SATURDAY’S OTHER MLB GAMES

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Pirates 6, Phillies 3

PITTSBURGH

Ivan Nova pitched into the eighth inning for his first win in four starts since April 29. Nova (4-3) allowed three runs and nine hits in 71/3 innings. The NL Pitcher of the Month in April struck out three and walked none. Francisco Cervelli and Adam Frazier hit two-run singles during a four-run sixth inning that extended the Pirates’ lead to 6-1. David Freese’s leadoff home run, his fourth, in the fourth inning broke a 1-1 tie. Vince Velasquez (2-4) gave up five runs and seven hits in 51/3 innings with six strikeouts and two walks for the Phillies, who have not won consecutive games since a six-game winning streak from April 20-27.

Braves 5, Nationals 2

ATLANTA

Rio Ruiz, Matt Kemp and Tyler Flowers hit home runs and the Atlanta Braves again relied on their bullpen for a victory over Max Scherzer and Washington, the Nationals’ fourth straight loss. After Bartolo Colon allowed two runs, one earned, in 41/3 innings, five relievers combined for 42/3 hitless innings. Ian Krol (1-1) recorded the final two outs in the fifth. Jim Johnson pitched the ninth for his eighth save.

Reds 12, Rockies 8

CINCINNATI

Scott Schebler’s homer completed Cincinnati’s comeback from a five-run deficit, and the Reds ended a seven-game losing streak — their longest in a year — with a victory over the Colorado Rockies. It was Cincinnati’s longest skid since it dropped 11 straight last May. Colorado rookie Antonio Senzatela was in line for an NL-leading seventh win before the Rockies’ bullpen let the big lead slip away. Senzatela had a bases-loaded single during a six-run fifth inning that put the Rockies ahead 8-3.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Athletics 8, Red Sox 3

OAKLAND, CALIF.

Chad Pinder hit a monster home run, Khris Davis and Mark Canha also connected in the fifth inning, and the Oakland Athletics cleared the fences four times. Hanley Ramirez homered for Boston, which has lost three in a row. Jed Lowrie had a solo shot in the sixth for Oakland, which leads the AL with 63 home runs. A’s manager Bob Melvin didn’t see any of them in person after being ejected in the second inning.

Rays 9, Yankees 5

ST. PETERSBURG, FLA.

Corey Dickerson homered twice and the Tampa Bay Rays won their season-high fourth in a row, beating the New York Yankees in a game that included three hit batters, three ejections and one animated argument. Yankees rookie Aaron Judge hit his 15th home run, most in the majors. He also doubled and has a career-best eight-game hitting streak. New York manager Joe Girardi used his hands to cover the plate with dirt after being tossed by umpire Scott Barry in the fifth inning. That came right after pitching coach Larry Rothschild was ejected by Barry during a mound visit. Rays starter Matt Andriese hit Matt Holliday after giving up a home run to Gary Sanchez in the fifth. In the bottom half, Yankees reliever Tommy Layne plunked Dickerson, who had hit two home runs off Masahiro Tanaka. Andriese (4-1) hit Judge with a pitch leading off the sixth and was thrown out.

Orioles 7, Blue Jays 5

BALTIMORE

Welington Castillo hit a go-ahead home run for the second consecutive game to lead Baltimore. The Orioles improved to 15-3 at home — the best mark in the majors — and can complete a three-game sweep Sunday. Baltimore took over first place in the American League East by a half-game over the New York Yankees, who lost to Tampa Bay earlier Saturday. Jose Bautista had given Toronto a 5-4 lead with a three-run homer off winning pitcher Mychal Givens (5-0) in the seventh. Baltimore responded in the bottom half when Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo hit one-out singles. Castillo followed with the biggest blow when he hit an 0-2 pitch from Danny Barnes (0-2) over the fence in left.

Tigers 9, Rangers 3

DETROIT

Alex Avila, Miguel Cabrera and J.D. Martinez hit consecutive home runs in the first inning as Detroit Tended Texas’ 10-game winning streak. Nicholas Castellanos added a three-run homer in the third, and Justin Verlander (4-3) pitched seven solid innings for the Tigers. The Rangers were on their longest winning streak since a 12-game run in 2011, but it ended emphatically against Detroit. A.J. Griffin (4-1) allowed nine runs and nine hits in 31/3 innings.Cabrera homered in his first at-bat after missing three games with a strained oblique, but Detroit second baseman Ian Kinsler left the game in the fifth with left hamstring tightness.

Associated Press