Brewers Hand Dodgers Rare Series Loss
The Los Angeles Dodgers are currently dealing with something they haven't had to deal with nearly all summer long, and that's a series loss. The Milwaukee Brewers took the rubber game on Sunday afternoon with a 3-2 win, handing the Dodgers their first series loss since early June. What made it even more surprising was that it was done at Dodger Stadium. Jimmy Nelson took a no-hit bid into the sixth for Milwaukee, who spoiled the return of Yu Darvish from the disabled list. The Dodgers last lost a series on June 5-7 at home to the Washington Nationals, but have since gone 19-0-3 in series. Nelson shut down the Dodgers' offense for much of the day on Sunday, as he allowed just two runs in 6.2 innings while striking out six en route to his 10th win. Hernan Perez went deep, while Domingo Santana had two hits and an RBI for the Brewers, who pulled within two games of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central Division. Darvish lasted just five innings in his fourth start with Los Angeles, but needed 95 pitches to get that far in his 10th loss of the year. The Brewers return home to host the St. Louis Cardinals after a day off Monday, while the Dodgers will also enjoy Monday off before going to Arizona for another series with the Diamondbacks.
Stanton, Hoskins Go Deep Again on Sunday
There are two power surges going on in Major League Baseball right now, and both of those reached another level on Sunday afternoon. First, Giancarlo Stanton kept rolling for the Miami Marlins with his league-leading 50th home run in a 6-2 win over the San Diego Padres. Stanton's blast went to dead centerfield in the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie against Clayton Richard, who suffered his 13th loss. Stanton also walked, singled, and doubled in four at-bats, and received the well-deserved "MVP" chant from his hometown crowd. That led to a curtain call after the long ball, as he reached a career-high in RBI at 108. The Marlins have won 13 of their past 16 games overall, and completed the sweep this weekend against San Diego for their fourth straight victory. Meanwhile, there's a rookie in Philadelphia doing big things in his first crack at the big leagues. Rhys Hoskins became the fastest player to reach 11 home runs, going deep on Sunday in his 18th game to lead the Phillies past the Chicago Cubs, 6-3. Hoskins also had a home run on Saturday, making him the quickest to 10 home runs, and now he's just adding to that record. The rookie now has a long ball in five straight games, and went deep for an 11th time in the eighth inning on Sunday, which was his 64th career at-bat. He also started a 5-4-3 triple play in the fifth inning, as the Phillies recorded an impressive series win against the defending champs. Hoskins has 24 RBI since being called up on August 10th, and has helped the Phillies go deep in nine straight games and record 20 long balls in that span.
Indians, Orioles Record Impressive Weekend Sweeps
Two teams put up very impressive weekend series in the American League, one of which keeps them atop the standings, while another keeps them relevant. First, the Cleveland Indians completed a shutout sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 12-0 shutout on Sunday. Yan Gomes' grand slam was the highlight of the series finale, as the Tribe outscored the Royals 20-0 on the weekend, and recorded three straight shutouts for the first time since 1956. Carlos Carrasco helped those efforts with seven impressive innings for his 13th win, helping Cleveland improve to 17 games over .500 for the first time this season. They now lead the Royals by nine games in the AL Central. Meanwhile, the Baltimore Orioles are doing their best to stay in the AL Wild Card race, and they really helped that effort this weekend. The O's edged the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, 2-1, to complete their first series sweep at Fenway Park since 2014. Adam Jones and Trey Mancini both had RBI doubles against Red Sox starter Doug Fister, helping Baltimore record their fourth straight victory. It was also Boston's fourth straight loss, which ties their longest slump of the season. The O's were able to pull off the victory despite stranding 16 runners on the afternoon, as they sit two games out of a Wild Card spot. Wade Miley was key in his start, as he allowed just one run over five innings, making it his sixth straight start of allowing less than three runs. Baltimore returns home on Monday to host the Seattle Mariners, who are also in the middle of the Wild Card race.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are currently dealing with something they haven't had to deal with nearly all summer long, and that's a series loss. The Milwaukee Brewers took the rubber game on Sunday afternoon with a 3-2 win, handing the Dodgers their first series loss since early June. What made it even more surprising was that it was done at Dodger Stadium. Jimmy Nelson took a no-hit bid into the sixth for Milwaukee, who spoiled the return of Yu Darvish from the disabled list. The Dodgers last lost a series on June 5-7 at home to the Washington Nationals, but have since gone 19-0-3 in series. Nelson shut down the Dodgers' offense for much of the day on Sunday, as he allowed just two runs in 6.2 innings while striking out six en route to his 10th win. Hernan Perez went deep, while Domingo Santana had two hits and an RBI for the Brewers, who pulled within two games of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central Division. Darvish lasted just five innings in his fourth start with Los Angeles, but needed 95 pitches to get that far in his 10th loss of the year. The Brewers return home to host the St. Louis Cardinals after a day off Monday, while the Dodgers will also enjoy Monday off before going to Arizona for another series with the Diamondbacks.
Stanton, Hoskins Go Deep Again on Sunday
There are two power surges going on in Major League Baseball right now, and both of those reached another level on Sunday afternoon. First, Giancarlo Stanton kept rolling for the Miami Marlins with his league-leading 50th home run in a 6-2 win over the San Diego Padres. Stanton's blast went to dead centerfield in the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie against Clayton Richard, who suffered his 13th loss. Stanton also walked, singled, and doubled in four at-bats, and received the well-deserved "MVP" chant from his hometown crowd. That led to a curtain call after the long ball, as he reached a career-high in RBI at 108. The Marlins have won 13 of their past 16 games overall, and completed the sweep this weekend against San Diego for their fourth straight victory. Meanwhile, there's a rookie in Philadelphia doing big things in his first crack at the big leagues. Rhys Hoskins became the fastest player to reach 11 home runs, going deep on Sunday in his 18th game to lead the Phillies past the Chicago Cubs, 6-3. Hoskins also had a home run on Saturday, making him the quickest to 10 home runs, and now he's just adding to that record. The rookie now has a long ball in five straight games, and went deep for an 11th time in the eighth inning on Sunday, which was his 64th career at-bat. He also started a 5-4-3 triple play in the fifth inning, as the Phillies recorded an impressive series win against the defending champs. Hoskins has 24 RBI since being called up on August 10th, and has helped the Phillies go deep in nine straight games and record 20 long balls in that span.
Indians, Orioles Record Impressive Weekend Sweeps
Two teams put up very impressive weekend series in the American League, one of which keeps them atop the standings, while another keeps them relevant. First, the Cleveland Indians completed a shutout sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 12-0 shutout on Sunday. Yan Gomes' grand slam was the highlight of the series finale, as the Tribe outscored the Royals 20-0 on the weekend, and recorded three straight shutouts for the first time since 1956. Carlos Carrasco helped those efforts with seven impressive innings for his 13th win, helping Cleveland improve to 17 games over .500 for the first time this season. They now lead the Royals by nine games in the AL Central. Meanwhile, the Baltimore Orioles are doing their best to stay in the AL Wild Card race, and they really helped that effort this weekend. The O's edged the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, 2-1, to complete their first series sweep at Fenway Park since 2014. Adam Jones and Trey Mancini both had RBI doubles against Red Sox starter Doug Fister, helping Baltimore record their fourth straight victory. It was also Boston's fourth straight loss, which ties their longest slump of the season. The O's were able to pull off the victory despite stranding 16 runners on the afternoon, as they sit two games out of a Wild Card spot. Wade Miley was key in his start, as he allowed just one run over five innings, making it his sixth straight start of allowing less than three runs. Baltimore returns home on Monday to host the Seattle Mariners, who are also in the middle of the Wild Card race.
