Major League Baseball featured 14 games on Friday, Aug. 14, with a dramatic extra-inning finish in Houston, three shutouts and several standout pitching performances.
The Houston Astros produced the biggest comeback of the night, while Chase Burns, Clay Holmes and Brandon Pfaadt turned in dominant starts. The Chicago White Sox had one of the day’s biggest offensive performances, scoring nine runs against Detroit, while Baltimore brought Tampa Bay’s nine-game winning streak to an end.
Cubs 3, Cardinals 0
The Chicago Cubs shut out the St. Louis Cardinals 3-0 at Wrigley Field behind an outstanding performance from Clay Holmes.
Holmes allowed only one hit over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. He retired the first 16 Cardinals he faced before José Fermín singled in the sixth inning. Holmes improved to 5-5, while Jacob Webb worked a scoreless ninth for his ninth save.
Chicago scored all three of its runs in the sixth inning when Seiya Suzuki hit a three-run home run, his 21st of the season. The Cubs finished with six hits while holding St. Louis to three.
Reds 1, Marlins 0
Cincinnati won a pitching duel against Miami, defeating the Marlins 1-0.
Chase Burns improved to 14-2 after throwing seven scoreless innings. He allowed four hits, struck out eight and did not issue a walk. Emilio Pagán recorded his 15th save.
Miami starter Sandy Alcantara was nearly as effective. Alcantara entered the game with a 20-inning scoreless streak and extended it to 25 innings before Eugenio Suárez doubled home the game’s only run in the sixth. The hit was also the 1,500th of Suárez’s major league career.
Pirates 8, Red Sox 4
The Pittsburgh Pirates continued Boston’s recent struggles with an 8-4 victory.
Rafael Flores Jr. opened the scoring with a solo home run in the second inning. It was his third home run in three consecutive at-bats dating back to Pittsburgh’s previous game. He later added an RBI single.
Brandon Lowe gave Pittsburgh additional breathing room with a three-run homer in the fifth inning that stretched the Pirates’ lead to 7-2.
Bubba Chandler earned the victory after allowing two runs on four hits over five innings. Boston has now lost six of its last seven games.
White Sox 9, Tigers 5
The Chicago White Sox collected 14 hits in a 9-5 victory over the Detroit Tigers.
Miguel Vargas led the offense with four hits, two home runs, three runs scored and three RBIs. His two-run homer in the sixth gave Chicago an 8-3 advantage, and he added another solo homer in the eighth.
Braden Montgomery finished with three hits and three RBIs. Tristan Peters and Munetaka Murakami also homered for Chicago.
Detroit’s Ben Malgeri hit two home runs and drove in three runs, but Tigers starter Jackson Jobe struggled. Jobe surrendered six runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings.
Padres 7, Guardians 5
San Diego extended its winning streak to six games by defeating Cleveland 7-5.
Xander Bogaerts hit a two-run homer, while Fernando Tatis Jr. added a solo home run. Luis Campusano doubled twice and drove in three runs as the Padres finished with 12 hits.
Michael King earned the victory after allowing four runs, three earned, over six innings. Bradgley Rodriguez recorded the first save of his major league career with a scoreless ninth.
Brayan Rocchio and Nathaniel Lowe homered for Cleveland. The Guardians have lost five of their last six games.
Mets 4, Nationals 1
The New York Mets rallied after being held without a hit through the first five innings and defeated Washington 4-1.
Washington took a 1-0 lead in the third on an RBI single from Brady House. Francisco Lindor tied the game with a solo home run in the sixth.
Carson Benge then delivered the go-ahead RBI single later in the inning. Jonathan Pintaro earned his first major league victory, and Kodai Senga recorded his second save.
The Nationals have lost 11 of their last 16 games.
Orioles 6, Rays 5
Baltimore ended Tampa Bay’s nine-game winning streak with a 6-5 victory.
Gunnar Henderson had one of the best individual performances of the day, going 4-for-4 with a two-run home run.
Dylan Beavers delivered a two-run single in the seventh inning that put Baltimore ahead. The Orioles finished with 12 hits compared with nine for Tampa Bay.
Chris Bassitt made his return from back surgery for Baltimore and allowed two runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings. Josh Walker earned his first career major league victory in relief.
Blue Jays 3, Yankees 1
Toronto held the New York Yankees to one run in a 3-1 victory.
Alejandro Kirk delivered the biggest hits for the Blue Jays. He drove in the go-ahead run with a double during a two-run sixth inning and added a solo home run in the eighth.
Shane Bieber improved to 4-2 after allowing one run on four hits over six innings. Gerrit Cole took the loss despite allowing only two runs, one earned, on five hits over six innings.
Trent Grisham accounted for the Yankees’ only run with a solo homer.
Diamondbacks 2, Braves 0
Brandon Pfaadt delivered seven shutout innings as Arizona blanked Atlanta 2-0.
Pfaadt allowed only two hits and improved to 7-1. Brandyn Garcia pitched a perfect ninth and earned his fourth save.
Geraldo Perdomo went 4-for-5 and scored Arizona’s first run. The Diamondbacks held Atlanta to three hits and struck out 11 Braves hitters.
Chris Sale pitched well in defeat, allowing one run on five hits over six innings while striking out nine.
Astros 10, Mariners 7 in 10 Innings
Houston produced the most dramatic finish of Friday’s schedule, defeating Seattle 10-7 in 10 innings.
The game was tied 5-5 going into the 10th. Victor Robles tripled home the automatic runner to put Seattle ahead, and Brock Rodden followed with a sacrifice fly that gave the Mariners a 7-5 advantage.
Houston immediately answered.
Isaac Paredes drove in a run with a single before Daulton Varsho tied the game at 7-7. Christian Walker then ended it with a three-run walk-off home run, his 23rd homer of the season.
Yordan Alvarez also homered for Houston, hitting his 36th of the year. Paredes finished with three RBIs.
The teams combined for 24 hits and 17 runs.
Royals 7, Angels 6
Kansas City snapped a four-game losing streak with a 7-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
Jac Caglianone led the Royals, going 3-for-4 with a home run and a career-high five RBIs.
Michael Massey also homered and finished with three hits and two RBIs. Kansas City collected 10 hits in the game.
Nolan Schanuel drove in four runs for Los Angeles and went 2-for-4 with a double.
Steven Cruz worked a scoreless ninth for his fourth save.
Athletics 8, Rangers 3
The Athletics defeated Texas 8-3 and ended an eight-game home losing streak.
Jeff McNeil had a season-high four hits and drove in three runs. His home run broke a tie and helped the Athletics take control.
Lawrence Butler also homered, while Carlos Cortes delivered a three-run double.
Texas managed only four hits, although Jake Burger accounted for all three Rangers runs with a three-run homer.
Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson left the game with a left hand contusion after being hit by a pitch and was listed as day-to-day.
Dodgers 3, Brewers 1
The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated Milwaukee 3-1 behind another strong start from Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Yamamoto struck out nine over six innings while allowing one run on four hits. He improved to 12-7.
Andy Pages broke a 1-1 tie with a home run in the fifth inning. Tommy Edman also homered for Los Angeles.
Edwin Díaz made the ninth inning interesting by loading the bases but escaped without allowing a run, earning his seventh save.
Milwaukee was held to five hits.
Rockies 5, Giants 2
Colorado defeated San Francisco 5-2 behind eight strong innings from Kyle Freeland.
Freeland allowed just one run on four hits and improved to 4-10.
Zac Veen provided one of the game’s highlights by hitting a home run into San Francisco Bay. Troy Johnston contributed an RBI triple as Colorado built its lead.
Bryce Eldridge homered for San Francisco, but the Giants fell to 2-5 during their nine-game homestand.
The victory gave Colorado at least three consecutive wins for only the fifth time this season.
Friday’s MLB Scores
| Game | Final Score | Hits |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals at Cubs | Cubs 3-0 | STL 3, CHC 6 |
| Marlins at Reds | Reds 1-0 | MIA 4, CIN 6 |
| Red Sox at Pirates | Pirates 8-4 | BOS 9, PIT 9 |
| White Sox at Tigers | White Sox 9-5 | CWS 14, DET 10 |
| Padres at Guardians | Padres 7-5 | SD 12, CLE 10 |
| Nationals at Mets | Mets 4-1 | WSH 5, NYM 7 |
| Orioles at Rays | Orioles 6-5 | BAL 12, TB 9 |
| Yankees at Blue Jays | Blue Jays 3-1 | NYY 5, TOR 8 |
| Diamondbacks at Braves | Diamondbacks 2-0 | AZ 10, ATL 3 |
| Mariners at Astros | Astros 10-7, 10 innings | SEA 12, HOU 12 |
| Royals at Angels | Royals 7-6 | KC 10, LAA 10 |
| Rangers at Athletics | Athletics 8-3 | TEX 4, ATH 9 |
| Brewers at Dodgers | Dodgers 3-1 | MIL 5, LAD 8 |
| Rockies at Giants | Rockies 5-2 | COL 6, SF 7 |
Friday’s schedule produced 116 total runs, but pitching was still a major part of the story. Chicago, Cincinnati and Arizona recorded shutouts, while Houston’s five-run 10th inning provided the day’s most dramatic finish.