Cardinals, Cubs, White Sox Win, ML Roundup

Cardinals Rip Reds

(St. Louis, MO) -- Joe Kelly fired six strong innings to lead the Cardinals to a 6-1 win over the Reds at Busch Stadium. Kelly says there is too much time left to get to excited about being in first place. Kelly allowed one run on eights hits as he improved to 6-3. Matt Holliday had two hits and an RBI, while Carlos Beltran also had two hits and scored twice for the Cards, who now lead the Reds by four-and-a-half games in the NL Central. Mat Latos dropped to 13-5 after giving up four runs on nine hits in six innings. Cincinnati lost its third straight. Shin-Soo Choo hit a solo home run in defeat.

Cubs Outlast Dodgers, Kershaw

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Travis Wood outdueled Clayton Kershaw as the Cubs picked up a 3-2 win over the Dodgers in Los Angeles. Wood gave up an unearned run over seven innings while striking out six and improved to 8-10. Kevin Gregg pitched the ninth for his 27th save for Chicago, which had lost six out of seven.  Starlin Castro and Dioner Navarro each had two hits and an RBI in the win.  Kershaw struck out nine and allowed two runs over five-and-two-thirds innings, though one of the runs was unearned. He fell to 13-8 with the loss. Hanley Ramirez was 3-for-4 and scored twice while Andre Ethier and Juan Uribe each had an RBI. The Dodgers have lost three out of four.

White Sox Bounce Astros

(Chicago, IL  -- The White Sox erased a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the eight to pull out a 4-3 win over the Astros with Jordan Danks' two-run single being the game-winning hit. The two teams have split the first two games at U.S. Cellular Field. Paul Konerko knocked in a run along with compiling two hits. Reliever Donnie Veal earned the win and Addison Reed tallied his 36th save.  Matt Dominguez was 3-for-4 with two RBI in the loss. Erik Bedard fell to 3-10, allowing three runs in less than two innings.

Nationals Reel In Marlins

(Washington, DC) -- The Nationals plated a pair in the first and held on for a 2-1 win over the Marlins in DC. Jayson Werth recorded an RBI groundout before Ian Desmond singled in a run as Washington won its sixth in seven games. Ross Ohlendorf pitched five-plus innings of one-run ball to up his record to 3-and-0 while Rafael Soriano shut the door in the ninth for his 34th save. Nathan Eovaldi struck out six across six innings of two-run ball but fell to 2-5 with the loss.  Christian Yelich's solo homer in the sixth gave Miami its lone run as the Fish dropped their sixth in seven games.

Brewers Clip Pirates

(Pittsburgh, PA) -- The Pirates wasted not one, but two comebacks as they faltered against the Brewers, 7-6, in the first of three at PNC Park. Pittsburgh trailed 5-0 before tying the game at five, and then at 6-5, Pedro Alvarez hit a solo homer to tie the game again in the bottom of the seventh. Caleb Gindl had a RBI sac-fly in the top of the eighth off Bryan Morris, who took the loss. Aramis Ramirez was 4-for-5 with a home run and four RBI for Milwaukee. The homer was Ramirez' 350th career long ball.  Rob Wooten improved to 3-and-0 and Jim Henderson locked up his 22nd save. Pittsburgh has lost four of six all against teams with losing records as they fell to 76-55.

Niese, Mets Blank Phils

(Flushing, NY) -- Jonathon Niese tossed a complete game shutout to lead the Mets to a 5-0 win over the Phillies at Citi Field. Niese improved to 6-6, striking out five while allowing three hits and one walk. He also supplied the offense with a bases-clearing double in the sixth. The two teams have split the opening two of the four-game set. Michael Young had two of Philadelphia's three hits. Kyle Kendrick took the loss, giving up five runs in six innings.  Kendrick walked four and struck out three.

Giants Top Rockies

(Denver, CO) -- Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval hit home runs for the Giants in their 5-3 win over the Rockies at Coors Field.  The Giants scored three runs in the first inning and never trailed.  Yusmeiro Petit got his first win of the season after being called up last week.  He allowed two runs on six hits over six innings. Sergio Romo earned his 32nd save. San Francisco has won three of its last four games. Wilin Rosario had three hits and drove in a run for the Rockies. Chad Bettis dropped to 0-3.

Yankees Blast Blue Jays

(Toronto, Ontario) -- Alfonso Soriano homered twice and drove in four as the Yankees blasted the Blue Jays 7-1 in the middle of a three-game series at Rogers Centre. The second homer was Soriano's 400th in his career. Alex Rodriguez and Mark Reynolds also went deep, while Derek Jeter had two hits, an RBI and scored a run for the Yanks, who have won seven of their last 10 games. Andy Pettitte tossed seven scoreless innings as he improved to 10-9. Robinson Cano left the game in the first inning after being hit by a pitch in the left hand. Kevin Pillar doubled in the lone run for the Jays, who had won their previous two after a seven-game skid.  J.A. Happ allowed five runs in less than five frames as he slipped to 3-4.

A's Double Up Detroit In Rain-Shortened Game

(Detroit, MI) -- The Athletics and Mother Nature held down the Tigers as Oakland grabbed a 6-3 rain-shortened victory in Detroit. Tommy Milone gave up three runs in five innings to get the win while Brandon Moss hit a two-run homer. Seth Smith added a solo shot for the A's while Jed Lowrie doubled in a pair. Oakland has won three out of four and increased its hold on the second wild card spot to three games over Cleveland. Justin Verlander was charged with the loss after giving up five runs in as many innings. Prince Fielder had a two-run single for Detroit, which has dropped its last two following a three-game winning streak. The contest was called in the top of the sixth inning.

Red Sox Pound On O's

(Boston, MA) -- Shane Victorino led an offensive onslaught as the Red Sox cruised past the Orioles 13-2 at Fenway Park. Victorino went 3-for-3 with two homers and seven RBI while scoring four times for Boston. Mike Napoli added a solo homer while Dustin Pedroia was 3-for-5 with two RBI. Felix Doubront gave up two runs and struck out seven over 6 2/3 innings and improved to 10-6. The Sox have won three straight and increased their AL East lead to two-and-a-half games over the Rays.  Wei-Yin Chen was tagged for eight runs in less than four innings for Baltimore as he fell to 7-7. Brian Roberts and Manny Machado each drove in a run for the O's, who managed just four hits. The Birds had won three out of four.

Angels Stun Rays Late

(St. Petersburg, FL) -- The Angels erased a 5-1 deficit to pull out a 6-5 win over the Rays keyed by a Erick Aybar two-run double in the top the ninth at the Trop. Aybar knocked in four runs and had two hits, while Mike Trout hit his 23rd homer of the year. Reliever Ernesto Frieri grabbed the win and Dane De La Rosa the save. Los Angeles improved to 59-71 winning the opener of the three-game set. Jose Molina was 3-for-4 with three RBI in the loss. Closer Fernando Rodney blew his eighth save and was handed his fourth loss. The Rays are 74-56.

Royals Dump Twins

(Minneapolis, MN) -- The Royals used a five-run eighth inning to lift themselves past the Twins, 6-1, in the opener of a three-game set at Target Field. Alex Gordon's three-run double keyed the inning, while Billy Butler added a solo shot in the ninth. It was Butler's 14th homer of the season. James Shields improved to 9-and-8, dealing 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts. Kansas City has won three in-a-row since dropping back down to .500.  Minnesota's bullpen fell apart after seven scoreless innings from Kevin Correia. Jared Burton was tagged with the loss.

Rangers Outlast Mariners In 10

(Seattle, WA) -- A balk on Mariners closer Danny Farquhar in the top of the 10th allowed the go-ahead run to score in the Rangers' 4-3 win at Safeco Field. Joe Nathan came for his 38th save.  Ian Kinsler had four hits and relief pitcher Tanner Scheppers earned the win to improve to 6-2. Texas goes for the series sweep on Wednesday. Farquhar fell to 0-2. Franklin Gutierrez homered and Dustin Ackley had three hits for the M's in the loss.  The Mariners have lost five straight.

D-backs Beat Padres in 10 Innings

(Phoenix, AZ) -- There were enough double-switches, shuffling infielders, big hits and near-misses to cause your head to spin Tuesday night at Chase Field, where the Padres and the D-backs engaged in a frenetic game of what-will-happen-next. "That's hard to describe that one," Padres manager Bud Black said. Frustrating might be a pretty good place to start, especially after the Padres blew a lead early and then wasted two big innings late as the D-backs won, 10-9, in 10 innings when Aaron Hill singled some four hours, 24 minutes after first pitch.

Braves Shut Out Indians

(Atlanta, GA) -- Braves starter Alex Wood and four relievers combined to shut down the Indians and pull out a 2-0 win in the first of three at Turner Field. Wood earned the victory and Craig Kimbrel nailed down his 42nd save.  Both runs came in the second inning on an Elliot Johnson triple. Atlanta improved to 79-52 despite only having three hits. Cleveland left 10 men on base and was 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Asdrubal Cabrera tallied three hits.  Danny Salazar took the loss, allowing both runs in four innings. The Tribe is 71-60.

Tuesday, August 27 Scoreboard

MLB NL

Washington Nationals 2, Miami Marlins 1

Milwaukee Brewers 7, Pittsburgh Pirates 6

New York Mets 5, Philadelphia Phillies 0

St. Louis Cardinals 6, Cincinnati Reds 1

San Francisco Giants 5, Colorado Rockies 3

Arizona Diamondbacks 10, San Diego Padres 9 (10 inn)

Chicago Cubs 3, Los Angeles Dodgers 2

MLB AL

New York Yankees 7, Toronto Blue Jays 1

Oakland Athletics 6, Detroit Tigers 3 (6 inn)

Boston Red Sox 13, Baltimore Orioles 2

Los Angeles Angels 6, Tampa Bay Rays 5

Chicago White Sox 4, Houston Astros 3

Kansas City Royals 6, Minnesota Twins 1

Texas Rangers 4, Seattle Mariners 3 (10 inn)

MLB Interleague

Atlanta Braves 2, Cleveland Indians 0

Wednesday, August 28 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB NL

2:10 p.m. - Chicago Cubs at Los Angeles Dodgers

6:05 p.m. - Miami Marlins at Washington Nationals

6:05 p.m. - Milwaukee Brewers at Pittsburgh Pirates

6:10 p.m. - Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets

7:15 p.m. - Cincinnati Reds at St. Louis Cardinals

7:40 p.m. - San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies

8:40 p.m. - San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks

MLB AL

2:40 p.m. - Texas Rangers at Seattle Mariners

6:07 p.m. - New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays

6:08 p.m. - Oakland Athletics at Detroit Tigers

6:10 p.m. - Baltimore Orioles at Boston Red Sox

6:10 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels at Tampa Bay Rays

7:10 p.m. - Houston Astros at Chicago White Sox

7:10 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Minnesota Twins

MLB Interleague

6:10 p.m. - Cleveland Indians at Atlanta Braves