Pittsburgh Pirates’ Bryan Reynolds watches his two-run home run during the seventh inning against the Chicago Cubs on Friday.
Paul Beaty | AP Photo
Pittsburgh Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Chicago Cubs on Friday.
Paul Beaty | AP Photo
CHICAGO — Bryan Reynolds hit a two-run homer and Carmen Mlodzinski pitched six-hit ball into the sixth inning, helping the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 2-0 on Friday.
Pittsburgh was shut down by Shota Imanaga before breaking through against Caleb Thielbar in the seventh. Ryan O’Hearn hit a leadoff single for the Pirates’ first hit of the chilly afternoon, and Reynolds drove Thielbar’s next pitch deep to left for his third homer.
Pittsburgh won for the seventh time in nine games since its 1-3 start.
Chicago went 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base. Ian Happ had two of the team’s six hits.
Cubs slugger Seiya Suzuki went 1 for 3 with a fourth-inning single in his first game this season. He had been sidelined by a sprained right knee.
Imanaga struck out nine and walked one in six innings. The Japanese left-hander threw 68 of 100 pitches for strikes.
Thielbar (1-1) was lifted after Oneil Cruz’s two-out single in the seventh. The 39-year-old lefty pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings over his first four appearances this year.
Mason Montgomery (1-0) replaced Mlodzinski with runners on first and second in the sixth. He struck out Pete Crow-Armstrong and walked Carson Kelly before fanning pinch-hitter Matt Shaw for the final out of the inning.
The Cubs also left the bases loaded in the fourth when Moisés Ballesteros lined to Reynolds in left.
Isaac Mattson and Gregory Soto each pitched an inning for the Pirates before Dennis Santana handled the ninth for his first save this season.
Pirates rookie Konnor Griffin went 0 for 3 with a strikeout in his first career road game. The 19-year-old shortstop agreed to a nine-year, $140 million contract on Wednesday.
Athletics 4, Mets 0
NEW YORK — Jeff McNeil had two hits in his return to Citi Field, including a run-scoring single in a three-run ninth inning that helped the Athletics beat the New York Mets 4-0 on Friday night.
Mets starter Clay Holmes left after 5 1/3 innings with left hamstring tightness. New York has three runs and 20 hits during a three-game losing streak.
McNeil, traded to the A’s in December after spending his first eight big league seasons with the Mets, received a warm ovation before his first at-bat and tipped the bill of his helmet twice. The 2022 NL batting champion doubled in the fourth and at second base robbed Carson Benge of a hit to end the fifth.
Shea Langeliers had an RBI single in the third off Holmes (2-1) and Denzel Clarke hit a two-run single in the ninth for the Athletics, who have pitched 25 straight scoreless innings against the Mets and Yankees dating to Tuesday night.
Tigers 2, Marlins 0
DETROIT — Detroit’s Kenley Jansen put Miami down in order in the ninth inning and moved into a tie for third in MLB history with his 478th save, Javier Baez homered and the Detroit Tigers beat the Miami Marlins to end a five-game skid.
Jansen struck out one and moved into a tie with Hall of Famer Lee Smith (1980–97) on the saves list. The 38-year-old right-hander picked up his second save of the season.
Baez sent a line drive to left field that hit the top of the wall and went out to make it 2-0 in the fifth for his second homer of the season.
Detroit’s Keider Montero (1-1) struck out seven and allowed two hits and a walk over six innings.
The Tigers entered having lost nine of their last 11 games since opening the season with a pair of wins in San Diego.
Detroit had three hits in a row to start the bottom of the second, and Spencer Torkelson put the Tigers on the board with a single to left field. Then, the Tigers loaded the bases with two outs before Owen Caissie made a sliding catch in right field to end the inning.
Miami, which entered with 12 hits in back-to-back games, took until the eighth inning before getting the leadoff man on base. But, then Graham Pauley lined into a double play.
Miami starter Chris Paddack (0-2) allowed seven hits and two earned runs in six innings.
Angels 10, Reds 2
CINCINNATI — Jorge Soler hit a grand slam in a five-run eighth inning, Zach Neto and Josh Lowe also homered, and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Cincinnati Reds to snap a seven-game losing streak at Great American Ball Park.
Jack Kochanowicz (2-0) only allowed one run and two hits over seven innings.
Soler also had a two-out double in the third before scoring on Yoan Moncada’s infield single for a 2-0 lead.
Neto’s fifth home run of the season made it 4-0 and Lowe, who was batting .091 (3 for 33) coming in, homered over the left-field wall in the sixth for a 5-1 lead.
Los Angeles improved to .500 or better after 14 games for a sixth straight season, and eighth of nine.
Cincinnati’s Chase Burns (1-1) gave up five earned runs, seven hits and four walks over 5 1/3 innings.
Sal Stewart entered leading all rookies with 16 hits, eight extra-base hits, and 32 total bases before going 0 for 3 against the Angels.
Eugenio Suárez had Cincinnati’s only hit through four and he added the Reds’ second hit on a single in the sixth. Elly De La Cruz hit his fourth homer of the season in the ninth.
Blue Jays 10, Twins 4
TORONTO — Brandon Valenzuela hit his first MLB home run, Daulton Varsho also connected and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Twinsto halt Minnesota’s four-game win streak.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had three hits and an RBI to help Toronto win its second straight after losing the previous six.
Davis Schneider had two hits, scored twice and drove in a run as the Blue Jays set a season high in runs and matched a season high in hits. Nine of Toronto’s 14 hits were for extra bases, including seven doubles.
Valenzuela gave Toronto its first lead, 5-4, with a two-out drive off Simeon Woods Richardson in a five-run fourth inning. His homer followed RBI doubles by Jesús Sánchez and Schneider, and an RBI single by Andrés Giménez.
Varsho made it 6-4 with a leadoff homer off Anthony Banda in the fifth, his first of the season and the 100th of his career.
The Twins came in having swept a four-game series against Detroit. Minnesota is 2-5 on the road.
Giants 6, Orioles 3
BALTIMORE — Landen Roupp pitched six sharp innings, Willy Adames and Jung Hoo Lee homered and the San Francisco Giants beat the Baltimore Orioles for their season-high third straight victory.
Adames hit a solo shot in the third inning and Lee hit a two-run drive to make it 6-1 in the seventh. The last-place Giants, who came in with a major league-low five homers, just missed a potential third long ball when Taylor Ward made a leaping grab at the left-field wall to rob Harrison Bader in the eighth.
Roupp (2-1) gave up one run and five hits to earn his first win since July 22.
Braves 11, Guardians 5
ATLANTA — Matt Olson gave Atlanta the lead with a long two-run homer off Slade Cecconi in a six-run sixth inning and the Braves beat the Cleveland Guardians in a matchup of first-place teams.
The Guardians led 2-1 before Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a tying homer off Cecconi in the sixth. Following a single by Drake Baldwin, Olson pulled the 441-foot homer off the top of the Chop House restaurant roof in right field for a 4-2 lead.
The blast was Olson’s fourth of the season.
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