Hisashi Iwakuma Throws No-Hitter over O's for Mariners; J.T. Realmuto Slams Red Sox in Marlins Rout

Players of the Day for Wednesday, August 12, 2015

American League

Realmuto: Slam, 6RBI

Iwakuma: No-Hitter

The Orioles are fading fast in the AL East, while the Blue Jays suddenly have erased what once was an 8-game Yankee division lead.

On Wednesday, the Orioles were struck a serious blow as Hisashi Iwakuma tossed a no-hitter in the final game of the series in Seattle, with the Mariners taking a 2-1 series edge with the 3-0 victory.

Iwakuma (4-2) was perfect through the first three innings, but walked Manny Machado leading off the fourth inning to end the perfect game bid. He also issued a pass to Chris Davis with two outs, but got Jimmy Paredes on strikes to end the inning.

Iwakuma didn't allow another baserunner until the eighth inning when Jonathan Schoop led off with a base on balls, but Iwakuma once more was up to the task, getting another strikeout - one of seven on the night - before inducing an inning-ending double play.

The Orioles' ninth was as uneventful as the previous eight innings, the O's going down in order as Iwakuma completed the no-hitter.

The win was the first complete game, shutout and no-hitter for the fourth year pro out of Tokyo, Japan. Iwakuma threw 116 pitches, 77 of them for strikes.

While the loss sent the O's five games back of the Jays in the AL East, the win was perhaps less important to the Mariners, who are 54-61, trailing the Astros by eight games in the West.

National League

J.T. Realmuto led a 17-hit assault on Boston pitching, as the Marlins dumped the Red Sox, 14-6, completing a sweep of the two-game series in Miami.

A rookie with the Marlins, Realmuto stroked a sixth inning grand slam, capping a 10-run outburst by Miami. It was his seventh homer of the season. He also singled and tripled, driving in six runs total, in five at-bats.

In 87 games, Realmuto has 35 RBI and is batting .255.

Lorenzo Cain Leads Royals over Tigers, 6-1; David Peralta's Grand Slam Boosts Diamondbacks

Players of the Day for Tuesday, August 11, 2013

American League

Peralta: Grand Slam, 5RBI

The races in the two of the three AL divisions can't be much tighter, but Kansas City is making a mockery of the AL Central.

Cain: 4-for-4

With both the Angels and Astros losers on Tuesday, the AL West still has Houston on top, but only a game ahead of LA. In the East, the Yankees lost their fourth straight - 5-4 at Cleveland in 16 innings - while the Blue Jays won their ninth straight and have gotten to within 1/2 game of the division leading New Yorkers.

Meanwhile, in Kansas City, the Royals hold a 12-game lead over the Twins after hammering the Tigers in the second of their three-game series, 6-1.

In support of the six-inning, two-hit pitching of Yordano Ventura, Lorenzo Cain went 4-for-4 with a solo homer, a double and a pair of singles, scoring twice and driving in one.

The 29-year-old who broke into the majors in 2010, but is really in just his third year as a full-time player for the Royals, has rapidly become one of the better hitters for average in the league.

After hitting .251 in 2013, Cain upped his average to .301 last season and is currently fifth, at .316 in the league, just .009 behind league-leader, Prince Fielder (.327).

The Royals look for the sweep of the Tigers Wednesday night, when the two teams tangle at 8:10 pm EDT.

National League

The NL West isn't quite over with yet.

Thought the Dodgers have maintained their lead for most of the season, the Giants continue to keep pace, just 2 1/2 games back, but then there's the Arizona Diamondbacks, which may have the best lineup in the division, 6 1/2 back of LA, but winners of three straight after bombing the Phillies, 13-1, Tuesday night.

Jeremy Hellickson may have had his best outing of the season, allowing no earned runs on seven hits while fanning six over eight innings, but his effort was overshadowed by the 15-hit barrage from the Arizona regulars.

Leading the pack was David Peralta, who highlighted an 11-run second inning for the D-Backs with a grand slam, his 11 homer of the season. Perlata, currently at .301, added a run-scoring single in the fifth, finishing 2-for-4 with five ribbies.

The Diamondbacks are lurking in third place in the division and have six games remaining with the Gaints and seven against the Dodgers, all in September.

A win Wednesday in the series finale would give Arizona a sweep of the series. Game time is 12:40 pm PDT.

Johnny Cueto Tames Tigers with 4-Hit Shutout; Ian Desmond Homers Twice as Nationals Down Dodgers

Players of the Day for Monday, August 10, 2015

American League

Cueto: 4-Hit Shutout

Desmond: 2HR, 3RBI

Seeking another arm for the run to the AL Central title, the Kansas City Royals acquired Johnny Cueto from the Reds in one of the most significant deals prior to the July 31 trading deadline.

By all appearances, the Royals got what they wanted, as Cueto - following two starts in which he pitched well but received a no-decision and a loss - threw a four-hit shutout at the fading Tigers, opening a three-game series at Kansas City with a 4-0 win.

Cueto was on his game, working the entire nine innings, throwing 86 of 116 pitches for strikes, allowing no walks while fanning eight Tiger batters for his first win in the American League.

The Royals got to Detroit starter, Matt Boyd, early, scoring three runs in their initial at-bat, giving Cueto a nice cushion and allowing the hurler to settle in and throw strikes.

Kansas City pushed the Tigers back to 13 1/2 games off the pace, behind Minnesota, which trails the Royals by 12 games, the largest lead in any division of MLB.

The Tigers will try to get one back from the Royals in game two, Tuesday night, at 8:10 pm EDT.

National League

While the Mets snapped a two-game losing streak with a 4-2 victory over Colorado to stay in first place in the NL East, the Washington Nationals got a big night from their all-star shortstop, Ian Desmond, to take an 8-3 decision over the Dodgers in LA.

The win was essential to keep pace with the Mets, leaving the Nationals just 1 1/2 games behind the division front-runners.

Desmond smacked a pair of homers and drove in three runs with a two-run blast in the second inning and a solo mash in the eighth. He also singled and scored in the sixth as the Nationals put up a five-spot.

Gio Gonzalez started for Washington and threw eight innings of shutout ball for the Nats. Doug Fister  came on in relief and allowed all three Dodger runs in the ninth, all unearned, ironically, due to an errant throw by Desmond.

The Nationals' victory came in the first game of a three-game series in LA. Game two is Tuesday at 7:10 pm PDT.

Marco Estrada Blanks Yanks, Completing Toronto Sweep; Andrew McCutchen, Francisco Cervelli Power Pirates

Players of the Day for Sunday, August 9, 2015

National League

Francisco Cervelli

Andrew McCutchen

Despite being five games behind the Cardinals in the NL Central, the Pittsburgh Pirates have the second-best record in the league and only St. Louis and Kansas City have better records in the majors.

Pittsburgh dynamism was on display Sunday night, when they banged 16 hits out of their home base, PNC Park, defeating the Dodgers by a 13-6 tally.

As usual, leading the hit parade was Andrew McCutchen, who went 2-for-4 with a home run (17) and four RBI, giving him 74 on the season.

Francisco Cervelli, an off-season addition from the Yankees, contributed a single, triple and home run in four at-bats, driving in three and scoring twice.

The Dodgers held a 5-3 lead until the seventh inning, when the Pirates got into LA's bullpen for nine runs, blowing the game completely wide open and completing the three-game sweep of the Dodgers, who still hold a three-game lead over the Giants in the NL West.

Pittsburgh has won four straight and are 3 1/2 games ahead of the Cubs in the wild card race.

Marco Estrada

The Pirates get a day off Monday prior to opening a critical series in St. Louis on Tuesday. The Dodgers head back to LA where they will host the Nationals starting Monday.

American League

With a 2-0 shutout, the Toronto Blue Jays completed their weekend sweep at Yankee Stadium, and closed to within 1 1/2 games of the first-place Yankees in the AL East.

Josh Donaldson and Jose Bautista each sent out solo home runs, which was enough for starting pitcher, Marco Estrada, who held the Yankees scoreless for 6 1/3 innings before turning the ball over to Toronto's effective bullpen.

In the three-game series, the Yankees managed to score just one run, and were shut out for 25 consecutive innings, after Mark Teixeira's solo homer in the series opener.

Estrada (10-6) allowed three hits, walked three and struck out six. He threw just 89 pitches, 56 of them for strikes.

The Jays have now won eight straight and seem to have complete control over their post-season destiny. Besides closing quickly on the Yankees, their win gave them a 1/2 game lead over the Angels in the wild card race.

The Jays head back to Toronto for a series with the A's on Tuesday, as the Yankees head to Cleveland.