Nationals Top Arrieta, Cubs
It was a battle of the last two Cy Young Award winners on Tuesday night, and it was last year's winner who got the best of this contest. Max Scherzer lasted six innings and allowed just one run on two hits, en route to a 6-1 Washington Nationals win over the Chicago Cubs. Scherzer struck out six and did not walk a batter, and retired 16 of the final 17 batters he faced. Jake Arrieta did not have as much luck, as he was knocked out in the fifth inning after walking a season-high six batters and getting charged with five earned runs. Before Tuesday, the right-hander had not walked more than three hitters in a game. The 2015 Cy Young winner suffered his sixth loss, while Scherzer earned his ninth victory of the season. Michael Taylor led the Nats' offense by going 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Kris Bryant knocked in the only run for the Cubs with a triple. Washington was also hustling hard on the base paths, stealing seven bases against Miguel Montero. The catcher would then go on to blame Arrieta for the stolen bases in a postgame interview, which led to him being designated for assignment today. The Cubs and Nats continue their series on Wednesday night.
Beltre, Rangers Get Past Indians
Adrian Beltre has finally found his power swing since returning from the disabled list for the Texas Rangers, and it was key on Tuesday night. Beltre hit the go-ahead long ball in the ninth inning to lift the Rangers past the Cleveland Indians, 2-1. The homer was the 450th of the third baseman's career, coming against Cody Allen, who fell to 0-4 on the season for Cleveland. The milestone puts him at 39th on the all-time home run list, as he has 13 RBI in the past nine games. Keone Kela earned his fourth win for Texas after stranding a runner in the eighth, while Matt Bush got his 10th save after overcoming a Michael Brantley single. The Rangers were coming off a tough loss that saw them blow a 9-2 lead and allow 13 unanswered runs Monday night. They continued to struggle with the strikeout numbers at the plate, as they fanned 16 times on Tuesday a day after doing so 17 times on Monday. Robinson Chirinos did go deep for the only other run for the Rangers, while Lonnie Chisenhall knocked in the only run for the Tribe with a single. The Indians were without manager Terry Francona due to an illness. Brad Mills took over for Tuesday's game, but Francona is expected back for Wednesday's contest with Texas.
Diamondbacks, Giants, White Sox Walk-Off for Wins
Three teams recorded exciting victories on Tuesday night, two of which came from the NL West Division. First, the Arizona Diamondbacks rallied from a 4-2 deficit to walk-off against the St. Louis Cardinals in 10 innings for a 6-5 victory. The win was the D-backs' fourth in a row, as Chris Hermann played the role of hero with an RBI single in the 10th off of Matt Bowman, which scored Rey Fuentes. David Peralta sent the game into extras with a game-tying home run in the ninth to hand Hwan Oh his third blown save. Arizona improved to 7-1 in extra innings, recorded their 28th come-from-behind win, and 13th victory in 15 games overall. They needed a few more innings in the bay area, as the San Francisco Giants took out the Colorado Rockies for a second straight night, 4-3. Denard Span hit the walk-off single in the 14th inning to score Gorkys Hernandez against Chad Qualls. Kelby Tomlinson forced extras with a game-tying RBI single in the eighth inning. With consecutive losses, the struggling Rockies have now dropped seven in a row. There was also a walk-off in the Windy City, as the Chicago White Sox knocked the New York Yankees out of first place in the AL East with a 4-3 win. Jose Abreu completed the White Sox' rally with a two-run single in the ninth inning, as Chicago scored three runs in the final two frames to snap a four-game losing streak. Dellin Betances suffered the blown save for New York, who drops a game back in the the East behind the Boston Red Sox, who earned a 9-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night. New York has now dropped three of four, and 11 of 14 overall, despite Louis Severino posting a career-high 12 strikeouts in seven innings.
It was a battle of the last two Cy Young Award winners on Tuesday night, and it was last year's winner who got the best of this contest. Max Scherzer lasted six innings and allowed just one run on two hits, en route to a 6-1 Washington Nationals win over the Chicago Cubs. Scherzer struck out six and did not walk a batter, and retired 16 of the final 17 batters he faced. Jake Arrieta did not have as much luck, as he was knocked out in the fifth inning after walking a season-high six batters and getting charged with five earned runs. Before Tuesday, the right-hander had not walked more than three hitters in a game. The 2015 Cy Young winner suffered his sixth loss, while Scherzer earned his ninth victory of the season. Michael Taylor led the Nats' offense by going 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Kris Bryant knocked in the only run for the Cubs with a triple. Washington was also hustling hard on the base paths, stealing seven bases against Miguel Montero. The catcher would then go on to blame Arrieta for the stolen bases in a postgame interview, which led to him being designated for assignment today. The Cubs and Nats continue their series on Wednesday night.
Beltre, Rangers Get Past Indians
Adrian Beltre has finally found his power swing since returning from the disabled list for the Texas Rangers, and it was key on Tuesday night. Beltre hit the go-ahead long ball in the ninth inning to lift the Rangers past the Cleveland Indians, 2-1. The homer was the 450th of the third baseman's career, coming against Cody Allen, who fell to 0-4 on the season for Cleveland. The milestone puts him at 39th on the all-time home run list, as he has 13 RBI in the past nine games. Keone Kela earned his fourth win for Texas after stranding a runner in the eighth, while Matt Bush got his 10th save after overcoming a Michael Brantley single. The Rangers were coming off a tough loss that saw them blow a 9-2 lead and allow 13 unanswered runs Monday night. They continued to struggle with the strikeout numbers at the plate, as they fanned 16 times on Tuesday a day after doing so 17 times on Monday. Robinson Chirinos did go deep for the only other run for the Rangers, while Lonnie Chisenhall knocked in the only run for the Tribe with a single. The Indians were without manager Terry Francona due to an illness. Brad Mills took over for Tuesday's game, but Francona is expected back for Wednesday's contest with Texas.
Diamondbacks, Giants, White Sox Walk-Off for Wins
Three teams recorded exciting victories on Tuesday night, two of which came from the NL West Division. First, the Arizona Diamondbacks rallied from a 4-2 deficit to walk-off against the St. Louis Cardinals in 10 innings for a 6-5 victory. The win was the D-backs' fourth in a row, as Chris Hermann played the role of hero with an RBI single in the 10th off of Matt Bowman, which scored Rey Fuentes. David Peralta sent the game into extras with a game-tying home run in the ninth to hand Hwan Oh his third blown save. Arizona improved to 7-1 in extra innings, recorded their 28th come-from-behind win, and 13th victory in 15 games overall. They needed a few more innings in the bay area, as the San Francisco Giants took out the Colorado Rockies for a second straight night, 4-3. Denard Span hit the walk-off single in the 14th inning to score Gorkys Hernandez against Chad Qualls. Kelby Tomlinson forced extras with a game-tying RBI single in the eighth inning. With consecutive losses, the struggling Rockies have now dropped seven in a row. There was also a walk-off in the Windy City, as the Chicago White Sox knocked the New York Yankees out of first place in the AL East with a 4-3 win. Jose Abreu completed the White Sox' rally with a two-run single in the ninth inning, as Chicago scored three runs in the final two frames to snap a four-game losing streak. Dellin Betances suffered the blown save for New York, who drops a game back in the the East behind the Boston Red Sox, who earned a 9-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night. New York has now dropped three of four, and 11 of 14 overall, despite Louis Severino posting a career-high 12 strikeouts in seven innings.
