Judge keeps up homer barrage by hitting 200th of his career
Aaron Judge became the second-fastest player in major league history to reach 200 career home runs, and the New York Yankees beat the visiting Kansas City Royals 8-2 on Saturday.
DJ LeMahieu homered and had an RBI single, and Matt Carpenter homered for the 15th time in 40 games for New York, which won its third straight after dropping a pair of games to the New York Mets.
The Royals have lost five in a row.
Judge, who became the first player in the majors this season to reach 40 homers Friday, fouled off two breaking balls from starter Jonathan Heasley before sending a 2-2 fastball into the right-center field seats for a two-run drive in the second inning.
The 6-foot-7 slugger's 200th homer came in his 671st career game, behind just Philadelphia's Ryan Howard, who achieved the feat in 2009 in 658 games.
Judge has 42 homers this season and is on pace for 67. He is tied with Sammy Sosa and two behind Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire for the most before Aug. 1 in MLB history.
Judge has nine homers and 21 RBIs with a .447 batting average in 10 games since the All-Star break. After hitting just one homer in his first 13 games, Judge has slugged 36 over his last 79 games and is on pace to surpass Roger Maris' club record of 61, set in 1961.
TWINS 7, PADRES 4 >> Byron Buxton hit a tying homer in the fourth inning off Joe Musgrove, and Carlos Correa gave Minnesota some breathing room with a tworun shot during a five-run eighth that helped Minnesota win at San Diego.
The Twins handed Musgrove (8-4) his fourth straight loss.
Correa homered to straightaway center with one out in the eighth off Adrian Morejon for a 4-1 lead. The Twins added on with an RBI single by Jose Miranda, a run-scoring double by Nick Gordon and a throwing error to make it 7-1.
San Diego's Jurickson Profar hit a three-run homer off Tyler Duffey with one out in the ninth.
Sonny Gray (6-3) allowed a solo home run to All-Star Manny Machado with two outs in the third, but otherwise kept the Padres in check through five innings.
METS 4, MARLINS 0 >> Carlos Carrasco earned his 100th career win, pitching fourhit ball into the eighth inning as visiting New York blanked Miami.
Francisco Lindor had three hits, including his 17th homer. Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis also went deep for the NL East leaders, who won their fifth straight.
The 35-year-old Carrasco (11-4) walked two and struck out seven in 7 2/3 innings. MARINERS 5, ASTROS 4 >> Abraham Toro pinch-hit for All-Star Julio Rodriguez and delivered a two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning as visiting Seattle rallied past Houston.
Rodriguez was hit on the hand as he swung at a pitch in the top of the eighth. He struck out, but played in the field in the bottom half of the inning before being lifted in the ninth. There was no immediate word on Rodriguez's condition.
Astros closer Ryan Pressly (3-3) entered the ninth having converted 21 of his 24 save opportunities this season. He gave up two runs on two hits, walked one and struck out two in his first blown save since June 23 against the Yankees.
BREWERS 9, RED SOX 4 >>
Hunter Renfroe belted a two-run homer over the Green Monster, Eric Lauer pitched five innings of onerun ball for his first victory in over a month and Milwaukee beat fading Boston, which lost for the 13th time in its last 16 games.
Omar Narváez and Tyrone Taylor each added a solo shot, and Rowdy Tellez had three hits and drove in a run for the NL Centralleading Brewers, who are 7-1 since the All-Star break.
Making his first career start in Fenway Park, Lauer (7-3) allowed four hits, with four strikeouts and three walks, earning his first win since June 17 at Cincinnati. NATIONALS 7, CARDINALS 6
>> Josh Bell hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and Washington rallied to defeat visiting St. Louis.
Bell, likely on his way out as the trade deadline nears, gave the home fans possibly one final moment to celebrate his time with the club after his 14th homer of the season just cleared the wall in right-center off Génesis Cabrera (3-2).
St. Louis took the lead in the fifth for the second time when Paul DeJong hit a two-run homer into the Cardinals' bullpen.
DeJong — an All-Star in 2019 — was recalled earlier on Saturday after the Cardinals traded infielder Edmundo Sosa to the Phillies. BRAVES 6, DIAMONDBACKS 2
>> William Contreras homered twice, Ian Anderson allowed one hit in six scoreless innings and Atlanta won at home against Arizona.
The Braves are 38-14 since June 1, the best record in the major leagues over that span.
Matt Olson, who has gone deep nine times in his last 18 games, made it 1-0 in the first with his 21st homer.
Anderson (9-6) retired the first 14 batters he faced and finished with one walk and nine strikeouts. He had a 6.25 ERA with a .303 opponents' batting average in his 12 previous starts.
He gave up his first hit when Jake McCarthy doubled with two outs in the fifth. PHILLIES 3, PIRATES 2, 10 INNINGS >> Philadelphia's Didi Gregorious raced home when a throw from first to third by Pittsburgh's Michael Chavis leading off the top of the 10th sailed wide of the target, helping the Phillies win on the road.
Philadelphia's Ranger Suárez worked six shutout innings, allowing three singles with a walk and a hit batter while striking out a season-high eight.
BLUE JAYS 5, TIGERS 3 >> Teoscar Hernández hit a goahead, three-run home run in the sixth inning, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. scored twice and Toronto won at Detroit for its 11th win in 14 games.