Category: Major League Baseball (MLB)

George Kirby pitched six strong innings and Mike Ford hit two home runs as the Seattle Mariners defeated the visiting Miami Marlins 9-3 on Tuesday night.

Cal Raleigh also went deep for Seattle, which has won the first two games of the interleague series. The Nos. 7-9 batters in Seattle’s order — Raleigh, Ford and Jose Caballero — went a combined 6-for-10 with a triple, three homers and nine RBIs.

Kirby (6-5) allowed one unearned run on three hits. The right-hander didn’t walk a batter and had a career-high 10 strikeouts.

The Marlins’ Garrett Cooper hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning off Chris Flexen.

Miami right-hander Edward Cabrera (5-5) gave up five runs on four hits in four innings, with three walks and four strikeouts.

Kirby retired the first 13 batters he faced before Yuli Gurriel hit a soft liner to left field with one out in the fifth. Outfielder Jarred Kelenic charged the ball in an attempt to preserve Kirby’s gem, but the ball landed just in front of him.

The Marlins finally touched Kirby for an unearned run in the sixth. With one out, Garrett Hampson lined a single to right and took second on a passed ball. After Luis Arraez lined out to short, Jorge Soler grounded a run-scoring single to center.

Arraez went hitless for a second straight game as his major-league-leading average dropped to .382.

Raleigh snapped an 0-for-21 slump with a three-run shot in the second inning. Raleigh hit a 1-0 curveball deep into the lower deck in right field.

In the bottom of the fourth, Kelenic walked, stole second and took third on catcher Jacob Stallings’ throwing error on the play. With two outs, Ford hit a towering blast to right center on a 2-1 changeup from Cabrera to make it 5-0.

The Mariners pulled away on Caballero’s three-run triple in the bottom of the sixth off Archie Bradley, recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville earlier in the day.

Ford homered to right center off JT Chargois leading off the eighth.

–Field Level Media

Gary Sanchez capped a four-run first inning with a three-run homer and Fernando Tatis Jr. added a solo shot an inning later as the San Diego Padres defeated the visiting Cleveland Guardians 6-3 on Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game interleague series.

Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove held the Guardians to three runs on seven hits and a walk with five strikeouts over six innings to earn the win and improve to 4-2. Josh Hader picked up his 16th save with a scoreless ninth.

Cleveland starter Tanner Bibee (2-2) immediately put himself in trouble by walking the first two hitters he faced — Tatis and Juan Soto. Tatis moved to third on Manny Machado’s flyout to right and scored on Xander Bogaerts’ sacrifice fly.

After Jake Cronenworth singled, Sanchez lined the first pitch he saw from Bibee 396 feet to left-center for his sixth homer in 13 games as a Padre to make it 4-0.

Cleveland scored single runs in the second and fifth. The Padres countered with a run in the bottom of each inning.

Josh Bell, who spent the end of last season with the Padres, homered off Musgrove to lead off the second. His 346-foot drive to right came on an 0-2 slider. It was Bell’s sixth homer of the season.

Tatis’ 13th homer of the year came in the bottom of the second on an 0-1 curveball from Bibee and traveled 405 feet to center.

Will Brennan singled off first baseman Cronenworth’s glove to open the fifth, moved to third when Cam Gallagher lined a double past Machado and scored on Steven Kwan’s one-out groundout to second.

Machado opened the Padres fifth with a single, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a Bogaerts double that ended the night for Bibee, who gave up six runs on eight hits in four-plus innings. He walked two and struck out three.

Jose Ramirez singled to open the Cleveland sixth, advanced to third on a single by Josh Naylor and a forceout and scored on Tyler Freeman’s sacrifice fly to left.

–Field Level Media

Ian Happ hit a three-run drive for his first homer in over a month and had four RBIs, while Jameson Taillon lasted a season-high six innings for his first home victory as the host Chicago Cubs rolled over the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-3 on a rainy Tuesday night.

Happ erased a 1-0 Pittsburgh lead in the first inning with a shot into the right field seats off Luis L. Ortiz (1-3). It was the first homer since May 5 for Happ, who earned another RBI after being hit by a pitch from Yohan Ramirez with the bases loaded during Chicago’s four-run seventh.

Happ, however, appeared to injure his leg and left after the seventh inning.

Meanwhile, Taillon (2-4), who entered 0-2 with an 8.27 ERA in four home starts, yielded a pair of solo homers to Jack Suwinski, plus one other run and six total hits during his longest outing of the season. The Cubs also got an eighth-inning, three-run homer from Christopher Morel as they won for the third time in four games.

Ortiz was charged with four runs and also allowed six hits over 5 1/3 innings for the Pirates, who lead the National League Central but are 2-4 since winning six straight.

Suwinski, a Chicago native, got the Pirates on the board in the first with a two-out homer into the right-center-field bleachers. It was his 14th homer of the season and his fourth in four games.

However, the Cubs got that run back, and then some, in the bottom of the frame. Ortiz issued an inning-opening walk to Mike Tauchman (two hits) and an infield single to Nico Hoerner before Happ’s homer.

Pittsburgh cut that deficit to one in the second when Josh Palacios blooped a double into left field and scored on Ji Hwan Bae’s two-out single. The Pirates tied it on Suwinski’s towering drive just inside the right field foul pole in the sixth.

Chicago’s Matt Mervis delivered a tiebreaking RBI single in the bottom of the sixth, and the Cubs broke things open in the seventh, highlighted by Yan Gomes’ two-run single.

–Field Level Media

Following a long delay that proved fruitless, the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers will play two games on Wednesday afternoon.

The teams waited more than two hours before their scheduled game in Detroit on Tuesday night was postponed. They will play a straight doubleheader on Wednesday.

The Tigers rallied to win the series opener 6-5 in 10 innings on Monday night to snap a nine-game losing streak.

Atlanta will go with major league strikeout leader Spencer Strider in Game 1. Rookie AJ Smith-Shawver might take his regular turn in Game 2, though as of Tuesday night no starter had been named. Neither of them has faced Detroit before.

Strider (6-2, 3.79 ERA) has racked up 121 strikeouts in 13 starts.

The right-hander has been susceptible to giving up the long ball lately, and it cost him in his most recent outing. He surrendered a career-high eight runs and eight hits, including two homers, in four innings against the New York Mets on Thursday. He was spared a loss when the Braves rallied to win 13-10 in 10 innings.

If Smith-Shawver (0-0, 0.00) goes, he would be making his third career appearance and second start for the Braves.

The 20-year-old right-hander tossed 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief against the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 4, then allowed just two unearned runs in 5 1/3 innings against the Washington Nationals in his first start on Friday.

“I don’t think the feeling I had out there was normal comparatively to anywhere I pitched in the minors,” he said. “I think I started settling in during the second inning.”

While Smith-Shawver dominated during his fast track through the minors, getting out major league hitters is a tougher chore. He recorded only two strikeouts against the Nationals while throwing 86 pitches.

“He’s going to have to be more refined, be more consistent in the zone and hit with his secondary pitches better, as many other young guys do,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “He’s learning on the job here.”

Smith-Shawver made seven starts this season at three different minor league levels, just two with Triple-A Gwinnett. He mainly relies on his fastball and slider, with an occasional curve and changeup mixed in.

Detroit’s starting pitchers for the doubleheader will be veteran right-hander Michael Lorenzen (2-3, 3.75) in the opener and then rookie right-hander Reese Olson (0-1, 2.70).

Olson is scheduled to make his third career appearance and second start for the Tigers. Manager A.J. Hinch used an opener in the first inning of Olson’s latest outing on Thursday at Philadelphia. Olson then came in and allowed just one run, three hits and a walk in five innings. He struck out three Phillies.

Lorenzen gave up six runs in 6 2/3 innings to Arizona on Friday, but his outing was better than the stats show. He limited the Diamondbacks to two runs and three hits through the first six innings. Lorenzen retired 12 straight batters before tiring in the seventh.

“You’d hope to get a better pitching performance out of me when (the offense) turns it on like that,” Lorenzen said after Detroit’s 11-6 loss. “Frustrated with myself for not being able to finish it off.”

Lorenzen delivered quality outings in five of his previous six starts. He has faced the Braves nine previous times in his career, giving up three runs over nine innings.

Atlanta’s Marcell Ozuna will look to extend his nine-game hitting streak. Ozuna was hit on the right wrist by a pitch on Monday, but he could be available on Wednesday.

“It’s just bruised and a little swollen,” Ozuna said. “We’ll see what happens the next couple of days.”

–Field Level Media

New York Mets right-handed relief pitcher Drew Smith was ejected from Tuesday night’s home game against the New York Yankees as quickly as he entered after failing a sticky substance check.

The Mets tapped Smith to take the mound in the seventh inning, with the Yankees leading 7-6. When Smith took the field, first base umpire Bill Miller performed an extensive foreign substance check of his hands, conferred with the umpire crew and tossed the pitcher.

Smith officially went down in the box score as 0.0 innings pitched, zero pitches.

The Mets sent John Curtiss to the mound instead, and Curtiss sat down the Yankees in order in the seventh.

Smith now faces an automatic 10-game suspension for use of a foreign substance, something both New York clubs are plenty familiar with. The only two sticky-stuff suspensions this season were assessed to Mets starting pitcher Max Scherzer and Yankees starting pitcher Domingo German.

Smith, 29, is appearing in his fifth major league season, all with the Mets. In 26 games out of the bullpen he has a 3-2 record and a 4.18 ERA.

–Field Level Media

The Cincinnati Reds scored big early then held on for a 5-4 win against the host Kansas City Royals on Tuesday.

The Reds sent 10 batters to the plate in a five-run second inning, highlighted by three stolen bases. Cincinnati has stolen 26 bases in 28 attempts this month.

Elly De La Cruz sparked the rally, walking to lead off the inning, then stealing second and advancing to third on an error before scoring on Spencer Steer’s single to left field.

Kevin Newman’s RBI double put the Reds ahead to stay. Stuart Fairchild and TJ Friedl then added RBI singles to help build a 5-1 lead.

Jordan Lyles (0-11) threw 36 pitches in the inning, walking three. He retired the final 14 batters he faced to finish six innings, allowing five runs on five hits and striking out four. Lyles’ 11 straight losses are a career high.

Brandon Williamson’s first-inning throwing error led to the Royals’ first run. Kansas City added a second-inning tally on Matt Duffy’s RBI double off the center field wall.

In the third, Bobby Witt Jr.’s 11th homer, a two-run shot to left, cut the deficit to 5-4.

Williamson (1-0) completed five innings for his first major league victory, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits and striking out one.

Four Reds relievers worked four scoreless innings, with Lucas Sims working out of a one-out, bases-load jam in the seventh by striking out Nick Pratto and Salvador Perez.

Alexis Diaz notched his 16th save in as many chances.

Cincinnati recorded its National League-best 22nd come-from-behind win. The Reds have won four straight and seven of nine.

The Reds have now won five of their last six series and will go for the sweep in the series finale on Wednesday.

The slumping Royals have dropped eight straight and 11 of 12. They have lost seven of eight series, splitting one, since last winning a series at San Diego, May 15-17.

–Field Level Media

Four different players slugged solo home runs while rookie right-hander Hunter Brown recorded his second scoreless start of the season as the Houston Astros claimed a 6-1 interleague victory over the visiting Washington Nationals on Tuesday.

Mauricio Dubon, Kyle Tucker, Martin Maldonado and Chas McCormick each went deep for the Astros, who won for just the second time in their last seven games.

Brown (6-3) snapped a two-start losing streak by inducing timely double-play grounders to steer clear of trouble. He faced the minimum in the first, second, fourth and fifth innings despite allowing baserunners in three of those frames.

Lane Thomas worked a leadoff walk in the first while Jeimer Candelario reached on a wild pitch after striking out in the second before drawing a one-out walk in the fourth. Brown responded by getting Luis Garcia to roll into a double play in the first before Corey Dickerson did the same in the second. Candelario was erased by a throw from Maldonado to Dubon while attempting to swipe second base in the fourth.

Brown stranded Dominic Smith and CJ Abrams in scoring position in the third and induced Joey Meneses to tap into an inning-ending double play in the sixth.

Brown allowed four hits and three walks while recording four strikeouts over seven innings. He blanked the Tampa Bay Rays over seven innings on April 26 and also allowed zero earned runs in back-to-back starts against the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers earlier that same month.

Dubon and Tucker smacked their homers off Nationals starter Patrick Corbin (4-7) in the fifth inning. Dubon clubbed his third home run of the season, while Tucker hit his ninth.

Maldonado socked his 100th career home run leading off the seventh against Nationals reliever Chad Kuhl. Jose Abreu, who notched his 1,500th career hit by leading off the second with a double, drove home Jose Altuve with a two-out single later in the seventh. Altuve became the fourth player in franchise history to score 1,000 runs.

McCormick greeted Washington reliever Thaddeus Ward with his sixth home run, a 392-foot shot to left center, to lead off the eighth.

Abreu finished 2-for-3 with a walk. Altuve walked twice and added an RBI single in the eighth.

Corbin allowed two runs on four hits in five innings. He walked five and fanned five.

–Field Level Media

Hunter Renfroe snapped a 3-for-27 slump with a go-ahead home run, the Angels’ bullpen delivered 4 2/3 scoreless innings and Los Angeles rallied for a 7-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas.

The Angels, who battled back from a 5-1 deficit to win the series opener on Monday, trailed 3-1 after five innings on Tuesday. However, they scored three runs in the sixth to take control of the game and went on to win for the eighth time in their past nine games.

The Angels started the comeback in the sixth against reliever Owen White, with help from an error by Rangers shortstop Corey Seager. Seager was trying to turn a double play but lost the ball on the transfer from his glove to hand, allowing Shohei Ohtani to race home.

Renfroe then belted a two-run, opposite-field shot to right off White (0-1), who was making his major league debut. Renfroe broke out of his slump by connecting on an 0-1 cutter.

The Angels cushioned their lead with three runs in the ninth, including a two-run home run by Zach Neto. That provided some breathing room, although Los Angeles still had to turn to closer Carlos Estevez in the ninth with two on and one out.

Estevez, who was pitching for the fifth time in eight days, got the final two outs for his 18th save of the season.

Estevez’s outing capped a terrific night by the Angels’ bullpen. Jimmy Herget (1-2) earned the win as he threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings after replacing starter Jaime Barria in the fifth inning. In all, five relievers scattered two hits and walked one over the 4 2/3 innings.

Texas scored all of its runs on homers off Barria. Nathaniel Lowe hit a two-run shot in the third, and Seager had a solo shot in the fifth to make it 3-1. Barria gave up three runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two.

Rangers starter Cody Bradford allowed one run on two hits with one walk and three strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

Michael Conforto went 4-for-6 with three RBIs as the visiting San Francisco Giants defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 11-3 on Tuesday.

However, the victory was costly for the Giants, who lost third baseman J.D. Davis (sprained right ankle) and left fielder Mitch Haniger (broken right forearm) to injuries.

Mike Yastrzemski hit a two-run homer and Patrick Bailey added a solo homer for the Giants, who won for the sixth time in eight games.

Giants starter Alex Cobb allowed two runs on five hits and two walks in four innings. He struck out five. Reliever Luke Jackson (1-0) earned the victory by striking out three in one scoreless inning, and Keaton Winn earned a four-inning save in his major league debut.

Jack Flaherty (3-5) allowed six runs on 10 hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings for the Cardinals, who lost for the 11th time in 14 games.

The teams had a bench-clearing discussion in the middle of the fourth inning after Flaherty and LaMonte Wade Jr. jawed at each other.

The Giants seized a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Thairo Estrada walked, Joc Pederson hit a single and Conforto smacked a two-run double.

The Cardinals tied the game in their half of the inning. Brendan Donovan hit a double, Paul Goldschmidt hit an RBI single, Nolan Gorman walked, Nolan Arenado hit a single and Dylan Carlson grounded into a run-scoring forceout.

In the third inning, Pederson’s walk and singles by Davis and Conforto put the Giants up 3-2. Davis was thrown out, and injured, while sliding into third base.

Haniger was then injured when hit by a pitch.

San Francisco made it 6-2 in the fifth inning on singles by Blake Sabol, Conforto, Casey Schmitt and Patrick Bailey followed by Brandon Crawford’s run-scoring bunt.

Yastrzemski hit his two-run homer in the sixth inning and Bailey followed with a solo shot to make it 9-2.

St. Louis cut the deficit to 9-3 on Jordan Walker’s RBI double in the eighth inning. The Giants pushed their lead to 11-3 in the ninth on an infield RBI single by Estrada and a sacrifice fly from Sabol.

–Field Level Media

After the Detroit Tigers and the visiting Atlanta Braves waited about 2 1/2 hours to start their Tuesday night game amid a rain storm, the contest finally was postponed before ever getting underway.

The teams will play a standard doubleheader on Wednesday in Detroit, with the first game scheduled to start at 1:10 p.m. EDT.

The pitching matchup on Tuesday was due to feature Braves right-hander Spencer Strider (6-2, 3.79 ERA) and Tigers right-hander Reese Olson (0-1, 2.70).

The originally scheduled Wednesday starters were to be another pair of righties, Atlanta’s AJ Smith-Shawver (0-0, 0.00) and Detroit’s Michael Lorenzen (2-3, 3.75).

Detroit took the opener of the three-game series 6-5 in 10 innings on Monday to snap a nine-game losing streak. The Tigers erased a three-run deficit in the ninth inning before Spencer Torkelson hit a walk-off single in the 10th.

The Braves are visiting Detroit for the first time since 2013. Before Monday, the teams hadn’t met at all since 2019.

–Field Level Media