TORONTO – Masahiro Tanaka kept the Toronto Blue Jays off-balance with a three-hit, eight-inning performance on Sunday, helping the New York Yankees snap a two-game losing streak with a 1-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.
Tanaka (8-6) fell three outs short of a complete game shutout as Aroldis Chapman finished the game, though the Yankees closer needed 13 pitches and seven foul balls to retire Blue Jays rookie Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the first of three batters he faced in the ninth.
Tanaka allowed the first batter he faced, Bo Bichette, to reach on an infield single, but he did not permit another hit through seven innings. The second hit he yielded was a single to Justin Smoak in the eighth.
“It was good I was able to get strikes on different pitches,” said Tanaka, who struck out four and walked none in a 94-pitch effort.
“As far as pitching command goes, I would say I was throwing with accuracy today. I was focused facing every batter.”
The Japanese right-hander was entrusted to begin the ninth, but he was relieved by Chapman after Brandon Dury led off with a clean single to left field.
Gio Urshela and Brett Gardner hit back-to-back doubles off Trent Thornton (4-8) in the fifth to produce the only run of the game.
Angels 5, Red Sox 4
In Boston, Anthony Bemboom hit a go-ahead single in the 10th inning after Kole Calhoun’s solo homer tied it in the eighth, leading the Angels to a split of the four-game series.
Shohei Ohtani had three hits with a two-run single for Los Angeles, which won for only the second time in 10 games. The Angels halted an eight-game losing streak Saturday. Hansel Robles (4-0) got four outs for the victory.
Christian Vázquez hit a two-run homer for Boston, which rallied from an early 3-0 hole.
Bemboom, recalled earlier in the day, hit his single off Ryan Weber (1-2).
Indians 7, Twins 3
In Minneapolis, Carlos Santana hit a grand slam in the 10th inning, and the Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins 7-3 on Sunday to win the four-game series and forge another tie for the AL Central lead.
The Twins tied the game with four hits in a two-run ninth against Brad Hand (5-3), using a single by Luis Arraez and a double by Marwin Gonzalez to extend the game.
As pinch-runner Ehire Adrianza tried to score the winning run from first base, left fielder Tyler Naquin grabbed the ball off the bounce from the wall and zipped a throw to shortstop Francisco Lindor, whose relay home was in perfect position for catcher Kevin Plawecki to tag Adrianza with ease.
Twins closer Taylor Rogers (2-3) allowed a single, a walk and another single on a bunt by Greg Allen to load the bases with none out for Santana, who quickly erased the late-inning drama with one big swing.
The Twins and Indians play six more times, all in September.
Orioles 8, Astros 7
In Baltimore, Rio Ruiz hit a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning, and the Orioles stopped the Astros’ eight-game win streak.
Houston scored three runs in the top of the ninth to go up 7-5 before the Orioles answered in the bottom half against Roberto Osuna (3-3). After Chris Davis hit a sacrifice fly, Chance Sisco was at first base when Ruiz launched a 2-2 pitch over the right-field wall.
Coming off a 23-2 defeat less than 24 hours earlier, Baltimore took the lead in the fifth against 2011 Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander, blew the advantage and then mounted an improbable rally to end a five-game skid.
Richard Bleier (3-0) got three outs for the win.
Nationals 7, Mets 4
In New York, Asdrubal Cabrera hit a tiebreaking two-run double against his former team, and the Nationals stopped the Mets’ eight-game win streak.
Nationals star Juan Soto was injured on Cabrera’s bases-loaded hit in the seventh inning. Soto went from first to third but sprained his right ankle after getting a late stop sign from third base coach Bob Henley. The team said he is day to day after X-rays were negative.
Victor Robles replaced Soto and homered off Edwin Díaz in the ninth.
Sean Doolittle pitched a perfect ninth for his 26th save two nights after blowing a three-run lead in the final inning. The Nats bullpen had blown five consecutive save chances at Citi Field prior to Sunday.
The Mets dropped 1½ games behind Washington for the top NL wild card.
Jeff McNeil had two hits and two RBIs, and Robert Gsellman (2-3) got the loss.
Dodgers 9, Diamondbacks 3
In Los Angeles, Justin Turner hit two of Los Angeles’ four homers and Hyun-Jin Ryu pitched seven scoreless innings of five-hit ball.
Turner and Cody Bellinger hit back-to-back homers in the first inning as the Dodgers finished 8-2 on a 10-game homestand.
Ryu (12-2) made a seamless return from a 10-day stint on the injured list with minor neck stiffness. The majors’ ERA leader didn’t give up a hit until the fourth inning, and he pitched out of jams in the fifth and sixth while lowering his ERA to 1.45.
Eduardo Escobar and Nick Ahmed homered for Arizona. Mike Leake (9-9) was charged with eight runs in five innings.
Cubs 6, Reds 3
In Cincinnati, Kris Bryant capped Chicago’s four-run seventh with a three-run homer, and the Cubs topped the Reds for a split of their four-game series.
Ian Happ added a solo drive in the eighth as the NL Central leaders recovered after falling behind 3-0 in the fifth. David Phelps (1-0) pitched a perfect sixth for the win, and Pedro Strop got three outs for his 10th save.
Bryant, Happ, Jason Heyward and Nicholas Castellanos each had two hits for the Cubs, who lost 10-1 on Saturday.
Eugenio Suaréz homered for the third straight game and rookie sensation Aristides Aquino had a run-scoring single, but Cincinnati’s bullpen faltered after All-Star Luis Castillo was pulled in the seventh. Michael Lorenzen (0-3) got the loss.
Braves 5, Marlins 4
In Miami, Ronald Acuña Jr. hit his 33rd homer and sixth in as many games, helping Atlanta get the win.
Ender Inciarte hit a three-run shot for the NL East-leading Braves. Mike Foltynewicz (4-5), making his second start since being recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett, allowed four runs in six innings.
Luke Jackson pitched a scoreless ninth despite allowing three hits, earning his 18th save in 25 chances.
The Braves split the four-games series and finished the year 8-2 at Marlins Park.
Miami’s Héctor Noesí (0-2) allowed five runs in six innings in his second start of the season and remained winless since 2014.
Rangers 1, Brewers 0
In Milkwaukee, Mike Minor struck out 11 in eight innings, and Texas avoided a series sweep.
Minor (11-6) allowed four hits and walked one. José Leclerc finished the four-hitter for his eighth save, securing Texas’ second win in in six games.
Milwaukee star Christian Yelich missed his fifth straight start due to back stiffness, but the reigning NL MVP batted for reliever Alex Claudio in the eighth. The sold-out crowd of 44,411 greeted Yelich with M-V-P chants but the slugger struck out.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s sacrifice fly off Jordan Lyles (7-8) in the seventh accounted for the game’s only run.
Milwaukee had won five in a row. The Brewers dropped 2½ games back of NL Central-leading Chicago, which rallied for a win at Cincinnati.
Cardinals 11, Pirates 9
In St. Louis, Lane Thomas hit a go-ahead grand slam for St. Louis in the seventh inning.
Paul Goldschmidt and Dexter Fowler also homered as the Cardinals rallied from an 8-4 deficit to sweep the three-game series and move into second in the NL Central, two games behind the Cubs.
John Gant (8-0) tossed a scoreless seventh for the win. Andrew Miller earned his fourth save in six tries.
Josh Bell had two homers and four RBIs for Pittsburgh, which has lost eight straight. Pablo Reyes added a solo shot in the ninth.
Kyle Crick (3-7) got the loss.
Rays 1, Mariners 0
In Seattle, Tampa Bay’s Ryan Yarbrough came within an out of his first career shutout, and Eric Sogard homered.
Yarbrough (11-3) retired his final 14 batters and struck out eight while throwing 8 2/3 innings of three-hit ball. He was replaced after 99 pitches by Emilio Pagan, who retired pinch-hitter Omar Narváez for his third save of the series and 12th overall.
Tampa Bay has won 10 of 12 to remain in position for the second AL wild card.
Sogard hit his 13th homer in the fourth against Wade LeBlanc (6-6).
Athletics 2, White Sox 0
In Chicago, Chris Bassitt threw seven sharp innings and Matt Olson homered, leading Oakland to the victory.
Bassitt (8-5) permitted four hits, struck out seven and walked two. Liam Hendriks struck out two in the ninth for his 12th save in 17 opportunities.
Chicago right-hander Lucas Giolito (12-6) struck out a career-high 13 in six innings. The All-Star allowed two runs and five hits.
The White Sox had won five of seven.
The A’s went 3-3 during their week in Chicago, dropping two of three against the Cubs before splitting their first two on the South Side. Oakland won the season series against the White Sox 5-1.
Rockies 8, Padres 3
In San Diego, Yonder Alonso hit his 100th career homer during Colorado’s four-run sixth inning, and the Rockies snapped a five-game losing streak.
The Rockies won for just the seventh time in 26 games. They are 13-31 since June 21.
Colorado’s German Márquez (11-5) permitted three runs and five hits in eight innings. He also hit an RBI single in the sixth.
Francisco Mejía homered in the second for San Diego, and rookie Josh Naylor connected in the third. Craig Stammen (6-6) got the loss.
Padres rookie Fernando Tatis Jr. went 0 for 4 to end his 14-game hitting streak.
Royals 10, Tigers 2
In Detroit, Hunter Dozier and Jorge Soler each homered twice, and Kansas City earned a split of the four-game series between the worst teams in the AL Central.
It was Dozier’s third career multihomer game, all of which have come on the current road trip. Soler went deep four times in the final three games of the series, and Whit Merrifield led off the game with a home run for the second time in three days.
The Royals won their second in a row after losing six of seven. Last-place Detroit fell to 7-23 since the All-Star break.
Jakob Junis (8-10) improved to 7-1 against the Tigers, allowing two runs and six hits in six innings. Daniel Norris (3-10) allowed three homers in three innings, leaving the Tigers down 4-2.
Giants 9, Phillies 6
In San Francisco, Kevin Pillar hit a tiebreaking triple that scored Evan Longoria with two out in the bottom of the eighth inning, closer Will Smith followed with a two-run single in his first career at-bat and San Francisco rallied to beat Philadelphia.
Scooter Gennett homered into McCovey Cove and Mike Yastrzemski also went deep to help the Giants take three of four from the Phillies. Longoria had three hits and Pillar had two.
César Hernández had three hits and two RBIs for Philadelphia. Bryce Harper drove in a pair of runs.
Longoria singled leading off the eighth against José Alvarez (3-3) and went to second on a wild pitch with two outs. Pillar, who had an RBI single in the third, followed with a drive into the gap in right-center off Nick Pivetta.
After Brandon Crawford was intentionally walked and stole second, Smith blooped a 3-1 pitch into right field to score Pillar and Crawford as the crowd at Oracle Park roared.
Smith (4-0) retired five batters and earned the win.
Source : Baseball – The Japan Times
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