Stanton strikes again to top Cubs
Giancarlo Stanton homered in the fourth inning and singled home the goahead run with two outs in the eighth, helping the Marlins send the Chicago Cubs to a season-worst fourth consecutive defeat, 4-2, last night in Miami.
Stanton’s two hits hiked his average to .216. He has two homers in his last three games after going without one in his first 15 games this month.
Jon Lester allowed only two runs in seven innings, but Miami ended his streak of wins in five consecutive starts. The Cubs’ David Ross led off the eighth with his sixth homer to make the score 2-2.
Christian Yelich started Miami’s rally in the bottom of the eighth with a one-out walk against Pedro Strop (12). He advanced on a wild pitch and scored standing up on Stanton’s opposite-field single. J.T. Realmuto followed with an RBI double.
Before the game, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said he might need to monitor first baseman Anthony Rizzo more closely to ensure his health for the rest of the season. The usually durable slugger missed his second start in 14 days because of back stiffness.
Giants 5, Pirates 3 — Joe Panik hit a bases-loaded triple, Mac Williamson launched a 446-foot home run and visiting San Francisco beat Pittsburgh for its 12th win in 14 games.
The Giants took three of four at PNC Park. Pittsburgh has lost 11-of-14, dropped to 5-17 in June and fell five games under .500.
Albert Suarez (3-1) gave up two earned runs and four hits in five innings, throwing a season-high 102 pitches while filling in for the injured Matt Cain.
Braves 4, Mets 3 — Adonis Garcia hit a go-ahead, two-run homer off Addison Reed in the eighth inning and Atlanta, the worst team in the National League, beat visiting New York for the fourth straight time in a week.
A.J. Pierzynski drove in two runs off Matt Harvey to boost the Braves, who posted a three-game sweep at Citi Field last weekend.
Yoenis Cespedes, who’s third in the NL with 18 homers, was not in the lineup after having a cortisone shot in his left wrist. Noah Syndergaard, who ranks sixth in the NL in both ERA and strikeouts, was prescribed anti-inflammatory medication for his right elbow. An MRI showed no structural issues after both were hurt Wednesday in a win against Kansas City.
Padres 7, Reds 4 — Derek Norris hit a three-run homer that completed San Diego’s sixth-inning comeback, and the NL’s highestscoring team in June rallied past host Cincinnati in a matchup of last-place teams.
Adam Duvall hit a tworun homer for the Reds. Duvall became the fourth player in the majors with 21 homers, joining Colorado’s Nolan Arenado, the Chicago’s Todd Frazier and Baltimore’s Mark Trumbo.
Diamondbacks 7, Rockies 6— In Denver, Nick Ahmed had a two-out RBI single in the ninth inning and Arizona recovered after blowing a late lead to beat Colorado.
Down 6-3, the Rockies rallied to tie it on D.J. LeMahieu’s RBI bunt single in the eighth. Daniel Hudson was charged with three runs, but Brad Ziegler (2-2) allowed LeMahieu’s single, ending his streak of 43 consecutive successful save attempts dating back to May 29, 2015, a club record and the seventh longest ever.
American League
Tigers 5, Mariners 4 — Pinch runner Cameron Maybin easily scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch by Steve Cishek with two outs in the 10th inning, giving Detroit a four-game home sweep of Seattle, its first since August 1980.
Nelson Cruz homered twice and Chris Iannetta and Leonys Martin later hit back-to-back drives for the Mariners, who lost their sixth in a row.
The Mariners were at a loss from the start after pitcher Adrian Sampson exited with discomfort in his right elbow while warming up for the first inning. Also, Triple-A outfielder Boog Powell — no relation to the Baltimore slugger — was suspended 80 games after testing positive for a banned performance- enhancing substance.
Athletics 5, Angels 4 — In Anaheim, Calif., Marcus Semien hit a three-run home run to highlight a four-run second inning and Oakland held off Los Angeles.
Khris Davis also hit a solo home run for the Athletics and Kendall Gravemen (3-6) allowed a pair of runs over 62⁄ innings.
Jett Bandy drove in three runs for the Angels, including a two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth off Sean Doolittle that cut it to 5-4.
Interleague
Phillies 7, Twins 3 — In Minneapolis, Minn., struggling Freddy Galvis homered and drove in a careerfive runs to help Philadelphia end a ninegame losing streak.
Cesar Hernandez tied a career-high with four hits and slumping Ryan Howard homered as part of his first multiple-hit game since April 29 as the Phillies won for just the second time in 15 games.