Kepler, Twins walkoff ’Stros
Max Kepler hit his second home run of the game, connecting for a solo drive with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Minnesota Twins bounced back from a late collapse to beat the Houston Astros, 9-8, yesterday in Minneapolis.
After the Twins blew an 8-1 lead, Kepler homered with two strikes off Brad Peacock (1-1).
Kepler hit a two-run homer to cap an eight-run fourth, an inning that included Eddie Rosario’s bases-loaded triple.
Down 8-6 in the ninth, the Astros loaded the bases with one out against Fernando Rodney. George Springer grounded into an RBI forceout, and the tying run scored when Brian Dozier threw wide to first trying for a double play.
Indians 5, Tigers 1 — Detroit pitcher Jordan Zimmermann bruised the right side of his jaw when hit in the face by a line drive off the bat of Jason Kipnis and left after two batters in host Cleveland’s win.
Carlos Carrasco (3-0) pitched a three-hitter.
Mariners 4, Royals 2 — Kyle Seager hit a go-ahead homer with two outs in the eighth inning, and visiting Seattle held on to beat Kansas City.
James Paxton matched a career-best with 10 strikeouts over six sharp innings.
Orioles 5, Blue Jays 3 — Jonathan Schoop drove in two runs, Kevin Gausman pitched six effective innings and host Baltimore bested Toronto to avoid a threegame sweep.
White Sox 2, Rays 1 — Matt Davidson hit a two-run homer off Austin Pruitt in the eighth inning and Chicago rallied for its first home win, nipping Tampa Bay.
National League
Mets 4, Marlins 1 — Miami lefty Jarlin Garcia was pulled after pitching six hitless innings in his first major league start, and visiting New York took advantage of a strong season debut by Zack Wheeler to beat the Marlins for its seventh straight victory.
Adrian Gonzalez’ pinchhit, two-run single off Chris O’Grady in a four-run eighth inning put the Mets ahead and helped extend the best start in team history to 10-1.
Rockies 6, Padres 4 — In Denver, Nolan Arenado charged the mound after a fastball from San Diego’s Luis Perdomo sailed behind him, setting off a heated brawl that resulted in five ejections during a testy game in which Colorado topped the Padres.
Arenado’s reaction in the third woke up the slumbering Colorado bats, with the Rockies scoring five times in the inning to take a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Cubs 13, Pirates 5 — Javier Baez homered twice for the second straight day and scored the go-ahead run on a daring dash around the bases, helping host Chicago pound Pittsburgh.
Kris Bryant added three hits and two RBI as Chicago got its first home win in the first night game at Wrigley Field this season.
Phillies 4, Reds 3 — Scott Kingery hit a game-ending sacrifice fly in the 12th, two innings after Odubel Herrera robbed visiting Cincinnati of a home run, and Philadelphia completed a three-game sweep.
Diamondbacks 7, Giants 3 — Paul Goldschmidt and John Ryan Murphy hit home runs and visiting Arizona dropped San Francisco.
The D’backs won their fourth straight series to start a season for the first time since beginning play in 1998.
Brewers 3, Cardinals 2 — Matt Albers got his first save for Milwaukee, retiring Kolten Wong and Dexter Fowler to strand a pair of runners, and the Brewers edged host St. Louis.
Braves 5, Nationals 3 — Peter Bourjos drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single in the 12th inning and Atlanta’s bullpen made a lead stand up, helping beat host Washington after losing Brandon McCarthy to an injured left shoulder.