Cardinals, White Sox Pick Up Wins, Cubs Lose Again, ML Roundup

Cardinals Best Braves

(St. Louis, MO) -- David Freese knocked in two runs to help the Cardinals top the Braves 6-2 in the first of four from St. Louis. Matt Holliday finished 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI for the Cards, who have won five-of-six. Cardinals second baseman Matt Carpenter says they need every win they can get especially against top tier teams. Carpenter went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs and an RBI in the win. Joe Kelly allowed two runs in six innings for the win. Paul Maholm gave up five runs in just over five frames for the loss in his return from the disabled list. Justin Upton belted a two-run homer for Atlanta, which has alternated wins and losses over its last six games.

Nats Nip Cubs In 13 Innings

(Chicago, IL) -- Chad Tracy plated the go-ahead run in the top of the 13th inning as the Nationals nipped the Cubs 5-4 at Wrigley Field. Ryan Zimmerman and Stephen Lombardozzi both homered for the Nats, who won the final three of the four-game set. Stephen Strasburg also plated a run but was denied the win after allowing the Cubs to tie the game with three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Craig Stammen pitched two scoreless innings for the win and Drew Storen closed it out for his third save.  Donnie Murphy hit a game-tying two-run homer in the ninth, while Brian Bogusevic also went deep for the Cubs, who have dropped nine of their last 11. Michael Bowden took the loss.

White Sox Snip Royals In 12

(Kansas City, MO) -- Conor Gillaspie hit a solo homer in the top of the 12th to lift the White Sox to a 4-3 win over the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Chicago swept the three-game series as Kansas City heads in the wrong direction in the playoff race. The Royals have lost five straight to drop to 64-62. They are seven back of the second AL Wild Card spot. Reliever Jake Petricka earned the victory and Addison Reed nailed down his 34th save. Kansas City was 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Luke Hochevar dropped to 3-2.

Twins Take Rubber Match From Tigers

(Detroit, MI) -- Chris Herrmann went 3-for-5 with two RBI, including the go-ahead double in the eighth, as the Twins topped the Tigers 7-6 at Comerica Park. Ryan Doumit hit a three-run homer as Minnesota took two-of-three in Detroit. Casey Fien got the win in relief and Glen Perkins got Victor Martinez to hit into a game-ending double play with two on in the ninth for his 30th save. Bruce Rondon took the loss in relief of starter Justin Verlander, who gave up six runs in seven innings. Austin Jackson and Bryan Holaday homered for Detroit.

Dodgers Shut Out Marlins Behind Kershaw

(Miami, FL) -- Clayton Kershaw and Brian Wilson combined on a six-hitter as the Dodgers shut out the Marlins 6-0 in Miami. Kershaw scattered five hits and three walks over eight innings to improve to 13-and-7 with the win. Former All-Star closer Wilson allowed one hit and struck out two in the ninth in his Los Angeles debut. Kershaw also singled in a run and Carl Crawford had a two-run double as the Dodgers took the final three games of the four-game series.  Henderson Alvarez gave up five runs in five frames to fall to 2-3 with the loss. Ed Lucas had two hits for Miami.

Reds Top Diamondbacks On Wild Pitch

(Cincinnati, OH) -- Shin-Soo Choo scored the go-ahead run in the eighth inning on Arizona's fourth wild pitch of the game as the Reds beat the Diamondbacks 2-1 at Great American Ball Park. Choo went 2-for-4 and scored twice, and Brandon Phillips drove in his 94th run of the year for Cincinnati.  Mat Latos pitched eight innings of one-run ball for his 13th win. Sam LeCure worked the ninth for his first career save. Eury De La Rosa suffered the loss in relief. Paul Goldschmidt went 3-for-4 for the Diamondbacks. Arizona is now 9 1/2 games behind LA in the NL West.

Yankees Sweep Four-Game Set With Blue Jays

(Bronx, NY) -- Curtis Granderson homered to back six solid innings from Andy Pettitte, as the Yankees completed a four-game sweep of the Blue Jays with a 5-3 win in the Bronx. Pettitte gave up just one run on four hits as he evened his record at 9-9. Yankees manager Joe Girardi says they are climbing in the standings. David Robertson pitched a perfect ninth for his second save. Eduardo Nunez drove in two, while Chris Stewart and Vernon Wells also plated a run each for the Yanks, who have won five straight and 10 of their last 12. J.P. Arencibia homered in Toronto's 13th consecutive loss at New York. The game was delayed nearly three-and-a-half hours due to rain.

Phils Walk Off On Rockies, Again

(Philadelphia, PA) -- Domonic Brown singled in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Phillies to a 5-4 walk-off win over the Rockies for the second straight night at Citizens Bank Park. The Phils also put up two runs in the ninth on Wednesday to pull out a 4-3 victory. Michael Young's infield RBI-single tied the game in the ninth for the Phils, who took three-of-four in the series.  Darin Ruf clubbed a two-run homer while Cesar Jimenez earned his first career win. Wilin Rosario hit a three-run homer for Colorado, which has lost five-of-six. Rafael Betancourt fell to 2-5 with his third blown save and second in as many days.

Pirates Drub Giants

(San Francisco, CA) -- The Pirates came across a pitcher they rarely see, and even more rarely hit. On Thursday night, however, the Bucs hit Matt Cain hard -- a little too literally for his comfort. As a consequence, the Pirates, who most of the time play tight games to mimic the 2010 World Series champion "Torture" Giants, had a rare laugher, drubbing today's hurting G-Men, 10-5, to retain their one-game lead atop the National League Central.

White Sox, Rangers To Play Civil Rights Game Saturday

(Chicago, IL) -- Major League Baseball's annual Civil Rights Game will be played in Chicago this weekend. The White Sox will host the Texas Rangers tomorrow night at U.S. Cellular Field. MLB Executive VP of Baseball Development Frank Robinson says Chicago was a logical choice to host this year.

Started in 2007, baseball's Civil Rights Game comprises a weekend of activities to promote the nation's movement for equality. The game was played the first two years at the end of spring training at AutoZone Park in Memphis. This marks the first time an American League club has hosted the game. It was played in Atlanta the last two years.

Brewers' Braun Issues Statement On Suspension

(Milwaukee, WI) -- Brewers suspended slugger Ryan Braun broke his silence regarding his suspension for using performance enhancing drugs. Braun issued a lengthy apology, detailing which PED's he used during his MVP season in 2011. He said he took a "cream and a lozenge" at the end of the year as he was trying to heal from a nagging injury. He was suspended in late July for 65 games, which is the rest of the season.

Thursday, August 22 Scoreboard

MLB NL

Cincinnati Reds 2, Arizona Diamondbacks 1

Los Angeles Dodgers 6, Miami Marlins 0

Washington Nationals 5, Chicago Cubs 4 (13 inn)

Philadelphia Phillies 5, Colorado Rockies 4

St. Louis Cardinals 6, Atlanta Braves 2

Pittsburgh Pirates 10, San Francisco Giants 5

MLB AL

New York Yankees 5, Toronto Blue Jays 3

Minnesota Twins 7, Detroit Tigers 6

Chicago White Sox 4, Kansas City Royals 3 (12 inn)

MLB Interleague

No Games Scheduled

Friday, August 23 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB NL

6:05 p.m. - Arizona Diamondbacks at Philadelphia Phillies

6:10 p.m. - Colorado Rockies at Miami Marlins

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

7:15 p.m. - Atlanta Braves at St. Louis Cardinals

9:10 p.m. - Chicago Cubs at San Diego Padres

9:15 p.m. - Pittsburgh Pirates at San Francisco Giants

MLB AL

6:05 p.m. - Minnesota Twins at Cleveland Indians

6:05 p.m. - Oakland Athletics at Baltimore Orioles

6:10 p.m. - New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays

7:10 p.m. - Texas Rangers at Chicago White Sox

7:10 p.m. - Toronto Blue Jays at Houston Astros

9:10 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels at Seattle Mariners

MLB Interleague

6:10 p.m. - Detroit Tigers at New York Mets

7:10 p.m. - Washington Nationals at Kansas City Royals

9:10 p.m. - Boston Red Sox at Los Angeles Dodgers