Daily Baseball Update: 9/7

Historical Individual Seasons: Joe Torre 1971
Stat Line: 24 HR, 137 RBI, .363 AVG, 4 SB.  Age 30-31.
Everyone knows Joe Torre was one of the best managers in recent memory.  What a lot don't know is that he had a lengthy career as a player where he amassed 252 home runs and 2342 hits in his eighteen years.  His best season came in 1971 with the Cardinals, when he hit 24 home runs and batted .363.  His amazing season gave him two thirds of the National League Triple Crown, as he added a league leading 137 RBI to go with his .363 average.  In his 161 games, he led the majors in hits (230), RBI, average, and total bases (352).  The great season helped him win the NL MVP over such names as Willie Stargell (48 HR, 125 RBI, .295 AVG), Hank Aaron (47 HR, 118 RBI, .327 AVG), and Roberto Clemente (13 HR, 86 RBI, .341 AVG).  He also started the All Star Game behind the plate.  Despite his efforts (including an MLB leading 8.6 offensive WAR, or Wins Above Replacement), the Cardinals finished 90-72, seven games behind the East leading Pirates, a team that included both Stargell and Clemente and that went 97-65.

News
Giants pitcher Yusmeiro Petit came one strike away from a perfect game before allowing a single to Eric Chavez.  Of the 38 pitchers in history who have come within an out of a perfect game, only 23 have finished it off.
The Pirates clinched their first non-losing season since 1992.
The Red Sox rallied from an 8-3, seventh inning deficit to beat the Yankees 12-8.
The White Sox have been eliminated from AL Central contention, having lost eight straight games.

Game Scores
Marlins (53-86) beat the Nationals (71-69) 7-0.
Red Sox (86-57) beat the Yankees (75-66) 12-8.
Phillies (64-77) beat the Braves (85-55) 2-1.
Reds (80-62) beat the Dodgers (83-57) 3-2.
Mariners (64-77) beat the Rays (77-63) 6-4.
Cubs (60-80) beat the Brewers (60-80) 8-5.
Tigers (82-59) beat the Royals (73-68) 16-2.
Top Scorer: Tigers beat the Royals 16-2.

Standings
AL East: Red Sox (86-57, .601 WPCT).  AL Central: Tigers (82-59, .582).  AL West: A's (81-60, .574).
NL East: Braves (85-55, .607).  NL Central: Pirates (81-59, .579).  NL West: Dodgers (83-57, .593).
AL Wild Cards: Rangers (80-60, .571) and Rays (77-63, .550).  NL Wild Cards: Cardinals (81-60, .574) and Reds (80-62, .563).
Bottom Team: Astros (47-94, .333).  Longest W Streak: Red Sox, 4 games.  Longest L Streak: White Sox, 8 games.

League Leaders
Offensive: AVG: Miguel Cabrera (Tigers), .355 (174-490).  Home runs: Chris Davis (Orioles), 48.  RBI: Miguel Cabrera, 131.  Stolen bases: Jacoby Ellsbury (Red Sox), 52.
Pitching: Wins: Max Scherzer (Tigers), 19.  K's: Yu Darvish (Rangers), 240.  ERA: Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers), 1.89 (209 innings, 44 earned runs).  Saves: Craig Kimbrel (Braves), 44.

Top Performers
Offensive: Omar Infante (Tigers): 5-5, double, 6 RBI, 2 runs, AVG up .009 from .319 to .328, hitting streak to 3 games (8-12, .667 AVG).
Pitching: Yusmeiro Petit (Giants): Win (3-0), 9 shutout innings, 1 hit, no walks, 7 K's (30), ERA drop: 1.07 runs from 3.12 to 2.05.
Worst Pitching Performance: James Shields (Royals): Loss (10-9), 3.2 innings, 10 earned runs, 14 hits, 2 walks, 6 K's (167), ERA jump: 0.40 runs from 3.03 to 3.43.

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Teams followed in this update: Washington Nationals, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers
If your team is not included, please leave a comment.
HR: home runs.  RBI: runs batted in.  AVG: batting average.  SB: stolen bases.  ERA: earned run average. WHIP: walks/hits per innings pitched.  K's: strikeouts. WPCT: winning percentage
Zack Silverman