Musgrove wins again as Padres beat Cubs
Joe Musgrove pitched seven effective innings in his third straight win, and the San Diego Padres handed the Cubs their 10th consecutive loss with a 6-4 victory in Chicago on Thursday.
Musgrove (8-0) permitted two runs and five hits. The 6-foot-5 right-hander struck out a season-high nine and walked one.
San Diego improved to 7-2 in its last nine games with its first four-game series sweep of Chicago since Aug. 16-19, 2010, at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have been outscored 90-28 during their longest slide since they lost 12 consecutive games from Aug. 5-16.
GUARDIANS 4, ROCKIES 2 >> José Ramírez doubled for his eighth straight game with an extra-base hit, and visiting Cleveland matched a season high with its fourth win in a row. Ramírez hit an opposite-field grounder that hugged the third-base line against an exaggerated shift. He is the first major leaguer with extra-base hits in eight consecutive games since Cincinnati's Joey Votto in 2020.
YANKEES 2, RAYS 1 >> Anthony Rizzo hit a solo home run with one out in the ninth and streaking New York beat Tampa Bay for its 14th straight home win. The Yankees have their longest home winning string since taking 15 in a row at the original Yankee Stadium on Aug. 16-Sept. 26, 1961, when Roger Maris was chasing Babe Ruth's single-season home run record.
MINOR LEAGUE GAME TIME CUT 29 MINUTES >> Pitch clocks have shortened games by an average of 29 minutes in the minor leagues this year as the season nears the halfway point.
Minor league games with a pitch clock have averaged 2 hours, 35 minutes, down from 3:04 through June 14 last year, in an experiment that MLB is preparing for possible adoption in 2023.
Triple-A is using a pitch clock of 14 seconds with no runners and 19 seconds with runners, while lower levels are using 14/18. Experiments also are underway with limits on defensive shifts and use of larger bases.
NOTES >> All-Star outfielder Jesse Winker and the Mariners avoided a salary arbitration hearing when they agreed to a $14.5 million, twoyear contract . ... MLB approved the sale of a minority stake in the Cleveland Guardians to David Blitzer, co-owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Devils. Blitzer will have the right to increase his stake to a controlling interest in several years.