Houston Hammers Toronto, 16-7, Tyler White 2 HR, 5 RBI; Yu Darvish, Dodgers Tame Mets, 6-0

Players of the Day for Friday, August 4, 2017

American League

White: 4-5, 2 HR, 5 RBI

As August began, the Blue Jays remained in last place in the AL East, and, starting a three-game series in Houston on Friday, this could be the series that ultimately defines Toronto's season, because Houston is heading to the post-season and, more than likely, the Blue Jays are not.

After game one, it became evident that the two teams on the field were not of the same caliber. While the Blue Jays have some solid hitters, Houston has more of them. In terms of pitching, it was no contest, as the Astros battered six Toronto hurlers for 18 hits and 7 walks in a 16-7 runaway.

Five different Astros had multiple hits and there were 10 extra base hits by Houston, including five home runs. Two of those home runs - in addition to a single and a double - were provided by first baseman, Tyler White, a player who's only been in eight games this season.

White was 4-for-5 with five RBI and three runs. His two homers were the first of the season for the 26-year-old, who spent most of 2017 in AAA with the Fresno Grizzlies of the Pacific Coast League, where he hit .299 with 19 homers and 69 RBI in 91 games.

Called up the last week of July, White was not going very well (4-for-20, no home runs, 3 RBI) until hitting his groove on Friday. In Houston's nine-run fourth inning, he doubled and singled, drove in two runs and scored once. His two-run blast came in the sixth and White added a solo shot in the eighth to complete the rout.

Thanks largely to Toronto pitching, Houston snapped a three-game losing streak but still leads the AL West by 15 games. Game two of the series is Saturday, 7:10 pm ET.

National League

Darvish: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER

With Clayton Kershaw on the mend, the Dodgers went out and got themselves a little insurance prior to the trading deadline, and it appears that their choice of plucking Yu Darvish from the Texas Rangers was a solid one.

In his first start in a Dodger uniform, Darvish was sparkling, allowing three hits over seven scoreless innings, as the Dodgers took game of of their three-game series in New York, 6-0 over the struggling Mets.

After giving up a single and a walk in the opening inning, Davish settled down, allowing harmless singles in the third and fifth innings, and putting down the last eight batters he faced in order. He struck out 10 and the first inning free pass was the only walk he issued. With a six-run lead and Darvish at 99 pitches, the bullpen took over in the eighth. Josh Fields and Luis Avilan each tossed a scoreless inning.

6-9 with the Rangers this year, Darvish looks like a keeper for LA, winning his first start and keeping the Dodgers 14 games in front of the Diamondbacks in the NL West. LA is 77-32, which is easily the best record in the majors.

Game two of the series at Citi Field begins Saturday at 4:05 pm.

Yu Darvish Fans 12 in Texas Victory; Atlanta's Craig Kimbrel Notches 30th Save

Players of the Day for Friday, July 18, 2014

American League

Darvish Ks 12

Swinging some heavy bats, the Toronto Blue Jays just couldn't seem to get around on the Rangers' Yu Darvish, who fanned 12 in 6 2/3 innings for his ninth win against five losses, as Texas topped the Blue Jays, 5-1, in Toronto.

Texas scord two runs in the fifth and put up a three-spot in the seventh as Darvish was cruising through the Toronto lineup, which didn't get to him until the bottom of the seventh, when they scored their only run of the game. The Texas bullpen mopped up, taking the first of the three-game series, but the win won't help the Rangers much, as they trail Oakland in the West by 21 games.

Kimbrel: 30 Saves

Toronto fell into a tie for second with the NY Yankees in the East, four games behind division-leading Baltimore.

National League

Atlanta opened the second half of the season in strong fashion, taking over sole possession of first place in the East with a 6-4 win over the visiting Phillies.

With the Nationals dropping a 4-2 decision to Milwaukee, the Braves have a one-game lead over Washington with the Mets seven back and Miami 8 1/2 out.

Closer Craig Kimbrel earned his 30th save, giving him the major league lead. The Cardinals' Trevor Rosenthal has 29. Fernando Rodney of Seattle leads the AL with 27.

Kimbrel needed just 13 pitches to get through a perfect ninth inning, fanning two of the three batters he faced.

Game two of the three-game series starts Saturday at 7:10 pm ET.

Rangers Win Eighth Straight on Yu Darvish One-Hitter; Dexter Fowler Leads Rockies in 14-2 Win over Padres

Players of the Day for Monday, August 12, 2013

American League

Holding onto their one-game lead in the AL West over Oakland, the Texas Rangers scored all of their runs in the first inning of their 2-1 win over Houston; starting pitcher, Yu Darvish, made sure those runs stood up.

Darvish: 1-hitter

Darvish (12-5), who leads the AL in strikeouts, didn't allow a hit until the eighth inning, when Carlos Corporan took him deep for Houston's only run. Unhittable until then, Darvish fanned 15 Astros, upping his total to 207, well ahead of Seattle's Felix Hernandez, who is second, with 178.

Perfect into the sixth inning, Darvish fanned the side in the first and fifth innings, but gave up a walk to Jonathan Villar with one out in the sixth, after striking out five in a row. Catcher A.J. Pierzynsky was ejected for arguing the call and replaced by Giovani Soto, who finished the game behind the plate.

After Corporan's one-out homer in the eighth, Darvish dispatched the next two batters to end the inning and his night, with a one-hitter, having thrown 115 pitches.

Joe Nathan came on to complete the win, getting the Astros in order in the ninth for his 35th save, tying him with Mariano Rivera for second in the league. Baltimore's Jim Johnson leads, with 39 saves.

Having completed the sweep at Houston, the Rangers return home for eight games, beginning Tuesday with a two-game set with the Brewers. Game one is set for an 8:05 pm EDT start. Texas has won 13 of their last 14 games.

National League

Dexter Fowler

Having one of the bumpiest seasons in their history, the Colorado Rockies certainly aren't short on hitting when they have a pitcher - or a whole staff - on the ropes, and that starts with their leadoff man, Dexter Fowler, who is having a solid season, despite Colorado being out of the NL West and wild card races.

In four at-bats in the Rockies' 14-2 Monday mauling of the Padres, Fowler rapped out three singles, driving in four runs and scoring twice as the Rockies pounded starter Edinson Volquez and a pair of relievers for 17 hits.

The Rockies are 56-64, good for third place in the NL West, where they trail the Dodgers by 13 games. They are nearly as distant in the wild card race, where St. Louis and Cincinnati seem to have a hammer-lock on the two wild card slots.

The win was the fourth straight for Colorado, but they've been uneven since the All Star break going 10-14 over that span.

Game two of their three-game series with the visiting Padres is set for 8:40 pm EDT.

Today's Trivia: The career record for games (or appearances) by a pitcher is 1252. Who holds that mark? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: The AL single-season record for walks allowed is held by Bob Feller, who issued 208 bases on balls in 1938.

Yu Darvish Fans 10, Blanks Mariners in Texas Win; Ike Davis, Lucas Duda Lead Mets over Nationals

Players of the Day for Friday, April 19, 2013

American League

Yu Darvish

Texas picked up a game on AL West leader, Oakland, as the Rangers took the first of a three game series with visiting Seattle by a 7-0 score, behind the brilliant pitching of starter Yu Darvish.

Improving his record to 3-1, Darvish scattered three hits and three walks over seven complete innings, blanking the Mariners while fanning 10.

Texas bats erupted for six runs in the fifth inning to give their ace plenty of breathing room, though Darvish took a seat after seven, having thrown 111 pitches. Robbie Ross and Michael Kirkman completed the mound duty, each allowing one hit in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively.

The series resumes Saturday night, at 8:05 pm EDT in Arlington.

National League

Ike Davis

Lucas Duda

The highly-anticipated pitching duel between Washington Stephen Strasburg and the Mets' Matt Harvey was worth the price of admission to Citi Field, especially for Mets' fans, who saw Strasburg get splattered by the middle of New York's lineup and Harvey work seven strong innings for a 7-0 victory.

Harvey allowed four hits and the lone Washington run while fanning seven while Ike Davis and Lucas Duda each belted a pair of homers to power the Mets' win. Davis hit the first of his two in the sixth and Duda followed later in the inning, both solo shots off Strasburg. In the eighth, the duo did it again, Davis crashing his third of the season - a two run blast - and Duda following up with his second solo shot, his fifth of the season, both bombs coming off reliever Drew Storen.

The result left the two teams 1/2 game apart in the standings. Washington is 9-7, the Mets stand at 8-7, with two more match-ups this weekend. Both are chasing the Braves in the East.

NOTABLE: It's been tough to slow down the Atlanta braves this season, but Pittsburgh's Wandy Rodriquez proved it could be done, blanking the Braves on one hit - a fourth inning single by Jason Heyward - over seven innings, en route to a 7-0 victory. It was just the third time the Braves have suffered defeat. They lead the NL East by four games with a 13-3 record.

Yu Darvish Comes Within One Out of Perfect Game for Rangers; Madison Bumgarner Blanks Dodgers

Players of the Day for Tuesday, March 2, 2013

American League

Darvish: near-perfect

Praise for Texas pitcher Yu Darvish was over the top last season as the 6'5" Japanese phenom made his US debut, putting up a record of 16-9, with a 3.90 ERA over 29 starts.

Darvish, apparently ready to exceed expectations this year, went to the mound on Tuesday for the Rangers and was completely untouchable for 8 2/3 innings, throwing a perfect game until Houston's Marwin Gonzalez slapped a single up the middle - right between Darvish's legs, in fact - breaking up the attempt at perfection.

After throwing 111 pitches, the lone hit prompted a move to the bullpen, Darvish replaced by Michael Kirkman, who was nicked for a single by Jose Altuve before getting JD Martinez looking to end the game.

Darvish struck out a career high 14 in the 7-0 Texas win. Ian Kinsler socked a two-run homer in the seventh to break open the 1-0 game. Elvis Andrus and Lance Berkman each had three hits in four at-bats.

National League

Madison Bumgarner

After Clayton Kershaw threw a four-hit shutout in the season opener for the Dodgers on Monday, it was payback time for the Giants as the West coast rivals played game two of their three-game series in Chavez Ravine.

Madison Bumgarner responded for the world champions, blanking the Dodgers over eight innings before Sergio Romo mopped up with a hitless ninth inning for the 3-0 San Francisco win.

Hitting his marks with outstanding control, Bumgarner threw 76 of 101 pitches for strikes, fanning six. He also aided his cause by driving in a run in the seventh inning on a fielder's choice after singling to left in the fifth.

Bumgarner was 16-11 with a 3.34 ERA in 22 starts for the Giants last season.