World Series: Juan Soto Stars As Nationals Steal Game One In Houston

Players of the Day for Tuesday, October 22, 2019

World Series Game 1

Soto drives Nats to win

Washington Nationals 5 Houston Astros 4

Left fielder Juan Soto came up big for the Nationals, taking game one of the 2019 World Series in Houston, 5-4.

The Astros jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but solo homers by Ryan Zimmerman in the third and Soto in the fourth tied the game.

After Adam Eaton singled in a run in the fifth, Soto followed with a double that plated two more. The Nationals' three-run fifth would prove to be the difference.

George Springer got the Astros as close as they would get with a seventh inning solo shot of his own, and an RBI double in the eighth, but Sean Doolittle, who got the final out in the eighth, pitched a perfect ninth to seal the victory and put Washington in the driver's seat with a one game to none edge.

Soto, a 20-year-old from the Dominican Republic, had an excellent regular season, batting .282 with 34 home runs and 110 RBI. During the playoffs he's averaging .286 with three homers and 10 RBI.

Game two of the series is Wednesday, 8:07 pm ET, at Houston's Minute Maid Park.

Juan Soto Brings Nationals Back for 4-3 Win Over Brewers in NL Wild Card

Players of the Day for Tuesday, October 1, 2019

National League

Soto delivers for Nationals

Juan Soto's scratch single to right field in the bottom of the eighth capped a winning comeback by the Washington Nationals, who came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-3, in the NL wild card elimination game.

With two outs and the bases loaded, Soto lined a pitch from Brewer reliever Josh Hader between first and second. With runnings in high gear, when right fielder Trent Grisham mishandled the ball, Anthony Rendon was allowed to score all the way from first, putting the Nationals in the lead. Soto was credited with two RBI, Rendon's score was unearned due to Grisham's error.

In his second full season, Soto, 20, has quietly had an excellent year at the plate, batting .282 with 34 home runs and 110 RBI during the regular season.

Stephen Strasburg, who entered the game in the sixth inning after starter Max Scherzer had allowed three runs, pitched three innings of shutout ball, allowing just two hits while fanning four. Strasburg got the win. Daniel Hudson secured the comeback with a scoreless ninth.

Scherzer struck out six and issued three walks. Of the four hits off Scherzer, two were home runs, a first-inning, two run blast by Yasmani Grandal and a second inning solo shot by Eric Thames, accounting for all of Milwaukee's runs.

The victory, which sends the Nationals off to Los Angeles to meet the Dodgers in a best-of-five divisional playoff series, was their ninth straight.

American League

There were no American League games on Tuesday. The Rays and A's play in the wild card game on Wednesday, October 2, at 8:00 pm ET, in Oakland.

Juan Soto Helps Washington Rip Rockies, Sending NL Into Chaos; Miguel Andujar Breaks DiMaggio Record As Yankees Down Red Sox

Players of the Day for Saturday, September 29, 2018

American League

Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio?

Andujar breaks NY record

Thanks to rookie third baseman, Miguel Andujar, part of him, at least, has gone down a memory hole as Andjusr shattered a record held since 1936 by the Yankee Clipper.

Andujar lashed a pair of doubles and drove in two runs as the Yankees defeated Boston, 8-5, at Fenway Park. DiMaggio's Yankee rookie record of 44 doubles in a season was broken as Andujar hit one on Friday to tie it and upped his total to 46 with his two doubles Saturday.

Andujar should easily capture the AL rookie of the year award.

The Yankees set a major league record in the win. With home runs by Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton, they surpassed the record set in 1997 by the Seattle Mariners for most home runs by a team in a single season. The previous record was 264, which was tied when Aaron Judge launched the last of four Yankee homers Friday night. The new record of 266 - to which the Yankees can add on Sunday in their regular season finale - also includes a footnote. The Yankees became the first team to get at least 20 home runs from each of the nine batting positions when Gleyber Torres broke the record with his fourth-inning smash.

The Yankees and Red Sox complete the regular season Sunday at Fenway.

National League

Soto: 2-for-4, HR, 4 RBI

The Washington Nationals aren't headed to the post-season, but, in the best baseball tradition, they played spoiler on Saturday by hammering the Colorado Rockies, 12-2, sending the NL West into a tie for first place between the Rockies and Dodgers. Los Angeles defeated the Giants, 10-6, leaving the two teams at 90-71 each with one game left to play.

Rookie outfielder, Juan Soto, got the Nationals on the bard early, knocking in two runs with a double in the first inning. From there on, the Nationals continued to pour it on, racking up 18 hits against five Colorado pitchers as the game got away.

Soto drove in two more runs, one with a solo homer in the fifth (his 22nd), and another on a ground out in the eighth inning. His four RBI gave hime 70 on the year. Soto's numbers, which include a .294 batting average, make him the leading candidate for rookie of the year.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, St. Louis was eliminated from the wild card race, despite their 2-1 win over the Cubs in Chicago. With Milwaukee downing Detroit, 6-5, that left the Cubs and Brewers tied for the lead in the NL Central, at 94-67.

With the Atlanta Braves having already clinched the NL East, the other four post-season positions are up for grabs. The Cubs host St. Louis, the Rockies host Washington, LA is at San Francisco and Milwaukee hosts Detroit. The games are all the last of the regular season for the teams involved. If ties are produced in either division, an additional playoff game would be needed to determine the winner. Either the Cubs or Brewers will host the wild card game against the second place team in the West, either the Dodgers or Rockies.

Washington Rookie Juan Soto Rocks Phillies; Mauer, Twins Maul Yankees, 10-5

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Mauer Slams Yankees

American League

With their lead in the wild card quickly dwindling, the Yankees gave one away to the Twins, as starter Sonny Gray and three relievers allowed 13 hits, losing at Minnesota, 10-5.

Joe Mauer's fifth-inning grand slam put the Twins up by a 10-1 score and pretty much ended the contest. New York had taken the prior five games against the Twins this season. Mauer walked and scored in the third inning, tying the score at 1-1. The Twins tacked on two more runs in the frame and the Yankees never responded. Mauer finished 2-for-4 with four RBI and two runs.

Meanwhile, the Oakland A's shaved another game off New York's lead in the wild card, closing to within two games of the Yankees with a 3-2 win at Baltimore.

Since September 2nd, the Yankees are 4-5, while the Athletics went 7-1, including taking two of three from the Yanks in Oakland. They've gained 3 1/2 games in just over a week.

The Yankees play the series finale in Minnesota at 8:10 pm EDT Wednesday. The A's have game two of their three-game set in Baltimore at 7:05 pm EDT.

National League

Soto: Nat's Hot Rookie

The Washington Nationals gave up on their season a few weeks back, but maybe they should have waited just a little longer before jettisoning some of their top players and throwing in the towel.

Taking a pair at Philadelphia, the Nationals did more to ruin the Phillies' chances for reaching the post-season than perhaps any other team could have.

Tuesday's twin killing marked the fourth straight loss for Philadelphia as well as Washington's fourth straight victory. The first-place Braves have made the most of it, also winners of four straight, including Tuesday's 4-1 complete game win by Mike Foltynewicz.

After taking the first game, 3-1, Washington battled back from a 6-3 deficit with three runs in the eighth to tie the game and won it in the 10th on Juan Soto's second home run, a solo shot to left-center that produced the double-header sweep with a 7-6, 10-inning win.

Having doubled in a run in the second inning, Soto smacked his 17th of the season with a man aboard in the fourth. In the first game, Soto went 2-for-4, so his complete day was a 5-for-8 effort with two homers, a double, four RBI and three runs. Not bad for a 19-year-old rookie. He and Atlanta's Ronald Acuna Jr. are the leading NL candidates for rookie of the year. Soto's batting .306 with 18 homers and 60 RBI.

Tuesday's results left the Phillies 6 1/2 behind the Braves in the NL East, with Washington eight out. Neither Philadelphia nor Washington has much hope of catching Atlanta nor reaching the playoffs via the wild card. Philly is 6 1/2 behind the Cardinals for the second wild card, with Washington eight behind. Milwaukee holds the top wild card by two games over St. Louis.

The Phillies and Nationals wrap up their series on Wednesday, 7:00 pm EDT.

Mariners Win 5th Straight On Marco Gonzales' Complete Game; Nats Bury Phils, 17-7, As Juan Soto Drives In 5

Players of the Day for Friday, June 29, 2018

American League

Gonzales: Complete game

Seattle's been on the move this week, winning five straight after Marco Gonzales pitched his first major league complete game, stopping the Royals on six hits in a 4-1 Mariners' win.

Gonzales threw 96 pitches, of which 71 went for strikes. The 26-year-old lefty fanned seven without issuing any walks, improving to 8-5 on the year. Having pitched just 2 2/3 innings in 2015 and missing all of 2016, St. Louis traded Gonzales to Seattle after just one start in 2017. He finished out the year with the Mariners, going 1-1 in 10 games (seven starts) with a 5.40 ERA.

This season has seen a complete turn-around, with the ERA down to 3.77 and 87 strikeouts in 100 1/3 innings with just 20 walks.

The victory was Seattle's fifth straight and sixth in their last seven. They're 18-9 in the month of June and now trail the first-place Astros by 2 1/2 games as Houston's 11-game road win streak was snapped by Tampa Bay in a 3-2 loss Friday. The Mariners have the fourth-best record in the American League (52-31). Their mark is better than any NL team.

Seattle hosts the Royals in game two of their three-game series, Saturday at 7:10 pm Pacific.

National League

Soto: 4-for-5, 2HR, 5RBI

Expected to run away with the NL East, the Washington Nationals have struggled through the first half, trailing both Atlanta and Philadelphia in the division, but they took out a lot of their frustration against the Phillies Friday night, hammering out a 17-7 win in which they belted seven home runs.

Two of those seven homers were belted by 19-year-old outfielder Juan Soto, who has been in the majors for just 35 games but has already made a big impact.

After Trey Turner socked a two-run shot in the first, Soto repeated the effort with his seventh homer of the season, knocking in Anthony Rendon, and the rout was underway. In the ninth, with the game already well in hand for the Nats, Soto launched a three-run shot sandwiched between solo shots by Brian Goodwin and Mark Reynolds.

Soto also singled twice, going 4-for-5, scoring three times. In just 116 at-bats, Soto has nine doubles, eight homers and has driven in 21 runs to go with a .336 batting average. He's already getting respect from pitchers, having drawn 23 walks.

On Thursday, the Nationals dropped a 4-3 decision in the opener of their four-game series in Philly. Game three is scheduled for Saturday at 6:05 pm EDT. The Nationals are close, just four games out of first, with Philadelphia trailing the Braves by three.