Shields 1-Hits Angels; Astros' Berkman On a Tear

Players of the Day from Friday, May 9, 2008 American League As pitcher's duels go, Friday's battle between the Angels' Jon Garland and Tampa Bays' James Shields was as good as it gets. Garland allowed just four hits over eight innings while Shields was twirling a 1-hitter, finishing up by retiring the final sixteen straight batters. Neither had allowed a run when the Rays went to the plate in the bottom of the ninth. Garland had thrown 114 pitches and was replaced by reliever Justin Speier, who promptly allowed a single by B.J. Upton. After Carlos Pena advanced Upton to second with a ground out, Evan Longoria ended the game with a blast into the left field stands for a 2-0 Tampa Bay win. Shields (4-2) had to throw just 92 pitches for the complete game shutout, his second this season. The only hit was a harmless third-inning single by Brandon Wood. Apparently more comfortable at home, Shields shut out the Red Sox in his last home appearance on April 27, giving up just two hits and one walk. On Friday, Shields didn't walk a batter and struck out 8. In his last two home starts, his WHIP is a ridiculous 0.22. Notes: While the Rays were winning in the bottom of the 9th, the Red Sox were losing, as Minnesota's Mike Lamb singled home a pair with two outs in the frame against closer Jonathan Papelbon for a 7-6 Twins' win. Tampa is just 2 1/2 back of Boston in the AL East. Minnesota stayed a game better than the White Sox in the Central while the A's also lost and stayed tied for first with the Angels in the West. National League Looking for an MVP candidate? Check out the Astros' Lance Berkman, who is having a Triple Crown-like season. On Friday, Berkman went 3-for-4, with his 14th double and 12th home run (2nd in the NL) of the season, scored twice and drove in two, giving him a league-leading 35 RBI. The Astros downed the Dodgers, 7-1, with Berkman, as he has all season, leading the way. While the Astros have won 6 of their last 7 and are just 2 1/2 behind the Cardinals in the Central, Berkman has been a beast at the plate. He's hit safely in 8 straight, expanding his batting average from .299 to .380 (2nd in the NL) with 4 homers and 12 RBI over that span. Nearly impossible to get out, he's had 18 hits in his last 24 at bats (.750). That's just plain smokin'! Notes: The Braves' win streak was snapped at six with a 3-2 loss at Pittsburgh, but despite their efforts, they're still in 4th place, 2 1/2 back in the East because the division-leading Marlins have won five in a row. On the other side of the ledger, the Giants and Padres have both dropped five straight are are 9 and 11 games out of the race in the West. The Padres have been particularly awful. After a 4-4 start, they've gone 7-21, including 1-7 thus far in May.

Webb Goes to 8-0; Navarro Slams Jays in 13th

Players of the Day from Thursday, May 8, 2008 American League Tampa Bay catcher Dioner Navarro missed much of April due to injury, but he's making up for lost time in a hurry. On Thursday night, he put the Blue Jays away with a 13th inning grand slam, as the Rays topped Toronto, 8-3.

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The homer was Navarro's first of the season, and it was his third hit of the night. He went 3-for-6, including a double, scored twice and drove in four, improving his batting average to .368. He's hit safely in 12 of the 15 games he's started this season. The win kept the Rays in second place, 3 1/2 behind the Red Sox. Notes: Stride for stride in the West. The A's and Angels are still locked into an early-season death grind for the top spot in the AL West. Neither team saw action on Thursday, so they remain tied at 22-14. The Angels travel to Tampa for a 3-game series with the Rays, while the A's start a three-game set in Texas tonight. National League For Brandon Webb, the season could not have started any better. Webb improved to a major league-best 8-0 last night, pitching his first complete game of the season, as Arizona dumped Philadelphia, 8-3, increasing their own lead in the NL West over the Dodgers to 3 1/2 games while dropping the Phillies out of a first place tie with the Marlins in the East. The two teams spilt their 4-game series, 2-2. Webb had his usual assortment of unhittable stuff, allowing 6 hits and two earned runs. It was the first time this season he didn't walk a batter. Additionally, he was keeping the ball well down in the strike zone, which accounted for his getting 18 outs on grounders. In his sixth full season, Webb has never won 20 games, though he's been on the verge of it. In 2006 he went 16-8 and in 2007 he compiled an 18-10 record. Notes: The Diamondbacks are scoring runs when Webb is on the mound. They've put up 48 in his 8 starts - 6 per game on average - slightly better than their total average of 5.43. They've scored 18 runs in his last two outings.

Votto's 3 HRs Powers Reds; Twins' Gomez Hits for Cycle

Players of the Day from Wednesday, May 7, 2008 American League Carlos Gomez knew right away it was going to be a good night. The Twins' leadoff hitter homered off Chicago starter Mark Buehrle to open the game, then stroked an RBI triple in the 5th and doubled home a run in the 6th. His single in to lead off the ninth inning completed one of baseball's rarities - hitting for the cycle. Gomez scored twice and drove in three runs as the Twins humbled the White Sox, 13-1 Wednesday night. Gomez was acquired by the Twins from the Mets in the off-season, as part of the deal that sent Johan Santana to New York. Getting most of the starts in center field, Gomez is batting .282 with 19 runs scored and 11 RBI. The home run last night was only his second of the season. Notes: The Twins continue to lead the Central, though now it's Cleveland in second place, 1 1/2 back. Minnesota is the only team in the division with a winning record (17-15). National League Cincinnati is struggling already, but on Wednesday, rookie first basemanJoey Votto provided some hope for the future, blasting three home runs in the Reds' 9-0 win over the Chicago Cubs. Votto, who played in 24 games last season for the Reds, hit solo shots in the 2nd and 5th innings, and followed up with a thundering 2-run blast in the 6th. The homers came off of three different Chicago pitchers and gave Votto seven for the year. The other reason for Reds' optimism was on the mound, in the form of rookie starter Edinson Volquez, who worked seven shutout innings, allowing 4 hits and 6 walks while striking out 10. The 10 Ks matched a season high for Volquez, who improved to 5-1 with a 1.06 ERA. Notes: Rumors surrounding Ken Griffey Jr. being traded to Seattle continue to circulate, especially after USA Today's story on Wednesday quoted Griffey as saying he would be happy to return to his first major league team. Junior is sitting just three homers shy of the 600 mark, so the Reds are reluctant to ship him off just now, but there's no doubt he'd like to play on a contending team, having never been to a World Series. The Mariners, however, have fallen 7 1/2 games off the pace in the AL West, which is almost as badly as the Reds are doing, 8 behind St. Louis in the NL Central.

Great Scott! Olsen Sets Down Brewers; Wakefield Knuckles Under Tigers

Players of the Day from Tuesday, May 7, 2008 American League The old knuckler was working last night for Tim Wakefield. Boston's steady starter baffled Detroit hitters on 2 hits over 8 innings as the Red Sox tamed the Tigers, 5-0. Wakefield whiffed six, including Magglio Ordonez and Gary Sheffield twice each. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez slammed back-to-back homers in the 7th inning. For Ramirez, it was career #497, as his countdown to 500 continues. The homer was Ramirez' first since April 19, a span of 15 games. Wakefield threw 98 pitches, 65 for strikes. Notes: The win was the 5th straight for the Red Sox and Tigers' 5th straight loss as Detroit remains mired in last place in the AL Central. In the West, the Angels and A's are locked in. LA, leading the A's by a game, has won 4 in a row, the A's 3 straight. National League The Florida Marlins are playing better than anyone expected, and regained a first place tie in the East last night as Scott Olsen improved to 4-1, working 8 2/3 innings in the Marlins' 3-0 win over Milwaukee.

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Olsen, carrying a 2.22 ERA, has been lights out against the Brewers this season. Prior to last night's outing, he allowed 4 hits and no runs in 7 1/3 innings against Milwaukee back on April 25. The Marlins won, 3-0, but Olson received no decision. Still having some control problems, Olsen walked 4, while striking out 8 last night. Overall he's fanned 23, but issued 19 free passes. Still, his WHIP is rock-solid at 1.05. In his third year as a starter (all with the Marlins), the win evened Olsen's record at 27 wins and 27 losses. Notes: With a team that scarcely resembles the championship squad from 2006, the St. Louis Cardinals continue to lead the Central division by 2 1/2 games over the Cubs. The Cards have dominated their division, winning 12 of 19, and are 14-7 at home and 8-5 on the road. Manager Tony LaRussa seems to have found the formula for early-season success.