Astros nail Yankees’ Ellsbury at plate, seal victory
AMERICAN LEAGUE ASTROS 3, YANKEES 2
NEW YORK — In a game Houston ace Dallas Keuchel (Arkansas Razorbacks) started, the best toss home definitely belonged to Jake Marisnick.
A defensive replacement in left field, Marisnick made a perfect throw to nail Jacoby Ellsbury at the plate for the final out and the Astros held off the New York Yankees 3-2 on Thursday night.
A matchup between teams with the best records in baseball came down to the final play, and the Astros were better — barely.
“I kind of started celebrating a little early, and then I stopped and watched what was happening,” Marisnick said.
Ellsbury’s single with two outs in the ninth inning put runners at the corners, and the fleet leadoff hitter stole second. Gary Sanchez followed by grounding a sharp RBI single and Marisnick fired a strike on the fly to catcher Brian McCann to get the sliding Ellsbury.
“You have to take that shot,” Yankees Manager Joe Girardi said. “That’s the right call.”
McCann pumped his fist after making the tag and Marisnick whooped it up with fellow outfielders George Springer and Josh Reddick. Marisnick came into the game in the seventh, taking over for Norichika Aoki.
“Right on the money,” McCann said. “I mean, couldn’t ask for a better throw. Right on the money.
“Jake puts a lot of pride in his defense, in his game, and he works on that all the time. You see him out there working on the days he
doesn’t play,” he said.
Keuchel (6-0) became the first six-game winner in the majors, helped by a home run from Carlos Correa. The Astros won their fourth in a row and improved to 24-11 — their top mark after 35 games since the franchise began playing in 1962.
Ken Giles wound up with his 10th save in 11 tries, saved by Marisnick.
Marisnick tapped his glove a couple times as he charged, took an extra step to steady himself and let loose.
Carlos Beltran and McCann were quiet at the plate in their return to Yankee Stadium, the former New York power hitters going hitless in seven at-bats for Houston.
Michael Pineda (3-2) pitched into the seventh. He fell behind in the first when Correa lined a two-run drive over the wall in right-center, making the Astros star 6 for 9 with 3 home runs against the right-hander.
ROYALS 6, RAYS 0
Major league ERA leader Jason Vargas went seven more scoreless innings, Salvador Perez had a two-run double during a five-run eighth inning and Kansas City beat host Tampa Bay.
BLUE JAYS 7, MARINERS 2
Steve Pearce hit a three-run home run, Justin Smoak had a home run and finished with four RBI, and Toronto beat visiting Seattle, snapping the Mariners’ win streak at four.
TWINS 7, WHITE SOX 6
Eduardo Escobar hit a three-run home run, then added a fourth RBI with a double as Minnesota outlasted struggling host Chicago.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
ROCKIES 10, DODGERS 7 Jeff Hoffman struck out eight to earn his first major league victory, Carlos Gonzalez showed signs of breaking out of a slump with a two-hit, three-RBI night and Colorado held off visiting Los Angeles. DIAMONDBACKS 2, PIRATES 1 Zack Greinke’s bid for his first career no-hitter was thwarted by Pittsburgh’s Gregory Polanco’s leadoff home run in the eighth inning and host Arizona held on to beat the Pirates.
INTERLEAGUE
RED SOX 4, BREWERS 1 Mookie Betts’ three-run home run in the ninth inning lifted Boston to a victory over host Milwaukee. RANGERS 5, PADRES 2 Mike Napoli’s second home run was a game-ending three-run shot and Texas beat visiting San Diego.