LOS ANGELES — Garrett Richards pitched a five-hitter for his first career shutout, Mike Trout and Albert Pujols had RBI doubles in a four-run first inning, and the Los Angeles Angels opened the Freeway Series with a 5-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday night.
LOS ANGELES — Garrett Richards pitched a five-hitter for his first career shutout, Mike Trout and Albert Pujols had RBI doubles in a four-run first inning, and the Los Angeles Angels opened the Freeway Series with a 5-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday night.
Josh Hamilton homered in the sixth for the Angels, who improved the majors’ second-best record to 67-44 with their seventh win in 10 games.
Richards (12-4) was dominant in his first nine-inning complete game, striking out nine and retiring 15 of 16 in the middle innings with a fastball regularly hitting 98 mph. He finished his first victory in four starts by getting pinch-hitter Andre Ethier on a groundout.
Richards outpitched Zack Greinke (12-7), who has just one victory in his last five starts.
Athletics 3, Rays 2, 10 innings
OAKLAND, Calif. — Derek Norris singled up the middle with two outs and the bases loaded in the 10th inning against former Oakland closer Grant Balfour, and the Athletics beat Tampa Bay.
Norris notched his second career game-ending RBI against Balfour (1-4) in Oakland’s eighth walkoff win.
The AL West-leading A’s remained one game ahead of the Los Angeles Angels and avoided losing consecutive home games for just the second time this season.
The A’s loaded the bases against Balfour, who received a mound visit before Brandon Moss stepped in with a chance at a fourth grand slam but struck out. Norris delivered with his first game-ending RBI since June 24, 2012, against the Giants.
Rays manager Joe Maddon was ejected by first base umpire Quinn Wolcott during the inning and rushed the field to argue.
Ryan Cook (1-1) earned the win on a night the A’s left stranded 18.
White Sox 5, Rangers 3, 7 innings, rain
CHICAGO — Tyler Flowers homered and drove in three runs and Jose Abreu had two hits and two RBIs to lead Chicago to a rain-shortened victory over Texas.
The game was called in the bottom of the seventh inning following a 57-minute delay.
Flowers went 3 for 3 and was a double shy of a cycle. He scored two runs as the White Sox snapped a two-game losing streak.
Abreu, who has 86 RBIs, went 2 for 3 on a day when he named the American League’s player and rookie of the month for July. The Cuban slugger also won both awards in April and is the only rookie to win the player of the month award twice.
Rougned Odor had a two-run homer for Texas, which has lost four straight.
Hector Noesi (6-8) bounced back from a rough outing at Detroit in his last start — six runs in six innings — to allow one earned run and four hits in seven innings.
Orioles 7, Nationals 3
WASHINGTON — Caleb Joseph homered and drove in three runs, J.J. Hardy had four hits and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Washington Nationals in a duel between neighboring first-place teams.
Nick Markakis homered for the Orioles, who trailed 3-1 before rallying for their eighth win in 11 games.
Hardy and Ryan Flaherty opened the seventh with successive doubles off Tanner Roark (11-7) to tie it at 3. Delmon Young followed with an RBI single — making him 9 for 17 as a pinch-hitter this season — and Adam Jones capped the uprising with a run-scoring single.
Kevin Gausman (6-3) pitched six innings.
The game was a makeup of a rainout on July 8. A sellout crowd of 42,181 — many of them wearing Oriole orange — showed up to watch teams located just 38 miles apart on I-295.
Yankees 2, Tigers 1
NEW YORK — Brandon McCarthy won his fourth start in a row with a gritty effort, and New York took the first of three straight matchups against Detroit’s Cy Young Award winners, beating Max Scherzer and the Tigers.
Brian McCann hit an RBI single and Jacoby Ellsbury had a sacrifice fly in the third inning. Center fielder Ezequiel Carrera made a sensational catch on Ellsbury’s deep drive with the bases loaded.
McCarthy (4-0) allowed five hits and an unearned run in 5 2/3 innings. The Yankees have won each of his five starts since being acquired from Arizona. David Robertson was perfect in the ninth for his 30th save.
Scherzer (13-4) gave up nine hits over seven innings in losing for the first time since June 17, a span of eight starts.
Newly acquired David Price starts Tuesday night for Detroit and Justin Verlander pitches Wednesday night.
Giants 4, Mets 3
NEW YORK — Pablo Sandoval drove in three runs and got three hits, including an RBI double with two outs in the ninth inning that sent San Francisco over New York.
The Giants took three of four at Citi Field. The Mets lost a home series for the first time since June 10-12 against Milwaukee.
Sandoval hit a two-run double in the third, then delivered again in the ninth off Jenrry Mejia (5-4).
Sergio Romo (5-3) got the win with one scoreless inning and Santiago Casilla pitched a perfect ninth for his ninth save.
Indians 7, Reds 1
CLEVELAND — Corey Kluber allowed one run in 7 1/3 innings to win his fifth straight decision and lead Cleveland over Cincinnati.
Kluber (12-6), who hasn’t lost since June 30, held the Reds to six hits, struck out seven and walked two.
Kluber’s 17-inning scoreless streak ended in the eighth on Brayan Pena’s RBI double off reliever Nick Hagadone.
Lonnie Chisenhall hit a three-run homer in the fourth off Alfredo Simon (12-7). Yan Gomes hit a two-run homer in the eighth as Cleveland won its fourth straight.