HOUSTON (AP) — Ronel Blanco struck out a career-high 11 in eight innings and Shawn Dubin completed the two-hitter to lead the Houston Astros to a 6-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday.
Yainer Diaz hit a three-run homer in the third to give Houston an early lead and Christian Walker added two hits and three RBIs to help the Astros take the series 2-1.
It was the second-longest start of Blanco’s career and longest since he tossed a no-hitter in his season debut last year in a 10-0 win over the Blue Jays on April 1.
Blanco (3-3) retired the first nine batters, with six strikeouts, before walking TJ Friedl to start the fourth. He sat down the next four batters before Spencer Steer got Cincinnati’s first hit on a double to the corner of left field with one out in the fifth.
But Blanco quickly got back on track and retired the next nine batters before Jose Trevino doubled with one out in the eighth. Will Benson grounded out before Blanco struck out Santiago Espinal to end his day and head to the dugout to a standing ovation.
METS 6, CUBS 2
NEW YORK (AP) — Francisco Lindor hit a go-ahead homer to start a four-run eighth inning and New York beat Chicago to avoid losing its second home series this season.
Lindor snapped a 2-2 tie against Porter Hodge (2-1) by getting ahead in the count and lifting a full count sweeper over the right-center field fence. Lindor connected after hitting the same pitch for a double play in the ninth inning against Hodge in Saturday’s 6-5 loss.
Mark Vientos homered off Chicago starter Matthew Boyd to give the Mets the lead in the sixth and added an RBI single in the eighth. Brandon Nimmo padded the lead with a two-run homer off Gavin Hollowell.
The big inning gave the Mets a 15-4 home record and their eighth series win at Citi Field so far.
Luis Torrens had an RBI triple in the second and exited in the sixth after getting hit below the belt by a Kyle Tucker foul ball.
Former Mets’ first-round pick Pete Crow-Armstrong homered off Griffin Canning in the sixth and Nico Hoerner hit a tying double in the seventh as the Cubs lost for the fourth time in five games.
CARDINALS 6, NATIONALS 1
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lars Nootbaar, Willson Contreras and Nolan Arenado homered, and St. Louis beat Washington to complete a three-game sweep.
The Cardinals have swept back-to-back series during an eight-game winning streak, their longest since August of 2022.
Miles Mikolas (2-2) allowed one run on four hits over 5 1/3 innings with five strikeouts and one walk. All five of his career wins against Washington have come at Nationals Park.
Nootbaar cranked his sixth homer of the season and seventh leadoff homer of his career well into the second deck in right field on the fifth pitch from MacKenzie Gore (2-4).
Contreras launched a 406-foot blast over the center field wall to begin the second, his sixth of the season. He is hitting .615 (8 for 13) against Gore with two doubles, a homer and three RBIs.
Arenado’s two-run shot in eighth was his fourth of the year.
Gore lasted 6 2/3 innings, allowing four runs, striking out seven and walking three on 101 pitches, 62 for strikes. He leads the majors with 75 strikeouts.
RANGERS 6, TIGERS 1
DETROIT (AP) — Nathan Eovaldi tossed seven shutout innings, Marcus Semien and Josh Jung hit two-run home runs and Texas beat Detroit.
Eovaldi (4-2) limited the Tigers to two hits and a walk while striking out seven in his fifth consecutive quality start.
Jung’s brother, Jace, started at third base for the Tigers. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Jung’s home run was the first by a player facing his brother’s team on Mother’s Day since at least 1969. Their mother, Mary, was in attendance.
Jonah Heim added a solo homer for Texas, which took two of three games from Detroit. The Rangers had lost their last six series while the Tigers had won their first five home series this season.
Detroit starter Reese Olson (4-3) allowed three runs and seven hits with five strikeouts in four innings. Spencer Torkelson ended the Rangers’ shutout bid with a ninth-inning sacrifice fly.
Rangers shortstop Corey Seager, who had two solo home runs and an RBI double in Texas’ 10-3 victory on Saturday, did not play because of hamstring tightness.
RED SOX 3, ROYALS 1
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Rafael Devers’ 440-foot homer snapped a 1-1 tie and Lucas Giolito pitched into the seventh inning for his first win since 2023 as Boston beat Kansas City.
Giolito (1-1) allowed two singles and one unearned run in 6 2/3 innings to get his first win for Boston. He missed last season with a partially torn elbow ligament, and his last victory was for Cleveland on Sept. 15, 2023.
Devers — again starting at designated hitter two days after Red Sox homer John Henry flew to Kansas City to meet with the disgruntled slugger over his refusal to play first base — followed up his 4-for-4 performance on Saturday with a monster homer. With one out and a runner on first in the sixth, Devers blasted Seth Lugo’s first pitch to dead center, his seventh longball of the year.
In the third inning, Giolito threw wildly past third on Kyle Isbel’s bunt, allowing Drew Waters to score. He faced the minimum after that.
Wilyer Abreu tied it in the fourth with his 10th homer, a 430-foot shot to right. Abreu had three hits, snapping an 0-for-13 slide.
Aroldis Chapman pitched a scoreless ninth for his sixth save.
Lugo (3-4) allowed three runs in six innings for his fifth straight quality start.
Kansas City had four hits, all singles, and lost consecutive games for the first time since a six-game skid from April 14-19.
PIRATES 4, BRAVES 3
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Joey Bart’s fielder’s choice on a hard ground ball in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted Pittsburgh over Atlanta to win two in a three-game series.
Bart hit a sharp grounder with the infield drawn in that hit off shortstop Nick Allen’s glove and scored Adam Frazier. It was Bart’s second career walk-off RBI.
The Pirates fired manager Derek Shelton before the series and replaced him with bench coach Don Kelly. Pittsburgh had lost seven games in a row and 10 of 11 before the change.
The Braves (19-21) failed to reach .500 for the first time this season after winning five of their previous seven games.
Pinch-hitter Sean Murphy pulled the Braves into a 3-3 tie in the eighth inning when he lined a three-run double to left-center with two out.
Dennis Santana (1-1) pitched a scoreless ninth for the win. The Pirates’ winning rally came against Raisel Iglesias (2-3).
Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in the longest outing of his three-year career. He allowed four hits, struck out two and walked one.
Braves starter Chris Sale gave up three runs — two earned — in 5 2/3 innings.
BREWERS 4, RAYS 2
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Christian Yelich and William Contreras hit back-to-back homers in the fourth inning for Milwaukee to help the Brewers beat Tampa Bay and avoid a three-game sweep.
Tyler Alexander (2-3) came on with one out and two on in the bottom of the fifth and pitched 1 2/3 hitless innings. Trevor Megill pitched a perfect ninth for his fifth save as the Brewers snapped a three-game skid.
Jake Bauers drew a walk off Drew Rasmussen (1-4) and scored on Caleb Durbin’s groundout to make it 3-2 in the fifth. Yelich led off the eighth with a hit and stole second before scoring on Rhys Hoskins’s two-out single to cap the scoring.
Chandler Simpson had two doubles and Jonathan Aranda had three hits and an RBI for the Rays. José Caballero’s sacrifice fly made it 2-2 in the fourth.
TWINS 7, GIANTS 6
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — DaShawn Keirsey Jr. singled home the winning run in the 10th inning as Minnesota beat San Francisco, extending its winning streak to eight games.
The Giants scored a run off Jhoan Duran (1-0) in the top of the 10th, but in the bottom half automatic runner Ty France moved to third on Brooks Lee’s single and scored on Ryan Jeffers’ ground out. After an intentional walk and a groundout, Keirsey lashed a line drive down the left field line against Ryan Walker (1-2) to complete a 6-0 homestand for the Twins.
Heliot Ramos had a home run and four RBIs for the Giants, while Lee homered and had three hits for Minnesota.
Twins starter Pablo López gave up four runs on five hits over six innings and left with the lead. But the Giants strung together three singles off Griffin Jax in the eighth to tie the score 5-5.
Giants manager Bob Melvin was ejected in the ninth inning for arguing a checked swing call.
WHITE SOX 4, MARLINS 2
Tim Elko hit a three-run homer — his first hit in the major leagues — in the sixth inning to help Chicago beat Miami.
The White Sox rebounded from getting swept in four games at Kansas City to win their third series of the season.
Andrew Vaughn hit an RBI single in the third inning for the White Sox. Miami’s Xavier Edwards answered with a single that scored Matt Mervis to make it 1-1 in the fourth. Edwards finished with two hits and a stolen base.
Mike Vasil (2-1) pitched three innings of relief, giving up a run on three hits, and Cam Booser worked the ninth for his first save of the season.
Sandy Alcantara (2-5) gave up four runs on seven hits with three walks and eight strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.
Chase Meidroth went 2 for 4 with a double for Chicago.
BLUE JAYS 9, MARINERS 1
SEATTLE (AP) — George Springer smacked a three-run homer in the fifth inning as Toronto beat Seattle to complete a three-game sweep.
Addison Barger added his first homer of the season, a solo shot in the seventh. The Blue Jays had no issues pushing runs across against Bryce Miller (2-4) and the suddenly reeling Mariners, who entered the series with the majors’ best record since April 7.
Toronto’s onslaught started in the second inning with an RBI single from Myles Straw. Ernie Clement had a sacrifice fly in the fourth before Springer blew it open.
Seattle struggled to do much of anything on the offensive side against opener Jose Urena and piggyback reliever Eric Lauer (1-0), with the duo combining to produce 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball. It was a forgetful first half of a six-game homestand for the Mariners, who scored seven runs across the three games.
The Blue Jays returned to .500 (20-20) with a 4-2 trip. They are 7-4 in their last 11 games.
YANKEES 12, ATHLETICS 2
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Aaron Judge had four hits to get his average back above .400 and Ben Rice hit a grand slam to lead New York to a victory over the Athletics.
Judge hit a two-run single in a five-run second inning against former teammate Luis Severino (1-4) and added hits in his final three at-bats to raise his average on the season to .409 — the fourth highest ever for a player with at least 14 homers in the first 40 games of a season.
The Yankees broke the game open in the fifth inning when Rice hit his first career grand slam after Mitch Spence had relieved an ineffective Severino.
The former Yankees starter struggled in his first career start against his former team, matching a career worst with eight earned runs allowed in four-plus innings.
Ryan Yarbrough (1-0) allowed two runs in five innings in his second start of the season to get the win.
JJ Bleday homered for the A’s, who fell to 8-13 at home this season.
ORIOLES 7, ANGELS 3
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Gunnar Henderson hit a two-run homer during Baltimore’s four-run sixth inning, and Maverick Handley got his first two career RBIs in its victory over Los Angeles.
Zach Eflin (3-1) pitched five innings of two-run ball in his return from a monthlong injury absence for the Orioles, who took two of three in this weekend series between last-place clubs. Baltimore finished its road trip by winning for only the second time in eight games.
Handley, the Orioles’ 27-year-old backup catcher, was playing in his fourth major league game. He drove in Emmanuel Rivera with a sacrifice fly in the fifth, and his sacrifice bunt brought in Rivera again in the sixth.
Matthew Lugo hit his first career homer as a pinch-hitter in the ninth for the Halos, who went 4-6 on their 10-game homestand.
Tyler Anderson (2-1) yielded one earned run over five innings for the Angels, who committed two errors and several other fielding gaffes.
ROCKIES 9, PADRES 3
DENVER (AP) — Hunter Goodman hit a double, a triple and a home run and had five RBIs on Sunday to help the Colorado Rockies beat the San Diego Padres 9-3 and snap an eight-game losing streak.
The Rockies fired manager Bud Black — whose 544 wins are the most in franchise history — earlier Sunday, a day after Colorado lost 21-0 to the Padres. The Rockies promoted third base coach Warren Schaeffer to interim manager.
Germán Márquez (1-6) pitched seven innings and gave up a run on three hits.
Goodman’s triple off Nick Pivetta (5-2) drove in two before Mickey Moniak hit an RBI single to make it 6-1 in the third inning.
Pivetta gave up six runs on seven hits with two walks over four innings.
Fernando Tatis Jr. scored on a groundout by Manny Machado in the first inning. Tatis added an RBI groundout in the eighth and Machado followed with run-scoring single.
Ryan McMahon hit a solo shot in the eighth for Colorado.
DODGERS 8, DIAMONDBACKS 1
PHOENIX (AP) — Tony Gonsolin pitched five scoreless innings and Freddie Freeman homered on a 4-for-4 day to lead Los Angeles to a victory over Arizona.
Mookie Betts also went deep for the Dodgers, who had 18 hits and salvaged a four-game split with their National League West rivals. With San Diego’s 9-3 loss at Colorado, Los Angeles regained the division lead by one game over the Padres.
Gonsolin (2-0), making his third start after missing all of 2024 following Tommy John surgery, threw 84 pitches, walking two and striking out four. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 2.81, giving a boost to a Dodgers staff missing injured starters Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow.
Freeman raised his NL-leading batting average to .376. He doubled in Mookie Betts in the first off Zac Gallen (3-5), doubled again in the third and hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth. He added his ninth homer, off Joe Mantiply, in the seventh, and singled against José Castillo in the ninth.
Betts’ homer, his sixth, came off Castillo in the ninth.
Gallen lasted 5 1/3 innings, giving up 10 hits and four runs. He walked two and struck out five.
PHILLIES 3, GUARDIANS 0
CLEVELAND (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered twice to tie Aaron Judge for the major league lead and extended his on-base streak to 46 games, and Zack Wheeler struck out eight over seven innings as Philadelphia beat Cleveland.
Schwarber hit a solo shot off Luis Ortiz in the second inning and a two-run blast off Tim Herrin in the eighth for his 14th longball of the season and 32nd career multi-homer game. He is the first player with a 46-game on-base streak since Paul Goldschmidt of St. Louis in 2022.
Wheeler (4-1) only permitted two runners to get past first base in his third consecutive win, giving up three hits with two walks. The right-hander matched his longest start of the season as the Phillies went 5-1 on a trip through Tampa Bay and Cleveland.
José Alvarado pitched the eighth and Jordan Romano earned his third save, wrapping up the three-hitter. Philadelphia has won 11 of 14 since falling to .500 on April 25.
Ortiz (2-4) pitched six innings, allowing four hits with nine strikeouts. Cleveland lost for just the 11th time in 31 games since April 8.
The Associated Press
