Big Game James Shields Stops Tigers, KC Re-Takes 1st in AL Central; Dan Haren, Carl Crawford Lead Dodgers over Padres

Players of the Day for Wednesday, September 10, 2014

American League

James Shields

Game three of the showdown series between Kansas City and Detroit was going to be decisive, as the Tigers had taken the first two games on their home field and tied the Royals for the lead in the AL Central.

Detroit trotted out another of their ace hurlers, Rick Porcello, the 15-game winner that had been so effective during the first half of the season, while the Royals sent "Big Game" James Shields to the mound.

At the end of seven innings, it was obvious why Shields had earned his moniker. That's when Shields took a seat on the bench, after throwing seven innings of shutout ball, allowing just two hits, walking one and fanning nine en route to a 3-0 Royals win and first place in the division.

Kelvin Herrera and Wade Davis pitched hitless eighth and ninth innings, respectively, leaving the Detroit hitters wondering whether their bats had holes in them.

Though the Tigers are a game behind KC in the division, they still qualify currently as the #2 wild card, 1 1/2 games behind the A's in the top spot and just 1/2 game better than Seattle. Working against the Tigers is the schedule. They have just 16 games remaining, while the A's and Mariners each have 17 left. Kansas City still has 18 to play and has a two-game bulge in the loss column.

National League

Dan Haren

Carl Crawford

Not about to be caught by the San Francisco Giants, the LA Dodgers took the rubber game of their series with the Padres by a 4-0 score, thanks to seven shutout innings from Dan Haren and a 4-for-4 performance by Carl Crawford.

Haren improved to 13-10 on the season, notching his fifth win in his last seven starts. He allowed just fur hits, walked one and fanned five.

Crawford was perfect at the plate, stroking three doubles and a single, driving in a pair of runs and scoring one.

The result, coupled with the Giants' 5-0 win over Arizona left the two teams fighting for first place in the NL West, the Dodgers holding a 2 1/2 game advantage as the teams head to AT&T Park in San Francisco for a three-game weekend showdown. In the penultimate series for both teams, the Giants will travel to Los Angels for a three-game series on September 22, 23 and 24.

Currently holding firmly to the top wild card spot, the Giants have a four-game lead over #2 wild card, Pittsburgh, with Atlanta and Milwaukee both another 1 1/2 back.

James Shields Shuts Out Giants for Royals' Sixth Straight Win; Arizona Rookie David Peralta Slams Colorado

Players of the Day for Saturday, August 9, 2014

American League

Shields: 4-hit SHO

Coming out of the all-star break, the Royals lost four straight on the road - three to Boston and one to the White Sox - but came back to take the final two games of their series in Chicago, which started a 14-3 streak including Saturday's 5-0 win over the stumbling Giants.

While James Shields was limiting the Giants to five hits for their third loss in a row, his complete game victory gave the Royals their sixth straight win, and, coupled with Detroit's 4-3, 10-inning loss to Toronto, Kansas City finds itself just 1 1/2 games back of the AL Central leaders.

Shields was electric, yielding four hits and a walk, while fanning five, posting his first complete game and shutout of the season. Improving to 11-6, the Royals hope he retains his good form down the stretch. In 2011, Shields tossed 11 complete games and four shutouts with the Rays, so the back class is there. He has not had a losing record since 2010.

Peralta: Heating up

The Royals will go for their seventh straight and the series sweep when they host the Giants Sunday at 2:10 pm EDT.

National League

Rookie David Peralta of the Arizona Diamondbacks is making up for lost time, and may be making a late bid for NL rookie of the year.

Peralta, who's been patrolling the Arizona outfield for the past two months since being called up from AA Mobile in the Southern League, mashed a grand slam in a nine-run eighth inning as the Diamondbacks stung the Rockies, 14-4, taking a 2-0 lead in their three-game series which concludes Sunday at 4:10 pm EDT.

Peralta also doubled and singled in five at-bats, driving in five runs and scoring twice. It was his sixth multiple-hit game in his last 10, raising his batting average to a crisp, .321, with five home runs and 29 RBI.

In his first season in the majors, the 27-year-old Venezuelan is making the most of it.

Curtis Granderson Puts Yankees Back on Top; B.J. Upton, James Shields Help Rays Keep Pace; Ricky Nolasco Blanks Nationals

Players of the Day for Sunday, September 9, 2012

American League

Curtis Granderson

The concluding game of the four game Yankees-Orioles series went all one way - to the Yankees - courtesy of Curtis Granderson, who entered the game in the sixth inning as a pinch-hitter for Andruw Jones and promptly delivered a solo homer, upping the New York lead from 5-3 to 6-3.

After belting his 35th home run of the season, Granderson singled home a pair in the seventh and doubled in two more, helping the Yanks to a 13-3 win and a one game lead over the Orioles in the AL East, going 3-for-3 with five RBI.

Upton: 3HR

As the Yanks and O's were beating each others brains in, splitting the four games, Tampa Bay was keeping up, taking two of three from the Rangers, culminating in a complete game shutout by James Shields, who had complete control over one of the best-hitting teams in the majors, blanking Texas on two hits.

Shields: 2-hit shutout

Shields (14-8) fanned eight and didn't issue any walks, needing just 101 pitches (71 strikes) to put down the Rangers.

B.J. Upton provided half of the Rays' offense in the 6-0 win, belting a trio of solo home runs, with one each in the first, fourth and sixth innings. Upton has 21 homers on the season.

The result left the Rays very much in the hunt for both the wild card and the AL East pennant, two back of the Yankees and one behind the Orioles in the division. The wild card has evolved into a four-team scramble for the two spots, with Oakland leading the chase and Baltimore, Tampa Bay and the LA Angeles all within 2 1/2 games, setting up what should prove to be an epic struggle through the final three weeks of the regular season. Texas leads the A's by just 3 1/2 in the West, while the White Sox hold a two game bulge over the Tigers in the Central.

National League

Washington's gallop to the NL East pennant was slowed over the weekend by the Miami Marlins, who took two of three from the Nats in the nation's capitol.

Ricky Nolasco

The rubber game of the series was all Miami, as Ricky Nolasco evened his record at 12-12 with a four-hit shutout, the Marlins getting some spoiler revenge in an 8-0 whitewash.

Nibbling at the corners throughout the game, Nolasco threw 82 of 101 pitches for strikes, struck out six and issued one walk. He took a no-hitter into the fifth inning. No Washington runner made it past second base.

The Nationals' loss was offset by Atlanta's 3-2, 10-inning win over the Mets, Brian McCann's sac fly in the top of the 10th providing the difference as the Braves swept three from the Nets in New York and extended Atlanta's win streak to five.

That left the Braves just 5 1/2 behind Washington in the East division, and the clear leader - by 5 1/2 over St. Louis - for the first wild card spot.

Behind James Shields, Rays Sweep Red Sox as Upton Slams; Hundley, Padres Halt AZ Home Win Streak at 15

Players of the Day for Sunday, September 11, 2011

American League

BJ Upton's 5th inning grand slam capped off a three-game sweep of the Red Sox by Tampa Bay, beating Boston, 9-1, in the final game of their series and putting the Red Sox hold on the wild card lead in serious jeopardy.

Shields:15-10

With the Rays already up 4-1, Upton's bases-loaded blast - his 20th homer of the season - gave starter James Shields a more comfortable working margin that helped the right-hander win his 15th game against 10 losses, scattering seven hits and three walks over eight and a third innings. Shields struck out five, making his only big mistake of the game in the third inning, when Marco Scutaro touched him up for a solo home run.

Upton: Grand Slam

Upton's slam was part of a 4-for-4 effort at the plate for the Tampa outfielder. Upton, batting a sub-par .234, singled twice, doubled and scored three times while getting all of his RBI via the home run.

With the sweep of Boston, the Rays now trail the Red Sox in the wild card by just 3 1/2 games with 17 left to play. Boston has lost five straight while the Rays have reeled off four consecutive wins. The Yankees nipped the Angels, 6-5, to increase their lead in the AL East to 3 1/2 games. Texas pounded Oakland, 8-1, improving their AL West lead to 2 1/2 games over the Angels.

In the Central, Detroit got another quality start from Doug Fister (7 innings, 3 hits, 0 ER), beating the Twins, 2-1, as Cleveland downed the White Sox, 7-3. The Tigers lead the Sox by 10 1/2 games and the Indians by 11. Their magic number is down to just seven.

National League

Despite a 7-6 loss to San Diego that ended the Arizona Diamondback's home winning streak at 15 straight, the D-Backs have little reason for concern, holding an 8 1/2 game lead over the second place Giants in the NL West.

Nick Hundley

Arizona's loss was the result of timely hitting by the Padres early in the game, especially by Nick Hundley, who went 3-for-4 and smacked a two-run homer n the 5th inning to put the Padres up 6-0. Arizona battled back with five runs in the 6th, but the Padres had already added another run in the top half of the frame and held on for the win.

The Giants took advantage of Arizona's misfortune, beating the Dodgers, 8-1, picking up a game on the D'Backs in the process, though the lead in the division seems a bit too big for the reigning world champions to overcome. Arizona has just 15 games remaining on the schedule - the Giants, 16 - and the schedule favors the Diamondbacks in a big way.

Arizona hosts a three-game set with San Fran on September 23, 24 and 25, but the rest of their games are against second tier foes. Arizona has six games on the schedule with the Dodgers, three with the Padres and three ore against Pittsburgh.

In the Central, the Milwaukee Brewers halted their five game slide with a 3-2 home win over Philadelphia, keeping St. Louis - 6-3 winners over the Braves - locked in second place, six games back. The Brewers and Cardinals do not play each other again this season.

By taking three straight from Atlanta, however, the Cardinals have gotten back into the wild card race, trailing the Braves by a 4 1/2 games. St. Louis has won five straight, while Atlanta three straight losses have made life easy for the Phillies, as they cruise toward another NL East title with a 12 game edge. The Phillies' magic number is six.

Shields, Longoria Keep Rays in Wild Card Hunt; Justin Upton Leads Arizona in Comeback Win; Uggla Hit Streak at 30

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 9, 2011

American League

Tampa Bay fell out of contention in the AL East right after the all star break when they lost none of 13 games to the Red Sox, Yankees, Royals and A's.

Shields: 4th Shutout

Since then, they've played better, recently winning four of their last six. Though they still trail the Red Sox by 11 games, they are within 8 1/2 of the Yankees, losers of three straight but the current wild card leader.

Tuesday, James Shields pitched a 6-hit shutout and Evan Longoria drove in all of Tampa Bay's runs in the 4-0 victory.

Longoria: 4 RBI

Longoria singled in a pair of runs in the first inning and socked his 17th home run of the season in the sixth inning with one aboard to complete Tampa's scoring.

It was more than Shields would need, as he dominated the Royals, giving up three walks while fanning eight. Shields threw 75 of 117 pitches for strikes and improved to 11-9 with a stellar 2.80 ERA. It was his 8th complete game and 4th shutout of the season.

National League

Upton: .296 BA

Arizona keeps battling in the NL West, where they trail the Giants by 1/2 game, looking to upend the reigning world champions and take the division.

Tuesday's 9-7 win over Houston was emblematic of the fire the team has when facing adversity.

Down 7-1 after just four innings, the Diamondbacks scored for runs in the 5th and four more in the 6th to take a 9-7 lead and held on with two more in the 8th.

Justin Upton, enjoying a remarkable season at the plate and in the field, went 3-for-5, with his 23rd home run - a two-run blast - a double and a single, scoring three times and driving in four runs in the come-from-behind triumph.

Upton carries a .296 batting average and leads the Diamondbacks with 72 RBI. The Giants maintained their slim lead in the division with a 6-0 win over Pittsburgh.

STREAKS: Dan Uggla extended his hitting streak to 30 games with an infield single - his only hit in six at-bats - tying him with LA's Andre Ethier for the longest hit streak of the season. Uggla will try to make it 31 straight when the Braves take on the Marlins in the finale of their three game series Wednesday night.

A troubling streak is developing for Yankee closer Mariano Rivera. One of the finest closers ever to step up a mound has been beaten in his last two appearances. On Sunday, the Red Sox victimized Rivera with a run in the 9th inning, winning it in the 10th, 3-2, and on Tuesday, Rivera gave up two runs to the Angels with the game tied 4-4 in the 9th when Bobby Abreu took hi deep with two outs and a man aboard for the 6-4 win. Sunday was Rivera's fifth blow save of the year, and Tuesday's loss was his second against one win.

Shields Tosses 5th CG as Marlins Sink Deeper; Arroyo Keeps Reds Close

Players of the Day for Sunday, June 19, 2011

American League

James Shields

Just when it looked like things couldn't get any worse for the Florida Marlins, along came the Tampa Bay Rays and starting pitcher James Shields to put the final nail in the coffin that is the month of June.

Florida had been rolling along in May, but have won just one game in June - and they've been beaten in just about every imaginable way - but Shields and the Rays did it by shutting down the Florida hitters in a 2-1 win, Florida's 10th straight loss.

The Marlins got on the board in the first inning, scoring an unearned run on a Gaby Sanchez sac fly, but that was all they would get off Shields, who tossed his fifth complete game of the season, limiting the Marlins to a mere four hits while fanning 10.

Including the sac fly, Shields didn't allow another base hit until the 5th inning, setting down 12 straight. He issued no walks, and threw 79 of 110 pitches for strikes, extending his record to 7-4. Having an amazing season, Shields is tied for second with Seattle's Felix Hernandez in strikeouts with 108, both trailing Justin Verlander, who has 110. Shields is also third in ERA, at 2.40 and he has the sixth-best WHIP in the AL, at an even 1.00.

The Rays continue to chase Boston and NY in the AL East, trailing the Red Sox by 4 1/2 and the Yankees by three games. As for the Marlins, manager Edwin Rodriguez tendered his resignation before the game, which was the 18th loss in 19 tries in June.

Rumor has it that 80-year-old Jack McKeon will return to manage the Marlins while a full-time manager is sought. McKeon took a struggling Marlins squad all the way to the World Series in 2003, beating the Yankees to claim the world championship.

National League

Bronson Arroyo

Cincinnati keeps hanging around in the NL Central, looking for their opportunity to take over the division they won last season. The Reds trail the Brewers and Cardinals by two games after beating Toronto, 2-1, at home on Sunday.

Getting nine hits but scoring just two runs was all the Reds' hitters could produce, but it was enough for Bronson Arroyo to even his record at 6-6, as he went eight innings, allowing only an Aaron Hill 5th inning solo homer to blemish the scoreboard.

Arroyo gave up five hits total, walked one and struck out five as the Reds avoided the sweep in their interleague series with the Blue Jays. Toronto took the first two games of the series, 3-2 and 4-0.

INTERLEAGUE TALLY: Winning only three games on Sunday, the National League fell well behind the AL, which won 11 out of 14 games to take a 48-36 advantage on the season. Teams will be moving to new locales on Monday, with a few taking a day off. Some of the more interesting match-ups include the Yankees at Cincinnati, the Cubs at the White Sox and Tampa Bay at Milwaukee.

On Tuesday, Minnesota opens a three-game series at San Francisco. The Giants are clining to a 1/2 game advantage in the NL West, while the Twins are finally out of last place in the AL Central, having won seven in a row.

James Shields Throws 2nd Straight Complete Game; Halladay Fans 14 in Philly Win

Players of the Day for Sunday, April 24, 2011

American League

James Shields

Just in case anyone thought James Shields' complete game, 4-1 win over the White Sox last week was a fluke, "Big Game James" put that notion to rest with a sizzling, 4-hit, 2-0, shutout win on the road in Toronto.

Given a 2-0 lead - courtesy of a Ben Zobrist home run - before he even threw a pitch, Shields responded by not allowing a hit until the 5th inning, working over the Blue Jays for the full nine innings, walking two and striking out seven.

With back-to-back complete games, Shields (2-1) lowered his ERA to 2.35 and his WHIP to 0.93.

After a 1-8 start, the Rays have reeled off 10 wins in their last 13 games and moved into second place in the AL East, 3 games back of the Yankees.

National League

The Phillies have won five straight, keeping the red-hot Florida Marlins at bay in the NL East. Their latest victory was a not-so-subtle reminder to the rest of the league that they can beat you with hitting or pitching.

Roy Halladay

Sunday's sensational effort by Roy Halladay didn't result in a complete game as the Padres finally broke through for a run in the 9th inning. With two down in the inning, Wes Venable singled in Jason Bartlett and Halladay gave way to Antonio Bastardo, who promptly retired Nick Hundley for the 3-1 Philadelphia win.

The drama came after Halladay had already punched out 14 Padres on strikes, allowed just five hits and a walk over 8 2/3 innings for his third win of the season against one loss.

Halladay, a known workhorse, threw 130 pitches. His 14 strikeouts tied his career high.

The Philly pitching staff recorded two shutouts in the four game sweep of the flailing Padres and allowed just 3 runs over 36 innings. They lead the Marlins by 1 1/2 games in the division.

Shields Shines, Rays Stop Phillies, 4-2 in Game 2

Players of the Day from Thursday, Octo ber 23, 2008 World Series Game 2: Tampa Bay 4 Philadelphia 2 James Shields scattered 7 hits over 5 2/3 innings, but didn't allow a run as Tampa Bay pushed back to win Game 2 by a 4-2 score over Philadelphia. The Phillies' problems at the plate with runners on base continued, as they stranded 11 men for the second night in a row. Over the first two games of the series, the Phillies are a combined 1-for-28 with runners in scoring position. With the Phillies struggling with men on base, Tampa Bay was much more efficient, knocking home four runs, though only one was driven in with a base hit. Two runs came home via ground outs with runners on third base in the first inning. Carlos Pena knocked in Akinori Iwamura and Evan Longoria got B.J. Upton to the plate with grounders to short. In the second inning, Upton delivered a single to send Dioner Navarro home and Jason Bartlett laid down a safety squeeze bunt on the first base side in the 4th which allowed Cliff Floyd to easily dash to the plate. That was all the Rays would need to tie the series at 1-1, with two games at Philadelphia upcoming, Saturday and Sunday. Philadelphia didn't score until the 8th inning, when Eric Bruntlett blasted a solo shot to left off reliever David Price, who finished the final 2 1/3 innings after Dan Wheeler held the Phillies hitless in an inning of work. Philly also scored in the 9th, on a questionable error by Longoria. Jayson Werth scorched a ball to third which normally would have gone as a hit. Carlos Ruiz, who reached base all four times he stepped to the plate (2 doubles, 2 walks), scored from second base as the ball trickled into shallow left field. There were a number of dubious umpiring calls by home plate umpire Kerwin Danley. In the second inning, he apparently called hitter Rocco Baldelli out on strikes on a 3-2 pitch from starter Brett Myers, but in the same motion pointed to first base for an appeal, where umpire Fieldin Culbreth signaled that he did check his swing. Baldelli took first base on ball four, even though the pitch was a strike and Baldelli did not check his swing. Later in the game, Danley clearly missed making the correct call on a pitch that grazed Jimmy Rollins' shirt. Instead of being awarded first base, Rollins flied out later in the at-bat.

Shields 1-Hits Angels; Astros' Berkman On a Tear

Players of the Day from Friday, May 9, 2008 American League As pitcher's duels go, Friday's battle between the Angels' Jon Garland and Tampa Bays' James Shields was as good as it gets. Garland allowed just four hits over eight innings while Shields was twirling a 1-hitter, finishing up by retiring the final sixteen straight batters. Neither had allowed a run when the Rays went to the plate in the bottom of the ninth. Garland had thrown 114 pitches and was replaced by reliever Justin Speier, who promptly allowed a single by B.J. Upton. After Carlos Pena advanced Upton to second with a ground out, Evan Longoria ended the game with a blast into the left field stands for a 2-0 Tampa Bay win. Shields (4-2) had to throw just 92 pitches for the complete game shutout, his second this season. The only hit was a harmless third-inning single by Brandon Wood. Apparently more comfortable at home, Shields shut out the Red Sox in his last home appearance on April 27, giving up just two hits and one walk. On Friday, Shields didn't walk a batter and struck out 8. In his last two home starts, his WHIP is a ridiculous 0.22. Notes: While the Rays were winning in the bottom of the 9th, the Red Sox were losing, as Minnesota's Mike Lamb singled home a pair with two outs in the frame against closer Jonathan Papelbon for a 7-6 Twins' win. Tampa is just 2 1/2 back of Boston in the AL East. Minnesota stayed a game better than the White Sox in the Central while the A's also lost and stayed tied for first with the Angels in the West. National League Looking for an MVP candidate? Check out the Astros' Lance Berkman, who is having a Triple Crown-like season. On Friday, Berkman went 3-for-4, with his 14th double and 12th home run (2nd in the NL) of the season, scored twice and drove in two, giving him a league-leading 35 RBI. The Astros downed the Dodgers, 7-1, with Berkman, as he has all season, leading the way. While the Astros have won 6 of their last 7 and are just 2 1/2 behind the Cardinals in the Central, Berkman has been a beast at the plate. He's hit safely in 8 straight, expanding his batting average from .299 to .380 (2nd in the NL) with 4 homers and 12 RBI over that span. Nearly impossible to get out, he's had 18 hits in his last 24 at bats (.750). That's just plain smokin'! Notes: The Braves' win streak was snapped at six with a 3-2 loss at Pittsburgh, but despite their efforts, they're still in 4th place, 2 1/2 back in the East because the division-leading Marlins have won five in a row. On the other side of the ledger, the Giants and Padres have both dropped five straight are are 9 and 11 games out of the race in the West. The Padres have been particularly awful. After a 4-4 start, they've gone 7-21, including 1-7 thus far in May.

Rays Sweep BoSox on Shields Shutout; Phillips Bombs Giants

Players of the Day from Sunday, April 27 2008 American League Over the weekend, the Tampa Bay Rays accomplished what many considered to be unthinkable - they swept a 3-game series from the World Champion Boston Red Sox. After winning 5-4 on Friday and 2-1 on Saturday, third-year starter James Shields took the mound for the Rays and essentially took the bats out of the Red Sox's hands, firing a complete-game, 2-hit shutout for a 3-0 win over Boston. Shields (3-1 this season and 21-17 career) walked one and struck out 7, overshadowing Josh Beckett's 13 K effort for the Sox. Tampa scored single runs in the 3rd, 7th and 8th innings, all but one of them earned. The sweep put the Rays - winners of 6 straight - in a three-way tie for first place in the AL East with Baltimore and Boston. Notes: The Red Sox have dropped five straight and are 3-8 against AL East foes, while the Rays are 11-6 and the Yankees 9-6. In the West, the Angels and A's are locked into a first place tie at 16-10. Both teams are determined road warriors, with the A's 8-3 and the Angels 10-5 away from home. Yankees' starter Chien-Ming Wang became the first 5-game winner in the AL, with a 7-inning whitewash of Chicago on Sunday. Wang allowed 4 hits and walked 2 while striking out 9 in the 1-0 win. National League Last season, Brandon Phillips socked 30 home runs for the Reds, and the way he's going, he'll likely surpass that number in 2008. On Saturday, Phillips smoked a pair of homers, singled, scored three times and drove in three as the Reds pummeled San Francisco, 10-1, putting up a 10-spot for the second straight day. The Reds' booming bats were a bit of overkill, as Edinson Volquez, set the Giants down on on 5 hits and one earned run while fanning 10 over 7 innings, winning his 4th game without a loss. Volquez has been a fantasy delight this season with his ERA and WHIP both at 1.23.

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Notes: San Fran's loss was their second straight and 6th straight by starter Barry Zito (0-6). Elsewhere in the West, Arizona kept a 6-game lead over LA, as Brandon Webb outdueled San Diego's Jake Peavy for a 2-1 victory. Webb leads the majors at 6-0.

Lugo Leads Sox Past NY; Snell Pitches Pirates to 5th Straight Win

Friday's Peak Performers and Fabulous Flops American League Julio Lugo (right) was a nightmare for the NY Yankees Friday night. The Boston leadoff hitter went 3-4 with a homer, double and single, walked twice, stole two bases, drove in 3 runs and scored 3 times, leading the Red Sox to an 11-4 bombing of the Bombers in the Bronx. The win put Boston 4 games up over Toronto in the AL East and opened a 6 1/2-game lead over the slumping, last place Yankees, who have lost 7 straight. The Yankees are approaching an odd record. They've used at least 5 pitchers in 8 straight games. The MLB record is 9, and they hope not to equal that when Jeff Karstens takes the mound against Tim Wakefield this afternoon at Yankee Stadium. The Yanks are the only team in the majors without a save to their credit this season and are trying to avoid their worst slump since August, 1995, when they lost 8 straight. New York is struggling in almost every aspect of the game.

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The Sox stole 3 bases on Jorge Posada last night, Alex Rodriguez, whose bat has carried the team thus far, was 0-3 and is only 1 for his last 10 at-bats. The usually-reliable Mariano Rivera came in to pitch the 9th with the Yankees down 7-4, but lasted only 1/3 of an inning, allowing 3 hits, a walk and 4 earned runs. Rivera's ERA is 12.15. Ugly. Tampa Bay's 2nd-year starter James Shields may be someone to keep an eye on. Last night, Shield allowed just 4 hits, a walk and 1 earned run, striking out 9 over 8 innings for his 2nd win of the season, 4-1 at Oakland. Al Reyes worked a hitless 9th for his 8th save. Shields, after getting knocked around in starts against Toronto, Texas and Baltimore, may be settling into a nice groove. He allowed only 2 hits and 2 earned runs in his previous start against the Indians, but received no decision in a 6-4 loss, despite working 8 innings and striking out 12. He's avoided taking a loss thus far, evening his career record at 8-8. In 36 innings this season, he's struck out 37 while giving up only 7 walks. His ERA is 3.75, but his WHIP is a dandy 0.92. Fantasy players (and maybe the Yankees) should take note. Other AL Scores Seattle 7 Kansas City 4 - R. Sexson, 1-25 last 7 games Minnesota 5 Detroit 3 - J. Mauer, pinch-hit 2-run single in 8th Chicago White Sox 7 LA Angels 3 - J. Dye, 2 HR (5) Cleveland 5 Baltimore 4 - Indians, 6-gm. win streak, 1st AL Central Texas 5 Toronto 3 National League Pittsburgh's Ian Snell (right) shut out the Reds on 6 hits over 7 innings en route to his 2nd win of the season, a 3-1 decision at home. Salomon Torres gave up a leadoff home run to Adam Dunn in the 9th, but still earned his 7th save of the season. The Pirates stretched their winning streak to five games and clawed to within 2 games of the Brewers in the NL Central. Snell, in five starts, has lasted at least 6 innings in each, and has allowed just 6 earned runs over 34 innings for an ERA of 1.59 and a 1.03 WHIP. Edgar Renteria singled 4 times in 5 at-bats, drove in 2, scored a run and was instrumental in a key 7th inning rally that helped the Braves regain a slim 1/2-game lead over the Mets in the NL East, by winning at Colorado, 9-7. The Mets and Braves have exchanged the top spot in the division for the better part of the early season with neither team capable of pulling away. Renteria is off to a sizzling start, batting .344, including a 14-33 (.424) stretch in his current 7-game hit streak. Andruw Jones contributed his 4th homer of the year, a 3-run blast in the 4th inning. Chris Capuano improved to 4-0, scattering 5 hits and 3 walks over 6 innings, as the Milwaukee Brewers won 4-1 at Houston. Francisco Cordero got his 9th save of the season with a hitless 9th inning and remained tied with Arizona's Jose Valverde for the NL saves lead. Cordero's been virtually untouchable in 10 1/3 innings this season, allowing just 3 hits and no earned runs while recording an eye-popping 19 strikeouts. Other NL Scores Washington 4 NY Mets 3 - J. Reyes, SB (13) Philadelphia 6 Florida 5 - J. Rollins, HR (9) Chicago Cubs 5 St. Louis 3 - J. Marquis (W, 3-1) Arizona 3 San Francisco 2 - SF win streak stopped at 8, J. Valverde, S (9) LA Dodgers 6 San Diego 5 - Dodgers 1-gm. lead in NL West