BOSTON (AP) — Rafael Devers hit two home runs, including a go-ahead blast in the fifth inning, to help the Boston Red Sox best New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole for the second straight time at Fenway Park in a 6-2 victory Friday night. Devers followed his two-run with a three-run homer in the seventh — the 100th of his career — to help Boston improve to 9-2 against New York this season. The Red Sox maintained their one-game AL East lead over Tampa Bay and increased their lead to nine games over the third-place Yankees. Yacksel Rios (3-0) got the victory, pitching two scoreless innings to cap a strong night from the bullpen after starter Eduardo Rodriguez left in the second inning after experiencing migraine symptoms. Cole (10-5) started strong for New York, but was pulled after fiving innings, giving up three runs off six hits, striking out eight and walking two. METS 3, BLUE JAYS 0 NEW YORK (AP) — Tylor Megill threw six scoreless innings for his first big league victory and got his first... [More]

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Hunter Renfroe hit a grand slam, Kiké Hernández drove in three runs with two homers and the Boston Red Sox snapped a two-game losing streak with a 13-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night. Rookie Jarren Duran hit his first major league homer, Dylan Santana and Rafael Devers also went yard, and J.D. Martinez broke out of a slump with four hits as the Red Sox improved their AL-leading road record to 29-19. Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta (8-4) allowed four runs on 11 hits and two walks while recording four strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. Toronto used eight pitchers and had its five-game win streak halted. Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling gave up six runs on four hits and two walks while getting only one out in his first appearance this season that didn’t extend into at least the fourth inning. Cavan Biggio homered for the Blue Jays during a four-run rally in the fourth inning. Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk and Bo Bichette also drove in runs. METS 15, REDS 11,... [More]

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Hunter Renfroe hit a grand slam, Kiké Hernández drove in three runs with two homers and the Boston Red Sox snapped a two-game losing streak with a 13-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night. Rookie Jarren Duran hit his first major league homer, Dylan Santana and Rafael Devers also went yard, and J.D. Martinez broke out of a slump with four hits as the Red Sox improved their AL-leading road record to 29-19. Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta (8-4) allowed four runs on 11 hits and two walks while recording four strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. Toronto used eight pitchers and had its five-game win streak halted. Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling gave up six runs on four hits and two walks while getting only one out in his first appearance this season that didn’t extend into at least the fourth inning. Cavan Biggio homered for the Blue Jays during a four-run rally in the fourth inning. Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk and Bo Bichette also drove in runs. METS 15, REDS 11,... [More]

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Hunter Renfroe hit a grand slam, Kiké Hernández drove in three runs with two homers and the Boston Red Sox snapped a two-game losing streak with a 13-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night. Rookie Jarren Duran hit his first major league homer, Dylan Santana and Rafael Devers also went yard, and J.D. Martinez broke out of a slump with four hits as the Red Sox improved their AL-leading road record to 29-19. Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta (8-4) allowed four runs on 11 hits and two walks while recording four strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. Toronto used eight pitchers and had its five-game win streak halted. Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling gave up six runs on four hits and two walks while getting only one out in his first appearance this season that didn’t extend into at least the fourth inning. Cavan Biggio homered for the Blue Jays during a four-run rally in the fourth inning. Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk and Bo Bichette also drove in runs. METS 15, REDS 11,... [More]

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Hunter Renfroe hit a grand slam, Kiké Hernández drove in three runs with two homers and the Boston Red Sox snapped a two-game losing streak with a 13-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night. Rookie Jarren Duran hit his first major league homer, Dylan Santana and Rafael Devers also went yard, and J.D. Martinez broke out of a slump with four hits as the Red Sox improved their AL-leading road record to 29-19. Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta (8-4) allowed four runs on 11 hits and two walks while recording four strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. Toronto used eight pitchers and had its five-game win streak halted. Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling gave up six runs on four hits and two walks while getting only one out in his first appearance this season that didn’t extend into at least the fourth inning. Cavan Biggio homered for the Blue Jays during a four-run rally in the fourth inning. Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk and Bo Bichette also drove in runs. ORIOLES 6, RAYS 1... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. will have season-ending surgery to repair a completely torn ACL in his right knee after he was injured during Atlanta’s 5-4 win over the Miami Marlins on Saturday. An MRI showed the severity of the injury and the Braves made the announcement shortly before midnight that their three-time All-Star will be out until at least next year. Acuña landed awkwardly on his right leg after jumping on the warning track in right field to try to catch a drive from Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the fifth inning. The 23-year-old slammed into the outfield wall and crumbled on the warning track, immediately grabbing his right knee while Chisholm sprinted out an inside-the-park homer. The 23-year-old Acuña did not put any weight on his right leg and had to be helped to a cart before being taken from the field. Freddie Freeman had a two-run homer and an RBI single, while Dansby Swanson and Austin Riley ripped doubles as the first three Braves reached base off All-Star pitcher... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. will have season-ending surgery to repair a completely torn ACL in his right knee after he was injured during Atlanta’s 5-4 win over the Miami Marlins on Saturday. An MRI showed the severity of the injury and the Braves made the announcement shortly before midnight that their three-time All-Star will be out until at least next year. Acuña landed awkwardly on his right leg after jumping on the warning track in right field to try to catch a drive from Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the fifth inning. The 23-year-old slammed into the outfield wall and crumbled on the warning track, immediately grabbing his right knee while Chisholm sprinted out an inside-the-park homer. The 23-year-old Acuña did not put any weight on his right leg and had to be helped to a cart before being taken from the field. Freddie Freeman had a two-run homer and an RBI single, while Dansby Swanson and Austin Riley ripped doubles as the first three Braves reached base off All-Star pitcher... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — For Yuli Gurriel and the Houston Astros, the fight is on when the count gets to two strikes. There is nothing complicated about their success, either. "You got to have pride,” manager Dusty Baker said. “You got to have pride in it, like when you were a kid playing strikeout with your little brother. They say strikeouts aren’t important, but you see how many games that we won just by putting the ball in play.” The Astros are on top of the AL West, and their two-strike approach is a key part of one of baseball's best lineups. Gurriel leads the majors with a .291 batting average with two strikes heading into play on Wednesday, and teammates Michael Brantley (.267) and Yordan Alvarez (.252) rank among the top six on the list. Baker's club has a big league-best .205 team batting average with two strikes — easily clearing the MLB average of .161. While strikeouts, spin rates and sticky substances have been the talk of baseball this year, Gurriel and Co. are among a group of hitters... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks snapped their record 24-game road losing streak by routing the San Diego Padres 10-1 on Saturday night, getting six scoreless innings from Merrill Kelly and four hits and five RBIs from Eduardo Escobar. Escobar and Christian Walker homered for the Diamondbacks, who hadn’t won away from Chase Field since April 25, when Madison Bumgarner pitched seven no-hit innings at Atlanta. The Diamondbacks had dropped 20 of 21 games and 34 of 37 overall. Escobar connected for a two-run homer, and drove in runs with a double, a single and a groundout. He finished a triple shy of the cycle. Kelly (4-7) allowed five hits, struck out five and walked none. Dinelson Lamet (2-3) took the loss, allowing four runs and six hits in 2 1/3 innings. METS 4, PHILLIES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom gave up two runs for the first time this season and New York rallied after he exited, beating Philadelphia on Michael Conforto’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning. DeGrom’s bid to... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Mets ace Jacob deGrom gave up two runs for the first time this season and New York rallied after he exited, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 Saturday on Michael Conforto’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning. DeGrom’s bid to set the Mets record for the longest scoreless-inning streak fell just short. His run ended at 31 innings on rookie Nick Maton’s RBI single in the second — R.A. Dickey set the team shutout mark of 32 2/3 innings in 2012. DeGrom allowed three hits in six innings, striking out five and walking one while throwing 88 pitches, his most since tossing 93 against Boston on April 28 in a 1-0 loss. Edwin Diaz (2-1) earned the victory. Héctor Neris (1-5) took the loss. BLUE JAYS 12, ORIOLES 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his major league-leading 26th home run, Teoscar Hernández and Randal Grichuk also connected and Toronto rolled past Baltimore. Guerrero homered during a four-run burst in the third inning that also included Bo Bichette’s RBI... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Mets ace Jacob deGrom gave up two runs for the first time this season and New York rallied after he exited, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 Saturday on Michael Conforto’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning. DeGrom’s bid to set the Mets record for the longest scoreless-inning streak fell just short. His run ended at 31 innings on rookie Nick Maton’s RBI single in the second — R.A. Dickey set the team shutout mark of 32 2/3 innings in 2012. DeGrom allowed three hits in six innings, striking out five and walking one while throwing 88 pitches, his most since tossing 93 against Boston on April 28 in a 1-0 loss. Edwin Diaz (2-1) earned the victory. Héctor Neris (1-5) took the loss. BLUE JAYS 12, ORIOLES 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his major league-leading 26th home run, Teoscar Hernández and Randal Grichuk also connected and Toronto rolled past Baltimore. Guerrero homered during a four-run burst in the third inning that also included Bo Bichette’s RBI... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani struck out nine over six innings of one-run ball for the Angels, but the San Francisco Giants rallied for seven runs in the 13th inning of a 9-3 victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday. Steven Duggar had an RBI double in the 12th and a two-run single in the 13th for the Giants, who finally blew it open while the Angels had outfielder Taylor Ward playing catcher and starting pitcher Griffin Canning playing left field as the fallout from an untimely injury to Kurt Suzuki and a series of strategic decisions made to allow Ohtani to hit for himself. Mike Tauchman struck out five times before hitting a three-run homer to cap the Giants’ 13th-inning rally. Brandon Crawford put San Francisco ahead to stay with a bases-loaded walk from Alex Claudio (1-2), who walked three straight in the 13th. The 13-inning game matched the longest in the majors since the institution of the runner-on-second-base rule to open extra innings last season. Dominic Leone (1-0) won despite... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani struck out nine over six innings of one-run ball for the Angels, but the San Francisco Giants rallied for seven runs in the 13th inning of a 9-3 victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday. Steven Duggar had an RBI double in the 12th and a two-run single in the 13th for the Giants, who finally blew it open while the Angels had outfielder Taylor Ward playing catcher and starting pitcher Griffin Canning playing left field as the fallout from an untimely injury to Kurt Suzuki and a series of strategic decisions made to allow Ohtani to hit for himself. Mike Tauchman struck out five times before hitting a three-run homer to cap the Giants’ 13th-inning rally. Brandon Crawford put San Francisco ahead to stay with a bases-loaded walk from Alex Claudio (1-2), who walked three straight in the 13th. The 13-inning game matched the longest in the majors since the institution of the runner-on-second-base rule to open extra innings last season. Dominic Leone (1-0) won despite... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom pitched one-hit ball over five scoreless innings as the Mets beat the Atlanta Braves 4-2 Monday in a doubleheader opener. Ian Anderson (5-3) allowed three hits in 5 1/3 innings as the Braves won the nightcap 1-0 and he to became the first native New Yorker to beat the Mets and Yankees in New York in the same season. DeGrom (7-2) didn’t allow a hit in the seven-inning opener until Mets outfielders misplayed a fifth-inning fly ball into a ground-rule double. Jeff McNeil came off the injured list and singled as a pinch-hitter for deGrom during the fifth, then scored on Dominic Smith’s three-run double. Seth Lugo and Edwin Díaz finished the two-hitter, with Díaz getting his 15th save. Kyle Muller (0-1) pitched one-hit ball over four innings in his first big league start. In the second game, Ronald Acuña Jr. hit his 20th homer. Braves closer Will Smith loaded the bases in the seventh but escaped for his 14th save. PADRES 6, DODGERS 2 SAN DIEGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom pitched one-hit ball over five scoreless innings as the Mets beat the Atlanta Braves 4-2 Monday in a doubleheader opener. Ian Anderson (5-3) allowed three hits in 5 1/3 innings as the Braves won the nightcap 1-0 and he to became the first native New Yorker to beat the Mets and Yankees in New York in the same season. DeGrom (7-2) didn’t allow a hit in the seven-inning opener until Mets outfielders misplayed a fifth-inning fly ball into a ground-rule double. Jeff McNeil came off the injured list and singled as a pinch-hitter for deGrom during the fifth, then scored on Dominic Smith’s three-run double. Seth Lugo and Edwin Díaz finished the two-hitter, with Díaz getting his 15th save. Kyle Muller (0-1) pitched one-hit ball over four innings in his first big league start. In the second game, Ronald Acuña Jr. hit his 20th homer. Braves closer Will Smith loaded the bases in the seventh but escaped for his 14th save. RANGERS 8, ATHLETICS 3 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Andy... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Maikel Franco hit a two-run homer with one out in the eighth inning, denying the Houston Astros in their attempt to throw a combined no-hitter Monday night at Baltimore. Astros starter Jake Odorizzi and reliever Cristian Javier held the Orioles without a hit through seven innings. Then there was a 41-minute rain delay in the top of the eighth. Brandon Bielak came on to pitch the bottom of the eighth for Houston, and after he hit Austin Hays with a pitch with one out — just the second baserunner for Baltimore — Franco sent a drive to deep center field. The Astros lead 10-2. Earlier in Franco's at-bat, Bielak appeared to have thrown strike three, but he didn't get the call from plate umpire Angel Hernandez. Houston was looking to pitch the seventh no-hitter in the majors this season. That would have matched 1990, 1991, 2012 and 2015 for the most since 1900, one shy of the record eight in 1884 — the first season overhand pitching was allowed. Odorizzi pitched the first five... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Houston Astros starter Jake Odorizzi and reliever Cristian Javier held Baltimore without a hit through seven innings Monday night, and play has resumed after a 41-minute rain delay in the top of the eighth. Houston was looking to throw the seventh no-hitter in the majors this season. That would match 1990, 1991, 2012 and 2015 for the most since 1900, one shy of the record eight in 1884 — the first season overhand pitching was allowed. Odorizzi pitched the first five innings before being replaced by Javier. Odorizzi retired his first 13 batters, then walked DJ Stewart on a full count in the fifth. That was the only baserunner for the Orioles. Houston leads 9-0. The teams played for a while in a driving rain at Camden Yards in the top of the eighth, with puddles forming in the infield. Play was finally halted with one out and José Altuve batting. The start of the game was also delayed an hour because of rain. Javier retired Baltimore in order in the sixth and seventh. Pedro... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Houston Astros starter Jake Odorizzi and reliever Cristian Javier held Baltimore without a hit through seven innings Monday night, and the game was in a rain delay in the eighth. Houston was looking to throw the seventh no-hitter in the majors this season. That would match 1990, 1991, 2012 and 2015 for the most since 1900, one shy of the record eight in 1884 — the first season overhand pitching was allowed. Odorizzi pitched the first five innings before being replaced by Javier. Odorizzi retired his first 13 batters, then walked DJ Stewart on a full count. That was the only baserunner for the Orioles. Houston leads 7-0. The teams played for a while in a driving rain at Camden Yards in the top of the eighth, with puddles forming in the infield. Play was finally halted with one out and José Altuve batting. The start of the game was also delayed an hour because of rain. Javier retired Baltimore in order in the sixth and seventh. Pedro Severino hit a sharp line drive to left... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The Houston Astros have held Baltimore without a hit through seven innings Monday night, with Jake Odorizzi pitching the first five and the bullpen trying to complete a combined no-hitter. Odorizzi retired his first 13 batters before walking DJ Stewart on a full count. That was the only baserunner for the Orioles. Houston leads 7-0, with the teams playing in a driving rain at Camden Yards and puddles forming in the infield. Cristian Javier retired Baltimore in order in the sixth and seventh. Pedro Severino hit a sharp line drive to left field in the sixth, but it was right at Houston's Yordan Alvarez. Ryan Mountcastle's seventh-inning liner was hit right at Astros center fielder Myles Straw. The start of the game was delayed an hour by rain, and it was raining hard between the bottom of the seventh and top of the eighth. But the rain became a bit lighter for a while, and the teams played on after the grounds crew poured sand on the mound and area around home plate. In a... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The Houston Astros have held Baltimore without a hit through six innings Monday night, with Jake Odorizzi pitching the first five and the bullpen trying to complete a combined no-hitter. Odorizzi retired his first 13 batters before walking DJ Stewart on a full count. That was the only baserunner for the Orioles. Houston leads 7-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Cristian Javier retired Baltimore in order in the sixth. Pedro Severino hit a sharp line drive to left field, but it was right at Houston's Yordan Alvarez. In a season when pitchers have dominated — and on the day umpires began checking them for illegal foreign substances — Odorizzi didn't seem the least bit bothered. He struck out nine and threw 86 pitches, three shy of his season high. The 31-year-old Odorizzi missed more than a month with a strained muscle in his right arm. This was his fifth appearance and fourth start since returning. Houston was looking to pitch the seventh no-hitter in the majors this... [More]