Lillibridge Shows Savvy in White Sox Win; Heisey, Cueto Lead Reds Past Yanks

Players of the Day for Wednesday, June 22, 2011

American League

Brent Lillibridge

We've heard of taking one for the team, but when a player takes one that turns out to be a game-winner, that's something special.

Since arriving from the minors to the White Sox, Brent Lillibridge has been a sensation in the outfield and solid at the plate. In Wednesday's rubber match with the Cubs, he proved that baseball is often more guile than power, more a game of inches, rather than feet.

Lillibridge went 2-for-3 with a most unusual pair of RBI, the first on a bunt single, the second without his bat even touching the ball. The remarkable sub showed the gamesmanship of a veteran when he bunted for a single in the 4th inning, getting A.J. Pierzynski - not the fleetest of foot - home from third base to put the White Sox up 2-0. Then, in the 5th, he was hit by a Doug Davis pitch with the bases loaded to make it 4-1, and, yes, it counts as an RBI.

It turned out to be a fortuitous bruising, as the Cobs plated two more in the top of the 6th, before the White Sox bullpen closed the door, resulting in a 4-3 White Sox win and a 2-1 edge in the crosstown series.

Lillibridge is batting .278 with seven home runs, 15 RBI, 20 runs and six steals in just 97 at-bats.

National League

Heisey: 3 Homers

Cueto: 7 IP, 2 Hits

After dropping the first game of their day-night double-header to the Yankees, the Reds needed a win in the nightcap to avoid being swept at home, so they turned to their #2 starter, Johnny Cueto, who didn't have to be as good as he was, as the Reds registered a 10-2 romp over the New Yorkers.

Cueto improved to 5-2 allowing two hits over seven innings, one of which was a solo homer by Nick Swisher, producing the only run he'd give up.

While Cueto was all arms and elbows on the mound, fanning six while walking three, Chris Heisey was raking at the plate, going 3-for-5, all of his hits homers, driving in five runs, prompting more questions to manager Dusty Baker about why the kid isn't in the starting lineup permanently.

The Reds' win moved them to within two games of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central, with the Cardinals in between, 1/2 game out, but Heisey's heroics may land him a full-time job in the end. He's batting .273 with 8 homers and 28 RBI in just 123 at-bats.

INTERLEAGUE TALLY: The National League took 9 out of 15 played on Wednesday, cutting further into the big lead the AL had been building. The tally stands at 64 for the AL and 58 wins for the NL.

Jesse Litsch Clicks for Blue Jays; Chris Heisey Showing Power for Hit-Happy Reds

 Players of the Day for Sunday, March 20, 2011

American League

Jesse Litsch

Jesse Litsch missed most of 2009 and came back in 2010 after having Tommy John surgery, going 1-5 for the Blue Jays. But, judging by his work in Toronto's 3-0 win over the Twins on Sunday, the operation and some additional time off seems to have been a successful remedy.

Litsch earned his second win of the exhibition season with 5 1/3 innings of shutout ball, allowing three hits and no walks while striking out seven Minnesota batsmen.

A starter with the Jays in 2007 and 2008, Litsch went 20-18 over two seasons before the arm problems began. The ext two seasons were a lost cause, but he looks like a solid addition to the Blue Jays rotation, which is already in pretty good shape with Ricky Romero, Brett Cecil and Brandon Morrow.

National League

Chris Heisey

The Reds finished 2010 with one of the best-hitting teams in the majors, and they seem to be on a similar path as they tune up for the 2011 campaign.

Leading the charge to become a regular in a crowded outfield is Chris Heisey, who is batting .325 with 4 homers and 10 RBI this Spring. On Sunday, Heisey went 3-for-6 falling just short of the cycle with a single, triple and home run, 2 RBI and 2 scores as the Red outslugged fellow Central Division foe, Milwaukee, 9-8.

Heisey played in 97 games last season, batting .254 with 8 homers but only 21 RBI. With his power numbers up, he could challenge Drew Stubbs for the starting job in center field or fill in at either of the other two outfield positions.