Mound Masters: Bedard, Harang, Lohse Dominant

Players of the Day for Sunday, April 12, 2009 American League Acquired from Baltimore following the 2007 season, Seattle's Erik Bedard was part of a 2008 season chock full of disappointment, spending much of the season on the DL, while still going 6-4 with a 3.67 ERA. Now recovered from shoulder issues, the left-hander worked 8 1/3 innings of shutout ball in his second start of the season, helping the punchless Mariners slip past Oakland, 1-0. Bedard, who allowed only 3 hits and one walk, struck out 7 for his first win of 2009. National League Two starters tossed complete-game shutouts on Sunday, so they both get a share of player of the day honors. Kyle Lohse (left) earned his second win of the season with a 3-hit gem against Houston, leading to a 3-0 St. Louis win. Lohse didn't walk anyone and struck out 4 batters. His ERA dropped to 1.13, while the WHIP came down to a minuscule 0.56. In Cincinnati, the Reds scored two first inning runs and starter Aaron Harang (right) made them stand up, blanking the Pirates for the duration and the 2-0 Reds' win. Harang evened his record at 1-1, allowing 3 hits without a walk while fanning 9 Pirates, including Nate McLouth 3 times. The 6'7" San Diegan threw 80 of 108 pitches for strikes, lowered his ERA to 0.64 and is just 8 Ks away from 1000 for his career.

Sabathia Blanks Royals for 7 2/3; Pujols Slam, 3-Run Shot Grounds Astros

Players of the Day for Saturday, April 11, 2009 American League Following an opening day disaster (4.1 innings, 8 hits, 6 runs in a 10-5 loss to Baltimore), C.C. Sabathia quickly dispelled all doubts about his ability, delivering an impressive 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball and a 6-1 Yankee win at Kansas City. Sabathia threw 108 pitches (71 for strikes), allowed six hits while striking out six to even his record at 1-1. Aided by a pair of double plays, Sabathia got into a little bit of trouble in the fourth and fifth innings, but managed to get the third out with runners on base each time. He also plunked a pair of batters, helping to keep those in the batter's box off balance and leery of inside pitches. The Yankees improved to 3-2 and are 1 1/2 games behind Toronto, the AL East leaders. National League There are only a few players in major league baseball who can turn games around with one swing of the bat, but possibly the most polished and deadly is St. Louis' Albert Pujols, who actually did his damage with two swings in Saturday's 11-2 thrashing of Houston. With a grand slam in the 5th and a three-run shot in the 7th, Pujols vaulted into ties for both the NL home run and RBI leads and kept the Cardinals in first place in the NL Central, 1/2 game ahead of the Pirates and Cubs. Pujols (maybe we can just start calling him "Albert") has knocked out 3 homers and has 9 RBI, which tied him with Florida's Hanley Ramirez.

Cabrera Drives in 6 as Tigers Roll; Werth 4-for-4

Players of the Day for Friday, April 10, 2009 American League There's that man again. Detroit's Miguel Cabrera is off to an incredibly hot start. On Friday, he hit his third homer of the season, a 4th inning grand slam, and doubled in a couple more in a 6-run 7th, as the Tigers walloped the Rangers, 15-2. Cabrera also singled, going 3-for-5 with 6 RBI, putting his batting average at .611 and his RBI total at 10. National League The Philadelphia Phillies aren't off to a very good start in defense of their 2008 championship, having won just once in four tries. Last night, ace starter Cole Hamels was roughed up at Colorado, allowing 11 hits and 7 runs in just 3 2/3 innings. On the bright side, Jayson Werth rapped out 4 hits in four at-bats, including a pair of singles, a double and a ninth-inning solo homer run. Werth scored all three of Philadelphia's runs in the 10-3 Colorado rout.

Swisher Leads Yanks to 1st Win; Carpenter Gets 1st Win Since '06

Players of the Day for Thursday, April 9, 2009 American League The Yankees avoided being swept by the Orioles and got their first win of the season Thursday, pounding out 13 hits in an 11-2 win at Baltimore. Three of those hits came off Nick Swisher's bat, as he mashed a two-run homer in the 4th, singled in another in the 6th and, for good measure, doubled in two more in the 9th, giving him 5 RBI while upping his batting average to .667. Swisher, who started his major league career with Oakland, spent a somewhat disappointing season - batting just .219 - with the White Sox in 2008 before coming over to New York. National League The St. Louis Cardinals evened their record at 2-2 with a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh and may have something cooking in the NL Central if Chris Carpenter stays healthy and returns to the form of 2004-2006, when he went a combined 51-18. Carpenter pitched only 21 innings in 2006 and 2007, but had everything working in his seven innings of work Thursday, allowing just one hit while walking 2 and fanning 7. The run allowed was unearned, making Carpenter's first win in two years about as good as anyone could have expected.