Alec Burleson hit a go-ahead RBI single in the top of the ninth as the visiting St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1 on Tuesday to give rookie sensation Paul Skenes his first career major league loss.
Nolan Arenado hit a solo home run for the Cardinals, who evened a three-game series at a victory apiece.
Skenes (6-1) allowed two runs on four hits in a career-high 8 1/3 innings. He struck out eight and didn’t issue a walk.
Cardinals starter Lance Lynn blanked the Pirates for five innings, giving up four hits and walking three. He fanned two and now has 2,000 strikeouts in his career. Ryan Fernandez (1-2) earned his first big-league victory and Ryan Helsley earned his 33rd save of the season for St. Louis.
Athletics 8, Astros 2
Lawrence Butler hit one of Oakland’s five home runs and finished a single shy of the cycle as the Athletics routed visiting Houston.
Brent Rooker, Seth Brown, Zack Gelof and Shea Langeliers also homered for Oakland, which has taken the first two games of a three-game set. Osvaldo Bido (2-1) limited the Astros to one run and four hits in five innings.
Jeremy Pena capped a three-hit night for the Astros with a homer in the ninth inning. Jake Bloss (0-1) served up five runs and six hits in four innings.
Phillies 3, Twins 0
Brandon Marsh hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly and Nick Castellanos followed with a two-run double in the top of the ninth inning, lifting Philadelphia to a win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Zack Wheeler fired seven scoreless innings for the Phillies, who evened a three-game series at one victory apiece. Gregory Soto (2-3) recorded one out and received the victory, and Matt Strahm pitched a perfect ninth for his first save of the season.
Simeon Woods Richardson tossed six shutout frames for the Twins. Jhoan Duran (5-5) gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning.
Guardians 5, Tigers 4
Jose Ramirez’s first homer in nearly a month put Cleveland ahead for good in the fifth, and his RBI single an inning later provided some much-needed insurance as the Guardians beat visiting Detroit.
Ramirez’s 24th home run of the season, a solo shot, was his first long ball since June 29, and it broke a 2-2 tie. He then capped a two-run sixth with a line-drive run-scoring single to right that put Cleveland ahead 5-2.
Steven Kwan and Jhonkensy Noel also homered and had two hits apiece while Emmanuel Clase recorded his 30th save of the season for the Guardians. Wenceel Perez hit a two-run homer for the Tigers.
Marlins 6, Orioles 3
Jesus Sanchez homered and Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Nick Gordon each drove in two runs as host Miami used early offense to beat Baltimore in the first game of a three-game series.
Five Miami pitchers combined on a nine-hitter, including two hitless innings from A.J. Puk (4-8). Neither team scored after the third inning.
Orioles starter Albert Suarez (5-4) lasted only two-plus innings. He was charged with six runs on eight hits. He left the game after taking a comebacker off his right foot. That happened one play after second baseman Jorge Mateo left with an injury after colliding with shortstop Gunnar Henderson on an infield single by Sanchez.
Padres 4, Nationals 0
Randy Vasquez and three relievers combined on a five-hit shutout and visiting San Diego beat Washington.
Luis Arraez and Jurickson Profar hit back-to-back home runs in the fifth for the Padres, who have won three straight. Vasquez (3-5) gave up four hits and did not walk a batter while striking out one in six-plus innings.
Washington starter DJ Herz (1-4) lasted five innings and gave up two runs on five hits. The Nationals went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and saw their three-game winning streak end.
Mets 3, Yankees 2
Jeff McNeil continued his fast start to the second half by hitting a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the sixth inning and the visiting Mets hung on for a victory over the Yankees.
The Mets improved to 3-0 in the season series with the Yankees. McNeil hit his fourth homer since the All-Star break when he connected against reliever Michael Tonkin (3-4).
Gleyber Torres homered in the second for the Yankees, who lost for the 21st time in 31 games since June 15. Aaron Judge drew four walks and the Yankees left 11 runners on base.
Rays 4, Blue Jays 2
Brandon Lowe hit a two-run home run and Tampa Bay defeated host Toronto in the opener of a three-game series.
The Rays took advantage of three stolen bases to improve to 3-2 on their seven-game road trip. Shawn Armstrong served as an opener for Tampa Bay and struck out four in two shutout innings. Tyler Alexander (3-3) took over in the third and pitched three scoreless innings.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Justin Turner hit solo homers for the Blue Jays, who are 1-3 to open a nine-game homestand. Toronto starter Jose Berrios (8-8) allowed three runs, three hits and six walks to go along with five strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.
Rangers 3, White Sox 2
Jon Gray allowed one run on four hits in 7 2/3 innings to lift Texas over reeling Chicago in Arlington, Texas.
Texas’ Josh Smith had an RBI double to bring in a big insurance run in the eighth inning. He also scored on a double steal with Adolis Garcia in the first. Garcia also had an RBI single for the Rangers, who have won three games in a row and 10 of their past 14.
Andrew Vaughn had a run-scoring single in the third inning for the White Sox, who mustered just five hits and went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position en route to their ninth straight loss. Andrew Benintendi homered.
Brewers 1, Cubs 0
Milwaukee starter Colin Rea and four relievers combined to blank host Chicago in the second game of a three-game set.
Following an 84-minute rain delay, Rea allowed four hits, struck out eight and walked two over five innings. Bryan Hudson and Elvis Peguero (6-3) followed with perfect innings before Jared Koenig worked into and out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth.
Trevor Megill gave up a single, but he stranded the tying run at second in the ninth to earn his 20th save in 22 opportunities. Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson each had two hits for Chicago, which won the series opener 3-1 on Monday night.
Diamondbacks 6, Royals 2
Ketel Marte homered and left-hander Jordan Montgomery returned from the injured list to log five strong innings as visiting Arizona beat Kansas City, evening a three-game series.
Activated from the 15-day IL for his first start since June 27 due to right knee inflammation, Montgomery (7-5) retired 14 of the last 16 batters he faced. He allowed one run on three hits and one walk while striking out two.
Bobby Witt Jr.’s double in the first inning drove in the Royals’ first run, and Salvador Perez added an RBI single in the ninth. Kansas City starter Alec Marsh (7-7) allowed five runs on five hits in five innings.
Red Sox 6, Rockies 0
Tyler O’Neill hit two home runs and had three RBIs, Rob Refsnyder added two hits and two RBIs and Boston beat Colorado in Denver.
Cooper Criswell pitched a career-high seven innings for the Red Sox, who snapped a four-game losing streak. Boston’s Rafael Devers, Romy Gonzalez and Masataka Yoshida also had two hits apiece, while O’Neill had the ninth multi-homer game of his career.
Charlie Blackmon had two hits for Colorado, which welcomed Kris Bryant back from the IL. Bryant had been on the IL with a left oblique strain since early June. He went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
Angels 5, Mariners 1
Jose Soriano pitched 7 2/3 strong innings as Los Angeles defeated host Seattle.
Luis Rengifo, making his return from the IL, hit a two-run single to cap a five-run fifth inning for the Angels, who won their third consecutive game. Soriano (6-7) allowed one run on three hits.
The injury-plagued Mariners — Julio Rodriguez and J.P. Crawford were placed on the 10-day IL on Tuesday — lost for the seventh time in eight games. Logan Gilbert (6-6) gave up five runs (one earned) in 6 2/3 innings.
Dodgers 5, Giants 2
Gavin Lux and Shohei Ohtani each hit a two-run double and Los Angeles continued its success against visiting San Francisco while remaining unbeaten since the All-Star break.
Ohtani finished with three RBIs, while rookie right-hander Landon Knack (2-2) gave up one run over five innings as the Dodgers won their fifth consecutive game.
Rookie Tyler Fitzgerald homered in a fifth consecutive game for the Giants. It is the longest home run streak by a San Francisco player since Barry Bonds had a seven-game run in 2004. Fitzgerald finished with two RBIs.
