DODGERS’ REBOUND FROM LONG STRETCH OF LOSSES CONTINUES
Alex Wood threw six shutout innings, Corey Seager hit a three-run homer during a five-run second, and the Dodgers’ rebound continued with a 7-0 win over the Nationals on Friday.
Wood (15-3) allowed three hits with eight strikeouts and one walk for Los Angeles, which has won three in a row after losing 11 consecutive games and 16 of 17.
The teams entered the highly anticipated three-game series having clinched playoff berths and owning the top two records in the National League. The Dodgers lowered their magic number to clinch the NL West to six.
Justin Turner and Yasiel Puig homered in the Dodgers’ first Washington appearance since winning Game 5 of the NL Division Series last October.
The NL East champion Nationals fell six games back of Los Angeles in the chase for home-field advantage in the playoffs.
FRIDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS
Kris Bryant had three hits, including his 27th homer, and the Cubs overcame the ejections of John Lackey and Willson Contreras on their way to an 8-2 victory over the Cardinals. Bryant went deep in the fourth and singled twice in Chicago’s seven-run sixth. … Didi Gregorius hit a tiebreaking two-run homer and drove in four runs, leading the Yankees over the Orioles 8-2 for their fifth win in six games. … Zack Cozart hit two of Cincinnati’s four solo home runs and the Reds beat the Pirates 4-2. … Daniel Mengden was dominant in a two-hitter, Matt Olson and Matt Joyce each hit two-run homers and the Athletics beat the Phillies 4-0. … Mikie Mahtook hit a game-ending RBI single with two outs in the ninth, lifting the Tigers over the White Sox 3-2 to end a sixgame skid. … Sean Newcomb recorded eight strikeouts, including five straight, and the Braves beat Rafael Montero and the Mets 3-2. … Neil Walker hit a grand slam during an eight-run eighth inning that broke a tie, and the Brewers beat the Marlins 10-2 in the opening game of a series relocated from Miami to Milwaukee because of the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. … Carlos Correa and Evan Gattis had two hits apiece and each drove in a run as the Astros jumped on James Paxton and cruised to a 5-2 win over the Mariners .… Josh Donaldson homered and drove in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning with an infield single that ricocheted off the mound, sending the Blue Jays to a 4-3 victory over the Twins.
FOOTNOTES Stealing of signs costs Red Sox money.
The penalty for using electronics to steal signs from an opposing team: a fine. Major League Baseball fined the Boston Red Sox an undisclosed amount for “sending electronic communications from their video replay room to an athletic trainer in the dugout” for the purpose of stealing signals from the opposing catcher, commissioner Rob Manfred announced Friday. … Major League Baseball ruled that the Tigers did not intend to strike the home-plate umpire with a pitch that hit him in the shoulder and knocked him to the ground. MLB said that chief baseball officer Joe Torre reviewed the play and found no wrongdoing and no cause for disciplinary action. Umpire Quinn Wolcott was hit by a fastball from Detroit’s Buck Farmer during a game Wednesday at Cleveland. Rookie backup catcher John Hicks never touched the ball as it sailed past his mitt.