Cardinals Sink Mets, Cubs Lose To Marlins

Cardinalss Sink Mets

(St. Louis, MO) -- Michael Wacha pitched six strong innings helping the Cardinals take care of the Mets, 5-2, in the second of three at Busch Stadium. Wacha improved to 5-5 allowing one run and striking out seven. Yadier Molina hit a solo homer, while Jon Jay and Matt Holliday each had two hits and an RBI. St. Louis has won five in-a-row and eight of nine. David Wright and Lucas Duda each hit solo shots in the defeat. Jon Niese took the loss allowing five runs, three earned, in six innings. New York has fallen a season-high nine games under .500.

The Cardinals wrap up their three-game series with the Mets today at Busch Stadium. Lance Lynn gets the ball for the Redbirds. He is 7-4 with a 3.16 ERA in 14 starts. The Mets will counter with veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon, who is 6-5 with a 4.15 ERA.

Jones Lifts Marlins Past Cubs

(Miami, FL) -- Garrett Jones clubbed a go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning as the Marlins clipped the Cubs 6-5 in the middle of a three-game series in Miami. Rafael Furcal had a two-run single and also scored for the Fish, who had lost four of five coming in. Sam Dyson picked up his first career win. Steve Cishek gave up a run in the ninth but held on for his 16th save. Junior Lake hit a two-run homer and Luis Valbuena doubled twice and drove in a run for the Cubs, who won their previous two.  Brian Schlitter suffered his second loss.

The Cubs wrap up their three-game series with the Marlins today in Miami. Chicago sends Jake Arrieta and his 2-1 record to the hill. Miami counters with Nate Eovaldi,who is 4-2. First pitch from Marlins Park is set for 11:40 a.m.

White Sox Torch Giants

(Chicago, IL) -- Dayan Viciedo and Gordon Beckham each hit a two-run homer to lead the White Sox to an 8-2 victory over the Giants at U.S. Cellular Field.  Adam Dunn and Adam Eaton also drove in a run apiece for Chicago, which snapped a four-game losing streak. John Danks got the win after giving up just one earned run in six-and-a-third innings. Matt Cain surrendered seven runs in five innings of work to fall to 1-5 for the Giants, who have lost four in-a-row.  Hunter Pence and Buster Posey each batted in a run in defeat.

The White Sox close out their brief two-game set with the Giants today at U.S. Cellular Field. Chicago sends left-hander Chris Sale and his 5-1 record to the hill. San Francisco counters with Tim Hudson, who is 7-2. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10.
 

Reds Hold Off Pirates

(Pittsburgh, PA) -- Todd Frazier hit a go-ahead solo shot in the ninth inning to push the Reds past the Pirates 6-5 at PNC Park. Frazier finished with two hits while Joey Votto collected three RBI. Billy Hamilton stole three bags for the Reds, who have won five out of six. Johnny Cueto took a no-decision after six innings of two-run ball. Logan Ondrusek grabbed the win in relief with Aroldis Chapman earning his 12th save.  Jason Grilli took the loss for Pittsburgh, which have dropped two straight. Russell Martin drove in two in the loss while Josh Harrison added four hits and two RBI.

Phillies Top Braves

(Atlanta, GA) -- Kyle Kendrick struck out six in seven frames of two-run ball to help guide the Phillies to a 5-2 win over the Braves at Turner Field.  Kendrick improved to 3-and-6 with the win and Jonathan Papelbon picked up his 16th save for Philadelphia, which has won three of four. Ryan Howard hit a two-run homer in the opening frame and John Mayberry Jr. drove in two runs as well. Ervin Santana surrendered three runs in six innings to fall to 5-4 for the Braves, who have lost six of their last eight. Jason Heyward batted in a run and Chris Johnson scored a run off a fielders choice in the loss.

Brewers Rally Past Diamondbacks

(Phoenix, AZ) -- Jonathan Lucroy smacked a go-ahead grand slam in the seventh inning as the Brewers rallied past the Diamondbacks 7-5 in the second of four games at Chase Field. Lucroy homered twice as part of a three-hit night, while Aramis Ramirez also went deep for Milwaukee, which has won three of its last four games. Kyle Lohse permitted four runs, three earned, in six innings as he improved to 8-2. Francisco Rodriguez gave up a solo homer to Roger Kieschnick in the bottom of the ninth but held on for his 22nd save. Martin Prado drove in two runs, while Paul Goldschmidt walked three times and scored twice for the D'backs, who have dropped six of seven. Evan Marshall suffered the loss.

Dodgers Double Up Rockies

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run homer to back a solid outing from Zack Greinke as the Dodgers doubled up the Rockies 4-2 at Chavez Ravine. Greinke pitched six innings of one-run ball to improve to 9-and-3 while Kenley Jansen notched his 20th save. Matt Kemp hit a solo homer and Carlos Triunfel blasted the first long ball of his career as Los Angeles won its fourth in five games. Corey Dickerson went 3-for-5 with an RBI while Troy Tulowitzki was 3-for-5 with a run for Colorado. Jhoulys Chacin gave up three runs in six innings but fell to 1-5 as the Rockies dropped a second straight following a five-game win streak.

Angels Throttle Indians

(Cleveland, OH) -- Mike Trout hit two home runs and notched four RBI as the Angels handled the Indians 9-3 at Progressive Field. Howie Kendrick and Kole Calhoun also went deep and drove in two runs each for the Halos, who ended a two-game losing streak. Matt Shoemaker struck out 10 in eight innings of two-run ball to improve to 4-1 on the season. Josh Tomlin took the loss after getting rocked four five earned runs and 11 hits in 5 1/3. Carlos Santana and David Murphy each drove in a run for Cleveland, which had a three-game winning streak snapped.

Tanaka, Yankees Shut Down Blue Jays

(Bronx, NY) -- Masahiro Tanaka continued his impressive rookie campaign striking out ten Blue Jays in six innings and leading the Yankees to a 3-1 win at The Stadium.  Tanaka allowed one run on his way to his 11th victory and now has a 1.99 ERA. David Robertson closed it out for 17th save. Brett Gardner hit a two-run homer and Mark Teixeira drove in the other run for New York, which ended a two-game losing streak. Jose Reyes hit a lead-off roundtripper in the loss. Toronto is 3-7 in its last ten games. Marcus Stroman fell to 3-2 failing to make it out of the fourth inning and giving up two runs.

Royals Blow Out Tigers, Take Over AL Central Lead

(Detroit, MI) -- The Royals put up seven runs on Max Scherzer in the second and rolled to an 11-4 win over the Tigers at Comerica Park. Alex Gordon and Mike Moustakas each hit two-run homers as Kansas City won its ninth straight and took over sole possession of first place in the AL Central from Detroit. Omar Infante drove in three runs while Yordano Ventura pitched seven innings of three-run ball to improve to 5-5. Scherzer was charged with ten runs in four-plus frames as he fell to 8-3. Ian Kinsler hit a solo homer and J.D. Martinez went 3-for-4, but Detroit lost its sixth in nine games.

Davis' Slam Sends Orioles Past Rays

(St. Petersburg, FL) -- Chris Davis hit a grand slam and the Orioles held on for a 7-5 win over the Rays at Tropicana Field. Steve Pearce went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and two walks for Baltimore, which had dropped three of four. Miguel Gonzalez allowed four runs in five innings to improve to 4-4 while Zach Britton notched his eighth save. Erik Bedard allowed five runs in four-plus frames, falling to 3-5 for Tampa Bay. Desmond Jennings and Sean Rodriguez hit solo homers while James Loney knocked in two for the Rays, who had won four of their last five.

Red Sox Clip Twins

(Boston, MA) -- Brock Holt went 2-for-4 and scored twice as the Red Sox clipped the Twins 2-1 at Fenway Park. Holt also shined with the glove playing his first game in center field while Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts each knocked in a run. Jon Lester improved to 8-7 after six-and-a-third innings of one-run ball. Edward Mujica pitched the ninth for his second save as Boston won its fourth in six games. Phil Hughes pitched all eight innings for Minnesota, allowing both runs and falling to 7-3. Danny Santana managed two of the four hits while Joe Mauer knocked in a run for the Twins, who have lost four straight.

Athletics Topple Rangers

(Oakland, CA) -- Derek Norris hit a home run and totaled five RBI to lead the Athletics to a 10-6 win over the Rangers at Oakland Coliseum. Stephen Vogt drove in two runs and Alberto Callaspo and Coco Crisp each batted in a run for Oakland, which has won three of four. Tommy Milone gave up three runs in 5 2/3 to improve to 5-3 on the season. Yu Darvish struck out eight batters, but also gave up four earned runs in five frames for the loss. Rougned Odor went deep and drove in three runs for the Rangers, who have lost two of three.

Nationals Hold Off Astros

(Washington, DC) -- Anthony Rendon had two doubles and three RBI helping the Nationals pull out a 6-5 win over the Astros in the first of two at Nationals Park. Washington jumped out to a 6-1 lead and withstood a four-run eighth inning from Houston. Tanner Roark picked up his sixth win and Rafael Soriano nailed down his 14th save.  Ryan Zimmerman complied two hits and drove in two for Washington, which snapped a four-game losing streak. The Astros late rally was keyed by a two-run double off the bat of Jose Altuve. Altuve finished with four hits. Dallas Keuchel fell to 8-4, allowing four runs and walking four in five innings. Houston has lost three of four.

Tuesday, June 18 Scoreboard

MLB National League

Cincinnati Reds 6, Pittsburgh Pirates 5

Miami Marlins 6, Chicago Cubs 5

Philadelphia Phillies 5, Atlanta Braves 2

St. Louis Cardinals 5, New York Mets 2

Milwaukee Brewers 7, Arizona Diamondbacks 5

Los Angeles Dodgers 4, Colorado Rockies 2

MLB American League

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 9, Cleveland Indians 3

New York Yankees 3, Toronto Blue Jays 1

Kansas City Royals 11, Detroit Tigers 4

Baltimore Orioles 7, Tampa Bay Rays 5

Boston Red Sox 2, Minnesota Twins 1

Oakland Athletics 10, Texas Rangers 6

MLB Interleague

Seattle Mariners 6, San Diego Padres 1

Washington Nationals 6, Houston Astros 5

Chicago White Sox 8, San Francisco Giants 2

Wednesday, June 19 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB National League

11:10 a.m. - Philadelphia Phillies at Atlanta Braves

11:40 a.m. - Chicago Cubs at Miami Marlins

12:45 p.m. - New York Mets at St. Louis Cardinals

6:05 p.m. - Cincinnati Reds at Pittsburgh Pirates

8:40 p.m. - Milwaukee Brewers at Arizona Diamondbacks

9:10 p.m. - Colorado Rockies at Los Angeles Dodgers

MLB American League

12:08 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers

12:10 p.m. - Baltimore Orioles at Tampa Bay Rays

12:35 p.m. - Minnesota Twins at Boston Red Sox

2:35 p.m. - Texas Rangers at Oakland Athletics

6:05 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Cleveland Indians

6:05 p.m. - Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees

MLB Interleague

1:10 p.m. - San Francisco Giants at Chicago White Sox

6:05 p.m. - Houston Astros at Washington Nationals

9:10 p.m. - Seattle Mariners at San Diego Padres