Pete Alonso belted a walk-off two-run homer in the 10th inning on Thursday for the host New York Mets, who posted a 7-6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals hours after learning Max Scherzer would miss six-to-eight weeks with a left oblique injury.

The Mets took three of four from the Cardinals but lost Scherzer, who exited Wednesday’s game in the sixth inning after feeling a “zing” in his left oblique. An MRI administered Thursday revealed a “moderate to high grade” strain.

The Cardinals rallied from a pair of two-run deficits and tied the game in the ninth inning before going ahead in the 10th on a run-scoring double play by Albert Pujols.

Alonso, who had an RBI single in the first inning, hit the second pitch from Giovanny Gallegos (0-2) into a hallway on the second deck in left field to score automatic runner Francisco Lindor. The blast was measured at 447 feet.

Colin Holderman (1-0) earned his first big league win despite giving up the go-ahead run.

Harrison Bader led off the ninth inning against Edwin Diaz with a single, stole second and went to third on a groundout by Yadier Molina. After Diaz struck out Tommy Edman, he walked Brendan Donovan on four pitches.

Paul Goldschmidt, who already had two hits and three RBIs, followed with a broken-bat grounder between third and shortstop. Eduardo Escobar tried making a whirling catch and throw but bobbled the ball. Goldschmidt was awarded a single.

Dylan Carlson legged out a leadoff infield single in the 10th inning to send automatic runner Corey Dickerson to third. Pujols, who missed hitting a go-ahead two-run homer by a few feet in the eighth, then hit into the double play.

Jeff McNeil had three RBIs, with two coming on a single that gave the Mets a 5-3 lead in the fifth inning. Alonso (single) and McNeil (fielder’s choice) each had an RBI in the first for New York, which tied the game 3-3 in the fifth when Luis Guillorme raced home from third on Brandon Nimmo’s groundout to first.

Juan Yepez homered in the second inning for the Cardinals. Goldschmidt hit a game-tying homer in the third, delivered the go-ahead RBI double in the fifth and lofted a sacrifice fly in the seventh to trim St. Louis’ deficit to 5-4.

–Field Level Media

Yu Darvish tossed seven strong innings and Robinson Cano had an RBI single to fuel the visiting San Diego Padres to a 2-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday afternoon.

Darvish (4-1) allowed six hits, all singles, to go along with five strikeouts and no walks.

Taylor Rogers recorded the final four outs to earn his 15th save in 16 opportunities.

Manny Machado added two of the 10 hits for the Padres, who shut out the Phillies for the second time in the three-game series.

Rhys Hoskins had two hits for Philadelphia, which was shut out for the fifth time this season. Both teams combined for 18 hits, with all of them being singles.

Bryce Harper was held out of the lineup for a fourth straight game after receiving a PRP injection in his right elbow on Sunday.

Phillies starter Kyle Gibson (3-2) allowed two runs on eight hits in 5 2/3 innings. Gibson struck out seven and walked none before leaving after 100 pitches.

The Padres placed runners at first and third with no outs in the fourth inning before Cano ripped an RBI single to right field for a 1-0 lead. Ha-Seong Kim added a sacrifice fly to left field to score Wil Myers for a 2-0 advantage.

The Phillies managed only three hits through the first five innings, singles by Hoskins, Garrett Stubbs on a bunt and Johan Camargo.

Gibson was lifted for Seranthony Dominguez after allowing a two-out single to Luke Voit in the sixth inning. Kim then hit an infield single and Austin Nola flied out to center.

Hoskins singled to right field with one out in the sixth and advanced to third on Alec Bohm’s base hit. Kyle Schwarber struck out and Nick Castellanos grounded out to end the threat.

Bryson Stott singled to open the bottom of the eighth, but former Phillie Luis Garcia induced Hoskins into a popout before Bohm struck out. Rogers then came in and gave up a single to Schwarber before Castellanos grounded out softly to second for the final out of the inning.

In the ninth, Rogers allowed a two-out walk to Camargo and struck out pinch hitter Jean Segura to end the game.

–Field Level Media

The Oakland Athletics will get a second crack at Chase Silseth on Friday when they begin a three-game series against the host Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif.

Silseth (1-0, 0.00 ERA), the first player from the 2021 draft to reach the majors, held the Athletics to just one hit while walking two over six shutout innings in his debut May 13. The 22-year-old right-hander had just been promoted from Double-A Rocket City.

“Just a lot of hard work put in, and trust in the organization to get me better,” Silseth said of his rapid rise to the majors. “Go to work and really competing, and controlling what you can control.”

Even though Silseth wasn’t drafted until the 11th round, the Angels obviously felt he was ready, both from the standpoint of his pitch repertoire and his mindset.

“I loved the first pitch of the game,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said of Silseth’s debut. “It means it was in control of his emotions and nothing was too quick. He dotted it at 96 mph and he continued to do that.”

His four-seam fastball topped out at 98 mph in last week’s game against the Athletics. And he mixed in a splitter, slider, sinker and curveball.

“It’s a dream to get a phone call or manager telling you that you’re going to the big leagues to start a game,” Silseth said. “When I was initially told, I was emotional because my uncle died this past fall and the last thing he told me was I was going to make it. So that was for him.”

Silseth will be matched up against A’s right-hander Paul Blackburn (4-0, 1.67 ERA), who is coming off a no-decision against the Angels on Saturday. He gave up one run and five hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Blackburn has been Oakland’s best pitcher this season, giving up two runs or fewer in six of his seven starts.

In two career starts vs. the Angels, Blackburn is 1-0 with an 0.68 ERA.

The Athletics’ offense, though, has been the club’s biggest problem so far this season. Oakland ranks last in the majors in team batting average (.205), on-base percentage (.273) and slugging percentage (.314) heading into the start of play on Thursday.

“I think there was just a frustration of smashing balls at people and watching them being caught over and over again,” outfielder Seth Brown said. “But everybody has been in a pretty good mindset. Everybody is excited every day. The energy is still here.”

The Angels’ offense has been among the best in the majors entering Thursday, ranking first or second in runs, hits, homers, RBIs, total bases and slugging percentage. They are the only team to have six players with 20 or more RBIs.

Despite coming off being swept by the Texas Rangers, the Angels still feel confident moving forward.

“Every game, we feel like we can win,” Angels center fielder Mike Trout said. “It’s a different feeling, for sure. We’re really confident in each other. That’s the big thing. Everyone believes in each other. We never feel like we’re out of a ballgame.”

–Field Level Media

Anthony Santander hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Baltimore Orioles to a 9-6 win over the visiting New York Yankees and end a six-game losing streak on Thursday.

Santander, who went 3-for-4 with two doubles, three runs scored and a walk, hit the first walk-off home run of his career when he drove a cutter from Yankee reliever Lucas Luetge (1-1) down the left field line with one out.

Santander’s 376-foot blast came after Austin Hays reached on an error and Trey Mancini singled to center.

Reliever Felix Bautista (1-1) picked up the win for the Orioles, who had seen Jorge Lopez blow a save opportunity in the top of the inning.

Trailing 6-5 in the ninth, the Yankees tied the game on DJ LeMahieu’s two-out single to right that scored Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

Kiner-Falefa’s two-run single in the sixth, scoring Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo, had put New York ahead 5-3, but the Orioles rallied.

Tyler Nevin’s single to center off reliever Miguel Castro scored Santander, who led off with a walk and advanced to second when Jorge Mateo was awarded first on catcher’s interference.

Castro was relieved by Chad Green. After striking out Robinson Chirinos, Green gave up a sacrifice fly to Cedric Mullins that scored Mateo from third.

Rougned Odor pinch-hit for Chris Owings and hit a single to right-center field that scored Nevin from second, giving the Orioles a 6-5 lead.

The Yankees, who saw a four-game winning streak end, grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first inning against Orioles starter Bruce Zimmermann.

After LeMahieu flied out, Judge walked and advanced to third on Rizzo’s double to right before they both scored on Giancarlo Stanton’s single to left.

Baltimore tied the game in the second when Nevin knocked a leadoff single and Chirinos hit a two-run homer to left field off Yankees starter Jordan Montgomery.

After the Orioles took a 3-2 lead on Mateo’s single that scored Santander, the Yankees tied it on Stanton’s homer to left to lead off the fourth.

Nevin and Mancini each had two hits for the Orioles.

Stanton went 2-for-3 with two walks and three RBIs for the Yankees, who also got two hits apiece from Rizzo, LeMahieu and Kiner-Falefa.

–Field Level Media

Left-hander Eric Lauer will present the first challenge for the Washington Nationals when they face the Brewers on Friday in the opener of a three-game weekend series in Milwaukee.

Lauer (3-1, 2.60 ERA) will make his seventh start this season for the National League Central-leading Brewers, while right-hander Erick Fedde (2-2, 4.24) gets the nod for the Nationals, last in the NL East. Milwaukee will follow with All-Star right-handers Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta.

Both Milwaukee and Washington were idle Thursday. The Brewers took the rubber game of a three-game home set on Wednesday, rallying past Atlanta 7-6 on Keston Hiura’s two-run homer in the 11th inning, their only round-tripper of the series.

Hiura was recalled earlier Wednesday from Triple-A Nashville when shortstop Willy Adames went on the 10-day injured list with a high left-ankle sprain. Luis Urias, shifted from third to short in Adames’ absence, has reached safely in all 14 games since coming off the IL on May 1, hitting .294.

Milwaukee, which has been shut out four times, split the first two games against the Braves despite scoring just one run, which came home on a wild pitch in the opener. Prior to Wednesday’s comeback win, the Brewers were 1-13 when trailing after eight innings.

The Nationals also are coming off an extra-inning victory, winning 5-4 at Miami in 10 innings on Wednesday to improve to 13-26. They have lost seven of their past 10.

Lauer is coming off his worst start of the season when he was rocked for three home runs in the fourth inning in a 9-3 loss at Miami on Saturday. Lauer was tagged for four runs on six hits in five innings after not allowing more than one earned run in any of his previous four starts.

“He made bad pitches and they made him pay for it,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “Not with singles, but with homers. I think if you look at all three pitches, they were pitches he didn’t put where he wanted to.”

Lauer has struck out 49 in 34 2/3 innings while walking just eight, and opponents are hitting .205 against him.

Lauer is 0-1 with a 3.52 ERA in four career starts against the Nationals. In his only start against them last season, he allowed three runs on five hits in 4 1/3 innings with no decision.

Fedde, making his eighth start of the season, is 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA in three starts in May after going 1-2 with a 6.00 ERA in April. In his most recent start, he allowed three runs on five hits and three walks in four innings in the Nationals’ 13-6 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday.

“He couldn’t throw consistent strikes and then when he did, it was too much of the plate, and then the walks,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “When you walk that many guys, like I said, he labored for every inning.”

Fedde has not faced the Brewers since 2019. In two appearances vs. Milwaukee, including one start, he has allowed four runs on 11 hits in six innings.

Milwaukee closer Josh Hader is 14 for 14 in save opportunities and has yet to allow a run this season. Hader has converted 28 straight save chances dating back to last season with 35 consecutive scoreless appearances over 33 2/3 innings.

Hader was unavailable Wednesday due to a family situation, Counsell said. His status for Friday hasn’t been announced.

–Field Level Media

Two reliable starting pitchers who are coming off redemptive outings will oppose each other on Friday when the Atlanta Braves open a three-game series at the Miami Marlins.

Atlanta’s Charlie Morton (2-3, 4.93 ERA) and Miami’s Trevor Rogers (2-4, 4.45) are both coming off strong outings in what otherwise has been a disappointing start for both.

Rogers looked good in his most recent start on Saturday against Milwaukee. He pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed one run on five hits with eight strikeouts to earn his second win of the season. It was his first start without walking a batter of the season. Rogers altered his mix of pitches and threw more sliders than changeups to go along with fastball.

“My changeup had probably the most depth it’s had a year,” Rogers said. “Really found the bottom of the zone late with it and I think my slider was probably the best it’s ever been in my career. Had a lot of turn, a lot of depth, picked up pace as it got closer to the plate. Really had a three-pitch mix and made my life a little easier out there.”

Rogers has had very little luck against the Braves. The left-hander is 0-4 with a 5.24 ERA in five career starts against Atlanta. Rogers lost to the Braves on April 22, despite allowing only one unearned run in a five-inning appearance of a game the Marlins lost 3-0.

Morton looked good in his outing last Saturday against San Diego. He gave up one run on two hits, one walk and nine strikeouts in six innings of a game that was that the Braves won, although the bullpen couldn’t hold the lead for him. In his most recent two starts, he has pitched 11 innings and allowed a combined one run on four hits, four walks and 14 strikeouts.

“It was really good,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said after Morton’s last start. “The way the ball was coming out and how efficient he was, he took another step forward.”

Morton has not faced the Marlins this season. In 19 career starts against Miami he is 9-5 with a 4.03 ERA. His last win over Miami was Aug. 18, 2021.

In its most recent series, Miami won two of three games against Washington, dropping the finale 5-4 on Wednesday. The Marlins are 3-3 on their current homestand, which concludes with the Braves.

Atlanta lost two of three games against the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. The Braves have lost four of their past six games to fall four games under .500 and 7 1/2 behind the New York Mets in the NL East.

Atlanta right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. was hit by a pitch on Wednesday to extend his on-base streak to 26 games, dating back to last season. He went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts to end his eight-game hitting streak.

Miami’s Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been red-hot. He went 5-for-11 with three runs, one double, one triple, one homer and three RBIs in the Washington series. Chisholm has five home runs and 15 RBI in 25 career games against the Braves.

This is the second season series between the two clubs. Miami won two of three games in April.

–Field Level Media

An MRI on Thursday confirmed a left oblique injury for New York Mets right-hander Max Scherzer and the “moderate to high-grade” strain brings an expected absence of six to eight weeks.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner took himself out of the game Wednesday and joins Mets starter Jacob deGrom on the injured list with a similar timeframe for his potential return of July. deGrom is building strength in attempting to return from a stress reaction in his right shoulder.

Scherzer, 37, exited after 5 2/3 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals with discomfort in his left side Wednesday night. The right-hander earned the win to improve to 5-1 with a 2.54 ERA in eight starts.

Scherzer, facing likely fellow future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, made a throat slashing motion and appeared to say “I’m done” after sailing a slider out of the strike zone with two runners on base. He departed after a brief consultation with pitching coach Jeremy Hefner, manager Buck Showalter and a trainer.

“In that Pujols at-bat, just felt a zing on my left side and just knew I was done,” Scherzer said after the game. “Don’t know exactly what the exact injury is, but (I’ve) never had a left side injury before. So when I felt it, I just knew there’s no way you can throw another pitch. So just get out of there.”

Scherzer, who signed a three-year, $130 million contract with the Mets in November, said he was hoping to avoid a major injury.

An eight-time All-Star, Scherzer is 195-98 with a 3.15 ERA and 3,079 strikeouts in 415 games (406 starts) with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals, Los Angeles Dodgers and Mets.

–Field Level Media