completed the 3-game sweep on Wednesday with another masterwork from ace Brad Penny (right), who improved to 8-1, allowing 1 earned run on 7 hits over 7 innings. Penny didn't walk a batter and struck out 7. While the Dodgers have won 3 straight to remain tied with San Diego atop the NL West, the Mets have hit a rough patch, losing 5 straight and 10 of their last 12. Adding to the mid-season intrigue, the Mets get a day off before heading to the Bronx for a 3-game series with the red-hot Yankees beginning Friday. Other NL Scores LA Angels 6 Cincinnati 3 - V. Guerrero, 3-5, 5 RBI (58) Chi Cubs 3 Seattle 2 Toronto 7 San Francisco 4 - Giants take 2 of 3 from Blue Jays Cleveland 7 Florida 3 Oakland 7 Houston 3 Pittsburgh 8 Texas 1 - I. Snell (W, 6-4) 9 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K American League Milwaukee 3 Detroit 2 - The Brewers, winners of just their 4th game in the past 10, though still maintain a 5 1/2-game lead over the Cubs and Cardinals in the NL Central, and if either of the teams chasing them catch fire, could see their lead evaporate rather quickly. The Tigers' loss dropped them a game back of Cleveland in the AL Central race. Francisco Cordero picked up his 23rd save, which leads the majors. NY Yankees 7 Arizona 2 - The Yankees won their 8th straight and swept their 3-game series with Arizona. Alex Rodriguez whacked a 2-run homer - his MLB-best 25th - and added an RBI single to give him 66, also the best in the majors. Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui also homered as the Yanks cut the Red Sox lead to 8 1/2 in the AL East. Colorado 12 Boston 2 - It was a Shilling shelling in Beantown, as the Rockies lit up Boston's pitching. Starter Curt Schilling lasted just 5 innings, giving up 9 hits and 5 earned runs. Matt Holliday went 3-4 and scored 3 times and Todd Helton drove in 4 runs. The Rockies have gone 14-6 since May 21, but haven't made up much ground on the trokia of San Diego, Arizona and LA atop the NL West.

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They are 5 1/2 back, but have sent the Giants into the division cellar. The Giants are 7 1/2 out. San Diego 9 Tampa Bay 0 - Jake Peavy stopped the D-Rays on 3 hits over 7 innings to keep the Padres tied with the Dodgers. Peavy matches Brad Penny at 8-1 and his 8 Ks left him one behind league leader Cole Hamels' 104 strikeouts. Minnesota 6 Atlanta 0 - Pitching fanatics take note: Carlos Silva rewrote the definition of "scattering" with his 8 hit shutout of visiting Atlanta. Silva allowed leadoff hits in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 7th innings. The key was that Silva didn't walk a batter or allow an extra base hit or stolen base. Justin Morneau and Torii Hunter backed their starter with back-to-back homers. The Twins remain a threat in the AL Central, just 5 1/2 behind Cleveland. Other AL Scores Washington 9 Baltimore 6, 11 innings - F. Lopez GW triple St. Louis 7 Kansas City 3 - A. Wainwright, (W, 5-5) 8 IP, 1 H, 0 ER Interleague Scoreboard: Friday (6/8): AL 8, NL 6 Saturday (6/9): AL 10, NL 4 Sunday (6/10): AL 9, NL 5 Monday (6/11): AL 0, NL 2 Tuesday (6/12): AL: 8, NL: 6 Wednesday (6/13): AL: 6, NL: 8

Jeter Continues Streak as Yanks Beat BoSox; Church's 6 RBI Leads Nats

Wednesday's Peak Performers and Fabulous Flops American League The New York Yankees made somewhat of a statement, taking 2 of 3 from the Red Sox with an 8-3 win Wednesday in New York as Derek Jeter continued his torrid bid for MVP, going 3-5 with a triple and a pair of singles, driving in 2 runs and scoring twice, extending his hitting streak to 18 games. Jeter is tied with teammate Jorge Posada for the league lead at .367. The Yanks rapped out 16 hits against Boston, 12 of them against starter Curt Schilling, who lasted just six innings, allowing 5 earned runs, including a pair of homers off the bats of Doug Mientkiewicz and Hideki Matsui. Jeter had a 20-game hit streak earlier in the season and has hit safely in 41 of 43 games in which he has recorded at least one official at-bat. The Yankees trail the Red Sox by 9 1/2 games in the AL East. Magglio Ordonez hit a pair of solo homers in the Tigers' 8-7 win over the visiting Angels. Ordonez continues to dog NY's Alex Rodriguez for the AL RBI lead. A-Rod has 43, Ordonez, 42. Detroit closer Todd Jones picked up his 15th save as the Tigers took a slim 1/2-game lead over Cleveland in the AL Central. The Angels remain 4 1/2 better than Seattle and Oakland in the AL West. Chad Gaudin improved to 4-1 with 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball as the A's won 4-0 at Chicago. Gaudin allowed just 5 hits and a walk while striking out 4. Break up the Royals! Suddenly the hottest team in the majors, the Kansas City Royals took their 2nd straight from Cleveland on Wednesday in KC, 11-7, knocking the Indians out of first place in the AL Central. Mike Sweeney homered for the 2nd straight game and Mark Grudzielanek singled, doubled and homered in 5 at-bats, driving in 3 runs and scoring a pair. The Royals have won 4 in a row (their longest win streak of the season) and 8 of the last 10. They remain in last place in the AL Central, however, 10 games behind leader Detroit. Other AL Scores Minnesota 5 Texas 3 Baltimore 5 Toronto 2 Seattle 5, Tampa Bay 1 - J. Guillen, 4-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, SB (1); I. Suzuki, 16-gm. hit streak National League Ryan Church knocked in 6 runs with a pair of homers - a 2-run shot in the 1st and a solo blast in the 7th - and followed that up with a game-winning bases loaded double in the 8th, propelling the Washington Nationals to a 12-7 win at Cincinnati. The Nats have taken 2 of 3 from the Reds with the teams set to finish their 4-game set on Thursday. Oliver Perez kept the Braves' hitters scoreless through 7 innings on 4 hits and Joe Smith and Billy Wagner worked the 8th and 9th in the Mets' 3-0 win at Atlanta. Perez walked 2 and struck out 5 to improve to 6-3 while Wagner picked up his 11th save. Jose Reyes swiped his league-leading 26th base. The win gave NY a 2 1/2-game lead over the Braves in the NL East. Brad Penny kept the Dodgers in first place for another day with 7 innings of shutout ball as LA beat the visiting Brewers, 5-1. Penny (6-1) allowed just 6 hits and 2 walks, striking out 4.

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Catcher Russell Martin provided the bulk of the offense with 4 RBI on a bases-loaded triple in the 1st and a sac fly in the 7th. The Dodgers stayed 1/2-game ahead of San Diego and 2 1/2 ahead of Arizona and San Francisco in the NL West. The Brewers, despite winning just 3 times in their last 10 games, maintain a 6 1/2-game edge on the Cubs and Astros in the Central. Dan Uggla needed just a single to hit for the cycle Wednesday as he cracked his 9th home run, doubled and tripled in 6 at-bats, scoring 3 times and driving in 3 runs. The single may have helped as, despite Uggla's heroics, the visiting Phillies outlasted the Marlins, 8-7 in 10 innings. Jimmy Rollins scored the game-winner for Philly. The two teams are battling for 3rd place in the NL East. The Phillies are currently 6 1/2 back of the Mets, the Marlins 7 1/2 behind, but the teams have split the first 2 games of their 3-game series, with the rubber game on Thursday. Other NL Scores St. Louis 5 Pittsburgh 3 San Francisco 9 Houston 1 - B. Zito (W, 4-5), 7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER; B. Bonds, DNP Colorado 2 Arizona 0 - J. Francis (W, 3-4), 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER San Diego 2 Chi Cubs 1 - D. Wells (W, 2-2)

Pudge Fattens Up on Royals; Penny Turns Up Another Win

Monday's Peak Performers and Fabulous Flops American League Detroit's Ivan (Pudge) Rodriguez crashed a 1st inning grand slam and added a 2-run double in the 2nd as the Tigers sent the visiting KC Royals to their 5th straight loss, 12-5. Rodriguez and Carlos Guillen did the bulk of the damage. Pudge totaled 6 RBI while Guillen drove in 4 with a solo homer in the 4th and a bases-loaded double in the 8th inning. The woeful Royals have the worst record in the majors at 3-10 and are near the bottom of the American League in most team batting and pitching stats. National League Cliff Floyd didn't even expect to play, but when Alfonso Soriano injured himself in the fifth inning, Floyd answered the call with an RBI single and a 3-run home run which helped the Cubs defeat visiting San Diego, 12-4. Floyd is likely to get more playing time with Soriano on the shelf, at least for now. The extent of his injury - originally diagnosed as a strained hamstring - is not yet known and the star center fielder has not been placed on the DL. After 6 innings, the Milwaukee Brewers were up 4-3 at Cincinnati, but center fielder Bill Hall put the game away in the top of the 7th

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with a grand slam, his 2nd homer of the season. The 10-6 win launched the Brewers into 1st place in the NL Central at 7-5, 1/2 game ahead of the Reds. Following a couple of shaky outings against San Diego and Colorado, in which he gave up 13 hits and 10 earned runs in 11 innings combined, Barry Zito shook off the past and got his first win for the Giants, shutting out the Rockies over 6 innings on 3 hits and 3 walks. Zito improved to 1-2 as the visiting Giants beat up on 4 Colorado pitchers, winning 8-0. Shortstop Omar Vizquel stroked 4 singles, drove in a pair and scored twice in 4 at-bats. The Dodgers' Brad Penny might become known as "bad Penny" to NL West opponents because he just keeps showing up and beating them. Penny turned in his third straight strong performance last night in Arizona, allowing just 1 earned run on 5 hits and 3 walks over 7 innings. Penny, 3-0, has already beaten the Giants and Rockies, and just needs a win against the Padres to give him wins over all division opponents. The lonely run scored by the D=Backs in the sixth inning was only the second against Penny in 20.1 innings pitched. His ERA is 0.89 and hasn't given up a home run. He's tied with Florida's Dontrelle Willis for the NL lead with 3 wins.