Brandon Nimmo 5-for-5 As Mets Bury Orioles; Tyler White, Evan Gattis Lead Houston Over Rockies

Players of the Day for Wednesday, August 15, 2018

American League

Evan Gattis

While Seattle was slowing down the A's with a 2-0 win, the Houston Astros snapped out of their five-game losing streak, taking down Colorado, 12-1, in Houston.

Tyler White

Tyler White and Evan Gattis each homered twice for the Astros. White socked a pair of two-run blasts, one in the fifth and another in the seventh. Gattis had two solo shots, belting one in the third inning and the second in the fifth. He also singled, going 3-for-4 for the game.

The win left Houston clinging to a two game lead in the AL West over the A's. While Seattle's win over Oakland may give the Astros some needed breathing room, they have to also be aware of the Mariners, now 4 1/2 off the pace.

Houston gets a day off Thursday as they prepare for a nine-game road trip. They open Friday in Oakland with the first of a three-game series. After that they head to Seattle and Anaheim to play three apiece with the Mariners and Angels.

National League

Nimmo: 5-for-5, 3R, 3RBI

On average, the Mets score just over four runs per game. Only San Deigo and Miami score less in the National League, so their 16-5 romp at Baltimore was out of the ordinary, to say the least.

The 19-hit outburst started with Brandon Nimmo's first of five hits, leading off the game with a single and scoring on Wilmer Flores' sacrifice fly. Nimmo would later double, triple, and single twice more, going 5-for-5 with three runs and three RBI, helping send Baltimore to its 85th loss of the season.

Nimmo, 25, is in his third year with the Mets, and has had nine hits in his last three games, batting .750 (9-for-12) with three doubles, two triples, and a home run.

The Mets have won three of their last four and five of their last seven but are still hopelessly out of the race, 16 1/2 games behind the Braves in the NL East.

They open a five-game series in Philadelphia on Thursday with a doubleheader. Game one starts at 4:05 pm EDT.

Phillies Tie Atlanta For 1st Place As Odubel Herrera Leads 17-5 Win; Evan Gattis Powers Houston Past White Sox

Players of the Day for Friday, July 6, 2018

American League

Gattis: 3-4, HR, 4 RBI

With an 11-4 win over the visiting White Sox, Houston extended their lead in the AL West to 2 1/2 over hard-charging Seattle, 7-1 losers to Colorado. Despite winning eight of their last 10, the Astros have had the Mariners breathing down their backs for the better part of the past two weeks. The Mariners recent record is 9-2, including Friday's loss.

Houston seems to have a different star every night, a trademark of the reigning world champs. In Friday's win, that star was Evan Gattis, who singled, doubled, and homered in four at-bats, driving in four runs. His big blow was his 18th homer, a 422-foot, eighth inning, three-run bomb that blew the game wide open.

Gattis has driven in 61 runs this season, tying him for third in the AL with Cleveland's Edwin Encarnacion.

With the physique of a power slugger at 6'4, 270, Gattis is well on his way to a career year after missing half of last season with injuries. He's already surpassed last season's numbers (12 HR, 55 RBI). He's heating up with the weather, already having socked three homers in July and driven in seven runs.

The Astros have taken the first two of their four-game series with Chicago. Game three is scheduled for 4:10 pm EDT on Saturday.

National League

Herrera: 2-for-6, HR, 4RBI

Wihtout a doubt, the team that's been the biggest positive surprise of 2018 has to be the Philadelphia Phillies.

After ending the 2017 season in last place, 31 games behind Washington in the NL East with a 66-96 mark, not much was expected from the youthful Phils this season, but they've thus far exceeded all expectations.

With a 17-5 win at Pittsburgh Friday night, the Phillies tied Atlanta for first place in the division, winning their fifth straight and eighth of their last nine outings.

While the Phillies have been tearing it up, Atlanta has dropped four in a row, including Friday's 5-4 defeat at Milwaukee.

The Phillies took it to six Pittsburgh pitchers, taking the first game from the slumping swashbucklers with 18 hits. Scott Kingery went 4-for-5, Ryan Hoskins was 3-for-5 with three runs and two RBI, and Odubel Herrera singled and homered in six at-bats with four RBI, the crucial blow his three-run dinger in the third inning that gave Philly a 5-1 lead.

Pittsburgh battled back to within 5-4, but the Phillies scored two in the sixth, seven in the seventh, and three more in the ninth inning to make it a complete blowout.

Herrera, who has been a solid contributor since 2015, is having a breakout season. With 15 homers, he's already equalled his person high mark from 2016 and his 51 RBI is just five short of his best, in 2017. And, he's done all this in just 83 games.

The Phillies will be looking to extend their winning streak when they play game two of their three-game series in Pittsburgh, Saturday at 4:05 pm EDT.

Ryan Zimmerman Slam Boosts Nationals over Padres; Evan Gattis Powers Houston to 15-1 Win over Yankees

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 25, 2015

American League

Evan Gattis

After losing Monday's opener at Yankee Stadium on a walk-off sac fly by Carlos Beltran, 1-0, the Houston Astros exacted their revenge early and often against the Yankees on Tuesday night, smothering the home team by a 15-1 tally.

Houston scored five runs in the first inning off Yankee starter, Ivan Nova, and finally chased the starter in the fifth inning when Evan Gattis belted his 20th homer of the season with one aboard and nobody out.

Ryan Zimmerman

Gattis also singled home a pair of runs in the seventh inning, delivering four RBI on the night, walking twice and scoring three times in four at-bats.

The win helped out the Astros, increasing their lead over Texas in the AL West to 4 1/2 games, while sending the Yankees one game back of Toronto in the AL East. The Blue Jays have won four straight and retaken first place in the division.

Houston and New York play the third - and final - game of the series when they take the field at Yankee Stadium Wednesday afternoon at 1:05 pm EDT.

National League

Ryan Zimmerman had just one hit in five at-bats, but it was a loud one: a sixth inning grand slam that turned a 4-2 Washington lead into an 8-3 victory over the visiting San Diego Padres.

Zimmerman's smash was just his 10th of the season. The All-Star third baseman has been saddled by injuries the past two seasons, playing in just 61 games in 2014 and 82 this season. He has only 15 home runs over the past two years, well below his former production.

Zimmerman's woes mirror those of the rest of the team, riddled with nagging injuries and underperformance that has the Nationals ten games behind the Cubs for the second wild card spot, the chances of making the post-season almost hopeless at this point.

The Nationals have won three straight and gotten back over .500, but the Cubs have won six in a row and have been the hottest team in the National League this month, with a mark of 17 wins and four losses.

Washington will try to keep pace when they play game two of their three-game series with the Padres at 7:05 pm EDT on Tuesday.

Evan Gattis Leads Braves Past Astros; Cactus League Games Postponed

Players of the Day for Friday, March 8, 2013

Grapefruit League

Evan Gattis

Atlanta's Evan Gattis singled, doubled and socked a three-run homer in four at-bats as the Braves downed the Houston Astros, 14-9, in exhibition action.

The Braves banged out 17 hits, decimating Houston's string of eight pitchers used in the game. Gattis scored three times and finished with four RBI.

Gattis, a 6'4" prospect who advanced last season to the AA Southern League, is looking for a backup spot to regular catcher, Brian McCann, and is having a solid Spring, batting .440 with a pair of homers and seven RBI.

Cactus League

All Cactus League games were postponed on Friday due to adverse weather conditions.