Buehrle One-Hits Tigers; Zimmerman Streak Reaches 25; Man-Oh-Manny! 50 Games in the Hole

Players of the Day for Thursday, May 7, 2009 American League Mark Buehrle (5-0) tossed a 1-hitter over 8 innings in Chicago's 6-0 win over Detroit. Perfect through 6 innings, the White Sox lefty allowed the only detroit baserunners in the seventh inning, when he gave up a one-out double to Placido Polanco, walked Clete Thomas, and after getting Miguel Cabrera to fly out, walked Magglio Ordonez to load the bases. Cather Gerald Laird lined out, however, to end the Tigers' only scoring threat. That was all Buehrle would allow, one hit and a pair of walks. Paul Konerko reached on a two-out error in the 8th, but Buehrle ended his night getting A.J. Pierzynski to ground out to first before giving way to Bobby Jenks for the ninth. Buehrle struck out 5 on the night, and is sporting a 2.61 ERA and a WHIP of 1.08 National League The Dodgers may have won 13 straight at home to open their season, and the news about Manny Ramirez being suspended for 50 games (violating MLB's substance abuse policy), but the real feel-good story was over on the Washington side of the diamond as Ryan Zimmerman extended his hitting streak to 25 games with a single in his first at-bat. The rangy third baseman collected another hit and a walk in five at-bats, scoring twice to help the Nats knock off the Dodgers, 11-9, ending their major league record home win streak. Zimmerman got 2 hits for the tenth time during his streak. He has had 4 hits just once, and hasn't compiled three hits yet. He is batting .336 with 5 home runs and 20 RBI for the last place Nationals. NOTES: The suspension on Manny Ramirez sent shock waves through both leagues on Thursday. His 50 game suspension is one of the stiffest penalties ever imposed on a player for violating the substance abuse policy. Two things aer very clear right now: 1. Steroid use in Major League Baseball has been extremely widespread, with even players who were thought to have been clean - Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez - having been found out; and 2. MLB is not going to allow any leeway on the issue any longer. After years of looking the other way, it now appears that the league is taking a no-nonsense, zero-tolerance policy toward banned substances. It's about time.

Dodgers Do It; Santana Blanks Phils; Martinez Mashing for Tribe

Players of the Day for Wednesday, May 6, 2009 American League Cleveland's Victor Martinez, who missed much of last season due to injuries, is back playing full time, splitting his field duties between catcher and first base, and the change seems to be paying off with exceptional numbers at the plate. In Cleveland's 9-2 win at Boston Wednesday night, Martinez singled, doubled and homered in 5 at-bats, driving in four runs and scoring three times. Thus far in the 2009 campaign, Martinez has launched 6 balls out of stadiums, driven in 19 runs and is batting at a brisk .398 pace, 2nd best in the AL. He also leads the Indians in runs, having crossed the plate 22 times. National League Johan Santana (4-1) pitched brilliantly, and the Mets' bullpen didn't blow his chance at a win as the Mets topped the Phillies, 1-0, making life in the NL East more interesting than ever. Santana survived a heated pitcher's duel with Chan Ho Park, who also had an impressive start - one hit and 3 walks while fanning 5 over 6 innings. The Mets' ace was just a little bit better, going 7 innings, allowing 2 hits and 3 walks. Santana struck out 10 before giving way to Pedro Feliciano, who worked the 8th, and Francisco Rodriguez, who picked up his 8th save with a perfect 9th. Santana's 54 Ks gave him the NL lead and tied him with KC's Zack Greinke for the major league lead. As usual, the Mets hurler is putting up outstanding numbers. His ERA and WHIP are both 0.91. Very nice. In spite of the loss, Philly remained atop the NL East standings, 1/2 game better than Florida, but just 1 1/2 ahead of the charging Mets, who have won 3 straight and evened their record at 13-13. NOTES: The LA Dodgers set a major league record with their 13th straight home win to open a season, one better than the 1911 Detroit Tigers. The Dodgers whipped up on the NL's weakest team, the Washington Nationals, downing them by a 10-3 score. Thanks to their outstanding start at home, the 21-8 Dodgers have built up a 6 1/2 game lead in the NL West.

Lind's 5 RBI Leads Jays; Victorino Goes 4-5 in Win Over Cards

Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 5, 2009 American League The Toronto Blue Jays continue to confound the rest of the AL East, leading the division by a game over Boston, at 19-10. The Blue Jays have gotten solid pitching and timely hitting from the likes of Adam Lind, who has been knocking around with Toronto since 2006 but has become a mainstay at DH this season. In Toronto's 10-6 win over Cleveland Tuesday, Lind was an integral part of the winning formula, singling twice and smacking a three-run homer in the 7th inning to crack open a game tied at 6-6. Lind drove in five runs to give him 29 on the year, with 6 home runs and a .333 batting average. National League After a month of trying, the Phillies have finally caught and passed the Marlins in the NL East, taking a 1/2 game lead in the division. Winning their third straight and second straight over the Cardinals, Philly topped St. Louis in a 10-7 slugfest, their 8th road win against just two losses. Keying the victory was diminutive Shane Victorino, the hitting star of last year's world series, who got the Phillies started with a solo home run in the first inning, a pair of singles, a double, three runs and three RBI. His 4-for-5 evening was marred only by being thrown out trying to steal second base in the fifth inning. NOTES: Absolutely average on the road at 8-8, the LA Dodgers are unbeatable at home, compiling a 12-0 record at Chavez Ravine to open the 2008 campaign. Their even dozen wins tied the major league mark for consecutive home wins to open a season set in 1911 by the Detroit Tigers. The Dodgers won their sixth straight overall and, at 20-8, have the best record in the majors and lead the NL West with a 5 1/2-game bulge. LA goes for 13 straight Wednesday night, when they host the league's worst team, the Washington Nationals, who will enter the game with a 7-17 mark.

Markakis, O's Top Rays; Howard's Grand Slam Lifts Phillies

Players of the Day for Monday, May 4, 2009 American League Nick Markakis singled, doubled and homered to lead the Orioles to just their 9th win of the season (against 16 losses) in an 8-4 win at Tampa Bay Monday night. Markakis got the O's started with his 4th homer of the season - a three-run shot off Rays' starter Scott Kazmir and continued his barrage, going 3-for-5 with 3 RBI and a pair of runs scored. His single in the 7th, with Brian Roberts already on first base, sent Kazmir to the showers. The duo greeted reliever Joe Nelson with a double steal. Both scored in the inning. While the Orioles may be last in the AL East, Markakis is a standout. His .370 batting average and 27 RBI have him amongst the AL leaders. National League Ryan Howard's fifth-inning grand slam broke open a tight game, sending St. Louis starter Kyle Loshe (3-1) to his first loss of the season and the Phillies on their way to a 6-1 triumph over the Cardinals. Howard's blast, his 5th of the season was more than enough for Philly starter Joe Blanton and a trio of relievers, as the Phillies inched to within 1/2 game of the NL East-leading Marlins. Howard also singled and scored the Phillies' first run of the game, on Jayson Werth's homer in the 4th inning. The slugging first baseman's four RBI gave him 19 on the season.