Yankees manage only two hits, but still top Tigers
YANKEES 2, TIGERS 1
NEW YORK — Gleyber Torres came through for the Yankees on a day they welcomed newcomers Andrew McCutchen and Adeiny Hechavarria to the Bronx and got slugging catcher Gary Sanchez back from the disabled list.
Torres hit a two-run home run and Masahiro Tanaka pitched seven strong innings for his first win since July, as New York beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 Saturday.
The Yankees got only two hits, but won for the 11th time in 15 games. New York has the second-best record in the majors, behind AL East-leading Boston.
Torres hit his 22nd home run of the season and third since the start of the Yankees’ homestand on Monday, a stretch over which he’s batting .526 with eight RBI.
Torres connected in the fifth off Daniel Norris (0-3) for the Yankees’ first hit.
McCutchen went 0 for 3 and struck out twice in his Yankees debut. He batted leadoff and played right field, a day after being acquired from San Francisco.
“I didn’t have the game I wanted to have personally, the first one, but we got the win and that’s what’s most important,” McCutchen said. “All around it was a good day and it’s a day I’m not going to forget for sure.”
Sanchez, who missed nearly six weeks with a recurring groin injury, went 0 for 4.
“I thought he caught great today,” Manager Aaron Boone said. “I thought he looked pretty much on time at the plate, so I thought a really good first day for him even though he didn’t get any results at the plate.”
Hechavarria, traded from Pittsburgh to New York late Friday night, arrived at the ballpark about two hours before first pitch and entered at shortstop to start the ninth.
“When I got the news it was about 12:30 at night so I was not really waiting for anything like that so it was a big surprise for me,” Hechavarria said through a translator. “I’ve got to thank God I’m here with a great team with a well-known history.”
RED SOX 6, WHITE SOX 1 Eduardo Rodriguez struck out 12 in 52/3 innings in his return from an ankle injury, leading Boston over host Chicago.
ASTROS 7, ANGELS 3 Tyler White hit a goahead two-run double in a five-run eighth inning, Alex Bregman homered and Houston beat visiting Los Angeles.
RAYS 5, INDIANS 3 Blake Snell moved into a tie for the major league lead with his 17th victory as Tampa Bay beat host Cleveland.
ROYALS 5, ORIOLES 4 Whit Merrifield hit a two-run home run with one out in the ninth inning, giving Kansas City a victory over visiting Baltimore.
RANGERS 7, TWINS 4 Adrian Beltre hit his 470th career home run after Nomar Mazara and Ronald Guzman went deep, helping host Texas beat Minnesota.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
METS 2, GIANTS 1 (11) Steven Matz struck out a career-high 11 batters and New York went on to beat host San Francisco in 11 innings.
CUBS 7, PHILLIES 1 Kyle Hendricks pitched six strong innings and Javier Baez notched his 99th RBI to lead visiting Chicago past Philadelphia.
BRAVES 5, PIRATES 3 Freddie Freeman hit a tiebreaking, RBI single in the four-run eighth inning, and Atlanta rallied to beat visiting Pittsburgh.
REDS 4, CARDINALS 0 Luis Castillo and two relievers combined on a two-hitter to lead Cincinnati to a victory over host St. Louis.
ROCKIES 4, PADRES 2 D.J. LeMahieu homered and Jon Gray pitched six solid innings as visiting Colorado beat San Diego. DODGERS 3, DIAMONDBACKS 2 Matt Kemp slugged a go-ahead, two-strike, three-run home run in the eighth, lifting host Los Angeles to a victory over Arizona.
INTERLEAGUE
MARLINS 6, BLUE JAYS 3 Martin Prado hit a bases-clearing double in his first game in three weeks, Wei-Yin Chen pitched eight strong innings and Miami beat visiting Toronto.