Phillies topple Jays, take over first in NL East
PHILADELPHIA — Aaron Nola took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Nick Williams hit his third pinch-hit homer of the year in the eighth as the Philadelphia Phillies moved into first in the NL East on Saturday with a 2-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Nola did not allow a hit until Russell Martin’s RBI single to left in the seventh, which tied the game 1-1. After cruising through the first six innings, Nola came back out to work the seventh after a brief rain delay and walked Justin Smoak with one out before Martin came through, ending the right-hander’s day.
Williams turned on an 0-1 cutter from Joe Biagini (0-4) to break the tie and allow Philadelphia to take a half-game lead over Atlanta in the NL East. It is the latest in a season the Phillies have been in first since the conclusion of the 2012 season.
RED SOX 8, BRAVES 6: In Boston, Andrew Benintendi homered and drove in three runs, helping Boston beat Atlanta.
The AL East-leading Red Sox celebrated the return of Dustin Pedroia with their sixth win in seven games. Mitch Moreland had a key two-run double and knuckleballer Steven Wright (1-0) pitched three innings of scoreless relief for the victory.
Pedroia went 0-for-4 with a walk and scored in his first game after offseason knee surgery.
BREWERS 17, METS 6: In Milwaukee, Erik Kratz homered in his Brewers debut and Jesus Aguilar also homered to lift Milwaukee past New York.
Christian Yelich had three hits, drove in three runs and scored three times for the NL Central-leading Brewers, who have won eight of 10.
INDIANS 8, ASTROS 6: In Cleveland, Yonder Alonso, Jason Kipnis and Edwin Encarnacion each hit two-run homers, and Cleveland’s beleaguered bullpen hung on as the Indians defeated Houston.
Michael Brantley added a solo homer as the Indians ended Houston’s fivegame winning streak.
ATHLETICS 3, DIAMONDBACKS
0: In Oakland, Calif., Daniel Mengden pitched a two-hitter for his second career shutout as Oakland beat slumping Arizona.
Mengden (5-4) struck out five and walked as the Diamondbacks suffered their 15th loss in 17 games.
PADRES 7, DODGERS 5: In Los Angeles, Christian Villanueva hit two homers to help San Diego rally past Los Angeles.
Freddy Galvis and A.J. Ellis also hit homers for the Padres. Chris Taylor and Justin Turner went deep for LA.
GIANTS 5, CUBS 4: In Chicago, Brandon Crawford hit a two-run homer and Brandon Belt drove in two runs as San Francisco beat Chicago to stop a three-game slide.
Andrew McCutchen had two hits and drove in a run as San Francisco won for the first time on an eight-game trip. Chris Stratton (6-3) shook off a shaky start and lasted five innings for his third straight win. NATIONALS 4, MARLINS 1: In Miami, Mark Reynolds hit a tiebreaking home run leading off the ninth inning as Washington beat Miami for the 10th consecutive time.
Miami’s Wei-Yin Chen took a twohit shutout into the eighth but gave up a one-out homer to Wilmer Difo, who tied the score 1-1.
REDS 6, ROCKIES 5: In Denver, Scooter Gennett had five hits, including a solo homer, and Tony Cruz also homered as Cincinnati held on to beat Colorado.
It marked the second time in Gennett’s career he collected five hits.
ANGELS 11, YANKEES 4: In New York, Mike Trout homered and doubled three times during his first fivehit game in the majors as Los Angeles quickly erased an early three-run deficit in beating New York.
Trout went deep for the third straight game to tie Boston’s Mookie Betts for the big-league lead with 17 home runs. The two-time MVP drove in four runs and set career bests with four extra-base hits and 11 total bases.
CARDINALS 4, PIRATES 1: In Pittsburgh, Jack Flaherty allowed four hits over six innings and Matt Carpenter hit his fifth home run of the season as St. Louis beat Pittsburgh.
Flaherty (2-1) gave up Starling Marte’s long home run in the first but settled down quickly. The rookie struck out four, walked two and didn’t allow a runner to third base over his final five innings.
RAYS 5, ORIOLES 1: In St. Petersburg, Fla., Ryne Stanek, Anthony Banda and Chaz Roe combined to give up three hits on a bullpen day as Tampa Bay beat Baltimore. RANGERS 4, ROYALS 3 (10): In Arlington, Texas, Shin-Soo Choo became the top major league home run hitter born in Asia, connecting for a leadoff drive in the 10th inning that lifted Texas. Choo’s 176th career homer moved him past Hideki Matsui for the most by an Asian player.
WHITE SOX 8, TIGERS 4: In Detroit, Tim Anderson homered twice in leading Chicago to a victory over Detroit.