Josh Donaldson Saves Braves With 10th-Inning Homer; Cleveland Downs Houston, 10-4, on Roberto Perez HRs

Players of the Day for Wednesday, July 31, 2019

American League

Perez: 2 HR, 4 RBI

After dropping the series opener, 2-0, to Justin Verlander, Cleveland roughed up AL West leader, Houston, with a 10-4 win on Thursday.

Catcher Roberto Perez socked a pair of home runs to lead the Indians. He touched off a three-run bomb in the second inning to get Cleveland on the board and followed up with a solo shot in the sixth.

Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis each added three-run homers as Cleveland pulled away for their 13th win in their last 17 games.

Perez is having a breakout year with the Tribe, batting .242 with 18 home runs and 44 RBI.

With Minnesota winning, the Indians remained three games behind the Twins in the AL Central. Houston continues to lead Oakland by eight games in the West. The A's lost, 4-2 to Milwaukee.

Tied at a game apiece, Cleveland hosts the series finale Thursday, 7:10 pm ET.

NOTES: Houston may have lost a game, but they won in free agency. With the trade deadline hours away, the Astros picked up starting pitcher, Zack Greinke from Arizona. In the most stunning trade of the mid-season, the Astros got Greinke for four minor league players. Houston also grabbed starter Aaron Sanchez and reliever Joe Biagini from Toronto and snagged catcher, Martin Maldonado, from the Cubs.

The 2009 AL Cy Young award winner, Greinke was 10-4, with a 2.90 ERA in 23 starts with Arizona this season.

Donaldson's HR wins game

National League

Josh Donaldson belted a 10th-inning solo home run to dead center, boosting the Atlanta Braves to a 5-4 win at Washington, taking two of three from the Nationals.

Poor relief pitching was once again at issue for Atlanta Wednesday afternoon, as the Braves' bullpen blew a 4-1 lead, allowing Washington to tie things up at 4-4 with a run in the eighth and two in the ninth.

Atlanta was bailed out by a bases-loaded double play with none out in the bottom of the ninth that scored the game-tying run, but also set up reliever Sean Newcomb to strike out Brian Dozier, ending the threat.

Donaldson was 0-for-4 prior to his heroic smash. Josh Tomlin worked into and out of trouble in the bottom of the 10th, allowing a one out single and walk before retiring the final two batters.

Donaldson, acquired from Cleveland in the off-season, has been a steady performer for the Braves, batting .259 with 25 home runs and 66 RBI in 62 games.

The result left Atlanta with a 6 1/2 game lead over the Nationals and a seven game bulge on the Phillies in the NL East.

The Braves return home Thursday to open a four-game series with the Reds. Game one is slated for a 7:20 pm ET start.

Sonny Gray Goes Five In Yankee Win; Paul Goldschmidt, Zack Greinke Lead Diamondbacks

Players of the Day for Monday, March 26, 2018

Gray: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 7K

Grapefruit League

Lest season, the Yankees acquired Sonny Gray from the Oakland A's just prior to the trade deadline, thinking he would fill out the starting rotation and help the Yanks make the playoffs.

New York did reach the playoffs, but not because of Gray, who earned a decision in each of his 11 starts down the stretch, going 4-7 with a 3.72 ERA. Gray was signed to a full contract and will be in the starting rotation, as he's settled down into a nice groove this Spring, winning two games without a loss, including Monday's 5-1 victory over the Braves.

Gray tossed five innings, allowing three hits and one earned run. He struck out seven and did not surrender any walks, lowering his ERA to a very respectable 1.98 over 13 2/3 innings.

Greinke: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER

Gray never trailed, as Didi Gregorius and Giancarlo Stanton each belted two-run homers. Gregorius launched his in the first inning; Stanton hit his third HR of the preseason in the third.

Cactus League

Goldschmidt: 3-4, HR, 2 RBI

Paul Goldschmidt singled, doubled and homered in four at-bats and Zack Greinke allowed one lonely hit over six innings as the Arizona Diamondbacks dumped the Cleveland Indians, 7-0.

Greinke set down the first ten batters he faced before giving up a one-out, fourth-inning single to Rajai Davis, the only hit Cleveland would produce all day. Grienke fanned four, didn't walk a batter and improved to 2-1 for Spring, with a 1.04 ERA.

Last season, Greinke and Goldschmidt led Arizona to the playoffs as a wild card. Greinke was 17-7 with an ERA of 3.20. Goldschmidt batted .297 with 36 home runs and 120 RBI.

The Diamondbacks evened their record at 15-15, trailing Milwaukee by for games with one game left to play before the regular season begins Thursday.

Arizona Sweeps Dodgers As Zack Greinke Wins 16th; Blue Jays Snap O's Win Streak On Kendrys Morales 3 HRs

Players of the Day for Thursday, August 31, 2017

American League

Morales: 4-5, 3 HR, 7 RBI

Baltimore was making some serious noise in the wild card race, winning seven straight prior to welcoming the Toronto Blue Jays into Camden Yards for a four-game series, but the night would not go well for the high-flying Orioles, as the scrappy Blue Jays grounded them, 11-8.

The game was not one for pitchers on either squad as the two teams combined for 27 hits and five home runs, three of them by Kendrys Morales, who also singled in five at-bats, driving in seven runs.

Morales socked a two-run homer in the third inning, singled home another run in the fifth, and finished off the O's with a three-run blast in the sixth and a solo shot in the eighth, completing the scoring for the Blue Jays. Morales has 25 home runs and 70 RBI on the year.

The Orioles scored a pair of runs in they eighth to close the gap, but it was not enough and the streak was over, leaving Baltimore 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees and 2 1/2 back of Minnesota for the two wild card spots. Both the Twins and Yankees were winners on Thursday. The Yankees topped Boston, 6-2, while Minnesota won their fourth straight, beating the White Sox, scoring the winning run when Max Kepler was plunked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth.

Baltimore will try to get back on the winning track when they meet Toronto in game two, Friday at 7:05 pm ET.

National League

Paul Goldschmidt's first inning double plated two runs and that was all Zack Greinke needed to notch his 16th win as the Diamondbacks swept the Dodgers in an 8-1 win.

Greinke: 16-6, 3.08 ERA

Greinke allowed a run in the second inning, but that was all, going six innings to tie Milwaukee's Zach Davies as the only 16-game winners in the major leagues.

While Greinke limited the Dodgers to just four hits, Arizona slammed LA starter Kenta Maeda for seven runs on eight hits over the first three innings. With the huge lead, Greinke sat after the sixth, allowing T.J. McFarland to work a scoreless seventh and eighth innings. Jake Barrett closed out the game and the sweep with a hitless ninth.

The loss was LA's fifth straight, easily their longest losing streak of the season, but that may be the end of it as ace hurler Clayton Kershaw returns Friday night against the San Diego Padres after spending 40 days on the DL with back problems. The Dodgers dropped three straight - though no to the same team - once each in April, May, and June.

Since the All Star break, the Dodgers have only lost two straight once, dropping a pair to Atlanta, July 20 and 21 as they split a four-game series with the Braves.

Greinke fanned six and walked two, increasing his strikeout total to 188, third in the NL behind Max Scherzer (230) and the Mets' Jacob DeGrom (206).

With the sweep, Arizona vastly improved their chances at making the post season, improving their hold on the top wild card position to 3 1/2 games over the Rockies. They still trail the Dodgers by 16 games, so, with fewer than 30 games to play, catching the runaway leaders in the NL West is not realistic.

The Diamondbacks have won seven straight and nine of their last 10. They open a three-game series in Colorado Friday before returning to LA for the final time this season for a three-game series starting on Labor Day.

It will be the last time Arizona plays LA during the regular season. The season series is tied 8-8.

Kevin Gausman Blanks Rangers In 4-0 Baltimore Win; Zack Greinke 13-4 After 7-1 Arizona Win

Players of the Day for Saturday, July 29, 2017

American League

Gausman: 8 2/3, 7 H, 0 ER

While the Yankees and Red Sox were winning to stay 1-2 in the AL East, Kevin Gausman was doing his best to keep the Orioles relevant, scattering seven hits over 8 2/3 innings in a 4-0 Baltimore road victory.

New York won its sixth straight, topping Tampa Bay, 6-5, while Boston outlasted Kansas City, 9-8, ending the Royals nine game winning streak.

The Yankees took over first place in the division on Friday and remain 1/2 game ahead of the Red Sox. Baltimore is a surprising 7 1/2 back, considering how poorly the Orioles have played through much of the past two months. 7-8 since the all-star break, Baltimore is 22-30 for June and July, but still have a chance to catch the leaders with a slew of games still to be played between division opponents.

Gausman improved to 8-7 with his near-complete game, but was pulled with tow down in the ninth as his pitch count soared to 118 while walking two and allowing a base hit in the final inning. Zach Britton came out of the bullpen to nail down the final out, earning his seventh save.

Fanning eight and walking three, Gausman was solid through the middle of the game, allowing a single with two outs in the fifth before setting down ten straight Texas hitters.

Tied a game apiece, the Orioles and Rangers conclude their three-game series Sunday at 3:05 pm ET.

National League

Greinke shuffles Cards

Zack Greinke gave up three hits and a run in the first inning, but settled down after that, leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 7-1 thumping of the Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

After the unsettling opening frame, Grienke set down nine straight Cardinals from the second through fourth innings before allowing one more hit and his only walk of the game in the fifth. He was bailed out of that by a double play and cruised through the sixth and seventh, setting down another six straight before departing with a 4-1 lead.

Jake Barrett and Silvino Bracho each pitched an inning of relief after the Diamondbacks tacked on three more runs in the top of the eighth.

Greinke fanned one and threw 63 of 98 pitches for strikes, improving to 13-4 on the year with a 2.84 ERA. Arizona remained in second place in the NL West, a game ahead of the Rockies but 13 back of the streaking Dodgers, winners of seven straight.

The Cardinals fell 4 1/2 off the NL Central pace, led by the Cubs, who topped Milwaukee, 2-1, in 11 innings, improving their lead over the Brewers to 1 1/2 games.

Arizona has won two of three in St. Louis. The series concludes Sunday, with game time set for 2:15 pm ET.

Lonnie Chisenhall Leads Indians' Comeback Over Texas; Zack Greinke 9-4 On 6-1 Arizona Win Over Phillies

Players of the Day for Monday, June 26, 2017

American League

Cleveland took back first place in the AL Central with a come-form-behind, 15-9 victory over the Texas Rangers.

Chisenhall: .390 in June

Together with Boston's 4-1 win over the Twins, the Indians took a 1/2 game lead in the hotly-contested division.

Winning the opener of their three game series with the visiting Rangers, the Indians fell behind 7-1 and 9-3 before rallying for 12 runs in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings.

In the middle of it all was outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall, a steady performer since returning to the lineup June 6.

Chisenhall was 3-for-5 with two runs and three RBI. after an uneventful single in the second, Chisenhall's bases-loaded infield single in the fifth drove in the first run in the four-run frame. In the sixth, again with the bases chock full of Indians, he singled in a pair of runs, plating Edwin Encarnacion and Carlos Santana, putting the Indians ahead, 10-9. He scored later on a sac fly for a 12-9 Cleveland lead.

June has been Chisenhall's month, batting .390 (23-for-59) with four home runs 18 RBI, and a .438 on base percentage. His solid play has coincided with Cleveland's rise to the top of the division. The Indians are 9-4 since June 15.

Greinke: 9-4, 3.08 ERA

Game two of the series starts at 7:10 pm ET at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.

National League

Zack Grienke worked only five innings in Arizona's 6-1 triumph over the Phillies, but it was enough for the 2009 AL Cy Young award winner to notch his ninth win against four losses.

Throwing 102 pitches, Greinke limited the Phillies to three hits and three walks while fanning five. The lone earned run he allowed came with two outs in the fifth on a Daniel Nava single after Greinke had put two men on base via walks.

Unfazed, Grienke got the final out of the inning and headed for the showers. Arizona's bullpen took care of the final four innings, holding the Phils to just two hits.

Though the outing was the shortest for the season for Greinke, he still managed the win. Three times before he's gone just five frames, resulting in no decision, a loss, and a win.

Greinke is 9-4 with a 3.08 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 102 1/3 innings.

The win came on a night in which both Colorado and the Dodgers suffered losses, LA snapping a 10-game winning streak with a 4-0 loss to the Angels. The Diamondbacks trail the Dodgers by 1 1/2 games in the NL West. Colorado has dropped 4 1/2 off the pace with their sixth straight loss.

Arizona concluded their series with the Phillies, winning three games to one. They remain home to start a three-game series with St. Louis on Tuesday. Game time is 9:40 pm ET.

Adrian Beltre Belts Two HR in Texas Victory; Zach Greinke Tosses Eight Scoreless as Dodgers Win

Players of the Day for Sunday, September 14, 2015

American League

Beltre: 2 HR, 5 RBI

Toronto helped itself to a larger lead in the AL East (now up by 3 1/2), taking three of four from the Yankees in New York over the weekend, but the Yanks rallied to avoid the sweep on Sunday with a 5-0 victory, but, those three prior losses have tightened up the wild card race considerably.

Texas downed Oakland, 12-4, staying 1 1/2 back of the Astros in the West, but now find themselves just four games behind the Yankees in the wild card, and one game ahead of Minnesota for the second wild card slot.

Adrian Beltre belted a pair of home runs in the win - a two-run and a three-run shot - tallying five RBI on the day and giving him 55 on the year. Beltre's sub-par stats may be a sign of him slowing down. He turned 36 in April of this year. His numbers suggest 2015 will be among the worst of his career, though he's been providing big at-bats for the Rangers recently.

Texas took the series against Oakland, two games to one, and open a pivotal, four-game series at home against the Astros starting Monday in Arlington. The series may go a long way toward determining not just the AL West winner, but also the wild card participants.

National League

Greinke: 17-3, 1.61 ERA

Continuing their run to the NL West championship, the LA Dodgers defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks, 4-3, though the final score is hardly indicative of the kind of game pitched by Dodger hurler, Zach Greinke.

Earning his third win in September, Grienke tossed eight innings of shutout ball on three hits, walking two and striking out eight. He needed just 93 pitches (59 thrown for strikes) before turning the ball over the Kenley Jansen for the ninth with a 4-0 lead. Jansen, in a non-save scenario, nearly mucked it up, walking Paul Goldschmidt and allowing a single by David Peralta, before surrendering a two-out home run to Jerrod Saltalamacchia, giving the D'Backs hope. Jansen did finally get the last out, and the win, leaving the Dodgers right where they were when the day started, 7 1/2 games better than the Giants in the division, albeit, with one less game to play.

With 20 games remaining in the regular season, LA is virtually assured of the division crown, and, with the way Greinke has been throwing, only he and Chicago's Jake Arrieta appear as solid candidates for the NL Cy Young award. Grinch leads the majors with a 1.61 ERA.

Greinke has won 12 of his last 14 starts, with one loss and one no-decision, boosting his record for the season to 17-3. Depending on when the Dodgers clinch the pennant and possible playoff scenarios, Greinke could squeeze in four starts, but most likely will get three, and a chance at winning 20 games.

The Dodgers took the series in Arizona, two games to one, and head home to begin a ten-game homestead, beginning with three against the Rockies, starting Monday.

J.P. Arencibia Lifts Rays Past Orioles with 6 RBI; Zack Greinke 15-3 after 2-1 Dodger Victory over Giants

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 1, 2015

American League

Greinke: 15-3, 1.59 ERA

Arencibia: 3-4, 6 RBI

Prior to beginning their series at Baltimore, the Tampa Bay Rays had lost five of six, but managed to take the final game of a three-game set against Kansas City, 3-2, to take over sole possession of third place in the AL East from the flailing Orioles.

Winning the first two games of their series this week (6-3, Monday and 11-2 Tuesday night) they've opened a three-game lead on the O's and are now at .500 (66-66) with a shot at the playoffs.

Tuesday's pounding was led by a player who was in the minors a week ago, but has proven in the past that he can do real damage at the plate, J.P. Arencibia, who singled twice and stroked a two-run homer in the seventh inning, driving in six runs.

By the time Arencibia and the the Rays were done ripping four Baltimore hurlers - they got another run in the 8th off Oliver Drake - the score was 11-0. The Orioles only response was a two-run homer off the bat of Chris Davis in the ninth.

Arencibia has played just six games in the majors this season, all with the Rays. His big production on Tuesday has his average at .385 with seven RBI. The homer was his first.

Tampa will be looking to sweep the Orioles - losers of six straight - at Camden Yards Wednesday night. Game time is 7:05 pm EDT. The Rays are 3 1/2 games behind Texas for the second wild card spot.

National League

The showdown between the two leaders of the NL West - the Giants and Dodgers - has thus far gone the way of the home team, as Zack Greinke out-dueled San Fran's Madison Bumgarner for a 2-1 LA win, their second straight in the three-game series.

Both pitchers were solid. Bumgarner lasted seven innings, allowing two runs on eight hits. That was all the support Greinke needed, shutting out the Giants on two hits over seven innings, until running into trouble in the eighth, allowing three straight singles and the only run the Giants would get on the night.

Luis Avilan came out of the Dodger bullpen to take up the cause and put down the Giants' uprising by getting the final two outs of the inning. Kelley Jansen worked a perfect ninth for his 28th save of the season.

Greinke walked one and struck out five, lowering his major-league-best ERA to a minuscule 1.59. Greinke picked up the win and is now 15-3. Bumgarner (16-7) took the loss. Grinch has lost just once in his last 15 starts, pricking up 11 wins over that span, which dates back to May 22.

Looking for the three-game sweep over their Northern California rivals, the Dodgers host the Giants Wednesday at 7:10 pm PDT.

NOTES: Edwin Encarnacion went 0-for-2 with a walk and a sac fly, ending his career-high hitting streak - and the longest hitting streak in the majors this season - at 26 games in Toronto's 5-3 win over Cleveland.

Matt Shoemaker Solid as Angels Down Tigers, 2-0; Zack Greinke Goes to 14-3 as Dodgers Defeat Reds, 1-0

Players of the Day for Thursday, August 27, 2013

American League

Zack Greinke

Matt Shoemaker

With just their second win in the last six games, the LA Angels are still in the race for a wild card, if not the AL West pennant.

LA got 7 1/3 solid innings from starter, Matt Shoemaker, en route to a 2-0 win at Detroit, taking the series two games to one.

Shoemaker (6-9, 4.48) shut down Detroit on one hit, a third inning single with two outs by Anthony Gose, who was promptly erased by the LA hurler, as Shoemaker picked him off to end the inning.

After getting Victor Martinez to fly out opening the eighth inning, Shoemaker was replaced on the mound by Joe Smith, who finished the inning. Huston Street picked up his 31st save with a perfect ninth, striking out two of the three batters he faced.

National League

In the NL West, the race for the division title is heating up as August comes to a close.

On Thursday, Dodger ace, Zack Greinke, cruised through seven innings of shutout ball to lead LA to its third straight win and his 14th against just three losses in a 1-0 win at Cincinnati.

Greinke, who leads the majors with a ridiculous 1.61 ERA, fanned nine, walked two and allowed four hits while his teammates struggled for offense against Reds' hurler, Anthony DiSciafani, who was impressive, also going seven full innings, allowing six hits and the game's only run, which scored not on a hit, but on a second inning double play ball off the bat of Dodger Yasmani Grandal.

There were no extra base hits in the entire game, as 25,529 watched the Reds lose for the 12th time in 13 outings, falling into sole possession of last place in the NL Central, a miserable 29 1/2 games off the pace.

With the win, the Dodgers maintained their 2 1/2 game lead over the Giants, who got another strong performance from Madison Bumgarner, who became the league's second 16-game winner, joining the Cubs' Jake Arrieta. Bumgarner (16-6) gave up two hits and one earned run over six innings, fanning 12, as the Giants knocked off the Cubs, 9-1, taking the series two games to one.

The Dodgers head back to LA on Friday to meet the Cobs for a three-game weekend series, then host the Giants for three starting Monday, August 31.

Zack Greinke, Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez Lead Players of the Week for April 6-12

Players of the Week for April 6-12, 2015

American League

Cabrera: .520 BA

AL Infielder: Getting off to a blazing start, the Detroit Tigers swept the Indians (at Cleveland) and Twins (in Detroit) for a 6-0 record and a tie for first place with the equally-hot Kansas City Royals.

Mashing away, and, putting a significant scare into pitchers everywhere, Miguel Cabrera set out on an MVP pace with a .520 batting average (13-for-25), including two doubles, two homers and eight RBI, which is tied for the league lead with KC's Salvador Perez.

Cabrera didn't start out the season with his best. Against the Twins, he was just 2-for-11 with two RBI, but in the three-game sweep of Cleveland, he went 11-for-14. In Sunday's 8-5 finale, he was 4-for-4 with two homers, four RBI, and three runs.

Ramirez: Red Sox
LF is red-hot.

AL Outfielder: Adding Hanley Ramirez to their roster has already paid off for the Red Sox, as the shortstop-turned-left fielder turned in an awesome week as the Red Sox went 4-2 on the road with a pair of wins in Philadelphia and two more against the Yankees in the Bronx.

Ramirez played in five of those games, sitting out Saturday's game with the Yankees, but, he made is presence felt in the series final (won by the Yanks, 14-4) with his third home run of the season, and a sac fly, good for two RBI.

While Ramirez hasn't set foot yet in Fenway Park, Boston fans were appreciative from day one. Ramirez opened the season with a two HR game in Boston's 8-0 rout of the Phillies. Ramirez went 2-for-4 and drove in five runs.

For the week, he batted .320, with three homers and seven RBI.

Ventura: 2-0

AL Starting Pitcher: With his team scoring runs in bunches, Yordano Ventura didn't have to be very sharp, but he managed to rack up a pair of wins, the first in a 10-1 victory over the White Sox on opening day, and, the latest, a 9-2 romp over the Angels on Sunday afternoon.

The first outing was better than the second, though the starter was solid in both. In the opener, he went six innings, allowing four hits and one earned run, fanning two. His second start featured seven strikeouts, and two earned runs on four hits over 5 2/3 innings. A bit troubling is Ventura's giving up a home run in each of his starts.

Holland: 3 saves

AL Relief Pitcher: When your team goes 6-0 for any week, chances are your closer is going to get a few save chances.

Such was the case for KC's Greg Holland, who managed to finish three of Kansas City's six wins, working the ninth in each of their Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday victories. Holland hasn't allowed a hit (or a walk) in three innings of work thus far into the season, and he's fanned three, two of them in Thursday's 4-1 win over the White Sox.

Holland had 47 saves in 2013 and 46 last season, finishing second in saves both seasons.


National League

Gonzalez: 5 HR

NL Infielder: The Dodgers made some moves in the off-season, but one constant is going to be Adrian Gonzalez at first base, and for good reason. Gonzalez started out his 2015 campaign in style, bashing home runs in his first two games before belting three of them and driving in five runs in the Dodgers' 7-4 win over the Padres.

After his blazing 10-for-13 start, Gonzalez cooled off into the weekend, but still managed to go 4-for-10 in three games at Arizona, laving his batting average, as of Sunday night, at a blistering .609. His five homers lead the majors, but he's driven in just seven runs, though that is good enough to tie hime for fourth place with Philly's Jimmy Rollins.

Dickerson: 9 RBI

NL Outfielder: Prior to dropping Saturday and Sunday games to the Cubs, the Rockies were off to a 4-0 start, largely the result of the play of left fielder Corey Dickerson, who started the season with a bang, belting a three-run homer and driving in four runs in Colorado's 10-0 smashing of the Brewers on opening day in Milwaukee.

After that, Dickerson hit safely in each of his next five games, added another homer and drove in five more runs. By week's end, Dickerson was batting .417, and had nine RBI, good enough for the league lead over Cincinnati's Joey Votto and Todd Frazier, each with eight.

Greinke: 0.69 ERA

NL Starting Pitcher: - Zack Greinke ought to be 2-0, but he's 1-0, since, in his first start of the season on April 7, his teammates failed to score early or often, despite Grienke's six innings of 2-hit ball. The starter gave up a run in that 7-3 loss to the Padres, but came back undaunted on Sunday at Arizona, tossing seven shutout innings on five hits as the Dodgers whipped the Diamondbacks, 7-4.

Grilli: 3 saves

Striking out seven without allowing a walk in his second outing, Greinke upped his seasonal total to 11 Ks and is at his best with a 0.69 ERA and 0.62 WHIP.


NL Relief Pitcher: Atlanta's Jason Grilli looks like a keeper as the Braves' closer. Grilli got three chances and converted them all in a pair of wins over the Marlins and a Friday night, 5-3 win over the Mets.

Grilli, who spent last season split between Pittsburgh and the LA Angels, appears fit and ready for the Braves. He fanned four in his three innings of work, didn't give up a hit and issued just one walk.

The Braves are 5-1 as of Sunday night and have a two-game lead over the Mets and Phillies in the NL East.

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Adam Wainwright Tunes Up in Cardinals' Win over Braves; Zack Greinke, Adrian Gonzalez Lead Dodgers in Cactus League

Players of the Day for Saturday, March 21, 2015

Grapefruit League

Wainwright: 4IP 0R

There's a reason Cardinals' ace starter Adam Wainwright has won numerous awards and his team has been in the playoffs and won the World Series during his tenure: he's "money."

Wainwright continued tuning up for the regular season with four scoreless innings in the Cards' 1-0 win over the Braves. Though he did not get the win, and, maybe wasn't exactly as sharp as he'd like to be at this point - allowing four hits and a walk - Wainwright threw through the situations in which pitchers are paid to perform: with men on base, and came up aces. Wainwright fanned three.

Greinke: 6Ks

The Braves got just one more hit off three St. Louis relievers, and the Cardinals scored in the bottom of the ninth for the win, when Dean Anna drove in pinch-runner Charlie Tilson with none out, putting them at 8-7 and dropping the raves to 7-12 in Grapefruit League play. Kevin Siegrist pitched the ninth inning and received the win.

Cactus League

Gonzalez: 2 HR

The Dodgers have surged to the top echelon of the Cactus League standings and Saturday's 11-3 win over the Rangers shows they're just about ready for opening day.

Zack Greinke proved he will be an integral part of the Dodger pitching rotation, going four solid innings, allowing no runs on three hits and a walk, striking out six.

Adian Gonzalez had his sweet swing in a groove, belting out a pair of solo homers helping LA to an early lead.

Sure to be a big provider of runs for the Dodgers this year, Gonzalez comes off a 2104 campaign in which he knocked out 27 homers (6th in NL) and drove in 116 runs, the top-run-producer in the National League.

Jered Weaver, Mike Trout Help Angels Reduce Magic Number to 4; Matt Kemp, Hanley Ramirez, Zack Greinke Lead Dodgers Past Giants, 17-0

Players of the Day for Saturday, September 13, 2014

American League

Mike Trout

Jered Weaver

With 14 games left to play in their regular season, the LA Angels have the best record in the majors and are looking squarely at the AL West title and home field throughout their stay in the playoffs.

In Saturday's 5-2 win over Houston, two of the players most responsible for the success of the Angels - and their current 10-game winning streak - provided the keys to victory.

Starter Jered Weaver became the AL's first 17-game winner, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings with 12 strikeouts and one walk, while Mike Trout belted a pair of homers and a double in three at-bats, and drove in two runs, boosting his RBI total to 107, which leads the majors. Trout's two solo homers gave him 34 on the year, tying him for third in the AL with Chicago's Jose Abreu.

The win pushed the Angels' magic number for clinching the division down to four, their lead over the A's remaining at 11 games, as Oakland dropped Seattle 3-2 in 10 innings.

Zack Greinke

The A's remain in line for the first wild card spot, though their lead over Kansas City is just 1/2 game. Seattle fell to 1 1/2 off the pace.

Seeking a sweep of the three-game series and their 11th straight win, the Angels host the Astros, Sunday at 3:35 pm EDT.

National League

Matt Kemp

After being embarrassed, 9-0, in Friday's opener of the three game series in San Francisco, the LA Dodgers calmly slipped the shoe onto the other foot and mashed out 24 hits in a 17-0 slaughter of the Giants on Saturday, re-establishing a two-game lead in the division over their northern California rivals.

Hanley Ramirez

Matt Kemp was 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a single, driving in three runs in the rout. Hanley Ramirez went 4-for-5 - a double and three singles - drove in a pair of runs and scored one.

Starting pitcher, Zack Grienke, worked six innings of scoreless ball, allowing four hits without a walk, fanning five, and also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a double, homer, two RBI and two runs.

To say the least, the game was out of hand by the middle of the second inning, when the Dodgers had alredy put eight runs on the scoreboard. Giants' starter, Tim Hudson, worked into the second inning but didn't record an out in that frame, allowing six runs on eight hits.

While the loss was a setback for the Giants in the division race, they managed to keep a four-game edge in the wild card, as Pittsburgh, Milwaukee and Atlanta all lost.

Brandon Morrow Tosses Two-Hitter at White Sox as AL East Race Tightens; Zach Greinke Fans 12 in 8-0 Brewer Win

Players of the Day for Wednesday, June 6, 2012

American League

Morrow: 2-hit shutout

The Toronto Blue Jays are in fourth place in the AL East, but they are only two games back of Baltimore, after Jose Bautista and Rajai Davis each belted home runs in support of Brandon Morrow's two-hit shutout of the White Sox for a 4-0 victory.

Morrow (7-3), Toronto's most effective pitcher this season, threw 78 of 119 pitches for strikes, walked two (both harmlessly in the ninth) and struck out five, at one point retiring 14 straight White Sox would-be hitters.

It was Morrow's third complete game shutout of the season. In six seasons, Morrow had thrown only one prior to this year, that in 2010.

Bautista's 15th home run of the season increased the Toronto lead to 2-0 in the sixth inning, after Colby Rasmus singled home Rajai Davis with the first Blue Jay run, in the fifth. Davis' ninth inning, two-run shot provided a larger cushion, even through Morrow didn't need one.

The Jays trail Baltimore by two games in the division, with the Yankees 1/2 game out, after knocking off the Rays, 4-1, their second straight win over Tampa Bay. The O's topped Boston, 2-1, for their seventh straight win at Fenway Park. Boston, at the bottom of the standings, is four games back. At 28-28, they are the only AL East squad not over .500.


National League

Signs of life are stirring in Milwaukee after Zack Greinke shut down the Cubs on two hits over seven innings, in an 8-0 Milwaukee triumph, evening the three-game series at one apiece. The Cubs took the opener, 10-0 on Tuesday.

Greinke: W, 12 Ks

Milwaukee scored four times in the fourth, adding a single run in the fifth and capped off their scoring on Taylor Green's three-run, pinch hit homer in the bottom of the eighth.

By then, Greinke (7-2) had already turned over the ball to the bullpen, which closed out the Cubs on one hit over the eighth and ninth innings.

Greinke's stuff was lively, as he walked two, but fanned 12, throwing 109 pitches in his seven solid innings, 68 of them for strikes. Greinke's strikeout total reached 81 on the year, one behind league leader Gio Gonzlaez of Washington.

The Brewers remained in fourth place 6 1/2 behind the Central's front-running Reds, as Cincinnati took down second place Pittsburgh, 5-4 and St. Louis took care of Houston, 4-3. The stumbling Cardinals, who lost three-of four to the Mets over the weekend and Monday, are tied with the Pirates, both teams three games out.

Milwaukee, at 25-31, still needs to put together a consistent run to get over .500 and challenge the Reds in the division. They play the Cubs in the series' rubber game at 2:10 pm EDT Thursday afternoon.

Zack Greinke, Travis Ishikawa Lead Brewers Past Mets; AJ Pierzynski Goes 5-for-5 in Loss to Tigers

Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 15, 2012

American League

The AL Central has turned into quite the dogfight, with all teams, except the underperforming Twins, within 4 1/2 games of Cleveland, which leads by two games over the Tigers.

While the Indians were shutting out the Twins, 5-0, on Tuesday, the Tigers and White Sox were doing their best to keep fans interested, banging out a combined 27 hits in a 10-8 Detroit triumph.

AJ Pierzynski

The Tigers rocked starter Jake Peavy for nine hits and six runs as they rebounded from a 6-0 deficit with an eight run sixth inning, hitting three homers in the frame, two off Peavy who retired only one batter in the inning before heading to the clubhouse.

While the Tigers won the game and evened the two game series, White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski was the hitting star of the game, going 5-for-5 with a double, four singles, three RBI and two runs.

At 35, Pierzynski has put together an solid career spanning 15 seasons, including a .285 batting average.

The White Sox head to LA for a two-game set with the Angels starting Wednesday, while the Tigers host the Twins, who have the worst record in the majors, at 10-26, for a pair of games.


National League

Zack Greinke

Milwaukee earned a split in their two-game series at Citi Field with an 8-0 romp over the Mets, as Zack Grienke tossed seven shutout innings and Travis Ishikawa delivered five RBI from the bottom of the lineup.

Travis Ishikawa

Greinke allowed five hits, didn't walk a batter and struck out seven as he improved to 4-1 on the season. while he was mowing down the Mets - at one point retiring eight in a row - Ishikawa was having a blast playing fisrt base and right field, going 3-for-4 out of the seven hole with a single and a pair of home runs - both of Mets' starter, Dylan Gee.

Not known for his power stroke, Ishikawa socked a pair of bombs to center field - a solo shot in the fifth and a three-run bomb in the sixth that essentially put the game away.

The win left the Brewers in fourth place in the Central, five ames back of the Cardinals, while the Mets remained in third place in the East, 2 1/2 games behind the Braves, winners of four of their last five.

Greinke Slows Red Sox; Furcal Leads Dodgers Closer to Division Crown

Players of the Day for Tuesday, September 22, 2009 American League Whatever the reason, the Kansas City Royals have become one of the fiercest teams in the American League of late. Since September 7, the perennial cellar-dwellers have played like a contender fighting for a playoff spot, compiling a 12-3 record, including taking 5 of 6 from Detroit, 2 of 3 from Cleveland and Chicago and now two straight over the Red Sox. After outslugging Boston, 12-9, on Monday, the Royals sent their ace, Zack Greinke, to the mound in search of his 15th win. After the Royals put a five-spot on Red Sox starter Paul Byrd in the first inning, Greinke shifted to cruise control, limiting the Red Sox to just 2 hits and no earned runs over 6 innings in a 5-1 Royals triumph. Barely breaking a sweat, Greinke threw just 91 pitches, walking 3 while fanning 5. At 15-8, Greinke is one of the favorites for the Cy Young award. His 2.08 ERA is tops in the majors, while his 2.06 WHIP leads starting pitchers in the AL. His 229 strikeouts are second in the AL behind Justin Verlander (245) and he's tied for 4th in the league in innings pitched at 216 1/3. Besides those solid numbers, Greinke has allowed just one earned run over his past 35 innings. While the Red Sox are trying to clinch the wild card spot in the playoffs, the Royals have become a royal pain. Boston has two more games in KC before heading to New York for a three-game series with the Yankees. National League The LA Dodgers are so close to clinhing the NL West they can taste it. Following their 14-2 pasting of the Nationals, the Dodgers maintained their 5-game edge over second-place Colorado, with just 11 games left on the schedule. Their magic number is down to 7, meaning that the Dodgers will likely clinch the division before meeting Colorado for three games to end the regular season on October 2, 3 and 4. Leading the charge on Tuesday was Rafael Furcal, who delivered a 4-for-5 effort from his leadoff position in the lineup, driving in 4 runs and scoring twice. Furcal is having a hot September, riding a six-game hitting streak and having a hit in 16 of 18 games thus far in the month. NOTES: In the only divisional race worth mentioning, the Twins and Tigers each won on Tuesday, keeping the Tiger 2 1/2 games ahead of Minnesota for the AL Central title. The Cardinals won again; their magic number is down to just 2, but despite the potential for the Cards to clinch early, there's still going to be a battle for home field in the National League. Currently, the Cardinals are third (89-63), behind the Phillies (88-62) and Dodgers (91-60). The Yankees are nearly assured of winning the AL East and home field advantage throughout the playoffs after they dropped the Angels 6-5. At 96-56, the Yankees look like the only team in the majors that will achieve 100 wins this season. Their win on Tuesday assured them of a playoff spot, the first team in the majors to earn that distinction. Alex Rodriquez belted a 2-run homer and his 9th inning sac fly proved to be the game-winner. With 89 RBI in the books, A-Rod needs to keep producing in order to keep his string of 100+ RBI seasons intact, a feat the slugger has accomplished the last 11 years in a row. With just 10 games left, Rodriguez will have to be at his best without much rest.

Greinke 1-Hitter a Gem; Renteria Sends Giants Soaring with Slam

Players of the Day for Sunday, August 30, 2009 American League With most of the attention focused on divisional or wild card races, there wasn't much excitement generated by a matchup between the Royals and the Mariners. Kansas City fell into their usual position in last place months ago and Seattle is struggled to remain relevant. Little did the 30,286 fans in attendance realize that they were about to witness one of the outstanding pitching performances of the season by Royals' ace, Zack Greinke. In the bottom of the second, Greinke issued a walk and then gave up a single, but those were to be the last baserunners Seattle would have all day as the 26-year-old native Floridian set down the final 22 batters in order. The Royals scored all of their runs in the 5th inning for the 3-0 victory. Greinke, who struck out 15 in his prior start - a 6-2 win over Cleveland - fanned five and walked one, improving his record to 13-8, matching his carrer-high for wins in a season, set last year when he went 13-10. His record, considering that he is playing for a last-place team, plus his 2.32 ERA - tops in the AL - make his part of any Cy Young award discussion. National League When the Rockies and Giants hooked up Sunday at AT&T Park in San Francisco, all that mattered was the lead in the wild card standings. Heading into the final month of the season, the Giants and Rockies both wish to lay claim to a post-season berth. Matt Cain started for the Giants, but clearly did not have his best stuff, as, even though he struck out 8, he was dinged for 8 hits, 2 walks and 4 earned runs. Thus, heading into the bottom of the 7th, the Giants found themselves on the wrong end of a 5-2 score, but that all changed, as did the Giants' luck. Jose Uribe walked and went to second on Aaron Rowand's single. When Fred Lewis was hit by a pitch, it loaded the bases for Edgar Renteria with one out. What happened next may be the single most memorable moment of the season. Renteria drove a Rafael Betancourt offering high and deep over the left field wall, giving the Giants their first lead of the game at 6-5. Adding three more in the 8th, San Francisco went on to the 9-5 win, sweeping the three-game series and tying for the wild card lead with the Rockies. Renteria also singled and doubled in his 5 at-bats. His 5 RBI tied has career best. Both teams trail the Dodgers by 6 games in the NL West, though winning the division seems like an afterthought the way these two are pursuing the wild card. They've separated themselves from the rest of the contenders, leading Florida and Atlanta by 3 1/2 and the Cubs by 5 1/2. NOTES: In the NL, the rich got richer on Sunday, as all three division leaders - Philly, St. Louis and the Dodgers - all won while their closest pursuers were losing. For the Phillies, they were the ones beating back Atlanta, opening up an 8-game lead over the Braves and marlins in the East. The Dodgers won their second straight as the Rockies were losing their 5th in a row, and the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright became the first 16-game winner in the majors with a gutsy, 2-1 win over Washington. The Dodgers lead is now 6, while the Cardinals have the largest advantage in the majors, at 10 games. Quietly, the Twins have snuck into second place in the AL Central as the White Sox have lost 3 straight and 7 of their last 8. Minnesota is running out of time, however, as the Tigers are 4 1/2 ahead in the division. New York continues to cling to a 6-game lead in the East, while the Angels hold a 5-game bulge over Texas in the West. Boston has won three straight to command a 3 1/2 game lead in the widl card over the Rangers, and 5 1/2 better than the Rays.

Greinke Gets 8th Win; Lincecum Shuts Out Braves Over 8

Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 26, 2009 American League Kansas City clawed back into second place in the AL Central, 3 games behind the Detroit Tigers, as Zack Greinke improved his record to 8-1, taming the Tigers in a 6-1 Royals win. After allowing a first-inning run on a Placido Polanco double and a Magglio Ordonez run-scoring single, Greinke toyed with the Tigers the rest of the way, hurling his 5th complete game of the season. Over the nine innings, the Royals' rightie allowed six hits while striking out eight. He threw 116 pitches, of which 79 went for strikes and did not issue any walks. Greinke's league-leading ERA stands at 0.84, slightly better than his astounding WHIP of 0.88. National League Tim Lincecum got his first decision in three weeks, shutting out the Atlanta Braves for 8 innings as the Giants beat Atlanta, 4-0, taking the first two games of the series and moving to within one game of .500 at 22-23. Lincecum (4-1) struck out 8, walked two and allowed just 5 hits before giving way to reliever Bob Howry, who pitched a perfect ninth inning. The San Fran ace also walked and scored a run in the Giants' second inning, the only inning in which any runs were produced. In just his third year in the majors, Lincecum, who turns 25 on June 15, has become one of the best pitchers in either league, having compiled a record of 29-11 during his short stay. This season, he's sporting a 3.03 ERA and a WHIP of 1.19. He's struck out 84 batters in 65 innings.

Greinke, Butler Lead Royals; Volquez Paces NL Whitewash Trio

Players of the Day for Wednesday, April 29, 2009 American League There haven't been many household names coming out of Kansas City lately, but here are a couple you may want to put on a short list. Zack Greinke (left) earned his major league best 5th win - without a loss - going 7 strong innings in KC's 11-3 win over Toronto. First baseman Billy Butler (right) did a good deal of the damage at the plate, going 4-for-5 with a single, double and pair of homers, 4 RBI and 4 runs scored. Greinke allowed 5 hits and two earned run in his outing, fanning 8. He leads the majors in ERA (0.50), wins (5) and is tied with Mets' starter Johan Santana in strikeouts with 44. The Royals remain tied for first place in the AL Central with Detroit and the White Sox at 11-10. National League Three teams were held scoreless in the NL on Wednesday, the result of some exceptional mound work around the league. In Cincinnati, Edinson Volquez (right) allowed just one hit and one walk over 8 innings, striking out 6, as the Reds topped Houston, 3-0. Volquez improved to 3-2. The Cubs clobbered Arizona, 10-0, as Doug Davis (2-3) allowed 2 hits and 3 walks over 7 innings, and Milwaukee's Yovani Gallardo (3-1) allowed two hits and a walk while striking out 11 in Milwaukee's 1-0 win over Pittsburgh.

Greinke Blanks Yanks; Spilborghs, Rockies Bust Braves

Players of the Day for Wednesday, April 9, 2008 American League Yankees haters rejoice! The Kansas City Royals have taken two straight from the Bombers, including last night's 4-0 whitewash thanks to the super performance of starter Zack Greinke who scattered six hits and a pair of walks over 8 innings to pick up his second win of the season. Greinke, the Royals true staff ace, is sporting some impressive numbers, including a 0.60 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. In 15 innings, he's allowed just 12 hits and one run, walking 4 and fanning 5. Notes: Jason Kubel went 2-4 with a grand slam a single and a sac fly, amassing 6 RBI in Minnesota's 12-5 win at Chicago. National League The Colorado Rockies got their offense going, maybe because they inserted Ryan Spilborghs into the #5 slot behind Matt Holiday. The three Atlanta pitchers who faced the fill-in outfielder didn't find much success as Spilborghs went 3-for-5, scored three times and drove in five runs, three of which came on an 8th inning blast into the center field seats which sealed the Rockies' 12-6 win over Atlanta. Notes: Jonathan Sanchez, a middle reliever turned starter in 2008, pitched a six-inning gem, allowing just 3 hits while striking out 10 Padres, but failed to pick up his fist win of the season as the Giants waited until the bottom of the ninth to score the game's only run, knocking of the padres for the second straight day, 1-0.