Javier Baez, Cubs Take Down Brewers, 6-2; Nelson Cruz Drives In 5 for Minnesota Win

Players of the Day for Friday, August 2, 2019

Cruz, 3-4, HR, 5 RBI

American League

En route to an 11-9 win over the visiting Royals, Nelson Cruz uncorked his 27th home run of the season - a two-run shot in the second - doubled twice, scored twice and drove in five runs for the Central division's first-place Twins.

On fire since the all-star break, Cruz has whacked ten homers in his last 15 games and is batting .500 (11-for-22) with 14 RBI in his last seven.

After a stumble to start the second half with a 4-7 record, the Twins have rebounded to win six of their last eight and lead the Cleveland Indians by three games in the division.

Game two of the three-game series between Kansas City and Minnesota is scheduled for Saturday at 7:10 pm ET.

Baez: 3-5, HR, 3 RBI

National League

Jose Quintana improved to 9-7 as the Cubs topped the Brewers in Chicago, 6-2.

Javier Baez and Jason Heyward homered for Chicago in the opener of the three-game series at Wrigley Field between the two NL Central contenders. Hayward socked a solo shot in the first, while Baez delivered a two-run belt in the third, both homers coming off Brewer starter, Zach Davies.

Baez doubled twice, scored in the fifth and drove in another run on a ground out in the sixth, completing Chicago's scoring.

The Cubs' most consistent power player, Baez is batting .287 with 26 dingers and 72 RBI.

Chicago's victory left them 1/2-game behind St. Louis in the division with Milwaukee now down 1 1/2 and tied the season series between the two clubs at five apiece.

Game two is Saturday, 2:20 pm ET.

Red Sox Rout O's, 17-6, Behind Jackie Bradley Jr.; Javier Baez Leads Cubs Past Padres, 6-5

Players of the Day for Saturday, July 20, 2019

Bradley Jr.: 2 HR, 6 RBI

American League

After dropping the opener of their three-game series in Baltimore, 11-2, Friday, the Boston Red Sox roared back with a 17-6 romp at Camden Yards in game two, socking five home runs, two of them by center fielder, Jackie Bradley Jr.

Appreciated primarily for his defense, the fleet-footed Bradley whacked a pair of three-run homers, driving in six runs as the Red Sox took advantage of the small dimensions in Baltimore.

Since the all-star break, Boston is just 5-4, and they're still in third place in the AL East, 11 games behind the runaway Yankees and a game behind struggling Tampa Bay. They're also three games behind Oakland for the second wild card, so the defending world champs have work to do down the stretch.

After Sunday's series finale (1:05 pm ET), the Red Sox will enter a crucial stretch in which they play 14 straight games against Tampa Bay and New York, six against the Rays and eight against the Yankees from July 22 through August 4.

National League

Baez: 3-4, HR, 3R, 3RBI

Opening up a three-game lead in the contentious NL Central with a 6-5 win over San Diego, the Chicago Cubs have a golden opportunity to put some space between themselves and their closest pursuers, Milwaukee and St. Louis.

Chicago leads Milwaukee by three games and St. Louis by 3 1/2.

Javier Baez singled, doubled, and mashed a three-run homer to left field in the fourth inning that put the Cubs on top to stay.

Jose Quintana (8-7) allowed five runs in five innings, but four Chicago relievers blanked the Padres over the final four.

It was the second straight 6-5 win for the Cubs over visiting San Diego, and Chicago's fourth straight win overall. They're 7-1 since the all-star break and are looking to distance themselves in the division.

Baez, who came close to being the NL MVP last season with 40 doubles, 34 home runs and 111 RBI, is on pace to equal or exceed those figures. He's batting .292 with 25 doubles, 24 home runs and 67 RBI.

The Cubs will be seeking the series sweep when they take the field Sunday against the Padres. Game time is 2:20 pm ET.

Yankees' Miguel Andujar Leading AL Rookie Candidate; Javier Baez Approaching 100 RBI For Cubs

Players of the Day for Saturday, August 25, 2018

American League

Andujar: Top rookie

Looking for the next AL rookie of the year?

Look no further than Yankee third baseman, Miguel Andujar.

The 23-year-old native of the Dominican Republic has been racking up hits, homers and RBI all season, outpacing other candidates with a .300 batting average, 21 homers and 70 RBI.

On Saturday, the Yankees took a doubleheader from the Orioles at Baltimore, winning the first game, 10-2, and the nightcap, 5-1. In the early game, Andujar drove in four runs, getting the Yanks on the board in the first inning with a ground out that plated Giancarlo Stanton from third. With the score tied 2-2 in the fourth, Andujar unknotted it with his 21st homer, a three-run dinger into the Camden Yards center field stands.

In the late game, Andujar collected a pair of singles, boosting his average to an even .300, tied for 10th in the league with Cleveland's Michael Brantley.

New York's two wins put them seven games behind the Red Sox in the AL East. New York has won three straight against the Orioles and will be looking for a sweep when they wrap up the series Sunday, 8:00 pm EDT. The Yankees have won seven of their last eight. Boston is just 4-6 in their last ten games, allowing the Yankees to creep closer.

Baez: 97 RBI leads NL

National League

Going almost without notice, Chicago's Javier Baez has been the leading RBI producer in the National League all season long and he added to his top numbers by driving in three runs in the Cubs' 10-6 win over the Reds at Wrigley Field Saturday.

Baez socked his 28th home run (6th in NL) in the fifth inning and singled in a pair in the seventh, completing the scoring for Chicago. Two Cincinnati homers in the eighth made the game closer but in the end could not prevent the Cubs from winning their fourth straight overall, and third in a row over the Reds.

Baez, 25, is emerging as one of the brightest stars in the league, having already set career marks in hits, runs, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI, and stolen bases. If his .297 batting average holds up through the end of the season, that will also be a high mark for the fifth-year player.

With St. Louis and Milwaukee both losing Saturday, the Cubs increased their NL Central lead to four over the Cardinals and 4 1/2 games over the Brewers.

Chicago will be seeking a sweep of the Reds when they take the field Sunday, 2:20 pm EDT.

Cubs Rip Padres Behind Javier Baez's 5 RBI; Jake Bauers Powers Tampa Bay's 19-6 Rout Of Twins

Players of the Day for Saturday, July 14, 2018

American League

Bauers: rookie on a tear

Chasing both the Red Sox and Yankees in the LA East, Tampa Bay hopes the momentum they've built up to close out the first half carries over to the remainder of the season.

The Rays pounded out 20 hits and scored in bunches to down the Twins, 19-6, Saturday, notching its sixth win in the last eight games.

Tampa scored four runs in the fourth inning and five in each of the seventh, eighth, and ninth.

Contributing in a major way was first baseman Jake Bauers, who drove in four runs with a double and home run in five at-bats, scoring four runs, one in each of the innings in which the Rays scored.

Called up in early June, Bauers has shown rapid improvement, especially in recent games. In his last seven games, Bauers has gone 11-for-28 (.393), with three homers, nine RBI, and 11 runs.

The Rays and Twins finish off the first half in the series finale, Sunday at 2:10 pm EDT in Minnesota.

National League

Baez: 71 RBI leads NL

While the Milwaukee Brewers were losing five straight and six of their last seven, the Chicago Cubs took advantage of the situation and took over first place in the NL Central, winning five of their last seven and going 11-3 since June 28.

Saturday's 11-6 triumph at San Diego left the Cubs with a 1 1/2 game lead in the division.

Led by second baseman Javier Baez, the Cubs took their second straight over the Padres and appear headed in the right direction as the all star break approaches.

Baez ripped a double in the fifth inning to increase Chicago's lead to 5-2. His three-run homer in the ninth - his 19th of the season - put the game completely out of reach.

Baez, who at 25 is already playing his fifth season in the majors, is emerging as one of the brightest young stars in either league. After batting .273 with 23 home runs and 75 RBI in 2017, Baez is approaching those numbers through just more than half of 2018, batting .293 with 19 dingers and 71 RBI. His RBI total has him tied with Cincinnati's Eugenio Suarez for the league lead.

Baez and his fellow Cubs will be looking to end the first half with a sweep of the Padres when they take the field in San Diego, Sunday, at 1:10 pm PDT.

George Springer, Carlos Correa Power Astros To 10-0 Win; Javier Baez Leads Cubs Past Rockies

Carlos Correa

Players of the Day for Friday, April 20, 2017

American League

Winning their fourth straight - a no-doubt, 10-0 slaying of the White Sox in Chicago - the Houston Astros took back first place in the AL West as the Angels fell victim to the Giants, 8-1, and dropped 1/2-game back.

George Springer

While Justin Verlander was shutting out the Sox (6IP, 2H, 5K), George Springer and Carlos Correa were doing some heavy hitting at the plate.

Springer doubled in the fourth and sixth, driving in two runs with each two-bagger, and he was still on base when Correa launched the first of two homers later in the inning. Correa socked his fourth homer in the ninth, a solo shot which completed Houston's assault.

Correa was 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs; Springer went 2-for-5 with two runs and four RBI.

The game was the opener of a three game series which continues Saturday at 7:10 pm EDT.

National League

Javier Baez continues to emerge as an star in the National League.

Javier Baez

After back-to-back seasons in which the second baseman batted .273, Baez is rocking along at .290, though most impressive are his power numbers, which keep improving.

In the Cubs' 16-5 romp at Colorado, Baez, in six at-bats, singled twice, doubled and homered, driving in four runs and scoring twice.

The Cubs banged out 18 hits against four Colorado hurlers, and scored in every innings except the second, fourth, and seventh.

Baez homered for the sixth time this season, tying him for fourth with San Diego's Christian Villanueva and Atlanta's Ozzie Albez. His 20 RBI lead the lead.

In 2016, Baez hit 14 homers and drove in 59 runs in 142 games. Last season, in 145 games, he homered 23 times and drove in 75.

The Cobs and Rockies continue their series on Saturday. Game time is 8:10 pm EDT.

Cubs Stay Alive In NLCS As Javier Baez Socks A Pair; Gary Sanchez, Masahiro Tanaka Lead Yankees To 3-2 Edge In ALCS

Players of the Day for Wednesday, October 18, 2017

American League

Tanaka: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER

Masahiro Tanaka blanked Houston for seven full innings and catcher Gary Sanchez homered and singled in four at-bats, driving in two runs as the Yankees took a 3-2 lead in the ALCS with a 5-0 whitewash of the Astros in game five.

Sanchez: 2-4, 2 RBI

After keying Tuesday's thrilling 6-4 victory, Sanchez was again at the center of the action, singling in Chase Headley in the fifth and socking a solo homer in the seventh to complete the scoring for the Yanks.

After going 0-for-11 in the first three games of the series, Sanchez raised his game, going 3-for-7 with a home run and five RBI in the last two games.

Tanaka out-dueled Houston starter Dallas Keuchel, who defeated him in game one. Keuchel was touched-up for four runs on seven hits, lasting just 4 2/3 innings. Tanaka earned his second win in three post-season starts this year, fanning eight and walking one. His ERA over 20 innings is a sparkling 0.90.

Game six is back at Houston on Friday at 8:08 pm ET. The Yankees can advance to the World Series with a win, while Houston hopes to extend the series to a game seven.

National League

Baez: 2 HRs

The LA Dodgers took their first loss of the post-season, dropping a 3-2 decision to the Cubs at wrigley Field in game four of the NLCS.

The Cubs staved off elimination with a solid pitching performance from Jake Arrieta (6 2/3, 3 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 9 K) and solo homers from Willson Contreras and Javier Baez, who stroked two for Chicago, one in the second and another in the fifth, which turned out to be the game-winner.

After going 0-for-20 in the post-season, Baez got off the slump with a pair of long balls.

The Cubs still have their backs to the wall in game five, Thursday at 8:08 pm ET in Chicago. The Dodgers need one more win to advance to the World Series.

Jose Berrios Dominates Rockies As Twins Win; Javier Baez Grand Slam Boosts Cubs Over Reds

Players of the Day for Thursday, May 18, 2017

American League

Berrios Blanks Rockies

Jose Berrios didn't allow a hit through four innings, going on to blank the Colorado Rockies over 7 2/3 innings in the finale of the four-game series in Minnesota.

The Twins avoided being swept at home with the 2-0 win, thanks to Berrios' savvy mound control and timely hitting which produced single runs in the first and fourth.

Despite holding the Rockies hitless in the opening innings, Berrios actually got himself into a little trouble, plunking Nolan Arenado and Ian Desmond in the second. Desmond advanced to second on a balk by Berrios, and took third when the 22-year-old hurler uncorked a wild pitch. However, Berrios escaped the inning by fanning Pat Valaika, one of his 11 strikeout victims on the night.

Berrios (2-0) was called up from AAA Rochester on May 13th after going 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA and 39 strikeouts with the Red Wings. He dazzled the Indians in his first start, also lasting 7 2/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits in a 4-1 win. Thus far, in two starts, Berrios has allowed just four hits and one run over 15 1/3 innings, with 15 strikeouts and two walks. Opposing hitters are batting .082 against the dominating youngster.

Hailing from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, the right-hander was taken by the Twins in the first round of the 2012 draft and appears to be ready to become a fixture in the Minnesota rotation.

The win came after the Rockies won game one of the doubleheader, 5-1, leaving both teams where they began the day, in first place in their respective divisions. Minnesota leads the AL Central by one game over Detroit and Cleveland. Colorado holds a two-game edge over the Diamondbacks and Dodgers in the NL West.

On Friday, the Twins (20-17) host the Royals in the first of a three-game series; the Rockies (26-16) head to Cincinnati to begin a three-game series with the Reds at 7:10 pm ET.

Baez: Grand Slam

National League

The NL Central is a paradox, with the Milwaukee Brewers in first place by a game over St. Louis and the world champion Chicago Cubs two back. Chicago second baseman, Javier Baez, tried to make some sense of it all when he belted a grand slam in the first inning of the Cubs' runaway 9-5 win over visiting Cincinnati, who ended the day 19-21, four games out.

The Cubs scored five times in the opening frame and were ahead 9-0 before the Reds finally got on the board.

Baez finished 3-for-3 with five RBI, driving in another run with a single in the fifth, later scoring the Cubs' ninth run on a Ben Zobrist single.

The slam was the sixth homer of the season for Baez, who now has 19 RBI on the year, along with a .248 batting average. Last year, Baez was a steady contributor, hitting 14 home runs, driving in 59 runs.

Completing the three-game sweep of the Reds, Chicago welcomes the first-place Brewers to town on Friday for three games, all of which purportedly will start at 2:20 pm ET.

Cubs Advance to NLCS on Javier Baez Blast; Jose Bautista Leads Blue Jays over Rangers; Toronto to Meet Royals in ALCS

Players of the Day for Tuesday, October 13 and Wednesday, October 14, 2015

American League

Bautista Sends Jays to ALCS

A pair of game fives took place Wednesday in the ALDS, with Toronto moving on past the Texas Rangers, 6-3, and the Royals disposing of the pesky Astros, 7-2.

In Toronto, Jose Bautista had he game-winner, stroking a three-run blast in the seventh which broke open a 3-3 tie.

The Royals advanced to their second straight ALCS, riding the two-hit pitching of Johnny Cueto to the victory. Cueto's only mistake was a second-inning homer with a man aboard to Luis Valbeuna. The Royals hung in, took the lead in the fifth inning and polished off the Astros with three more in the eighth.

The Royals host Toronto in game one of the AL Championship series, which gets underway Friday, October 16.

National League

Baez puts Cubs in NLCS

The Mets and Dodgers will go to a decisive game five after LA came back to take game four in New York, 3-1. Game five is slated for an 8:00 pm ET start on Thursday in Los Angeles. Zack Greinke goes to the hill for the Dodgers, while the Mets will start Jacob DeGrom.

In Chicago, the Cubs took down the Cardinals, the team with the best regular season record, 6-4, advancing to the NL Championship.

The Cubs continued to employ the long ball as their major force, socking three home runs in the clincher against St. Louis, the unlikely hero of the game, shortstop Javier Baez, who unloaded for a three-run homer in the second inning off Cardinal starter, John Lackey. Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber also homered for the Cubs.