LDN - Sports

Highlights of Thursday's MLB games

[April 28, 2017] April 27 (The Sports Xchange)

Yankees 3, Red Sox 0

Masahiro Tanaka outdueled Chris Sale in a battle of aces, and the New York Yankees completed a two-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox with a 3-0 victory on Thursday night.

Tanaka (3-1) tossed a three-hitter to win a third consecutive start. It was the fifth complete game of his career and his first since 2015. He didn't walk anyone, and he struck out three in becoming the first Yankee to throw a complete-game shutout against Boston since Mike Mussina in 2002.

Tanaka retired the last 14 batters, good for 15 outs, and needed 97 pitches to complete his second career shutout. New York, which started the season 1-4, is 12-3 since.

Nationals 16, Rockies 5

Washington erupted for 11 runs in the seventh inning and crushed Colorado with another stunning offensive display.

While winning the final three contests of a four-game series, the Nationals outscored the Rockies 42-21. The Colorado bullpen, which allowed 20 runs in the first 19 games, was torched for 26 runs in the past three contests.

Adam Eaton, Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy homered for Washington, which had 19 hits Thursday and 47 in the past three games, including seven homers. Gio Gonzalez (3-0) gave up two runs and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Cardinals 8, Blue Jays 4 (1st game, 11 innings)

Matt Carpenter walloped his first career grand slam with one out in the bottom of the 11th inning to give St. Louis the victory over Toronto in the first game of a day-night doubleheader.

Kolten Wong led off the 11th with a triple down the right-field line against Ryan Tepera. After Toronto gave intentional walks to Randal Grichuk and Dexter Fowler, Aledmys Diaz flew out to shallow left. But Carpenter unloaded on a 3-2 breaking ball from J.P. Howell.

Toronto held a two-run lead entering the bottom of the ninth and was one out away from winning its first series of the year. But Randal Grichuk belted a two-run homer off Roberto Osuna to force extra innings.

Cardinals 6, Blue Jays 4 (2nd game)

Scoring in each of the first four innings in the nightcap of a day-night doubleheader, St. Louis finished off a sweep of Toronto.

Dexter Fowler homered and went 3-for-4, Matt Adams and Greg Garcia each went 3-for-3, and Adam Wainwright picked up his second consecutive victory for the Cardinals. Wainwright (2-3) allowed nine hits and four runs in 6 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out four in his first outing past five innings this year.

Blue Jays rookie right-hander Casey Lawrence (0-3) was strafed for 10 hits and six runs in five innings in his second big league start, walking three and fanning one.

Diamondbacks 6, Padres 2

Chris Owings hit a pair of homers, and Arizona starter Taijuan Walker kept San Diego in check.

Owings hit solo homers in consecutive at-bats. His shot in the third inning tied the game 1-1, and his next in the fourth made it 4-1. In between, Yasmany Tomas hit a two-run blast in the fourth.

Walker matched a career high with 11 strikeouts while allowing two runs and four hits in eight innings. J.J. Hoover pitched a scoreless ninth for Arizona, which leads Colorado by one-half game.

Indians 4, Astros 3

Francisco Lindor's two-out, two-run homer in the seventh inning lifted Cleveland over Houston.

With the Indians trailing 3-2 and Yan Gomes, who had walked, on first, Lindor pounded a 2-0 pitch from Chris Devenski (1-1) over the wall in center field. Lindor's sixth home run was estimated at 456 feet.

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Cleveland's Corey Kluber (3-1) struck out 10 in seven innings. He allowed three runs on eight hits and four walks. Bryan Shaw retired the side in order in the eighth, and Cody Allen pitched around three hits in the ninth to earn his fifth save.

Angels 2, Athletics 1

Albert Pujols and C.J. Cron drove in runs in the first inning, and starter Ricky Nolasco made it stand up as Los Angeles swept Oakland.

Nolasco (2-2) gave up one run on three hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings to earn his second win in a row. Blake Parker got the final out in the sixth, and David Hernandez, Jose Alvarez and Bud Norris (fourth save) combined to pitch the final three innings.

Oakland's Kendall Graveman (2-1) made his first start since April 14, having recovered from a strained right shoulder. After a bumpy first inning, Graveman settled in and pitched well, allowing two runs and six hits without walking a batter in six innings.

Dodgers 5, Giants 1 (10 innings)

Chase Utley tagged up and scored on a foul out to the first baseman as part of a four-run 10th inning as Los Angeles defeated San Francisco.

Enrique Hernandez hit a high pop fly down the right-field line, which Giants first baseman Buster Posey was able to catch after bobbling. Utley tagged and slid home safely on what was scored a sacrifice fly.

Kenley Jansen (1-0), who pitched a scoreless ninth inning, got the win for the Dodgers. Chris Hatcher retired San Francisco in the bottom of the 10th.

Phillies 3, Marlins 2

Starter Jeremy Hellickson and the bullpen helped Philadelphia win its sixth game in a row.

Hellickson (4-0) outdueled Miami's Edinson Volquez (0-3) to stay undefeated. Hellickson allowed one run on seven hits and struck out only one batter against zero walks, lowering his ERA to 1.80 and his WHIP to 0.80.

The Phillies tallied a run in the first thanks to a Dee Gordon throwing error. They scored again in the third on an Odubel Herrera RBI groundout to take a 2-0 lead.

Mariners 2, Tigers 1

Ben Gamel smacked a go-ahead RBI single in the top of the ninth as Seattle defeated Detroit.

Gamel knocked in Kyle Seager from second base after Seager doubled off reliever Francisco Rodriguez (1-2). Seager knocked in the Mariners' other run with a single in the sixth.

Reliever Tony Zych (1-0) recorded his second major league win with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. Edwin Diaz collected his third save.

Braves 7, Mets 5

Kurt Suzuki's three-run homer capped a four-run fifth inning as Atlanta swept the two-game series versus New York.

The Braves never trailed in their consecutive wins over the Mets, who finished 1-8 on their longest homestand of the first half.

Worse yet for New York, its injury-wracked roster took two more hits when ace right-hander Noah Syndergaard was scratched hours before first pitch because of biceps tendinitis and left fielder Yoenis Cespedes exited in the fourth inning after aggravating a left hamstring injury.

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