Athletics blank the Tigers, 4-0

DETROIT >> Brent Rooker homered, Paul Blackburn pitched six sparkling innings and the Oakland Athletics earned their second win of the season, beating the Detroit Tigers 4-0 on Saturday.

Zack Gelof walked and scored three times as Oakland (2-7) ended a four-game losing streak.

Detroit only got two runners to second base in the first seven innings. The Tigers are off to a 6-2 start, but their lineup has been shaky so far.

GUARDIANS 3 , TWINS 1 >> David Fry hit a three-run homer and seven Cleveland pitchers combined on a two-hitter, helping the Guardians beat the Minnesota Twins 3-1 on Saturday.

On a day when they lost ace Shane Bieber to seasonending elbow surgery, the Guardians showcased their pitching depth while improving to 7-2 this season.

Carlos Carrasco worked three innings of one-run ball. The 37-year-old righthander struck out six and walked three before he was pulled after 78 pitches.

Nick Sandlin (2-0), Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, Scott Barlow, Tyler Beede and Emmanuel Clase combined to blank Minnesota over the final six innings. Clase worked the ninth for his fourth save. DODGERS 4, CUBS 1 >> Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched out of two early jams in five scoreless innings for his first career major league victory, Max Muncy hit a two-run single and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs 4-1 on Saturday.

Shohei Ohtani had two hits and reached base three times to help the Dodgers improve to 8-3 with their fifth victory in six games.

There was a standingroom-only crowd to see the Cubs play Ohtani and the Dodgers on a cool, sunny, late afternoon game.

Cody Bellinger had two of the five Chicago hits against his former team as the Cubs had their five-game winning streak snapped.

Yamamoto (1-1) pitched out of a no-outs, basesloaded jam in the first inning. After allowing a leadoff double to Ian Happ, a walk to Seiya Suzuki, and an infield single to Cody Bellinger. Yamamoto bounced back by striking out the side. He struck out Christopher Morel on three straight curveballs, got Swanson looking on a fastball and Busch looking with a curve on his 27th pitch. In the second inning, he got out of another bases-loaded jam after Max Muncy couldn’t handle Suzuki’s ball at third with two outs. Yamamoto froze Bellinger with a curveball to end the inning.

REDS 9, METS 6 >> Spencer Steer hit a three-run homer during Cincinnati’s five-run eighth inning, helping the Reds knock off the New York Mets 9-6 on Saturday.

Cincinnati trailed 5-4 before Elly De La Cruz singled home pinch-runner Bubba Thompson. Steer followed with a drive to left-center against Yohan Ramírez (01) for his third homer of the season.

The Reds sent 10 batters to the plate in the eighth. Ramírez threw 53 pitches in two innings.

The Mets used four relievers in Friday’s win, and they were without Edwin Díaz after the closer pitched each of the previous two days.

Omar Narváez had three hits and two RBIs for New York, which had won two in a row after losing its first five games of the season. Brandon Nimmo had two hits and drove in two runs. PHILLIES 5, NATIONALS 2 >> J.T. Realmuto followed an intentional walk to Bryce Harper by driving a hanging curveball over the wall for a threerun homer, helping the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Washington Nationals 5-2 on Saturday.

Phillies starter Ranger Suárez (1-0) allowed two runs and four hits in six innings. José Alvarado, Philadelphia’s fourth pitcher, threw the ninth for his second save in two chances this season.

Realmuto, who singled and scored on Alec Bohm’s triple in the first, took advantage of a poor 0-2 pitch by Jake Irvin (0-1) to give the Phillies a 4-0 lead in the third inning. Trea Turner got things going with a two-out double, before two-time NL MVP Harper was put aboard.

As Realmuto circled the bases, Irvin bowed his head and put his hands on his hips. Irvin wound up going six innings, giving up four runs and five hits, along with just one of the Nationals’ three walks — a day after the team’s pitchers issued nine free passes.

CARDINALS 3, MARLINS 1 LOUIS >> The winless Miami Marlins, who are off to the worst start in the 33-year history of the franchise, dropped their ninth consecutive game on Saturday, losing 3-1 to Steve Matz and the St. Louis Cardinals.

Iván Herrera and Brendan Donovan each had two hits for St. Louis. Jordan Walker contributed an RBI double.

Matz (2-0) surrendered four hits in five scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley pitched the ninth for his third save.

MARINERS 5, BREWERS 3 >> Jorge Polanco and Luis Urias homered, helping Bryce Miller and the Seattle Mariners beat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-3 on Saturday night.

Miller (1-1) struck out seven in seven shutout innings. The right-hander allowed three hits and walked one, bouncing back nicely after he struggled in his first start of the season against the Red Sox.

Milwaukee scored three runs in the eighth on Jackson Chourio’s two-run homer and a pinch-hit sacrifice fly by Rhys Hoskins. But Trent Thornton escaped the jam when pinch-hitter Joey Ortiz bounced into a fielder’s choice.

PIRATES 5, ORIOLES 4 >> Oneil Cruz singled home the winning run in the 11th inning to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 5-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday.

Cruz drove in automatic runner Henry Davis from second base. Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins temporarily kept the game tied when he made a diving catch of Ke’Bryan Hayes’ line drive, but Cruz followed with a single to right off Jonathan Heasley (0-1).

Josh Fleming (1-0) retired the side in order in the top of the 10th. Joey Bart homered in his first at-bat with the Pirates, and starter Bailey Falter pitched six shutout innings.

RANGERS 7, ASTROS 2 >> Marcus Semien hit a tiebreaking single, six Texas relievers limited Houston to three hits over 5 1/3 innings, and the Rangers overcame Corey Seager’s two-run error to beat the Astros 7-2 on Saturday night.

Seager was one of five consecutive Rangers with hits off Houston closer Ryan Pressly as the World Series champs broke open a close game with a four-run eighth.

The Rangers beat the Astros at home for a second night in a row after losing all three games at Globe Life Field while still winning last year’s seven-game AL Championship Series between the Texas rivals.

ROYALS 3, WHITE SOX 0 >> Michael Wacha threw seven innings of two-hit ball and MJ Melendez launched a tworun homer as the Kansas City Royals beat the slumping Chicago White Sox 3-0 on Saturday night.

Wacha (1-0) struck out eight, walked one and allowed just one runner past first base. Royals pitchers have eight quality starts, most in the majors.

BRAVES 9, DIAMONDBACK 8 >> Austin Riley had three hits, the last an eighth-inning single that drove in the goahead run, and the Atlanta Braves overcame a six-run, first-inning deficit to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 9-8 on Saturday night.

The Diamondbacks failed to hold a 6-0 lead after they blew a 5-2 advantage in Atlanta’s 6-5 win in 10 innings Friday night.

Jarred Kelenic, who had three hits, led off the eighth with a double off Luis Frias (0-1) before scoring on a single to right field by Ronald Acuña Jr. to tie it at 8. Acuña moved to second on right fielder Jake McCarthy’s throwing error and scored on Riley’s single to give Atlanta the lead.