O’s power past Nats for 5th straight win
Weary Yankees pound Reds to improve record to MLB-best 21-9
BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Orioles went deep early and often to beat a team that knows all too well about pounding the opposition into submission.
Trey Mancini capped a threehomer binge in the first inning against Gio Gonzalez, and the Orioles beat the Washington Nationals 6-4 on Monday night for their season-high fifth straight victory.
The Nationals own the most potent offense in the majors, but on this night they were no match for the power-laden Orioles. Joey Rickard hit a leadoff homer and Mark Trumbo added a solo shot before Mancini connected with a runner on to make it 4-0, and Washington never recovered.
‘The only thing that beat us tonight was the long ball,” Gonzalez said. “If they take it, they’re strikes. The only one that was not a strike was Trumbo.” And that one? “Fastball over Trumbo’s head,” Gonzalez lamented. “Maybe throw it at the backstop, they’ll swing at those.”
After the Orioles let a six-run cushion shrink to three, Brad Brach worked the ninth for his eighth save. After Brach gave up a one-out RBI double to former Oriole Matt Wieters, pinch-runner Trea Turner strayed too far from second base on a groundout to first and the game ended with a rundown in which Adam Lind was tagged out between third and home.
Kevin Gausman (2-3) allowed two runs over seven innings. He retired the first 10 batters and struck out eight in his longest outing of the year. YANKEES 10, REDS 4: In Cincinnati, Brett Gardner and Matt Holliday homered, Masahiro Tanaka won his fifth consecutive start and New York shook off a long game and a short night’s sleep, beating Cincinnati for its sixth victory in a row.
The Yankees have the best record in the majors at 21-9 and are 12 games over .500 for the first time since the end of the 2015 season.
Their biggest challenge was overcoming the fatigue from an 18-inning, 5-4 win at Wrigley Field early Monday. The Yankees didn’t land in the Cincinnati area until 5:08 a.m., and the sun was up when some of them finally fell asleep. Players sipped caffeinated drinks and yawned in the clubhouse pregame.
BLUE JAYS 4, INDIANS 2: In Toronto, Marcus Stroman pitched six shutout innings, Kevin Pillar made a sensational catch in center field and Toronto topped Cleveland in a playoff rematch.
Ryan Goins hit a two-run homer and Justin Smoak added a tworun single as the Blue Jays beat the team that eliminated them
from last year’s AL Championship Series.
Pillar made the defensive play of the game — perhaps the season — in the sixth, diving on the warning track in center to catch a deep drive by Jose Ramirez and strand runners at second and third.
ROYALS 7, RAYS 3: In St. Petersburg, Fla., Nate Karns struck out 10 while pitching into the seventh inning, Eric Hosmer had three hits and Kansas City busted out of an offensive slump to beat Tampa Bay.
Kansas City matched its best run output of the year and set a season high with 13 hits. Drew Butera homered and drove in his first two runs of the season, helping the Royals win for the fourth time in 17 games.
METS 4, GIANTS 3: In New York, Neil Walker hit a gameending single with two outs in the ninth inning, and New York beat San Francisco.
Michael Conforto scored for New York’s first walk-off win this season, giving the Mets their seventh victory in 10 games. Jeurys Familia (1-0) needed just five pitches in a perfect ninth, finishing a five-hitter started by Jacob deGrom, who struck out 11 in six innings.
CARDINALS 9, MARLINS 4: In Miami, Cardinals ace Carlos Martinez drove in four runs, compensating for the two homers he gave up to Marcell Ozuna and leading St. Louis over Miami for its season-best fourth straight win.
Martinez (2-3) came into the game hitless this year. He hit a two-out, three-run double off Adam Conley (2-3) in the second inning and singled home a run in the fourth.
CUBS-ROCKIES PPD.: In Denver, the game between the Chicago Cubs and Colorado Rockies on Monday night was postponed because of rain.
It will be made up as part of a split doubleheader today, with the first game at 12:10 p.m. MT and the second at 6:40 p.m.
PIRATES: Pittsburgh pitcher Jameson Taillon underwent surgery Monday morning for suspected testicular cancer.
The right-hander had the surgery at Allegheny General Hospital.
After alerting the team’s medical staff of an abnormality, Taillon consulted with Dr. John C. Lyne during the weekend. Lyne performed the surgery.
The recommended treatment plan for Taillon is pending further testing.
Taillon remains on the 10-day disabled list.
CUBS: Chicago placed outfielder Jason Heyward on the 10-day disabled list with a sore knuckle on his right hand.
In another transaction Monday, the Cubs traded outfielder Matt Szczur to San Diego for minor league right-hander Justin Hancock.