Red Sox beat Tigers on Patriots’ Day
A giant national flag covered the Green Monster left field wall at Fenway Park before the annual Patriot's Day baseball game of the Boston Red Sox and the Detroit Tigers, Monday in Boston. (AP Photo/Jim Davis)
BOSTON (AP) — Pinch-hitter Ceddanne Rafaela had a tiebreaking, two-run single in the seventh inning and the Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 8-6 on Monday in Boston’s annual Patriots’ Day game to salvage a split of their four-game series. Isiah Kiner-Falefa also had a two-run single for the Red Sox, who halted a two-game skid. The Tigers lost for just the second time in 10 games after taking the last two. The game coincided with the running of the Boston Marathon. The Red Sox wore their special “Boston” home white jerseys, which debuted as a tribute to the city after the marathon bombings in 2013. Boston starter Sonny Gray left the game in the third inning with right hamstring tightness. Garrett Whitlock (2-1), the sixth of eight Red Sox pitchers, worked a perfect inning for the victory. Aroldis Chapman got the last two outs for his fourth save. MARLINS 5, CARDINALS 3 MIAMI (AP) — Agustín Ramírez homered and Max Meyer pitched effectively into the sixth inning to lead Miami to a victory over St. Louis, snapping the Cardinals’ five-game winning streak. Meyer, who has battled injuries since being selected third overall in the 2020 amateur draft, left after 5 1/3 innings and 91 pitches. He permitted two runs on three hits and two walks with eight strikeouts. Calvin Faucher (2-2) got the final two outs in the sixth. He allowed the tying run to score on a wild pitch but was credited with the win after Miami went back ahead in the bottom half. Pete Fairbanks gave up a leadoff triple to Masyn Winn and a sacrifice fly to Ramón Urías in the ninth before finishing for his fourth save in five opportunities. BRAVES 9 NATIONALS 4 WASHINGTON (AP) — Matt Olson had three RBIs, Bryce Elder struck out six in 6 2/3 innings and Atlanta won their sixth straight game with a victory over Washington. Drake Baldwin added two RBIs, and Ozzie Albies, Michael Harris II, Dominic Smith and Eli White each had an RBI for Atlanta. Ronald Acuña Jr. was hit by a pitch in the fourth and sixth innings before leaving in the bottom of the sixth. The Braves said X-rays were negative and Acuña was day to day. Olson’s two-run homer over the center-field wall tied it at 2-all in the fourth. Olson added an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the ninth for a five-run lead. Atlanta broke it open with five runs in the sixth. CUBS 5, PHILLIES 1 CHICAGO (AP) — Colin Rea pitched into the seventh inning and Chicago beat Philadelphia for their sixth consecutive win. Dansby Swanson hit a three-run homer for Chicago, and Michael Conforto added a sacrifice fly. The Cubs have outscored their opponents 44-14 during the team’s longest win streak since it also won six in a row from Aug. 26 to Sept. 1, 2024. They are tied with Atlanta for the majors’ longest active win streak. The Phillies have dropped six in a row and seven of eight. They have been outscored 42-10 during their losing streak. Rea (3-0) permitted one run and six hits in 6 2/3 innings, aided by a stellar defensive performance from his Cubs teammates. ORIOLES 7, ROYALS 5, 12 INNINGS KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Leody Taveras hit a grand slam during a five-run 12th inning, and Baltimore held on for a wild victory over the Royals, handing Kansas City its eighth straight loss. With the Orioles down to their last strike in the ninth inning, Samuel Basallo tied it at 1-all with Baltimore’s second hit of the game, an RBI single that scored Dylan Beavers. Basallo then led off the 12th with a single off Alex Lange (0-2), scoring automatic runner Coby Mayo to make it 3-2. Jeremiah Jackson singled and Weston Wilson walked to load the bases for Taveras, whose first career slam traveled 419 feet to center field. That sent Royals fans to the exits, but Kansas City made it interesting in the bottom half when Nick Loftin hit a bases-clearing double off Cameron Foster. The rookie then retired the next three batters, striking out Kyle Isbel to end it. DODGERS 12, ROCKIES 2 DENVER (AP) — Max Muncy went 4 for 4 with two homers and scored four times as Los Angeles hit five longballs to back Justin Wrobleski in a victory over Colorado. Dalton Rushing also had two home runs for the Dodgers, giving him seven in his past seven games. Miguel Rojas launched his first of the season and got his 1,000th career hit with a single in the fourth inning. Wrobleski (3-0) allowed one run and eight hits across seven innings to help Los Angeles split the four-game series at Coors Field. He struck out three and walked none, throwing 72 of his 97 pitches for strikes. The left-hander has yielded just two earned runs in 21 innings over his last three starts. BLUE JAYS 5, ANGELS 2 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Dylan Cease struck out 12 in five innings and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had three hits, including a two-run homer, as the Toronto beat Los Angeles. Lenyn Sosa put Toronto ahead with a sacrifice fly in the sixth, and Nathan Lukes knocked in two late insurance runs after coming off the bench. Cease (1-0) earned his first win for the Blue Jays and finished one strikeout shy of his career high despite needing 110 pitches to get 15 outs. The right-hander, who signed a $210 million, seven-year contract as a free agent in December, limited the Angels to two runs and five hits. He walked two and whiffed Jorge Soler with a 99 mph fastball on his final pitch. Toronto reliever Braydon Fisher threw a scoreless sixth, Louis Varland struck out three of his four batters and Tyler Rogers got the final two outs in the eighth. Struggling closer Jeff Hoffman fanned three in a one-hit ninth for his third save. ATHLETICS 6, MARINERS 4 SEATTLE (AP) — Carlos Cortes, Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers each hit a solo homer, and the Athletics overcame an early three-run deficit to defeat Seattle. Cortes went 4 for 5 with a home run in the fourth inning that trimmed Seattle’s lead to 3-1. Kurtz and Langeliers hit back-to-back shots in the sixth to chase starter Emerson Hancock with the score tied at 3. Max Muncy put the Athletics ahead 4-3 in the eighth on a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded and no outs. Lawrence Butler added a two-run single to make it 6-3. The Athletics took sole possession of first place in the AL West. A’s starter J.T. Ginn struck out six in 5 1/3 innings, allowing six hits and three runs. Hogan Harris (2-0) fanned two in 1 2/3 hitless innings to earn the win, and Joel Kuhnel worked the ninth for his fourth save.