Cardinals Shut Out Cubs, White Sox Blank Tigers

Wainwright, Cardinals Shut Out Cubs

(Chicago, IL) -- Adam Wainwright and two relievers combined on a four-hit shutout as the Cardinals blanked the Cubs 8-0 in the opener of a three-game series at Wrigley Field. Wainwright struck out eight as he became the second 20-game winner in baseball. Jon Jay drove in three runs and Matt Adams knocked in two for the Cards, who remain two-and-a-half games ahead of the Pirates for first in the NL Central. Pittsburgh blanked Atlanta 1-0 on Monday. Matt Holliday and Jhonny Peralta both plated a run and scored twice in the victory. Travis Wood was rocked for seven runs, six earned, in five frames to fall to 8-13 with the loss, the Cubs fourth in five games.

The Cardinals continue their three-game series against the Cubs with the middle game tonight at Wrigley Field. Shelby Miller takes the mound for St. Louis.  He's 10-9 with a 3.68 ERA. Kyle Hendricks starts for Chicago. He's 7-2 with a 2.28 ERA. The series finale is tomorrow night.

Cardinals farm director Gary LaRocque is staying put. He had interviewed for the vacant general manager job in Arizona, but Cardinals GM John Mozeliak tells the "Post-Dispatch" that LaRocque intends to stay. The 61-year-old has been with the Cards since 2008.

White Sox Blank Tigers

(Detroit, MI) -- Rookie Chris Bassitt fired seven-and-two-thirds shutout innings as the White Sox blanked the Tigers 2-0 in the opener of a three-game series at Comerica Park. Bassitt, making just his fourth career start and fifth appearance overall, scattered six hits while striking out three for his first win.  Jake Petricka recorded the final four outs to earn his 14th save. Tyler Flowers hit a two-run homer in the second inning for Chicago, which has won four of six. Kyle Lobstein pitched seven solid innings for the Tigers but allowed the homer to Flowers for his first career loss. Victor Martinez was 2-for-2 with a walk for Detroit, which is now just one game ahead of Kansas City for first place in the AL Central.

Pirates Top Braves

(Atlanta, GA) -- Andrew McCutchen hit a solo homer in the sixth as the Pirates topped the Braves 1-0 from Turner Field. Francisco Liriano allowed three hits over six innings for the win. Mark Melancon picked up his 32nd save for Pittsburgh, which holds a 4 1/2 game lead over Milwaukee for a Wild Card spot. The Bucs are 2 1/2 games back of St. Louis for first place in the NL Central. Aaron Harang gave up the homer over seven innings for the loss. Freddie Freeman had two hits for Atlanta, which has lost four straight.

Atlanta Braves have fired general  manager Frank  Wren, announcing  the decision a day after the team  was officially eliminated from playoff contention. John Hart, a senior advisor with the organization since last November and a former GM with the Indians and Rangers, was named the interim general  manager.

The Braves were tied for first place at the All-Star break and still in the hunt for a wild card berth heading into the final month, but a 4-14 mark in September  has dropped the team to 76-79 entering Monday's action. Wren had been the club's general manager since October 2007, taking over the baseball operations when John Schuerholz moved into the role of president. The Braves reached the playoffs three times under Wren, including an NL East championship last year.

Giants Drop Dodgers In 13

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Andrew Susac drove in the first of three runs in the top of the 13th inning to help lift the Giants to a 5-2 win over the Dodgers in LA.  Gregor Blanco doubled in a run in the 13th and blasted a solo homer in the first. Joe Panik chipped in with an RBI with Santiago Casilla picking up the win and Hunter Strickland notching the save. Carl Crawford launched a solo shot and Dee Gordon batted in a run for Los Angeles. Kevin Correia took the loss after starter Dan Haren struck out seven in seven innings of two-run ball. San Francisco now sits 3 1/2 games behind the Dodgers for first place in the NL West.

Padres Top Rockies

(San Diego, CA) -- Rene Rivera doubled in a run during the first as the Padres held on for a 1-0 win over the Rockies in San Diego. Eric Stults improved to 8-and-17 with the win. He gave up seven hits in 6 1/3 innings of shutout ball. Kevin Quackenbush notched his sixth save for San Diego, which has won five straight. Tyler Matzek allowed the run over six innings to slip to 6-11. Colorado had won six in-a-row.

Royals Blank Indians; Drop Completion Of Suspended Game

(Cleveland, OH) -- The Royals are within one game of the AL Central-leading Detroit Tigers after splitting a pair of games with the Indians in Cleveland.  Danny Duffy tossed six scoreless innings to lead KC to a 2-0 win in the regularly scheduled game at Progressive Field. Duffy improved to 9-11 while Greg Holland closed it out for his 44th save. Eric Hosmer and Alcides Escobar plated runs in the victory. Carlos Carrasco struck out nine in 7 1/3 frames, but allowed both runs to fall to 8-6 with the loss. Before the regular game, the teams finished a suspended contest from August 31st in KC. It resumed in the bottom of the 10th inning, with the Indians leading 4-2. Nori Aoki singled in a run for KC before the Tribe held on for a 4-3 win.

Pineda, Yankees Shut Out Orioles

(Bronx, NY) -- Michael Pineda pitched seven-and-a-third innings of one-hit, scoreless ball to lead the Yankees to a 5-0 win over the Orioles in the opener of a four-game series at Yankee Stadium. Pineda struck out a season-high eight batters and walked one as he upped his record to 4-5. Derek Jeter drove in three runs and Chase Headley homered for the Yanks, who have won five of their last six. Jose Pirela hit an RBI-triple in his first major league at-bat and ended 2-for-3 with two runs scored in the victory. J.J. Hardy had the lone hit for the O's, who have dropped three of four.  Wei-Yin Chen gave up four runs, two earned, in six frames as he slipped to 16-5 with the loss.

Blue Jays Blast Mariners

(Toronto, Ontario) -- Jose Bautista hit a solo homer and scored three times to carry the Blue Jays to a 14-4 win over the Mariners from Rogers Centre. Kevin Pillar and Anthony Gose also went deep in the win. Danny Valencia added three RBI while Edwin Encarnacion had two for Toronto, which has won two of three.  J.A. Happ tossed seven innings of two-run ball for the win. James Paxton allowed nine runs in 2 2/3 innings for the loss. Kyle Seager and Chris Denorfia homered for Seattle, which is two games back of Kansas City for the second AL Wild Card spot.

Rangers Top Astros

(Arlington, TX) -- Rougned Odor knocked in three runs with a bases-clearing triple in the third as the Rangers topped the Astros 4-3 from Arlington. Guilder Rodriguez drove in the winning run in the seventh inning for Texas, which has won two straight. Derek Holland allowed three runs in seven-plus innings for the win. Neftali Feliz grabbed his 12th save. Jose Altuve knocked in a run with his 46th double of the year for Houston, which had won two in-a-row. Nick Tropeano allowed four runs in 6 2/3 frames for the loss.

Athletics Double Up Angels

(Oakland, CA) -- The A's put up six runs in the first inning to power them to an 8-4 win over the Angels at O.co Coliseum. Stephen Vogt and Geovany Soto each batted in a pair of runs. Derek Norris and Nate Freiman both chipped in an RBI for Oakland, which sits a game up on the Royals for the top AL Wild Card spot. Jeff Samardzija gave up an unearned run in seven innings of work for the victory. C.J. Wilson got tagged for six runs, four earned, while recording just two outs to fall to 13-10. Albert Pujols blasted a three-run homer and Mike Trout plated a run for Anaheim, which sits two-and-a-half games up on Baltimore for the best record in baseball and home field advantage throughout the postseason.

Diamondbacks Top Twins To Snap Skid

(Minneapolis, MN) -- Mark Trumbo clubbed a two-run homer to cap a five-run fifth inning as the Diamondbacks beat the Twins 6-2 in the first of three at Target Field. Didi Gregorius had three doubles, an RBI and scored for Arizona, which snapped a six-game losing steak. Josh Collmenter tossed 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball to improve his mark to 11-8. Chris Herrmann and Josmil Pinto plated a run each for the Twins, who have dropped three in-a-row. Ricky Nolasco was tagged for all five runs in less than five frames as he dipped to 5-12.

Monday, September 22 Scoreboard

MLB National League

Pittsburgh Pirates 1, Atlanta Braves 0

St. Louis Cardinals 8, Chicago Cubs 0

San Diego Padres 1, Colorado Rockies 0

San Francisco Giants 5, Los Angeles Dodgers 2 (13 inn)

MLB American League

Cleveland Indians 4, Kansas City Royals 3 (10 inn, Completion of suspended game from 8/31)

New York Yankees 5, Baltimore Orioles 0

Kansas City Royals 2, Cleveland Indians 0

Toronto Blue Jays 14, Seattle Mariners 4

Chicago White Sox 2, Detroit Tigers 0

Texas Rangers 4, Houston Astros 3

Oakland Athletics 8, LA Angels of Anaheim 4

MLB Interleague

Arizona Diamondbacks 6, Minnesota Twins 2

Tuesday, September 23 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB National League

6:05 p.m. - New York Mets at Washington Nationals

6:10 p.m. - Philadelphia Phillies at Miami Marlins

6:10 p.m. - Pittsburgh Pirates at Atlanta Braves

6:10 p.m. - Milwaukee Brewers at Cincinnati Reds

7:05 p.m. - St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs

9:10 p.m. - San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers

9:10 p.m. - Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres

MLB American League

6:05 p.m. - Baltimore Orioles at New York Yankees

6:05 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians

6:07 p.m. - Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays

6:08 p.m. - Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers

6:10 p.m. - Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox

7:05 p.m. - Houston Astros at Texas Rangers

9:05 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Oakland Athletics

MLB Interleague

7:10 p.m. - Arizona Diamondbacks at Minnesota Twins