Taylor powers Nationals to win as visitors in own park vs. Jays
Michael A. Taylor’s second homer of the season helped the “visiting” Nationals knock around struggling Hyun-Jin Ryu and beat the home-awayfrom-home Toronto Blue Jays 6-4 Thursday before both teams head into a coronavirus-caused “mini All-Star break,” as Washington manager Dave Martinez called it.
Kurt Suzuki delivered a two-run double and Asdrubal Cabrera added an RBI double off Ryu (0-1), who gave up Taylor’s tworun shot to straightaway center that he celebrated with a socially distanced dugout dance in the fourth. Taylor is now 2 for 14 this season, a .143 average, but both hits cleared the fences.
Ryu’s ERA is 8.00 after he allowed five runs and nine hits in 41 ⁄3 innings, his second start under an $80 million, four-year deal Toronto gave him after he was second in NL Cy Young Award voting for the Dodgers in 2019.
Erick Fedde, making his second start in place of a sidelined Stephen Strasburg, gave up two runs in 31⁄3 innings. Ryne Harper (1-0) followed and got five outs for the win. Daniel Hudson pitched the ninth to earn his first save of the year.
Nationals rookie third baseman Carter Kieboom reached base four times — two singles, two walks — and scored twice.
Technically, the Blue
Jays were the “home” team for the last two games; they are barred from their Toronto stadium in 2020 and waiting for a Triple A ballpark in Buffalo to be readied for major league action.
Home plate umpire Joe West left in the bottom of the first inning after getting bloodied when he was hit in the head by Bo Bichette’s flying bat.
Braves 2, Rays 1: Max Fried retired the first 14 batters he faced, recorded seven strikeouts and allowed just three hits over 62⁄3 innings for host Atlanta.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Indians 2, Twins 0: Shane Bieber blanked Minnesota for eight innings on three hits while striking out 13 and walking none.
Royals 5, Tigers 3: Alex Gordon and Adalberto Mondesi each had three hits to lead Kansas City on the road.
PHILLIES ON HOLD AGAIN
MLB had to shuffle its schedule yet again Thursday, postponing the Philadelphia Phillies’ scheduled games for this weekend after a coach and a clubhouse attendant received positive test results for the coronavirus.
The Phillies had been scheduled to play a doubleheader with the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday in Philadelphia and another game Sunday, but the positive tests caused the team to shut down their stadium, Citizens Bank Park, for baseball activity.
ELSEWHERE
Doubling down: Dubleheaders will now become a pair of seven-inning games, baseball’s latest radical rule change during a season reshaped by the coronavirus pandemic. MLB and the players’ union reached agreement on the new twinbills, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.
Brewers: Two-time defending NL batting champion Christian Yelich has a long way to go if he wants a three-peat. The Milwaukee star is 1 for 27 to start the season, an .037 average that’s worst among qualified hitters. Yelich also has struck out 12 times going into the series opener at home against Jack Flaherty and the Cardinals.
Cubs: Circumstances surrounding Thursday’s rainout in Cincinnati didn’t sit well with with Cubs slugger Anthony Rizzo, who in a tweet expressed his displeasure with the delay during the coronavirus pandemic. “Player safety? @mlb let’s sit around for 8 plus hours inside the clubhouse. I’m sure I can find that somewhere in the 113 page safety protocol,” Rizzo wrote.
Rangers: Texas will be minus closer Jose Leclerc for most of the virus-shortened season because of a shoulder injury similar to the one that’s sidelined starter Corey Kluber. Leclerc’s muscle tear in his right shoulder is not as severe as Kluber’s, but he will have the same injection and be out the same four weeks before any plan for throwing is considered.