MINNEAPOLIS — The Kansas City Royals became the only unbeaten team in the majors as Danny Duffy pitched into the seventh inning and Kendrys Morales homered in a 12-3 romp over Minnesota, spoiling the Twins’ home opener Monday.
MINNEAPOLIS — The Kansas City Royals became the only unbeaten team in the majors as Danny Duffy pitched into the seventh inning and Kendrys Morales homered in a 12-3 romp over Minnesota, spoiling the Twins’ home opener Monday.
The defending American League champions improved to 7-0. It’s the second-best start in Kansas City’s history, behind the 2003 club that won nine in a row to begin the season.
Detroit, which had been the only other undefeated team in the big leagues, lost 5-4 at Pittsburgh earlier in the day.
Duffy (1-0) went 6 1/3 innings, giving up three runs.
The Twins lost their fourth straight opener. Trevor May (0-1) in the second inning into the upper deck.(backslash)
DODGERS 6, MARINERS 5, 10 INNINGS
LOS ANGELES — Alex Guerrero hit a bases-loaded single with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning, completing the Dodgers comeback from a four-run deficit for a victory over the Mariners.
Nelson Cruz hit two of the Mariners’ four home runs off Brandon McCarthy. Yasiel Puig homered and Howie Kendrick had a tying RBI single in the fifth for Los Angeles.
Dominic Leone (0-1), working his third inning of relief loaded the bases on Andre Ethier’s double and two walks, one intentional to Adrian Gonzalez. Tyler Olsons relieved, and after an out, Guerrero lined a 2-2 pitch to right-center to end Seattle’s third straight extra-inning game.
Yimi Garcia (1-0) pitched a perfect inning to get his first major league victory.
ROCKIES 2, GIANTS 0
SAN FRANCISCO — Eddie Butler outdueled fellow rookie Chris Heston and the Colorado Rockies spoiled San Francisco’s latest World Series championship celebration at the Giants’ home opener.
Troy Tulowitzki, back in the lineup after a day off, hit an RBI sinlge in the fourth inning against Heston (1-1). San Francisco raised its third World Series winning flag in five years before the game.
Butler (1-0) tossed 5 1-3 innings of five-hit ball, walking six. Rafael Betancourt struck out two in a perfect ninth for his first save since Aug. 20, 2013.
PIRATES 5, TIGERS 4
PITTSBURGH — Gerrit Cole shut down baseball’s top-hitting team, allowing one run in six-plus innings as the Pittsburgh Pirates handed the Detroit Tigers their first loss of the season.
The Tigers were trying to match the 7-0 start set by the 1984 club that went on to win the World Series.
Cole (1-0) struck out eight and walked two while giving up three hits in the Pirates’ home opener. Josh Harrison, Pedro Alvarez and Corey Hart homered for Pittsburgh.
Anibal Sanchez (1-1) surrendered five runs in 6 1-3 innings. Miguel Cabrera went 2 for 4 with an RBI double.
RED SOX 9, NATIONALS 4
BOSTON — Mookie Betts hit a three-run homer, jumped to take away a home run from Bryce Harper and stole two bases on the same pitch, leading the Boston Red Sox over Washington in their home opener.
Rick Porcello (1-1) won his Fenway Park debut, allowing four hits in eight innings. Ryan Zimmerman and Danny Espinosa homered off Porcello.
The Red Sox rolled to an 8-0 lead after three innings against Jordan Zimmermann (1-1). He was as wild as Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, whose ceremonial first pitch to David Ortiz bounced in the dirt in the left-hander’s batters’ box.
Ortiz homered in the sixth.
METS 2, PHILLIES 0
NEW YORK — NL Rookie of the Year Jacob deGrom and the New York Mets won their home opener, shutting down Philadelphia.
DeGrom (1-1) gave up seven hits in 6 1-3 innings before a sellout crowd of 43,947 at Citi Field.
Daniel Murphy doubled with in the fourth, advanced on a flyout and scored when Juan Lagares hit a comebacker that a twisting Aaron Harang (1-1) knocked down with his glove. But the 36-year-old righty stumbled awkwardly for a moment on the mound and was slow to retrieve the ball. By the time he threw to first, Lagares beat the play for an RBI single.
BREWERS 5, CARDINALS 4
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Matt Garza overcame five walks to earn his first career win in St. Louis and Carlos Gomez had two hits and an RBI for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Adam Wainwright (1-1) started his fourth opener at 10-year-old Busch Stadium and gave up five runs — three earned — in seven innings.
Francisco Rodriguez earned his first save, helping himself with the defensive play of the game when he reached behind his head and snared Jhonny Peralta’s liner leading off the ninth.
Garza (1-1) allowed two runs — one earned — in 5 2-3 innings to win for the first time in six career starts in St. Louis. He entered 0-2 with a 6.95 ERA.
RAYS 2, BLUE JAYS 1
TORONTO — Jake Odorizzi pitched eight impressive innings and the Rays scored on two bases-loaded walks by R.A. Dickey to beat the Blue Jays.
Odorizzi (2-0) allowed one run and two hits, improving to 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA in four career starts against the Blue Jays. The right-hander set down the final eight batters he faced before Brad Boxberger finished for his third save.
After Desmond Jennings and Allan Dykstra singled to begin the fourth, Dickey (0-1) retired the next two batters but then walked three in a row, including 3-2 passes to David DeJesus and Steven Souza.
Dickey allowed two runs and three hits in six innings, walked five and struck out six.
YANKEES 6, ORIOLES 5
BALTIMORE — Stephen Drew delivered a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh inning, and the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles for their first winning streak of the season.
Down 4-2, the Yankees loaded the bases with two outs before Drew connected on a 3-1 pitch from Tommy Hunter (0-1). It was his second homer in two games and New York’s first pinch-hit slam since Jorge Posada did it in 2001 against the Orioles.
Drew was batting for Brett Gardner, who hurt his right wrist in the first inning after being hit by a pitch from Wei-Yin Chen. X-rays were negative.
Adam Jones had three hits, including a home run, for Baltimore. Jones is 10 for 14 with three homers and seven RBIs in his last four games.
Michael Pineda (1-0) gave up five runs and nine hits with nine strikeouts in 6 1-3 innings for the Yankees.
ATHLETICS 8, ASTROS 1
HOUSTON — Billy Butler hit a three-run homer and Marcus Semien and Brett Lawrie connected to back a solid start by Scott Kazmir and give the Athletics a win over the Astros.
Kazmir (2-0) allowed three hits and one run while striking out eight in six innings.
Jose Altuve had three hits of Houston’s five hits, including a solo home run in the fourth inning.
Houston starter Scott Feldman (0-2) yielded 10 hits and eight runs — seven earned — in five innings for the loss.
ANGELS 6, RANGERS 3
ARLINGTON, Texas — Collin Cowgill and David Freese each hit two-run homers in the fifth inning for the Angels, who rallied from an early deficit to beat the Rangers.
Matt Shoemaker (2-0) was down 3-0 after the first, but pitched into the seventh without allowing another run. He won his ninth consecutive decision over a 10-game stretch.
Both homers by the Angels off Ross Detwiler (0-2) came with runners on base after walks. Cowgill’s first of the season tied the game at 3, and Freese’s third made it 5-3.
CUBS 7, REDS 6, 10 INNINGS
CHICAGO — Jorge Soler homered twice and Arismendy Alcantara had a game-ending RBI single in the 10th inning to lift the Cubs over the Reds.
Chris Coghlan had three hits and a homer as the Cubs came back from three runs down to overcame a rough start by Jon Lester, who gave up six runs and 10 hits in six innings as his ERA ballooned to 7.84.
Brandon Phillips had four hits for the Reds, while Marlon Byrd and Jay Bruce each drove in two runs.
Hector Rondon (1-0) gave up two hits in the top of the 10th to pick up the win
Manny Parra (0-1) was the loser.
BRAVES 3, MARLINS 2
ATLANTA — Alberto Callaspo hit a tiebreaking single in Atlanta’s two-run fifth inning and the Braves held off Miami in the ninth to beat the Marlins in a game slowed by two rain delays.
Shelby Miller (1-0) allowed one run in five innings as the Braves bounced back from their first loss and handed the Marlins their sixth defeat in seven games.
Jason Grilli gave up a run-scoring single in the ninth but earned his fourth save.
Matt Latos (0-2) gave up three runs, two earned, on five hits and three walks in four-plus innings.
DIAMONDBACKS 8, PADRES 4
SAN DIEGO — Ender Inciarte hit two doubles and a triple and drove in a career-high four runs to lead the Diamondbacks to a victory against the Padres.
Inciarte hit a two-run double in the second, when the Diamondbacks scored four unearned runs on five hits off Andrew Cashner (0-2) and an error, and a two-run triple in the three-run eighth to help break it open. He also doubled and scored in the seventh.
Rubby De La Rosa (2-0) held San Diego to three runs and six hits in six innings for his second straight win.