Mitchell Parker tossed six solid innings and Nathaniel Lowe homered to help the Washington Nationals record a 4-2 victory over the visiting San Diego Padres on Saturday night.

Drew Millas added a two-run single as Washington snapped a five-game losing streak and won for just the second time in its past 11 contests.

Luis Arraez and Jose Iglesias each had two hits for San Diego, which lost for just the second time in the past six games.

The game was delayed 65 minutes at the outset due to inclement weather.

Parker (6-10) allowed two runs on five hits over six innings. He struck out four and walked one while winning for the first time since beating the Padres in San Diego on June 23.

Kyle Finnegan worked a perfect ninth for his first save since June 6 and his 19th of the season. He induced Jackson Merrill to ground to second, then struck out Iglesias and Jake Cronenworth to end it.

San Diego’s Yu Darvish (0-2) gave up three runs on five hits over five innings. He struck out one and walked one.

The Nationals manufactured a run in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead.

Daylen Lile walked, moved to second on a groundout and advanced to third on Jacob Young’s single. CJ Abrams then hit into a fielder’s choice to score Lile.

Lowe came up with two outs in the sixth and hit a drive to center off Yuki Matsui that narrowly cleared the wall and the leap of Merrill.

Washington jumped ahead with a two-out, two-run second inning. Brady House singled and Lile followed with a double. Millas then delivered a two-run single to right to score both runners.

San Diego tied it by scoring twice in the third. Iglesias led off with a double and scored on Martin Maldonado’s one-out double. With two outs, Arraez singled home Maldonado.

–Field Level Media

The Los Angeles Dodgers are giving shortstop Mookie Betts at least a game off, starting Saturday with the team’s matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Manager Dave Roberts came to the decision after Betts went 0-for-4 on Friday.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to be. It could be one night, it could be two,” Roberts told reporters on Saturday. “My expectation is he’s going to be back in there tomorrow.”

Whether Betts plays Sunday will depend on how mentally prepared he feels, according to Roberts.

The 32-year-old, a former American League MVP and surefire Hall of Famer, is having the worst year of his illustrious career. Betts is batting a career-low .241/.311/.377 with 11 home runs and 45 RBIs in 90 games. For the first time in five seasons, he wasn’t named to the All-Star Game.

Betts has hit only .188 and has struck out nine times while walking once in July.

“I’ve never done this,” Betts told The Athletic. “It’s all new. I’ve never been this bad for this long.”

–Field Level Media

Rowdy Tellez hit a three-run home run to back a strong start by Kumar Rocker as the Texas Rangers defeated the struggling Detroit Tigers 4-1 on Saturday in the second of three-game series in Arlington, Texas.

The Rangers’ pitching has been dominating thus far, shutting out Detroit in the first game of this set on Friday and nearly doing it again on Saturday. The Tigers did not get a runner past second base until a Riley Greene home run to open the ninth inning.

Tellez’s homer was a boon for Rocker (4-4), who allowed one hit, walked three and struck out six over 6 1/3 innings of work. Rocker worked out of a jam in the fourth inning when he walked the first two batters and didn’t allow a hit until Wenceel Perez singled with two out in the sixth.

Texas has captured five of its past six games and, with the victory on Saturday, is guaranteed of winning its second straight series against a first-place team. The Rangers took two of three from American League West frontrunner Houston prior to the All-Star break.

The Tigers lost their season-high sixth straight game but still own a double-digit lead in the AL Central and are tied for the most wins in the majors (59). Detroit has just seven combined hits in the first two games of this set, however.

Tellez, who was signed to a minor league contract on July 5 by the Rangers a week after being released by Seattle, wasn’t on the team until Friday, when he went 0-for-3. But he made the most of a green light on a 3-0 count in the second inning in his first at-bat on Saturday, ripping a three-run homer over the center field fence off Tigers’ starter Keider Montero (4-2).

Texas added a run in the fifth when Corey Seager’s single drove in Alejandro Osuna, who had walked.

Montero went 4 1/3 innings, giving up four runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts.

Rocker was lifted with none on and one out in the seventh after 96 pitches for Hoby Milner, who allowed a single to Matt Vierling and a walk to Jake Rogers but no further damage. Jacob Webb pitched the final two innings for Texas.

Greene’s home run in the ninth snapped a 19-inning scoreless streak for the Tigers.

–Field Level Media

The Tampa Bay Rays used their speed to steal a 4-3 win from the visiting Baltimore Orioles on Saturday.

The Rays came from behind with a three-run eighth inning that began with Kim Ha-Seong leading off with a single and a stolen base.

Then, with one out, Chandler Simpson extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a single up the middle to bring home Ha-Seong and tie the game 2-2.

The rookie center fielder stole his 27th base and went to third on a wild pitch as Jose Caballero walked. Caballero promptly stole his league-leading 32nd base to put runners at second and third with one out.

Jonathan Aranda hit a grounder to first as Simpson beat Ryan O’Hearn’s wild throw home for a 3-2 Rays lead. Caballero scored an insurance run on the error.

Seranthony Dominguez (2-3) took the loss after giving up three runs (two earned) in 1/3 of an inning in the eighth.

Edwin Uceta (6-2) picked up the win with two innings of scoreless relief. Pete Fairbanks earned his 16th save despite giving up a run in the ninth.

Dean Kremer was the hard-luck starter of the Orioles as the right-hander gave up just three hits and one run in seven innings. He struck out six and walked three on 98 pitches.

Coming into the game, Kremer was 2-0 against the Rays this season. In 19 innings, he has struck out 16 Rays and only walked six. For his career, the right-hander is 4-1 in 10 starts against the Rays.

Rays starter Zack Littell allowed seven hits and two runs in six innings pitched. The right-hander struck out three and walked none in 89 pitches.

The Orioles jumped to an early lead in the first inning as Jackson Holliday led off the game with a single and was followed by a Jordan Westburg double to put runners on the second and third with no outs.

Gunnar Henderson scored Holliday with a sacrifice fly, and O’Hearn singled in Westburg to make it 2-0.

The Rays had a runner on in each of the first five innings, but they did not get anyone to second base.

Tampa Bay broke through in seventh when Yandy Diaz drew a leadoff walk and Junior Caminaro doubled down the left-field line with one out to put runners at second and third.

While Kremer induced a Josh Lowe groundout to second, Diaz came across to cut Baltimore’s lead to 2-1. The Orioles escaped the inning with the lead when Jake Magnum flew out to right.

–Field Level Media

Mike Tauchman’s go-ahead, bases-clearing double highlighted a six-run sixth inning that propelled the Chicago White Sox to a 10-4 comeback victory over the host Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night.

Tauchman and Lenyn Sosa each had three RBIs and Sosa also had three hits to lead the White Sox to their second win in a row following the All-Star break and their third win in the past five games.

The Pirates, who lost their second in a row and have lost 10 of their last 11 games, led 3-0 and rookie starter Mike Burrows took a no-hitter into the fifth inning.

But Chicago scored twice in the top of the fifth, ending Burrows’ night after five innings. Burrows gave up two runs on three hits, struck out six and walked two.

Pittsburgh’s bullpen then struggled for the second consecutive game as Caleb Ferguson (2-2) gave up four runs on four hits and recorded only one out.

Luis Robert Jr. continued his hot hitting (six-game hitting streak) with two hits, including an RBI single that scored Miguel Vargas, who had doubled two batters prior. Kyle Teel and Vargas each had two hits as well.

Austin Slater tied the game at 4 in the sixth with a pinch-hit single that scored Teel.

Isaac Mattson replaced Ferguson but hit Sosa with a pitch to load the bases with one out. After Josh Rojas struck out, Tauchman belted an 0-2 pitch deep to right field to bring home Robert Jr., pinch runner Brooks Baldwin and Sosa and put the White Sox ahead for good.

The comeback bailed out starter Adrian Houser, who gave up four runs (three earned) on 10 hits and one walk while striking out five over 4 1/3 innings.

Chicago relievers Tyler Gilbert (3-1), Steven Wilson, Brandon Eisert, Jordan Leasure and Wikelman Gonzalez held the Pirates scoreless over the final 4 2/3 innings.

Nick Gonzales and Bryan Reynolds led Pittsburgh at the plate with three hits each, while Andrew McCutchen and Isiah Kiner-Falefa each had two hits.

Ke’Bryan Hayes broke a scoreless stalemate in the fourth with a double into the right-center field gap, which allowed Reynolds and Nick Gonzales to score. Three batters later, Kiner-Falefa singled to drive home Hayes and give Pittsburgh a 3-0 lead.

–Field Level Media

Kyle Schwarber belted a go-ahead grand slam in the sixth inning to vault the Philadelphia Phillies to a 9-5 home win over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday.

Bryce Harper also homered for Philadelphia after hitting two bombs in Friday’s 6-5 defeat in the series opener. Nick Castellanos, Trea Turner and Johan Rojas drove in the other runs for the Phillies.

Taylor Ward, Jo Adell and Yoan Moncada hit home runs for the Angels. Yusei Kikuchi allowed two runs and five hits over five innings before the Los Angeles bullpen scuffled to the finish line.

The key inning for Philadelphia was a five-run sixth against relievers Sam Bachman and Jose Fermin.

Bachman began by loading the bases on a hit, a hit batter and a walk before giving way to Fermin, who allowed a sacrifice fly by Rojas that trimmed the Phillies’ deficit to 4-3. Turner then drew a walk before Schwarber swatted a 1-1 fastball into the seats in right-center field.

Ward’s RBI double in the seventh helped the Angels get within 7-5, but Harper alleviated any pressure with a two-run blast in the eighth.

Matt Strahm logged a 1-2-3 ninth to close it out, evening the series at a game apiece. The teams will reconvene for the rubber game on Sunday afternoon.

Phillies starter Taijuan Walker allowed three runs and nine hits over four innings before handing the ball over to the bullpen.

Los Angeles fell behind on a first-inning RBI single by Castellanos before rallying for three runs in the fourth inning. Ward and Adell belted back-to-back homers off Walker early in the frame, followed shortly thereafter by a Zach Neto RBI single to make it it 3-1 in favor of the visitors.

Turner’s RBI single got the hosts within 3-2 in the fifth, but Moncada’s solo shot against Seth Johnson (1-0) restored a two-run lead in the sixth.

–Field Level Media

David Wright, the seven-time All-Star who was the face of the New York Mets throughout his 14-year MLB career, became the 11th player to have his jersey retired by the organization on Saturday as he entered the Mets’ Hall of Fame.

Just two days shy of the 21-year anniversary of his big-league debut with New York, Wright, 42, fittingly emerged from the third-base side at Citi Field and stepped to a gold-plated third base, where he established himself as a two-time Gold Glove Award winner.

Also a two-time Silver Slugger Award recipient, Wright was the Mets’ fourth and most recent team captain between 2013 and 2018. During his time with New York, Wright helped the Mets reach the National League Championship Series in 2006, two years into his MLB career. He was also part of the New York team that lost to the Kansas City Royals in the 2015 World Series.

A career .296 hitter with 242 home runs and 970 RBIs, Wright is the only player in Mets history to have his number retired after spending his entire career with the club.

“If you would have told a young David Wright to close his eyes and imagine this day, I would have said you’re crazy, no way, impossible,” Wright said. “And then I would have went out in my backyard in Virginia and hit off a homemade tee with balls that were falling apart at the seams until it got dark outside to prove you right.

“Thank you so much for allowing me to live out my dream in front of you each night. I love you so much. Let’s go Mets.”

Wright, the 35th inductee of the Mets Hall of Fame, ranks first in franchise history in a number of categories, including runs scored (949), hits (1,777), total bases (2,945) and RBIs.

–Field Level Media

Jake Fraley tied a season high with three hits, including the tiebreaking RBI single and a run-scoring double as the visiting Cincinnati Reds continued their recent surge by holding on for a 5-2 victory over the host New York Mets on Saturday.

After a 30-minute pregame ceremony honoring David Wright and the former New York captain’s number, Fraley helped the Reds win for the sixth time in seven games following a four-game losing streak. Fraley also helped the Reds move to a season-high five games over .500 with his third three-hit game this season.

Fraley scored Cincinnati’s first run in the third inning when he opened the inning with a double off New York’s Clay Holmes (8-5) and scored on a throwing error by catcher Luis Torrens, who attempted to pick Noelvi Marte off first base during an at-bat to T.J. Friedl.

The Reds had runners on first and third in the fourth when Fraley snapped a 2-2 tie by looping a single to center field.

After Cincinnati took a 4-2 lead on a groundout by Tyler Stephenson, Fraley lined a double to right field and Stephenson scored.

Cincinnati’s Nick Martinez allowed two runs on six hits in five innings. Martinez struck out five, walked two and won for the fourth time in five starts.

Five relievers followed Martinez and Scott Barlow highlighted Cincinnati’s strong relief showing by striking out Brandon Nimmo and retiring Francisco Lindor to leave the bases loaded in the seventh.

Tony Santillan struck out Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Mark Vientos in a perfect seventh and Graham Ashcraft got a double play on Ronny Mauricio in the eighth.

Emilio Pagan nearly gave up a tying three-run homer to Soto before getting the slugger on a check swing strikeout. He finished off his 21st save by retiring Alonso on a fly ball to Fraley in right field.

Mark Vientos hit an RBI single in the first and Brett Baty homered in the second but the Mets dropped their third straight and lost for the sixth time in nine games.

Lindor struck out in his first three at-bats, went 0-for-5 and is hitless in his past 16 at-bats.

Holmes allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out three and walked two.

–Field Level Media

The Philadelphia Phillies placed infielder Alec Bohm on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a fractured left rib.

Philadelphia recalled utility man Weston Wilson from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to replace Bohm on the 26-man roster.

Bohm, 28, sustained the injury after a pitch from San Diego’s Yu Darvish hit him in the ribcage on July 12, causing him to miss the Phillies’ last game before the All-Star break on July 13. He attempted to play through the injury during Friday’s 6-5 loss against the Los Angeles Angels, but reportedly reaggravated it. Post-game imaging revealed a fracture.

“He still felt the rib thing last night in his last at-bat,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said prior to Saturday’s game. “He came in today and still felt it, so he’s going to see the doctor.”

Rookie Otto Kemp, 25, started at third base against the Angels on Saturday night.

Bohm, a 2024 All-Star is slashing .278/.324/.391 with eight home runs and 42 RBIs in 92 games this season, while splitting time between third base and first base.

Wilson appeared in 22 games for Philadelphia this season, hitting .194 with a home run and four RBIs. He played in the infield and outfield before he was optioned to Triple-A on June 19.

The 30-year-old hit .250 with three home runs and 12 RBIs in 25 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

–Field Level Media

Shortstop Otto Lopez drove in all three runs as the host Miami Marlins won again, defeating the Kansas City Royals, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon.

Lopez’s two-run double in the eighth inning snapped a 1-1 score.

Xavier Edwards added a triple, a double and two runs scored as the Marlins improved to 21-10 over their past 31 games.

Salvador Perez led the Royals with a homer, which tied the score 1-1 in the top of the eighth inning.

The game was decided by the bullpens as Ronny Henriquez (6-1) earned the win, and Anthony Bender pitched a scoreless ninth, earning his third save.

Reliever Lucas Erceg (4-3) took the loss.

Miami’s Cal Quantrill pitched a season-high six innings, allowing two hits (both singles), no walks and no runs while striking out three.

Michael Wacha also pitched six innings, allowing three hits, one walk and one run with one strikeout.

Miami got off to a good start. In the top of the first inning, Quantrill got the Royals in order with the help of Lopez, who threw out Jonathan India after making a backhand stab in the hole.

In the bottom of the first, Edwards led off with a triple down the right-field line. The Royals brought the infield in, but Edwards – with his great speed – scored without a throw on Lopez’s groundout to third baseman Maikel Garcia.

The Marlins continued to play good defense after that as center fielder Dane Myers made a running catch in the right-center gap to end the second inning; and Quantrill picked off speedy Tyler Tolbert off of first base in the third.

Miami threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with two outs. However, Myers grounded out.

Kansas City tied the score, 1-1, in the eighth as Perez slugged his 14th homer of the season 413 feet to center. The exit velocity was 107 mph.

In the bottom of the eighth, Graham Pauley walked, Edwards doubled, and – after Jesus Sanchez was intentionally walked – Lopez banged his two-run double off the left-field wall. That hit had an exit velocity of 108 mph.

–Field Level Media