Rangers’ Lewis perfect through eight-plus innings
OAKLAND, Calif. — When the ball left Max Muncy’s bat leading off the ninth inning, Colby Lewis thought it was another fly that would move him one out closer to a no-hitter.
Instead the ball kept carrying and glanced off Texas right fielder Nomar Mazara’s glove as he crashed into the wall for Oakland’s first hit of the game.
“I thought he was going to get to it a lot easier,” Lewis said. “It is what it is. You can’t throw your arms up in the air and get all mad about it. You have to go back to work.”
Lewis did just that and finished off the Athletics in a 5-1 victory Thursday that left the Texas right-hander wondering what could have been. The 36-year-old Lewis just missed out on a crowning achievement to an 11-year big league career that has been hampered by injuries and included a detour in Japan.
Lewis was perfect until walking Yonder Alonso with two outs in the eighth. TIGERS 10, ROYALS 4: In Kansas City, Mo., Victor Martinez matched a career-best with three home runs, the Tigers pounded six as a team and Detroit sailed to a victory over Kansas City.
Martinez hit a pair of solo shots and Nick Castellanos went deep before James McCann homered off Royals reliever Luke Hochevar (1-1) leading off the seventh to knot the game 4-all. Cabrera followed moments later with a two-run shot that gave the Tigers their first lead of the game.
Detroit added three more runs in the eighth before Martinez hit his third homer in the ninth. The veteran designated hitter’s other three-homer game came on July 16, 2004, at Seattle.
METS 6. PIRATES 4: In New York, Neil Walker and Michael Conforto gave the Mets an immediate jolt in their return from nagging injuries, and Bartolo Colon pitched New York to a victory over Pittsburgh.
Conforto, who hadn’t started since Saturday, landed right on his ailing left wrist when he saved a run with a sensational diving catch in the first inning. Showing no ill effects, the left fielder followed Walker’s two-run shot in the third inning with a home run of his own to snap a 5-for-54 slump.
MARINERS 6, RAYS 4: In St. Petersburg, Fla., Dae-Ho Lee drove in three runs, James Paxton went six effective innings and Seattle avoided a threegame sweep.
Lee had an RBI single in a three-run first and drove in two with a double during the fourth.
BREWERS 8, DODGERS 6: In Los Angeles, Jonathan Villar hit a tiebreaking two-run home run in the top off the ninth inning, lifting Milwaukee to a victory over Los Angeles.
Villar launched the first pitch he saw from Pedro Baez (0-2) an estimated 420 feet to straightaway center field for his sixth home run and first career game-winner in the ninth. NATIONALS 8, PADRES 5: In San Diego, Bryce Harper and Wilson Ramos hit back-to-back homers and Anthony Rendon added a solo shot as Washington won for the ninth time in 11 games with a victory over San Diego. BRAVES 7, REDS 2: In Atlanta, Matt Wisler snapped a string of four straight losses, Freddie Freeman had three hits, including a two-run homer, and the Braves beat Cincinnati.
BLUE JAYS 13, PHILLIES 2: In Philadelphia, J.A. Happ allowed three hits and an unearned run in seven innings and Toronto hit five home runs in a victory over Philadelphia.
ORIOLES 5, RED SOX 1: In Boston, Tyler Wilson allowed three hits over eight innings, Adam Jones added a home run and three RBIs, and Baltimore beat Boston.
YANKEES 4, TWINS 1: In Minneapolis, Didi Gregorius hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in the seventh inning, CC Sabathia had another strong start and New York stopped a four-game losing streak.
TIGERS: Detroit outfielder J.D. Martinez left Thursday night’s game against the Kansas City Royals with a fractured right elbow that he sustained when running into the wall while chasing a fly ball.
CUBS: Chicago will promote highly touted catcher Willson Contreras today. Tim Federowicz will be affected by the move.
METS: David Wright will undergo surgery to repair a herniated disc in his neck. The club did not establish a timetable for his return, though with this type of a procedure, it is possible that he comes back this season.
PHILLIES: Pitcher Alec Asher was suspended by the MLB for 80 games after testing positive for anabolic steroids, the league announced.
ORIOLES: Shortstop Manny Machado will meet with league officials Tuesday to appeal his four-game suspension from last week’s on-field fight with Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura.