Ildemaro Vargas hit a tiebreaking two-run homer with two outs in the top of the ninth inning as the Washington Nationals won 3-1 at Seattle on Wednesday, overcoming two notable performances by Mariners rookies.
Vargas just cleared the fence in right-center field on a 1-2 pitch from Paul Sewald (3-4) as the Nationals earned a split of the two-game series. Kyle Finnegan (5-2) got the victory after tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief.
Seattle’s Julio Rodriguez became the 12th rookie in major league history to join the 20-20 club when he hit a home run with two outs in the eighth to tie the score at 1-1.
Mariners rookie George Kirby began the game with 24 consecutive strikes, the most since records began being kept in 1988. He tossed seven innings of one-run ball.
Astros 5, Twins 3
Framber Valdez gave up one run on two hits over seven innings to win his fourth consecutive start and Jose Altuve and Trey Mancini homered to lead Houston past visiting Minnesota.
It was the 21st consecutive quality start for Valdez (13-4), breaking the franchise record set by Mike Scott in 1986 en route to winning the National League’s Cy Young Award. Valdez walked four and struck out eight.
Luis Arraez had an RBI double for Minnesota, which lost its fifth straight game, the team’s longest skid of the season. Dylan Bundy (7-6) allowed two runs on three hits in five innings.
Braves 14, Pirates 2
Matt Olson belted a grand slam and Kyle Wright pitched seven scoreless innings as visiting Atlanta breezed to a victory over Pittsburgh.
William Contreras launched a two-run homer, Dansby Swanson drove in three runs with a double and Austin Riley, Ronald Acuna Jr. and Robbie Grossman each hit an RBI single. Wright (16-5) allowed two hits and struck out eight batters for the Braves, who have won six of their last seven games.
Kevin Newman belted a solo homer for the Pirates, who have lost five straight. Tucupita Marcano added a sacrifice fly, and Pittsburgh dropped all seven of its games against the Braves this season.
Dodgers 12, Brewers 6
Joey Gallo continued his revival with a two-run double and Andrew Heaney struck out 10 over six innings as Los Angeles topped visiting Milwaukee.
Cody Bellinger and Austin Barnes combined to drive in six runs in the bottom two spots of the order as the Dodgers won for the 18th time in 22 games this month. Heaney (2-1) yielded two runs on four hits and one walk.
Willy Adames and Hunter Renfroe hit home runs for the Brewers, with Adrian Houser (4-9) giving up five runs in just 2 1/3 innings in his return from the injured list. Milwaukee fell to 5-8 since Aug. 12.
Tigers 6, Giants 1
Matt Manning tossed six scoreless innings for his first win of the season and Detroit scored six runs with two outs in the fifth to defeat visiting San Francisco.
Manning (1-1) gave up five hits, didn’t issue a walk and struck out eight. Victor Reyes and Willi Castro drove in two runs apiece during the fifth-inning outburst, while Kody Clemens and Harold Castro each scored and knocked in a run.
Tommy La Stella had two hits and drove in the lone San Francisco run. Giants starter Logan Webb (11-7) was charged with all six runs on five hits in 4 2/3 innings. The Giants left 10 runners on base and went 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position.
Rangers 16, Rockies 4
Nathaniel Lowe homered among his three hits and drove in five runs, Martin Perez struck out seven in six scoreless innings and Texas crushed Colorado in Denver.
Charlie Culberson homered, Ezequiel Duran had three hits and Marcus Semien, Corey Seager and Mark Mathias had two hits apiece. Adolis Garcia singled twice to extend his hitting streak to a career-best 21 games.
The Rockies got on the board against reliever Dennis Santana in the seventh. Randal Grichuk and Montero singled and Grichuk scored on a sacrifice fly. Wynton Bernard and Connor Joe had RBI singles to chase Santana. Bernard scored on a wild pitch by Josh Sborz to make it 9-4.
Rays 4, Angels 3 (11 innings)
Angels first baseman Jared Walsh’s errant throw in the 11th inning allowed the winning run to score as Los Angeles beat Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Taylor Ward’s RBI double in the top of the 11th gave the Angels a 3-2 lead. Harold Ramirez tied the game with an RBI double in the bottom half before Walsh’s miscue on David Peralta’s high chopper.
Each team also scored a run in the eighth inning and the 10th inning. Los Angeles’ Mike Trout homered for the second game in a row.
Phillies 7, Reds 5
J.T. Realmuto hit a solo home run, double and single, Rhys Hoskins added two hits and three RBIs and host Philadelphia defeated Cincinnati.
Jean Segura had three hits and two runs, and Matt Vierling contributed two hits, two runs and an RBI. Nick Castellanos also had two hits and extended his hitting streak to 14 games.
Stuart Fairchild and Kyle Farmer each hit solo home runs for the slumping Reds, who have dropped three straight. Cincinnati starter T.J. Zeuch (0-3) lasted only 2 2/3 innings and allowed seven hits and six runs with four walks and no strikeouts. Through three starts, none longer than four innings, his ERA is 15.19.
Guardians 7, Padres 0
Jose Ramirez hit two homers and Cal Quantrill blanked his former team for seven innings as visiting Cleveland defeated San Diego to complete a two-game interleague sweep.
Quantrill (10-5) held the Padres to five hits and a walk with six strikeouts over seven innings. It was Quantrill’s sixth straight win and the Guardians’ ninth straight when Quantrill starts.
Ramirez homered in the first off Padres starter and loser Blake Snell (5-7). Ramirez and Oscar Gonzalez then went back-to-back to open a five-run fourth against Snell, who was tagged for six runs on eight hits with four strikeouts in just 3 1/3 innings.
A’s 3, Marlins 2 (10 innings)
Skye Bolt’s shallow sacrifice fly to right-center field in the bottom of the 10th inning gave Oakland a walk-off win over visiting Miami.
A.J. Puk (3-1) stranded two Marlins in the top of the 10th for the win after A’s starter Cole Irvin logged a career-best 11 strikeouts in seven shutout innings. Oakland’s Chad Pinder hit a two-run single in the sixth inning.
Facing the A’s for the first time since they dealt him to the Marlins last July, Jesus Luzardo tossed seven innings, allowing two runs. Nick Fortes hit a game-tying solo homer in the ninth.
Blue Jays 3, Red Sox 2 (10 innings)
George Springer’s double on the first pitch of the 10th inning lifted Toronto past Boston for its sixth win in seven games.
Springer finished his 3-for-5 night by doubling high off the Green Monster to drive in Jackie Bradley Jr. Alejandro Kirk also had three hits for the Blue Jays. Adam Cimber (10-5) pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn the win, and Jordan Romano recorded his 27th save.
Alex Verdugo, Franchy Cordero and Reese McGuire each had two hits for Boston, which has lost three straight and five of its last six games. Ryan Brasier (0-3) took the loss after the previous three relievers — Matt Barnes, Garrett Whitlock and John Schreiber — allowed just three hits over four scoreless innings.
White Sox 5, Orioles 3
Gavin Sheets drove in three runs and Lucas Giolito allowed one run over 6 1/3 innings as Chicago beat host Baltimore.
Sheets had a two-run single in the first inning and a run-scoring infield single in the seventh. His outburst was plenty for Giolito (10-7), who allowed four hits and two walks while striking out three.
Baltimore right-hander Spenser Watkins (4-4) lasted six innings despite the two-run first inning. He allowed no further runs to go with five hits, five strikeouts and two walks. Austin Hays hit a two-run home run in the ninth off White Sox closer Liam Hendriks to cap the scoring.
Cubs 7, Cardinals 1
Zach McKinstry homered and drove in three runs as host Chicago Cubs beat St. Louis, evening the five-game series at two wins apiece.
McKinstry, acquired by the Cubs at the trade with the Dodgers, recorded an RBI groundout during a three-run second inning, then clubbed a two-run shot off St. Louis starter Miles Mikolas (10-10) in the seventh.
Chicago starter Luke Farrell allowed one run over 4 1/3 innings in his season debut. The 31-year-old right-hander gave up six hits, but only Lars Nootbaar’s fifth-inning homer. Cubs relievers Rowan Wick (4-6), Mark Leiter Jr., Brandon Hughes and Kervin Castro held the Cardinals to three hits in 4 2/3 scoreless innings.
Royals 5, Diamondbacks 3
Rookie Bobby Witt Jr. belted a three-run homer to highlight a five-run seventh inning, lifting host Kansas City over Arizona.
Brady Singer (7-4) improved to 3-0 in his last four starts after allowing one run on four hits in seven innings, as the Royals salvaged a split of their abbreviated two-game series against the Diamondbacks.
Arizona’s Zac Gallen scattered three hits over six innings to extend his scoreless innings streak to a career-best 27 1/3 frames. He has yielded just 12 hits during that stretch. Christian Walker and Daulton Varsho each launched a solo homer for the Diamondbacks, who have lost four of their last five games.
-Field Level Media
