HOUSTON — Yordan Alvarez homered twice after missing five games because of COVID-19 protocols, and the Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Angels 8-3 in their home opener Monday night.
Houston second baseman Jose Altuve exited in the eighth inning with a strained left hamstring. He fell to the ground after legging out an infield single.
Altuve will be examined by a doctor and is expected to have tests Tuesday.
Alvarez hit a 417-foot shot to the second deck off Michael Lorenzen (1-1) in the first inning, scoring Michael Brantley. Another two-run drive in the seventh made it 7-3.
Luis García (1-0) allowed four hits and three runs with seven strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.
DODGERS 7, BRAVES 4
LOS ANGELES — Freddie Freeman slugged his first home run in a Dodgers uniform, Trea Turner’s three-run double highlighted a five-run fourth inning, and Los Angeles beat Atlanta for its seventh consecutive victory.
Freeman didn’t wait to tee off against his old team, sending a shot to the left-field pavilion in the first off Huascar Ynoa (0-2). That triggered chants of “Freddie! Freddie!” from the sellout crowd of 52,052 as the first baseman pumped his right arm coming into home plate.
Before the game, an emotional Freeman spent time in the Braves clubhouse, reliving memories of winning last year’s World Series. He signed a $162 million, six-year deal with the Dodgers in March, ending a 12-year run with the Braves, the only team the Southern California native had played for.
Freeman was 1 for 3 with two runs and two walks. He also made a stellar defensive play.
Cody Bellinger also homered for the Dodgers in a rematch of the past two NL Championship Series.
Guillermo Heredia and Ozzie Albies homered off Clayton Kershaw (2-0). Fourteen of the Braves’ 15 homers this season have been solo shots.
Coming off seven perfect innings at Minnesota last week, Kershaw allowed four runs and six hits in five-plus innings. He struck out seven and walked none.
Craig Kimbrel pitched the ninth for his third save.
TWINS 8, RED SOX 3
BOSTON — Jorge Polanco and Kyle Garlick hit early two-run homers over the Green Monster to back Dylan Bundy, and Minnesota won in Boston’s annual Patriots’ Day game.
The game started at 11:11 a.m. EDT, played in conjunction with the 126th Boston Marathon.
Polanco added a two-run single in a four-run eighth inning and Gio Urshela had three singles for the Twins, who won the series finale for a four-game split.
Bundy (2-0) gave up one run and five hits in 5 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and no walks.
Rich Hill (0-1), pitching three days after the death of his father, gave up four runs and six hits in 4 2/3 innings.
CUBS 4, RAYS 2
CHICAGO — Rookie Seiya Suzuki extended his hitting streak to nine games, tying Akinori Iwamura for the longest by a Japanese-born player at the start of a major league career, and Chicago beat Tampa Bay.
Suzuki matched the mark that Iwamura set with the Rays in 2007. He is batting .429 after going 2-for-3 on a cold night.
Ian Happ’s RBI single in the eighth against Jeffrey Springs broke a 2-2 tie and drove in Suzuki, who was hit by a pitch from Jason Adam (0-1) leading off the inning.
Keegan Thompson (2-0) got Randy Arozarena to ground into an inning-ending double play in the fifth and struck out five in 3 2/3 innings while allowing one hit.
David Robertson pitched around a walk in the ninth for his fourth save.
BREWERS 6, PIRATES 1
MILWAUKEE — Christian Yelich belted a grand slam for his first homer of the season and Milwaukee beat Pittsburgh.
Yelich’s two-out slam capped a five-run rally off Pirates starter Zach Thompson (0-1) in the fourth inning. The 429-foot blast was Yelich’s fourth career grand slam.
Eric Lauer (1-0) gave up one run and five hits in six innings while striking out five and walking one. Pittsburgh got its only run in the fourth on rookie Diego Castillo’s first career homer, which came one pitch after Castillo swung at a slider from Lauer that hit him in the knee.
ROCKIES 4, PHILLIES 1
DENVER — Chad Kuhl pitched six scoreless innings during his home debut with the Rockies before leaving with a tight right hip flexor and right hamstring, and Charlie Blackmon hit a go-ahead homer to lead Colorado past Philadelphia.
Kuhl (1-0) allowed a pair of singles, struck out four and walked one, throwing 42 of 68 pitches for strikes. He went to the mound to warm up for the seventh but didn’t start the inning.
Tyler Kinley worked a perfect seventh and Alex Colome allowed a two-out walk in a hitless ninth for his first Rockies save.
Aaron Nola (1-2) took a shutout into the sixth before Blackmon led off with his first home run this season.
PADRES 4, REDS 1
SAN DIEGO — Manny Machado had a two-run homer among his three hits and Sean Manaea pitched six strong innings as San Diego handed Cincinnati its seventh straight loss.
The Padres extended their major league record with 12 consecutive errorless games to open a season.
The Reds took a rare lead when Tommy Pham, who played for the Padres the past two seasons, homered in the first. Pham finished with three hits.
Manaea (2-1) struck out six and walked two. Taylor Rogers pitched the ninth for his fifth save.
Nick Lodolo (0-2) allowed three runs over five innings in his second big league start. He struck out eight and walked two.
ATHLETICS 5, ORIOLES 1
OAKLAND, Calif. — Frankie Montas allowed two hits over six innings, and Oakland threw out two runners at the plate to beat Baltimore in its home opener.
A crowd of 17,503 weathered chilly temperatures to view a matchup between the teams with the two lowest payrolls in the major leagues. Attendance was the lowest for an A’s home opener without COVID-19 restrictions in at least 30 years.
Montas (2-1) struck out five and walked two for his second straight win. He retired 12 of his first 13 batters and did not allow a hit until the fifth, giving A’s rookie manager Mark Kotsay his first win at the Coliseum.
Oakland scored four unearned runs in the sixth after Orioles third baseman Ramón Urías and second baseman Rougned Odor made errors.
Baltimore loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth before Dany Jimenez struck out pinch-hitter Ryan McKenna on a checked swing.
Joey Krehbiel (1-1) took the loss.