Alec Bohm hit a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning, Zach Eflin gave Philadelphia another strong start and the Phillies completed a three-game sweep of the defending NL East champion Atlanta Braves with a 2-1 win Sunday. Philadelphia’s starting trio of Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler and Eflin (1-0) surrendered three runs, 11 hits and one walk in 20 2/3 innings against an Atlanta lineup that led the majors in 2020 with 556 hits. The Phillies bullpen, which posted a 7.06 ERA in 2020, didn’t yield a run in 7 1/3 innings in the set. Philadelphia regained the lead in the eighth as Rhys Hoskins, Bryce Harper and Bohm hit consecutive singles off Chris Martin (0-1). Hector Neris got his first save. REDS 12, CARDINALS 1 Nick Castellanos came out swinging with his bat a day after being ejected for inciting a bench-clearing melee, hitting a three-run homer off Carlos Martinez (0-1) and triple to finish the series 6 for 11 with five RBIs. Tyler Naquin also a three-run shot for the Reds, who won two in... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Akil Baddoo had already turned heads with his productive spring. Now he's made his presence felt at Comerica Park. Baddoo homered in his first major league at-bat Sunday — on the very first pitch. The Detroit outfielder led off the bottom of the third inning with a drive to left field off Cleveland's Aaron Civale. The game was the 22-year-old Baddoo's first appearance above Class A. His teammates seemed caught up in the moment too when he returned to the dugout. “I was actually waiting for the silent treatment, but everyone was just full of energy — just so happy for me," Baddoo said. "So I loved every second of it.” Baddoo was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 2016, and the Tigers took him with the third pick of the 2020 winter meeting draft of unprotected players. He is coming off a terrific spring training in which he hit .325 with five home runs in 21 games. He didn't seem fazed by the pressure of appearing in a regular-season game for the first time. “What a cool moment... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Tigers outfielder Akil Baddoo homered in his first major league at-bat — on his very first pitch. Baddoo led off the bottom of the third inning Sunday with a drive to left field off Cleveland's Aaron Civale. This game was the 22-year-old Baddoo's first appearance above Class A. Baddoo was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 2016, and the Tigers took him with the third pick of the 2020 winter meeting draft of unprotected players. He is coming off a terrific spring training in which he hit .325 with five home runs in 21 games. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DETROIT (AP) — Tigers outfielder Akil Baddoo homered in his first major league at-bat — on his very first pitch. Baddoo led off the bottom of the third inning Sunday with a drive to left field off Cleveland's Aaron Civale. This game was the 22-year-old Baddoo's first appearance above Class A. Baddoo was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 2016, and the Tigers took him with the third pick of the 2020 winter meeting draft of unprotected players. He is coming off a terrific spring training in which he hit .325 with five home runs in 21 games. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports