Sports Desk
Shane Bieber struck out 10 in five innings to become the American League’s first seven-game winner and the host Cleveland Indians beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-1 on Sunday afternoon.
Bieber allowed one run on five hits and joined Chicago Cubs’ right-hander Yu Darvish as the second seven-game winner in the majors. He recorded his sixth double-digit strikeout game on the season and raised his major league-leading strikeout total to 94.
Bieber also matched Hall of Famer Bob Feller by getting at least eight strikeouts in each of his first nine starts, the longest such streak to open a season in Indians history. Feller achieved the feat in 1946 when he threw 371 1/3 innings in 48 games and recorded 12 double-digit strikeout games.
Bieber (7-0) retired the first 11 hitters he faced and matched Feller’s mark when he struck out Tyrone Taylor in the fifth.
Cardinals 7, Cubs 3
Paul Goldschmidt hit a three-run homer to lead visiting St. Louis past Chicago.
The Cardinals won their third straight game against the NL Central-leading Cubs to move within 1 1/2 games of first place in the division.
Cardinals starting pitcher Dakota Hudson (2-2) earned the victory after allowing three runs on five hits in five innings. Cubs starter Jon Lester (2-2) lasted just 3 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on six hits, two walks and a hit by pitch.
Rockies 7, Dodgers 6
Matt Kemp hit a two-run home run against his former team to give Colorado the win over host Los Angeles.
Josh Fuentes also hit a home run as the Rockies took the lead on four different occasions while handing the Dodgers their first series loss of the season. Colorado improved to 2-1 to start a six-game road trip that figures to be key for their postseason chances.
Corey Seager hit two home runs for the Dodgers, while Will Smith and Chris Taylor also went deep. AJ Pollock had three hits for Los Angeles, which is 10-1-3 in its 14 series this season, but still has the best record in baseball at 30-12.
Braves 10, Nationals 3
Freddie Freeman hit his second grand slam in three days to break open a close game and send host Atlanta past Washington to earn a split of the four-game series. The two National League East rivals meet again in a four-game series next weekend in Washington. They have split six games thus far this season.
Freeman had failed to hit a grand slam in his first 104 career opportunities with the bases loaded until he ended the streak on Friday in the second game of a doubleheader with the Nationals. He did it again in the sixth inning, taking one 421 feet to the opposite field against reliever Kyle Finnegan to expand a 3-1 lead and put the rout in motion.
It was Freeman’s seventh home run and extended his streak of reaching base to 22 straight games. He has hit safely in 19 of his last 20 games.
Rays 5, Marlins 4 (10 innings)
Brandon Lowe hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to cap a two-run 10th inning, rallying Tampa Bay to a series-winning victory over Miami in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Trailing 4-3 after Matt Joyce’s RBI single in the top of the 10th, the Rays tied it on Ji-Man Choi’s leadoff pinch-hit double over first base to score baserunner Joey Wendle.
John Curtiss (3-0) allowed an unearned run in the top of the 10th for the win, and Marlins closer Brandon Kintzler (1-3) gave up the two runs — one earned — that decided the game.
Giants 4, Diamondbacks 2
Donovan Solano’s two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning helped host San Francisco rally to beat Arizona.
Sep 6, 2020; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Shane Bieber (57) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Caleb Baragar (5-1) got the final out of the sixth inning to earn the win. The Giants improved to 7-2 against Arizona this season. Tyler Rogers worked the ninth inning for his third save.
The Diamondbacks led 2-0 early after Tim Locastro’s leadoff home run and a Josh Rojas sacrifice fly. Locastro homered on the third pitch of the game from Giants starter Johnny Cueto, going deep to center field. The Diamondbacks have lost 15 of their last 17 games.
Pirates 3, Reds 2
Erik Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning gave Pittsburgh a walk-off win and a split of its four-game series with visiting Cincinnati.
With the Pirates trailing 2-1 entering the bottom of the ninth against Raisel Iglesias (2-3), Josh Bell and Ke’Bryan Hayes opened with singles to center. Cole Tucker’s base hit to right drove in Bell to tie the game. Hayes was out in a rundown on pinch-hitter Kevin Newman’s broken-bat fielder’s choice before Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly won the game.
Pittsburgh’s Chad Kuhl was lifted after just three innings and, at times, showing uncharacteristic control issues. He gave up two runs and two hits while recording five strikeouts and four walks. Those four walks came against the first 10 batters.
Orioles 5, Yankees 1
DJ Stewart homered for the second straight game and Dean Kremer tossed six strong innings in his major league debut as host Baltimore beat New York for the third straight time.
The Orioles started the bottom of the first inning with a Hanser Alberto bunt single. Stewart then followed with a two-run homer to right field. Stewart had started the season 0-for-17 before homering twice Saturday night, including once against Gerrit Cole in a 6-1 victory. The right fielder gave the Orioles a fast edge in this contest.
Kremer (1-0) gave up one run on one hit over 88 pitches. He struck out seven, walked three and didn’t get into much trouble. The Orioles came into Friday’s doubleheader having lost 17 straight to the Yankees in Baltimore, dating back to the summer of 2018. But the Orioles won the nightcap Friday to start the three-game winning streak.
