Giants knock off defending champs
CHICAGO — Joe Panik hit his first career leadoff homer and doubled twice, helping the San Francisco Giants beat the Chicago Cubs 6-4 on Monday night.
Brandon Belt also connected and Ty Blach pitched into the eighth inning in the first meeting between the teams since San Francisco was eliminated by Chicago in the NL Division Series last year. Panik, Belt and Justin Ruggiano each had two RBIs as the streaking Giants won for the eighth time in 10 games.
Ruggiano's leadoff drive in the eighth made it 6-0 and gave San Francisco 18 straight solo homers, just three away from matching its major league record of 21 from 2011.
The Cubs responded with four in the bottom half on two-run homers by Javier Baez and Ben Zobrist. But the rally stalled from there.
With one out and runners on first and second, Hunter Strickland got Willson Contreras to bounce into an inning-ending double play. Mark Melancon then worked the ninth for his ninth save in 11 chances.
Baez had three hits for the Cubs, who were coming off a 13-6 victory against Milwaukee on Sunday. He singled with two out in the ninth before rookie Ian Happ struck out swinging to end the game.
John Lackey (4-4) pitched five shaky innings in his first loss in a month, allowing five runs and seven hits. The right-hander was 3-0 with a 3.86 ERA over his previous four starts.
Lackey looked off right from the start, with Panik driving his sixth pitch into the bleachers in left-center for his second homer of the year. The Giants followed with two more hard-hit balls, but Lackey got bailed out by two outstanding defensive plays.
First, shortstop Addison Russell robbed Christian Arroyo of a hit with a diving stop and a strong throw to first. Then Albert Almora Jr. reached over his head for a terrific leaping catch on Belt's drive to center.
But the Giants opened a 5-0 lead by scoring in each of Lackey's last three innings. Panik hit an RBI double and scored on Belt's single in the third. Ruggiano added an RBI double in the fourth, and Belt hit a drive to left in the fifth for his ninth homer.
Blach (2-2) was pulled after the first three batters reached in the eighth. He was charged with three runs and eight hits in his second straight win.
Reds 5, Indians 1
CINCINNATI — Scott Feldman struck out a season-high nine while ending Cincinnati's long stretch of ineffective starts, and Scott Schebler homered for the third straight game Monday night in leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 5-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
The Reds took the opener of the annual intrastate series. The teams play two games in Cincinnati followed by two in Cleveland. The Indians had won their last four at Great American Ball Park and six straight overall in the Ohio series.
Feldman (3-4) got the first victory by a Reds starter since May 9. He gave up four hits, including Jason Kipnis' homer, while becoming the first Cincinnati starter in the last 10 games to make it through six innings. The Reds' rotation is last in the NL in ERA and innings pitched.
Three relievers closed out a seven-hitter for Cincinnati's second victory in 10 games.
Schebler connected off Josh Tomlin (2-6) for his third homer in a span of seven at-bats. It's the first time he's homered in three consecutive games. Adam Duvall and Arismendy Alcantara had RBI singles off Tomlin, who gave up nine hits in 6 1/3 innings.
Zack Cozart's two-run single in the seventh off Dan Otero put Cincinnati in control.
The Indians were coming off a three-game sweep in Houston, but couldn't get much going against Feldman, who fanned his first five batters. Feldman was coming off his worst performance of the season — seven runs in only 2 2/3 innings of a 7-5 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Wednesday.
Twins 14, Orioles 7
BALTIMORE — Max Kepler homered and drove in four runs, Miguel Sano and Jorge Polanco each had a career-high four hits and the Minnesota Twins roared back to beat the Baltimore Orioles.
Minnesota trailed 5-0 in the second inning and 6-2 entering the fifth before cranking up the offense against Ubaldo Jimenez and an ineffective Baltimore bullpen.
A two-run double by Kepler helped the Twins knot the score in the fifth, Minnesota sent 11 batters to the plate in a six-run sixth and Sano added a two-run homer in the ninth.
Joe Mauer had three hits, two RBIs and scored twice for the Twins, who reached season highs in runs and hits (21).
Adam Jones hit a three-run drive in the second inning off Kyle Gibson (1-4) for Baltimore.
Angels 3, Rays 2
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Jefry Marte scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in the seventh inning to help the Los Angeles Angels' beat the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Angels, who have won six of eight, pushed across the run without a hit in the seventh inning against Tampa Bay relievers Jumbo Diaz (0-3) and Ryne Stanek. After walking Mike Trout intentionally to load the bases with two out, Stanek threw a ball in the dirt while facing Albert Pujols, allowing Marte to score easily.
Corey Dickerson and Logan Morrison homered off Angels starter J.C. Ramirez for Tampa Bay's only two runs.
Dickerson's 12th home run, and his sixth in six games, came on his 28th birthday. Morrison's 12th homer was his seventh of the month.
Andrelton Simmons drove in the Angels' first run with a sacrifice fly in the first inning after an infield hit by Cameron Maybin and two walks.
Maybin hit his second home run for the Angels, tying the game at 2-2 in the fifth.
Yankees 4, Royals 2
NEW YORK — Didi Gregorius, Brett Gardner and Chris Carter homered, and the New York Yankees once again downed Jason Vargas by beating the Kansas City Royals.
A reversed umpire's call in the seventh inning kept the Yankees ahead and enabled Michael Pineda (5-2) to top Vargas for the second time in a week. The Royals, with the worst record in the AL, have lost five of seven.
Vargas (5-3) began the day with a 2.03 ERA, tied for second-best in the majors. But the lefty fell to 0-7 lifetime against the Yankees when he was tagged by Gardner and Gregorius, the only left-handed hitters in the New York lineup.
Rockies 8, Phillies 1
PHILADELPHIA — Jeff Hoffman struck out seven and tossed three-hit ball over seven innings to lead the Colorado Rockies to a win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Hoffman (2-0) also had his first big league hit and the National League-leading Rockies continued to cruise away from home. They are the best in the majors with a 16-7 road record and are 5-2 on this season-long 10game road trip.
The 22-year-old-Hoffman, rated Colorado's No. 2 prospect, made his second spot start of the season. He was needed because the Rockies played a doubleheader last week and went with Hoffman rather than use a starter on short rest. He'll likely return to the minors but certainly impressed against the woeful Phillies.
The tarp covered the field until 30 minutes or so before first pitch, the sixth straight game the Rockies failed to take batting practice.
No worries. Nolan Arenado hit a two-run homer and the Rockies scored four runs off Phillies starter Jerad Eickhoff (0-5).
Hoffman, the No. 9 overall pick in the 2014 draft, threw 99 pitches and flashed the command needed to establish himself as a future member of the rotation. He retired the first 11 batters of the game and struck out Maikel Franco with runners on first and third to end the fourth.
Braves 5, Pirates 2
ATLANTA — Matt Adams hit a two-run homer in his second start since being traded to Atlanta, Ender Inciarte had a career-high five hits and the Braves beat Gerrit Cole and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Brandon Phillips also homered for the Braves, who have won eight of 11.
Adams was acquired from St. Louis on Saturday as a fill-in for injured first baseman Freddie Freeman, expected to miss about 10 weeks with a broken left wrist. Adams had two hits, including his fifth-inning homer high into the right-field seats for a 5-1 lead.
David Freese and Pirates manager Clint Hurdle were ejected by plate umpire Phil Cuzzi in the fourth. Freese didn't like a called third strike by Cuzzi and, with John Jaso at the plate, was still yelling at the umpire from the bench when he was ejected. Hurdle then charged out of the dugout and was quickly tossed.
Mike Foltynewicz (3-4) allowed two runs, one earned, in five-plus innings to win his third straight start. Jim Johnson pitched the ninth for his ninth save.
Foltynewicz left after allowing three straight singles to open the sixth, including a run-scoring liner to right by Jaso. Jason Motte struck out Francisco Cervelli and Jordy Mercer, and ended the inning on pinch-hitter Jose Osuna's groundout.
Cole (2-5) gave up five runs and 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings. He ended his streaks of lasting at least six innings in eight straight starts and allowing no more than two earned runs in six consecutive starts.
Cole escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth. Dansby Swanson struck out after giving the Pirates a scare with a long fly to left that hooked, and Foltynewicz grounded out to end the inning.
Light rain began to fall in the fourth and continued the remainder of the game.
Andrew McCutchen hit into a double play in the fifth and was 0 for 4, dropping his batting average to .206.