The Atlanta Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks will meet for the first time this season on Friday at Phoenix with each team atop its division.

Atlanta sits in first place in the National League East, while Arizona is tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the National League West.

The Diamondbacks enter with a five-game winning streak, the longest active run in the majors. Arizona is coming off a four-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies in Phoenix that was culminated by rookie outfielder Corbin Carroll’s walk-off, two-run single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth in a 5-4 win Thursday.

“That’s our first sweep of the year,” Carroll said. “We’ve come really close. It feels good to finally get one. I can’t say enough about this team. I feel like we always fight no matter if we are down or up. We stay consistent.”

Carroll is a National League Rookie of the Year candidate, batting .287 with nine home runs, 14 doubles, 16 stolen bases and 24 RBIs in 54 games.

Atlanta avoided getting swept in its three-game road series against the Oakland Athletics by posting a 4-2 win in the finale on Wednesday.

The Athletics, who were trying for their first three-game winning streak of the season, have the worst record in the major leagues (12-46).

Atlanta second baseman Ozzie Albies hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in a three-run fifth inning.

The victory came at the end of a stretch for the Braves in which they played 19 games in 20 days before getting a travel day on Thursday. They finished with an 8-11 mark in that stretch.

“These guys deserve this off day,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “This is a rough go here with all the teams we played. Coming out here, I’m not making excuses, but that did probably punch us in the gut a little bit.”

Albies has 11 home runs in 56 games this season. He managed just eight in 64 games during an injury-plagued 2022 season following an All-Star campaign in 2021, when he belted a career-high 30 homers.

“It feels great to get a win,” Albies said. “Happy flight, happy off day.”

Atlanta went 15-14 in May after posting an 18-9 record in April.

The Braves start June against winning teams Arizona and the New York Mets but then they play 16 straight games against teams that currently have losing records: the Washington Nationals, Detroit Tigers, Rockies, Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds.

Atlanta will start right-hander Charlie Morton (5-5, 3.59 ERA) against Arizona right-hander Merrill Kelly (6-3, 2.83) on Friday.

Morton has made 12 career starts against the Diamondbacks, going 5-1 with a 4.01 ERA. He has allowed 61 hits and 29 walks while striking out 69 in 67 1/3 innings during those games.

Kelly is shooting for his first career win vs. Atlanta. He is 0-2 with a 4.05 ERA in three career starts against the Braves, having yielded 18 hits while fanning 20 in 20 innings.

Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, two doubles and an RBI in the Thursday win over Colorado, has the longest on-base streak in the majors at 30 games.

Marte also has an 11-game hitting streak in which he is batting .313 (15-for-48) with three home runs and six RBIs.

–Field Level Media

The San Diego Padres hope that bookend wins in Miami at the end of a 5-4 road trip can serve as the spark they need to get on a roll.

San Diego looks to maintain momentum on Friday night in the first of four games against the Cubs. The Padres are beginning a six-game homestand while Chicago is opening a 10-game California trip.

The Padres are still not playing up to expectations. They are four games under .500 overall and 12-15 at home.

However, they might have exorcized one of their demons in Miami, where they went 12-for-30 with runners in scoring position in their two wins, 9-4 on Tuesday and 10-1 on Thursday. In between, they took a 2-1 loss in which they held a 1-0 lead heading to the bottom of the ninth.

“Our approach was great,” San Diego manager Bob Melvin said following the Thursday afternoon victory. “We got some guys on base, we were moving them over and getting them in without trying to hit the home run.

“I hope it’s a big shift because the numbers for us in RISP situations have been really bad. Once the doors are open, hopefully it’s a floodgate.”

The Padres, who rank last in the majors with a .200 RISP batting average, look bring it home against a Cubs team that took two of three when San Diego visited Chicago in late April. The Cubs outscored San Diego 14-7 with the Padres going 3-for-24 in RISP opportunities.

“We pitched them really well,” Cubs manager David Ross said after the first Cubs-Padres meeting. Overall, the Padres hit .208 (20-for-96) in Chicago.

However, Friday night’s pitching matchup — San Diego’s Michael Wacha (5-1, 3.45 ERA) vs. Chicago’s Jameson Taillon (0-3, 8.04) — favors the Padres if the May results carry over into the first June outing for the 31-year-old right-handers.

Wacha was 3-0 in five May starts with an 0.84 ERA and an 0.72 WHIP in 32 innings. The Padres were 3-2 in Wacha’s May starts (scoring a total of three runs in the two losses) and are 7-3 overall when he has started in 2023.

Taillon was 0-1 in five May starts with a 10.90 ERA and a 1.96 WHIP in 17 1/3 innings. The Cubs were 0-5 in Taillon’s May starts and are 0-8 when he starts a game this season.

However, the Cubs are no strangers to Wacha, who spent his first seven seasons with the rival St. Louis Cardinals. Wacha has a 4-8 career record against the Cubs with a 6.45 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP in 21 games (19 starts). Wacha started the game the Padres won in Chicago on April 26, giving up three runs on four hits and a walk with five strikeouts in five innings.

Taillon, who did not face the Padres earlier this season, has a 1-0 career record against the Padres with a 2.37 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP in three career starts. However, he has not faced the Padres since 2018.

–Field Level Media

The Kansas City Royals certainly should feel like the fresher team when they host the Colorado Rockies in the opener of a three-game series on Friday night.

Because of a scheduling quirk, the Royals did not play on Wednesday or Thursday, providing a rare two-day break during the season.

The Rockies, meanwhile, wrapped up a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks by losing 5-4 on a two-run walk-off single on Thursday afternoon in Phoenix, giving the Diamondbacks their first sweep of the season.

Kansas City was originally supposed to be off Monday and Thursday and play road games against the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the Cardinals requested to play on Memorial Day, leaving the Royals with their first scheduled back-to-back days off since the 2016 season.

The Royals would have preferred to enter the break on a high note, but they lost 2-1 to the Cardinals on Tuesday, leaving them without a three-game winning streak through 56 games for the first time in franchise history.

Kansas City is planning to start right-hander Jordan Lyles, who’s probably desperate for just one win.

Lyles (0-9, 7.30 ERA) and the Royals have yet to win in his first 11 starts this season, putting him on track to become MLB’s first 20-game loser since Mike Maroth of the Detroit Tigers in 2003 (9-21).

Lyles is 3-3 with a 5.30 ERA in 14 career appearances against the Rockies, including eight starts.

The Royals are also hoping right fielder MJ Melendez can continue showing signs of life at the plate.

He homered and scored twice in a 3-2 win against the Nationals on Sunday, and he tripled and scored two runs in a 7-0 win against the Cardinals on Monday.

Melendez went 0-for-4 in Tuesday’s loss, but he said he feels like he’s finding his rhythm.

“I am trying to stay on top of the ball and stay on time,” Melendez said. “Those are two pretty big keys for me. I feel like when I hit the ball hard, a lot of times it’s been a little too high in the air.”

The Rockies plan to start right-hander Chase Anderson in the series opener.

Anderson (0-0, 1.31) has been solid since he was claimed off waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays on May 12, joining his sixth team in the past five seasons.

In three games with the Rockies, he has allowed three runs in 15 2/3 innings, though he doesn’t have a decision. Anderson has never faced the Royals in his 10-year career.

Colorado closer Pierce Johnson should be eager for another opportunity after blowing his first save in 12 opportunities Thursday.

“He’s not invincible,” Rockies manager Bud Black said.

The Rockies put Kris Bryant on the 10-day injured list on Thursday with a bruised heel and reinstated fellow outfielder Charlie Blackmon from the bereavement list. Blackmon went 1-for-5 in the leadoff role Thursday.

–Field Level Media

In the aftermath of a tense 5-2 loss at the Houston Astros on Thursday, cooler heads prevailed in the Los Angeles Angels’ clubhouse.

Angels manager Phil Nevin was ejected in the top of the sixth inning by plate umpire Stu Scheurwater for arguing balls and strikes after Taylor Ward took a called third strike on a pitch that appeared to be low. Nevin later described Scheurwater as a quality umpire and noted the Angels’ 2-for-12 performance with runners in scoring position and 13 runners left on base.

“I don’t ever blame an umpire or a call (for the outcome of) a game,” Nevin said. “We had a lot of chances and we didn’t come through. We had a lot of baserunners. We made some mistakes that cost us.”

Right-hander Shohei Ohtani (5-1, 2.91 ERA) is the scheduled starter for the Angels on Friday. He leads the majors in opponent batting average (.155), ranks second in WHIP (0.95) and fourth in strikeouts (90).

Ohtani did not factor into the decision of his last start Saturday, an 8-5 loss to the Miami Marlins, after working six innings and allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits and three walks with 10 strikeouts.

Ohtani is 3-4 with a 3.51 ERA in 11 career starts against Houston. His lone loss of this season came against the Astros on May 9, when he allowed three runs on six hits and two walks with seven strikeouts over seven innings.

Left-hander Framber Valdez (5-4, 2.38 ERA) has the starting assignment for the Astros on Friday. He earned the 6-3 victory in his second consecutive start against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts over six innings. Valdez has surrendered one run or fewer in three of his last four starts, all victories.

Valdez is 8-4 with a 3.73 ERA over 16 career appearances (12 starts) — his most against any opponent — against the Angels. In his previous start against the Angels, on May 9, Valdez allowed one run on three hits with a season-high 12 strikeouts in eight innings in a 3-1 road win.

One day after Mike Trout and Ohtani combined to club three home runs with six RBIs, Houston pitching limited the Angels’ dynamic duo to a 1-for-8 showing with two walks and two strikeouts. Trout and Ohtani both stranded two runners in scoring position with two outs, making for some tense moments with the outcome hanging in the balance.

Astros starter Ronel Blanco struck out Ohtani with the bases loaded to limit the damage to one run in the second. With the bases full and two outs and the Astros leading by two runs in the sixth, Houston reliever Hector Neris got Trout to hit a soft line drive to shortstop Jeremy Pena.

Representing the tying run, Trout hit a fly ball to center field as the final out of the eighth against Rafael Montero. Ohtani struck out to open the ninth inning against Houston closer Ryan Pressly.

“I tell you, you’d better leave those two guys alone,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “We’ve got three more games to battle against them and they’re always dangerous. They can pop one any minute, so I feel fortunate that we got them out.”

–Field Level Media

The Washington Nationals are back at home after a cross-country trip, probably in an encouraged mindset.

It’s not that way for Washington’s opponent Friday though. The visiting Philadelphia Phillies are spinning in a discouraging stretch. They are mired in a four-game losing streak and have won just five times in their last 17 games.

“We just haven’t put it all together yet,” manager Rob Thomson said.

This begins a three-game series that will conclude a 10-game road trip for Philadelphia. The Phillies hold an 11-21 road record.

“It’s important for us to go into (Washington) and play a good series, play a good first game,” Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber said.

These will be the first meetings of the season between the NL East rivals. They’ll begin another series at the end of the month.

This starts a six-game homestand for the Nationals, who snapped a three-game skid Wednesday with a 10-6 victory against the Los Angeles Dodgers. That wrapped up a 3-3 road swing, when they twice scored double-digit runs.

“To win the last game to go back home feels pretty good,” Nationals manager Davey Martinez said.

The problem came in the three losses when Washington scored a total of six runs, though Martinez said he believes the Nationals have been making good contact. They’re coming off that offensive outburst against the Dodgers when Keibert Ruiz slugged two of the team’s season-high five home runs.

“These guys are playing hard,” Martinez said. “We’ve been hitting the ball hard, so let’s continue to do that.”

The Nationals hope Lane Thomas can launch another hitting streak after his 15-game string ended when he went 0-for-5 on Wednesday. That also snapped his 26-game on-base stretch.

The Phillies will give the ball to right-hander Zack Wheeler (4-4, 3.60 ERA) hoping that he can have a repeat of his last start. In that game, he shut out the Atlanta Braves for eight innings while striking out 12. That turned out to be Wheeler’s only victory in May. He has three of his pitching triumphs this year in road games.

“He had everything going,” Thomson said of the game in Atlanta.

Wheeler, who turned 33 years old earlier this week, is familiar with the Nationals; this will be his 29th start against them, the most of any opponent. He owns a 10-14 record with a 4.31 ERA vs. Washington — a victory would match his 11 wins against the Atlanta Braves for the most vs. any foe.

Right-hander Josiah Gray (4-5, 2.77) will be the starter for the Nationals. His shortest outing of the season came in his most recent start: He lasted four innings, giving up two runs in a no-decision at Kansas City.

Gray threw 91 pitches in that start. Control has been a snag for him; he walked 18 in 28 innings in May.

“I think I had a few eight-plus-pitch at-bats,” Gray said, “so that probably knocked me out a little sooner than I wanted.”

Gray is 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA in five career starts against the Phillies, yielding eight home runs in 25 innings.

The Phillies will be without infielder Alec Bohm, who was placed on the injured list Thursday with a left hamstring strain. He’s the team leader with 37 RBIs.

“We want to take care of it and knock it out,” Thomson said of Bohm’s ailment.

–Field Level Media

Buck Showalter spoke optimistically of the New York Mets seeking their level after watching his team complete a three-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday afternoon.

A few hundred miles to the north, the Toronto Blue Jays offered some signs they are returning to form as well.

The Mets and Blue Jays will each be looking to leave their early-season struggles further in the past Friday night, when New York is slated to host Toronto in the opener of a three-game interleague series between the 2022 playoff teams.

Justin Verlander (2-2, 4.80 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Mets against fellow right-hander Chris Bassitt (5-4, 3.80), who pitched for the Mets last season.

Both teams earned home wins Thursday afternoon. Max Scherzer tossed seven strong innings and Mark Canha hit the go-ahead two-run homer for the second straight game as the Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-2. Kevin Gausman struck out 11 over 6 2/3 scoreless innings in the Blue Jays’ 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.

The win continued an encouraging stretch for New York, which went 101-61 and earned the top National League wild card last season before opening this season 20-23. But the Mets have gone 10-4 since May 17 — a stretch that includes back-to-back losses in Colorado last Saturday and Sunday in which they were outscored 21-17 by the Rockies.

The Mets showed few ill effects of the Coors Field experience upon returning home to face the Phillies, whom they outscored 10-3 in the three games. Starting pitchers Scherzer, Kodai Senga and Carlos Carrasco combined to post an 0.90 ERA while Canha and Francisco Lindor combined for three homers.

“You are who you are and you seek your level,” Showalter said. “The pitching we’ve gotten the last three games certainly makes a difference.”

The Blue Jays, who were the American League’s No. 1 wild card last year after finishing 92-70, haven’t been below .500 this season since they were 2-3 on April 4. But Toronto lost footing in the competitive AL East — where every team has a winning record — while going 11-17 in May.

The Blue Jays have played in a more complete manner in earning consecutive series wins against a pair of division-leading teams, the Brewers and Minnesota Twins, whom they outscored 25-17.

Toronto scored nine runs without the benefit of a homer in the first two games against Milwaukee before Bo Bichette hit a solo homer and Matt Chapman added a two-run shot in the first inning Thursday to account for all of the Blue Jays’ runs.

“There are different ways that we’re built to score home runs,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “But you ignore the fact that we’ve got guys up and down the lineup who can do some damage.”

Verlander didn’t factor into the decision last Saturday, when he gave up six runs over five innings as the Mets fell to the Rockies 10-7. Bassitt took the defeat Saturday after surrendering seven runs in four innings as the Blue Jays lost to the Twins 9-7.

Verlander is 4-6 with a 4.29 ERA in 15 career starts against the Blue Jays. Bassitt, who went 15-9 with a 3.42 ERA in 30 starts last year for the Mets, has never opposed New York.

–Field Level Media

The Boston Red Sox will be dealing with the most powerful team in baseball Friday night when they open a four-game series against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays.

The Rays, who swept a four-game home series against the Red Sox in April, enter the weekend with 103 home runs, the most by any major league team. The Los Angeles Dodgers are second with 96.

Tampa Bay’s power isn’t the only thing that should have Red Sox fans worried. Boston ended a three-game losing streak by beating the Cincinnati Reds 8-2 Thursday but may have lost left-hander Chris Sale in the process. Sale left the mound in the fourth inning with soreness in his left shoulder.

“He’ll have an MRI (Friday) and we’ll know more,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Hoping for the best. Obviously it didn’t look great. (Velocity) was down in the second inning … it went from 95 to 90, so let’s wait and see.

“He wanted to finish it (the inning), but nah. Give it a shot, but after that you can’t be irresponsible.

“Overall a good W. We needed that one. Now we have to be ready for (Tampa Bay).”

The Rays are coming off Wednesday’s 4-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs. A loss would have resulted in Tampa Bay’s first three-game losing streak.

Brandon Lowe hit a two-run, game-tying home run in the seventh inning, and Jose Siri followed with a two-run homer in the eighth that erased Chicago’s 3-2 lead.

Tampa Bay’s offense was dormant in the first two games against the Cubs. The Rays were shut out 1-0 on one hit Monday and were contained in a 2-1 setback Tuesday. Tampa Bay had one hit through the first six innings of Wednesday’s win.

“Home runs kind of energize everybody,” Lowe said. “I feel like any time you score runs, you kind of put a little oomph in your step.”

The Rays have five players who have hit at least 10 home runs. Yandy Diaz leads the way with 12.

What makes the offense extra special is the Rays also lead the major leagues with 77 stolen bases. Tampa Bay has been caught stealing 16 times.

Garrett Whitlock (2-2, 5.14 ERA) is the Boston pitcher who will try to tame the Tampa Bay bats Friday. Against the Rays, the right-hander is 1-2 with a 4.76 ERA in 17 innings, allowing nine earned runs over seven career appearances (two starts).

Right-hander Tyler Glasnow (0-0, 6.23) is scheduled to be Tampa Bay’s starting pitcher. Glasnow, who missed the start of the season with a strained oblique muscle, made his season debut Saturday in a 6-5 loss to the Dodgers. He allowed three runs on five hits, struck out eight and walked one in 4 1/3 innings.

Glasnow is 2-1 with a 3.83 ERA in eight career starts against the Red Sox.

The teams will play a split doubleheader Saturday before wrapping up the series Sunday.

–Field Level Media

Boston Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale left his start against the visiting Cincinnati Reds on Thursday night after 3 2/3 innings due to left shoulder soreness.

Sale allowed one run on five hits while walking one and striking out six before Red Sox personnel pulled him from the game in the fourth inning.

“He’ll have an MRI (Friday) and we’ll know more,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Hoping for the best. Obviously it didn’t look great. (Velocity) was down in the second inning … it went from 95 to 90, so let’s wait and see.

“He wanted to finish it (the inning), but nah. Give it a shot, but after that you can’t be irresponsible.”

Since making at least 25 starts in each of his first three seasons with Boston, Sale’s career has been riddled with injuries. He entered Thursday with just 21 starts since the beginning of the 2021 season and missed the entirety of the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Last season was also a disaster, as Sale began 2022 on the 60-day injured list due to a rib stress fracture. He returned in July, only to fully get through one start. In his second outing, Sale took a comebacker on the mound and fractured the pinkie finger on his pitching hand.

The Red Sox then announced in August that Sale had surgery on his right wrist after a biking accident.

In 11 starts this season, including Thursday’s, Sale is 5-2 with a 4.58 ERA across 59 innings. He put together a strong May, going 3-0 with a 2.42 ERA in four starts.

Sale, 34, is in his 13th major league season. He is 119-77 with a 3.08 ERA in 334 games (254 starts) with the Chicago White Sox (2010-16) and Red Sox (2017-23).

–Field Level Media

A surprising challenger and division favorite meet for the first time when the Milwaukee Brewers visit the Cincinnati Reds in the opener of a four-game series Friday evening.

The Reds, who lost 100 games in 2022, enter the four-game set having completed a 5-1 road trip through Wrigley Field and Fenway Park, missing a six-game sweep with an 8-2 loss to Boston on Thursday night.

The third-place Reds, who trail the first-place Brewers by three games and the Pittsburgh Pirates by 2 1/2 games in the National League Central, came up with timely hits and numerous two-out rallies in the five-game win streak that ended Thursday.

“It’s all about the at-bats and competing,” Reds manager David Bell said. “You’re not always going to get hits in those situations. It’s nice when you do and obviously leads to a lot of runs. But when you don’t, looking for that opportunity next time is really important. Because a lot of the hits with runners in scoring position is a big confidence thing, you have to want to be up in that spot.”

The Reds send left-hander Brandon Williamson (0-0, 5.02 ERA) to the mound in his fourth major league start. Williamson was tagged for four runs on six hits over 4 1/3 innings last Saturday at Wrigley Field.

The Reds beat the Cubs 8-5 and have won Williamson’s first three starts in the majors, averaging just under six runs of support in each start. Williamson will look to refine his control, having walked nine in just 14 1/3 innings.

The Brewers counter with right-hander Corbin Burnes (4-4, 3.68), making his 12th start of the season. Last Saturday against San Francisco, Burnes took a tough-luck no-decision in a 3-1 loss to the Giants.

Burnes limited the Giants to one run and four hits over seven innings, striking out eight and walking three to post his sixth quality start of 2023.

Burnes is 2-1 with a 2.53 ERA in 14 career appearances (four starts) against the Reds. As a starter, Burnes has been dominant against Cincinnati, going 2-0 with a 2.36 ERA. Burnes is 2-1 with an 0.95 ERA in seven career games (two starts) at Great American Ball Park.

The Brewers, the defending NL Central champions, lead the division again but have struggled to find consistency. They lost 3-1 in Toronto on Thursday afternoon, a fifth loss in seven games that dropped them to 29-27.

Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta gave up three runs in the first inning on a pair of home runs but recovered for a quality six-inning start.

“He got burned on middle pitches and pitches that good and strong hitters did damage with,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “So, that’s the way the game goes. You’ve got to try to stay out of those situations if you can. That’s why you have to control good lineups. That’s what’s tough about good lineups and guys that can leave the park anywhere.”

With the loss Thursday, Milwaukee has dropped five straight series on the road and has won just four of its last 15 games away from home.

The series also marks the return of Milwaukee outfielder Jesse Winker to Cincinnati. He began his career in the organization before being traded to Seattle after the 2021 season.

Cincinnati rookie Matt McLain, fresh from earning National League Player of the Week honors, enters with a 10-game hitting streak. The shortstop extended Cincinnati’s longest hitting streak this season in his final at-bat Thursday, hitting an RBI single that tied the game at 2-2 before Boston’s six-run eruption in the bottom of the eighth.

–Field Level Media

Alex Bregman produced a two-run, two-out single to cap a three-run fifth inning and the host Houston Astros won the opener of their four-game series with the Los Angeles Angels 5-2 on Thursday.

Bregman drove home Jose Altuve and Yainer Diaz with a sharp grounder that Angels third baseman Gio Urshela proved unable to field. Bregman pounced on a first-pitch fastball from Angels left-hander Reid Detmers (0-5) and snapped a 2-2 deadlock to complete yet another rally.

The Astros matched the Angels’ run in the second inning with one in the bottom of that frame. Kyle Tucker doubled to right field, swiped third base and scored on Jose Abreu’s sacrifice fly to right.

In the fifth, Diaz pulled the Astros even at 2-2 with his line drive to center, scoring Corey Julks, who had opened the frame with a double to left. Bregman delivered four batters later.

Detmers allowed four runs on six hits and two walks with two strikeouts over five innings.

A pivotal moment unfolded in the top of the sixth. Suddenly pitching with a two-run lead, Astros starter Ronel Blanco immediately surrendered a pair of baserunners. He rallied and induced a flyball out from Jared Walsh but ceded the mound to Hector Neris, who then allowed a bloop single to Zach Neto that loaded the bases for the top of the Angels’ order.

Neris retired Taylor Ward on a called third strike that appeared low. Ward protested mildly, but Angels manager Phil Nevin was incensed and was subsequently ejected by plate umpire Stu Scheurwater. After the commotion, Neris followed by getting Mike Trout to hit a soft liner to shortstop Jeremy Pena, stranding the bases loaded and preserving the advantage.

Blanco (1-0), making his first major league start, was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday to serve as the sixth starter in the rotation. He surrendered an RBI single to Ward in the second inning and a solo home run to Brandon Drury with two outs in the fifth, but he was otherwise effective. He gave up two runs on seven hits and three walks with five strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.

Tucker (3-for-4) and Abreu teamed up again in the eighth when Tucker recorded his second double and Abreu followed with an RBI double that provided Houston a measure of insurance.

Ryan Pressly pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 11th save.

–Field Level Media