PITTSBURGH (AP) – Nick Lodolo allowed one run in seven innings to win a fifth straight start, Santiago Espinal hit a two-run homer and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1 on Tuesday night.
Lodolo (8-2) struck out eight without issuing a walk and gave up four hits. The left-hander has been tagged for seven runs in 30 1/3 innings in five starts since May 27.
Espinal put the Reds ahead in the fifth inning, driving a fastball from Bailey Falter just over a leaping Bryan Reynolds at the wall and 376 feet into the left field bleachers.
Alexis Díaz struck out one in a perfect ninth inning for his 16th save.
Falter (3-5) surrendered two runs on seven hits, going seven innings with three strikeouts and two walks.
MARLINS 9, CARDINALS 8, 10 INNINGS
Cincinnati Reds’ Santiago Espinal, right, celebrates with Luke Maile (22) as he returns to the dugout after hitting a two-run home run off Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Bailey Falter during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
MIAMI (AP) – Vidal Bruján hit a winning RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning and Miami beat St. Louis to snap a six-game skid.
Nick Gordon reached on a one-out infield single against Chris Roycroft (1-1) that advanced automatic runner Jesús Sánchez to third. Tim Anderson followed with an RBI infield single, tying it at 8-all. Otto Lopez´s groundout advanced Gordon and Anderson before Bruján soft liner to center field gave Miami its sixth walk-off win of the season.
Dylan Carlson´s sacrifice fly against reliever Calvin Faucher (2-1) in the top of the 10th put St. Louis ahead.
Sánchez homered, doubled and singled, while Christian Bethancourt also went deep for the Marlins.
Paul Goldschmidt, Brendan Donovan and Alec Burleson homered for the Cardinals.
DIAMONDBACKS 5, NATIONALS 0
WASHINGTON (AP) – Ketel Marte homered, Slade Cecconi pitched six sharp innings and Arizona defeated Washington in the opener of a three-game series.
Corbin Carroll reached base four times and scored twice for Arizona, which has won six of eight to improve to 36-37. The defending NL champion Diamondbacks have not been this close to .500 since they were 12-13 on April 23.
CJ Abrams extended his hitting streak to 11 games for Washington, which was limited to four hits and
had its three-game winning streak snapped.
PHILLIES 4, PADRES 3
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Nick Castellanos hit a bloop ground-rule double down the right field line to cap four consecutive ninth-inning hits and Philadelphia rallied from a two-run deficit for a win over San Diego.
Kyle Schwarber hit an eighth inning solo home run for the Phillies, who can finish off a season series sweep over San Diego on Wednesday. The Padres have now lost five in a row.
Jeff Hoffman (3-0) got the win while the Padres´ Robert Suarez (4-1) blew his first save in 19 opportunities this season.
BRAVES 2, TIGERS 1
ATLANTA (AP) – Braves rookie Spencer Schwellenbach had his best start and Ozzie Albies delivered a key hit for the second straight game as Atlanta downed Detroit.
Schwellenbach (1-2) had his best outing since being called up on May 29, allowing just one run and three hits over six innings. He struck out seven, walked two and hit two batters with pitches in his fourth career start.
Atlanta closer Raisel Iglesias earned his 18th save in 20 chances after scoreless setup innings by Pierce Johnson and Joe Jiménez.
Albies, who hit a tiebreaking homer Monday, was 1 for 4 with an RBI triple and a run scored as the Braves won for the fifth time in six games. Marcell Ozuna also went 1 for 4 with an RBI.
Riley Greene scored and Gio Urshela had an RBI single for the Tigers, who have lost nine of 12.
MARINERS 8, GUARDIANS 5
CLEVELAND (AP) – J.P. Crawford hit a two-run homer, Luke Raley and Dylan Moore added solo shots and Seattle stayed baseball´s hottest team with a win over AL Central-leading Cleveland.
With their fourth straight win and eighth in nine games, the Mariners improved to an MLB-best 17-5 since May 26.
Crawford homered in the third inning off Triston McKenzie (3-4) and added an RBI double in the fourth.
Raley, who grew up in nearby Medina, Ohio, connected in the fifth to put the Mariners ahead 6-1. The homer came only minutes after Raley made a diving catch on the track down the left-field line. He was ejected after striking out in the ninth.
Bryce Miller (6-5) held the Guardians to three runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings. It was the second straight solid outing for the right-hander, who pitched seven scoreless innings last week in a no-decision against the White Sox.
Cleveland´s Steven Kwan reached base for the 23rd straight game and extended his hitting streak to 12 in a row with a single in the eighth.
YANKEES 4, ORIOLES 2
NEW YORK (AP) – Aaron Judge was hit on the left hand by a pitch in the Yankees´ 4-2 win over the Baltimore in a series opener between the American League´s winningest teams.
Judge appeared to be struck on his pinkie by a 94.1 mph fastball from Albert Suárez (3-1) in the third inning. The slugger initially remained in the game but was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fourth. The Yankees said he was going to a hospital for scans.
Nestor Cortes (4-5) pitched six scoreless innings and Anthony Volpe, Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu drove in runs for the Yankees (51-24), who have the best record in the major leagues but are just 10-10 against AL East rivals. The second-place Orioles (47-25) won three of four at home against New York from April 29 to May 2 and are 17-7 against their division.
RED SOX 4, BLUE JAYS 3
TORONTO (AP) – Ceddanne Rafaela had three hits, including a tiebreaking single in the eighth-inning, and Boston beat Toronto to earn a third straight series win.
Tyler O´Neill homered and scored twice and Rafael Devers had two hits as the Red Sox won for the seventh time in nine games.
Boston arrived in Toronto after taking two of three from Philadelphia and the New York Yankees, both division leaders.
Red Sox right-hander Zack Kelly (1-1) got four outs for the win as Boston improved to 35-8 when scoring four runs or more.
Rafaela singled in the fifth inning, doubled in the seventh, then drove in pinch-runner David Hamilton with a single off Blue Jays right-hander Chad Green in Boston´s two-run eighth inning
Toronto´s Brendon Little (0-1) took the loss, allowing the two runs in the eighth.
WHITE SOX 2, ASTROS 0
CHICAGO (AP) – Jonathan Cannon pitched seven-hit ball into the ninth inning in his first major league win, helping the Chicago White Sox beat Houston.
Cannon, a third-round pick in the 2022 amateur draft, struck out four and walked one. He threw 106 pitches, 70 for strikes, in his fifth career start and sixth appearance overall.
Cannon received a warm ovation when he departed after Jon Singleton and Mauricio Dubón singled with two outs in the ninth. John Brebbia then retired Victor Caratini on a grounder to first for his second save of the season.
Cannon (1-1) made his debut in April, but was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte after allowing 11 runs in 13 2/3 innings over three starts. He has permitted one run and 14 hits in 18 2/3 innings since he was recalled by the lowly White Sox on June 7.
CUBS 5, GIANTS 2
CHICAGO (AP) – Cody Bellinger, Ian Happ and Christopher Morel each had RBI singles in Chicago´s three-run eighth inning and the Cubs beat San Francisco to end a two-game slide.
Michael Busch led off the eighth against reliever Tyler Rogers (0-2) with a double off the right-center wall, his second hit of the game. Bellinger followed by bouncing a his second hit barely through the left side of the infield to break a 2-all tie.
After Seiya Suzuki singled, Happ lined his second hit of the night down the right field line to make it 4-2. Morel pinch hit and added a ground-ball RBI single to cap the rally.
Dansby Swanson hit a two-run homer for the Cubs, who won for just fourth time in 12 games.
Tyson Miller (2-0) got four outs in relief of Justin Steele for the win. Keegan Thompson struck out the side in the ninth for his first save.
Curt Casali had two hits and two RBIs for the Giants.
METS 7, RANGERS 6
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) – Pete Alonso hit a tiebreaking double in the ninth inning and the New York Mets extended their winning streak to a season-best seven games by rallying late for a victory over slumping Texas.
Texas had a 6-2 lead after a five-run fifth, its highest-scoring inning in six weeks, but the Mets scored in each of the last five innings.
Mark Vientos and Brandon Nimmo homered for New York (35-37), which has won 11 of 13 overall. Francisco Alvarez tied it at 6 on a two-run double with two outs in the eighth.
Rangers closer Kirby Yates (3-1) walked Nimmo with one out in the ninth. J.D. Martinez reached on a catcher´s interference call and Alonso doubled into the left-field corner to give the Mets a 7-6 lead.
Josh Smith and rookie Wyatt Langford went deep for the reigning World Series champion Rangers, who have lost five in a row and 23 of 34 overall.
DODGERS 11, ROCKIES 9
DENVER (AP) – Jason Heyward hit a pinch-hit grand slam and Teoscar Hernandez added a three-run homer – all in a seven-run ninth inning – as the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a victory over Colorado.
Heyward´s fourth career grand slam came off Tyler Kinley and followed walks by Andy Pages and Miguel Vargas around a single by Miguel Rojas. Heyward´s fourth homer of the season pulled the Dodgers within 9-8 with one out in the inning after trailing 7-2 after four innings.
Shohei Ohtani, who had a 476-foot homer in the fifth, singled off Victor Vodnik (1-1) before Will Smith struck out looking after attempting to step out of the batter´s box on a 3-2 pitch.
After a wild pitch, Freddie Freeman received an intentional walk, his sixth walk in the last two games, bringing up Hernandez. Hernandez took a half-swing at a 1-2 fastball, but first base umpire Lance Barksdale ruled that Hernandez did not commit. Colorado manager Bud Black argued the call and was ejected.
On the next pitch, Hernandez hit his 18th home to make it 11-9. After Hernandez´s ball cleared the wall, Colorado right field Jake Cave immediately took a few steps toward Barksdale and began yelling. Rockies´ second baseman Alan Trejo stepped between Cave and Barksdale after the inning ended.
Evan Phillips got the only batter he faced, Hunter Goodman, to recorded his 11th save in as many chances.
TWINS 7, RAYS 6
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Carlos Santana´s pinch-hit single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning pushed Minnesota past Tampa Bay for their sixth straight victory.
Manny Margot and Carlos Correa hit singles off closer Pete Fairbanks, who had Correa´s comebacker glance off his throwing hand and force the Rays to summon Phil Maton.
Santana hit a 1-1 curveball into right field to easily score Margot and give the Twins their eighth win in nine games.
Max Kepler homered and Ryan Jeffers hit a sacrifice fly for the Twins to tie the game in the fifth, after Brandon Lowe and Josh Lowe hit home runs in the top of the inning for the Rays on each side of the stoppage that lasted an hour and 23 minutes.
Randy Arozarena´s three-run homer in the first off struggling Twins starter Pablo López put the Rays in front.
ATHLETICS 7, ROYALS 5
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – Zack Gelof hit his first home run in nearly three weeks and Oakland beat Kansas City to end a nine-game losing streak.
JJ Bleday had a career-high three doubles and drove in two runs, and Miguel Andujar added two hits to help Oakland to its first win since June 7.
Nick Loftin hit his first career home run and had three RBIs for the Royals, who have lost three of four.
Gelof, who entered in a 5-for-30 funk, singled and scored in the first inning and then hit a three-run homer off starter Alec Marsh (5-4) in the fourth.
Hogan Harris (1-0) pitched five uneven innings to get the win, his first since the end of 2023 when he also beat the Royals. Harris, who left with the lead but got no decision in each of his three previous starts, allowed three runs (one earned) and four hits.
BREWERS 6, ANGELS 3
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) – Sal Frelick robbed Taylor Ward of a tying home run with a leaping catch in center field for the final out of Milwaukee’s victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
The Angels staged a three-run rally in the ninth and then got two more runners on base, bringing Trevor Megill into the game as the Brewers´ third reliever of the inning.
Ward drove a 384-foot fly to center, but Frelick confidently ran back and made a one-handed grab on the warning track, stretching just above the yellow line representing the top of the outfield fence.
Christian Yelich hit his 200th career homer and rookie Tobias Myers pitched scoreless, four-hit ball into the seventh inning for the Brewers, who have won three of four. Jackson Chourio drove in three runs, including a two-run double that turned into a Little League homer on the Angels´ third error of the night in the fourth.