Cardinals beat Brewers 7- 3
ST. LOUIS — St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina received two awards for his defense before Saturday’s game with the Milwaukee Brewers. It was his offense that stole the show.
Molina went 4- for- 4 with a two- run homer to lead the Cardinals to a 7- 3 win over Milwaukee. Molina has 10 four- hit games in his career, the last coming on May 22, 2011, against Kansas City.
But Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said Molina still knows what is most important.
“I know where he stacks his priorities,” Matheny said. “His first responsibility is taking care of his pitching staff and doing what he needs to behind the plate. It’s almost like a separate personality when he grabs the bat. It’s two different games for him.”
The multi- hit game was the eighth for Molina this season. His home run to left field with one out in the sixth off Milwaukee starter Marco Estrada ( 0- 1) broke a 3- 3 tie and earned him a curtain call.
“It’s nice,” Molina said. “When you got the best fans in baseball screaming your name it makes you feel good.”
Cardinals starter Kyle Lohse , who entered the game with a 0.99 ERA, tripled his walk total for the season by allowing four base on balls. He gave up six hits and three runs while striking out five.
He is 4- 0 for the first time and the Cardinals have won three straight to extend their lead over the Brewers to five games in the NL Central.
“It was one of those struggles. I didn’t have the command I’ve had,” Lohse said. “I made pitches when I had to, but I wasn’t quite as sharp as I’ve been.”
Cardinals third baseman David Freese celebrated his 29th birthday with a solo home run. Freese has a hit in 15 of the 17 games he’s started and has driven in 20 runs.
Jon Jay had three hits, including an RBI single, and a stolen base for the Cardinals.
Reds 6, Astros 0
CINCINNATI — Jay Bruce homered for the third consecutive game and drove in four runs to back Johnny Cueto’s seven scoreless innings as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 6- 0.
Bruce had a two- run double and Brandon Phillips added two hits for the Reds.
Cueto ( 3- 0) wasn’t dominant, allowing five hits and a walk while hitting a batter and striking out threes, but he was able to slow an Astros team that hit .301 over the first four games of their six- game road trip. Logan Ondrusek pitched a perfect eighth inning and Aroldis Chapman allowed two walks and a hit to load the bases in the ninth before striking out Chris Snyder.
Houston center fielder Jordan Shafer singled in the fifth to extend to 21 his streak of consecutive games reaching base to start the season, the longest by an Astro since Ricky Gutierrez had a 23- game streak in 1998. The club record is 25 by Denis Menke in 1969.
The Reds roughed up Houston starter Lucas Harrell ( 1- 2), who allowed nine hits and six runs — five earned — in six innings.
Tigers 7, Yankees 5
NEW YORK — Drew Smyly pitched into the seventh inning for his first major league win, and Miguel Cabrera homered and drove in three runs and to help the Detroit Tigers snap a five- game losing streak by beating the New York Yankees 7- 5.
Smyly ( 1- 0), a 2010 secondround pick from Arkansas, gave up a leadoff single to Alex Rodriguez in the seventh and manager Jim Leyland pulled him for lefty Phil Coke rather than have him face the rest of the Yankees lineup a third time. Coke got Mark Teixeira to hit into a 1- 6- 3 double play. Smyly allowed two hits and two walks in six- plus innings. He struck out seven.
Andy Dirks hit a three- run homer in the first off Freddy Garcia. Playing Delmon Young's usual position in left field, Dirks also made a pair of nice defensive plays.
Young was placed on the restricted list earlier Saturday to be evaluated under baseball's employee assistance program. He was arrested early Friday on a hate crime harassment charge following an encounter at his hotel during which police say he yelled anti- Semitic epithets and appeared intoxicated.
Cabrera answered Curtis Granderson's solo homer in the seventh with one of his own in the eighth.
Angels 2, Indians 1
CLEVELAND — Dan Haren pitched eight strong innings for Los Angeles and Albert Pujols remained homerless as the Angels defeated the Cleveland Indians 2- 1.
Torii Hunter hit a solo homer for Los Angeles, which snapped a five- game losing streak after a cold drizzle delayed the start of the game 147 minutes.
Haren ( 1- 1) made the lead stand up. The right- hander allowed four hits and struck out seven.
Jack Hannahan's two- out RBI single got Cleveland within 2- 1 in the fourth. Scott Downs worked a perfect ninth for his first save.