MLB roundup: Red Sox end skid, sink Royals on walk-off slam

 

[August 08, 2023]  Pablo Reyes hit a grand slam against Carlos Hernandez with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the host Boston Red Sox to a 6-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday in the opener of a four-game series.

It was the first home run of the season for Reyes, who collected three hits and scored three times in the win. Boston had lost four straight games and seven of its last eight.

The home run came minutes after Royals manager Matt Quatraro was ejected for arguing a ball-four call. Hernandez fell to 1-7 this season. Kenley Jansen (3-5) pitched a scoreless top of the ninth to earn the win. He struck out two.

Kansas City starter Cole Ragans went 6 2/3 innings. He gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits, walked one and struck out a career-high 11. Designated hitter MJ Melendez had three hits for the Royals.

Brewers 12, Rockies 1

Freddy Peralta retired the final 20 hitters he faced after allowing a first-inning solo homer to pace Milwaukee over visiting Colorado in the opener of a three-game series.

Peralta (8-8) allowed just one runner in seven innings, a one-out blast in the first by Ezequiel Tovar, who hit his 11th home run of the season. Peralta matched his career high with 13 strikeouts with no walks in his 94-pitch outing.

Elvis Peguero and Andrew Chafin each tossed a perfect inning to preserve the one-hitter and maintain Milwaukee's lead of 1 1/2 games over Cincinnati in the National League Central.

Dodgers 13, Padres 7

Mookie Betts capped an eight-run fourth inning with a grand slam to lead visiting Los Angeles to a victory over San Diego.

The Dodgers were trailing 5-4 when Betts connected for his 31st home run of the season. David Peralta added an RBI double and Jason Heyward ripped a two-run double as part of the fourth-inning outburst.

Catcher Luis Campusano had four hits and drove in four runs for the Padres, who scored five runs in the third to jump out to an early lead.

Twins 9, Tigers 3

Ryan Jeffers and Carlos Correa hit three-run homers during the first two innings and Minnesota won its fifth straight game by pounding host Detroit.

Correa scored two runs and drove in four for the American League Central Division leaders. Winning pitcher Pablo Lopez (7-6) scattered five hits and didn't walk a batter while recording eight strikeouts in seven innings.

The Tigers have lost nine of their last 12 games. Nick Maton hit a three-run homer for Detroit. Joey Wentz (2-10), making his first start since June 28, surrendered eight runs and 10 hits in three innings.

Reds 5, Marlins 2

Brandon Williamson allowed one run on three hits over 6 2/3 innings as host Cincinnati earned a victory over Miami in the opener of a three-game series.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Joey Votto homered for the Reds, who snapped a six-game losing streak.

Jorge Soler and Jazz Chisholm Jr. each went deep for Miami, which lost its fifth straight game. Twenty-year-old right-hander Eury Perez (5-4), making his first major league start since July 6 after being sent down to the minors to rest, took the loss, allowing four runs on five hits over 4 2/3 innings.

Pirates 7, Braves 6

Jared Triolo hit a two-run single during a six-run third for Pittsburgh, which topped visiting Atlanta.

Connor Joe homered, Andrew McCutchen hit an RBI double and Henry Davis and Liover Peguero each added an RBI single for the Pirates, who have won two straight games and three of their last four.

Atlanta starter Spencer Strider (12-4) had his shortest outing of the year, giving up six runs and five hits in 2 2/3 innings. Ozzie Albies went deep for the Braves.

Aug 7, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox shortstop Pablo Reyes (19) hits a grand slam to end the game against the Kansas City Royals in the ninth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Blue Jays 3, Guardians 1

Cavan Biggio hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to break a scoreless tie and help lift visiting Toronto to a win against Cleveland in the opener of a four-game series.

Toronto starter Hyun Jin Ryu made his second start since returning from Tommy John surgery in June of 2022, but his night was cut short when he was hit in the lower right leg by a line drive off the bat of Oscar Gonzalez at the end of the fourth inning.

Enyel De Los Santos (4-2) started the eighth for the Guardians after rookie right-hander Gavin Williams had blanked the Blue Jays on one hit over seven innings. De Los Santos gave up a one-out, broken-bat single to Daulton Varsho before Biggio lifted a changeup over the fence in center field for a 2-0 lead.

Mets 11, Cubs 2

Pete Alonso tied career highs with two homers and six RBIs for host New York, which snapped a six-game losing streak with a win over Chicago in the opener of a three-game series.

Alonso hit a three-run homer off Drew Smyly (8-8) in the first and laced a two-run shot against the Cubs' left-hander in the third before closing out the scoring with an RBI single off backup catcher Tucker Barnhart in the eighth. Kodai Senga (8-6) earned the win by allowing two runs over six innings.

Cody Bellinger was 3-for-3 with two RBIs for the Cubs. Smyly allowed seven runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out five over five-plus innings.

White Sox 5, Yankees 1

Andrew Vaughn smacked a two-run home run and made a game-saving defensive play to lift host Chicago past New York.

Chicago stretched its winning streak to three games while sending the Yankees to their third loss in four games. New York went 1-for-12 with men in scoring position while leaving 13 runners on base.

Gerrit Cole pitched seven-plus innings. He fell to 10-3 after spacing four runs and five hits with two walks and three strikeouts.

Giants 8, Angels 3

San Francisco scored six runs in the ninth inning to rally past Los Angeles in Anaheim, Calif., sending the reeling Angels to their seventh loss in a row.

The Angels led 3-2 going into the ninth, thanks in part to a home-run-robbing catch by center fielder Mickey Moniak in the eighth. Moniak leaped and reached above the wall to pull back pinch hitter Joc Pederson's potential game-tying blast.

It became a moot point in the ninth when the Giants pounded Angels closer Carlos Estevez, who was charged with his second consecutive blown save after beginning the season with saves in 23 consecutive chances. San Francisco finished with 11 hits.

Rangers 5, Athletics 3

Mitch Garver had three hits and two RBIs to help Texas come from behind and beat host Oakland.

Travis Jankowski's fielder's choice in the eighth inning pushed across the tiebreaking run for Texas, which has won a season-high seven consecutive games. It is the Rangers' best streak since they also won seven straight in June 2018.

Zack Gelof had a two-run double for the Athletics, who dropped to 5-27 against American League West teams this season.

--Field Level Media

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