Votto homer lifts Reds to 4-2 victory over Indians
CINCINNATI: Joey Votto hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the eighth inning to lift Cincinnati to a 4-2 victory over Cleveland.
Votto drove a 2-1 pitch from Nick Hagadone (0-1) over the wall in left for his ninth homer. Hagadone was called up from Triple-A earlier in the day when closer Chris Perez was put on the disabled list with a sore right shoulder.
Shin-Soo Choo also had a leadoff homer in the first for the Reds. Choo was traded from the Indians to the Reds in the offseason.
Pinch hitter Jason Giambi had a tying solo homer in the eighth for Cleveland, snapping an 0-for-24 slump.
In Toronto, Edwin Encarnacion hit a three-run homer for Toronto, and Colby Rasmus and J.P. Arencibia each had a two-run shot.
Rasmus also doubled off his younger brother, Braves reliever Cory Rasmus, but Toronto lost third baseman Brett Lawrie to a sprained ankle.
Encarnacion went 2 for 5 with five RBIs as the Blue Jays improved to 3-0 in interleague play. Toronto has won nine of 12 against NL opponents dating to last season.
Mark Buehrle (2-3) allowed one run and five hits in six innings to snap a seven-start winless streak and earn his 26th career interleague victory.
Diamondbacks 5 Rangers 3, Game 1
In Phoenix, Didi Gregorius hit a tying homer off Yu Darvish in the eighth inning and Cliff Pennington singled home the winning run in the ninth, helping Arizona to a doubleheader sweep.
Darvish matched his career best with 14 strikeouts but allowed a run after the sixth inning for the first time this season. Gregorius also had an RBI triple in the first.
In the opener, Tyler Skaggs (1-0) struck out nine over six scoreless innings and Heath Bell got two outs for his ninth save.
Brad Ziegler (2-1) got the victory in the nightcap, and Jason Frasor (0-1) took the loss.
Martin Perez (0-1) allowed four runs, three earned, in 5 1-3 innings in the opener for Texas. Adrian Beltre had a two-run single in the Rangers’ three-run ninth.
In Kansas City, Missouri, Yadier Molina homered and drove in four runs to help the Cardinals get the win. Molina hit a two-run homer in the first. He then doubled home a run in the third and had a sacrifice fly in the fourth.
Adam Wainwright (7-3) allowed three runs and 12 hits in eight innings, but managed to get the win. Edward Mujica finished for his 15th save.
It was the most hits allowed by Wainwright since Sept. 14, 2010, against the Chicago Cubs.
In St. Petersburg, Florida, Kelly Johnson hit a pair of threerun homers and Tampa Bay handed Miami its sixth straight loss.
Johnson also doubled, singled and stole a base. He matched his career highs for RBIs and hits during his eighth multihomer game, and first since May 30, 2011, against the Marlins while with Arizona.
Johnson, who has 24 RBIs in 21 games this month, connected against rookie Jose Fernandez (2-3) in a six-run second inning. He then broke open the game by hitting his 10th home run in the eighth against A.J. Ramos.
In Milwaukee, Joe Mauer wound up with a home run instead of a double after umpires went to video replay, and the Twins got a sorely needed victory.Kevin Correia (5-4) pitched six innings and gave up three homers as Minnesota won for only the second time in 13 games. Glen Perkins pitched a perfect ninth inning for his 10th save.
Carlos Gomez homered twice for the Brewers.
The Twins led 4-3 when Mauer led off the seventh inning against Tom Gorzelanny with a long fly to left field. Mauer stopped at second base, and the umpires went to review the drive.
The ball hit the padding atop the fence and then appeared to strike a back wall, making it a home run. The second base umpire was Angel Hernandez — he was the chief in Cleveland earlier this month when Hernandez and his crew mistakenly failed to reverse a call on the field and rule a home run.
In Seattle, Aaron Harang threw a four-hitter, Jason Bay hit his first career leadoff homer and Michael Morse added a three-run shot as part of Seattle’s four-run first inning.