Astros top Rangers • Kershaw gets his 2,000th strikeout
Dallas Keuchel allowed three hits in six innings and Carlos Correa smashed a three-run homer as the Houston Astros continued their torrid start with a 7-1 rout of the Texas Rangers.
The win, the eighth straight for Houston, moved the Astros 23 games over .500. That is the first time they have reached that mark since the 2001 season. Texas has lost nine of its last 12 games.
Keuchel (9-0) did not allow a hit until the fourth inning and that came on a two-out double by Adrian Beltre on a blooper that right fielder Josh Reddick overran. He became just the second starting pitcher in club history to start the season 9-0. Roger Clemens did it in 2004 on his way to the Cy Young Award.
Blue Jays 7, Yankees 5
Josh Donaldson hit two solo home runs, Justin Smoak added a two-run blast and a sacrifice fly and Toronto held on to beat the Yankees on Friday night.
The Blue Jays have won six of the first eight games of their 10-game homestand. Toronto starter Francisco Liriano (3-2) returned from the disabled list to pitch five-plus innings, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks. The left-hander struck out five.
Orioles 3, Red Sox 2
Seth Smith and Manny Machado each hit solo home runs in the first inning, and starter Alec Asher threw 6-plus solid innings as Baltimore defeated Boston.
Smith homered to lead off the first, and Machado added a 465-foot blast, No. 11 of the season, two batters later which gave Asher and the Orioles an early 2-0 lead. That proved to be enough for the right-hander, who is trying to earn the No. 5 spot in the rotation.
Dodgers 2, Brewers 1 (12)
Cody Bellinger led off the 12th inning with a solo home run against Neftali Feliz as Los Angeles rallied to beat Milwaukee at Miller Park.
Clayton Kershaw struck out 14 batters, setting a season high and just one off his career best of 15 while holding Milwaukee to one walk and two hits in seven innings. Kershaw reached 2,000 strikeouts in 1,837 career innings, which is the third-fastest in major league history behind Pedro Martinez (1,715) and Randy Johnson (1,734), according to the Dodgers.
Cubs 3, Cardinals 2
Jason Heyward’s eighth-inning sacrifice fly drove in Anthony Rizzo to snap a tie as Chicago edged St. Louis to snap a six-game losing streak.
Reliever Pedro Strop (1-2) got the win after a one-third inning appearance in relief for the Cubs. Chicago reliever Wade Davis worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his 11th save.
Royals 4, Indians 0
Jason Vargas threw a complete-game shutout as Kansas City won a challenge and a game, beating Cleveland.
Vargas (7-3), who missed most of last season after having Tommy John surgery in 2015, last had a complete-game shutout on August 13, 2014, against Oakland. He limited the Indians to seven hits, six of them singles, and was backed by four double plays.
Pirates 12, Mets 7
Rookie catcher Elias Diaz, a last-second addition to the lineup, collected six RBIs as Pittsburgh outslugged New York at Citi Field.
The Pirates snapped a twogame losing streak. The Mets have lost three straight. Diaz was inserted into the lineup about 30 minutes before game time in place of Francisco Cervelli, who was scratched due to illness. The 26-year-old went 2-for-5 with a three-run double in the fourth and a three-run homer in the sixth that fueled a seven-run inning.
Marlins 7, Diamondbacks 5
Giancarlo Stanton hit the go-ahead home run and set a franchise career RBIs record, leading Miami over Arizona at Marlins Park.
Stanton has 579 RBIs, one more than former Marlins third baseman Mike Lowell. It was Stanton’s 15th homer of the season. The Marlins also got homers from Christian Yelich, his seventh, and Justin Bour, his teamhigh 16th. Miami has won five of its past six games.
Tigers 15, White Sox 5
Miguel Cabrera drove in four runs on his way to becoming just the 39th player in major league history to amass 1,000 extra-base hits while Mikie Mahtook, J.D. Martinez and John Hicks hit home runs to power Detroit over Chicago.
Michael Fulmer (6-3) survived a wobbly three-run fifth inning as he broke a two-game slide in which Detroit was shut out in both starts. Fulmer allowed seven hits and one walk with five strikeouts in seven innings. Arcenio Leon worked the eighth and Blaine Hardy the ninth for the Tigers.
Giants 10, Phillies 0
San Francisco received a career outing from Ty Blach and took advantage of a Philadelphia staff that couldn’t throw strikes, chasing starter Jerad Eickhoff by the third inning and running away to a lopsided win at Citizens Bank Park.
Center fielder Denard Span went 5-for-6 with three runs scored and had an RBI to lead a Giants’ attack that collected 15 hits, tying a season high set in the second game of the season.
Nationals 13, Athletics 3
Right-hander Stephen Strasburg pitched seven solid innings and Washington pounded out 20 hits with five home runs in a rout of Oakland.
Right fielder Brian Goodwin, starting in place of the suspended Bryce Harper, went 4-for-5 with a two-run homer – his first majorleague blast – and a triple, finishing a double shy of the cycle.
Twins 11, Angels 5
Minnesota smashed three homers in the first three innings and cruised over the Angels, taking the second game of the four-game series after winning Thursday as well.
Joe Mauer homered in the first inning and Robbie Grossman and Max Kepler each homered in the third inning – all three coming with a man on base, to give Minnesota a 6-0 lead.