Nationals pitcher Austin Voth delivers a pitch during the ninth inning of Washington’s -1 win over the Diamondbacks on Tuesday in Washington. Alex Brandon/Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Joan Adon became the first Nationals starter to finish six innings in 2022, throwing 6 1/3 scoreless on Tuesday night to help Washington beat the punchless Arizona Diamondbacks 1-0 and sweep a doubleheader.
Adon (1-2), a 23-year-old right-hander making his fourth appearance in the majors, gave up three hits and walked two while striking out five. He never allowed a runner to reach third base.
In Game 1, played before a record-low announced crowd of 9,261 at Nationals Park, Victor Robles – who started the season 0 for 18 and was batting .045 in 2022 when he stepped to the plate to face Arizona starter Madison Bumgarner – delivered an RBI double for Washington’s first hit in the fifth, sending the hosts on their way to a 6-1 victory.
Robles played a key role in Game 2, too, singling to lead off the sixth against spot starter Tyler Gilbert (0-1) before coming around to score the lone run on a double by César Hernández.
Gilbert, called up Tuesday from Triple-A Reno to make his seventh major league start, was nearly as good as Adon, allowing one run and three hits over 5 2/3 innings.
The Diamondbacks entered with major league lows for batting average (.152) and runs (21), and the sweep dropped their record to 3-8. They are averaging two runs per game.
In the second game, Robles got a two-strike single to left, and Lucius Fox put down a sacrifice bunt that Gilbert fielded cleanly, but first baseman Christian Walker dropped the throw for an error. Walker’s vision might have been obstructed by Fox’s red helmet, which came off and got kicked up by one of his feet as he ran to the bag, eventually leaving Walker with a bleeding nose.
Hernández’s double off the base of the wall in left brought home Robles.
METS SWEEP GIANTS: Max Scherzer pitched no-hit ball into the sixth inning of his anticipated home debut and New York rode its $130 million ace to a 3-1 victory over San Francisco for a doubleheader sweep.
Francisco Lindor was the hero in the opener, delivering a game-ending single in the 10th inning of a 5-4 victory. That came moments after Pete Alonso’s stretch at first base saved Lindor’s off-target throw and kept the game tied.
Scherzer (3-0) hardly needed any help, combining with two relievers on a two-hitter. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was overpowering for 5 2/3 innings before seeming to hit a wall. His velocity dipped and control wavered over consecutive walks to Mike Yastrzemski and Brandon Belt, and then Darin Ruf ripped an RBI single for San Francisco’s first hit.
CARDINALS 5, MARLINS 1: Albert Pujols had two hits and scored twice as St. Louis won in Miami.
Adam Wainwright (2-1) threw 5 2/3 effective innings, allowing one run on five hits with six strikeouts and two walks.
Tommy Edman tripled, singled and drove in two runs, and Paul Goldschmidt also had two hits for St. Louis.
Marlins’ starter Jesús Luzardo allowed five runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. Luzardo (0-1) struck out three and walked two.
The 42-year-old Pujols stretched a bloop hit near right the-field foul line into a double in the second inning and came home on Paul DeJong’s double. DeJong then scored from second on Miami second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s throwing error.
BREWERS 5, PIRATES 2: Corbin Burnes struck out 10 and allowed two runs in seven innings to earn his first win of the season as Milwaukee won at home.
The Brewers won their third straight despite getting held to a season-low three hits. The Pirates had a season-low four hits.
Rowdy Tellez and Hunter Renfroe homered for the Brewers. Daniel Vogelbach and Josh VanMeter had solo shots for the Pirates.
Burnes (1-0) gave up four hits and didn’t walk anybody. The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner held the Pirates scoreless through five innings before giving up homers to Vogelbach in the sixth and VanMeter in the seventh.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
YANKEES 4, TIGERS 2: Gerrit Cole lasted a career-low 1 2/3 innings, and Clarke Schmidt combined with four relievers to pitch three-hit shutout ball and lead New York to a win in Detroit in a series opener.
Cole matched his career high of five walks and allowed two runs and one hit, throwing just 37 of 68 pitches for strikes.
Starting the third season of a $324 million, nine-year contract, the 31-year-old right-hander has a 6.35 ERA in three starts and has pitched into the sixth inning just once.
Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera singled off Cole leading off the second, his 2,996th hit.
New York’s bullpen got 22 outs without allowing a run. Schmidt (1-2) led the way, allowing two hits in 3 1/3 innings for his first major league win.
INTERLEAGUE
RAYS 6, CUBS 5: Wander Franco hit his first homer of the season, a two-run bomb to left-center in the third inning, and Tampa Bay held on to win in Chicago.
Cubs rookie Seiya Suzuki drew three walks but his nine-game hitting streak came to an end, leaving him tied with Akinori Iwamura for the longest hitting streak by a Japanese-born player to start a career.
Playing at Wrigley Field for the first time, Franco finished 3-for-5, including the homer that put the Rays ahead 3-0. The second-year player missed Monday’s series opener with right quadriceps tightness.
Opener Matt Wisler got the first five outs for the Rays and Josh Fleming (2-1) worked the next 3 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on four hits. Andrew Kittredge, the sixth Rays pitcher, retired the final six Chicago batters for his second save.
Justin Steele (1-1) allowed four runs in 2 2/3 innings.
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