MLB roundup: Pirates power past Cubs in Paul Skenes’ debut

Paul Skenes struck out seven over four-plus innings in his highly anticipated major league debut and the Pittsburgh Pirates hit five home runs in a 10-9 victory over the visiting Chicago Cubs on Saturday.

Skenes threw 17 pitches of 100 mph or more and gave up three runs on six hits and two walks while throwing 84 pitches in all. He was staked to a 6-1 lead before Chicago drew six bases-loaded walks off three Pirates relievers during a wild fifth inning that was interrupted by a rain delay of over two hours.

Connor Joe, Oneil Cruz, Michael A. Taylor, Yasmani Grandal and Andrew McCutchen homered for Pittsburgh, which set a season high for runs and snapped a three-game skid.

Nico Hoerner homered for the Cubs, who went 4-for-13 with runners in scoring position.

Braves 4, Mets 1

Max Fried threw seven no-hit innings for visiting Atlanta, which came within one out of its first no-hitter in over 30 years in a win against New York.

Orlando Arcia hit a two-run homer in the third, Michael Harris II had an RBI single in the fourth and Ronald Acuna Jr. drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth for the Braves, who have won four straight. Fried (3-1) issued three walks and struck out five. Atlanta’s most recent no-hitter was thrown by Kent Mercker, who stymied the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 8, 1994.

J.D. Martinez broke up the no-hitter with a solo shot in the ninth. Mets rookie Christian Scott (0-1) allowed three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out eight over six-plus innings.

Orioles 5, Diamondbacks 4 (11 innings)

Jordan Westburg racked up four hits, including a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 11th, as Baltimore defeated visiting Arizona.

Gunnar Henderson went deep and Ryan Mountcastle doubled twice and tripled for the Orioles, who have won seven of their past eight games.

Ketel Marte homered for the second day in a row for the Diamondbacks, who have lost the first two games of the three-game series after a four-game winning streak.

Blue Jays 10, Twins 8

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. went 4-for-5 with three RBIs and Toronto overcame a six-run deficit to defeat visiting Minnesota.

Danny Jansen hit a two-run home run while Bo Bichette and Davis Schneider hit solo shots for the Blue Jays.

Carlos Santana hit a three-run homer and Ryan Jeffers added a solo shot for the Twins.

Red Sox 4, Nationals 2

Rafael Devers hit a two-run double with two outs in the eighth inning to propel host Boston past Washington.

Wilyer Abreu hit his third home run of the season for Boston, which ended a three-game losing streak. The Red Sox were 2-for-29 with runners in scoring position during those three losses.

Joey Meneses and Eddie Rosario homered for the Nationals.

Phillies 8, Marlins 3

Bryson Stott delivered a go-ahead three-run triple in the sixth inning as Philadelphia handled host Miami.

Stott finished 2-for-5 with four RBIs as the Phillies, who have the best record in majors (28-12), won for the 13th time in 15 games. Taijuan Walker (3-0) earned the win, allowing eight hits and one run in six innings. Cristian Pache had three hits and Johan Rojas drove in two runs.

Vidal Brujan hit his first homer of the year for Miami, which lost its fifth straight game. Otto Lopez hit a two-run blast in the ninth.

Rays 7, Yankees 2

Randy Arozarena had a home run, a double and drove in four runs, Yandy Diaz went deep and finished with two RBIs and Tampa Bay got past New York in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Arozarena went 2-for-3, scored twice and walked. Diaz was 3-for-4 with two doubles and three runs. Ben Rortvedt walked twice and scored.

The Yankees’ Anthony Volpe went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a stolen base, and Austin Wells doubled and scored.

Tigers 8, Astros 2

Mark Canha hit a grand slam, Kerry Carpenter blasted a pair of homers and host Detroit cruised past Houston.

Tarik Skubal (5-0) gave up two runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings while striking out seven for the Tigers, who had lost six of their previous seven games. Shelby Miller and Tyler Holton combined to get the last eight outs.

Astros starter Cristian Javier (2-1) was roughed up in his return from the injured list. Javier, who hadn’t started since April 14 due to neck discomfort, surrendered seven runs on five hits and four walks in 1 1/3 innings.

White Sox 3, Guardians 1

Nicky Lopez, Martin Maldonado and Andrew Benintendi drove in runs and three pitchers combined for 4 1/3 innings of hitless relief as Chicago topped visiting Cleveland.

After needing 28 games to earn their first six victories, the White Sox have won four straight and six of eight. The bullpen relay of Tim Hill (1-0), Jared Shuster and John Brebbia walked one and struck out four. Brebbia pitched a perfect ninth for his first save.

Cleveland right-hander Triston McKenzie retired the final 14 batters he faced and gave up only one earned run in 6 2/3 innings, but he took the loss to fall to 2-3.

Brewers 5, Cardinals 3

Rhys Hoskins belted a three-run home run in the seventh inning to rally Milwaukee past visiting St. Louis, extending the Cardinals’ losing streak to seven games. Andrew Kittredge (0-2) came on in relief with one out in the seventh. William Contreras walked and advanced to third on Jake Bauers’ two-out single. Hoskins then sent a 3-2 pitch 407 feet to center field for his ninth homer of 2024.

The Cardinals threatened in the ninth with consecutive two-out singles by Lars Nootbaar and Paul Goldschmidt, but Trevor Megill got Nolan Arenado to fly out to right — notching his fourth save in four chances. Milwaukee has won eight straight vs. St. Louis.

Giants 5, Reds 1

Matt Chapman launched a first-inning grand slam and San Francisco evened its three-game series against visiting Cincinnati.

The Giants loaded the bases against Cincinnati starter Nick Lodolo (3-2) on two hits and a walk, and Chapman hit a 416-foot blast to center field for his fifth homer of the season. Taylor Rogers (1-1) relieved rookie starter Mason Black in the fifth to pitch out of a jam and get the win.

Elly De La Cruz homered to lead off the fourth, his ninth long ball of the season, to trim the Reds’ deficit to 4-1. Lodolo was pulled after six innings, allowing four runs and five hits.

Rockies 8, Rangers 3

Elias Diaz delivered a go-ahead RBI single in a six-run seventh inning that propelled Colorado past Texas in Denver and guaranteed the Rockies their first series win of the season.

Ryan McMahon had four hits and scored two runs for the Rockies, while Diaz and Brendan Rodgers collected two hits apiece. Colorado’s three-game winning streak is its longest since it won five straight last September.

Colorado starter Ryan Feltner allowed two hits over six innings before three relievers held the Rangers to three hits over the last three innings. Ezequiel Duran and Leody Taveras each had two hits for Texas.