Yordan Alvarez and Jose Altuve slugged solo home runs, and Jeremy Pena singled in two runs as Dusty Baker earned his 2,000th managerial win in the Houston Astros’ 4-0 victory over the visiting Seattle Mariners on Tuesday.
Baker is the 12th manager in the majors to reach the plateau, and 10 of the previous 11 are in the Hall of Fame. Bruce Bochy, who has 2,003 wins, is not yet eligible. Baker improved to 2,000-1,745 overall and 137-109 in two-plus seasons with the Astros.
Alvarez snapped a scoreless tie with a solo homer in the fourth inning for a second consecutive night, this time taking Mariners right-hander Chris Flexen (1-4) out 435 feet to straightaway center field. Alvarez, who went 1-for-3 with two runs scored, has hit five homers over his last nine games. He has seven for the season.
Flexen limited the Astros to just that run while allowing two hits and three walks over five innings.
Dodgers 3, Giants 1
Julio Urias went six scoreless innings and Chris Taylor hit a two-run single as Los Angeles got the best of visiting San Francisco in the first game of the season between the National League West rivals.
Craig Kimbrel recorded his fifth save in five chances as the Dodgers improved to 3-1 on a brief five-game homestand that ends with another meeting against the Giants on Wednesday.
Carlos Rodon gave up just three hits in six innings but lost his first game in a Giants uniform in his fifth start. Thairo Estrada and Austin Slater each had two hits for San Francisco, which lost for the fourth time in its past five games.
Rays 10, Athletics 7 (10 innings)
Mike Zunino’s pinch-hit two-run homer in the ninth inning set up Yandy Diaz’s go-ahead double in the 10th to lift visiting Tampa Bay over Oakland.
Tampa Bay added four more runs in the 10th: a two-run single by Isaac Paredes, Manuel Margot’s triple to center and Zunino’s single. The Rays won their second straight while sending the A’s to their fifth loss in a row.
The A’s tried to rally in the bottom of the 10th off reliever Jason Adam, cutting the deficit to 10-7 on an RBI double by Sheldon Neuse (3-for-5) and a run-scoring single by Sean Murphy.
Nationals 10, Rockies 2
Josh Bell smacked a three-run homer and Juan Soto launched a solo shot as Washington routed Colorado in Denver.
Keibert Ruiz had three hits and three RBIs and Yadiel Hernandez had three hits and drove in two as Washington won for the third time in four games. Bell also had three hits and Maikel Franco and Alcides Escobar added two apiece as Washington racked up 16.
C.J. Cron slugged his National League-leading ninth homer of the season for the Rockies. Cron went 3-for-3 with a walk, but Colorado had its three-game winning streak halted.
Brewers 6, Reds 3
Willy Adames belted a three-run homer and Brandon Woodruff pitched effectively into the sixth inning to lift Brewers over struggling Cincinnati.
Cincinnati, off to its worst start in franchise history at 3-20, has lost 18 of its last 19 games, including seven straight.
Woodruff (3-1) allowed three runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings to win his third straight decision. He matched his career high with 12 strikeouts and walked none.
White Sox 3, Cubs 1
Tim Anderson homered and six Chicago White Sox pitchers combined on a six-hitter with 12 strikeouts to beat the host Chicago Cubs.
Starter Michael Kopech recorded five of those strikeouts, and he overcame four hits and two walks to keep the Cubs scoreless while pitching into the fifth inning with a 3-0 lead on a rainy and windy night on Chicago’s North Side. Reynaldo Lopez (3-0), Jose Ruiz, Aaron Bummer, Matt Foster and Liam Hendricks then finished off Chicago’s fourth straight victory at Wrigley Field, where the White Sox have taken eight of 10.
Anderson extended his hitting streak to five games with his solo shot in the third, and Jake Burger had two hits with an RBI for the White Sox, who have won back-to-back games for the first time since April 15-16.
Yankees 9, Blue Jays 1
Aaron Judge hit a solo home run and finished with three RBIs as New York won for the 11th straight time, beating host Toronto.
Giancarlo Stanton added a two-run home run for the Yankees, who scored six runs in the seventh inning. New York starter Jameson Taillon (2-1) surrendered one run, five hits and no walks in six innings. He struck out four.
Toronto starter Alek Manoah allowed one run, three hits and one walk while striking out seven in six innings. The back-to-back losses mean the Blue Jays have lost their first series of the season. They were 6-0-1 in their previous seven series. The split was in a four-game series with the Yankees.
Mets 5, Braves 4 (Game 1)
Pete Alonso had a pair of RBI singles for host New York, which never trailed en route to beating Atlanta in the opener of a doubleheader.
Travis Jankowski had two hits and a stolen base, while David Peterson (1-0) allowed four hits and three walks while striking out six in five innings.
Matt Olson hit a three-run homer in the fifth for the Braves. Charlie Morton (1-3) recovered from a slow start to throw 5 2/3 innings, allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts.
Mets 3, Braves 0 (Game 2)
Carlos Carrasco became the first New York pitcher in more than nine months to complete eight innings in finishing off a doubleheader sweep of visiting Atlanta.
Pete Alonso homered for the final run in the nightcap after delivering a pair of RBI singles in the opener. The sweep gives the Mets a chance to continue their franchise-record, season-opening streak of series wins to eight. The Braves have lost four of five.
Carrasco (2-1) allowed six hits and two walks while striking out five. Dominic Smith laced a two-run double in the first off losing pitcher Kyle Wright (3-1), who surrendered three runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out three over seven innings.
Red Sox 4, Angels 0
Michael Wacha pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings and Rafael Devers started a two-run fourth inning with a solo home run as host Boston went on to beat Los Angeles.
Franchy Cordero, Jackie Bradley Jr. and J.D. Martinez all had multiple hits for the Red Sox, who added single runs in the seventh and eighth innings. Martinez homered over the Green Monster to cap the scoring. Boston had lost back-to-back games and 10 of 14 entering the night.
L.A. was held to just three hits against the combination of Wacha, Jake Diekman, Ryan Brasier and Hirokazu Sawamura. The relievers threw 3 1/3 hitless frames and struck out three to make Wacha (3-0) a winner.
Royals 7, Cardinals 1
Brad Keller threw 6 1/3 shutout innings and Bobby Witt Jr. collected his first major league home run as host Kansas City defeated St. Louis.
The Royals collected a season-high 15 hits, snapping a four-game losing streak. Witt had two hits, two RBIs and two runs scored. M.J. Melendez collected his first major league hit in his debut and Edward Olivares had a career-high four hits for KC. Keller (1-2) allowed no runs on four hits through 6 1/3 innings.
Dakota Hudson (2-2) allowed three runs on nine hits in six-plus innings for the Cardinals, getting out of multiple jams with minimal damage.
Diamondbacks 5, Marlins 4
Humberto Castellanos pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings and Christian Walker drove in three runs, leading Arizona past host Miami for its sixth win in eight games.
Castellanos (2-1) allowed four hits — all singles — and no walks, striking out four in his best and longest performance of the year. Walker went 2-for-5 with a two-run double and a 435-foot homer. Pavin Smith also hit a solo homer for the D-backs. Joe Mantiply tossed a perfect ninth inning for his second save of the year.
Trevor Rogers (1-4) took the loss, allowing six hits, two walks and five runs in 4 1/3 innings. Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jesus Aguilar drove in two runs apiece for the Marlins, who scored all four of their runs in the seventh inning.
Twins 7, Orioles 2
Ryan Jeffers smashed a three-run home run in the sixth inning to carry visiting Minnesota to its fourth straight victory, a decision against Baltimore.
Another dominating performance from the Twins’ bullpen helped cap the outcome as Minnesota won for the 11th time in 12 games.
Caleb Thielbar (1-0) was the winner in relief. Thielbar and Tyler Duffey combined to retire all 10 batters they faced before Cody Stashak worked a scoreless ninth.
Rangers 6, Phillies 4
Mitch Garver and Jonah Heim each hit a home run as Texas defeated host Philadelphia.
Garver drove in two runs, and Heim had two hits and scored twice. Zach Reks doubled in two runs and Marcus Semien added two hits for the Rangers, who have won three in a row. Starter Jon Gray lasted just three innings; he allowed five hits and three runs to go along with three strikeouts and one walk.
The Phillies’ J.T. Realmuto homered and singled while Rhys Hoskins contributed a double and two RBIs. Alec Bohm, Didi Gregorius and Matt Vierling had two hits each for the Phillies, who have dropped two straight.
–Field Level Media