Nathan Eovaldi recorded a career-high 12 strikeouts in 8 2/3 scoreless innings as the visiting Texas Rangers handled the Oakland Athletics 4-0 in the opener of a four-game series on Thursday.

Manager Bruce Bochy made a triumphant return to the Bay Area as the Rangers won for the fifth time in seven tries on a 10-day Western swing. Bochy managed the San Francisco Giants to three World Series titles over 13 seasons with the club.

Eovaldi (5-2) allowed just three hits and one walk while coming within one out of his second shutout of the season. He has not allowed a run in his past three outings, covering 25 2/3 innings.

Promoted from Triple-A Las Vegas to make the start, A’s right-hander Luis Medina (0-2) matched zeros with Eovaldi through four innings before giving up a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth. Medina was charged with three runs on five hits in his six innings. He struck out three and issued no walks.

Royals 4, White Sox 3

Freddy Fermin and host Kansas City squeezed by Chicago for a walk-off win on a rainy afternoon.

With runners at the corners and one out in the ninth inning, Fermin executed a perfect safety squeeze bunt, scoring Nick Pratto for the Royals’ first walk-off win since Sept. 7, 2022 — 2-1 over the Cleveland Guardians.

Scott Barlow (1-2) earned the win, pitching a hitless top of the ninth. Kansas City starter Brady Singer threw six innings, allowing a run on five hits, striking out four and walking two. White Sox starting pitcher Mike Clevinger allowed three runs on three hits, walking two and striking out two in six innings.

Giants 6, Diamondbacks 2

Casey Schmitt had four hits, including his second home run in his first three major league games, and San Francisco opened a four-game series against Arizona with a win in Phoenix.

Alex Cobb (3-1) tossed 7 1/3 scoreless innings for the Giants, who led 2-0 before scoring four runs in the top of the ninth. The right-hander allowed seven hits and two walks while striking out three.

Tommy Henry (1-1) was lifted after giving up two runs on five hits over 6 2/3 innings for the Diamondbacks. He walked two and struck out two while throwing 97 pitches. The D-backs lost their third straight game and grounded into three inning-ending double plays.

Rays 8, Yankees 2

Drew Rasmussen struck out Aaron Judge three times and pitched seven scoreless innings of two-hit ball as visiting Tampa Bay routed New York in the opener of a four-game series.

Josh Lowe hit a two-run homer and drove in a career-high five runs for the Rays, who beat the Yankees for the third time in four meetings this season. Taylor Walls added an RBI double in the seventh and Isaac Paredes contributed a run-scoring double in the eighth as the Rays became the first team to reach 30 wins, doing so in their 39th game.

Rasmussen (4-2), who allowed two singles to former Tampa Bay outfielder Jake Bauers, has thrown 21 scoreless innings in four career appearances against the Yankees. He struck out seven, walked none and got nine outs on groundouts while throwing 57 of 76 pitches for strikes.

Reds 5, Mets 0

Four pitchers combined on a six-hit shutout and Spencer Steer added a solo home run as Cincinnati cruised to a win over visiting New York in the rubber match of the three-game series.

Right-hander Ben Lively (1-0), who was recalled from Triple-A on Tuesday, earned his first major league win since Sept. 29, 2017. He scattered four hits over three innings of relief.

The Reds jumped on Mets starter Kodai Senga (4-2) for four runs with two outs in the first inning. The Reds made it 5-0 in the fifth inning on Steer’s fifth homer of the season, a high fly to the seats in left field. New York has dropped 13 of its last 17 games.

Twins 5, Padres 3

Carlos Correa capped a seventh-inning rally with a go-ahead, two-run double as Minnesota defeated San Diego in the rubber match of a three-game series in Minneapolis.

After Max Kepler grounded into a forceout to bring home a run and tie things at 3-3, Correa pulled a ball down the third base line to give the Twins their first lead. San Diego loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth, but Brock Stewart struck out Trent Grisham to escape the jam. Jorge Lopez worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save.

Joey Gallo went 2-for-3 for Minnesota, which improved to 2-1 on its six-game homestand. Minnesota’s comeback spoiled a stellar outing from Padres starter Yu Darvish, who allowed two runs on four hits through six innings. He walked one and fanned seven. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Rougned Odor hit solo shots for San Diego.

–Field Level Media