Jay Bruce Powers Indians To Record 21st Straight Win; A.J. Pollock Drives Arizona Win Over Rockies

Players of the Day for Wednesday, September 14, 2017


American League

Bruce: 3-run homer

Picking up Jay Bruce for the Mets was a wise move by the AL defending champion Cleveland Indians. Taken in a deal just prior to the July 31 trade deadline, Bruce has added some punch to the lineup and Wednesday socked a first-inning, three-run home run to set the wheels turning for Cleveland's AL record 21st consecutive victory in a 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers.

In 27 games this season with the Indians, Bruce has five home runs, 18 RBI and is batting .253.

The first inning homer was Bruce's only hit of the night, in three at-bats, but it was enough to get the Indians the lead in support of starter Mike Clevinger, who worked 5 2/3 innings and got the win, despite some shoddy fielding which allowed two unearned runs of the three attributed to the starter.

Cleveland had added another run in the third inning, putting the Indians up 4-3 following Clevinger's departure and they take don another run in the seventh, the relief staff holding the Tigers scoreless over the final three innings. Cody Allen picked up his 27th save with a perfect ninth.

The 21 wins surpasses the American League record held by the 2002 Oakland A's and ties the 1935 Chicago Cubs as the second-longest streak since 1900. The 1916 New York Giants hold the record, at 26, but that mark includes a tie.

Cleveland will look to extend their streak when they host the Kansas City Royals in the first of four games, Thursday at 7:10 pm ET.

Pollock: 2B, HR, 4 RBI

National League

Colorado took the first two games of a four-game series at Arizona, cutting the Diamondbacks' lead in the wild card race to three games, but Arizona roared back with an 8-2 victory on Wednesday, pushing their advantage back to four.

The Diamondbacks were led to the win by center fielder A.J. Pollock, who went 3-for-4 with a single, double, three-run home run and four RBI.

Pollock had played in 98 games for Arizona this season, and has 30 doubles, 10 homers and 36 RBI.

Arizona trails the Dodgers by 10 games in the NL West, but is in good position as the top wild card. Besides Colorado, there are only two other teams - Milwaukee and St. Louis - with a shot at gaining a wild card. The Brewers and Cardinals are three and 3 1/2 games behind the Rockies, respectively.

Game four of the series is Thursday at 4:05 pm ET.

Aaron Judge Hits 2 HR In Yankee Win; Jay Bruce's Slam, 2 HR Not Enough In Mets Loss At Atlanta

Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Judge's 12 HRs lead AL

American League

Aaron Judge isn't letting up after his sizzling start in April.

On just the second day of May, Judge touched off another pair of home runs, giving him the AL lead with 12 and helping the Yankees hammer the Blue Jays, 11-5.

The red-hot rookie put the Yankees up 6-0 with a solo shot in the second and finished New York's scoring with a three-run bomb to right in the seventh, giving him four RBI for the game and 25 overall, second to Miguel Sano (27) in the American League. Judge finished 2-for-4 with three runs. He's batting .313.

Coupled with Boston's 5-2 win over the Orioles, the win put the Yankees back into a first place tie with Baltimore in the AL East.

Toronto and New York will complete their three-game series on Wednesday with the rubber game, starting at 7:00 pm ET at Yankee Stadium.

National League

Bruce: 2HR, GS, 6RBI

To say the New York Mets have had their share of struggles this season would probably be an understatement as the team finds itself in last place in the NL East with a record of 11-15 after Tuesday's 9-7 loss at Atlanta

A rash of injuries - most recently to starting pitcher, Noah Syndergaard - and a severe lack of hitting have contributed to the slow start. The Mets' .220 batting average is the worst in the National League and a 4.73 ERA is 14th of 15 NL teams.

Even when the Mets hit, as they did Tuesday, it's often not enough, as evidenced by Jay Bruce's effort, going 2-for-5 with a pair of home runs and six RBI. Bruce is batting .293 with nine homers and 22 RBI.

Bruce socked a two-run homer in the first inning and belted a grand slam in the ninth, accounting for six of New York's seven runs. Unfortunately for Bruce and the Mets, the Braves touched up starter Matt Harvey for six runs over 5 1/3 innings and added three more against four Mets' relievers.

Atlanta got out of last place and put the Mets there with the win. The Braves are 11-14, 1/2 game better than the Mets. The series is tied at 1-1, with game three of the four-game set scheduled for Wednesday at 7:35 pm ET.

Jon Niese Sharp in Mets Shutout of Nationals; Jay Bruce's Three-Run Blast Lifts Reds over Brewers

Players of the Day for Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Grapefruit League

Niese: 6IP, 0ER

Will this finally be the year the Mets live up to their potential and vie for the top spot in the NL East?

Could be, especially if their starting pitching works as well during the regular season as it has through exhibition games.

The 18-11 Mets find themselves currently in first place in Florida's Grapefruit League, a slim game ahead of the Pirates, Red Sox and Blue Jays after Jon Niese tossed six shutout innings en route to his third win of Spring, a 2-0 victory over the Nationals.

Scattering four hits and striking out three without issuing any bases on balls, Niese was in control before handing the ball over to the bullpen, whose three relievers finished the job.

Jay Bruce

The Mets scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, both of Nats' starter, Gio Gonzalez, including a solo homer by John Mayberry, Jr., who finished 3-for-4.

Niese went 9-11 with a 3.40 ERA last season. If he pitches back to that ERA and the Mets get some runs for him, his could be a very productive season.

Cactus League

Cincinnati's Jay Bruce went 2-for-3, including a three-run homer and the Reds cruised to a 10-4 win over the Brewers.

It was Cincinnati's 14th win against 11 losses, leaving them in fourth place, four games back of Oakland in the Cactus League.

Bruce will once again be an integral part of Cincinnati's offensive plans, and will usually be patrolling right field when the Reds play defense.

Last season, Bruce missed some playing time, appearing in only 137 games, but still managed to club 18 homers and drive in 66 runs, though those numbers were well below his usual production. From 2011-2013, Bruce average better than 30 homers and 100 RBI per season.

Leonys Martin, Ian Kinsler, Elvis Andrus End Rangers' 7-Game Skid; Mike Leake, Jay Bruce Lead Reds' 10-0 Win over Astros

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 17, 2013

American League

Ian Kinsler

Playoff-style baseball is already being played in ballparks around the country, as the AL wild card race continues to entertain six teams in contention for the two spots.

Leonys Martin

Topping the bill of Tuesdya's slate of games was game two of the four-game series between the Rangers and Rays, the two teams currently in position to capture both wild cards.

Texas snapped a seven-game losing streak and regained a tie with Tampa Bay with a 7-1 win over the Rays at Tropicana Field in Tampa. Two players at the top of the order - Ian Kinsler and Elvis Andrus - and one at the bottom, rookie center fielder Leonys Martin, together accounted for nearly all of the Ranger runs.

Elvis Andrus

Martin was 3-for-4 with a solo home run, a pair of doubles and three scores. Leadoff batter, Kinsler, was 2-for-5 with a solo homer and three RBI, scoring twice, while #2 hitter, Andrus, went 2-for-3 with three RBI on a two-run homer and a pair of singles.

Texas starter, Alexi Ogando, gave up two hits and the Rays' only run, working five innings. The Rangers used five pitchers, the Rays, seven. With tired arms in both bullpens, Wednesday and Thursday's games could explode into offensive fireworks.

Elsewhere, Baltimore topped Boston, 4-3, Cleveland whipped KC, 5-3 and the Yankees lost their fourth straight, 2-0, at Toronto.

The Rays and Rangrs resume hostilities Wednesday night at 7:00 pm EDT. The series is tied at a game apiece.

AL Wild Card Standings (through 9/17)

Team	GB
Tampa Bay	--
Texas	--
Cleveland	-1/2
Baltimore	-2
NY Yankees	-3 1/2
Kansas City	-3 1/2

National League

Leake: 8 scoreless

Bruce: GS, 5 RBI

With the Washington Nationals taking a double-header from the Braves, the Cincinnati Reds might be feeling a little pressure as they maintain a 4-4 1/2 game lead over the Nats in the race for the final wild card, but Jay Bruce made certain that the Reds would keep winning, as he drove in the Reds first run with a single in the opening frame, then added four more with a fourth-inning grand slam.

Bruce's excessive run-producing was more than what starter, Mike Leake, would need as he improved to 14-6 by shutting out the Astros over eight innings, giving up five hits and two walks while fanning six.

With the 10-0 win - Cincinnati's second straight at Houston - the Reds retained the 4 1/2 game bulge over the streaking Nationals while remaining 2 1/2 back of St. Louis in the NL Central. The Cardinals lead Pittsburgh by one game in the division.

NOTABLE: Sidelined since late July, Matt Kemp returned to the Dodgers' starting lineup on Tuesday and has already had an impact, going 4-for-4 with three RBI as the Dodgers hammered Arizona, 9-3, putting Los Angeles within one game of capturing the NL West pennant. LA plays at Arizona Wednesday and Thursday, and a win in either game, which, by default, would also be a Diamondback loss, would clinch the division.

Today's Trivia: Who won the NL batting title in 1975 and 1976, and then won it twice more - in 1981 and 1983 - for a different team? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Boston swept the Cardinals in the 2004 World Series. The next year, the Chicago White Sox beat the Houston Astros, four games to none.

A's Thump Tigers, 14-4, as Brandon Moss Homers Twice; Jay Bruce Drives in Five as Reds Dismantle Cardinals, 10-0

Players of the Day for Wednesday, August 28, 2013

American League

Moss: 2HR, 6RBI

It's not even September, yet the Detroit Tigers may already be thinking about the playoffs and what might happen to them if they run into the Oakland A's.

The A's took their third straight in Detroit, hammering four pitchers for 21 hits, drilling the Tigers, 14-4, and generally putting a scare into the AL Central leaders.

Brandon Moss led the hit parade, going 4-for-5 with six RBI and three runs. Moss, singled, doubled, belted a two-run homer in the sixth inning and finished off his night with a three-run blast in the eighth. Moss, who is about as close as any A's player to superstar status, has 24 home runs on the year, with 66 RBI.

Oakland never trailed, scoring three runs in the second inning, four more in the fifth and three in the sixth, touching up Detroit starter, Doug Fisterfor 15 hits and seven earned runs. The 2-3-4-5 hitters in the A's lineup were a combined 12-for-19, with 10 runs and 10 RBI.

With the win, the A's remained 2 1/2 games behind Texas in the West, while the Tigers continued to lead the Central by 5 1/2 games over the Indians, 3-2 losers to Atlanta.

Game four of the series gets started at 1:08 pm EDT, the A's looking for the sweep.

National League

Bruce: 2-4, HR, 5RBI

After dropping the first two games of their series in St. Louis with the first-place Cardinals, the Cincinnati Reds were looking to salvage a win in game three. To do so, they'd have to beat Cardinal ace, Adam Wainwright.

The Reds not only beat Wainwright, they sent him back to the clubhouse after only two innings, ripping him for eight hits and nine runs en route to a 10-0 blowout.

Jay Bruce was Wainwright's main antagonist, driving in the first two runs for the Reds with a single in the first and sending the Cardinal hurler to an early exit with a three-run bomb in the second inning.

With the huge, 9-0 lead, Reds' starter, Homer Bailey (9-10), cruised through 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball, allowing just five hits and two walks while fanning seven. Chris Heisey finished the scoring for the Reds with a solo homer in the ninth.

The result left the Cardinals with a slim 1/2 game lead over Pittsburgh in the division, with the Reds 3 1/2 games back. While it would be nice, Cincinnati has the luxury of not needing to worry about winning the division, as they are currently six games clear of Arizona for the second wild card spot.

The Reds head next to Colorado, where they open a three-game series with the Rockies on Friday. St. Louis also gets Thursday off, as they travel to Pittsburgh for a critical three-game series with the Pirates.

Today's Trivia: Baltimore's Chris Davis and Manny Machado currently lead the majors in home runs and doubles, respectively. Who were the last two teammates to lead the majors in those categories and in what year did they do it? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: The Pittsburgh Pirates won the 1971 World Series, beating the Orioles, four games to three.

Torii Hunter Falls a Single Short of Cycle in Tiger Victory; Jay Bruce Rallies Reds to 13-4 Stomping of Mariners

Players of the Day for Saturday, July 6, 2013

American League

On Friday it was Juan Uribe coming up a single short of hitting for the cycle, on Saturday, it was Torii Hunter's turn to do the same thing, though he drove in only three runs as opposed to Uribe's seven.

Torii Hunter

In Detroit's 9-4 win over the Indians, Hunter doubled, tripled and homered in five at-bats, but did not come up with what is considered the "easist" part of the cycle, the single.

Nonetheless, Hunter was an integral part of the Tigers' taking their second straight over their Central division rivals, expanding their lead over Cleveland to 3 1/2 games, with Kansas City six back.

Game three of the four-game series is set for 1:05 pm EDT Sunday in Cleveland.

On Saturday, Hunter was named as a reserve to the American League All-Star roster. The annual showcase event is to be held July 16 at Citi Field in New York.

National League

Jay Bruce singled, doubled, drove in three runs and scored four times as the Cincinnati Reds pummeled the Seattle Mariners, 13-4.

Jay Bruce

The Mariners led early, enjoying a 3-1 bulge entering the fourth inning, but the Reds scored three in the fourth, two in the fifth and three more in the sixth, before finally blowing the game wide open with four eighth-inning runs. Bruce's double in the sixth was a key hit, sending two Reds home for an 8-4 lead, which became 9-4 when Bruce scored on a single by Jack Hannahan.

In his sixth season - all with the Reds - Bruce is quietly having another solid season, with 18 homers and 59 RBI to go with a .274 batting average. He's on pace to better his career-best marks set last season, of 34 HR and 99 RBI.

Winning helped the Reds cut a game off Pittsburgh's lead in the NL Central, where the Pirates hold a one-game advantage over the Cardinals, with the Reds now 3 1/2 back.

Seattle remained 12 1/2 out in the AL West, in fourth place.

The Mariners took Friday's contest, 4-2, so the two teams will meet for the rubber game of the series on Sunday at 1:10 pm EDT in Cincinnati.

Today's Trivia: The all-time record for losses by a pitcher in a season is 48, set way back in 1883. Who holds this dubious distinction? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Ted Williams is actually the all-time career leader in on base percentage, at an incredible .4817. Ty Cobb's .4330 ranks ninth all-time.

Price Blanks Baltimore, Rays, Yanks Clinch; Bruce Walks-off Astros, Igniting Celebration in Cincy

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 28, 2010

American League

David Price hurled eight innings of shutout ball at the Baltimore Orioles, assuring the Tampa Bay Rays of a spot in the 2010 playoffs with a 5-0 win at Tropicana Field.

Scattering six hits, Price fanned eight while his teammates scored single runs in each of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th innings, and two in the 5th. Carl Crawford and Carlos Pena hit solo homers for the Rays who will be making their first appearance in the playoffs since 2008, when they won the AL East by two games over Boston and advanced to the first World Series in the history of the franchise, losing to the Philadelphia Phillies in five games.

The win was the 19th for Price, against 6 losses. He threw 113 pitches, 81 of them for strikes.

In Toronto, the Yankees also clinched a playoff berth, as C.C. Sabathia worked a three-hitter for 8 1/3 innings in New York's 6-1 win over the Blue Jays. Sabathia fanned eight and allowed one earned run, improving his record to 21-7.

The Yankees trail Tampa Bay by 1/2 game in the division. New York has four games left to play while the Rays have five remaining. The wins by the top two teams in the division eliminated the Red Sox from post-season contention. Boston lost to the White Sox, 5-4, finally giving up on their slight chances.

National League

Jay Bruce's 9th inning, leadoff home run sparked a celebration in Cincinnati as the Reds downed the Houston Astros, 3-2, clinching the NL Central for the Reds.

Brandon Phillips singled in Orlando Cabrera to tie the game at two in the 6th inning. The two teams battled scorelessly into the 9th until Bruce's heroic shot over the center field wall.

It's the first time the Reds have reached the playoffs since 1995, when Marge Schott owned and badly mismanaged the team. The futility of fifteen years were suddenly wiped away with one swing of Bruce's bat.

Who the Reds will play in the opening round of the playoffs is still up in the air. The Giants took a two-game lead in the NL West with a 4-2 win over Arizona, while the Cubs dropped the Padres, 5-2 in San Diego.

Atlanta holds a 1 1/2 game lead over the Padres in the wild card chase. The Braves have four more games to play, three of them hosting the Phillies - who've already clinched the NL East with the best record in the league - this weekend. The final series of the regular season opens Friday night. Atlanta has one more game with Florida on Wednesday and a day off Thursday.

The Padres face the Cubs twice more at Petco Park before heading up the coast to play the Giants in a final, three-game series that will decide the champion of the NL West. The Giants play Arizona Wednesday and Thursday prior to the climactic showdown.

Lester, Martinez Keep Red Sox in Hunt; Bruce Blasts Three Homers for Reds

Players of the Day for Friday, August 27, 2010 American League Injuries have piled up for the Boston Red Sox, but that hasn't kept them from winning and staying in the Al East race. Jacoby Ellesberry, Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis all have gone down and probably are lost for the season. On top of that, their ace, Josh Beckett, hasn't been himself, with a 4-3 record and a 6.50 ERA. A couple of guys who've managed to remain healthy have been carrying the team of late, and in Friday's 3-1 win at Tampa Bay, Victor Martinez (left) and Jon Lester (right) got the better of the Rays and crept to within 4 1/2 games of co-leading Tampa and New York. Lester (14-8) tossed seven innings of 2-hit ball, striking out 10 while walking five. The only run the Rays were able to produce was unearned. Lester has produced wins in three of his last four starts. Martinez got in a couple of good swings, going 3-for-4 with two solo homers, giving the Red Sox just enough offense to get the win. Having missed some time himself this season, Martinez is heating up, batting .385 (9-for-24) and driving in seven runs over his last six games. National League Manager Dusty Baker has tried a lot of different players in the leadoff spot since Orlando Cabrera was sidelined earlier this month, but his latest maneuver proved to be a stroke of genius. Baker put outfielder Jay Bruce at the top of the lineup card in Friday's contest with the Cubs, as the Reds sought to expand their lead over the Cardinals in the NL Central. Bruce was an unlikely fit for the leadoff spot. In his three-year major league career, he's only swiped 12 bases and been thrown out 13 times. So, since Bruce probably wasn't going to be a basepath threat, he took it upon himself to just hit the ball over the fences - three times - pounding three homers into the right field stands at the Great American Ball Park. His first was a solo shot in the 3rd, followed by a three-run blast in the 5th and another solo jack in the 7th, which proved to be more than enough for Johnny Cueto to record his 12th win against 4 losses as the Reds cruised to a 7-1 win. With the Cardinals winning 4-2 over Washington, Cincinnati didn't increase its lead, but remained a relatively comfortable four games ahead of the redbirds.

Span's 4 Hits Lead Twins over BoSox; Arroyo, Bruce Lead Reds' 4th Straight

Players of the Day for Wednesday, May 27, 2009 American League The Minnesota Twins helped the Yankees tie Boston for first place in the AL East, knocking off the Red Sox, 4-2, as leadoff hitter Denard Span went 4-for-4 and scored twice. The win was Minnesota's second straight over the Red Sox, who had seized control of the division just days before. Third place Toronto has lost 9 in a row. Meanwhile, the Twins have taken over second place in the AL Central, 3 1/2 behind Detroit. Span, who, in his second year in the majors, has been in the leadoff spot most of the season for the Twins and is batting .316 with 11 steals and a .409 on-base percentage. National League While the Cardinals were taking over first place in the NL Central with a 3-2 win over Milwaukee, the Cincinnati Reds have quietly snuck into second place, just 1/2 behind the Brewers and 1 1/2 back of St. Louis, winning their 4th straight, 6-1 over Houston, as Bronson Arroyo (left) pitched a complete game for his 7th win against 3 losses and Jay Bruce (right) provided the bulk of the offense. Arroyo needed just 92 pitches to put away the inept Astro offense, sending Houston to their 7th straight loss. Allowing just 5 hits and one earned run, Arroyo was in complete control, walking one and striking out three. Bruce was far and away the hitting star of the night, smashing a solo shot in the 4th inning, a 2-run-shot in the 6th and delivering a run-scoring triple in the eighth inning to complete his 3-for-4, 4 RBI night. Bruce, in his second season as the Reds' regular right fielder, is off to a solid start with 14 home runs and 29 RBI, though his batting average is a touch low, at .241. The Reds will have every opportunity to take control of the division over the next week. After a day off Thursday, they travel to Milwaukee for a 3-game weekend series, then, on to St. Louis for a four-game deal with the Cards. NOTES: Randy Johnson (4-4) earned his 299th career victory, holding the Atlanta Braves in check over 6 solid innings, yielding just 3 hits and one earned run without walking anyone and striking out 5, including Chipper Jones three times. The Giants won the game, 6-3, setting up Johnson's chance at 300 for Wednesday in Washington against the punchless Nationals. While the Big Unit would prefer to pitch at home -where all four of his wins this season have come - he couldn't have hoped for a weaker offensive team to go against.