Masterson 2-Hits Red Sox; Cincy Takes Back First; Houston Out of NL Central Cellar

Players of the Day for Wednesday, June 9, 2010 American League On a day in which the Indians scored 11 runs, Tampa Bay, 10; Texas, 12; and the White Sox, 15, the best performance in the American League didn't go to anyone belting from the left or right side of the plate, but to 25-year-old Cleveland starter Justin Masterson, who tossed the first complete game shutout of his brief (3 seasons) career, knocking down the Boston batting order on two hits, walking two and striking out six in Cleveland's 11-0 victory. Masterson didn't allow a hit after J.D. Drew's one-out single in the 5th inning, giving up just the two walks after that and aided by a couple of Indian double plays. Hitting his spots consistently, Masterson threw 75 of 110 pitches for strikes, earning just his second win of the season, against five losses. Cleveland offered plenty of support, including Travis Hafner's grand slam in an 8-run 8th inning. It was the most the Indians have scored since outslugging the Yankees, 13-11 on May 29. The win snapped a three-game losing streak, though the Indians remain in last place, 12 1/2 off the pace in the AL Central. National League The Reds beat the Giants, 6-3, and took back first place in the NL Central when the Dodgers topped St. Louis, 4-3, later in the evening. Cincinnati got a big game out of leadoff hitter Orlando Cabrera (left), who had a single and doubled 3 times in 5 at-bats, scoring runs in the 1st, 3rd and 5th innings, the last of which gave the Reds the lead for good. Prior to Wednesday's win, Cabrera and the Reds had lost two straight to the Giants, and look to even the series in the finale Thursday afternoon. They lead St. Louis by one game in the division. Elsewhere in the division, the Houston Astros emerged from last place when Carlos Lee (right) whacked a 10th-inning grand slam to top the Rockies, 6-2. The blast was Lee's 9th homer of the season, and his 4th in his last 8 games, a span in which he has driven in 12 runs. The homer was his only hit of the game, extending his hitting streak to ten games. Lee's power surge is one of the reasons the Astros have won seven of their last nine and are now a 1/2 game better than the Pirates, who fell to Washington, 7-5, and into last place.

Magglio Ordonez Leads Tigers Past Tribe; Lee Homer Lifts Astros

Players of the Day for Thursday, June 3, 2010 American League The Detroit Tigers were determined not to allow the excitement and attention of Wednesday's "imperfect game" thrown by Armando Galarraga - and ruined by umpire Jim Joyce - to distract their focus, which was to win the rubber game of their three-game series with the Indians. There was no movement from the Commissioner's office on whether what should have been the final out of the game would be changed and Galarraga awarded his perfect game, only a statement that baseball would be looking into it and other umpire mistakes with an eye toward future changes. As for the Tigers, well, they moved on, whipping the Indians, 12-6, shaving a full game off Minnesota's lead in the AL Central as the Twins lost to Seattle, 4-1. The Tigers are just 2 1/2 games behind the Twins, the rest of the division well back. Magglio Ordonez had one of his best games of the season, going 3-for-5 with 5 RBI and 2 runs, with a triple, double and a 7th inning, 3-run homer, his 8th of the season. Ordonez broke a 6-6 tie in the 6th inning, doubling home Austin Jackson, who went 4-for-6 with 3 doubles, and then broke the game open with his 7th-inning blast. Following Ordonez's clearing of the bases, Miguel Cabrera belted his 16th homer of the season, tying him with Paul Konerko and Jose Buatista for the most in the majors. Cabrera drove in another run with a sac fly in the third inning, giving him 51 RBI on the season, also tops in either league. National League Carlos Lee isn't having a very good season, but he came up large in Thursday's 6-5 win over the Nationals, with an RBI single in the opening frame and a two-run, walk-off homer against Washington closer Matt Capps for the Astros' thrid straight win. Lee, hitting just .213 this season, hit his 7th homer in the bottom of the ninth with Lance Berkman aboard. His three RBI upped his total to 26, well below his usual output. Lee has driven in 100 or more runs in each of the past four seasons and five of the last six. The only time he missed the mark was in 2004, when he drove home 99. He and Berkman seem to be picking it up as baseball enters the heated months of Summer. Berkman drove in 5 runs in Tuesday's 9-8 win over the Nats, and Lee has now homered in consecutive games. QUICK HITS: The Atlanta Braves have surged into first place in the NL East, now holding a 3-game edge over the Phillies in the division. Winners of 9 straight, the Braves opened a four-game series in LA by smacking down the Dodgers, 4-3. The Braves aren't the only surprise in the NL, though, with San Diego leading the West and Cincinnati tied with the Cardinals for the top spot in the Central.

8 RBI for Toronto's Lind; Lee Powers Astros Past Cubs

Players of the Day for Monday, August 31, 2009 American League The Toronto Blue Jays got rid of high-priced Alex Rios earlier in the year, tried to unload Roy Halladay and a probably stuck with the multi-million-dollar-dud, Vernon Wells, but in Adam Lind, they have a keeper. Here's a guy who just comes out every day and plays hard, and plays well. Lind was off the charts in Monday's 18-10 hit parade over the Rangers as he drove in 8 runs - the most in the AL in two years and tied for the most in one game in the majors this season with Josh Willingham (July 27), who did it with two grand slams. Lind began his barrage in the 4th inning, extending the Blue Jays' 6-0 lead to 10-0 with a grand slam, his 26th home run of the year. The Rangers, however, fighting for their lives in the middle of the wild card race, cut the lead back to one, scoring 7 in the 5th, 2 in the 6th and 1 in the 7th while the Jays added just one. Looking for some insurance in the top of the ninth, Lind led off with homer #27, a solo shot, and, after his teammates had added a few more, finished off the Toronto scoring with a bases-clearing double which plated three runs. To go with the 27 dingers, Lind has 89 RBI and a .303 batting average. The loss dropped the Rangers 6 behind LA in the AL West and 4 back of idle Boston in the wild card. National League Carlos Lee is a guy who is having another in a series of solid seasons, but, playing in the relative obscurity of cellar-dwelling Houston, doesn't get much recognition. A .308 hitter, Lee also has 22 home runs and 85 RBI on the season, and Monday he may have put the final nail in the Cubs' post-season coffin, singling in two runs in the 3rd inning and knocking a ball over the center field ivy in the 5th for two more runs in the Astros' 5-3 win. The Astros have fallen out of contention for anything long ago, but they want to make sure the Cubs - still in second place in the Central division - don't make their way to any games in October. Just three games behind them in the division standings, the Astros probably wouldn't mind passing Chicago by as the season winds down. The Cubs are 6 games back of the Rockies and Giants in the wild card race and 10 1/2 behind the Cardinals.

Cecil Gets 1st ML Win; Tejada, Lee Stone Padres

Players of the Day for Sunday, May 10, 2009 American League Toronto's Brett Cecil got his first major league win with a dandy, 5-hit, 8-inning shutout effort. The Pitching-rich Blue Jays took the final two games of their three-game set at Oakland with an easy 5-0 win. They head back home with the best record in the AL and a 1-game lead over Boston in the heady AL East. Cecil, acquired by the Blue jays in the 2007 supplemental draft, had a solid outing in his first ever major league start on May 5, going 6 innings and giving up 6 hits and 1 earned run, though he didn't receive a decision in the 10-6 Blue Jay win. The rookie left no doubt, however, on Sunday, walking just 2 batters while fanning 6 and getting another 12 outs on ground balls. National League The Houston Astros won their third straight Sunday, with a 12-5 pounding of San Diego - a team with a record worse than Houston's sub-par 14-17. Carlos Lee (left) and Miguel Tejada (right), had nearly identical stats on the night. Both had three hits, including a homer, drove in four runs and scored twice, Lee doing his damage in 4 at-bats, while Tejada took five. Tejada's first-inning, two-run blast was his second of the year, while Lee's 8th-inning, two-run homer was his sixth. Ivan Rodriguez also went 4-for-4 with a solo home run in the rout, which completed a weekend three-game sweep of the Padres, who trail Los Angeles in the NL West by 8 1/2 games. Houston is in 5th place in the Central, 5 1/2 back of St. Louis.

Furcal 12-14 in last 3 games; Sizemore Leads 15-7 Tribe Rout of Twins

Tuesday's Peak Performers and Fabulous Flops American League Grady Sizemore (right) doubled, homered and singled twice in 5 at-bats, driving in 2 and scoring twice as Cleveland outslugged visiting Minnesota, 15-7. Much of the Cleveland pain was inflicted on starter Ramon Ortiz (3-4) who lasted just 1 inning, allowing 6 earned runs on 7 hits and a walk. Ichiro Suzuki knocked 5 singles in 5 at-bats, stole a base, scored a run and drove in another in Seattle's 11-3 home win over the LA Angels. The Mariners are locked into a dead-tight race in the AL West with the Angels and A's. LA leads both Seattle and Oakland by one game. The Angels and Mariners play the second of their 3-game series tonight. Toronto rookie Jesse Litsch, called up from Double-A New Hampshire to replace ailing Roy Halladay, turned in a superb performance, earning his first major league win with a 4-hit, 1-run, 2-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

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Litsch almost had a complete game, but was pulled with 2 outs in the 9th after walking Miguel Tejada. Jeremy Accardo gave up a single to Ramon Hernandez, but got Aubrey Huff to ground out to end the game. It was Accardo's 3rd save. Other AL Scores Detroit 7 Boston 2 - M. Ordonez, HR (8), 3 RBI (37) Oakland 5 Kansas City 4, 11 innings Tampa Bay 4 Texas 3, 10 innings NY Yankees @ Chi White Sox, Rained out National League Rafael Furcal (right) went 4-5 Tuesday night, equaling a mark held by 4 other players - 4 hits in 3 consecutive games. The major league record of 4 hits in 4 straight games is held by Mitt Stock, who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1925. Furcal will have a shot at tying that record tonight when the Dodgers host St. Louis. On Tuesday, Furcal stroked 3 singles, drove in 3 with a bases loaded triple in the 3rd inning and scored twice as the Dodgers outhit the Cards, 9-7. In the past three games, Furcal has blistered the opposition, going 12-14 with 5 RBI, 4 runs scored and a pair of steals. He's raised his batting average from .228 to .297. Dan Uggla socked a pair of home runs - this 7th and 8th - drove in 4 runs and scored twice in 5 at-bats as Florida snapped their 4-game losing streak with a 9-3 win over the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates. Edgar Renteria hit a 2-run homer in the 1st inning, and a solo shot in the 7th to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 6-3 win at Washington. In between, Renteria singled and scored in the 3rd, part of a 3 run inning that put the game away for starter Tim Hudson, who cruised through 7 innings, allowing just 3 hits, a walk and one warned run for his 5th win against one loss. Randy Johnson got his first win since returning to the Arizona Diamondbacks, allowing 1 hit and no walks over 6 scoreless innings, striking out 9, as Arizona won, 3-0 at Colorado. Carlos Lee, tied for the NL RBI lead with J. J. Hardy at 37, cracked a pair of homers last night, including the game-winner in the 10th inning as the Astros took a 6-5 decision over visiting Dan Francisco. Lee's homers - his 8th and 9th - were both solo shots, but the slugger also rapped a pair of singles and scored 4 runs in his 4 at-bats. Other NL Scores Philadelphia 4 Milwaukee 3 - Brewers, 4th loss in last 5; Phillies, 8-3 vs. NL Central Chi Cubs 10, NY Mets 1 - A. Ramirez, GS HR (8) Cincinnati 2 San Diego 1, 12 innings - K. Griffey Jr., GW HR (9)

Bond's Bombs Booed; Carlos Lee Drives Three

Friday's Peak Performers and Fabulous Flops American League Baltimore already had a 4-1 lead when they loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth inning and Nick Markakis pounded a grand slam to right field for his second home run of the season. The O's won the game 8-1 as Erik Bedard cruised through 6 innings, allowing just one earned run on 5 hits and 4 walks. Bedard struck out 9 Royals to give him 17 in 17 1/3 innings as he improved to 2-1 on the season. The Blue Jays have been scoring plenty of runs, but Roy Halladay probably wishes

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they'd saved a few for his starts. After getting no decision in his opening day start (Toronto won 5-3 at Detroit), Halladay got his first win on Sunday at Tampa Bay, but had to throw 10 innings last night for the 2-1 win over the visiting Tigers. Displaying his usual combination of control and finesse, Halladay allowed just 6 hits, no walks and just 1 earned run - a second inning solo homer by Magglio Ordonez - as he improved to 2-0 and kept the Jays a half-game ahead of Boston in the AL East. The Yankees may have overpaid in their knee-jerk reaction to Boston's acquisition of Dice-K when they paid through the nose for Japan's Kei Igawa. In two starts this season, Igawa has yet to earn a decision or last more than 5 1/3 innings - which he did last night, giving up a 2-run homer to the A's Eric Chavez which sent him to the showers. So far, Igawa numbers are far from terrific: 10 1/3 innings, 11 hits, 5 Ks, 5 walks, 9 earned runs (3 homers), 7.84 ERA. Oh, Kei? Not OK. National League Barry Bonds (right) returned to Pittsburgh, where he began his major league career, and belted a pair of bombs to right field along with a run-scoring single. In bone-chilling 45-degree weather, Pirates fans gave Bonds a chilly reception, lustily booing both his 2-run shot in the 2nd and solo shot in the 4th. Bonds finished with 4 RBI in the 8-5 Giants win, and moved closer to Hank Arron's career record of 755 home runs, with his own 736 and 737. The Chicago Cubs had a 5-run lead at home, but starter Carlos Zambrano gave it all back in the top of the 5th inning issuing 5 hits, a walk and a hit batsman without getting an out. Will Ohman only made matters worse by walking in a couple more runs before Mike Wuertz came in and struck out the next three batters. In all, 6 Reds crossed the plate, and Cincy got the win, 6-5. After the game, Cubs' manager Lou Piniella lost his temper at the press conference, yelling at reporters and generally showing his disgust with his 3-6 team. Houston picked up Carlos Lee (right) in the off-season from Texas in hopes that he might add some pop to the middle of their lineup. Last night, the powerful left fielder showed what he could do, launching a trio of home runs in Houston's 9-6 win at Philly. Lee sandwiched a 3rd inning grand slam with a pair of solo shots, knocked in 6 runs, moving him into 2nd place in the RBI race with 12, just one behind Florida's Miguel Cabrera. The Los Angeles Dodgers took over sole possession of first place in the NL West with a 9-1 win at home over rival San Diego. Derek Lowe scattered 7 hits and a pair of walks over 8 innings, allowing just one earned run while striking out 6. Lowe improved to 2-1 on the season.