Rookie Paul Skenes was at it again for the Pittsburgh Pirates, tossing six strong innings in a 4-1 win over the visiting Cincinnati Reds on Monday to open a three-game series.
Skenes (4-0) allowed one run on six hits with one walk and seven strikeouts. Aroldis Chapman and Colin Holderman each pitched a scoreless inning before David Bednar retired the Reds in order in the ninth for his 15th save.
Elly De La Cruz had three hits and stole his major-league-leading 37th base for Cincinnati, which entered the game tied with the Pirates for third place in the National League Central. The Reds have lost three straight and five of their last seven.
Skenes, the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, has allowed three earned runs or fewer in all seven of his starts for Pittsburgh, which has won three of its last four games.
Mets 14, Rangers 2
Brandon Nimmo homered and had four RBIs, DJ Stewart smacked a three-run shot and New York steamrolled host Texas in Arlington, Texas.
Francisco Lindor went 4-for-4 with three runs and two RBIs, and Pete Alonso and Francisco Alvarez both had three hits and two RBIs as New York won its sixth straight game to match a season best. The Mets’ 22 hits were their most since the team had 23 against the Atlanta Braves on Aug. 15, 2019.
David Peterson (3-0) allowed two runs and four hits over six innings for New York. He struck out six and walked three. Texas starter Jon Gray (2-3) was clobbered for nine runs and 11 hits in three-plus innings. He struck out two and walked none as the Rangers lost for the ninth time in their last 13 games.
Cardinals 7, Marlins 6 (12 innings)
Masyn Winn slugged a two-run homer in the top of the 12th inning to propel St. Louis past host Miami.
Miami scored once in the bottom of the 12th on Nick Gordon’s RBI triple, but he was thrown out at home on an attempted sacrifice fly to medium right field. The Cardinals blew three leads — 1-0, 4-1 and 5-4 — before finally hanging the loss on reliever A.J. Puk (0-8), who allowed Winn’s homer.
St. Louis also got a solo homer and a stellar catch by center fielder Michael Siani and two-run triple by Ivan Herrera. Andrew Kittredge (1-3) blew the save in the 11th but got the win. Marlins designated hitter Bryan De La Cruz ultimately forced extras with a three-run homer that tied the score 4-4 in the eighth inning.
Angels 5, Brewers 3
Zach Plesac threw six effective innings in a spot start as Los Angeles knocked off Milwaukee in Anaheim, Calif.
The Angels scratched starter Jose Soriano because of abdominal pain and turned to Plesac, who arrived earlier in the day and was expecting to serve in the bullpen. He gave up three runs on four hits and two walks in six innings, striking out one and making 86 pitches. Carlos Estevez pitched the ninth for his 13th save.
Zach Neto hit a two-run homer for the Angels. Jake Bauers and Brice Turang homered for Milwaukee, and Carlos Rodriguez (0-2), in his second major league start, surrendered five runs (four earned) in 4 2/3 innings.
Phillies 9, Padres 2
Kyle Schwarber hit a pair of two-run homers and Alec Bohm launched a three-run shot among his three hits to lift host Philadelphia over San Diego.
Rafael Marchan added four hits and two RBIs for the Phillies, who hammered out 18 hits. Philadelphia starter Cristopher Sanchez (4-3) tossed seven innings and gave up six hits and two runs (one earned) with five strikeouts and one walk.
Manny Machado had two hits for struggling San Diego, which has dropped four in a row. Padres starter Randy Vasquez (1-4) allowed 12 hits and six runs with two strikeouts and two walks in 4 1/3 innings.
Red Sox 7, Blue Jays 3
Tyler O’Neill led a four-homer barrage with two solo shots and Nick Pivetta pitched seven innings as Boston won at Toronto.
Rafael Devers and Ceddanne Rafaela also stroked solo homers for the Red Sox, who won for the fifth time in six games. Pivetta (4-4) allowed three runs on nine hits.
Blue Jays starter Yusei Kikuchi (4-6) gave up five runs and seven hits in four innings. Toronto’s Justin Turner and Davis Schneider hit solo homers.
Braves 2, Tigers 1
Ozzie Albies crushed a solo home run in the eighth inning to break a tie and propel Atlanta past visiting Detroit in the opener of the three-game series.
With two outs, Albies hammered a fastball from Shelby Miller (4-5) into the right field stands. The homer, his fifth, was measured at 407 feet and ended Albies’ 0-for-15 drought. It was Atlanta’s 10th in the last four games. The Braves have won four of their last five.
The winning pitcher was Daysbel Hernandez (1-0), who was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett earlier in the day. With closer Raisel Iglesias unavailable, set-up man Joe Jimenez worked a scoreless ninth inning and earned his first save.
Giants 7, Cubs 6
Thairo Estrada hit a three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning to lift San Francisco over host Chicago to begin their three-game set.
Giants closer Hector Neris (6-2) started the ninth with a 6-4 lead but batters reached on catcher’s interference and a walk with one out. Estrada then hit the first pitch over the fence in left-center field. Camilo Doval pitched the ninth for his 13th save. Heliot Ramos and Patrick Bailey also homered for the Giants, who had dropped two of three.
Ian Happ hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning off eventual winning pitcher Erik Miller (2-2), and Michael Busch had a two-run blast for the Cubs, who have lost four of five.
Dodgers 9, Rockies 5
Shohei Ohtani had three hits and scored twice, Freddie Freeman tied a franchise record with five walks, and Los Angeles beat Colorado in Denver.
Jason Heyward and Miguel Rojas also had three hits for the Dodgers. James Paxton (7-1) allowed one run on two hits while striking out a season-high eight in a season-best seven innings.
Greg Jones homered with two outs in the ninth for his first career hit, and Jacob Stallings and Hunter Goodman also went deep for the Rockies. Cal Quantrill (6-5) gave up three runs in five innings.
