MLB roundup: Astros get earful in loss at Yankee Stadium
May 4, 2021; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton (27) hits an RBI single against Houston Astros relief pitcher Bryan Abreu (66) during the sixth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Giancarlo Stanton had four hits and drove in three runs, and DJ LeMahieu hit a tiebreaking infield single with two outs in the sixth inning that turned into three runs for the New York Yankees in a 7-3 victory over the visiting Houston Astros on Tuesday.
It was the first meeting between the teams since the investigation into the Astros’ cheating scandal was completed following the 2019 season.
Article continues after this advertisementThough the game was played in front of 20 percent of capacity, the 10,050 fans made it sound like a normal full house and did not waste time voicing their displeasure at the Astros, who were revealed to be involved in a sign-stealing scandal in 2017 when the Yankees lost to them in seven games in the American League Championship Series.
The contest was tied 3-3 until LeMahieu hit a slow roller to third baseman Alex Bregman with the bases loaded. Gleyber Torres scored the first run, and Aaron Hicks and Rougned Odor also crossed home plate after Bregman’s throw sailed wide of first baseman Yuli Gurriel. Both Odor (knee) and Astros catcher Martin Maldonado (trapezius) left the game after a collision on the play.
Indians 7, Royals 3
May 4, 2021; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cleveland Indians center fielder Harold Ramirez (40) hits a one-run single in the sixth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Harold Ramirez hit a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning and the Indians defeated the host Royals.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Indians, who scored four runs in the eighth, have won each of the first two games in the four-game series, and they have three consecutive victories overall.
The Royals squandered a 3-0 lead while losing a third straight game for the first time this season.
Giants 12, Rockies 4 (Game 1)
May 4, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (9) heads home to score in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Brandon Belt hit a grand slam, singled and drove in five runs during a 10-run first inning, and visiting San Francisco beat Colorado in Denver in the first game of a doubleheader.
Belt finished with three hits, Buster Posey also homered and had two of his three hits in the first inning. Brandon Crawford also went deep among his two hits and reliever Matt Wisler (1-2) pitched 1 2/3 innings for the win.
Raimel Tapia homered and Garrett Hampson and Trevor Story had two hits each for Colorado. German Marquez (1-3) allowed eight runs on six hits in 2/3 of an inning.
Rockies 8, Giants 6 (Game 2)
May 4, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies right fielder Charlie Blackmon (19) celebrates his three-run home run with shortstop Trevor Story (27) and left fielder Raimel Tapia (15) to defeat San Francisco Giants the ninth inning at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Charlie Blackmon hit a three-run, walk-off homer, and the Rockies scored six runs in the seventh inning to beat the Giants in the nightcap of a doubleheader in Denver.
C.J. Cron had two hits, including a homer, for Colorado in the second game, and Trevor Story and Ryan McMahon added two hits each.
Wilmer Flores homered among his two hits, Brandon Belt also went deep, and Steven Duggar had two hits each for the Giants. Belt had two homers and drove in seven runs on the day.
Mariners 5, Orioles 2
Kyle Lewis hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning as the Mariners defeated the visiting Orioles.
Kyle Seager also homered for Seattle and hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the eighth to give the Mariners a 2-1 lead. Lewis, the reigning American League Rookie of the Year, followed with his third homer of the season.
The Orioles scored on Rio Ruiz’s towering home run in the fifth and Trey Mancini’s two-out single in the ninth.
Rays 8, Angels 3
Shane McClanahan and Luis Patino combined to limit the Angels to four hits through seven innings and Austin Meadows homered twice as Tampa Bay rolled to victory in Anaheim, Calif.
The Rays also benefited from four Angels errors that resulted in three unearned runs. Meadows homered in consecutive innings (the seventh and eighth) off the same Angels reliever (Ben Rowen). He also drove in a run with a groundout and totaled five RBIs in the game.
The Angels scored on Mike Trout’s eighth homer of the year and Jose Iglesias’ two-run single in the eighth.
Athletics 4, Blue Jays 1
Left-hander Cole Irvin limited Toronto to one run in a career-best eight innings and Mitch Moreland capped a four-run second inning with a two-run home run, lifting the Athletics over the visiting Blue Jays.
Joe Lowrie doubled in two runs and scored a third for the A’s, who have opened a four-game home series against the Blue Jays with consecutive wins.
Former A’s standout Marcus Semien drove in the only run of the game for Toronto, which had won three in a row before heading west for a 10-game trip.
Pirates 2, Padres 1
Mitch Keller, who entered the game with an 8.20 ERA, pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, leading visiting Pittsburgh to a win over San Diego.
Bryan Reynolds drove in the Pirates’ first run with a third-inning double, and Erik Gonzalez raced home from second on a grounder in the sixth for what turned out to be the decisive run.
The Padres, who were no-hit for six innings Monday night before rallying for a 2-0 victory, have scored three runs on just seven hits in the first two games of the three-game series.
White Sox 9, Reds 0
Dylan Cease allowed one hit and tied a career high with 11 strikeouts over six scoreless innings to lead visiting Chicago over Cincinnati.
Cease (2-0) helped his own cause with a double and two singles in his first three major league at-bats and scored a run as the White Sox won for the eighth time in their last 11 games. Cease had
The White Sox scored three runs in the second inning against Jeff Hoffman (2-2), who allowed a leadoff homer to Jose Abreu and Tim Anderson’s two-run single. Hoffman gave up four runs on five hits over 2 1/3 innings for the Reds, who were held to a pair of singles.
Cubs 7, Dodgers 1 (Game 1)
David Bote hit a three-run double in the first inning and host Chicago rolled over Los Angeles in the opening game of a doubleheader.
The Cubs scored four in the first inning and knocked Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw (4-3) from the game after the opening frame in the shortest start of his career. Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks (2-3) delivered a seven-inning complete game, giving up one run on seven hits with a walk and six strikeouts.
Dodgers rookie Keibert Ruiz hit a pinch-hit home run in the seventh inning to spoil Hendricks’ shutout bid. Ruiz hit the first pitch he saw this season into the seats in right field. Los Angeles has lost 11 of its past 15 games.
Cubs 4, Dodgers 3 (9 innings, Game 2)
David Bote delivered a game-winning, opposite-field RBI single with one out in the ninth inning to lift host Chicago past Los Angeles and secure a doubleheader sweep.
Justin Steele (1-0) earned his first major league victory, striking out two and issuing one walk in a scoreless ninth. That set the stage for Bote’s fourth career walk-off hit to cap a frantic finish.
Garrett Cleavinger (0-2) was the loser, allowing one unearned run and one hit in 1/3 inning.
Braves 6, Nationals 1
Huascar Ynoa hit a grand slam and pitched seven strong innings to lead visiting Atlanta over Washington, ending the Nationals’ four-game winning streak.
Ynoa (3-1) allowed one unearned run on four hits. He struck out four and walked two. He has held the Nationals to one unearned run in 12 innings this season. Ynoa’s grand slam was his second home run in as many games.
Washington starter Joe Ross (2-2) went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out three and walked two.
Phillies 6, Brewers 5
Andrew McCutchen hit two solo home runs, Brad Miller homered and drove in three runs and host Philadelphia defeated Milwaukee.
Phillies starter Aaron Nola (3-1) tossed six strong innings and gave up five hits and one run. He struck out 10 in a 114-pitch effort as the Phillies won two in a row for the first time since April 4-5.
Jackie Bradley Jr. homered and drove in two runs for the Brewers. Milwaukee starter Eric Lauer (1-1) pitched six innings and allowed eight hits and six runs, two earned, to go along with seven strikeouts and no walks.
Rangers 6, Twins 3 (10 innings)
Adolis Garcia hit a two-run homer and Charlie Culberson added an RBI double to highlight a three-run 10th inning as Texas rallied past Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Willie Calhoun also homered for the Rangers, who scored two runs off Twins closer Taylor Rogers in the ninth to overcome a 3-1 deficit and send the game into extra innings. Garcia finished 3-for-5 with three RBIs.
Byron Buxton and Willians Astudillo each homered for Minnesota, which fell to 0-6 in extra-inning games this season. Brandon Waddell (0-1), who began the 10th in relief for the Twins, suffered the loss, allowing three runs, two earned, on three hits in 2/3 of an inning.
Red Sox 11, Tigers 7
Hunter Renfroe homered among his three hits, Matt Barnes pitched out of an eighth-inning jam and Boston held off visiting Detroit in the opener of a three-game series at Fenway Park.
Alex Verdugo, Xander Bogaerts and Enrique Hernandez also went deep as the Red Sox produced a 14-hit attack to snap a two-game skid. Renfroe’s home run was the 100th of his career.
JaCoby Jones hit a three-run homer and Robbie Grossman had three hits and three RBIs for the Tigers, who have lost six straight and 11 of their past 12. Two-time MVP Miguel Cabrera was hitless in five at-bats and left seven runners on base.
Marlins 9, Diamondbacks 3
Jesus Aguilar stroked an opposite-field, go-ahead single as part of a six-run eighth inning, leading host Miami to a win over Arizona.
Brian Anderson slugged a three-run homer in his first at-bat off the injured list. In addition, reliever Richard Bleier (2-0) earned the win by inheriting a bases-loaded situation with a 3-3 score in the eighth before striking out three straight batters, all swinging.
Diamondbacks right fielder Josh Rojas slugged his fourth homer in the past five games. Cabrera also chipped in for the Diamondbacks, going 3-for-5. Arizona got two players off the injured list: first baseman Christian Walker (oblique) and outfielder Tim Locastro (finger).
