The New York Yankees were able to achieve something on Friday that no other pitching staff has accomplished this year: keeping Jose Ramirez hitless.

The Yankees look to contain the third baseman again and continue their run of impressive pitching when they host the Cleveland Guardians in the second game of a three-game series on Saturday.

Ramirez entered the series opener with a season-opening, 12-game hitting streak.

Jameson Taillon held Ramirez hitless in three at-bats and Michael King struck him out in the eighth as the Yankees opened the series with a 4-1 victory. Taillon retired Ramirez on groundouts in the first and fourth and ended his outing by getting Ramirez on a flyout to center fielder Aaron Judge, who homered twice.

“I had a lot of adrenaline,” Taillon said of retiring Ramirez for his final batter. “I know what this (Cleveland) lineup’s capable of. I didn’t throw it where I wanted to, it was supposed to be up, but at least I put a little extra on it to beat his barrel a little bit.”

By containing Ramirez, the Yankees head into Saturday with an American League-leading 2.47 ERA. Friday marked the 11th time in 14 games the Yankees saw a starting pitcher allow two runs or fewer, and no New York starter has yielded more than three earned runs in an outing this season.

Ramirez saw his average drop from a major-league-leading .426 to .392. The 0-for-4 night also snapped his 16-game hitting streak dating to last season marked the first time in 12 games the Yankees held Ramirez hitless.

“That’s all right,” Ramirez said. “I’ll start another (hitting streak) tomorrow.”

Ramirez’s quiet outing was part of Cleveland’s rough night at the plate after the team scored 19 runs in a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. The Guardians struck out a season-high 15 times and went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. They scored their lone run on a homer by Franmil Reyes.

“We’ve got to put the ball in play,” Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. “But you’ve got to give them credit, they pitched really, really well.”

Nestor Cortes (0-0, 0.00 ERA), who owns a 12-inning scoreless streak dating to his final start of last season, will start Saturday for the Yankees. He followed up 4 1/3 innings on April 12 against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays by fanning 12 and allowing three hits in five innings against at Baltimore on Sunday, when the Yankees took a 5-0 loss.

He also highlighted his most dominant appearance by recording an immaculate inning. In the fourth, he struck out Anthony Santander on a foul tip, caught Ryan McKenna looked and got Robinson Chirinos swinging.

“It’s fun to be out there every single time when you’re on a roll like that,” Cortes said postgame. “It just makes it a little sweeter. It’s unfortunate we didn’t come out with the ‘W’ today.”

Cortes owns a 3.18 ERA in three career relief appearances against Cleveland spanning 5 2/3 innings.

Cal Quantrill (1-0, 3.72 ERA) is expected to come off the COVID-19 injured list Saturday to make his third start of the season for the Guardians. Quantrill last pitched on April 16 against the San Francisco Giants, when he threw 91 pitches and allowed two runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Quantrill will make his first career start against the Yankees. He owns a 2.08 ERA spanning 4 1/3 innings in three relief appearances against New York, all of them last year.

–Field Level Media

There are 148 games left in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ season, which is more than enough time for them to find the depths to which many think they will sink.

But a 7-7 start, while average on paper, looks better than many envisioned. And Pittsburgh can climb over .500 on Saturday if it continues its recent success against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Friday night’s 4-2 win over Chicago marked the Pirates’ third straight victory against its National League Central Division rival. Catcher Roberto Perez led the offense with three RBI, and the bullpen supplied 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Jose Quintana.

For Pittsburgh to make it four in a row, it will need a better, longer outing from starter Zach Thompson (0-1, 9.00 ERA). He’s coming off a 6-1 loss Monday night in Milwaukee that saw him allow six hits and six runs, all earned, over four innings with four walks and five strikeouts.

Most of the damage came off one swing of Christian Yelich’s bat. He hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth, blowing the game open.

“One pitch, and I paid for it,” Thompson said. “I’ve got to move forward from this.”

Making the inning (and outing) even more frustrating was that Thompson could have finished the fourth inning down just 2-1. But he walked Willy Adames after being ahead in the count, extending the Brewers’ rally to give Yelich his chance.

Thompson did pitch respectably on April 13 in the Pirates’ 6-2 home win over the Cubs, lasting four innings and permitting two runs and five hits. He walked one and fanned three. Thompson is 0-1 with a 1.93 ERA in three career outings against Chicago, the first two occurring last year with the Miami Marlins.

Meanwhile, the Cubs will turn to staff ace Kyle Hendricks (0-1, 6.08), who’s looking to bounce back from a couple of surprisingly short starts. That includes his only loss, the game Thompson started in Pittsburgh. Hendricks gave up six runs on seven hits and four walks in 3 2/3 innings that day.

He’s coming off a no-decision Monday night in Chicago’s 4-2 home win over Tampa Bay. Hendricks yielded five hits and two runs in 4 1/3 innings, walking two and fanning six. But he had tossed 90 pitches when manager David Ross removed him.

While Hendricks boasts an 83-56 career record, he’s had trouble with the Pirates over his eight-plus MLB seasons. He’s 7-11 in 25 starts with a 3.99 ERA, frequently getting hurt by the home-run ball. He’s allowed 20 homers over 135 1/3 innings when facing Pittsburgh hitters.

The Cubs have lost their last four games, managing just seven runs. Even rookie Seiya Suzuki has gone cold for the first time, getting just one hit in 11 at-bats during the last four games, with six strikeouts.

Still, Suzuki is batting .333 with four homers, 12 RBI and 13 walks in his first 14 MLB games.

“He doesn’t take an at-bat off,” Hendricks said of his new teammate. “He covers everything.”

–Field Level Media

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler isn’t about to apologize for his team, which has opened the season by tearing up baseball’s unwritten rules.

The Giants figure to maintain their unconventional ways on Saturday when they continue their three-game series against the host Washington Nationals.

San Francisco began the set with a 7-1 victory on Friday. Austin Slater hit a three-run homer during a seven-run second inning, and Brandon Crawford had three hits and three RBIs.

Tempers flared briefly in the ninth inning with the Giants holding a commanding lead. With two outs, Thairo Estrada broke to steal second and attempted to score on Crawford’s bloop single before he was thrown out at the plate.

Nationals shortstop Alcides Escobar took exception and approached the Giants’ dugout, but order was quickly restored after his teammates pulled him away.

Kapler made clear earlier this season that his team wouldn’t ease up when leading by a large margin. He reiterated his position after Friday’s rout.

“We scored seven runs in an inning tonight,” Kapler said. “They have Josh Bell and Juan Soto and Nelson Cruz in the middle of their lineup. We know they’re capable of scoring seven runs in an inning as well.

“We feel like this is the best way to attack a series. It’s not about one game for us. It’s definitely not about running up the score. We’re going to respect our opponent at every turn. This is about using every tool at our disposal to compete.”

Washington manager Davey Martinez declined to get into a lengthy discussion about the Giants’ approach.

“They did some things we felt like was uncalled for,” Martinez said, “but you can ask Gabe Kapler about that.”

San Francisco’s Saturday starter will be left-hander Alex Wood (1-0, 1.93 ERA), who tossed five scoreless innings in an 8-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday. He walked two and struck out five.

“You can see by his delivery, there’s a lot of deception there,” Guardians manager Terry Francona said. “But with it, there’s also some movement. When he’s been healthy, he’s been really good.”

Wood, 31, has allowed two runs on nine hits with an 11-to-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first two starts covering 9 1/3 innings.

Cesar Hernandez is 5-for-14 against Wood, who is 5-4 with a 2.77 ERA in 13 career starts against the Nationals.

Washington was expected to start Paolo Espino, but the right-hander likely will be unavailable after pitching two innings out of the bullpen on Friday.

Instead, the Nationals might recall right-hander Aaron Sanchez from Triple-A Rochester for the start.

Sanchez, 29, spent last season with the Giants and went 1-1 with a 3.06 ERA in nine games (seven starts). He signed a minor league deal with the Nationals last month.

There could be an opening in Washington’s rotation following another rough outing by Patrick Corbin on Friday.

The veteran left-hander is 0-3 with an 11.20 ERA through his first four starts. He has yielded 17 runs and 24 hits with 11 walks over 13 2/3 innings.

San Francisco began the weekend with a few new faces after placing outfielder Steven Duggar on the 60-day injured list due to a left oblique strain. Right-hander Anthony DeSclafani landed on the 10-day injured list because of right ankle inflammation.

Right-hander Jakob Junis and outfielder Luis Gonzalez were promoted from Triple-A Sacramento. Junis tossed five scoreless innings and earned the victory in his season debut on Friday.

–Field Level Media

Paul Goldschmidt went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs to lead the visiting St. Louis Cardinals to a 4-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds, who saw their losing streak stretch to 10 games.

The Reds recorded nine hits, ending a stretch in which they became the only National League team to drop nine straight games in which they registered seven hits or fewer in each contest.

Dylan Carlson and Nolan Arenado each went 2-for-4 for the Cardinals, who scored three times in the first four innings to back a strong performance by Steven Matz (2-1), who pitched five solid innings.

Brandon Drury, Joey Votto, Alejo Lopez and Colin Moran each had two hits for the Reds.

Yankees 4, Guardians 1

Aaron Judge homered in consecutive at-bats as New York beat visiting Cleveland.

Judge dominated the opener of a three-game series, helping New York win for the third time in four games. He recorded his 17th career multi-homer game and also made a key defensive play in center field.

Franmil Reyes homered for Cleveland, which scored 19 runs in a three-game sweep of the visiting Chicago White Sox before coming to New York. The Yankees’ Jameson Taillon (1-1) allowed one run and seven hits in five innings.

Giants 7, Nationals 1

Austin Slater hit a three-run homer during a seven-run second inning as San Francisco opened a three-game road series against Washington with a victory.

Brandon Crawford had three hits and three RBIs for San Francisco, which bounced back after losing three of four against the New York Mets.

Giants reliever Jakob Junis (1-0) tossed five shutout innings, allowing three hits with four strikeouts. Maikel Franco homered to lead off the eighth inning for Washington, which has lost three straight.

Red Sox 4, Rays 3

Xander Bogaerts had his second straight three-hit game, Rafael Devers homered and Boston held on to beat Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Bogaerts went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs in his fifth three-hit outing this season. Michael Wacha (1-0) beat his former team, allowing two runs on three hits over five solid innings, and Matt Barnes earned his first save.

Tampa Bay’s Wander Franco, 21, drilled a pair of solo homers to become the youngest player in franchise history to notch a multi-homer game. Corey Kluber (0-1) yielded 11 hits and four runs in five innings.

Phillies 4, Brewers 2

Alec Bohm drove in the tying and go-ahead runs in the eighth inning as host Philadelphia rallied past Milwaukee.

Jean Segura, Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos and J.T. Realmuto added two hits each for the Phillies, who have won two straight. Philadelphia trailed 2-1 but scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth to earn its second straight win.

Andrew McCutchen, returning to play against the team he spent the previous three seasons with, had a double, sacrifice fly and walk for the Brewers, who had their four-game winning streak end.

Braves 3, Marlins 0

Kyle Wright had a career-high 11 strikeouts over six shutout innings to lead Atlanta to a win over visiting Miami in the opener of a three-game series.

Wright (2-0) allowed four hits and walked one, retiring 11 straight batters at one point, and lowered his ERA to 1.06. He has fanned 20 batters over his past 11 innings. It was his first win in four career starts against the Marlins.

The Braves’ bullpen covered the final three frames while completing the team’s first shutout of the season. Miami starter Trevor Rogers (0-3) bounced back from his worst career start to throw five strong innings.

Mets 6, Diamondbacks 5 (10 innings)

Starling Marte beat out an infield single to drive in the tiebreaking run in the 10th inning for New York, which squandered a four-run lead before recovering to beat Arizona in Phoenix.

The Mets have won 11 of their first 15 games, their best record through 15 games since opening the 2018 season with a 12-3 mark. The Diamondbacks had their two-game winning streak snapped.

Arizona got homers from Christian Walker in the eighth inning and Daulton Varsho in the ninth, the latter blow tying the game with two outs.

Twins 2, White Sox 1

Carlos Correa hit a game-tying RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning, and a pair of throwing errors allowed Minnesota to grab the lead and hold on for a win over Chicago in Minneapolis.

Tyler Duffey (1-2) threw one scoreless inning for the win, and Emilio Pagan escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the ninth for his second save.

Trevor Larnach went 2-for-2 for Minnesota, which has won back-to-back games for just the second time this season. Andrew Vaughn homered for the White Sox, wo lost their fifth game in a row.

Blue Jays 4, Astros 3

Matt Chapman delivered a two-out, two-strike, run-scoring double in the top of the ninth inning as Toronto rallied for a victory at Houston.

Santiago Espinal and Bradley Zimmer homered for the Blue Jays on consecutive fifth-inning pitches from Justin Verlander. Raimel Tapia and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. each had two hits for Toronto, which has won three games in a row.

Yuli Gurriel had two hits and two RBIs for the Astros, and Alex Bregman added two hits. Verlander allowed three runs on four hits in six innings.

Mariners 4, Royals 1

Chris Flexen pitched seven strong innings and Seattle got big hits from its top youngsters in a victory against visiting Kansas City.

Julio Rodriguez hit a bases-loaded double to break a scoreless tie in the fourth inning, and Jarred Kelenic followed with a two-run triple to provide all the offense Flexen would need. Flexen gave up six hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out five.

Salvador Perez hit a sixth-inning homer for the Royals’ only run.

Orioles 5, Angels 3

Robinson Chirinos had two hits and drove in three runs, Bruce Zimmermann threw an effective six-plus innings and Baltimore beat Los Angeles in Anaheim, Calif.

Zimmermann (1-0) gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits and one walk, striking out six while making 76 pitches. Jorge Lopez pitched a scoreless ninth for his third save.

Anthony Rendon hit a two-run homer for the Angels. Los Angeles starter Reid Detmers (0-1) yielded two runs on three hits in five innings.

Pirates 4, Cubs 2

Roberto Perez homered and knocked in three runs as visiting Pittsburgh made it two wins in a row over Chicago.

Michael Chavis added a solo homer for the Pirates, who got 4 1/3 scoreless innings from four relievers to protect the lead to the finish.

Chase De Jong (1-0) pitched two shutout innings for the win. Pirates starter Jose Quintana lasted 4 2/3 innings, one out shy of qualifying for the win. Cubs starter Drew Smyly (1-1) permitted six hits and four runs in five innings.

Rangers 8, Athletics 1

Glenn Otto outpitched former high school teammate Adam Oller and Texas scored five times in the second inning en route to a victory over host Oakland.

Nathaniel Lowe and Andy Ibanez homered as part of a nine-hit attack as the Rangers won a second straight game after having dropped five in a row.

Otto walked one and struck out five in getting the better of Oller (0-2) in a duel of 2014 graduates of Concordia Lutheran High near Houston.

Dodgers 6, Padres 1

Mookie Betts hit two solo home runs and Max Muncy added a homer and a two-run single as visiting Los Angeles scored a win over San Diego in the opener of a three-game series.

Julio Urias (1-1), the first of six Dodgers pitchers, held the Padres to one run on two hits and three walks with six strikeouts in five innings. San Diego managed just four hits overall, two by Eric Hosmer.

Padres starter Nick Martinez (0-2) allowed two runs on four hits and five walks in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out four.

–Field Level Media

Chris Flexen pitched seven strong innings and the Seattle Mariners got big hits from their top youngsters in a 4-1 victory against the visiting Kansas City Royals on Friday night.

Julio Rodriguez hit a bases-loaded double to break a scoreless tie in the fourth inning, and Jarred Kelenic followed with a two-run triple to provide all the offense Flexen would need.

The only run off Flexen (1-2) was a solo homer down the left field line by Salvador Perez with two outs in the sixth inning. It was Perez’s fifth homer of the season, tying Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the American League lead.

Flexen, who hadn’t received any run support in his first two starts of the season, both 4-0 losses, gave up six hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out five.

Other than Perez’s homer, the closest the Royals came to scoring against Flexen was in the fifth. With one out, Bobby Witt Jr. grounded a single into right field and Adalberto Mondesi reached on a bunt single down the third base line. Flexen then struck out Michael A. Taylor and got Nicky Lopez to hit a weak grounder to second to end the inning.

Seattle’s Anthony Misiewicz pitched a scoreless eighth, and Andres Munoz worked the ninth for his first save of the season and the second of his career, the other coming with the San Diego Padres in 2019.

With one out in the Seattle fourth, Eugenio Suarez lined a single to left field and J.P. Crawford did the same to center. Abraham Toro hit a soft comebacker to the mound that went off the glove of pitcher Brad Keller for an error, loading the bases.

Facing a 3-2 count, Rodriguez lined a double to center to score Suarez and Crawford. Kelenic hit the next pitch just out of the reach of Taylor in right-center to make it 4-0.

Keller (0-2) went 4 2/3 innings and gave up four runs, three earned, on six hits. The right-hander walked two and struck out four.

Mariners interim manager Kristopher Negron improved to 2-1 in place of Scott Servais, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.

–Field Level Media