Christopher Morel’s eighth-inning sacrifice fly gave the Chicago Cubs a 1-0 win over the visiting Atlanta Braves, ending their 10-game losing streak and Atlanta’s 14-game winning streak on Friday.
It marked the first time since 1999 that a team ended a double-digit losing streak by beating a team that was on a double-digit winning streak.
The Cubs scratched out the game’s only run against reliever A.J. Minter (2-1), who walked pinch-hitter Jonathan Villar to start the inning. Villar moved to second on Andrelton Simmons’ sacrifice bunt and stole third after being unchecked by Minter.
Morel hit a fly to center fielder Michael Harris II, whose throw to the plate was wide toward the first base side and allowed Villar to slide home safely.
The winning pitcher was Chris Martin (1-0), who threw a scoreless eighth. David Robertson worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning and earned his eighth save. Minter allowed his first earned run since April 24.
Yankees 12, Blue Jays 3
Anthony Rizzo completed an eight-run fifth inning with his sixth career grand slam and visiting New York defeated Toronto.
Giancarlo Stanton and Joey Gallo each hit two-run homers and DJ LeMahieu added a solo shot for New York in the opener of a three-game series. Gallo had three RBIs for the Yankees, who have won eight in a row.
Alejandro Kirk hit a solo home run for the Blue Jays, who have lost two straight. Gabriel Moreno had three singles and two RBIs.
Rockies 10, Padres 4
C.J. Cron homered twice and drove in five runs, Randal Grichuk also went deep and finished with two hits and Colorado beat San Diego in Denver.
Cron and Charlie Blackmon had three hits apiece, Yonathan Daza and Connor Joe had two hits each and Kyle Freeland (3-5) allowed four runs on eight hits over seven innings for the Rockies. Freeland walked one and had no strikeouts.
Trent Grisham homered and Jake Cronenworth had two hits for the Padres, who had their four-game winning streak stopped.
Phillies 5, Nationals 3 (Game 1)
Nick Castellanos drove in two runs and Ranger Suarez pitched into the sixth inning as visiting Philadelphia beat Washington in the opener of a day-night doubleheader.
Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm each finished with three of Philadelphia’s nine hits, while the Phillies drew seven walks.
Josh Bell smacked a two-run home run for the Nationals. Washington starter Joan Adon (1-11), who has the most losses in the big leagues this season, found himself on the losing end.
Phillies 8, Nationals 7 (Game 2)
J.T. Realmuto’s two-run single with one out in the 10th inning gave visiting Philadelphia a victory and a sweep of Washington in the day-night doubleheader.
Matt Vierling’s second home run of the game broke a ninth-inning tie for the Phillies, before the Nationals forced the extra frame. Vierling’s third home run of the season came with one out against Tanner Rainey, helping the Phillies post their 14th win in their last 16 games.
Josh Bell homered twice for the Nationals, but they lost their seventh game in a row. Washington scored in the 10th on Ehire Adrianza’s two-out double, but he was stranded to end the game.
Orioles 1, Rays 0
Rookie Adley Rutschman had an RBI single in the seventh inning to fuel host Baltimore to a victory over Tampa Bay.
Rutschman had two of the five hits for the Orioles, who have won five of their last seven games. Baltimore’s Dean Kremer scattered five hits and fanned five over six innings before giving way to Felix Bautista (3-2), who struck out the side in the seventh.
Rookie Vidal Brujan and Ji-Man Choi each had two hits for the Rays, whose four-game losing streak matches a season worst.
Brewers 5, Reds 4
Keston Hiura broke a tie with an opposite-field homer in the seventh inning, leading Milwaukee past host Cincinnati in the opener of a three-game series.
Eric Lauer (6-2) survived allowing three homers and four runs over 6 1/3 innings for the Brewers, who won for just the fourth time in 16 games. Milwaukee reliever Brad Boxberger retired pinch hitter Joey Votto on a deep fly to center with the tying and winning runs on base to record his first save this season.
Rookie Hunter Greene, who was named the National League Player of the Week on Monday, lasted just five innings and was tagged for two more home runs by Milwaukee hitters, a three-run shot by Hunter Renfroe and a solo shot by Willy Adames. In three starts against the Brewers this season, Greene has served up eight home runs.
Giants 2, Pirates 0
Luis Gonzalez and Joc Pederson socked home runs and left-hander Carlos Rodon pitched eight shutout innings to lead visiting San Francisco past Pittsburgh.
Rodon (6-4) gave up two hits, both singles, struck out eight and walked two. Camilo Doval pitched a one-two-three ninth to sew up the shutout and earn his 10th save.
The Giants have won six of their past seven games. The Pirates have lost 10 of 11.
Red Sox 6, Cardinals 5
After Michael Wacha allowed one run in 5 1/3 inning against his former team, host Boston held on to beat St. Louis, which scored four runs in the ninth inning.
Tanner Houck struck out Paul Goldschmidt with a runner on second to end the game and earn his third save. Wacha (5-1), facing off against longtime teammate and mentor Adam Wainwright, allowed just six hits and one walk while striking out five.
In his first regular-season start in Boston, Wainwright (5-5) was charged with four runs on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. He fanned five and walked one.
Rangers 7, Tigers 0
Jonah Heim homered and drove in three runs, Jon Gray pitched seven strong innings and visiting Texas silenced punchless Detroit.
Gray limited the Tigers to five hits and no walks while striking out six. Brett Martin pitched the eighth inning and Garrett Richards finished up as the Rangers improved to 2-0 in the four-game series.
Corey Seager had two hits and scored two runs for Texas, while Adolis Garcia drove in two runs and scored another. Detroit starter Tarik Skubal gave up five runs and eight hits in five innings.
Mets 10, Marlins 4
Francisco Lindor homered and drove in four runs, Pete Alonso hit a grand slam and Carlos Carrasco threw 6 1/3 effective innings as host New York routed Miami.
Lindor’s three-run homer, his 10th homer of the season, put the Mets ahead 3-0 against Pablo Lopez (4-3) in the first inning. Alonso’s slam, a line shot that just cleared the fence in left, was his 19th long ball. The blast capped a seven-run sixth inning that sealed the Mets’ fourth win in the past five games. Alonso leads the National League with 63 RBI.
Carrasco (8-2) allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks. He struck out seven. Lopez permitted eight hits and seven runs, six earned, in 5 1/3 innings. He fanned five and walked one as Miami lost for the fourth time in five games.
Astros 13, White Sox 3
Michael Brantley clubbed his third career grand slam as part of a 10-run sixth inning and Houston slugged its way to a win over visiting Chicago.
The Astros’ double-digit inning included seven runs that scored via three two-out home runs. Brantley struck the decisive blow by driving a first-pitch fastball from White Sox reliever Matt Foster 369 feet into the right-field seats. The Astros chased White Sox starter Lucas Giolito (4-3) four batters earlier when Aledmys Diaz walked to load the bases.
Foster surrendered an RBI single to Chas McCormick that lifted Houston to a 6-3 lead but appeared set to limit the damage with strikeouts of Martin Maldonado and Jose Altuve. Brantley then broke open the game with his first grand slam since May 11, 2018.
Diamondbacks 7, Twins 2
Jordan Luplow homered twice and drove in three runs and Jake Hager had three hits to help Arizona beat Minnesota in Phoenix.
Madison Bumgarner (3-6) gave up two runs in six innings to win for the first time since May 10 as Arizona prevailed for the fifth time in nine games. Bumgarner yielded nine hits and one walk while striking out three. The left-hander was 0-5 over his previous six starts.
Byron Buxton hit his 19th homer of the season for the Twins, who dropped to 2-2 on a six-game road trip. Twins starter Devin Smeltzer (3-1) allowed seven runs (six earned) and nine hits over 4 1/3 innings. He struck out three and walked two.
Mariners 8, Angels 1
Robbie Ray took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Seattle broke out of an offensive slump with a victory against visiting Los Angeles.
After Ray (6-6) retired the first two batters easily in the seventh, Max Stassi hit a high chopper back to the mound. The ball went off the end of Ray’s glove and fell behind him, leaving second baseman Adam Frazier, who was shifted toward shortstop, with no chance to make a play.
That snapped a streak of 18 consecutive batters retired by Ray. The left-hander allowed one run on three hits, walked one and matched a season high with 10 strikeouts in seven-plus innings. Ray lost his shutout bid in the eighth on Andrew Velazquez’s run-scoring double to right.
Royals 5, Athletics 1
Salvador Perez doubled, homered and drove in two runs and Daniel Lynch struck out a career-high 10 in five effective innings as Kansas City opened a three-game road series with a victory over Oakland.
Whit Merrifield had three hits while Andrew Benintendi and Michael A. Taylor chipped in with two apiece for the Royals, who won their second in a row to improve to 2-2 on a nine-game California swing.
Elvis Andrus had two singles and scored Oakland’s only run as the A’s lost for the 14th time in their past 16 games. The Royals jumped on A’s ace Frankie Montas (3-7) for single runs in the first, second and third innings, then took advantage of shaky Oakland defense to add two more in the fifth.
Guardians 2, Dodgers 1 (10 innings)
Richie Palacios had a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the 10th inning and four relievers worked four scoreless innings as Cleveland extended its winning streak to five games by beating host Los Angeles.
Josh Naylor also had a sacrifice fly for the Guardians’ first run, while Amed Rosario went 1-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw, in his second outing since spending a month on the injured list, gave up just one run over five innings.
The Dodgers had a chance to win the game in the ninth inning, putting runners on first and third with one out and the score 1-1. Guardians left-hander Anthony Gose (3-0) then entered and struck out Gavin Lux and got Trea Turner on a fly ball to right. Turner had three hits to extend his hitting streak to 10 games.
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