Yankees hit 4 HRs to rout Orioles
Brett Gardner, Aaron Judge and the thundering New York Yankees picked up right where they left off the previous night, steamrolling past the Baltimore Orioles 12-4 on Saturday for their fourth straight victory. Gardner homered twice from the leadoff spot and had his first four RBIs of the season. Austin Romine, the No. 9 batter, also went deep and knocked in five runs. Judge, not to be outdone, clocked his latest colossal homer and scored four times as New York won its 14th in 17 games to boost the American League’s best record to 15-7. Right-hander Michael Pineda (3-1) did not allow an earned run in 5 1/3 innings, striking out eight. Orioles starter Ubaldo Jimenez (1-1) got chased with one out in the fourth for the second consecutive start. The veteran right-hander was tagged for a season-high seven runs.
RANGERS 6, ANGELS 3
Carlos Gomez hit for the cycle for the second time and Yu Darvish pitched six effective innings, helping Texas beat the Los Angeles Angels. Darvish (3-2) allowed one earned run, struck out 10 and walked four, finishing with 125 pitches. He fell five pitches short of his major league high, thrown as a rookie in 2013. Rougned Odor hit a tiebreaking two-run homer for Texas with two out in the fifth. Gomez needed only four at-bats for his first cycle since May 7, 2008, with the Minnesota Twins. He doubled in the first inning, singled in the third and tripled in the fifth off starter Jesse Chavez (2-4). He hit a first-pitch fastball from Jose Valdez onto the hill behind center field in the seventh for a two-run homer. Play was halted briefly in the second inning when a bad-hop single by Shin-Soo Choo struck Angels second baseman Danny Espinosa in the forehead. Espinosa stayed in the game.
BRAVES 11, BREWERS 3
Matt Kemp homered three times and drove in five runs, powering the Braves to their fourth straight victory. Atlanta collected a season-high 20 hits. Dansby Swanson also homered, and Jaime Garcia (1-1) pitched six innings for his first win with the Braves. Kemp connected in the fifth, seventh and eighth for his first game with three homers. He became the first Braves player to accomplish the feat since Mark Teixeira in 2008. Milwaukee righthander Jimmy Nelson (1-2) allowed five runs and 11 hits in five innings.
CUBS 7, RED SOX 4
Anthony Rizzo hit a two-run homer, helping Chicago rebound from a series-opening loss at Boston. Miguel Montero and Ben Zobrist each connected for a solo shot for the Cubs, who had dropped two in a row. Kris Bryant had two hits and scored twice. Cubs right-hander John Lackey (2-3) gave up four runs in six innings, snapping his string of losses in three straight starts. He was part of Boston’s 2013 World Series title team. Hanley Ramirez and Andrew Benintendi connected for the Red Sox, who have the majors’ fewest homers. Steven Wright (1-3) gave up five runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. Wade Davis pitched the ninth for his sixth save.
DODGERS 6, PHILLIES 5
Yasiel Puig, Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner hit consecutive homers off Hector Neris in the ninth, helping the Dodgers rally for the win. Los Angeles trailed 5-2 before the three straight homers. It was the first time the team had accomplished the feat since Aug. 18, 2012. Austin Barnes then singled off Neris (0-1) with one out. Joely Rodriguez came in and got Andrew Toles to fly out, but Corey Seager singled and Adrian Gonzalez drilled a ball off third baseman Maikel Franco’s glove for the winning hit. Grant Dayton (1-0) pitched a scoreless inning for the win. Bellinger, one of the majors’ top prospects, also hit his first career homer in the seventh. Phillies rookie Andrew Knapp also got his first career homer, going deep against Chris Hatcher in the eighth.
METS 5, NATIONALS 3
Michael Conforto hit two home runs and slumping Jose Reyes also connected, leading the Mets to the victory. The banged-up Mets had lost six in a row when they began this series at Nationals Park against the team with the best record in the majors. Behind their power and bullpen, the Mets beat Washington for the second straight day. Hansel Robles (4-0) came in to start the sixth and retired five of the six batters he faced, striking out four. Jerry Blevins then took over and fanned Bryce Harper. Jeurys Familia, pulled Friday night in the ninth while Washington tried to rally, retired three straight hitters to earn his first save of the season. Washington’s Stephen Strasburg (21) gave up three runs in seven innings. Harper was 0 for 4 with three strikeouts.
WHITE SOX 6, TIGERS 4, 10 INNINGS
Melky Cabrera led off the 10th inning with a homer against Justin Wilson and Avisail Garcia added an RBI triple, lifting the White Sox to their sixth straight win. Jose Abreu homered twice in his return to the lineup for Chicago. Detroit has lost four in a row. The White Sox held onto a two-run lead in the 10th with David Robertson (1-0) making the most of a chance to pitch a second inning after losing a two-run advantage in the ninth. Wilson (1-1) hadn’t allowed a hit or a run in his first 11 appearances this season until Cabrera hit his first homer of the season.
INDIANS 4, MARINERS 3
Danny Salazar got off to a rocky start, and then combined with two Cleveland relievers to hold Seattle hitless over the final eight innings. Salazar (2-2) gave up a double to Robinson Cano in the first, followed by homers on successive pitches to Nelson Cruz and Kyle Seager. Salazar struck out six in 6 1/3 innings. Andrew Miller struck out four in 1 2/3 innings and Cody Allen pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save. Jose Ramirez and Lonnie Chisenhall each had two RBIs in Cleveland’s four-run first off Yovani Gallardo (1-3). Cleveland has won eight of 11. Seattle’s three-game winning streak ended.
PIRATES 4, MARLINS 0
Ivan Nova pitched a three-hitter in Pittsburgh’s third straight win. John Jaso homered and drove in two runs for the Pirates, and Jordy Mercer also knocked in a run. Nova (3-2) struck out seven and did not walk a batter in the 95-pitch masterpiece. He retired 11 in a row at one point. Miami has lost four in a row. Marlins right-hander Dan Straily was charged with three runs and four hits in 5 1/3 innings.
PIRATES 4, MARLINS 0
Ivan Nova pitched a three-hitter in Pittsburgh’s third straight win. John Jaso homered and drove in two runs for the Pirates, and Jordy Mercer also knocked in a run. Nova (3-2) struck out seven and did not walk a batter in the 95-pitch masterpiece. He retired 11 in a row at one point. Miami has lost four in a row. Marlins right-hander Dan Straily was charged with three runs and four hits in 5 1/3 innings.
BLUE JAYS 4, RAYS 1
Justin Smoak had three hits, including a two-run homer, and the Blue Jays broke a three-game losing streak. Smoak went 3 for 3 and scored twice. Toronto’s Francisco Liriano (2-2) allowed one run and four hits in five-plus innings. Roberto Osuna got three outs finished for his second save. Tampa Bay right-hander Matt Andriese (1-1) gave up four runs in seven innings. Rays outfielder Steven Souza left in the seventh after being hit on the back of the left hand by a pitch. X-rays were negative and Souza is day to day.
ROCKIES 7, DIAMONDBACKS 6
Mark Reynolds hit a tying two-run single with two out in the ninth and Carlos Gonzalez scored the winning run on a wild pitch by Fernando Rodney, sending the Rockies to a wild comeback win. Colorado trailed by five after five, but made the most of another rough performance by Rodney (1-2). The veteran reliever walked two and threw two wild pitches in blowing his second consecutive save chance. Carlos Estevez (3-0) got the win with one scoreless inning and Greg Holland earned his 11th save for the Rockies, who have won the first two games of the three-game set between the top teams in the NL West. Brandon Drury, Jeff Mathis and Jake Lamb homered to help Arizona build a 6-1 lead. Zack Greinke struck out nine in six-plus innings. Reynolds, Trevor Story and Alexi Amarista went deep for the Rockies.
PADRES 12, GIANTS 4
Wil Myers capped San Diego’s eight-run sixth inning with a three-run homer. Myers also singled off Chris Stratton (0-1) to start the big inning and had three hits for the game. San Diego scored 11 runs against the Giants’ bullpen following five effective innings from San Francisco starter Matt Cain. Allen Cordoba added a three-run homer off Neil Ramirez in the seventh. San Diego right-hander Jhoulys Chacin (3-3) struck out six in five innings. He gave up three runs and five hits. — AP