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Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy recorded the 1,000th hit of his career in the sixth inning of Monday’s 2-0 win over the Kansas City Royals, smacking a two-out, bases-empty double to straightaway center field off Royals pitcher Edinson Volquez, per MLB Stat of the Day.

Murphy got some help for his milestone hit, with the ball bouncing off the glove of Royals outfielder Lorenzo Cain, who arguably benefited from favorable home-field scoring to avoid an error.

The hit was Murphy’s second of three in Monday’s game, and he also had an RBI groundout in the first inning.

After spending the first seven years of his major league career with the New York Mets, the 31-year-old second baseman has proved to be an excellent addition for the division-rival Nationals, tallying 34 hits in 24 games (and 89 at-bats) for his new team.

His .382 batting average ranks third in the majors among qualified hitters, with only Miami Marlins third baseman Martin Prado (.410) and St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz (.403) holding higher marks.

Though he only has two home runs, Murphy’s nine doubles and two triples—in addition to 21 singles—leave him with an impressive .596 slugging percentage.

He’s also drawn eight walks, helping him post a .439 on-base percentage that ranks seventh in the National League.

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The New York Yankees finished an abysmal first month from the batter’s box by ranking last in the majors in runs scored during April for the first time since 1984, per Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Info).

With just 74 runs, the so-called Bronx Bombers finished with one fewer run than a struggling Atlanta Braves team that had a 5-18 record for the month.

To put this into perspective, the Braves notched just five home runs through the month of April and still managed to outscore New York (22 home runs).

Back in 1984, the Yankees overcame a slow start to rank fourth in the American League with 758 runs. The current squad may thus have some hope, even though it enters Sunday on pace for just 545 runs, with an 8-14 record to boot. 

Second baseman Starlin Castro, who was acquired from the Chicago Cubs in the offseason, is the only regular starter with a batting average above .300—and even he is only at .305.

The leadoff and No. 2 hitters, outfielders Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner, have a combined .244 batting average, though Gardner has at least drawn enough walks (11) to maintain a .369 on-base percentage.

The beauty of baseball is that there is almost always time enough to right the ship. But with their lack of depth from the rubber and struggles at the plate, the Yankees’ ship seems to be sinking at a much faster pace than others.

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Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Brett Cecil recently became the first player in MLB history to be credited with five losses as a relief pitcher during the month of April, per Elias Sports Bureau (h/t ESPN.com).

The last reliever to lose five games in any single calendar month was former Oakland Athletics pitcher Brian Fuentes, who did so in May 2011.

Cecil finished April with an 0-5 record and 5.79 ERA, leading the majors in losses while sitting in a four-way tie atop the leaderboard for most blown saves (three).

Despite the early struggles, Cecil does have some positive numbers, as he’s allowed just one home run (46 batters faced) and is tied for 14th in the majors with five holds.

Although he’s an easy target for blame, the 29-year-old lefty hasn’t been the only problem for Toronto this season. Fellow setup man Drew Storen has surrendered nine earned runs in eight innings, and designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion and shortstop Troy Tulowitzki are both off to notably slow starts at the plate.

Meanwhile, the team’s supposed ace, Marcus Stroman, only has a 3.77 ERA even after holding the Tampa Bay Rays to one run over eight innings in Sunday’s 5-1 win.

A popular choice to win the American League pennant, the Blue Jays are tied with the Rays for third place in the AL East (three games back), with an alarming minus-two run differential 26 games into the season.

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Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story finished April with 17 extra-base hits, joining Joe DiMaggio (23 in May 1936) and Albert Pujols (17 in April 2001) as the only players since 1900 to record 17 or more extra-base hits during the first calendar month of their respective careers, per Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN.com).

One of the biggest surprises early in the season, the 23-year-old Story was never viewed as a top-notch prospect, and he might not have even made the big-league roster out of spring training if not for Jose Reyes’ absence in the wake of a domestic violence allegation.

Nonetheless, Story made history by hitting seven home runs in the first six games of his career, with six of those long balls coming in the first four games.

He’s slowed down considerably since the season’s first week, yet still managed to break Pujols’ National League record of eight home runs by a rookie in April.

What’s more, Story tied the MLB rookie record of 10 home runs in April, which was originally set by Chicago White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu in 2014.

It seems Story has emerged from a mid-April slump, as he tallied two homers, a triple and a double—along with six RBI, four runs and two walks—over the final three games of the month.

Of course, it remains to be seen whether he’s the second coming of former Troy Tulowitzki or merely a short-lived rookie sensation.

Story’s 37 strikeouts in 92 at-bats might hint at the latter, but there’s still no denying that he possesses rare power for a middle infielder.

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Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jake Arrieta witnessed his home scoreless streak come to an end at 52.2 innings when he surrendered an RBI double to Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Alex Presley in the fifth inning of Thursday’s eventual 7-2 Cubs victory, per Sportsnet Stats.

Arrieta‘s streak, unsurprisingly, is the longest of its kind by any Cubs pitcher in Wrigley Field history. 

Although Presley’s RBI double was the only earned run charged to Arrieta on Thursday, the Cubs ace did walk four Brewers and allow three hits en route to his league-leading fifth win of the 2016 season.

Last year, he posted a 22-6 record to go along with a 1.77 ERA and 236 strikeouts on his way to winning the Cubs’ first National League Cy Young Award since Greg Maddux in 1992.

Arrieta‘s impressive feat brings back memories of other notable scoreless innings records in MLB history. One in particular that comes to mind is that of Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Orel Hershiser, who famously went 59 consecutive innings without allowing a run during the 1988 season.

Interestingly enough, Hershiser tossed 41 of those innings on the road, per Andrew Simon of MLB.com.

In any case, Arrieta‘s next home start is scheduled for May 8 against the Washington Nationals, though he’s first slated to face the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on Tuesday.

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Atlanta Braves catcher A.J. Pierzynski recorded the 2,000th hit of his career during the second inning of Wednesday’s 9-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox, becoming the first catcher to reach the 2,000-hit plateau since Ivan Rodriguez in 2004, per MLB Stat of the Day.

Pierzynski’s milestone hit wasn’t particularly noteworthy, as he merely deposited a one-out bloop single into left field off Red Sox pitcher Steven Wright, allowing Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman to advance from second base to third.

The next batter, Braves outfielder Kelly Johnson, singled Freeman home from third base to cut an early deficit to 2-1.

The Red Sox quickly responded with four runs in the bottom of the second inning, chasing Braves pitcher Bud Norris from the game after only four outs.

Pierzynski has started the season poorly along with the rest of his team, recording just 11 hits (10 singles) in 50 at-bats for an unsightly .220 batting average.

He also has a .291 on-base percentage and .240 slugging percentage for an Atlanta squad carrying an MLB-worst 4-17 record.

Regardless, Pierzynski has enjoyed an impressive career, with his longevity (19 seasons) making up for the reality that he has never quite been a star-caliber player.

Granted, the 39-year-old hasn’t gone completely without recognition, making two appearances in the All-Star Game (2002 and 2006) and earning one Silver Slugger Award (2012).

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Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story hit his ninth home run of the season during Wednesday’s 9-8 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates, breaking Albert Pujols’ National League record—set in 2001—for most home runs by a rookie in April, per MLB Stat of the Day.

One of the better stories from the season’s first month, Colorado’s 23-year-old shortstop hit a solo home run off Pirates pitcher Jon Niese in the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game, providing the first run in an impressive rally from an early 7-0 deficit.

The Rockies eventually tied the game at 8-8 to force extra innings, but the Pirates ultimately emerged victorious thanks to a 12th-inning RBI double from shortstop Jordy Mercer.

Story finished the game with just the one hit in six at-bats, dropping his batting average to .241, which is the lowest it’s been since his second at-bat of the season.

While the nine home runs in combination with a .651 slugging percentage obviously make up for his poor batting average and on-base percentage (.304), Story has mostly struggled at the plate since memorably hitting seven homers in the first six games of his career.

He had just two long balls and 11 hits in 56 at-bats (.196 average) over the subsequent 14 games, with a plethora of strikeouts—34 in 83 at-bats this season—inevitably taking their toll.

Of course, even with the recent slump, Story finds himself just one home run shy of matching Jose Abreu’s MLB rookie record of 10 in April (2014), per ESPN Stats & Info.

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Boston Red Sox pitcher David Price made the most of Tuesday’s favorable matchup against the woeful Atlanta Braves, matching his career-high mark of 14 strikeouts as the Red Sox cruised to an 11-4 victory, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.

Coming off an eight-run shelling in his previous outing, Boston’s prized offseason acquisition overcame a shaky start to Tuesday’s game, eventually holding Atlanta scoreless from the fifth through eighth innings after surrendering two runs through the first four frames.

Price held the Braves to two runs on six hits and two walks, ultimately exiting with a 6-2 lead after eight innings and 114 pitches, having struck out each of the last five batters he faced.

The Red Sox then added five runs in the top of the ninth to ensure the lefty improved to 3-0 in spite of his 5.76 ERA.

The latter mark might seem like a concern at first glance, but with 46 strikeouts through 29.2 innings in a Red Sox uniform, Price figures to get his ERA in line soon enough.

In addition to matching a career-best mark, Price’s 14 strikeouts were the most by any Red Sox pitcher since Jon Lester recorded 15 against the Oakland Athletics on May 3, 2014.

The franchise single-game record for strikeouts is the same as the all-time record, with Roger Clemens responsible for two of the three 20-strikeout performances in MLB history.

Clemens accomplished the feat while playing for Boston in 1986 and 1996, then was matched by Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood in 1998.

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Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen broke out of his slump in a big way Tuesday night, recording the second three-homer game of his career in a 9-4 win over the Colorado Rockies, per MLB Stat of the Day.

Taking advantage of the altitude at Coors Field, the 29-year-old superstar hit no-doubt solo home runs to left-center field in the first and second innings, getting the best of Rockies starting pitcher Christian Bergman both times.

Following a fourth-inning groundout, McCutchen made the most of his fourth at-bat against Bergman, sneaking a line-drive, three-run home run just barely over the right field fence to give the Pirates a commanding 7-3 lead.

McCutchen later had a chance to make it four homers, but he was retired by Rockies reliever Scott Oberg on a harmless groundout for the second out of the eighth inning.

Though it appeared Pittsburgh’s rally in the top of the ninth might give him another chance, McCutchen was still two batters away when pinch hitter Sean Rodriguez made the team’s final out.

It had been quite some time since McCutchen‘s other three-homer effort, which came back on Aug. 1, 2009, against the Washington Nationals during his rookie season.

He’s the fourth player to record multiple three-homer games as a member of the Pirates, and the other three—Willie Stargell, Ralph Kiner and Roberto Clemente—are all enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame, per Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Info).

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Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano reached the 1,000-RBI milestone with a bang, driving in six runs during Tuesday’s 11-1 win over the Houston Astros, per MLB Stat of the Day.

He entered the contest with 998 career RBI and needed just two more to become the 281st player (and 12th active player) with 1,000-plus.

After making outs in his first two at-bats, Cano stepped up to the plate against Astros ace Dallas Keuchel with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth inning, and he promptly delivered a two-run single that gave him exactly 1,000 RBI, in addition to giving his team a 5-0 lead.

Not yet done, Seattle’s star second baseman put the game away in the seventh inning with a grand slam to right-center field off of Astros relief pitcher Michael Feliz.

Elsewhere, Texas Rangers designated hitter Prince Fielder recorded his 999th career RBI in a 10-1 win over the New York Yankees, and he positioned himself to join Cano (and 280 others) in the 1,000-RBI club within the next few days.

Detroit Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez reached the same milestone just last week, and New York Mets third baseman David Wright (961 career RBI) should get there by the end of the season—if he manages to stay reasonably healthy.

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