Cardinals, Cubs, White Sox Go Down To Defeat

By ESPN

On a night when Matt Harvey fizzled and so much went wrong for the New York Mets, they still rallied late for a rousing win.

Curtis Granderson opened a five-run eighth inning with his 300th homer, a tiebreaking shot that helped the Mets bail out an ailing Harvey in a 9-4 victory Wednesday over the Chicago Cubs.

Harvey lost the zip on his fastball and gave up three homers in four innings -- including Anthony Rizzo's latest leadoff shot and a titanic drive by Kyle Schwarber . After the game, the former ace said he's at a pretty low point physically and plans to see a doctor Thursday.

"My arm was just not working at all," said Harvey, who had a rib removed last year during surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. "I think the last time I threw 87 (mph) with a fastball was probably freshman year of high school."

"It's been very difficult. A very difficult year," he added. "A lot of ups and downs. A lot of discomfort and trying to battle through weaknesses and strengthening areas that I'm not used to. It's been rough. I have one less rib. I had pretty major surgery. There's going to be discomfort with that."

New York also lost second baseman Neil Walker to a left leg injury , the latest issue to befall a team hampered by a long list of health problems the past two seasons. But replacement Lucas Duda hit a three-run homer off Hector Rondon in the eighth, and T.J. Rivera capped the outburst with an RBI single for his third hit.

With sluggers Yoenis Cespedes and Michael Conforto on the bench to begin the game, the resurgent Mets came back from a 4-1 deficit and took two of three from the World Series champions heading into a pivotal four-game series against NL East-leading Washington. New York (30-34) has won five of six overall.

"This is a big win for us, especially going into tomorrow night," manager Terry Collins said.

Granderson received a standing ovation and came out for a curtain call after connecting in the eighth off Carl Edwards Jr. (2-1). The veteran outfielder had the souvenir ball from home run No. 300 in his locker after the game.

Jerry Blevins (4-0) struck out three of his four batters, and Addison Reed retired Rizzo with the bases loaded for the final out.

Juan Lagares hit a tying triple on an 0-2 pitch from Pedro Strop with two outs in the sixth, the start of a meltdown by Chicago's bullpen.

The Cubs (32-33) hit back-to-back homers to begin the game but played some sloppy defense and lost for the eighth time in their past nine visits to Citi Field, including the 2015 NL Championship Series.

"There's a certain unpredictability about us. That's why we're a .500 ballclub right now," manager Joe Maddon said. "I believe in our group, but we have to prove it on the field. Very simple."

Chicago has dropped six of eight following a five-game winning streak.

"We developed guys last year and won the World Series. No team has ever done that, I don't think," Rizzo said. "So, you've got to take your lumps."

Cubs rookie Ian Happ, who hit a grand slam Tuesday night, followed Rizzo's leadoff shot with his seventh home run and Chicago had a 2-0 lead after seven pitches. Schwarber's 467-foot shot over the Shea Bridge, a walkway for Citi Field fans above and beyond the bullpens in right-center, made it 4-1 in the fourth.

Brewers 7, Cardinals 6

Eric Thames would like to erase the last six weeks from his memory.

The Milwaukee Brewers infielder took a big step in that direction on Wednesday. Thames homered and drove in three runs, Matt Garza pitched five innings in his first start after a short stint on the disabled list, and the Brewers held on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-6.

Eric Sogard added a two-run double to lead a four-run second inning as Milwaukee improved to 18-13 on the road.

Thames came into the contest in a 1-for-15 skid. He was hitting just .108 in June and posted a .221 mark in May. Signed as a free agent in November after three seasons in Korea, Thames was one of the hottest hitters in the National League in April and set a franchise record with 11 home runs.

But May and June have not been that kind.

"The last month and a half, it's just been a grind," Thames said. "But that's baseball. I'm going to keep fighting, keep plugging away, keep adjusting."

Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell was happy to see Thames break out.

"Two big hits, he got us out to a big lead," Counsell said.

Aledmys Diaz hit a two-run homer for the Cardinals, who nearly recovered after falling behind 6-0. St. Louis has lost two in a row after winning four straight.

Closer Corey Knebel came on with two outs in the top of the eighth after a one-hour rain delay and got the last four outs for his 10th save in 13 chances.

Thames ripped a two-run homer in the first and an RBI double in the second against starter Mike Leake (5-6).

Garza (3-2) allowed four runs and five hits. He suffered a chest contusion while running into teammate Jesus Aguilar on June 3 and missed one start.

"I was just telling myself, "slow down, catch your breath, keep going," Garza said. "They barreled a lot more balls up than I wanted them to. But that's the nature of the beast."

Milwaukee tallied six runs on six hits over the first two innings against Leake, who dropped his fourth successive decision. Leake bounced back with four scoreless innings after the rough start.

"He figured it out and sailed," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said.

Diaz's blast off reliever Jacob Barnes in the eighth brought St. Louis to 7-6.

The contest was delayed twice by rain, with the delays totaling 1 hour, 50 minutes.

Orioles 10, White Sox 6

The Baltimore Orioles kept insisting they would turn things around and break out of their slump. Maybe this is a start.

Welington Castillo hit his first career grand slam and drove in a personal-best five runs, and the Orioles snapped a six-game losing streak with a rain-delayed 10-6 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

Castillo gave the Orioles an 8-5 lead with his drive against Miguel Gonzalez (4-8) in the fifth inning and helped prevent them from matching their longest slide of the season. Baltimore also evened its record at 32-32 after falling below .500 for the first time since Oct. 3, 2015.

"We needed a win, we got one today and hopefully we can keep it rolling," Dylan Bundy said.

The Orioles have been struggling since a 22-10 start.

Things weren't looking good for them early on, after Matt Davidson homered in his third straight game to help Chicago grab a 5-1 lead. But the Orioles turned this one around, pounding out 13 hits and overcoming two errors on the way to a lopsided victory.

Trey Mancini had a double and two singles. He scored three runs and drove in one.

Mark Trumbo added two hits and two runs, and a shaky Dylan Bundy (7-5) got the support he needed. The right-hander picked up the win after going 1-4 in his previous six starts. He gave up five runs and six hits in five innings.

Gonzalez got pounded for eight runs -- matching his highest total since June 25, 2016 -- and nine hits over five innings. The right-hander is 1-8 in his past nine starts.

"I've been there before and I've had success," he said. "Right now I'm struggling. I just have to keep working between my starts and hopefully everything will turn around."

The game was delayed 90 minutes at the start. And after getting outscored a combined 16-8 by the White Sox over the previous two games, the Orioles looked like they might get blown out again.

They jumped into it by scoring three in the fourth, with Hyun Soo Kim's two-run single cutting it to 5-4. Castillo got caught in a rundown between second and third on the play for the third out, but did he ever make up for it in the fifth.

Gonzalez retired the first two batters before giving up singles to Trumbo and Mancini and walking Jonathan Schoop. That brought up Castillo, whose towering grand slam to the bushes beyond the center-field wall gave the Orioles an 8-5 lead.

"(Castillo) has had had a track record of that for awhile," manager Buck Showalter said. "You always wonder how numbers are going to translate from league to league. He had to learn a lot of new hitters and new pitchers. ... He's been a quick study. Very easy to pull for, really good teammate."

Wednesday, June 14 Scoreboard

Miami 11, Oakland 6

San Diego 4, Cincinnati 2

Kansas City 7, San Francisco 2

Atlanta 13, Washington 2

Boston 7, Philadelphia 3

Colorado 5, PIttsburgh 1

Toronto 7, Tampa Bay 6

New York Mets 9, Chicago Cubs 4

Los Angeles Dodgers 6, Cleveland 4

Arizona 2, Detroit 1

Baltimore 10, Chicago White Sox 6

Seattle 6, Minnesota 4

Houston 13, Texas 2

Milwaukee 7, St. Louis 6

Los Angeles Angels 7, New York Yankees 5

Thursday, June 15 Schedule (All Times Central)

Los Angeles Dodgers at Cleveland, 11:10 a.m.

Seattle at Minnesota, 12:10 p.m.

Baltimore at Chicago White Sox, 1;10 p.m.

Boston at Philadelphia, 6:05 p.m.

Washington at New York Mets, 6:10 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Detroit, 6:10 p.m.

Milwaukee at St. Louis, 6:15 p.m.

San Francisco at Colorado, 7:40 p.m.

New York Yankees at Oakland, 9:05 p.m.

Kansas City at Los Angeles Angels, 9:07 p.m.

Friday, June 16 Schedule (All Times Central)

Washington at New York Mets, 6 p.m.

St. Louis at Baltimore, 6:05 p.m.

Arizona at Philadelphia, 6:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh, 6:05 p.m.

Chicago White Sox at Toronto, 6:07 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Detroit, 6:10 p.m.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Cincinnati, 6:10 p.m.

Miami at Atlanta, 6:35 p.m.

Seattle at Texas, 7:05 p.m.

San Diego at Milwaukee, 7:10 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 7:10 p.m.

Boston at Houston, 7:10 p.m.

San Francisco at Colorado, 7:40 p.m.

New York Yankees at Oakland, 8;35 p.m.

Kansas City at Los Angeles Angels, 9:07 p.m.

Saturday, June 17 Schedule (All Times Central)

Chicago White sox at Toronto, 12:07 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 1:10 p.m.

San Francisco at Colorado, 2:10 p.m.

St. Louis at Baltimore, 3:05 p.m.

New York Yankees at Oakland, 3:05 p.m.

Arizona at Philadelphia, 3:05 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Detroit, 3:10 p.m.

San Diego at Milwaukee, 3:10 p.m.

Miami at Atlanta, 3:10 p.m.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Cincinnati, 3:10 p.m.

Washington at New York Mets, 3:10 p.m.

Seattle at Texas, 4:05 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 7:10 p.m.

Kansas city at Los Angeles Angels, 7:15 p.m.

Boston at Houston, 7:15 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh, 7:15 p.m.

Sunday, June 18 Schedule (All Times Central)

Chicago White Sox at Toronto, 12:07 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Detroit, 12:10 p.m.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Cincinnati, 12:10 p.m.

Washington at New York Mets, 12:10 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at PIttsburgh, 12:35 p.m.

St. Louis at Baltimore, 12:35 p.m.

Miami at Atlanta, 12:35 p.m.

Arizona at Philadelphia, 12:35 p.m.

San Diego at Milwaukee, 1:10 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 1:10 p.m.

Seattle at Texas, 2:05 p.m.

San Francisco at Colorado, 2:10 p.m.

Kansas City at Los Angeles Angels, 2:37 p.m.

New York Yankees at Oakland, 3:05 p.m.

Boston at Houston, 7 p.m.