Mariano Rivera Sets Saves Record; Ian Kennedy Allows One Hit in 20th Win; Cardinals Within 2 1/2 of Braves in NL Wild Card

Players of the Day for Monday, September 19, 2011

American League

Rivera: 602 Saves

It wasn't a very pretty game, but the Yankees left Toronto with a 6-4 win and save number 602 for Mariano Rivera, making the Yankee closer the all-time leader, passing Trevor Hoffman, who retired last season with 601.

Rivera came on in the ninth as the sixth Yankee pitcher of the day, but his work was, as usual, nearly flawless. Striking out Chris Parmelee to end the game, Rivera didn't allow a hit or a walk in recording his 43rd save of the season, second best in the AL behind Detroit's Jose Valverde.

Better yet for Rivera, who has been on a roll lately with 10 saves in the past three weeks, the Yankee win coincided with a Red Sox split of a double-header against Baltimore, padding the Yankees' lead to five games over Boston and seven over Tampa Bay.

The Rays did not play on Monday, but are headed to New York for a three game series starting Tuesday.

With the Central division already decided in favor of the Tigers, the LA Angels are letting their season slip away with their third loss in four games, a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Blue Jays in ten innings. The Rangers' lead in the West is now five games, and though the Angles finish the regular season with three home games against Texas, they'll have to do better in their next three games at Toronto followed by three at home with the A's.


National League

Arizona strengthened its case for winning the West with a 1-0 victory at Pittsburgh Monday, increasing their lead in the division to 5 1/2 games over the idled Giants.

Ian Kennedy: 20-5

Diamondback bats weren't exactly booming, getting just five hits off Pittsburg starter Jeff Karstens and their only run coming on a Justin Upton broken bat solo homer in the 6th, but they didn't need much, as ace Ian Kennedy racked up his 20th win, stifling Pittsburgh on one hit over eight innings, walking one and matching his career high with 12 Ks.

Kennedy, 20-4, dominated the middle of the Pirate order, striking out their 3, 4 and 5 hitters a total of seven times. He became the first 20-game winner in the National League. Justin Verlander (24-5) is the sole AL 20-game winner.

The wild card race tightened up a little more, as the Cardinals downed the Phillies, 4-3, and the Marlins topped the Braves, 6-5, when Omar Infante launched a two-run homer off Braves' closer, Craig Kimbrel.

The Braves have seen their big wild card lead dwindle to just 2 1/2 games. Atlanta has gone just 6-12 in September. Meanwhile the Cardinals have won eight of their last 10 and have nine games left - all at home - against some of the weaklings of the National League, with consecutive three game series against the Mets, Cubs and Astros.

Atlanta has two more games in Florida, three in Washington, but then return home for a season-ending, three game series with the Phillies.

Ian Kennedy Wins NL-Best 19th; Brent Morel, Paul Konerko Bash Indians in 9-1 White Sox Win

Players of the Day for Thursday, September 8, 2011

American League

The Chicago White Sox continue to hang tough in the AL Central, cementing their hold on second place in the division with an 8-1 win over Cleveland that knocked the Indians 10 games off the pace of Detroit and 1 1/2 games behind the Sox, who overtook the Indians earlier in the week.

Morel: 2 HR

Cleveland pitchers didn't do a bad job on most of the White Six hitters, allowing only eight hits. The trouble was three of those hits were home runs, two of them by rookie third baseman Brent Morel, who got the Sox on the board in the second inning, tying the game at 1-1 with a solo blast, then broke the deadlock in the 7th inning with a three-run bomb, putting Chicago ahead for good.

Konerko: Grand

Paul Konerko finished the job, connecting for his 29th of the season with the bases full later in the 7th. Konerko’s 10th career grand slam tied a White Sox record held by Robin Ventura.

Thanks mostly to the Tigers - who have won six straight - the Indians have dropped four in a row, three of them to Detroit, and the White Sox have made the most of it. Still 8 1/2 games behind Detroit, Chicago has little chance of catching them, though after they finish their four-game series with the Indians on Sunday, the Tigers come to town for a three game set.

The last time the Tigers and White Sox met was in the first three days of September, with the Tigers sweeping a three-game series in Detroit. Chicago hopes that a change of scenery to their home ball park will change their fortunes.

National League

Kennedy: 19 Wins

The NL Cy Young award is not going to be easy to figure out this season, but Arizona ace Ian Kennedy put his case forward on Thursday, winning his 19th game against just four losses as the Diamondbacks continue to defy the experts and lead the NL West by 7 1/2 games with a 4-1 win over San Diego.

Kennedy scattered seven hits over 7 2/3 innings, getting help from his infield in the form of two double plays, but mostly he was in command, striking out 11 batters, including a string of five straight over the 5th and 6th innings.

He gave up San Diego's only run of the game with two outs in the 8th and was pulled in favor of reliever Brad Ziegler. J.J. Putz gave up a hit, but struck out two in the 9th for his 38th save.

Kennedy has quietly been having a super season, though he may be overshadowed in the Cy Young race by other National Leaguers having banner years. Kennedy leads the league in wins with 19, followed by LA's Clayton Kershaw with 17 and a pair of Phillies - Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay - with 16. His 2.90 ERA is 9th in the league, and he has rung up 178 strikeouts, fifth best in the NL. The players ahead of him in both departments are the same three chasing after him in wins.

Granderson Gone Wild; Jennings, Price Power Relentless Rays; Diamondbacks Win 6th Straight

Players of the Day for Sunday, August 28, 2011

American League

Curtis Granderson

How special a season is Curtis Granderson having?

Pretty special, it appears, as Granderson homered twice in the nightcap of the Yankees' double-header at Baltimore, socking a three-run homer in the 3rd inning to erase an early 2-0 Baltimore lead, then smashing an opposite field shot in the 7th inning to complete the scoring in New York's 8-3 victory at Camden Yards.

Price: 14 Ks

The first homer tied him with Toronto's Jose Bautista for the AL and major league lead in home runs, the second gave the 185-pound center fielder the outright lead in that category. His four RBI put him ahead of all others with 107. He also leads the majors in runs with 121 and has stolen 24 bases this season.

Granderson's HR and RBI totals are already career bests for the 7-year pro. He's one shy of matching his 2007 total for runs and he'll match his personal best for swipes with two more stolen bases.

With the Yankees splitting with the O's and Boston idle, David Price and the Tampa Bay Rays were keeping pace, 8 1/2 games back, but just 6 1/2 behind the Yankees for the wild card spot.

Desmond Jennings

Price (12-11) set a personal high mark with 14 Ks, shutting out the Blue Jays over seven innings on three hits and two walks as the Rays hammered Toronto, 12-0. Rookie outfielder Desmond Jennings provided early offense, homering to lead off the game and smacking another seat-finder in the 3rd to put the Rays up 5-0.

Jennings also walked and stole second in the 4th and singled home a run and scored in the 9th as the Rays piled on six more runs.

Kennedy: 17-4

National League

Arizona's Ian Kennedy topped all National League pitchers with his 17th win as the Diamondbacks won their 6th straight, defeating the Padres, 6-1.

Kennedy allowed just one run on seven hits over seven stellar innings. He fanned seven and did not issue any walks.

Aaron Hill

While Kennedy was mowing down the opposition, recently acquired second baseman Aaron Hill singled, tripled and homered, driving in three run in five at-bats.

Collin Cowgill

Rookie Collin Cowgill hit his first double and home run, going 4-for-4 with a pair of RBI and two runs.

The Arizona win pushed them to a four-game lead over San Francisco in the NL West. The Giants dropped a 4-3 decision to Houston in 11 innings.

Arizona is one of just three NL teams to have winning records at home, on the road and against all three divisions. The other two both hail from the East: Philadelphia and Atlanta.

Gonzalez Leads Red Sox Back to 1st; Kershaw, Kennedy 16-Game NL Winners; Fielder First to 100 RBI

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 23, 2011

American League

Adrian Gonzalez

With David Ortiz sitting out the last nine games with bursitis in his right heel and Kevin Youkilis on the DL with back stiffness since August 17, the Boston Red Sox haven't had their full complement of players and recently relinquished their AL East lead to the Yankees.

With a little help from the Oakland A's, who barely outlasted the Yankees for a 6-5 win Tuesday night, Boston has - despite a recent 5-5 record - regained a tie for the top spot in the division, as Adrian Gonzalez picked up his teammates with two homers and a single in four at-bats, leading to an 11-5 victory over the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.

Connecting for a two-run job in the opening inning, Gonzalez cracked his 20th home run as a Red Sox - a solo shot - in the 4th, singled, but was stranded in the 7th and was intentionally walked and scored in the 8th inning.

Gonzalez leads the majors with a .346 batting average and is second in the AL in RBI with 97, one behind the Yankees' Curtis Granderson.

Ian Kennedy

Boston and Texas have split the first two games of their series, which continues Wednesday and Thursday in Arlington.

National League

Clayton Kershaw

Despite the best pitching staff in the majors belonging to the Phillies, Clayton Kershaw and Ian Kennedy both became 16-game winners on Tuesday to top the National League's win column.

Kennedy, dueling with Washington ace, Jordan Zimmerman, tossed seven innings of shutout ball against the Nationals, with Arizona breaking through in the 7th on Sean Burroughs' two run homer for the 2-0 win, snapping a six-game Diamondback losing streak that had trimmed their lead over the Giants to a single game.

Kennedy scattered six hits and two walks, fanning eight.

Fielder: 100 RBI

During Arizona's slide, the Giants were more than accommodating, dropping four of six themselves, including Tuesday's 7-5 loss to San Diego.

For Kershaw, getting win #16 was a bit easier.

In three innings, the Dodgers had eight hits and scored eight runs off St. Louis starter Kyle Lohse. Kershaw cruised through six innings of shutout ball, giving up six hits and two walks while striking out eight in the 13-2 Dodger win. Kershaw also leads the NL with 207 Ks.

Elsewhere, Prince Fielder became the first player in the majors to reach the 100-RBI mark, doubling home Ryan Braun in the sixth inning of Milwaukee's 11-4 win over the Pirates.

Crawford 4-for-4 in BoSox 14-2 Win at Cleveland; Ian Kennedy Goes to 6-1

Players of the Day for Wednesday, May 25, 2011

American League

Carl Crawford

Just in case anyone was thinking that Boston's three-game series at Cleveland was a preview of the playoffs, the Beantown boys made sure they had the last word, humbling the current AL Central division leaders with a 14-2 beat-down for a 2-1 series win.

Boston batters doled out 20 hits, led by Carl Crawford's 4-for-4 effort, which included his third home run of the season, two doubles, three runs and a pair of RBI.

Crawford, who entered the game batting just .212, hasn't quite lived up to Boston's expectations since being acquired in the off-season from the Rays, but showed definite signs of heating up along with the weather.

The Red Sox scored their runs in bunches, getting seven in the 1st inning and plating five more in the 6th. The win moved them into sole possession of second place in the AL East, just a half game behind - you guessed it - the NY Yankees.

National League

Ian Kennedy

All of a sudden, everybody in the NL West is paying attention to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

In the scrambled race to keep pace with the reigning world champion Giants, the Diamondbacks have shown up in second place. After losing five straight earlier in the month, Arizona has gone red-hot, winning nine of their last eleven, including Wednesday's 2-1 victory over Colorado, displacing the Rockies in second place in the division.

One reason for Arizona's success has been the performance of starting pitcher Ian Kennedy, who won his third straight, improving to 6-1, as he limited the Rockies to seven hits over eight innings. Kennedy walked two and struck out three, throwing 74 of 104 pitches for strikes. He was definitely not fooling anybody as he lowered his ERA to 3.01 to go with a 1.02 WHIP. J.J. Putz worked a perfect ninth inning for his 12th save.

Arizona will attempt to leave Colorado on a winning note when the two teams complete their four-game series Thursday. The Diamondbacks lost the first encounter, but have come back with two straight wins. They trail the Giants by 2 1/2 games and are over .500 (25-24) for the first time this season.

Stifling Shutouts: Jered Weaver Stops A's; Ian Kennedy 3-Hits Phillies

Players of the Day for Monday, April 25, 2011

American League

Jered Weaver

Jered Weaver is on a roll and the rest of the American League isn't happy about it.

Weaver kept his record perfect, winning his sixth game in as many starts with a 5-0 shutout over the A's.

The ace of the Angels stopped Oakland on seven hits, walking one and striking out 10 for his third career shutout and sixth career complete game. In 45 2/3 innings this season, Weaver's allowed a measly five runs and his strikeout total - now at 49 - is the most in the majors. In the AL he leads Justin Verlander (35) and Ricky Romero (34) by a solid margin.

LA scored twice in the second inning, adding a single run in the third and two more in the fourth to give Weaver a working lead that he used to his advantage.

The Angels trail Texas in the AL West by 1 1/2 games.

National League

Ian Kennedy

Normally, it's the Phillies doing the shutting out.

On Monday, Arizona's Ian Kennedy turned the tables on the AL East leaders with a 3-hit shutout and a 4-0 win for the Diamondbacks.

Matched up against Philly's Cliff Lee, Kennedy didn't flinch, while Lee - who fanned 12 - allowed all of Arizona's scores in his seven innings of work.

Kennedy, meanwhile, was busy working through the Philadelphia lineup. He gave up a double in the first inning to Placido Polanco, a Jimmy Rollins single in the 4th and a single by Polanco in the 6th. After that, no Phillie reached base for the duration of the contest.

Improving to 3-1, Kennedy fanned Rollins, Lee, Shane Victorino and Ryan Howard twice each, ending the game with a swinging strikeout of Rollins, which brought his total for the game to 10.

It was Kennedy's initial complete game and shutout. His 10 Ks are a season high.

Ian Kennedy Blanks Dodgers Over 5 1/3; Victor Martinez A Nice Addition for Tigers

Players of the Day for Monday, March 21, 2011

American League

Victor Martinez

With or without their sometimes-sober superstar, Miguel Cabrera, the Detroit Tigers are going to contend in the AL Central. Strutting into first place in the Grapefruit League with an 18-9 record, Tiger bats were booming again in a 9-1 win over the hitting-impaired Astros.

Detroit pounded out 19 base hits, three of them off the bat of Victor Martinez, who singled, doubled twice, drove in a run and scored once in three at-bats.

Having spent 2009 in Boston, where he batted .302 with 20 homers and 79 RBI, Martinez landed back in the Central division via free agency. He spent the first 7 1/2 years of his major league career toiling in Cleveland, but now has hooked up with Detroit and should provide another solid bat.

National League

Ian Kennedy

Arizona's Ian Kennedy may be turning into the kind of player fantasy addicts appreciate.

Now in his second season with the Diamondbacks after spending three fruitless years with the Yankees, Kennedy is at that point in his career where he's either going to get it or not.

In Monday's 3-0 blanking of the Dodgers, Kennedy work 5 1/3 innings, giving up three hits, three walks and no runs, striking out six in his 5th tune-up of the Spring.

The righty hurler went 9-10 with Arizona last season, which isn't bad considering they finished so far behind the rest of the division they were essentially done by July. His 3.80 ERA and 168 Ks in 194 innings were quality numbers, worth a look in 2011.