HOME RUN DERBY FIELD
Schwarber seeded 5th, Baez 6th; Brewers’ Aguilar 1st,
Brewers first baseman Jesus Aguilar leads seven first- time participants in the Home Run Derby, which will be contested Monday night at Nationals Park in Washington. The seven newcomers will be joined by Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper, who is the second seed behind Aguilar.
Aguilar will face Phillies outfielder Rhys Hoskins, the eighth seed, in the first round.
Harper will face Braves first baseman and No. 7 seed Freddie Freeman in the opening round.
The other two first- round pairings are Dodgers infielder Max Muncy, the third seed, against No. 6 seed and Cubs second baseman Javy Baez, and Astros third baseman Alex Bregman ( seeded fourth) vs. Cubs outfielder Kyle Schwarber, the fifth seed.
Also, Aguilar and Mariners shortstop Jean Segura won the online fan voting for the 32nd and final roster spots on the American and National League All- Star teams.
Aguilar drives in 3, but Brewers lose in 12
Jesus Aguilar had three hits and three RBI, but the Brewers went 3- for- 16 with runners in scoring position and lost 5- 4 to the Marlins in 12 innings. Starlin Castro singled home the winning run with one out. Aguilar doubled home a run in the first, singled in the fourth and hit a tying, tworun double in the eighth.
Sale tosses gem as Red Sox win ninth in row
Chris Sale struck out 12 in seven innings of scoreless ball in his final start before the All- Star Game, and major- league batting leader Mookie Betts had two more hits to lead the Red Sox to their ninth straight victory with a 4- 2 win over the Rangers. Sale ( 10- 4) allowed six hits and walked one to win his fifth straight decision.
Yankees set first- half home- run record
Greg Bird’s first career grand slam was also a record- setting blast for the Yankees. It was their 152nd homer of the first half, breaking the 1999 Mariners’ mark. Tyler Wade then hit his first career homer in the sixth inning before Austin Romine blasted his sixth of the season, extending the team’s record to 154 in a 9- 0 shutout of the Orioles.
Ramirez homers twice as Indians rattle Reds
Jose Ramirez homered twice and drove in five runs as the Indians thumped the Reds 19- 4. It was a much- needed rebound by the AL Central leaders, who squandered a 4- 0 lead in the ninth Tuesday, when Terry Francona’s miscommunication with pitching coach Carl Willis on a choice of relievers helped the Reds rally for seven runs.