Sports Al Dente

Jackson Holliday hit a three-run double in the sixth inning, helping the Baltimore Orioles come from behind to beat the Houston Astros 3-2 on Saturday. This was Baltimore’s second big hit with the bases loaded in less than 24 hours.

Colton Cowser extended the key rally by hustling for an infield single. After Tayler Scott replaced Framber Valdez (13-6), Holliday, who had been struggling with a 0-for-20 slump, came in as a pinch hitter and drove a double to right-center field on the first pitch.

“Cowser getting to first base and sliding in was crucial for that moment,” Holliday said. “It’s important games. They’re a good team. Three RBIs in that big of a spot, it’s pretty awesome.”

Houston’s Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña each hit a home run, but despite Valdez’s strong performance for most of the game, the Astros lost their lead for the second consecutive day.

The Orioles had won 7-5 on Friday night, thanks to a five-run eighth inning featuring Anthony Santander’s grand slam.

Keegan Akin (3-0) earned the win in relief in his first game back after being on the paternity list. Yannier Cano added 1 1/3 scoreless innings, and Seranthony Domínguez pitched a perfect ninth for his fifth save since joining the Orioles last month.

Valdez allowed three runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out eight and walked one but lost for the first time since June 18. He had been 8-0 in his previous 10 starts.

Baltimore is now just half a game behind the AL East-leading New York Yankees, who lost to Colorado. The Astros remain 4 1/2 games ahead of Seattle in the AL West.

Seiya Suzuki hit two home runs and a triple, and Shota Imanaga pitched seven innings, giving up two runs, as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Miami Marlins 14-2 on Saturday.

Pete Crow-Armstrong, who had an inside-the-park home run the day before, also hit a home run, a 437-foot shot into the upper deck seats. Miguel Amaya added three hits and a walk, making him 8 for 12 in his last three games. Patrick Wisdom also homered for the Cubs, who collected 17 hits.

“We got to relax a little bit late in the game,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “It sets up the pitching really well.”

Imanaga (10-3) allowed four hits, walked two, and struck out three. It was his seventh start in which he pitched seven innings.

“I was able to go into the seventh but my goal is to try to get into the eighth inning,” Imanaga said through a translator. “They were aggressive early in the count, and I noticed that. It was kind of my game plan — let them hit it and keep going from there.”

The Cubs (65-65) are 14-7 since July 31 and reached .500 for the first time since June 5. They had been nine games under .500 at 39-48 on July 3.

“We dug ourselves a big hole,” Counsell said. “It’s taken us a bit, but this stretch, specifically at the end of August, we’ve played consistent baseball. It means that a lot of people are contributing. Consistency means you’re getting contributions up and down the roster.”

The Marlins have lost eight of their last nine games and are now at an NL-worst 46-83.

Chicago quickly got on the board against Miami starter Valente Bellozo (2-2) with Suzuki’s solo home run in the first inning, driving Bellozo’s fastball over the center field wall.

Zac Gallen pitched six innings allowing only two hits, and Eugenio Suárez hit a two-run double off the Green Monster to lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 4-1 win over the Boston Red Sox on Saturday. This victory marks the Diamondbacks’ fifth consecutive win.

Gallen (10-6), making his first appearance at Fenway Park, struck out nine batters and walked four, achieving double-digit wins for the third season in a row. He held a no-hitter until the fifth inning when Connor Wong got a single into right field. Gallen left after 99 pitches with Arizona leading 4-0 in the top of the seventh inning.

Before the game, Gallen signed his name inside the Green Monster and was surprised by the sounds from batting practice. He reminisced about a tour of the ballpark he took with his mother during high school and some games he attended in college.

“It’s fun to think about being on the mound with the guys that have played here over the last hundred years,” Gallen said. “It’s fun to see ‘Sweet Caroline’ in the eighth inning. You grew up a baseball fan, those are things that kind of stick with you.”

The Diamondbacks have won 23 of their last 29 games and now hold the top spot in the NL wild card race. They are four games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

The Red Sox managed only three hits through eight innings but started the ninth with back-to-back hits off Paul Sewald to score once, making it 4-1 before Sewald retired the next three batters.

Kutter Crawford (8-11) allowed three hits in five innings for Boston, with two walks and three strikeouts. Boston’s pitchers gave up six walks, including four that helped Arizona score two runs in the seventh inning without any hits.

Jake Bauers hit a home run and scored three times as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Oakland Athletics 9-5 on Saturday.

Willy Adames, Rhys Hoskins, and Garrett Mitchell each had two hits for the Brewers, who won their second game in a row during their final visit to the Coliseum. The A’s plan to play the next three seasons in Sacramento before moving to Las Vegas for the 2028 season.

“I like what we did today,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “Most of the breaks went our way today. Every close play went in our favor and we had a lot of soft hits.”

Out of Milwaukee’s 10 hits, seven were singles, but the Brewers made things happen on the basepaths, creating many opportunities for themselves.

Bauers’ run in the eighth inning was a perfect example. After getting a walk, Bauers scored from first base when Mitchell hit a blooper into short left field.

The Brewers also drew seven walks and scored four runs with two outs, including Bauers’ two-run homer in the fifth inning.

“We have a lot of guys in here who are committed to playing the right way,” Bauers said. “When you do that, you put yourself in positions to score extra runs and get insurance runs when you need them.

That’s been the mindset all year and it’s probably going to continue to be the mindset.”

Colin Rea (12-4) won his team-leading 12th game. Facing the A’s for the first time, the right-hander retired 12 of the first 14 hitters he faced and struck out five, but allowed four runs, including two home runs, in 6 2/3 innings.

Rea’s 12 wins this season are double the total from last year. The 34-year-old, who had Tommy John surgery in 2016, had 14 career wins in his first five seasons in the majors.

Jackson Holliday has faced a few tough batting slumps during his rookie season, but he’s proven he can come through in key moments.

Holliday hit a three-run double as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning, helping the Baltimore Orioles secure a 3-2 win over Houston on Saturday. The 20-year-old infielder had been struggling, going 0-for-20 before he drove a line drive to right-center field with the bases loaded.

“I’ve been here before,” said Holliday, who had a tough start to his big league career earlier this season, going 2 for 34 before being sent back to the minors.

“Obviously it’s not great, but that experience the first time is helpful. Not really thinking too much about it. I’ve hit some balls hard, just haven’t had great luck.”

The Orioles created their own luck on Saturday. Colton Cowser, another rookie who batted right before Holliday, ran hard to beat out a soft grounder to first base, loading the bases with two outs and the Orioles down 2-0.

Cowser slid headfirst to avoid a possible collision with first baseman Jon Singleton.

“It’s kind of an unconventional thing to do — you’re not really taught to do that,” Cowser said. “Just instincts kind of take over.”

The Orioles are now just a half-game behind the first-place New York Yankees in the AL East. However, their recent performance has been mixed, with a record of 27-30 in their last 57 games due to several pitching injuries. Last season, on their way to 101 wins, the Orioles had 48 comeback victories, the most in the major leagues.

Mike Yastrzemski hit a home run among his three hits, and the San Francisco Giants managed to win 4-3 against the Seattle Mariners on Saturday despite a rough performance by starter Blake Snell.

Snell, who is from the Seattle area, walked five batters in the second inning, including two with the bases loaded, and ended with a season-high six walks. He struck out two batters in a perfect third inning before being taken out of the game.

Snell allowed two runs without giving up a hit and threw 74 pitches, with 42 of them for strikes.

“Internally, I just got mad at myself,” Snell said. “They had no hits, so giving up two runs on no hits is pretty bad. Coming in and talking to myself, figuring out something’s got to change, that’s what I needed. I’ve got to do a better job in the moment.”

Spencer Bivens (3-1) pitched three solid innings of scoreless relief, and Ryan Walker, the fifth Giants pitcher, closed the game for his third save. Walker hasn’t given up an earned run since July 30, going through 11 appearances.

“He’s unbelievable,” Yastrzemski said. “He’s our workhorse down there. You can throw him in any role, and he’s going to say yes, he’s not going to put up a stink. He’s gonna do whatever needs to be done for the team, and do it very well. I’m really glad that I don’t have to face him right now.”

The Mariners ended the game with a season-high nine walks but only managed four hits. Seattle (65-65) fell back to a .500 record after beating San Francisco 6-5 in 10 innings the day before, in Dan Wilson’s first game as manager. Scott Servais was fired after the Mariners lost eight of their previous nine games.

The Giants (66-65) have been close to .500 for most of August.

George Kirby (9-10) struggled through 4 2/3 innings, giving up three runs on nine hits. He left the game after Yastrzemski hit a two-out double and Thairo Estrada followed with an RBI single to put the Giants ahead 3-2.

Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Hunter Stratton tore the patella tendon in his left knee during the fourth inning of Saturday night’s 10-2 loss to Cincinnati and will be out for a “significant time,” according to manager Derek Shelton.

Stratton was pitching to Tyler Stephenson with two runners on base and one out when he threw a wild pitch. Pirates catcher Joey Bart chased the ball down and tossed it to Stratton, but he missed it.

The ball rolled to the backstop, and Stratton slid while trying to get it. He fell awkwardly and grabbed his left leg in pain.

Stratton had just come into the game to replace an ineffective Jake Woodford. He was ahead in the count 0-2 before the wild pitch allowed Jonathan India and Elly De La Cruz to score, increasing Cincinnati’s lead to 8-2.

Stratton was substituted by Jalen Beeks.

The 27-year-old Stratton had been effective out of the bullpen this season, with a 2-1 record and a 3.58 ERA in 35 appearances before the injury.

Elly De La Cruz had three hits and drove in two runs as the Cincinnati Reds easily defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-2 on Saturday night.

Jonathan India and TJ Friedl also contributed with two hits each for the Reds, who won against the Pirates for only the third time in nine games this season.

De La Cruz had an RBI single in the fifth inning and a run-scoring double in the sixth. The 6-foot-5 shortstop increased his stolen base total to a major league-leading 61 by stealing second base after a walk in the first inning. He later scored on a single by Stephenson during a four-run rally against Jake Woodford (0-6).

“The style of play, I think, is exactly what we want,” Reds manager David Bell said. “Always playing hard. It was nice for it to work out. Aggressive baserunning. Big at-bats offensively, it was a good game.”

Rookie Julian Aguiar (1-0) allowed two runs in six innings to earn his first career win. The 23-year-old right-hander, who was Cincinnati’s minor league Pitcher of the Year in 2023, struck out four batters and walked two in his second start since being called up to support the Reds’ injury-hit pitching staff.

“My mentality wasn’t to come up here and think ‘I’m going to be here for a week,’” Aguiar said. “It’s ‘Come take a spot.’”

Casey Kelly, who was recalled from Triple-A Louisville on Saturday, pitched three innings for his first career save. It was his first major league appearance since 2018.

Rowdy Tellez hit his 11th home run of the season for the Pirates. The towering shot off Aguiar reached the Allegheny River, becoming the 80th ball to splash into the water.

Pablo López pitched seven strong innings, and Trevor Larnach hit two home runs as the Minnesota Twins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 6-0 on Saturday night.

López (12-8) allowed four hits, struck out nine, and walked one, extending his scoreless streak to 13 innings. He has gone at least six innings in six of his last seven starts, with a 2.25 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 44 innings during that time.

“He pitched great,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “His stuff today was probably the best that he’s had all year.”

St. Louis right-hander Sonny Gray (11-9) struck out seven in six innings but gave up five runs and seven hits. It was his first game at Target Field since he played for the Twins in 2023.

Gray had struggled over the past two months, with a 5.68 ERA in nine starts since June 29. Early in the game, he appeared to be the pitcher who finished second in AL Cy Young voting last year.

In the first inning, Gray struck out all three batters on 10 pitches and had a smooth second inning. However, trouble began in the third inning when No. 9 hitter Austin Martin hit a double to the opposite field.

Willi Castro walked on a full count, then Larnach hit a high, inside cutter for a three-run homer. Two more singles and an RBI fielder’s choice put the Twins ahead 4-0 after three innings.

“The frustrating part for me is that it seems to be the same game over and over and over,” said Gray, who has lost his last three starts. “Put up some zeros and then have a big inning, give up two, three, four in one inning, and then throw the ball well after that.”

Shohei Ohtani threw off a mound on Saturday for the first time since his elbow surgery last year, which has prevented him from pitching this season for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

While recovering from his elbow injury, Ohtani has been making headlines with his hitting. On Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays, he hit a grand slam in the ninth inning to reach 40 home runs and stole a base in the fourth inning to achieve 40 stolen bases.

Ohtani is the fastest player ever to join the 40-40 club, doing so in his 126th game of the season.

He threw 10 pitches in the bullpen at Dodger Stadium, with a large group of media watching closely. Ohtani had surgery last September after injuring his elbow while playing for the Los Angeles Angels. Three months later, he signed a $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers.

The team has made it clear that Ohtani will not pitch at all this season, including during the postseason.

This season, Ohtani has been playing as a designated hitter.

Jhonkensy Noel hit a three-run homer, and José Ramírez and Josh Naylor each hit solo home runs as the Cleveland Guardians, who lead the American League Central, defeated the Texas Rangers 13-5 on Saturday night.

Noel, who has homered 11 times in 40 games since his major league debut on June 26, hit his home run off Rangers starter Jon Gray (5-5) in the third inning. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound rookie also tied his career high with three hits and scored three runs.

“Big Christmas, that was beautiful,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said, using Noel’s nickname. “We’re playing him a lot and he’s earning it.”

Russell Branyan is the only player in Cleveland history with more homers than Noel in his first 40 games, with 12 from 1998-2000. Noel is batting .266 with 22 RBIs in 109 at-bats.

“We know we’re a group of good hitters, so it’s always the same approach and we try to get the next guy going,” Noel said through an interpreter. “Today, everything went all fine.”

The Guardians scored 11 straight runs after going behind 1-0 in the first inning and won for the seventh time in their last 20 games. Cleveland is now two games ahead of both Kansas City and Minnesota in the division.

Naylor and Steven Kwan each drove in two runs, while Naylor and Brayan Rocchio scored twice. The Guardians matched their season high in runs. Rocchio walked in the third inning and scored on two passed balls by Texas catcher Carson Kelly.

“It just takes one hit, one barrel, one good at-bat for everyone to start clicking,” Kwan said. “Hitting is contagious, so you can’t help but feel good about what’s coming next.”

Ben Lively (11-8) pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs, two of which were earned. He threw 105 pitches — his highest total in seven years — and struck out four.

J.T. Realmuto hit two three-run home runs and Ranger Suárez pitched five strong innings in his return from the injured list to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to an 11-2 win over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night.

Realmuto, who drove in a career-high seven RBIs, had his first multi-home run game since September 14, 2022.

“The first three-run homer, everybody exhaled at that point,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “Seven RBIs in one game is pretty impressive.” After a couple of Royals’ defensive mistakes put runners at the corners to start the sixth inning, Realmuto hit Brady Singer’s 3-0 pitch over the left-field bullpen for a 5-1 lead.

“In that situation, with runners in scoring position, I’m looking for one pitch, one location and trying not to miss it,” Realmuto said.

“I got it inside, just trying to get back in the count,” Singer said. “He made a good swing on it.”

Realmuto also hit a 424-foot home run into the fountains in left-center during a five-run eighth inning and added an RBI grounder in the ninth.

Activated from the 15-day injured list to make his first start since July 22, Suárez gave up one run on four hits and a walk while striking out six for his first win since June 8.

“Looked like he didn’t miss really a beat,” Realmuto said. “Command of the strike zone, great. Got ahead of guys, was able to throw swing-and-miss pitches when he needed it. He’s a calming presence in this clubhouse when we know he’s on the mound.”

Thomson called Suárez’s performance “Tremendous.”

“First-pitch strikes, outstanding,” he said. “Efficient. A lot of soft contact. Kept them off balance. He was super.”

After allowing a double in the first inning, Suárez faced the minimum until Michael Massey’s double in the fifth inning. Freddy Fermin followed with an RBI hit to right before Suárez struck out two to end the inning.