MLB roundup: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. belts 3 homers in Jays' win

[April 14, 2022]  Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit two of his three homers in consecutive at-bats off Gerrit Cole and withstood his hand getting stepped on during a play at first base as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the New York Yankees 6-4 Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.

George Springer hit the tiebreaking single off Jonathan Loaisiga with two outs in the seventh. Springer delivered after the Yankees were unable to turn a double play on Santiago Espinal's grounder off Chad Green (0-1).

Before Springer's fourth RBI of the series, Guerrero recorded his eighth career multi-homer game with a solo drive in the first and a two-run shot in the third. He then extended it to his second career three-homer game with a 443-foot drive to left on the first pitch of the eighth off Loaisiga.

Anthony Rizzo and Aaron Judge homered on consecutive pitches in the fifth off Jose Berrios. DJ LeMahieu hit a game-tying double later in the inning, and Torres homered in the eighth.

Giants 2, Padres 1

Logan Webb won a pitchers' duel and Luke Williams drove in the only runs host San Francisco would need in the second inning in beating San Diego in the finale of their three-game series.

Webb (1-0) allowed a double and triple in the first inning, then permitted just two more hits through eight innings as the Giants took the series with back-to-back wins. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter. Williams' two-run double to left field with two outs in the second erased the Giants' 1-0 deficit.

San Diego left-hander Sean Manaea went six innings, allowing just the two runs and four hits. He walked two and struck out six. Camilo Doval picked up his first save of the season, surviving a bases-loaded jam in the ninth.


Nationals 3, Braves 1

Josiah Gray pitched five shutout innings and third baseman Maikel Franco continued his hot hitting to lead visiting Washington to a win over Atlanta.

Gray (1-1) beat the Braves for the first time in three career starts. He allowed only one hit -- a lead-off single to Ozzie Albies -- while striking out five and walking three.

Relievers Sean Doolittle, Steve Cishek and Tanner Rainey each pitched a scoreless inning for Washington. Rainey recorded his second save after inducing Marcell Ozuna to hit into a game-ending double play in the ninth inning. Franco went 8-for-13 with two doubles, one homer and seven RBIs to help the Nationals win two of three in the series.


Red Sox 9, Tigers 7

Jackie Bradley Jr. drove in three runs as Boston overwhelmed former teammate Eduardo Rodriguez and held off host Detroit.

Enrique Hernandez had two hits -- including a homer -- with two runs scored and two RBIs. Nathan Eovaldi (1-0) gave up two runs on four hits and struck out six in five innings. Hansel Robles recorded four outs while collecting the save.

Rodriguez (0-1) allowed seven runs, though only two were earned, in 3 2/3 innings. Rodriguez won 64 games for the Red Sox from 2015-21. He signed a five-year, $77 million contract with the Tigers as a free agent during the offseason. Spencer Torkelson, the top pick of the 2020 amateur draft, hit his first major league homer for Detroit.

A's 4, Rays 2

After being the subject of persistent trade rumors in recent days, Oakland ace Frankie Montas was masterful as Oakland defeated Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Montas (1-1) went 6 1/3 innings, allowing just five hits and two runs (one earned). He struck out six without a walk. Relievers Kirby Snead, Zach Jackson and Lou Trivino came on to keep the Rays quiet, with Trivino earning his first save of the season.

Oakland's Sean Murphy hit a three-run homer, and the Rays' Ji-Man Choi had a solo shot. Tampa Bay starter Shane McClanahan yielded three runs on two hits and three walks in 4 2/3 innings, though he fanned eight.


Guardians 7, Reds 3

Cleveland bashed four home runs to pummel host Cincinnati and sweep the two-game series.

Third baseman Jose Ramirez was particularly lethal by going 3-for-4, with a two-run homer, double and three RBIs to help the Guardians win their fourth straight game. He's batting .480 on the season with a major league-high 14 RBIs. The Guardians have scored 44 runs and banged out 58 hits in the winning streak.

Jake Fraley and Tyler Stephenson supplied home runs for Cincinnati in the losing effort. Nick Lodolo (0-1) pitched four innings in his major league debut, allowing five runs on seven hits and three walks, with four strikeouts.


Pirates 6, Cubs 2

Ben Gamel's go-ahead three-run home run in the first inning stood up as Pittsburgh downed visiting Chicago for a split of their two-game series.

Kevin Newman added a two-run triple, and Ke'Bryan Hayes went 4-for-4 with an RBI single and two runs scored for the Pirates, who scored all of their runs with two outs.

Apr 13, 2022; Bronx, New York, USA; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) hits a double in the sixth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Pittsburgh starter Zach Thompson gave up two runs and five hits in four-plus innings, with three strikeouts and one walk. He left the game after getting hit in the back of the right (throwing) shoulder with a comebacker by Nico Hoerner two batters into the fifth. Dillon Peters (1-0) pitched two scoreless innings and Wil Crowe worked the final three innings for his professional save.

Mets 9, Phillies 6

Pete Alonso hit a three-run homer and finished with five RBIs for visiting New York, which raced out to a big lead before hanging on to beat Philadelphia in the rubber game of a three-game series.

The Mets finished 5-2 on a season-opening road trip. The Phillies went 3-3 on their first homestand.

Alonso did his damage in three consecutive innings by delivering RBI doubles in the fourth and fifth innings before his homer capped a four-run sixth. In two starts as the Mets' designated hitter this season, Alonso has two homers and nine RBIs.


Dodgers 7, Twins 0

Clayton Kershaw struck out 13 batters in seven perfect innings before being pulled on a 38-degree afternoon and the Los Angeles bats came alive in beating host Minnesota.

Pitching in a wind-chill of 28 degrees, Kershaw (1-0) was on a 75-pitch limit in making his first start following a 10-8 season when he made just 22 starts and missed the postseason due to left forearm and elbow injuries. He threw 80 pitches, 53 for strikes.

Cody Bellinger, Gavin Lux and Austin Barnes homered on consecutive at-bats in the eighth inning for the Dodgers, who had hit just one homer in their first four games of the season. Max Muncy also homered for Los Angeles.

Diamondbacks 3, Astros 2 (10 innings)

Seth Beer singled in the tying run and Ketel Marte delivered a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning as Arizona beat Houston in Phoenix.

Arizona starter Merrill Kelly allowed three hits over 5 1/3 scoreless innings. He walked two and struck out six. Kelly has not allowed a run in his first two outings covering 9 1/3 innings. The D-backs salvaged a split of the two-game interleague set despite stranding 17 baserunners and going 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position.

Astros starter Framber Valdez allowed one run on two hits with five walks and three strikeouts over three innings. Chas McCormick had three hits for Houston, which went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez missed his second straight game with an undisclosed illness.


White Sox 6, Mariners 4

Eloy Jimenez's homer sparked a four-run outburst in the second inning and Chicago held on to defeat visiting Seattle on a wet night on the South Side.

Tim Anderson and Luis Robert added back-to-back shots with one out in the bottom of the seventh after the Mariners had pulled within a run. The White Sox won their fourth game in a row and sent the Mariners to their fourth consecutive defeat.

Left-hander Dallas Keuchel (1-0), making his season debut, earned the victory, allowing three runs on six hits in five innings. Mariners lefty Robbie Ray (1-1), who won the American League's Cy Young Award last season while with Toronto, gave up six runs on 10 hits in 6 1/3 innings, including all three home runs.

Brewers 4, Orioles 2

Kolten Wong ripped a go-ahead RBI triple in the ninth inning to send Milwaukee past host Baltimore to win the rubber match of the three-game series.

Rowdy Tellez's second RBI double of the game came later in the inning to provide insurance. It came off former Brewers pitcher Jorge Lopez (0-1). Brad Boxberger (1-0) picked up the win after he retired the two batters he faced to end the eighth inning. Maryland native Josh Hader secured his third save of the season and second in as many nights.

Milwaukee starter Corbin Burnes struck out eight and allowed only three hits over seven scoreless innings. Baltimore's John Means surrendered two runs on two hits in four innings before exiting after just 51 pitches due to left forearm tightness.

--Field Level Media

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