>>Royals End Skid, Best Red Sox
(Boston, MA) — Jorge Soler belted a pair of two-run homers, bringing his total to 31, as the Royals beat the Red Sox 6-2 at Fenway Park. Ryan O’Hearn also homered for Kansas City. Jakob Junis held Boston to one run over six innings to pick up the win as KC snapped a seven-game skid. Andrew Cashner took the loss, allowing six runs in less than six innings. He is 1-and-4 with a 7.53 ERA in five starts for Boston after being acquired from Baltimore. Andrew Benintendi and Christian Vazquez drove in runs for the Sox, who are 1-and-9 in their last 10 games.
>>Kershaw, Dodgers Edge Cardinals
(Los Angeles, CA) — Clayton Kershaw tossed a gem as the Dodgers edged the Cardinals 3-1 in Los Angeles. Kershaw struck out nine over seven frames of one-run ball to secure his 11th win for L.A. He’s 8-and-0 at Dodger Stadium this year. Kenley Jansen locked down the ninth for his 26th save. Kristopher Negron, Justin Turner and Max Muncy drove in runs as the Dodgers won their fourth straight game. Miles Mikolas worked into the seventh and gave up two runs to take the tough loss for St. Louis. Matt Carpenter drove in the lone run for the Cards, who are on a four-game skid.
>>A’s Pound Cubs At Wrigley
(Chicago, IL) — Stephen Piscotty belted a three-run homer and drove in four to lead the A’s to a 11-4 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Dustin Garneau also hit a three-run homer in an eight-run second inning for Oakland, which jumped out to an 11-0 lead in the fourth. Brett Anderson pitched six innings of two-run ball for the win. The A’s have won seven of their last nine games. Jon Lester gave up all 11 runs in four innings to take the loss. Kris Bryant hit a two-run homer and Kyle Schwarber singled in two more for Chicago, which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
>>Defensive Lapse Costs Pirates Against Brewers
(Pittsburgh, PA) — Pirates’ catcher Elias Diaz was called for base runner interference in the ninth, allowing a run to score, as the Brewers beat the Bucs 4-3 in Pittsburgh. Yasmani Grandal went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and an RBI as Milwaukee played without Christian Yelich, who was scratched with a sore back. Junior Guerra got the win while Matt Albers nailed down his second save. The Brewers snapped their four-game losing streak. Bryan Reynolds hit his second home run in as many games while Jose Osuna had an RBI double. Pablo Reyes doubled in a run in the ninth, but was stranded at second base. Francisco Liriano fell to 4-and-3 with the loss. The Pirates have lost three straight.
