Texas Clinches on Cantu HR; Tulowitzki Saves Season for Rockies

Players of the Day for Saturday, September 25, 2010

American League

Acquired from Florida on July 30, Jorge Cantu has played only 25 games for the Texas Rangers, but on Saturday, with his first home run in a Texas uniform, he sent the Rangers into the post-season with a 4-3 win over the Oakland A's.

Cantu, playing first base, wnet 3-for-4 at the plate, his 6th inning single driving home a run that put the Rangers up, 2-1. After Texas scored another in the 7th, the A's tied the game in the bottom of the inning. Cantu's 8th-inning, solo blast to center field, off A's reliever Michael Wuertz, provided the winning run, clinching the AL West division for the Rangers.

National League

Colorado's been playing catch-up all season, but after losing five straight this week, it seemed like the magic was gone and the Rockies would spend October watching the playoffs and World Series from their homes on TV.

Down, 9-6, in the 6th inning to the Giants, all appearances suggested the season was about to be over for Colorado, but they manufactured a run in the bottom of the inning and then Troy Tulowitzki put the team - and the season - on his back.

In the 8th, Tulo creamed a double to right, plating two runs to tie the game at 9-9, and then doubled home Carlos Gonzalez with the game-winner in the bottom of the 10th, sending the Giants back to their hotel rooms unhappy and in second place with a 10-inning, 10-9 loss. The Rockies remained in third, four games behind the Padres, but still alive, the losing streak over, with hope for tomorrow and the remainder of the season.

Tulowitzki, having a September to remember, crashed his 27th home run in the fifth inning. He finished the game 4-for-5, with five RBI, putting his total for the month at 40, with 15 homers. His 40 RBI in one month set a new Rockies' record.

The Rockies will look to make their move in the final week of the season with one more against the Giants on Sunday, then three at home against the Dodgers before hitting the road for four games at St. Louis. They'll need either the Giants or Padres to falter in order to reach either the wild card or win the NL West.

PENNANT NOTES: San Diego held off Cincinnati, 4-3, denying the Reds the NL Central for at least another day, and vaulting themselves back into first place in the contentious NL West. They lead the Giants by 1/2 game and Colorado by four. The Reds still have a 6 1/2 game lead over the Cardinals, and a magic number of two.

In the East, the Mets' snapped the Phillies' 11-game win streak with a 5-2 win and Atlanta won, dropping Philadelphia's lead back to six. Their magic number stands at two.

Suddenly without a pitching staff, the Yankees lost their second straight to the Red Sox and 4th overall, falling 1 1/2 games behind the Rays, 9-1 winners over Seattle. The 7-3 Boston win kept faint Red Sox hopes alive. They play one more in New York on Sunday before heading to Chicago for a four-game series with the White Sox. Then they return to Fenway Park to close out the regular season with a weekend three-game series with the Yankees.

Boston trails New York by 5 1/2 for the wild card and needs to keep winning in order to make the final weekend series meaningful. The Sox didn't do themselves any favors losing 2 of 3 to both the Blue Jays and Orioles last week, but they seem to have found new life against the Yankees. In Saturday's win, Jon Lester picked up his 19th win with seven shutout innings. The Red Sox out-clubbed the Yankees in the series opener, 10-8.

Cantu, Willingham, Rosales Power Wins

Players of the Day for Sunday, April 11, 2010 American League Leading 3-1 through 6 innings, Joe Saunders and his LA Angel teammates were cruising along, seeking a win over the upstart Oakland A's, who have taken the AL West lead hostage in the opening week of the season. The Angels have won the division three years running, and were eager to resume their rightful place atop the standings. This was the third game of the series, and

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But then came the 7th inning and a little-known utility infielder named Adam Rosales, who had already made his mark, hitting a solo homer in his first at-bat of the game - and the season - in the 2nd inning. By the time Rosales came to the plate in the 7th, Saunders would be headed for the showers, allowing three straight hits without getting an out. Kevin Jepsen relieved the starter and got one out before Rosales came up and singled home two more runs, putting the A's ahead, 4-3. From there, the A's would tack on 5 more runs, including a walk to Rosales that forced in one run. For his first appearance this season, Rosales made the most of it, going 2-for-3 with a home run and 4 RBI, one which stemmed from the bonus base on balls. With the 9-4 win, the A's remained in first place with a 5-2 record. The Angels dropped to last, along with the Mariners, at 2-5.

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National League Normally, choosing a Player of the Day isn't a very complicated matter... and then there are days like Sunday. Albert Pujols shows off on national TV with a pair of homers and a single, 4 RBI in 5 at-bats, but, the Cardinals lose to Milwaukee, 8-7. Earlier in the day, Roy Halladay pitches his first complete game win as a National Leaguer, allowing 7 hits while fanning 8 as the Phillies slip by Roy Oswalt and the winless Astros, 2-1. The only run of the game is unearned, and it's Halladay's errant throw to first which causes it. Uh-uh. Out in Arizona, the Diamondbacks score 13 runs in the 4th inning en route to a 15-6 win over the Pirates. Catcher Chris Snyder hits a two-run homer and a bases-loaded double, drives in 5, scores twice, but, it was, after all, a rout over one of the worst teams in the league. Pablo Sandoval goes 3-for-4 with a triple and a homer, drives in 2 runs, scores three as the Giants improve to 5-1 with a 6-3 win over Atlanta. Now, we're getting somewhere. In the end, it turned out to be a tie. Florida's Jorge Cantu (left), who belted a 3-run homer in the 4th inning, and capped off his night with a 7th inning two-run double which turned a 5-4 Dodger lead into a 6-5 Marlins win. Cantu was 2-for-4 with 5 RBI, including the game-winner. We also tip our cap to Washington's Josh Willingham (right), who drove in all five runs in the Nationals' 5-2 win over the Mets. Willingham launched a grand slam in the 1st inning and doubled home another run in the 4th. Washington's pitching staff made his runs hold up. The Nationals - and this may be the last time this season this statement is valid - are one of 5 NL teams with winning road records.

Garza, Longoria Bury BoSox; Cantu Continues Hot Streak

Players of the Day for Thursday, April 30, 2009 American League Matt Garza (left) took a perfect game into the seventh inning and worked into the 8th, one-hitting the Red Sox as his Tampa Bay teammates piled up the runs in a 13-0 Rays victory. Garza (2-2) allowed an infield single by Jacoby Ellsbury to lead off the 7th. Other than that dribbler, he was lights out, later giving up a walk, but striking out ten in a dominating performance. Garza threw 108 pitches, of which 75 went for strikes. Leading the 18-hit Tampa attack was third baseman Evan Longoria (right), who opened the scoring with a first-inning, bases-loaded double off Boston starter Josh Beckett, and later singled and smacked a solo home run, driving in 4 runs and scoring three times. National League Jorge Cantu continued his hot hitting as the Florida Marlins topped the Cubs, 8-2, in 10 innings. Cantu got the Marlins on the scoreboard with a solo homer in the 7th inning, and doubled home three more as Florida struck for 6 runs in the top of the 10th. Over the last three games, Cantu has been on fire, going 6-for-10, stroking four home runs while piling up 10 RBI.

Cantu Slays Mets; Betancourt Drives Mariners Past White Sox

Players of the Day for Tuesday, April 28, 2009 American League After dropping the first half of their double-header at Chicago, 2-1, the Mariners took revenge on the White Sox with a 9-1 triumph in the nightcap as shortstop Yunieski Betancourt took matters into his own hands from his #8 slot in the lineup, going 4-for-5, with 3 singles and a three-run homer, a stolen base and 5 RBI. The Mariners banged out 19 hits in the slaughter, with Russell Branyan going 5-for-5 with two doubles and three singles. Betancourt's power surge was not all that unusual, as he averages 8 home runs per season. National League The Florida Marlins snapped their seven-game losing streak with a 7-4 victory over the NY Mets who conitnue to chase them in the NL East standings. The Mets are still 3 games behind, Atlanta trails Florida by 2, and the Phillies are just 1/2-game back. Jorge Cantu unloaded a pair of homers - a two-run blast in the 4th and a 3-run shot in the 7th inning which broke a 4-4 tie and decided the game in favor of the Marlins. Cantu, who also singled and walked, finished 3-for-3, with 2 runs and 5 RBI. He has 5 homers and 17 RBI on the year to go with a .357 batting average. Last year, Cantu knocked 29 homers and collected 95 RBI. NOTES: The Cubs' Carlos Zambrano took personal delight in his team's 11-3 win at Arizona on Tuesday. The starter not only worked 7 quality innings, allowing 3 runs on 8 hits, he also singled, doubled, homered, scored three times and drove in a pair of runs in support of his own cause.