Third baseman Nolan Arenado of the Colorado Rockies and outfielder Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals have been named National League Co-Players of the Week for the week ending April 17. The announcement was made earlier today on MLB Network.
In six games last week, Arenado hit .333 (9-for-27) and was tied for the NL lead with four home runs and 12 RBIs. The 2015 NL All-Star paced the Senior Circuit with 23 total bases for the week and was tied for second in runs scored (7), while slugging .852. On Wednesday, Arenado went 4-for-5 with a pair of home runs and a career-best seven RBIs in a 10-6 victory over the visiting San Francisco Giants. The Newport Beach, California native had a double and two RBIs in an 11-6 win in Thursday's rubber-match, giving him a combined 10 RBIs in the three-game set against the Giants -- the most by any Rockies hitter in a three-game series vs. San Francisco since fellow third baseman Garrett Atkins drove in 10 from September 18-20, 2006. Arenado capped his stellar week with a two-home run effort in Sunday's series finale against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, delivering a 2-0 victory for the Rockies. The performance was the seventh career multi-home run effort for the 25-year-old slugger, who currently leads the Majors with 16 RBIs. This is his third career weekly honor (also: August 18-24, 2014 and June 22-28, 2015).
In seven games last week, Harper hit .346 (9-for-26) and was tied with Arenado for the NL lead in home runs (4) and RBIs (12), while collecting 22 total bases, which ranked second. The reigning NL MVP posted an .846 slugging percentage, notched a .400 on-base percentage, and swiped a pair of bases, helping his club win six of seven contests last week. On Sunday, Harper went 2-for-4 with a home run in a 3-2 loss at Philadelphia. The performance marked his sixth straight game with at least two hits and one home run at Citizens Bank Park, dating back to September 14, 2015. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the six consecutive home runs in Philly tie a Major League record by any visiting player at any single stadium. The most recent player to accomplish the feat was Giancarlo Stanton, who clubbed homers in six straight trips to Coors Field from 2011-2012. Harper extended his career-best home run streak to four games overall (April 14th-17th). This is the fourth career Player of the Week honor for the 23-year-old, who won the award three times in his award-winning 2015 season (May 4-10; May 11-17; and September 14-20).
Other noteworthy performances last week included Jaime Garcia (1-0, 0.00 ERA, CG, SHO, 13 SO, 9.0 IP) of the St. Louis Cardinals; Washington's Max Scherzer (2-0, 3.46 ERA, 13 SO, 13.0 IP); and Philadelphia's Vince Velasquez (1-0, 0.00 ERA, CG, SHO, 16 SO, 9.0 IP).
In recognition of their National League Player of the Week Awards, both Nolan Arenado and Bryce Harper will be awarded a watch courtesy of Game Time, the leader in licensed sports watches, available at MLB.com.