Shohei Ohtani of the Angels watches one of his two home runs Thursday during an 8-7 loss to the Oakland Athletics in Anaheim, Calif. Jae C. Hong/Associated Press
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Los Angeles Angels tied a major league record with seven solo home runs, including two by Shohei Ohtani, but still lost to the Oakland Athletics 8-7 Thursday.
The Angels are the first team to hit seven solo homers and score no other runs in a game. They’re also the sixth team to hit seven homers and lose, according to STATS.
Ramon Laureano homered and drove in four runs, and Seth Brown had a two-run shot during a six-run third inning for AL-worst Oakland. Sean Murphy also drove in two runs for the Athletics, who took the final two games of the series and have won six of their last nine.
Paul Blackburn (7-6) picked up his first win since June 16 despite surrendering four home runs.
DODGERS 5, GIANTS 3: Clayton Kershaw left his start because of low back pain, but Los Angeles completed a four-game sweep at San Francisco.
Kershaw made 66 pitches through four innings, allowing one earned run and three hits with four strikeouts.
Mookie Betts and Trea Turner homered for the Dodgers, who have won eight straight against the Giants, matching the longest streak in Los Angeles history.
RAYS 7, TIGERS 2: Brandon Lowe had a two-run home run among his three hits and drove in three runs as Tampa Bay won at Detroit.
Randy Arozarena had four hits for Tampa Bay, which won back-to-back games for the first time since the All-Star break.
ASTROS 6, GUARDIANS 0: Justin Verlander pitched six scoreless innings for his MLB-leading 15th victory, Chas McCormick and Martin Maldonado each homered and had three RBI, and AL West-leading Houston won at Cleveland.
Verlander (15-3), making his comeback from Tommy John surgery, extended his winning streak to seven starts and moved into a tie with Herb Pennock for 55th place all-time with 241 victories. He gave up two hits, both singles, and struck out five.
In addition to leading the majors in wins, Verlander leads with a 1.73 ERA. The right-hander is 11-16 in his career at Progressive Field, where his 5.17 ERA is the highest of any ballpark that he has pitched in more than twice.
METS 6, BRAVES 4: Deadline acquisition Tyler Naquin homered twice in his home debut for New York, Edwin Diaz locked down his first two-inning save as a pro and the host Mets won the opener of a five-game series between the NL East rivals.
Pete Alonso and Daniel Vogelbach hit back-to-back homers in the third for the Mets, who extended their lead over the Braves to 4 1/2 games. Alonso, who began the scoring with a single in the first, finished with three RBI.
ROCKIES 7, PADRES 3: Ryan McMahon hit a three-run homer off Joe Musgrove and drove in five runs for Colorado, which avoided a five-game sweep at San Diego.
CARDINALS 4, CUBS 3: Lars Nootbaar hit a tying sacrifice fly in the seventh inning and an RBI single in the ninth as St. Louis won the opener of a split doubleheader against visiting Chicago.
St. Louis trailed 3-0 before rallying in the seventh against Marcus Stroman. Nolan Gorman and Paul Goldschmidt hit back-to-back homers before Nolan Arenado doubled and scored on Nootbaar’s flyball to center.
Arenado and Paul DeJong walked with one out in the ninth against Erich Uelmen (0-1). Nootbaar then drove in Arenado with a liner to right on a 2-2 pitch.
PIRATES 5, BREWERS 4: Bryan Reynolds raced home on a wild pitch with one out in the 10th inning, and Pittsburgh completed a three-game sweep at home.
Reynolds tied it earlier in the 10th when he hit a ground-rule double down the right-field line off Matt Bush (2-2). Reynolds moved to third on a fly to right field by Ke’Bryan Hayes and raced home when a pitch from Bush slipped past Brewers catcher Victor Caratini, giving the Pirates their third comeback win over NL Central-leading Milwaukee in as many days.
NOTES
LONDON: Major League Baseball plans to return to London next year for the first time since 2019.
The league announced that the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs will play a two-game series on June 24-25 at London Stadium. The NL Central rivals were supposed to play in London in 2020, but the games were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The Cardinals are excited and honored to be a part of the London Series next year,” Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a release. “The Cardinals-Cubs rivalry is one of the best in sports, and it will be exciting to bring it to Europe for a new audience to experience.”
MLB last played in London in 2019, when the New York Yankees swept a two-game set against the Boston Red Sox in June at London Stadium. Those were MLB’s first regular-season games played in Europe.
Chicago and St. Louis have played international games before. The Cubs opened the 2000 season in Tokyo against the New York Mets and played a three-game series against the Montreal Expos in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 2003. The Cardinals played a two-game set against Cincinnati in Mexico in 2019.
“The MLB London Series between the Cubs and Cardinals has been in the works for years now and we’re thrilled to finally be able to bring one of baseball’s biggest rivalries to fans abroad in 2023,” Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts said in a release.
The 2023 London Series is part of an international slate that was approved in the March labor agreement between MLB and the players’ association. It also calls for London games in 2024 and 2026, the first France games in 2025, annual Mexico City games from 2023-26, an Asian opener in 2024 and a Tokyo opener in 2025.
“These games will be a great opportunity to once again showcase the London Stadium as a multiuse venue and an asset to the capital,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan said in a statement. “The St Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs are two of the best supported clubs in baseball and I know they will receive a fantastic reception next summer here in the sporting capital of the world.”
BLUE JAYS: Whit Merrifield said he is now vaccinated for COVID-19 and will be cleared to play in Canada when the Blue Jays return from their current trip.
Merrifield was acquired in a trade with Kansas City on Tuesday for two minor leaguers. He was among 10 players on the Royals who weren’t able to play last month against the Blue Jays in Toronto because they were unvaccinated. When asked about his decision, Merrifield drew the ire of Kansas City fans by saying: “Something happens and I happen to get on a team that has a chance to go play in Canada in the postseason, maybe that changes.”
PHILLIES: Philadelphia released veteran shortstop Didi Gregorius as part of a flurry of moves before the opener of a four-game series against Washington.
Philadelphia also activated infielder Jean Segura from the 60-day injured list and right-hander Kyle Gibson from the bereavement list.
Right-hander Noah Syndergaard and center fielder Brandon Marsh reported to the team after they were acquired in a pair of trades on Tuesday.
Gregorius, 32, is batting .210 with a homer and 19 RBI in 63 games this season.
Segura, 32, had been sidelined by a broken right index finger. The two-time All-Star appeared in eight rehab games for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, going 6 for 30 with six walks.
DIAMONDBACKS: Nicole Hazen, the wife of General Manager Mike Hazen, has died from complications due to glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer. She was 45.
She was diagnosed with cancer more than two years ago. The family has four sons, Charlie, John, Teddy and Sam. The team sent a statement confirming that Hazen died on Thursday.
Mike Hazen announced he was taking a partial leave of absence last year to help take care of his wife and family.
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