MLB roundup: Dodgers down Giants, seal another playoff bid

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Clayton Kershaw struck out six over 4 1/3 innings in the final regular-season home start of his accomplished career and the Los Angeles Dodgers finished off a 6-3 victory over the visiting San Francisco Giants on Friday, clinching their 13th consecutive playoff berth.

Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts hit back-to-back home runs in a four-run fifth inning as the Dodgers increased their National League West lead to four games over the San Diego Padres.

Kershaw, an 18-year veteran who on Thursday announced his retirement effective at the end of the season, gave up two runs on four hits with four walks. He departed to a standing ovation and emerged from the dugout for a curtain call.

Edgardo Henriquez (2-1) relieved Kershaw and went 1 1/3 shutout innings. Tanner Scott pitched the ninth inning for his 22nd save. Heliot Ramos led off the game with a homer for the Giants, who lost for the sixth time in seven games. Robbie Ray (11-8) gave up five runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Royals 20, Blue Jays 1

Salvador Perez and Jac Caglianone hit three-run homers as Kansas City set a franchise record with 27 hits in a blowout of visiting Toronto.

Vinnie Pasquantino added four hits and two RBIs, Michael Massey had four hits (including a two-run homer) and three RBIs, and Carter Jensen had three doubles and two RBIs for the Royals. Michael Lorenzen (6-11) pitched 7 2/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits.

Toronto starter Max Scherzer (5-4) allowed seven runs and seven hits in two-thirds of an inning. It was Scherzer’s shortest career outing that did not involve an injury.

Guardians 6, Twins 2

Bo Naylor went 2-for-4 and tied a career high with four RBIs as Cleveland pulled away for a 6-2 win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Guardians reliever Jakob Junis (4-1) struck out four batters in two scoreless innings. Jose Ramirez doubled and notched his 40th stolen base of the season for Cleveland, which pulled within 2 1/2 games of the first-place Detroit Tigers in the American League Central.

Royce Lewis finished 2-for-4 and drove in the lone run for the Twins. Reliever Cole Sands (4-6) gave up two runs on two hits in two-thirds of an inning.

Braves 10, Tigers 1

Drake Baldwin drove in three runs, including a two-run homer, as visiting Atlanta pounded Detroit. Ronald Acuna Jr. and Ha-Seong Kim also blasted two-run homers for the Braves, who have won six straight.

Ozzie Albies supplied three hits and drove in two runs, while Jurickson Profar had two hits and scored twice. Bryce Elder (8-10) gave up one run and five hits in seven innings.

Spencer Torkelson hit his 30th home run of the season for the Tigers, losers of seven of their last eight. Charlie Morton (9-11) gave up six runs and five hits in 1 1/3 innings.

Mets 12, Nationals 6

Francisco Lindor hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the fourth inning as New York overcame an early three-run deficit to beat visiting Washington.

Juan Soto followed Lindor with a three-run homer for the Mets, who have won four of five and maintained a two-game lead over Cincinnati in the race for the final National League wild-card spot. Lindor went 3-for-4 and scored four runs.

CJ Abrams went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs for the Nationals, who have lost five straight.

Cardinals 7, Brewers 1

Nolan Arenado hit a three-run double to spur St. Louis past visiting Milwaukee, ending the Brewers’ three-game winning streak.

St. Louis starter Sonny Gray (14-8) allowed one run on nine hits in six innings. Sal Frelick hit a homer for the Brewers, who remained six games ahead of the second-place Chicago Cubs in the National League Central.

Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski (5-3) needed 77 pitches to pitch 3 2/3 innings. He gave up two runs on five hits.

Marlins 6, Rangers 4 (12 innings)

Jakob Marsee, Brian Navarreto and Dane Myers had run-scoring hits in the 12th inning as Miami prevailed in Arlington, Texas, the Marlins’ fourth straight victory and eighth win in nine games.

The Rangers dropped their fifth straight game and lost ground in the race for an American League wild card. Texas is five games behind the Houston Astros and the Boston Red Sox for the final two spots with eight games to play.

Marsee and Navarreto doubled in runs while Myers’ single provided the third run off Patrick Corbin (7-10) in the 12th. George Soriano (2-0), the fifth Marlins pitcher, allowed a run in the bottom of the 12th as part of his two-inning stint.

Athletics 4, Pirates 3

Lawrence Butler hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth inning as the visiting Athletics held on against Pittsburgh.

Nick Kurtz also homered for the A’s, who have won seven of eight. Athletics right-hander Luis Severino (7-11) went five innings, allowing three runs (one earned) and seven hits.

Pirates starter Mitch Keller (6-15) allowed four runs and four hits over five innings. Bryan Reynolds had two hits, an RBI and a run for Pittsburgh.

Reds 7, Cubs 4

Spencer Steer belted two of Cincinnati’s season-high five homers, lifting the Reds over visiting Chicago.

Steer joined Miguel Andujar and Matt McLain in launching solo shots off Cubs starter Shota Imanaga before adding a tiebreaking two-run homer in the sixth off Porter Hodge. Elly De La Cruz immediately followed by going deep for the first time in 44 games.

TJ Friedl ripped an RBI single in the fifth inning for the Reds, who have won three in a row. Matt Shaw launched a two-run homer, Dansby Swanson also went deep and Ian Happ had an RBI double for the Cubs, who have lost the first two games of the four-game series.

Phillies 8, Diamondbacks 2

Harrison Bader and Nick Castellanos homered, Alec Bohm had two hits and three RBIs after being activated earlier in the day, and Philadelphia beat Arizona in Phoenix, further damaging the Diamondbacks’ playoffs hopes.

Ketel Marte ended up a triple shy of a cycle for the Diamondbacks, who led 2-0 after the first inning but lost a game after going in front for the 45th time, tied for the most in the majors.

The Phillies closed to within two games of the Milwaukee Brewers for the best record in the National League, although the Brewers hold the tiebreaker. The top two finishers in each league receive a first-round playoff bye. The D-backs dropped three games behind the Mets for the third NL wild card.

White Sox 4, Padres 3

Miguel Vargas hit a two-run homer and Davis Martin pitched six strong innings as Chicago snapped a six-game losing streak with a win over visiting San Diego.

Martin (7-10) allowed three runs on six hits for the White Sox, who won the opener of the three-game series despite being outhit 7-4. Chicago’s Curtis Mead and Will Robertson contributed RBI hits.

Dylan Cease (8-12) yielded four runs on four hits in six innings as the Padres lost for the third time in four games.

Red Sox 11, Rays 7

Jarren Duran laced a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh inning and Garrett Crochet won his third straight start as Boston continued its mastery of host Tampa Bay.

Duran went 2-for-6 and scored twice as the Red Sox moved to 9-2 against Tampa Bay. Ceddanne Rafaela was 4-for-5 with a double, two runs and an RBI while Crochet (17-5) allowed three runs on four hits with nine strikeouts and three walks over six innings.

Everson Pereira hit a grand slam and Yandy Diaz was 3-for-4 with a homer for the Rays. Carson Williams hit a solo homer for the second straight game.

Orioles 4, Yankees 2

Trevor Rogers took a no-hitter into the sixth inning as Baltimore held on to defeat visiting New York.

Rogers (9-2) gave up a only single over six innings while walking two and striking out seven. Ryan Mountcastle hit a solo home run and a sacrifice fly to help the Orioles record their fourth win in five games.

Yankees starter Will Warren (8-8) surrendered three runs, one earned, over 5 1/3 innings. New York is 0-4 this month in Warren’s starts. Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a two-run homer for his 30th of the season, becoming the third player in Yankees history to have a 30-homer, 30-steal season.

Mariners 4, Astros 0

Bryan Woo allowed one hit over five scoreless injuries before departing with an pec injury and Julio Rodriguez slugged the first of four solo home runs by Seattle, which claimed the opener of a three-game series at Houston.

Rodriguez homered off Hunter Brown (12-8) in the first inning. Eugenio Suarez, Victor Robles and Josh Naylor added solo homers. Woo (15-7) earned his fifth consecutive winning decision. He is likely headed for an MRI exam on Saturday, according to manager Dan Wilson.

The Astros managed only three hits. Brown yielded two runs on five hits in six innings, though he struck out nine.

Rockies 7, Angels 6

Tyler Freeman had three hits, one in a four-run fifth inning, as Colorado beat Los Angeles in Denver.

The Rockies (42-112) surpassed the win total of the 2024 Chicago White Sox with the victory. Bradley Blalock (2-5) recorded the win despite allowing six runs on eight hits over five innings.

Mitch Farris (1-2) fared even worse, surrendering seven runs and eight hits during 4 1/3 frames. Christian Moore and Denzer Guzman homered for the Angels, who have lost eight straight games.

–Field Level Media