Scherzer pitches 7 innings as Nationals top Marlins
Max Scherzer pitched seven sharp innings in his first start since he was sidelined by neck spasms, helping the Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins 3-2 on Monday night. Bryce Harper homered for Washington, and pinch hitter Adam Lind singled in the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning. The Nationals expanded their lead in the NL East over second-place Miami to 14 games. Brandon Kintzler (4-2) worked the eighth and Sean Doolittle got three outs to earn his sixth save. Both pitchers were acquired shortly before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Giancarlo Stanton hit his major league-leading 37th homer for the Marlins, matching his previous career high. Jarlin Garcia (0-2) got the loss. Scherzer struck out nine and gave up two runs. The righthander was coming off an abbreviated start against the Marlins six days earlier, when he was pulled after one inning with neck spasms.
CARDINALS 11, ROYALS 3
Matt Carpenter hit a three-run homer in St Louis’ six-run fourth inning, helping the Cardinals earn their third consecutive victory. Paul DeJong and Kolten Wong also connected for the Cardinals, who returned to .500 at 56-56. Carlos Martinez (8-9) pitched eight innings of two-run ball for just his second win in his last nine starts. Royals right-hander Ian Kennedy (48) was charged with seven runs, six earned, and six hits in six innings. He is winless in 14 consecutive starts at Kauffman Stadium since beating Minnesota on Aug. 20, 2016. Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer and Brandon Moss homered for Kansas City, which has dropped six of eight.
TWINS 5, BREWERS 4
Eddie Rosario doubled home the tying run in the seventh inning and scored the winning run for Minnesota on a balk. After Eduardo Escobar drew a leadoff walk, Rosario hit a smash to right field that fooled Domingo Santana, who took two steps in before watching the ball sail over his head. Escobar scored to tie the game at 4. Rosario was still at third with two out when the Brewers employed a dramatic shift on left-handed hitting Jason Castro. With no fielder near third base to hold him on, Rosario danced halfway down the baseline, causing Oliver Drake (3-4) to step off the rubber. When Drake stepped back on the rubber, Rosario made another break for home. This time Drake flinched and plate umpire Bill Welke called a balk, sending Rosario home. Buddy Boshers (1-0) retired one batter in the seventh to earn the victory. Matt Belisle worked the ninth for his second save.
PIRATES 3, TIGERS 0
Trevor Williams pitched seven crisp innings, leading Pittsburgh to the win. Williams (5-4) struck out five and walked two, giving up only a leadoff single to James McCann in the third. Williams threw a career-high 107 pitches and never allowed a runner to third base. Juan Nicasio got three outs for his second save, completing Pittsburgh’s one-hitter. The Pirates have won three straight and four of five. Francisco Cervelli put the Pirates in front with an RBI double off Jordan Zimmermann (7-9) in the second. John Jaso provided some late insurance with a pinch-hit two-run homer in the seventh. Zimmermann struck out three and walked two in seven innings. The Tigers have dropped three straight following a four-game winning streak.
REDS 11, PADRES 3
Joey Votto homered for the third straight game and pulled into a tie with Ted Kluszewski on the Reds’ career list. The Reds homered four times in all, with Patrick Kivlehan hitting his first career grand slam. Adam Duvall and Zack Cozart also connected. Votto’s 251st career homer off Jhoulys Chacin (11-8) moved him into a tie for fifth place with Big Klu, the first baseman who cut the sleeves off his uniform to free his big upper arms. Votto’s 136th homer at Great American bumped him ahead of Jay Bruce for the ballpark record. Jose Pirela drove in all of San Diego’s runs with his first career multihomer game. The first was a two-run shot off Tim Adleman, who went only 4 2/3 innings. Adleman hasn’t won since June 27, going 0-5 in seven starts with a 6.88 ERA. Blake Wood (1-4) replaced Adleman in the fifth and pitched out of a two-on threat. —AP