Carpenter, Craig Lead Cardinals Over Cubs, ML Roundup

Cardinals Top Cubs

(St. Louis, MO) -- Matt Carpenter and Allen Craig had three hits each to lead the Cardinals over the Cubs 8-4 at Busch Stadium. David Freese and Jon Jay each drove in a pair of runs as the Cards broke open a close game with a run in the seventh inning and two in the eighth.  Randy Choate got the win by getting one out in the top of the sixth. Edward Mujica earned his 31st save and pitched two innings to get it. The Cardinals avoided a three-game series sweep and snapped a four-game losing streak.  Cubs reliever Blake Parker dropped to 1-and-2 after he gave up the go-ahead run in the sixth. Starlin Castro had three hits and Darwin Barney had two with two RBI for the Cubs in defeat.

Twins Topple White Sox

(Chicago, IL) -- Brian Dozier belted a three-run home run as part of a five-run fifth inning, and the Twins held on for a 5-2 win against the White Sox in Chicago. Joe Mauer added a two-run shot in the decisive frame for Minnesota, which took three-of-four in the series. Kevin Correia evened his mark at 8-8 after allowing five hits in seven scoreless innings. Adam Dunn and Conor Gillaspie each hit a solo home run in the ninth for Chicago. Jose Quintana allowed five runs in as many innings for the loss.

Rangers Rock Astros

(Houston, TX) -- Martin Perez struck out eight in a complete game as the Rangers rolled the Astros 6-1 in Houston. Perez allowed four hits and a Chris Carter home run as he improved to 5-3 for Texas, which has won seven in-a-row. Alex Rios was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI in his second contest with his new club. Jurickson Profar added a pair of RBI in the win. Dallas Keuchel struck out eight but allowed six runs in 8 2/3 innings. Houston has lost five straight games.

Orioles Blow Out Giants

(San Francisco, CA) -- The Orioles exploded for all 10 of their runs from the sixth through ninth innings and turned a 2-0 deficit into a 10-2 win over the Giants at AT&T Park. Adam Jones and J.J. Hardy hit home runs and Jones drove in four runs. Manny Machado and Nick Markakis had two hits and scored two runs each. Troy Patton pitched a scoreless sixth inning to improve to 2-0. Baltimore has won four of their last five games. Hunter Pence and Marco Scutaro had two hits each for the Giants. Matt Cain allowed three runs on five hits over seven innings but took the loss.  He dropped to 7-8.

Hernandez, Mariners Nip Brewers

(Seattle, WA) -- Felix Hernandez shut out the Brewers on four hits over eight innings to lead the Mariners to a 2-0 win at Safeco Field. Hernandez got all the run support he needed from a solo home run by Justin Smoak. Dustin Ackley also came in to score on a wild pitch. Hernandez struck out nine and improved to 12-5. It was his first win in three starts this month. Danny Farquhar pitched the ninth inning for his fourth save.  Wily Peralta allowed only two runs on four hits in eight innings but took the loss to fall to 8-12.  

Dodgers Complete Sweep Of Rays

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Clayton Kershaw dominated in helping the Dodgers to an 8-2 win over the Rays in Los Angeles. Kershaw struck out eight over eight innings and allowed two runs, one earned.  He improved to 11-7 and even knocked in two with a single in the second inning. Mark Ellis went 3-for-5 with three RBI and Adrian Gonzalez added a two-run double for the Dodgers, who have won five straight and 10 out of 11 games. Jeremy Hellickson was tagged for four runs in just three innings as he fell to 10-6 for Tampa Bay. Sam Fuld had an RBI triple and Wil Myers added a sac-fly for the Rays, who have lost five in-a-row.

Braves Fry Marlins

(Atlanta, GA) -- Freddie Freeman blasted a three-run home run to guide the Braves to a 9-4 win over the Marlins at Turner Field. Evan Gattis was 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI for Atlanta, which took two-of-three in the series. Jason Heyward registered four hits and two runs in the win. Mike Minor allowed four runs in seven innings for his 12th win. Ed Lucas went 2-for-3 with a run scored and driven in for Miami, which has lost seven-of-eight overall. Starting pitcher Henderson Alvarez added a pair of RBI in a no decision. Dan Jennings suffered the loss in relief.

Mets Thump Diamondbacks

(Phoenix, AZ) -- Andrew Brown delivered a pinch-hit, three-run home run in the seventh inning and the Mets turned a close game into a 9-5 win over the Diamondbacks at Chase Field. New York jumped out to a 4-0 lead and Arizona lost outfielder Cody Ross to a dislocated hip in the first inning. Wilmer Flores hit his first major-league home run and Jonathon Niese got the win in his first start since June. Niese had been on the disabled list but allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings to go to 4-6. Aaron Hill hit a home run and drove in four, and A.J. Pollock had three hits in the loss. Zeke Spruill allowed only one earned run in three innings but took the loss to fall to 0-2.

Rockies Top Pirates

(Denver, CO) -- Nolan Arenado's RBI double in the bottom of the seventh inning produced what proved to be the winning run in the Rockies' 3-2 win over the Pirates at Coors Field. Colorado swept the three-game series after losing nine of the previous 10 games they played. Charlie Blackmon had two hits and Manny Corpas got the win with one inning of scoreless relief. Rex Brothers earned his 10th save. Pedro Alvarez hit his 28th home run of the season in the loss.  Jeff Locke allowed only one earned run on three hits in 5 2/3 innings for the Pirates. Bryan Morris took the loss and is 5-5.  

Strasburg, Nats Blank Phillies

(Washington, DC) -- Stephen Strasburg accomplished a career milestone as the Nationals blanked the Phillies, 6-0, to complete a three-game sweep at Nationals Park. Strasburg tossed his first-career, complete-game shutout, while striking out 10 and improving to 6-9. He walked one and gave up four hits. Jayson Werth was 3-for-4 with an RBI and Ian Desmond and Adam LaRoche each scored twice. Washington is 57-and-60. Kevin Frandsen has two of the four Philadelphia hits. Chase Utley grounded into two double plays.  Kyle Kendrick allowed all six runs, two of them were unearned and fell to 10-9. The Phils are 52-65.  

Indians Rally Past Angels

(Cleveland, OH) -- Nick Swisher and Mike Aviles each hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning as the Indians rallied by the Angels 6-5 in Cleveland. Carlos Santana also went deep for the Tribe, who were down 5-0 after the fourth inning. Michael Bourn singled in the winning run during the seventh inning.  Matt Albers picked up the win while Chris Perez locked up his 18th save for Cleveland, which avoided the three-game sweep by snapping their six-game slide. Mike Trout was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI for Los Angeles. Grant Green also had two hits with two runs scored. J.C. Gutierrez suffered the loss.  

Gardner, Yankees Sink Tigers

(Bronx, NY) -- Brett Gardner lifted a two-out, solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Yankees a 5-4 walk-off win against the Tigers. Mariano Rivera gave up solo homers to Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez to allow the Tigers to tie the game in the top of the ninth.  Rivera picked up the win despite blowing his third straight save for the first time in his illustrious career. Alex Rodriguez hit his first home run of the season and surpassed Stan Musial on the all-time RBI list with a single in the third inning. Alfonso Soriano also hit a solo homer as New York took two-of-three in the series. Brayan Pena also went deep for Detroit. Jose Veras suffered his fifth loss.

Athletics Beat Blue Jays

(Toronto, Ontario) -- Alberto Callaspo doubled in two runs in the eighth inning to give the Athletics the lead as they held on for a 6-4 win over the Blue Jays in Ontario. Brandon Moss belted a two-run homer for Oakland, which has taken two-of-three to start the four-game the series. Ryan Cook picked up the win as Grant Balfour notched his 30th save. Brett Lawrie went 3-for-5 with an RBI while Jose Reyes was 2-for-5 with an RBI for Toronto, which has lost three-of-four.  Darren Oliver suffered the loss out of the bullpen.

Royals Trip Red Sox

(Kansas City, MO) -- Alex Gordon homered and drove in two runs to lead the Royals over the Red Sox 4-3 at Kauffman Stadium. Gordon had three hits for the afternoon. Starting pitcher James Shields earned the win to improve to 7-8. It was Shields' first win at home since April 30 after he allowed three runs on seven hits over seven innings. The Royals have won seven straight series. Ryan Lavarnway drove in two runs and had two hits for Boston. John Lackey took the loss to fall to 7-10 and is winless in his last five starts with four losses.

Reds Beat Padfres In Extra Innings

(Cincinnati, OH) -- The Reds didn't just win an extra-innings game Sunday -- they endured one. With a victory over the San Diego Padres by a 3-2 score in 13 innings on Joey Votto's bases-loaded sacrifice fly, Cincinnati won two of three in the series and avoided being consumed by their own shortcomings over the last two days.

A-Rod Passes Musial On RBI List

(Bronx, NY  -- New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is now sixth on the all-time RBI list. A-Rod tied former St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial with a solo home run in the second inning of Sunday's 5-4 win against the Detroit Tigers. It was the first homer of the season for the embattled star. He surpassed Stan the Man with a run-scoring single the following inning.  Rodriguez has 1,952 runs-batted in during his career, 40 shy of Lou Gehrig.

Sunday, August 11 Scoreboard

MLB NL

Cincinnati Reds 3, San Diego Padres 2 (13 inn)

Atlanta Braves 9, Miami Marlins 4

St. Louis Cardinals 8, Chicago Cubs 4

New York Mets 9, Arizona Diamondbacks 5

Colorado Rockies 3, Pittsburgh Pirates 2

Washington Nationals 6, Philadelphia Phillies 0

MLB AL

Cleveland Indians 6, LA Angels of Anaheim 5

New York Yankees 5, Detroit Tigers 4

Oakland Athletics 6, Toronto Blue Jays 4

Kansas City Royals 4, Boston Red Sox 3

Minnesota Twins 5, Chicago White Sox 2

Texas Rangers 6, Houston Astros 1

MLB Interleague

Baltimore Orioles 10, San Francisco Giants 2

Seattle Mariners 2, Milwaukee Brewers 0

Los Angeles Dodgers 8, Tampa Bay Rays 2

Monday, August 12 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB NL

6:10 p.m. - Philadelphia Phillies at Atlanta Braves

7:05 p.m. - Cincinnati Reds at Chicago Cubs

7:40 p.m. - San Diego Padres at Colorado Rockies

9:10 p.m. - New York Mets at Los Angeles Dodgers

MLB AL

11:37 a.m. - Oakland Athletics at Toronto Blue Jays

1:10 p.m. - Texas Rangers at Houston Astros

6:05 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels at New York Yankees

7:10 p.m. - Cleveland Indians at Minnesota Twins

7:10 p.m. - Detroit Tigers at Chicago White Sox

MLB Interleague

7:10 p.m. - Miami Marlins at Kansas City Royals

8:40 p.m. - Baltimore Orioles at Arizona Diamondbacks