AROUND THE HORN
Mets: Jeff McNeil launched a tying HR in the bottom of the ninth inning on his 29th birthday and the Mets were handed the winning run on a disputed hit by pitch for a bizarre 3-2 victory over the Marlins. With the bases loaded and one out, a scuffling Michael Conforto appeared to stick out his right elbow pad just enough to get it grazed by a 1-2 breaking ball from closer Anthony Bass that looked to be in the strike zone. Plate umpire and crew chief Ron Kulpa at first signaled strike, then quickly ruled Conforto was hit by the pitch. Conforto headed toward first base as Luis Guillorme scored and the Mets celebrated a comeback win in front of the first crowd at Citi Field in 557 days. Marlins players and manager Don Mattingly argued with Kulpa before a replay review was initiated. The review lasted 58 seconds, and the call was upheld. According to baseball rules, if a batter is hit by a pitch in the strike zone, the pitch should be called a strike. According to replay rules, however, whether the pitch was in the strike zone or the batter made any attempt to get out of the way isn’t subject to video review. Those are umpire judgment calls. Only whether the ball touched the batter is reviewable.
Rockies: Jon Gray took a no-hit bid into the seventh and got his first win of the season, pitching the Colorado Rockies over the visiting Diamondbacks 7-3. Gray (1-0) allowed three runners through six, helped in the final frame when 3B Ryan McMahon made a barehanded grab of Tim Locastro’s grounder and threw out the speedy batter by a half-step.
Cubs: Javy Baez hit a go-ahead two-run HR in the sixth, and the Cubs’ struggling offense came to life in a 4-2 road win over the Pirates. Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo also homered as the Cubs pounded out a season-high 11 hits. The Cubs raised their MLB-worst batting average from .143 to .157.
Red Sox, Orioles: Eduardo Rodríguez won in his return from heart inflammation that caused him to miss last season, allowing three runs over five innings to lead the Red Sox over the host Orioles 7-3. Rafael Devers and Kiké Hernández homered for the Red Sox, who have won four consecutive games for the first time since Aug. 14-18, 2019. A day after his 28th birthday, Rodríguez made his first big league appearance since Sept. 29, 2019, against the Orioles at Fenway Park. He started last season on the IL, and the Red Sox announced Aug. 1 that Rodríguez was going to miss the entire pandemic-shortened season because of myocarditis related to COVID-19. Rodríguez (1-0) gave up four hits, including a pair of two-run HRs, struck out seven and walked none. ... Fans gave Orioles OF Trey Mancini a standing ovation in his first home at-bat since returning from stage 3 colon cancer. He missed last season after the diagnosis.
Cardinals: Nolan Arenado hit a tiebreaking, two-run HR in the eighth inning of his home debut with the Cardinals, lifting them over the Brewers 3-1 as fans returned to Busch Stadium for the first time since 2019. Arenado, acquired from the Rockies on Feb. 1, turned on a first pitch 96.6 mph offering from Drew Rasmussen (0-1) for his second HR this season. Arenado pointed to his dugout just before rounding first and screamed as he helped the Cards to their fourth straight win. Adam Wainwright started his sixth home opener, tying the franchise record set by the late Bob Gibson.
Twins: Mitch Garver, Byron Buxton and Luis Arraez hit HRs to back another strong start by José Berríos, providing Twins fans plenty to cheer for in their return to Target Field as the hosts beat the Mariners 10-2. Berríos (2-0), who no-hit the Brewers over six innings in his first turn, threw two more hitless innings before surrendering his first run of the season in the third. Pulled in the sixth, Berríos tipped his cap to the sellout crowd of 9,675 as he strutted off the mound.