Lyle Overbay Delivers for Brewers; Jose Abreu Routing Rookie-of-the-Year Competition

Players of the Day for Friday, August 15, 2014

American League

Jose Abreu

Might as well just etch Jose Abreu's name on the rookie of the year trophy; even if he hit a serious slump now, what he's done already would likely outpace the competition.

Abreu, a .304 hitter, took sole possession of the major league lead in RBI on Friday, driving in three runs with three singles in an 11-5 White Sox victory over Toronto.

Seemingly destined to become a leading run-producer for many years, Abreu was 2-for-2 with runners in scoring position, driving in the first Chicago run in the first and singling home two more in the fifth. He also came around to score in each of those innings.

With 89 RBI, he leads Detroit's Miguel Cabrera by three. Giancarlo Stanton, the NL leader, has 84. Abreu is also in a three way tie with the same two aforementioned players in home runs. Each has 31 on the year.

With the White Sox out of contention for the post-season, Abreu will get to display his talents without pressure. The Sox did help the Orioles - 2-1 losers to Cleveland - maintain their 7 1/2 game lead over the Blue Jays in the East division.

ame two of the three game series between Toronto and Chicago is set for a 7:10 pm EDT start, Saturday in the Windy City.

As for Abreu, rookie of the year may not be the only award he receives in 2004. He's being mentioned as a serious candidate for MVP in the AL.

Lyle Overbay

National League

An NL Central phenomena, the Milwaukee Brewers continue to find ways to win ball games, maintaining their slim lead in the division.

On Friday, the Brewers got an eighth-inning, pinch-hit, bases loaded double from Lyle Overbay that unknotted a 2-2 tie, leading to a 6-3 victory over the home-standing Dodgers in the opener of a three-game series of division leaders.

Overbay, a 12-year veteran of both leagues, cleared the bases with his two-bagger off Dodger reliever, Jamey Wright. Overbay has played for six different teams; this is his second go-round with the Brewers. He last played with them in 2004 and 2005.

The win maintained Milwaukee's 2 1/2 game lead in the Central over the Cardinals, who took a 4-2 decision from San Diego.

The Dodgers host the Brewers in game two of the series, Saturday at 9:10 pm EDT.

Jon Lester Tosses One-Hitter for Boston; Yankees' Lyle Overbay Drives in Five; St. Louis Rookie Shelby Miller Hurls Cards to One-Hit Win

Players of the Day for Friday, May 10, 2013

American League

Lester: 1-hitter

The battle for the AL East has intensified to a point that the three teams tied for the division lead - Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles - all produced victories Friday, two of those games featuring individual performances worth of player of the day recognition.

Overbay: HR, 5RBI

Maicer Izturis was the only Toronto hitter to touch up Boston starter, Jon Lester, his fourth-inning, no-doubt double breaking up the Red Sox lefty's bid for a perfect game. Lester (5-0) struck out five, didn't walk any and threw 79 of 118 pitches for the complete game, 5-0 shutout.

The Yankees, in the midst of a Midwest swing, kept pace by bludgeoning the Royals, 11-6, their third straight win. The Bombers cranked out 16 hits, four of them coming off the bat of first baseman Lyle Overbay, who was 4-for-5 with a homer, two doubles, a single and five RBI.

Baltimore remained in the three-way tie by defeating the Twins in 10 innings, 9-6, getting RBI singles from Manny Machado, Nick Markakis and Adam Jones in the top of the extra frame. Jim Johnson gave up a hit in the bottom of the inning, but still recorded his league-leading 14th save.

All three series continue on Saturday.

National League

Shelby Miller

St. Louis starter, Shelby Miller, didn't get off to a very auspicious start in the Cardinals' 3-0 win over the Rockies, giving up a scratch single to leadoff hitter, Eric Young Jr. - who then stole second base - but Miller was unfazed, getting Dexter Fowler on a pop fly, and then striking out Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki, both looking at called third strikes.

As it was, Young's single would be the only hit of the night for Colorado, as Miller set down 27 straight, registering the second one-hitter of the day.

The hard-throwing rookie hurler fanned a career-high 13 without allowing a walk, getting Tulowitzki three times and striking out both Colorado pinch hitters sent to the plate in the sixth and ninth innings. Miller improved to 5-2, lowering his ERA to 1.58 with his magnificent outing.

St. Louis, winners of eight of their last 10, retained their three-game Central division lead over Cincinnati with the win.

The Rockies will attempt to put more bats on balls in game two of the three-game series, Saturday at 2:15 pm EDT.

Today's Trivia: In 1964, Dean Chance threw 11 shutouts for the LA Angels. Four years later, which pitcher topped him, with 13 shutouts in 1968, a total which nobody since has come close to matching?

Answer to yesterday's question: 41-year-old Andy Pettitte is the active player wins leader with 248.

Overbay's Two Homers, 7 RBI Crush Red Sox; Homer Bailey Extends Reds' Lead

Players of the Day for Friday, August 20, 2010 American League The hits just keep coming from the Toronto Blue Jays. On Friday, the Jays made the Jon Lester and the Red Sox the latest victims in their batting assault through the American League, pounding out 20 hits in a 16-2 romp at Fenway Park. Lester pitched only into the 3rd inning, as he gave up five runs in the first, one in the second and was credited with three more in the third. He gave up eight hits, three walks and nine runs, his chief torment being Lyle Overbay, who smacked a pair of three-run homers off the Boston lefty. Overbay wasn't done after Lester departed. He singled and scored in the 6th inning and singled home another run in the 8th. His line for the night, 4-for-5, 3 runs, 7 RBI, with a pair of dingers. Not too shabby. The Jays continue to terrorize opposing pitchers, leading the majors with 187 home runs and a .458 slugging percentage. With 121 games already in the book (64-57), the Jays probably won't crack the major league mark of 264 home runs in a season, set by the Seattle Mariners in 1999, though they are on pace to come pretty close. They should finish up with about 250, though nobody is ruling out that they could hit two per game on average, setting a new standard. National League It was just a week ago that St. Louis took three straight from the Reds and wrested control of the NL Central, leaving Cincinnati with a one-game lead in the divisional race. Since then, the two teams have gone in opposite directions, however, with the Cardinals losing five straight while the Reds have put together a seven -game win streak. The Cards, who have had three days off in the past nine, haven't responded well to the extra rest. After taking the opener of their three-game series against Chicago, they lost the next two, then dropped two straight to the Brewers and on Friday were on the losing end of a 6-3 score against the Giants. Making matters more troubling is the fact that all of the losses have come at home. While the Cardinals were trying to figure out what happened, the Reds took three straight from the Marlins at home, then went on the road and swept three from Arizona, and on Friday went into Dodger Stadium - where they had lost 12 straight - and came away with a 3-1 win, mostly on the strength of Homer Bailey's seven solid innings. Bailey, pitching in place of suspended starter Johnny Cueto for the second time in a week, allowed four hits and one earned run. He struck out six and walked a pair of batters. Bailey, who hadn't pitched since May 23, shut out Florida on Sunday for siz innings and returned with another strong performance Friday night. Cueto's suspension has ended, and the Red's fiery right-hander will go to the mound on Saturday against the Dodgers. The Reds' have put together their longest win streak of the season at just the right time, with the Cardinals struggling and the top spot in the division theirs for the taking. In just a week they've opened up a 4 1/2 game lead on the Cards, after a grueling three months in which neither team could establish anything better than a three game lead.

Overbay Shoots Down Angels; Martin's 4-4 Leads LA Past Mets

Players of the Day from Friday, May 30, 2008 American League Lyle Overbay belted a pair of solo home runs, drove in another run with a single and scored three times, sparking Toronto to a 10-4 win over AL West leader Los Angeles. The Blue Jays, winners of 3 straight and 8 of their last 10, remain 3 games behind the Rays and 2 back of Boston in the AL East. Though usually not noted for their hitting prowess, the Jays have scored 22 runs in their last two games. Their pitching staff, however, is the stingiest in the league, with a 3.32 team ERA. Notes: The woes of the Royals continue. On Friday, Kansas City blew a 4-1 lead and failed to score after the 4th inning, dropping their 12 straight, a 5-4 decision to Cleveland. When the losing streak started, the Royals were just one game under .500, at 21-22. That was on May 18, before being losing four straight at Boston, four more at Toronto, dropping three straight home games to Minnesota and last night's defeat at the hands of the Indians. Of all the teams in the AL, the Royals are the only one that has not cracked the 200 barrier in runs (197) or RBI (187). Their team ERA of 4.60 is 11th of 14, with only the Rangers, Tigers and Mariners posting worse numbers. National League The National League's spot behind the plate at this season's All-Star Game should be occupied by the Dodgers' Russell Martin, batting a brisk .326 after a 4-for-4 night on Friday. Martin singled twice, doubled and hit a solo home run, drove in three and scored three times as the Dodgers whipped the Mets, 9-5, Friday. The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Dodgers, and with Arizona losing their 5th in a row, puts LA 2 1/2 behind the Diamondbacks, the closest they've been since early in the season. Notes: While the Dodgers are closing ground in the West, the Phillies overtook Florida in the East with a 12-3 thumping of the Marlins in Philly. Chase Utley smacked his league-leading 18th home run. Teammate Ryan Howard notched his 15th bomb of the season as the Phillies took a 1/2-game lead in the East. Absolutely scorching, the Phillies have won five straight and 8 of their last 10. They've scored 60 runs in their last 5 games. Not surprisingly, they lead the NL in home runs with 82 and are second in RBI and Runs.