Mancini grand slam among 2 home runs; Astros win 9-3
CLEVELAND — Trey Mancini hit two home runs, including his first career grand slam, to lead the Houston Astros past the Cleveland Indians 9-3 on Friday night.
Mancini, acquired from Baltimore on Monday, hit a solo homer in the second and capped the Astros’ five-run third against Hunter Gaddis (0-1) with a blast that cleared the 19-foot wall in left field. He has homered three times in four games with Houston.
Framber Valdez (10-4) allowed three runs and seven hits in 6⅓ innings.
Gaddis was charged with eight runs in 3⅓ innings in his major league debut.
BRAVES 9, METS 6
In New York, Ronald Acuña Jr. got four hits and robbed Pete Alonso of a two-run homer as Atlanta rebounded quickly in its NL East showdown with the Mets.
Eddie Rosario hit a three-run homer in the first inning and an RBI double in the second to help the Braves open an 8-0 cushion. Rookie center fielder Michael Harris II also went deep and threw out a runner at the plate as the Braves avoided their first threegame skid of the year.
Mets starter Taijuan Walker (9-3) managed only three outs in a rare but untimely flop. He was charged with eight runs and seven hits as his ERA rose from 2.79 to 3.45.
A.J. Minter (5-3) struck out three in 1⅓ perfect innings.
PHILLIES 7, NATIONALS 2
In Philadelphia, Kyle Gibson retired his first 18 batters and pitched one-run ball over eight innings, Kyle Schwarber hit his NL-leading 34th homer and the Phillies beat Washington.
Rhys Hoskins, J.T. Realmuto, Nick Castellanos and Darick Hall also homered for the Phillies, who have won eight of nine and moved 10 games over .500 for the first time since they were 37-27 on June 8, 2019.
Gibson (7-4) struck out four, allowed two hits and hit two batters over 105 pitches.
Josiah Gray (7-8) allowed four homers and gave up six runs in four innings.
RAYS 5, TIGERS 3
In Detroit, Brandon Lowe hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the eighth inning and Tampa Bay walked a franchise-record 13 times while rallying to beat the Tigers.
Three of the walks came in Tampa Bay’s three-run eighth. The Rays trailed 3-0 after two innings before coming back to win their third straight game.
The Tigers led 3-2 going into the eighth before Joe Jimenez (3-1) walked the first two batters and Lowe followed with a double. Isaac Paredes made it 5-3 with an RBI single.
Jalen Beeks (2-1) worked a scoreless seventh. The Tigers brought the winning run to the plate in the ninth before Colin Poche struck out Riley Greene for his seventh save.
WHITE SOX 2, RANGERS 1
In Arlington, Texas, Dylan Cease pitched six strong innings, Eloy Jimenez hit a tiebreaking homer and Chicago beat Texas.
Cease (12-4), the AL pitcher of the month for both June and July, gave up a run and two hits to lower his ERA to 1.98, second in the AL, and won his fifth straight start.
Jimenez homered in the fourth off Glenn Otto (4-8) to put Chicago ahead.
Liam Hendriks, the third White Sox reliever, pitched a perfect ninth for his 22nd save in 25 chances.
CUBS 2, MARLINS 1
In Chicago, Willson Contreras hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to lift the Cubs past Miami.
The Cubs looked like they were on the way to their sixth straight loss before Contreras drove an 0-1 pitch from Dylan Floro (0-1) to left with one out in the eighth for his 16th homer.
Chicago’s Justin Steele went 4⅔ innings, striking out a career-high 10, allowing four hits and walking.