MLB Roundup: Thorpe gets first major league win to lead White Sox over Tigers
DETROIT — Drew Thorpe pitched six scoreless innings and got his first major league win in his third start, pitching the Chicago White Sox over the Detroit Tigers 5-1 on Saturday.
Thorpe (1-1) allowed two hits and four walks while striking out five.
“This is me. I’m pretty even-keeled, super calm, relaxed,” said Thorpe, who was given a beer shower by his teammates. “That’s just how I’ve always been.”
The 23-year-old right-hander didn’t get a decision in his debut at Seattle on June 11, then lasted 3 1/3 innings in a 12-5 loss at Arizona on June 16.
CARDINALS 9, GIANTS 4.
ST. LOUIS— Alec Burleson had a career-high five RBIs with his first multi-homer game and St. Louis overcame a three-run, first-inning deficit to beat San Francisco and move back over .500.
Paul Goldschmidt and Brendan Donovan also homered for the Cardinals, who at 38-37 matched their season high of one game over .500. They were also 5-4 and 36-35.
Burleson hit a three-run homer in the fourth off Jordan Hicks for a 5-4 lead and a two-run drive against Sean Hjelle in the sixth, his 12th home run this season. The top three batters in the Cardinals’ order were 7 for 14 with three homers and eight RBIs.
Facing his original team for the first time, Hicks (4-4) allowed a career-high five earned runs, six hits and three walks in four innings. The 27-year-old right-hander was traded to Toronto last July 30, then became a free agent and signed a $44 million, four-year contract with the Giants.
San Francisco has lost four straight and six of seven.
CUBS 8, METS 1
CHICAGO — Jameson Taillon pitched seven crisp innings, Christopher Morel homered and Chicago cooled off New York with a victory.
Taillon struck out a season-high 10 in his first win since May 4. The right-hander allowed one run and six hits.
New York averaged 6.6 runs and 10.3 hits while going 12-3 in its previous 15 games, including an 11-1 victory in the series opener on Friday. But it was held in check by Taillon (4-3) and two relievers on a hot afternoon at Wrigley Field.
Francisco Alvarez homered for the second straight day for New York, and J.D. Martinez had two of the team’s seven hits. Tylor Megill (2-4) lasted just three innings in his worst start of the season.
The Cubs grabbed control with five runs in the first. Morel singled home Seiya Suzuki and scored on Dansby Swanson’s double. Pete Crow-Armstrong capped the fast start with a standup triple into the corner in right, driving in Swanson.
Morel made it 6-0 with a 446-foot drive to center in the third. It was Morel’s team-high 14th homer.
PIRATES 4, RAYS 3
PITTSBURGH — Jared Jones struck out eight, Oneil Cruz homered into the Allegheny River and Pittsburgh beat Tampa Bay Rays.
Jones (5-6) overcame some early control issues to allow two runs over seven solid innings to bounce back from a pair of recent shaky starts.
The 22-year-old right-hander hit Brandon Lowe and Amed Rosario in the first inning, catching Rosario’s helmet with a 99 mph fastball that forced the third baseman to exit with facial lacerations. Jones then settled down.
Aroldis Chapman gave up an RBI double to Yandy Díaz with two outs in the ninth but got Isaac Paredes to ground out and got his second save.
ASTROS 5, ORIOLES 1
HOUSTON — Ronel Blanco pitched seven strong innings and Chas McCormick homered twice to lead Houston to a win over Baltimore.
Yordan Alvarez added a two-run shot to help Houston extend its winning streak to four games.
Blanco (8-2), who threw seven hitless innings in his last start, allowed four hits and a run with three strikeouts for his third straight win.
Alvarez put the Astros on top with his 16th homer, which came off Corbin Burnes (8-3) in the third, and McCormick made it 4-1 in the fifth. McCormick got his fifth career multihomer game when he connected again in the eighth.
Burnes allowed five hits, including a season-high two homers and a season-most four runs in seven innings to snap his career-best streak of 10 consecutive quality starts. He was 5-0 in seven starts since a loss at Washington on May 7.
RANGERS 6, ROYALS 0
ARLINGTON, Texas — Jon Gray allowed two hits over five innings to rebound from his worst major league start and Wyatt Langford hit an eighth-inning grand slam that led Texas over Kansas City.
Gray (3-3) gave up back-to-back third-inning singles while throwing 51 of 72 pitches for strikes. He gave nine earned runs and 11 hits in three innings-plus last Monday in a 14-2 loss to the New York Mets.
Langford, a rookie who debuted on opening day, connected off Angel Zerpa for the Rangers’ first grand slam this season.
World Series champion Texas has won three straight following a five-game losing streak. Kansas City has lost 10 of 13, scoring 36 runs in those games.
GUARDIANS 6, BLUE JAYS 3
CLEVELAND — José Ramírez and Bo Naylor hit two-run homers and Steven Kwan added a solo shot while pushing his average back near .400, leading Cleveland to a win over Toronto.
All three homers came off José Berríos (6-6) as the AL Central-leading Guardians (48-26) moved 22 games over. 500 for the first time this season.
Rookie Daniel Schneemann also homered for Cleveland, which has 86 homers in 74 games after hitting just 48 at the same point a year ago.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa homered twice and Davis Schneider connected for Toronto, which lost its fifth game in a row.
PHILLIES 12, DIAMONDBACKS 1
PHILADELPHIA — Zack Wheeler allowed only one run and two hits in seven innings of work Saturday while Bryce Harper, Alec Bohm, Nick Castellanos and David Dahl all homered as Philadelphia cruised to a 1win over Arizona.
The win allowed the Phillies to be the first National League team to record 50 wins with a 50-26 record. The New York Yankees have 51 wins entering a Saturday night game against the Braves to lead the majors as the season’s halfway point approaches.
Castellanos had a season-high five RBIs and hit his second homer in as many days in the victory. Harper added three RBIs and hit his 18th of the season into the second deck in right field in the third inning during a 4-for-5 day at the plate. Bohm followed Harper’s shot with his eight of the second to left-center field.
The top five spots in the Phillies starting batting order — Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, Harper, Bohm and Castellanos — were a combined 10-for-19 with 10 runs scored and 10 RBIs on the afternoon as Philadelphia scored double figures in runs for a game for the fifth time this season. Most of the damage was done against Arizona starter Tommy Henry (2-3).
MARINERS 9, MARLINS 0
MIAMI — Logan Gilbert pitched eight scoreless innings for the second straight start and Seattle beat Miami.
Gilbert (5-4) scattered four hits, struck out six and was aided by three double-play grounders, lowering his ERA to 2.71. The 27-year-old right-hander walked one, ending a string of three straight outings without allowing a base on balls.
Dominic Canzone tied his career high of four hits with a homer and three singles, scoring three runs. Ryan Bliss doubled twice and singled for the Mariners, who stopped a three-game skid. Dylan Moore had two doubles among Seattle’s seven extra-base hits.
Canzone, Moore and Bliss, the bottom three in Seattle’s batting order, combined to go 9 for 14 with six runs and five RBIs.
Miami had won its previous three games, all walk-offs.
TWINS 10, ATHLETICS 2
OAKLAND, Calif. — Bailey Ober struck out 10 in a four-hitter for his first career complete game and Minnesota used a seven-run second inning to rout Oakland Athletics.
Ober (7-4) needed just 89 pitches to finish the game while tying a career high in strikeouts and walking none. He allowed two runs on solo homers by JJ Bleday and Tyler Soderstrom in the first two innings.
Manuel Margot hit a three-run homer in Minnesota’s big inning against JP Sears (4-7). Jose Miranda and Carlos Correa each had three hits for the Twins, who snapped a three-game skid.
The A’s had won three of four before Saturday’s defeat in front of an announced crowd of 9,299.
RED SOX 4, REDS 3
CINCINNATI — Rafael Devers drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning and Jarren Duran made a game-saving defensive play in the ninth as the Boston Red Sox rallied to beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-3 on Saturday.
Pinch-hitter Rob Refsnyder singled home the tying run before Duran tagged on Devers’ fly ball and slid home just ahead of left fielder Stuart Fairchild’s throw.
Kenley Jansen retired the Reds in the ninth for his 14th save in 15 chances. He got a huge assist from Duran, who leaped to get his glove above the centre field fence to rob Fairchild of a tying home run.
Jansen’s save was his 434th, and he moved ahead of Baltimore’s Craig Kimbrel into sole possession of fifth on the career list.
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