Indians stun Jays with back-to-back HRs in 9th
Reds pummel LA; O’s set mark, still fall
CLEVELAND — Tyler Naquin hit a game-ending inside-the-park homer, sprinting around the bases to cap a two-run rally in the ninth inning as the Cleveland Indians beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-2 on Friday night.
Toronto took a 2-1 lead into the ninth in a matchup of AL division leaders. Closer Roberto Osuna (2-2) retired the first batter, but Jose Ramirez tied it with a home run.
Naquin followed with a drive that hit the top of the right-field wall, above the leap of Michael Saunders. The ball caromed away at an angle and center fielder Melvin Upton Jr. gave chase as Naquin rounded second base.
Upton finally retrieved the ball, but fell down as third base coach Mike Sarbaugh waved Naquin home. Upton threw the ball toward the infield as Naquin stumbled home. He scored with a head-first dive way ahead of second baseman Devon Travis’ relay.
The Indians poured from the dugout to mob Naquin. On Thursday night, Naquin lofted a sacrifice fly as a pinch hitter in the ninth to lift Cleveland over the White Sox. REDS 9, DODGERS 2: In Cincinnati, Joey Votto hit a three-run homer and relief pitcher Michael Lorenzen also hit a three-run shot as Cincinnati beat Los Angeles to snap a nine-game losing streak against the Dodgers.
Tim Adleman (2-1) pitched into and out of trouble in his first start since May 19 and added his first career hit and runs batted in as the Reds matched their season high with a fourth consecutive win.
LA’s Bud Norris (6-10) gave up six runs and seven hits in 3⅔ innings in his first start since July 31 (back
strain).
ASTROS 15, ORIOLES 8: In Baltimore, Jose Altuve homered and had five RBIs as Houston beat Baltimore despite allowing four home runs in the first inning.
George Springer went 4-for-5 with a homer for the Astros, who also got long balls from Evan Gattis and Teoscar Hernandez in ending a five-game losing streak.
The Orioles became the first team in the modern era (since 1900) to open a game with four home runs before making an out, according to STATS. Adam Jones hit Collin McHugh’s first pitch into the seats in left field and Hyun Soo Kim singled before Manny Machado, Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo homered in succession.
RED SOX 10, TIGERS 2: In Detroit, David Ortiz homered and Rick Porcello returned to Comerica Park with seven strong innings as Boston routed Detroit.
Porcello (17-3), who spent the first six seasons of his career with the Tigers before moving to Boston before the 2015 season, was pitching in Detroit for the first time since the trade.
Michael Fulmer’s Rookie of the Year campaign hit a snag, as the Red Sox got a career-high six runs off him in 5⅔ innings. Fulmer (10-4) allowed 10 hits, including two homers, and walked one while striking out one.
CARDINALS 4, PHILLIES 3 (11): In Philadelphia, Randal Grichuk homered early, then hit an RBI double in the 11th inning that sent St. Louis over Philadelphia for its fifth straight win.
Jedd Gyorko hit a tying two-run homer with one out in the St. Louis ninth. The Cardinals tied a major league record with multiple home runs in nine consecutive games.
RANGERS 6, RAYS 2: In St. Petersburg, Fla., Adrian Beltre led off consecutive innings with home runs and Cole Hamels didn’t give up a hit until the sixth inning as Texas beat Tampa Bay.
Beltre’s 20th and 21st home runs of the season gave him 434 for his career. Hamels (13-4) had retired 14 straight, striking out seven, when Corey Dickerson singled with two outs in the sixth for Tampa Bay’s first hit.
MARLINS 6, PIRATES 5: In Pittsburgh, Robert Andino hit a tie-breaking single in the top of the ninth inning and then Miami’s Fernando Rodney got Andrew McCutchen to ground into a game-ending double play with the bases loaded to hold off Pittsburgh.
ATHLETICS 8, WHITE SOX 0: In Chicago, Kendall Graveman (9-8) faced one batter over the minimum while throwing a two-hitter and Khris Davis hit his 31st home run as Oakland beat Chicago.
NATIONALS 7, BRAVES 6: In Atlanta, Clint Robinson hit a tie-breaking single with two outs in the ninth as Washington beat Atlanta after giving up a three-run lead.
Notes
CLEARED: In New York, Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard and Washington’s Ryan Zimmerman were cleared by Major League Baseball of allegations they used human growth hormone.
Pharmacist Charlie Sly claimed in an Al-Jazeera America documentary “The Dark Side: Secrets of Sports Doping,” which was broadcast Dec. 27, that the two used HGH. Sly later recanted.
In a brief statement Friday, MLB said its investigation “did not find any violations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program by either Howard or Zimmerman.”
MLB said the players cooperated with its investigation and Sly did not.