MLB roundup: Rays top Red Sox to pad AL East lead

[August 11, 2021] 

Francisco Mejia cleared the bases with a single during a four-run ninth inning as the visiting Tampa Bay Rays rallied past the slumping Boston Red Sox 8-4 in the opener of a key three-game series Tuesday night.

Ji-Man Choi tied the game with a pinch-hit two-run double in the seventh as the Rays extended their winning streak to five. Tampa Bay has beaten Boston in six straight to pull ahead by five games in the American League East standings.

Hunter Renfroe hit a three-run home run for the Red Sox, who have lost 11 of their last 14.

All-Star closer Matt Barnes (6-5) allowed four runs to sustain his third loss in four days. Andrew Kittredge (8-1) earned the win, striking out five over two scoreless innings.

Rangers 5, Mariners 4 (10 innings)

Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Yonny Hernandez hit run-scoring singles with two outs in the top of the 10th inning as Texas won in Seattle to snap a 14-game road losing streak.

Jason Martin and Adolis Garcia homered for the Rangers, who won for the first time in their past seven games overall.

Mitch Haniger and Kyle Seager went deep for the Mariners, who lost for the fifth time in their past six games.

Dodgers 5, Phillies 0

Corey Seager homered, doubled and singled, AJ Pollock added a single and two RBIs and Los Angeles defeated host Philadelphia in a game delayed by rain for nearly two hours.

Max Muncy also homered, and Trea Turner and Will Smith contributed two hits apiece for the Dodgers, who won their third in a row.

Max Scherzer and Alex Vesia (2-1) combined for 10 strikeouts and four hits allowed in five innings around the rain delay.

Braves 3, Reds 2

Atlanta got a two-run homer from Adam Duvall and took advantage of a shaky Cincinnati bullpen for a home win.

Duvall went deep in the fourth inning to tie the game after the Reds' Aristides Aquino belted a two-run shot in the second. It was Duvall's third homer since being acquired by the Braves near the trade deadline; it was his 25th overall this year.

The Braves took the lead in the sixth against the Reds' relief corps, which entered the game ranked 27th in the majors with a 5.20 ERA. Heath Hembree (2-7) allowed a hit to Austin Riley, walked Dansby Swanson and was replaced after striking out Duvall. Left-hander Amir Garrett then walked Joc Pederson and walked .203-hitting Stephen Vogt to force Riley home with the go-ahead run.

Angels 6, Blue Jays 3 (Game 1)

Justin Upton and Phil Gosselin each had two hits and two RBIs to help Los Angeles beat Toronto in the opener of a doubleheader in Anaheim, Calif.

Angels right-hander Chris Rodriguez allowed one run and six hits in four innings. Blue Jays left-hander Steven Matz (9-7) allowed four runs (two earned) and six hits in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked three.

Marcus Semien had three hits for the Blue Jays, who were the home team because it was a makeup game from an April 11 rainout in Dunedin, Fla.

Blue Jays 4, Angels 0 (Game 2)

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. gave the Blue Jays an early lead and four Toronto pitchers combined to shut out Los Angeles on three hits.

Bo Bichette and Teoscar Hernandez had two hits each and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. drove in two runs for the Blue Jays.

George Springer doubled on a 1-2 pitch to lead off the game. Guerrero then looped an RBI single to right on the first pitch he saw for a 1-0 lead. Guerrero, the All-Star Game MVP last month, scored when Hernandez singled later that inning. A two-run single by Gurriel accounted for the final two runs.

Brewers 4, Cubs 2 (Game 1)

Willy Adames, Avisail Garcia and Lorenzo Cain each homered, and Milwaukee held on to beat host Chicago in the first game of a split doubleheader.

Eduardo Escobar finished 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored for the Brewers, who snapped a two-game skid.

Patrick Wisdom and Frank Schwindel drove in one run apiece for the Cubs. Rafael Ortega went 3-for-4 for Chicago.

Brewers 6, Cubs 3 (Game 2)

Eduardo Escobar and Luis Urias each tallied two hits and an RBI as Milwaukee pulled away for a win over host Chicago to sweep a doubleheader.

Jackie Bradley Jr., Christian Yelich, Omar Narvaez and Rowdy Tellez also drove in one run apiece in the Brewers' six-run fifth inning. Miguel Sanchez (1-0) earned his first major league win despite facing just one batter.

Patrick Wisdom homered and drove in a pair of runs for the Cubs, who have lost six in a row.

A's 4, Indians 3 (10 innings)

Jed Lowrie ripped a go-ahead RBI double in the 10th inning to lift visiting Oakland over Cleveland.

Six Oakland relievers combined to allow just one hit over 8 1/3 scoreless innings. Lou Trivino (5-4) got the victory after tossing one inning, and Andrew Chafin retired the side in order in the 10th for his first save of the season.

Seth Brown belted a solo homer and Sean Murphy had an RBI double for the Athletics, who opened a 10-game road trip by winning their fifth consecutive contest. The Indians' Amed Rosario had an RBI single to highlight his third straight multi-hit performance.

Royals 8, Yankees 4

Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (13) on the mound with his players waiting for relief pitcher against the Tampa Bay Rays during the ninth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Salvador Perez celebrated the 10th anniversary of his MLB debut with a pair of home runs as Kansas City defeated New York.

It was Perez's fourth multi-homer game this season and the 10th of his career. Perez clubbed his 28th home run of the season, a career best, in the first inning. His 418-foot blast to left-center gave the Royals their first lead of the series.

Leading off the sixth, Perez tied the game with his second homer of the night. Hunter Dozier then drove home Emmanuel Rivera from first with a double, giving the Royals a 5-4 lead.

Cardinals 4, Pirates 1

Tommy Edman and Paul DeJong homered and St. Louis held Pittsburgh to one hit in a road win.

Harrison Bader added an RBI single for the Cardinals, who have won three of four. The Pirates have lost six straight.

St. Louis left-hander J.A. Happ (6-6), making his second start since being acquired in a trade, gave up a solo homer for the only run and hit he yielded in six innings. He struck out five and walked two.

Twins 4, White Sox 3

Willians Astudillo hit a two-run, go-ahead homer in the sixth inning to lead Minnesota to a victory over Chicago in Minneapolis.

Andrelton Simmons had two hits for Minnesota, which won for just the fifth time in 18 games against the American League Central-leading White Sox this season.

Rookie Griffin Jax (3-1) won his second straight start, allowing three runs on five hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out a career-high 10 batters. Alex Colome pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his sixth save.

Astros 5, Rockies 0

Taylor Jones roped doubles in consecutive at-bats and Houston claimed the opener of a two-game interleague series against visiting Colorado.

Five Astros pitchers combined on a five-hit shutout.
 

Astros right-hander Jake Odorizzi (5-6) took a step toward reclaiming the form he showed prior to the All-Star break, tossing five shutout innings. He gave up three hits and two walks while fanning three.

Tigers 9, Orioles 4

Jeimer Candelario hit a two-run homer and Detroit opened a three-game series with a win in Baltimore.

A scary moment occurred in the eighth inning when Tigers outfielders Akil Baddoo and Derek Hill, both running full speed, collided in left-center as Hill made the catch on a ball hit by Anthony Santander.

Both players remained on the ground as the trainer came out. Eventually both were able to walk off slowly as they were replaced in the lineup.

Giants 8, Diamondbacks 7

Arizona first baseman Christian Walker couldn't handle Kris Bryant's hard-hit grounder with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, allowing LaMonte Wade Jr. to score the winning run for host San Francisco.

The Giants took advantage of two Walker errors to score the walk-off win after Arizona, down 5-0 early in the game and 7-5 entering the ninth, had rallied for two runs off San Francisco closer Jake McGee.

Wade led off the bottom of the ninth against Matt Peacock (5-7) with a shot that bounced off Walker's glove for his first error of the inning. After two infield outs sandwiched a walk to Buster Posey, Bryant went the other way with his hot shot that once again found Walker. The first baseman knocked down the ball but couldn't recover in time to prevent the Giants' second walk-off win of the season.

Padres 6, Marlins 5

Austin Nola drove in two runs -- including the go-ahead RBI in the seventh inning -- leading host San Diego to the win over Miami.
 

The Padres needed eight pitchers to nail down their fourth straight win. Their seventh pitcher, Drew Pomeranz, left the game in the eighth due to an apparent injury.

Miguel Rojas and Jorge Alfaro each had two RBIs for the Marlins, who lost their fifth straight game. It's the second-longest skid of Miami's season.

Nationals 3, Mets 1 (Suspended)

Rain forced the suspension of the game between Washington and host New York while Washington held a 3-1 lead with no outs in the top of the second inning.

Juan Soto cracked a three-run homer to left-center off Carlos Carrasco in the first, cashing in hits by Victor Robles and Alcides Escobar to open the game.

The game will be completed Wednesday starting at 4:10 p.m. ET. It will be played as a nine-inning game, followed by a seven-inning game that will begin at 7:10 p.m. ET. It will be New York's 12th doubleheader of the year.

--Field Level Media

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