LOS ANGELES (AP) — Paul DeJong hit a go-ahead, two-run homer off Kenley Jansen in the ninth inning, lifting the St. Louis Cardinals to a 3-1 victory and a three-game sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night.The Cardinals' eighth straight road win helped them improve to 17-4 this month, the most wins in the majors. They've homered in 15 straight games, one off the current season mark of 16 in a row by Philadelphia.St. Louis remained 2½ games behind the NL Central-leading Cubs.For Jansen, it was a familiar ending.The All-Star closer, who became a father for the third time earlier in the day, gave up consecutive homers to Jedd Gyorko and Matt Carpenter in the series opener Monday. That was Jansen's first game back after missing time because of an irregular heartbeat.This time, Gyorko singled off Jansen (0-5) and DeJong followed with a drive to left-center to give the Cardinals their first lead.Jordan Hicks struck out Cody Bellinger, Brian Dozier and Chris Taylor to earn his fifth... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Rookie Freddy Peralta tossed seven scoreless innings and drove in a run with his first career hit, combining with two relievers on a five-hitter to lead the Milwaukee Brewers past the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 on Wednesday.Christian Yelich homered and finished a triple shy of the cycle, reaching base five times and driving in two runs for Milwaukee. He opened the first with his 21st homer, doubled in the third, walked in the fourth and singled in the sixth and eighth.Peralta (6-4) allowed just three singles, striking out seven and walking two to win for the second time in seven starts. The 22-year-old right-hander did not allow a hit until Jose Peraza's single to open the fourth.Peralta was 0-for-22 with 11 strikeouts this season before he drove in the Brewers' second run with a fourth-inning single.Robert Stephenson (0-2) allowed four runs on nine hits in five innings, walking three and striking out four.The Reds loaded the bases in the eighth against Taylor Williams, but Jeremy... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Rookie Freddy Peralta tossed seven scoreless innings and drove in a run with his first career hit, combining with two relievers on a five-hitter to lead the Milwaukee Brewers past the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 on Wednesday.Christian Yelich homered and finished a triple shy of the cycle, reaching base five times and driving in two runs for Milwaukee. He opened the first with his 21st homer, doubled in the third, walked in the fourth and singled in the sixth and eighth.Peralta (6-4) allowed just three singles, striking out seven and walking two to win for the second time in seven starts. The 22-year-old right-hander did not allow a hit until Jose Peraza's single to open the fourth.Peralta was 0-for-22 with 11 strikeouts this season before he drove in the Brewers' second run with a fourth-inning single.Robert Stephenson (0-2) allowed four runs on nine hits in five innings, walking three and striking out four.The Reds loaded the bases in the eighth against Taylor Williams, but Jeremy... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Chicago Cubs tied a major league record by turning seven double plays Friday night, including a game-ending effort by rookie third baseman David Bote on a grounder by David Freese to finish off a 1-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.The Cubs got six double plays on grounders — five with Cole Hamels pitching — and one on a line drive. The Elias Sports Bureau said the Cubs became the third team in big league history to turn seven DPs in a nine-inning game.Pittsburgh put runners on first and second in the ninth before Jesse Chavez got Freese to ground to Bote. Having hit a game-ending grand slam last Sunday night to beat Washington 4-3, Bote again was in the right place to cap off a win. Bote stepped on third and threw to first base to end it.Hamels (8-9) pitched seven solid innings. Kyle Schwarber hit a home run in the second off Trevor Williams (10-9). Chavez got his second save as the Pirates lost their fifth in a row.The Cubs beat the Pirates by a 1-0 score for the second... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Chicago Cubs tied a major league record by turning seven double plays Friday night, including a game-ending effort by rookie third baseman David Bote on a grounder by David Freese to finish off a 1-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.The Cubs got six double plays on grounders — five with Cole Hamels pitching — and one on a line drive. The Elias Sports Bureau said the Cubs became the third team in big league history to turn seven DPs in a nine-inning game.Pittsburgh put runners on first and second in the ninth before Jesse Chavez got Freese to ground to Bote. Having hit a game-ending grand slam last Sunday night to beat Washington 4-3, Bote again was in the right place to cap off a win. Bote stepped on third and threw to first base to end it.Hamels (8-9) pitched seven solid innings. Kyle Schwarber hit a home run in the second off Trevor Williams (10-9). Chavez got his second save as the Pirates lost their fifth in a row.The Cubs beat the Pirates by a 1-0 score for the second... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Chicago Cubs tied a major league record by turning seven double plays Friday night, including a game-ending effort by rookie third baseman David Bote on a grounder by David Freese to finish off a 1-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.The Cubs got six double plays on grounders — five with Cole Hamels pitching — and one on a line drive. The Elias Sports Bureau said the Cubs became the third team in big league history to turn seven DPs in a nine-inning game.Pittsburgh put runners on first and second in the ninth before Jesse Chavez got Freese to ground to Bote. Having hit a game-ending grand slam last Sunday night to beat Washington 4-3, Bote again was in the right place to cap off a win. Bote stepped on third and threw to first base to end it.Hamels (8-9) pitched seven solid innings. Kyle Schwarber hit a home run in the second off Trevor Williams (10-9). Chavez got his second save as the Pirates lost their fifth in a row.The Cubs beat the Pirates by a 1-0 score for the second... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:HOW THE WEST IS WONAll-Star outfielder George Springer is expected to come off the disabled list for the Houston Astros when the defending champions visit Oakland for the opener of a pivotal three-game series between AL West contenders. Last year's World Series MVP has been sidelined with a sprained left thumb. Charlie Morton (12-3, 2.88 ERA) pitches for the banged-up Astros, who have a two-game lead in the division over the surprising Athletics. Edwin Jackson (4-2, 2.48) gets the ball for Oakland.ON PUNISHMENTUnless he appeals, Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig is scheduled to begin a two-game suspension when Los Angeles plays at Seattle in an interleague clash between playoff contenders. Puig also was fined Thursday by Major League Baseball for fighting and inciting a bench-clearing fracas against San Francisco. The penalties were announced two days after Puig took a swing at Giants catcher Nick Hundley, who also was fined. ... MLB also... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Slugging rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. was hit by a pitch before he could take the Marlins deep again, but Dansby Swanson filled the power void for Atlanta, hitting a two-run homer that led the Braves to a 5-2 win over Miami on Wednesday night.Acuna, who had hit leadoff homers in the last three games and homered in five straight overall, didn't get a chance to extend the streak. Jose Urena plunked him on the left elbow with a fastball on his first pitch of the day, triggering a melee. Benches and bullpens for both teams emptied onto the field twice after the pitch. No punches were thrown. Urena and Braves manager Brian Snitker were ejected.Acuna instead became the 11th batter to be hit by a pitch from Urena this season, tied for the most in the National League. Trainer George Poulis hovered over Acuna, who sat on the ground near the batter's box while players swarmed near the mound. Acuna left the game in the second inning. He took his position in left field and then walked off... [More]

Kelly struggled on Friday, allowing six runs (three earned) on eight hits and two walks in a loss to the Dodgers.

Kelly's ERA is up to 7.94 with this performance and he continues to struggle as a starter. In both his starts, he has allowed six runs and this will likely be his only stretch as a starter going forward. Any impression Kelly was trying to make to crack the starting rotation next season, he lost with these performances.

Kelly (0-1) got a spot start on Friday and struggled mightily, allowing six runs on six hits and a walk across five innings in a 6-3 loss to the Diamondbacks. He struck out just one.

This was just Kelly's second appearance in the majors this year and he didn't make much of an impression. This is simply a case of the Padres testing a talented arm late in the season to see what they have for the future.

Kelly will make a couple starts for the Padres before the end of the season, the Union-Tribune's Dennis Lin reports.

Kelly will likely join the rotation sometime next week, with Lin predicting that the righty's first start will be Sept. 26 against the Diamondbacks. While Kelly's minor league numbers may not inspire much confidence, he has the athleticism and stuff to pitch like a No. 4 starter in time, and given his home ballpark, his overall production could resemble that of a No. 3 starter. If he returns next Saturday he will get a home start against the Diamondbacks and a road start against the Dodgers, who could be resting players at that point, so there could be some sneaky value here.

Kelly was called up by the Padres on Monday, Corey Brock of MLB.com reports.

Kelly has spent most of his season with Triple-A San Antonio but will still get the promotion up to the Padres since the club is out of playoff contention and should look to feature some of their younger talent over the remainder of the season. The 25-year-old righty has actually struggled with an ERA of 4.94 in San Antonio after 27 appearances, so there's not much promise that he'll be a viable option when taking the mound with San Diego.

Kelly has given up three runs on eight hits and five walks with four strikeouts in 8.1 innings (two starts) since moving to the rotation for Double-A San Antonio.

In his first start he tossed four shutout innings but then got tagged a little in his next outing as his command left him, although he was able to throw a season-high 78 pitches (41 strikes). When he is throwing strikes Kelly shows mid-rotation ability, but he doesn't quite have the electric stuff to miss the plate with much regularity. He is 25 years old and has already pitched in the big leagues earlier in his career, so once Kelly can go deep into a game or two while maintaining his command he could be an option if the Padres need help in the rotation.

Kelly is scheduled to make his first start of the season Thursday for Double-A San Antonio, Bill Center of Padres.com reports.

After opening the season at Triple-A El Paso out of spring training, Kelly was quickly dropped down to San Antonio, where he's made 13 relief appearances and posted a 4.00 ERA and 17:8 K:BB ratio over 18 innings. Despite missing much of the previous two seasons while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Kelly remains one of the Padres' top pitching prospects. It seems the organization hasn't scrapped the idea of bringing him along as a starter, but he probably doesn't rank high on the pecking order should an opening in the Padres' rotation arise. Kelly will first need to reestablish himself by stringing together a few quality outings for San Antonio before the big club takes notice.

Kelly was optioned to Triple-A El Paso on Sunday, MLB.com's Corey Brock reports.

As expected, Kelly will open his season in the starting rotation for Triple-A El Paso. A groin injury set him back this spring, but he should still be ready to start a game by mid-April, even if he misses his first outing or two of the season. Although the Padres have solid pitching depth, it isn't too hard to imagine Kelly making an impact in the majors this year.

Kelly will throw one inning in relief Saturday against Arizona, the Union-Tribune reports.

Kelly suffered a groin strain early in camp, which slowed his progress. He has since ramped up his activity, throwing two live-bullpen sessions this week to put him on track for game action Saturday. He has not pitched in a game since a rehab appearance at Double-A last May where some forearm soreness ended up ending his season. San Diego's plan going into camp was to stretch Kelly out, so he should start making longer appearances if Saturday goes well.

Kelly (groin) will throw another live batting practice session Wednesday, and he may get into a game shortly thereafter, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

With Kelly expected to start his season in the rotation at Triple-A El Paso, it's not overly important that he's ready by Opening Day. Still, he's seemingly on track to make his first start for El Paso within the first few weeks of the season.

Kelly threw a 10 minute batting practice session Sunday and reported no pain Monday.

Kelly reportedly threw all of his pitches during the bullpen session. He's slated to throw another batting practice on Wednesday. The fact that he didn't report any discomfort following Sunday's session is a big step in the right direction for the oft-injured 25-year-old.

Kelly (groin) will throw a batting practice session Wednesday, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Kelly has been sidelined since suffering a groin strain at the beginning of camp, but he appears close to making a return. The 25-year-old has been able to throw in the mean time, and has reported "feeling great," so the next step after Wednesday's batting practice could be game action.

Kelly (groin) threw a side session Friday for the first time in two weeks, the Union-Tribune reports.

Kelly suffered a groin strain during the first weekend of workouts when pitchers and catchers reported. The 25-year-old righty is being working as a starter this spring and will likely begin the season in Triple-A El Paso's rotation.