Austin Slater shines as the Giants beat the Astros

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Austin Slater had three hits and drove in two runs to help the San Francisco Giants beat the Houston Astros 5-3 on Wednesday.

Slater also stole a base and scored for San Francisco, which took the rubber game of the three-game series in a speedy 2 hours, 7 minutes.

Yordan Álvarez homered for Houston, which has lost three of four overall.

The Giants jumped on Framber Valdez for five runs and eight hits in four innings. Valdez (5-4) threw 59 pitches in his shortest outing of the season, finishing with just one strikeout, his fewest in a game since July 26 when he had one against Texas.

San Francisco right-hander Logan Webb (6-5) permitted three runs and seven hits in six innings.

BREWERS 5, BLUE JAYS 4

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Rookie Tobias Myers won back-to-back starts for the first time, allowing one run and three hits over six innings to lead Milwaukee over Toronto for their sixth straight home series win.

Myers (3-2) struck out four and walked one, leaving with a 5-1 lead. The 25-year-old right-hander improved to 3-0 in his last five starts.

Milwaukee stranded the potential tying run at third base in a three-run ninth when pinch-hitter Vladimir Guerrero Jr. flied out to the center-field warning track.

TWINS 17, ROCKIES 9

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Willi Castro and Royce Lewis homered and Carlos Correa had a career-best five hits for Minnesota, who met Colorado starter Austin Gomber with a five-run first inning and finished with a season-high 24 hits in a victory over the Rockies.

Lewis, one of five Twins with three or more hits, went 3 for 5 and scored three times. Carlos Santana started the onslaught with a three-run double in the first and hit an RBI single in a seven-run eighth.

The Twins collected their most hits since setting the single-game club record with 28 on June 13, 2017.

Pablo López (6-6) picked up just his second win in six turns, permitting two runs in five innings — including Ryan McMahon hitting a solo homer for the second game in a row.

PADRES 5, ATHLETICS 4

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Rookie Jackson Merrill’s second homer of the game was a walk-off shot off Mason Miller with one out in the ninth and San Diego beat Oakland as Fernando Tatis Jr.‘s career-high 17-game hitting streak ended.

Merrill drove the first pitch he saw from Miller (1-1) down the right field line, his fifth and flipped his bat. He was met at home by a wild celebration.

Donovan Solano also hit two home runs, including a tying shot in the eighth. Tatis, who went 0 for 3, was aboard with a walk. Tatis’ streak had been the longest active streak in the majors.

A’s manager Mark Kotsay was ejected in the top of the ninth by home plate umpire Tom Hanahan. The A’s struck out 18 times, including a season-high 12 by Padres starter Michael King.

The A’s rallied for three runs in the sixth to take the lead and pushed it to 4-2 in the eighth on Zack Gelof’s double to left-center.

The Padres came back to tie it at 4 in the bottom of the eighth on Solano’s two-run homer to center off Lucas Erceg.

ORIOLES 4, BRAVES 2

BALTIMORE (AP) — Colton Cowser hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Baltimore won their sixth straight game, beating Atlanta.

Cade Povich pitched six scoreless innings in his second big league outing for Baltimore, but Atlanta tied it when Matt Olson hit a two-run shot off Keegan Akin (2-0) in the eighth. Cowser answered with a drive to right-center off Joe Jiménez (1-2) that cleared the wall despite an impressive leaping effort by center fielder Michael Harris II.

Craig Kimbrel worked a perfect ninth against the franchise he’s most associated with, earning his 16th save in 19 chances.

Atlanta has dropped five straight for the first time since 2017 — the last year the Braves didn’t win the NL East. They entered Wednesday night 10 games behind first-place Philadelphia.

REDS 4, GUARDIANS 2

CINCINNATI (AP) — Jeimer Candelario homered twice and drove in all four runs and Cincinnati rallied to beat Cleveland to split the opening series of the Ohio Cup.

Candelario had a 404-foot solo shot to center in the first inning and hit a three-run homer with one out in the sixth inning that chased Tyler Bibbee (4-2) after the Cleveland right-hander had logged a career-high 11 strikeouts.

Nick Lodolo (7-2) had another quality start for the Reds, allowing two Cleveland runs and seven hits with six strikeouts through six innings.

Lodolo got into a jam in the third, but it could have been worst. He hit Josh Naylor to load the bases and walked in a run before getting Andrés Giménez on a groundout.

Lucas Sims and Sam Moll each pitched a scoreless inning, and Alexis Diaz got Cleveland in order in the ninth for his 14th save.

Bibbee gave up four runs and four hits.

METS 10, MARLINS 4

NEW YORK (AP) — Harrison Bader hit an early two-run homer, Starling Marte and Francisco Lindor also went deep, and the New York Mets took advantage of shoddy defense by Miami.

Tyrone Taylor went 4 for 5 for his second career four-hit game and Francisco Alvarez had two RBIs in his second game back from the injured list as the Mets (29-37) won for the seventh time in 11 games following a 4-15 skid.

Marte and Bader both knocked in two runs and scored twice.

Alvarez and J.D. Martinez each delivered an RBI single as New York took a 5-2 lead in a three-run second inning aided by two errors on the infield and a wild pitch from Braxton Garrett (2-2).

NATIONALS 7, TIGERS 5

DETROIT (AP) — CJ Abrams hit a double and a home run and Washington beat Detroit Tigers for their first five-game winning streak in three years.

Jake Irvin (5-5) gave up gave up one run on six hits in six innings.

Washington last won five straight between June 19-24, 2021. A victory on Thursday would give the team its first six-game winning streak since an eight-game streak from Sept. 23-29, 2019 — the year the Nationals won the World Series.

Detroit’s Reese Olson (1-8) allowed five runs (four earned) on 10 hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings. Olson has a 10.43 ERA in three June starts after posting a 1.92 ERA in his first 10 starts.

CUBS 4, RAYS 3

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Cody Bellinger hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning, and the Chicago Cubs held off Tampa Bay Rays.

Cubs closer Héctor Neris allowed José Caballero’s solo homer in the ninth before earning his 10th save in 13 chances. The right-hander allowed a single to Ben Rortvedt and walked Taylor Walls with one out before getting a fielder’s choice grounder from Yandy Díaz and a flyball from Brandon Lowe.

Seiya Suzuki also went deep for the Cubs, who are 6-13 since May 22.

Tyson Miller (1-0) got the win by striking out two in a perfect 1 1/3 innings.

Tampa Bay got also a homer from Jose Siri. The Rays have lost 14 of 21.

CARDINALS 4, PIRATES 2

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Nolan Arenado and Iván Herrera each had three hits, Sonny Gray pitched seven strong innings, and St. Louis beat Pittsburgh.

Arenado scored a run and drove one in while Herrera also scored a run. Brendan Donovan added two hits and an RBI.

Gray (8-4) gave up one run and four hits while striking out nine and walking just one. He had lost his previous two starts.

Ryan Helsley gave up a leadoff single in the ninth before finishing up for his major league-leading 22nd save in 23 chances.

Bailey Falter (3-4) gave up three runs and eight hits in four innings to lose his second straight start.

RED SOX 8, PHILLIES 6

BOSTON (AP) — Enmanuel Valdez hit a tiebreaking two-run double in Boston’s five-run fifth inning, and the Red Sox beat Philadelphia.

Jarren Duran had three of Boston’s 13 hits. David Hamilton had two hits, scored twice and drove in two runs.

The Red Sox, who trailed 4-0 after three innings, had dropped three of four. With the win, they returned to .500 at 34-34.

Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos each had two hits for NL East-leading Philadelphia, which had won five of six. Bryson Stott had two RBIs.