Meche, Hernandez Toss Zeros; Reds' Nix Kicks Braves

Players of the Day for Tuesday, June 16, 2009 American League Two outstanding pitching performances - by KC's Gil Meche (left) and Seattle's Felix Hernandez (right) - created a tie for POTD honors for Tuesday. In Kansas City's 5-0 wipeout of Arizona, Meche extended his scoreless streak to 16 innings with a 4-hit, complete game shutout, walking one while striking out 6. Meche, in his previous start, blanked Cleveland on 4 hits over seven innings. Tuesday's outing was an improvement on that, even though the righty threw 132 pitches (82 strikes) as he improved to 4-5 on the season. It was Meche's 3rd career shutout and 6th complete game over 9 seasons. At 7-2, Felix Hernandez has been flying under the radar in Seattle, compiling some impressive stats that compare favorably to any starter in the AL. In his complete-game 5-0 shutout at San Diego, Hernandez allowed just two hits - both singles - while walking 4 and fanning 6. It was Hernandez's second straight win and his third consecutive decision without a loss. Over his past 5 starts - 37 2/3 innings - Hernandez has allowed a paltry 3 earned runs while striking out 34 batters. His seasonal stats are outstanding: 1.22 WHIP, 2.77 ERA. National League In the NL Central, the Cincinnati Reds continue to press the issue, remaining in third place, 3 games behind Milwaukee with a 7-2 romp over Atlanta. In Tuesday's win, slugging left fielder Laynce Nix provided a lift, going 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles and a single, driving in three runs. Nix got the Reds on the board early, with a run-scoring ground out in the first and an RBI double in the 3rd, and late, with another run-producing double in the 8th inning which completed the Reds' scoring. NOTES: Tampa Bay ended Colorado's 11-game winning streak, busting up the Rockies 12-4 in Colorado. The loss dropped the Rockies two games under .500, leaving only San Francisco and the Dodgers as the only teams in the division with winning records. By winning, the Rays kept pace in the AL East, where each of the top four contenders - Red Sox, Yankees, Rays and Blue Jays - won their interleague contests. Other than the runaway Dodgers in the NL West, the divisional races are tight everywhere. In the AL, the lead in each division is a slender 2 games. In the NL, Philly leads the Mets by 3 games, while the Brewers hold a 1 game edge over the Cardinals in the Central.

Meche, Callaspo Power Royals; Steady Molina Leads Giants

Players of the Day for Wednesday, June 10 American League The Kansas City Royals have fallen to the usual spot near the bottom of the AL Central, but there are signs of life and hope for the future, especially after Gil Meche (left) and Alberto Callaspo (right) combined to tear up the Indians, 9-0, pushing Cleveland into last place in the division. Meche (3-5) worked seven innings of shutout ball, allowing 4 hits and 3 bases on balls, while fanning 11. Meanwhile, Callaspo, one of the promising young players with the Royals, went 4-for-4, with three singles and a fifth-inning grand slam homer, which completed the scoring for the Royals. It was his third homer of the season and also the third of his career. Callaspo seems to have found a limited power stroke this season as the Royals regular second baseman after hitting .305 in 74 games with the Royals in 2008. Meche's 11 Ks matched his career high. National League Since May 24, the San Francisco Giants are 11-4, winning their second straight Wednesday as Benjie Molina smacked a two-run homer in the third and added an insurance run in the ninth inning in a 6-4 Giants' victory over Arizona. Molina, whose 9 home runs and 37 RBI lead the youthful Giants, has been a steadying influence for both the pitching staff and around the clubhouse. Now in his 11th season, the stout Puerto Rican native looks to be on his way to career highs in both home runs and RBI. His previous highs are 19 homers (2006 and 2007) and 95 RBI (2008). He is just the kind of veteran the Giants can begin building a new post-Bonds-era team. The Giants have closed to within 7 1/2 games of NL West-leading Los Angeles.

Meche Stops Rays; Braun Goes 4-for-4 as Brewers Sweep Cards

Players of the Day from Thursday, July 24, 2008 American League On their day off, the Boston Red Sox received an unexpected treat from Kansas City starter Gil Meche, who shut out the Rays over 7 innings to lead the Royals to a 4-2 win over Tampa Bay and put the Sox and Rays into a virtual tie for first place in the AL East. While the Rays are actually .001 better in the standings, the two teams are even on a games behind basis. Meche (8-9) allowed five hits and a walk in his seven shutout innings. The Rays managed a run in each of the 8th and 9th innings, but it wasn't enough to avoid dropping the opener of the four-game series at Kansas City. Notes: While the Rays will be dealing with the Royals the next three days, the Red Sox will have their hands full with the red-hot Yankees, who visit Fenway for a three-game weekend set beginning Friday. It should be an interesting weekend in the AL East, as the Yankees have won 6 in a row and are just 3 games back. National League Ryan Braun was an absolute nightmare for St. Louis pitchers over the past two days. On Wednesday, he went 4-for-5 with a triple, a homer and an RBI in Milwaukee's 3-0 win. Thursday, he followed up with a 4-for-4 effort - three singles and a 9th inning, 2 run homer - leading the Brewers to a 4-3 win and a 4-game sweep at St. Louis.

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The win was Milwaukee's 8th straight and leaves them a single game behind the Cubs in the NL Central. The Cubs beat Florida, 6-3, to stay barely ahead of the Brewers, who host Houston for three weekend games. The Cubs will complete a four-game series with the Marlins through Sunday. Notes: Being swept by the Brewers left the Cardinals reeling, four games behind the Cubs in the Central division standings, but odd man out in the wild card race. The Cards will need to get past either the Cubs or Brewers to reach the post-season, and that looks like a very uphill climb.