MLB Nightly 9: Jesse Hahn, Drew Hutchison throw complete-game shutouts on Memorial Day

Alec Brzezinski
and others
• 8 min read
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Each night we'll provide you with the nine top story lines from the day's action, beginning with the stars of the day, and look ahead to the next day's matchups.

Not long ago, Prince Fielder was shipped away from Detroit to Texas and suffered a serious neck injury that threatened to affect the rest of his career. Those days now seem long gone, as the slugger has 11 hits and four home runs in his last four games with a tidy .365 batting average on the season.

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Relatively new to success, the Athletics' Jesse Hahn (2-4, 3.69 ERA) and the Blue Jays' Drew Hutchison (4-1, 5.12 ERA) each pitched complete-game shutouts. 

But don't worry: There was still plenty of offense on Memorial Day. The Twins, led by third baseman Trevor Plouffe, had 16 hits in a 7-2 win against the Red Sox and would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Meanwhile, the Yankees put up 11 runs in the first two innings against the Royals, and went on to win 14-1.

Here are more highlights from Monday's games:

Impact players

C — Francisco Cervelli, Pirates: Cervelli was at it again with a 2-for-2 effort. He also hit his first home run of the year and had three RBIs. Cervelli is batting .484 (15 for 31) in his past 10 games.

1B — Brian McCann, Yankees: Making a rare start at first base, McCann went 1 for 3 with two runs, a home run, three RBIs and two walks in a demolition of the Royals.

2B — Kolten Wong, Cardinals: Wong went 3 for 5 with a run scored in an extra-innings win against the Diamondbacks.

SS — Elvis Andrus, Rangers: Andrus went 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs as the Rangers' bats continued to terrorize pitchers. He also eclipsed the 1,000-hit mark for his career.

3B — Nolan Arenado, Rockies: After going 4 for 5 on Sunday, Arenado followed it up with a 3-for-4 effort on Memorial Day. He smashed his ninth home run of the season and drove in three.

OF — Khris Davis, Brewers: Davis went 3 for 3 with three runs scored and two solo home runs, but he might want to be a little more careful on the base paths next time.

DH — Prince Fielder, Rangers: Fielder went 3 for 5 with three runs scored, a home run and three RBIs in yet another monster game.

SP — Carlos Martinez, Cardinals: Martinez took a tough-luck no-decision after seven shutout innings. He allowed only five hits and struck out eight, and seems to be settling back into rhythm.

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Key injuries

White Sox outfielder Avisail Garcia has been listed as day to day with inflammation in his right knee after leaving Monday's game.

Surprise performers

Good: Albert Pujols (Angels), Jhonny Peralta (Cardinals): Both players had dramatic walkoff hits Monday. Peralta's was a home run in the 10th inning of a 3-2 win; Pujols' was a broken-bat single into left with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth as the Angels won 4-3.

Bad: Jeremy Guthrie (4-3, 6.70 ERA): It isn't really surprising Guthrie pitched poorly, but 11 runs in one-plus innings is pretty staggering. At some point one has to blame Royals manager Ned Yost for leaving his man out there to take such a beating.

Web gems

Arenado took a tumble into the stands but managed to make an incredible catch in the eighth inning:

Giancarlo Stanton makes a great leaping play:

Jace Peterson makes a spectacular grab:

Facts of the day

Giants outfielder Nori Aoki had his fifth career four-hit game Monday, and is now hitting .484 since May 15, which is the best in MLB during that span.

It's better to be good than lucky:

This just in: Babe Ruth was a good player:

Fielder has hit four home runs in his last four games, the most he's hit in a four-game stretch since June 6-8, 2011 (four HRs in three games).

Guthrie became the second starting pitcher (joining Jason Jennings) and the fourth pitcher in MLB history to allow 11 or more earned runs in one or fewer innings.

Reactions

"A little of everything," Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram of his emotions leading up to his season debut. "It comes in waves. Relaxed one minute, nervous the next."

Andrew McCutchen sported some fashionable and appropriate Memorial Day shoes.

We want what he's having:

Off the field

The Braves saw Memorial Day as a perfect opportunity to show off Jonny Gomes' patriotic tattoo.

The Reds finally placed catcher Devin Mesoraco on the DL, even though he has been plagued with an injury to his left hip since the beginning of the season.

Pitcher Danny Duffy was placed on the 15-day DL with biceps tendinitis, the Royals announced Monday. He was scratched from his start Saturday against the Cardinals, but was hoping to start on Tuesday against the Yankees. He won't be able to start until at least June 1.

Rays first baseman James Loney has also been placed on the 15-day DL with a broken middle finger on his left hand. He suffered the injury after sliding into third base on a steal during Sunday's  7-2 loss to the Athletics.

Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy (toe) is on pace to be activated from the DL on June 1. Lucroy had an X-ray on Monday to see how his fractured left big toe had healed and said that he received good news.

Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud is also expected back on June 1.

The Brewers placed starting pitcher Wily Peralta on the 15-day DL, retroactive to May 23, with a strained left oblique, and is expected to miss four to six weeks.

Reds manager Bryan Price said Monday he doesn't expect Johnny Cueto (elbow) to miss any more starts. Cueto had to be scratched from an outing Sunday due to stiffness in his pitching elbow, but the club doesn't consider the ailment to be serious.

The Mariners activated outfielder Austin Jackson from the DL (ankle) after nine rehab games.

Scores

American League

Yankees 14, Royals 1
Orioles 4, Astros 3
Twins 7, Red Sox 2
Athetics 4, Tigers 0
Rangers 10, Indians 8
Blue Jays 6, White Sox 0
Mariners 4, Rays 1

National League

Rockies 5, Reds 4
Mets 6, Phillies 3
Cardinals 3, Diamondbacks 2, 10 innings
Giants 8, Brewers 4
Nationals 2, Cubs 1
Pirates 4, Marlins 2
Dodgers 6, Braves 3

Interleague

Angels 4, Padres 3

A look ahead

The three best games Tuesday (all times Eastern):

Royals (28-16) at Yankees (23-22), 7:05 p.m.: The Royals will have to brush off their embarrassing 14-1 loss on Memorial Day. Luckily for them, Guthrie isn't pitching. The ageless Yankees have pleasantly surprised thus far, but an angry Royals team won't be fun to play against.

Giants (26-20) at Brewers (16-30), 8:10 p.m.: The only reason this game is interesting is because of Madison Bumgarner (5-2, 2.84 ERA). With two nearly flawless pitching performances on Monday, it seems about time someone threw a no-hitter. The talented lefty will have a chance against a beatable Milwaukee lineup.

Braves (22-22) at Dodgers (27-17), 10:10 p.m.: Clayton Kershaw (2-3, 4.32 ERA) vs. Julio Teheran (4-1, 3.91 ERA) is an intriguing matchup despite early-season struggles from both aces. The Dodgers really haven't been able to put a good run of games together, but still find themselves with the third-best record in the National League.

Perform Media's Kirstie Chiappelli and Gabrielle McMillen contributed to this story.

Author(s)
Alec Brzezinski