Highlights of Friday's MLB games

[May 28, 2016]  May 27 (The Sports Xchange)

Yankees 4, Rays 1

Alex Rodriguez hit a two-run homer and Masahiro Tanaka gave up two hits over seven innings to lead New York to a win against Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field.

Rodriguez hit his sixth home run of the year off Rays starter Chris Archer on an 0-1 pitch in the top of the sixth inning to give the Yankees a 3-0 lead.

The Yankees scored their first run in the inning thanks to some shaky defense by the Rays. After Brett Gardner drew a one-out walk in the inning, Archer made a pickoff throw to first baseman Logan Morrison that went over his glove and into the outfield allowing Gardner to advance to third.

Mets 6, Dodgers 5

Curtis Granderson hit a home run leading off the bottom of the ninth inning Friday night as the New York Mets beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5, at Citi Field.

It was the second walk-off homer ever for Granderson. The Mets (28-19) won for the sixth time in seven games to move into a tie for first place with the Washington Nationals in the National League East.

Cardinals 6, Nationals 2

Lefty starter Jaime Garcia allowed two runs in seven innings and Stephen Piscotty hit a grand slam as St. Louis, despite getting just four hits, beat Washington.

Garcia (4-4), coming off a rough outing against Arizona, gave up seven hits and one walk with four strikeouts. The pitcher from Mexico, who was efficient with just 92 pitches, also began a third-inning rally with a one-out single.

Cubs 6, Phillies 2

Jon Lester and David Ross combined for big games but in different ways on a rain-plagued afternoon at Wrigley Field.

Lester (5-3) bounced back from two recent poor pitching outings with a strong 6 1/3-inning effort in Chicago's victory over Philadelphia.

Ross clubbed his 100th career home run in the fourth inning -- a three-run blast that put some distance between the Cubs and the Phillies.

Blue Jays 7, Red Sox 5

Josh Donaldson hit two home runs and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Boston Red Sox 7-5 on Friday night at SkyDome for their third consecutive win.

Donaldson also had a double, single and four RBIs to lead the Blue Jays (25-25). His two-run homer in the eighth put the Jays back in front after they squandered a 5-2 lead.

Braves 4, Marlins 2

An overturned call and a clutch two-out hit with the bases loaded in the eighth inning proved to be the winning combination on Friday as the Atlanta Braves posted a 4-2 victory over the Miami Marlins to end their four-game losing streak.

It appeared the threat ended when Atlanta catcher Tyler Flowers was called out at first base on what would have been an inning-ending double play. But the Braves appealed the call and the replay showed that Flowers beat the throw.

Pirates 9, Rangers 1

Pittsburgh hit four home runs, chased Cole Hamels in the fifth inning and rolled to their fifth straight win with a victory over Texas.

Hamels (5-1) had not lost since Aug. 7, 2015 -- his second start with Texas -- and was 12-0 since then coming into Friday's start.

The Pirates ended any chance at Hamels continuing the streak by scoring five times in the fifth inning to take a 6-0 lead. Hamels was done after 4 2/3 innings after he was tagged for six runs (five earned) in his shortest start since joining the Rangers.

Royals 7, White Sox 5

Eric Hosmer homered and drove in four runs, one shy of his career high, and Whit Merrifield singled in two runs in a four-run seventh as Kansas City came from behind to top Chicago.

The White Sox took a 5-1 lead in sixth when they scored all their runs. Royals left-hander Danny Duffy was perfect for 5 1/3 innings before allowing three straight singles. Melky Cabrera then hit a grand slam, his first since July 29, 2011 while with the Royals.

Rockies 5, Giants 2

Colorado parlayed a superb outing Tyler Chatwood and a barrage of early doubles into its fifth win in eight games this season against San Francisco.

The loss ended the Giants' five-game winning streak and was just their second defeat in 15 games.

Brewers 9, Reds 5

Aaron Hill belted a pair of home runs among his four hits and Milwaukee defeated Cincinnati, handing the Reds their 11th straight loss.

Jonathan Villar added three hits, while Jonathan Lucroy (home run) and Ramon Flores each finished with a pair as Milwaukee won its fourth straight.

Orioles 6, Indians 4

Manny Machado had four hits and Mark Trumbo's two-run home run capped a three-run seventh inning to lead Baltimore to a win over Cleveland at Progressive Field.

The win snaps the Orioles' four-game losing streak.

Angels 7, Astros 2

Matt Shoemaker continued his dramatic turnaround and Los Angeles rode one big inning to a victory over Houston at Angel Stadium.

Shoemaker gave up two runs and seven hits in 8 1/3 innings, striking out 11 and walking none while making 116 pitches. After 7 1/3 scoreless innings in his previous start, Shoemaker has given up two runs in 15 2/3 innings with 23 strikeouts and no walks in his past two starts.

Tigers 4, Athletics 1

Rookie right-hander Michael Fulmer pitched 7 2/3 shutout innings, Nick Castellanos hit his 10th home run of the season, and Detroit defeated Oakland at the Oakland Coliseum.

Fulmer (4-1) struck out three, walked one and threw 103 pitches in his sixth career major league start.

Padres 10, Diamondbacks 3

Yangervis Solarte hit two home runs and Matt Kemp and Derek Norris also homered to help San Diego left-hander Christian Friedrich to his first victory in almost four years in the Padres' win over Arizona at Chase Field.

Kemp and Solarte hit back-to-back homers in a four-run fifth inning off Arizona starter Robbie Ray (2-4) and Solarte hit a three-run homer in a four-run sixth. Solarte has three homers this season, all in the last two games.

Twins 7, Mariners 2

Rookie left-hander Pat Dean turned in the finest performance of his young career on a day when Seattle veteran Felix Hernandez struggled, leading Minnesota to a win over the Mariners.

Making his second career start and his fourth appearance since being promoted earlier this month, Dean (1-1) gave up four hits and two runs and had eight strikeouts in seven innings to outduel Hernandez, the Mariners' ace.

(Editing by Peter Rutherford)

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