Chapman, Yanks seesaw past Astros
HOUSTON — Aroldis Chapman struck out AL MVP Jose Altuve on three straight 101 mph fastballs with two on to end the game, and the New York Yankees got a key hit from rookie Gleyber Torres during a three-run rally in the ninth inning to seesaw past the Houston Astros 6-5 Thursday.
The Yankees won a wild one to take three of four from the team that beat them in Game 7 of the AL Championship Series last October. Astros closer Ken Giles, who punched himself in the face after a rough outing earlier in this series, didn’t pitch during New York’s late comeback.
New York took a 3-0 lead into the seventh, trailed 5-3 going into the ninth and let a bounced third strike give the Astros their final chance.
Pinch hitter Evan Gattis fanned but reached on Chapman’s two-out wild pitch that catcher Gary Sanchez couldn’t find near the plate, and George Springer followed with a single. Altuve went down swinging, giving Chapman his seventh save and the Yankees a 6-1 record on their road trip against the top two teams in the AL West.
DODGERS 5, DIAMONDBACKS 2: Arizona reliever Jorge De La Rosa threw a pair of run-scoring wild pitches during an eighth-inning rally that sent the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Diamondbacks. The Dodgers scored four times in the eighth and handed Arizona its first two-game losing streak this year. The four-game split ended the Diamondbacks’ string of nine straight series victories to start the season. ICHIRO RELEASED BY MARINERS: Ichiro Suzuki was released Thursday by the Seattle Mariners and is transitioning into a front office role with the team, although he is not completely shutting the door on playing again. The Mariners announced that Suzuki was becoming a special assistant to the chairman effective immediately. The team said Suzuki will have an active presence with the team and assist with outfield play, base running and hitting. But nowhere in the announcement do they say the 44-year-old is retiring. Suzuki is in his 18th season and had appeared in 15 games this year for the Mariners.