Rodriguez Breaks Saves Mark; Morneau Ties Hamilton; Lincecum a Cy Young Candidate

Players of the Day from Saturday, September 13, 2008 American League Justin Morneau has been on an RBI tear. On Saturday, he ran down Texas slugger Josh Hamilton to tie for the AL RBI lead with a pair of RBI in each of the Twins' wins over Baltimore, topping the Orioles 12-2 in the opener and 12-6 in the nightcap. Morneau has driven in 15 runs in his last 8 games, He and Hamilton have 124 each. Hamilton has no RBI over his last six games. The twin killing of the O's put Minnesota into a tie with the White Sox, who have been rained out for two straight days. They will play a double-dip with the Tigers on Sunday. In the East, the Rays split two with the Yankees, as did Boston with Toronto. The Red Sox trail the Rays by 2 games in the division, but have a 5-game bulge over both Chicago and Minnesota in the wild card. Notes: Of course, out West, the Angels have already sewn up the division, but some unfinished mound work was taken care of as the Angels beat Seattle, 5-2, with Francisco Rodriguez earning his record-breaking 58th save, topping the major league mark of 57, set by Bobby Thigpen of the White Sox in 1990. Rodriguez' appearance wasn't his prettiest. Despite allowing a walk and a hit, K-Rod kept the Mariners off the board, getting two of the three outs in the ninth via strikeouts. National League Tim Lincecum isn't about to concede anything, especially not the Cy Young award. The NL competition is pretty much down to just him and Arizona's Brandon Webb, but Lincecum (17-3) boosted his stock considerably with a 4-hit, 12 strikeout, complete game shutout over the Padres on Saturday, as the Giants won, 7-0, at San Diego. Considering that Lincecum has accounted for 1 of every 5 Giants wins this season and also leads the NL in strikeouts (237) and ERA (2.43), he's going to be considered right up there with Webb, the NL's only 20-game winner. As for the NL West pennant race, the Dodgers continued to separate themselves from the competition, winning their 4th straight and 13th of their last 14 with a 5-1 triumph at Colorado. The Diamondbacks lost to the Reds, 3-2, and now trail by 4 games. The Dodgers' magic number is 11. Notes: In the Central, the Cubs and Astros were shut down again due to Hurricane Ike. At least two of their 3-game series is now scheduled for Sunday and Monday in Milwaukee. The 3rd game will be played at the conclusion of the regular season, if necessary. That game may not be needed, as the Brewers dropped their second straight to the Phillies, 7-2. The Brewers are now 6 games behind the Cubs. In the East, the Mets split with Atlanta, so the Phillies gained to within 2 1/2 games of the lead, but the Phillies are also just 2 games behind Milwaukee in the wild card race. The Phillies and Brewers play a double-header today in Philadelphia.

Wakefield Stymies Jays; Webb Wins 20th

Players of the Day from Friday, September 12, 2008 American League Nothing like to trip to Boston to put an end to a winning streak. That's what the Toronto Blue Jays discovered as Tim Wakefield tossed 8 innings of shutout ball, paving the way for a 7-0 Red Sox win. Wakefield (9-10) didn't walk a batter and struck out four. With the Rays rained out at New York, Boston reduced the Rays' lead to just 2 games. Notes: The White Sox and Twins were also rained out of their games, so Chicago's lead in the Central remains at 1 game. National League Rumors of Brandon Webb's demise were grossly exaggerated. After failing to win his 20th three straight times, Webb was back on his game Friday, shutting out the Reds on 5 hits over 8 innings as Arizona won, 3-2. The rare Diamondback win - their first in their last 7 games - kept Arizona in step with the first-place Dodgers, who have established a 3 1/2 game lead, and beat Colorado Friday, 7-2. Notes: The Cubs, Mets, Brewers and Phillies were all rained out, so there were no changes in the standings. Nate McLouth nearly hit for the cycle in Pittsburgh's 10-2 win over St. Louis. He failed to get a single though he did reach base five times. McLouth hit a two-run homer and three-RBI double and a triple, driving in 5 runs, his career high.

Rodriguez Ties Saves Record; Hot Howard Harms Brewers

Players of the Day from Thursday, September 11, 2008 American League Was there a mound conspiracy in Anaheim which allowed Francisco Rodriguez to tie the major league record with his 57th save? Mere mortals may never know, but the facts are out there. With the Angels safely ahead, 7-0 after six innings and the AL West title having already been clinched the day before, Justin Speier took the mound in the 8th and promptly allowed 3 runs. Scot Shields finished the inning, but allowed a pair of singles in the 9th. On came Rodriguez. It wasn't his prettiest performance, but two hits, a double play and a strikeout later, it was save #57. Bobby Thigpen's 1990 White Sox record was tied as the Angels beat Seattle, 7-4. Notes: With many of the AL teams traveling, the only significant action was in the Central division. The White Sox lost, 6-4, to the red-hot Blue Jays, but Minnesota also fell, 3-2, to the Royals, so the Twins remain 1 game behind Chicago. The Red Sox and Rays were idle. Tampa Bay holds a 2 1/2 game edge in the East. National League Ryan Howard has been on a tear of late, and his hot bat continued to produce as the Phillies took the first game of their critical four game series with the Brewers, 6-3. Howard homered, doubled and drove in 3 runs in 3 at-bats. Over the past five games, Howard has swatted 4 homers and driven in 10 runs. He leads both categories by wide margins with 43 home runs and 129 RBI. His closest pursuers are Adam Dunn and his 36 home runs, and David Wright, who has 109 RBI. MVP, anyone? Notes: Philly's win closed their gap with the Mets to 3 games, but, more importantly, the Phillies now trail the Brewers by the same margin in the wild card race. Milwaukee dropped 5 1/2 games behind the Cubs, who beat St. Louis, 3-2. The leaders n the West were idle. LA leads Arizona by 3 1/2 games.

Angels Clinch West; Pena Homer Tops BoSox; Wright Powers Mets

Players of the Day from Wednesday, September 10, 2008 American League A former Red Sox, Carlos Pena blasted a Mike Timlin offering over the green monster in Fenway, lifting Tampa Bay to a 14-inning, 4-2 win over the Red Sox. Pena's 3-run homer gave the Rays a little more breathing room atop the AL East, as they took 2 of 3 at Boston and re-established a 2 1/2 game lead in the division. While the Red Sox remain in second place, they still have a firm grip on the wild card, holding a 5-game advantage over Minnesota. The Red Sox have one series remaining with Tampa, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. Notes: The LA Angels clinched the AL West title on Wednesday with a 4-2 win over the NY Yankees. The Angels had to wait for the Mariners to drop Texas, 8-7, to begin the celebration, but with 17 games left on the schedule, they had plenty of time on their hands. The Sept. 10 clinching is the earliest ever for the Western division. The previous mark was held by Oakland, which clinched the 1971 title on Sept. 15. Minnesota and Chicago both won, so the White Sox remain 1 game ahead in the Central. Chicago ended Toronto's 10-game win streak, 6-5, while the Twins romped past KC, 7-1. National League David Wright may be on his way to being named the NL MVP, but the competition is tough, especially from his own teammates. Wright hit his 28th home run of the season, doubled, singled twice, scored four times and drove in three runs as the Mets topped Washington, 13-10, and improved their lead in the NL East to 3 1/2 games over the Phillies. Wright is hitting .296 and has 109 RBI, but that's just a little better than the guys who are normally in front of and behind him in the lineup. Carlos Delgado has 104 and Carlos Beltran has 102 RBI. No other team in the majors has three players with 100 or more RBI. In fact, only one team, Houston, has two. Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman have both driven in exactly 100. Notes: The Dodgers keep rolling toward the post-season, winning for the 10th time in their last 11 games - a 7-2 mash of the Padres. The Diamondbacks continue to slump in second place, losing their 6th straight. What makes this LA story so intriguing is that prior to setting off on their current winning way, the Dodgers had lost 8 straight and 10 of 11. With that kind of consistency, even the current 3 1/2 game lead isn't safe in baseball's wackiest division. The Cubs and Brewers both won, so Chicago remains 4 1/2 ahead. Milwaukee has a 4-game edge on the Phillies for the wild card.