MILWAUKEE — Jackson Chourio and Wiliam Contreras homered in the first inning and scored again in an eighth-inning comeback as Milwaukee rallied for a victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Devin Williams earned his third save in as many opportunities and ended the game by striking out Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani. That save came one day after Williams preserved a 5-4 victory by retiring Ohtani, Betts and Freddie Freeman in order.
By winning both games, the Brewers earned a split of the four-game series between division leaders.
ATHLETICS 7, METS 6
NEW YORK — JJ Bleday hit his first career grand slam, Shea Langeliers reached base five times for the second time in three games and the Oakland Athletics rallied to beat the New York Mets 7-6 on Thursday in the longest nine-inning game in the pitch clock era.
The game lasted 3 hours and 45 minutes and the teams combined to throw 425 pitches, the most in a nine-inning game this season.
Langeliers, who went 4 for 4 and was hit by pitch in Tuesday’s 9-4 win, was 3 for 4 with a walk and was hit by another pitch Thursday as the A’s took two of three from the Mets. Langeliers reached base 11 times in 15 plate appearances in the series for an on-base percentage of .733.
The Athletics, who trailed 5-0 in the third, won despite leaving a season-high 16 runners on base. Oakland left the bases loaded twice in the first three innings against Jose Quintana before Bleday’s slam in the fourth.
GIANTS 6, BRAVES 0
SAN FRANCISCO — Logan Webb threw seven-plus shutout innings, Grant McCray had his first career hit and home run, and San Francisco beat Atlanta to avoid a sweep.
The Giants snapped a four-game losing skid behind Webb’s performance. The All-Star recorded his fourth straight win and held opponents to a run or fewer for his fourth consecutive start. He finished at least seven innings for the 14th time this season, most of any pitcher in the majors.
Webb (11-8) threw 104 pitches, striking out seven and holding the Braves to four hits. He departed with runners at the corners and two outs in the eighth.
McCray, after going hitless in his major league debut on Wednesday, went 2 for 3 and hit a solo homer in the sixth inning to extend the lead to 5-0. With his father, former big-leaguer Rodney McCray, watching from the stands, McCray, the Giants’ 11th-ranked prospect, also had an RBI bunt single in the second inning that knocked in San Francisco’s first run for his first big league hit.
TIGERS 2, MARINERS 1
DETROIT — Javier Báez hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and Detroit held Seattle to one hit and rallied for a win on Thursday to complete a three-game sweep.
The teams were playing for the sixth time in nine days. Detroit won two of three last week in Seattle.
The Mariners got seven scoreless innings from their starter for the second game in a row and once again handed the lead to Yimi García. On Wednesday, he allowed Kerry Carpenter’s tying homer in what ended up a 3-2 loss in 10 innings.
This time, Parker Meadows walked and stole second, but García retired the next two hitters before giving way to closer Andrés Muñoz.
Muñoz (2-4), who hadn’t allowed a hit in a franchise-record 12 straight outings, hung a 2-1 slider and Báez lined it over the fence in left field.
Shelby Miller (6-7) earned the victory with 1 1/3 hitless innings of relief. Jason Foley pitched the ninth for his 16th save in Detroit’s fourth straight win.
ORIOLES 5, RED SOX 1
BALTIMORE — Zach Eflin pitched six impressive innings to improve to 4-0 since joining the Orioles, and Gunnar Henderson and Cedric Mullins homered in Baltimore’s victory over Boston.
Eflin (9-7) has won all four starts since Baltimore acquired him from Tampa Bay before the trade deadline. He allowed a run and five hits, striking out a season-high eight without a walk.
The Orioles pulled into a first-place tie with the idle New York Yankees atop the AL East. Boston is eight games behind.
Nick Pivetta (5-8) allowed three runs and three hits in five innings. He struck out six and walked one, but two of the hits he yielded were homers.
PHILLIES 13, NATIONALS 3
PHILADELPHIA — Weston Wilson became the ninth Phillies player to hit for the cycle, Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos had consecutive homers in the first inning, and Philadelphia overpowered Washington.
Wilson tripled and singled in the fourth, homered in the seventh, and, then — with fans chanting, “Double! Double!” — doubled to right in the eighth, with Alex Call failing on a diving attempt.
Wilson had the 10th cycle in Phillies history — Chuck Klein did it twice — and he was the first home player to accomplish the feat at Citizens Bank Park since David Bell in 2004.
Philadelphia took a 4-0 lead in the first, with Bohm hitting a three-run homer and Castellanos following with another shot.
Zack Wheeler (12-5) moved one behind Atlanta’s Chris Sale for most wins in the National League and the Phillies scored at least nine runs for the second straight game.
TWINS 3, RANGERS 2
ARLINGTON, Texas — Carlos Santana hit a sacrifice fly off All-Star closer Kirby Yates in the ninth inning and playoff-contending Minnesota won at Texas in the series opener against the reigning World Series champion Rangers.
Santana’s deep fly to right-center came after Yates (4-2) issued consecutive one-out walks and then threw a wild pitch.
Willi Castro homered for the Twins (68-53), who moved within four games of idle Cleveland for the AL Central lead. Minnesota currently holds the American League’s second wild card.
In a thrilling four-game series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Brewers managed to rally in the final two games to split the series with the reigning World Series champions.
The series kicked off with a dominant performance from the Dodgers, as they cruised to a 7-1 victory in the first game. Dodgers’ ace Clayton Kershaw was on top of his game, striking out 10 batters over six innings while only allowing one run. The Brewers struggled to get their offense going against Kershaw and the Dodgers’ bullpen, managing just five hits in the game.
Game two saw a much closer contest, with the Brewers coming out on top with a 3-2 win. Brewers’ starter Brandon Woodruff was stellar on the mound, pitching seven strong innings and striking out nine batters. The Brewers’ offense was led by Christian Yelich, who hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning to give the Brewers the lead.
The third game of the series was another tight affair, with the Dodgers edging out the Brewers 4-3. Dodgers’ slugger Cody Bellinger hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning to put the Dodgers ahead for good. The Brewers fought back in the ninth inning, scoring a run and putting the tying run on base, but Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen was able to shut the door and secure the win for Los Angeles.
In the final game of the series, the Brewers came out swinging, scoring five runs in the first inning en route to an 8-2 victory. Brewers’ starter Corbin Burnes was dominant on the mound, striking out 10 batters over six innings while only allowing one run. The Brewers’ offense was firing on all cylinders, with Avisail Garcia hitting a three-run home run in the first inning to set the tone for the game.
With the series split, both teams will head into their next matchups with momentum on their side. The Brewers will look to build on their strong showing against the Dodgers, while the Dodgers will aim to bounce back from their split series and continue their quest for another World Series title. Baseball fans can expect more exciting matchups between these two talented teams as the season progresses.