The Sports Mac Daily Fives: September 1st, 2010

Top 5 Stories From Yesterday

1. Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram from Alabama has his knee scoped and will not play in the Tide’s season opener.

2. The Yankees retake the Al East division lead after a big win over the Athletics while the Rays get pounded by Toronto to fall a game behind.

3. In a surprise, Brigham Young will announce that it will become an independent in football with all other sports joining the West Coast Conference.

4. The Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg will have Tommy John surgery on Friday and will be out of action for at least a year, possibly longer.

5. Only one top 10 seed loses on Day 2 of the U.S. Open, eighth seeded Li Na on the women’s side.

Top 5 Games From Yesterday

1.    Twins 4, Tigers 3—Minnesota rallies after being down three runs after two innings to maintain their lead in the AL Central.

2.    White Sox 4, Indians 3—Chicago scores three in the 9th on a A.J. Pierzynski home run, but has to hold on for the win when Cleveland could only score two runs in response.

3.    Marlins 1, Nationals 0, 10 innings—Chad Tracy wins the pitchers duel for Florida with a walk-off RBI single scoring Hanley Ramirez.

4.    Royals 10, Rangers 9—Kansas City wins a crazy game on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth after blowing a three run lead.

5.    Giants 5, Rockies 2—San Francisco gets a little closer in the NL West after getting a game winning three run double from Buster Posey in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Top 5 Performances From Yesterday

1. Jordan Zimmerman, Nationals SP—No runs on one hit with 9 K’s over six innings in WAS’s 1-0 loss to FLA.

2. Neil Walker, Pirates 2B—Was 4-5 with a HR and four RBIs in PIT’s 14-7 win over CHC.

3. Anibal Sanchez, Marlins SP—No runs on three hits with eight K’s over seven innings in FLA’s 1-0 win over WAS.

4. Felix Hernandez, Mariners SP—No runs on three hits with eight K’s over seven innings in SEA’s 3-1 win over LAA.

5. Wandy Rodriguez, Astros SP—No runs on two hits with five K’s over seven innings and the victory in HOU’s 3-0 win over STL.

5 Performances That Weren’t So Good From Yesterday

1. Ryan Dempster, Cubs SP—Seven runs on seven hits over three innings in CHC’s 14-7 loss to PIT.

2. Jeff Niemann, Rays SP—Seven runs on seven hits over five innings in TB’s 13-5 loss to TOR.

3. Colby Rasmus, Cardinals CF—Went 0 for 4 with two K’s in STL’s 3-0 loss to HOU.

4. Kevin Correia, Padres SP—Six runs on six hits over four and a third in SD’s 7-4 loss to ARI.

5. Carlos Pena, Rays 1B—Went 0 for 4 with two K’s in TB’s 13-5 loss to TOR.

Top 5 Events To Follow Today

1. MLB—Phillies (74-58) at Dodgers (68-65), 3:00 PM—Phillies try to improve on a winning road trip and keep the pressure on Atlanta (Great match-up: Oswalt (PHI) vs. Kershaw (LAD)).

2. MLB—Blue Jays (69-63) at Rays (81-51), 7:00 PM—Tampa Bay looks to rebound after getting blown out Tuesday night (Good match-up: Marcum (TOR) vs. Price (TB)).

3. MLB—Mets (65-67) at Braves (77-55), 7:00 PM—Atlanta looks to take the first three games of this series (Good match-up: Pelfrey (NYM) vs. Hanson (ATL)).

4. MLB—Tigers (65-67) at Twins (76-56), 8:00 PM—Minnesota tries to extend its lead in the AL Central (Good match-up: Scherzer (DET) vs. Liriano (MIN)).

5. MLB—Rockies (69-62) at Giants (73-60), 9:00 PM—The rubber match of the series pits two of the best pitchers in the NL (Great match-up: Jimenez (COL) vs. Lincecum (SF)).

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