Strider takes no-hitter into 8th as Braves shut out Marlins

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider, delivers in the first inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Monday, April 24, 2023, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Date: April 25, 2023

By The Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — Spencer Strider took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and struck out 13 as the Atlanta Braves snapped a four-game skid Monday night, hitting five home runs in an 11-0 victory over the Miami Marlins.

Fans booed when Jean Segura singled to end Strider’s no-hit bid with one out in the eighth, and Jon Berti followed with a single. But the right-hander fanned the next two batters to finish his dominant outing with a flourish.

Strider had a perfect game going until Gold Glove first baseman Matt Olson made a fielding error on a leadoff grounder by Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the seventh.

Sam Hilliard homered twice, and Sean Murphy, Eddie Rosario and Austin Riley also connected as the Braves avoided their first five-game losing streak since September 2017, when they ended the season with six straight defeats.

Strider (3-0) threw 81 of his 101 pitches for strikes and lowered his ERA to 1.80.

Edward Cabrera (1-2) allowed four runs in 4 1/3 innings.

RAYS 8, ASTROS 3

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Rookie Taj Bradley won his third consecutive start to begin his big league career and Tampa Bay set a modern era MLB record with its 14th consecutive home win to begin a season.

The Rays are 20-3 overall. Only the 1911 Detroit Tigers and 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers had better starts at 21-2 since 1901.

The 22-year-old Bradley (3-0) allowed three runs and four hits with six strikeouts and no walks in five innings. 

Alex Bregman and Jeremy Peña homered for the Astros, who had a four-game winning streak halted. Mauricio Dubón extended his hitting streak to 18 games.

After Peña had a solo shot in the third, the Rays chased Houston starter José Urquidy (1-2) with a four-run outburst in the bottom half to go ahead 6-3.

TIGERS 4, BREWERS 2

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Nick Maton had a three-run homer and Matthew Boyd pitched effectively for five innings to lead Detroit Tigers over Milwaukee.

Boyd (1-1) allowed two runs on five hits in five innings, striking out eight and walking one as the Brewers lost consecutive games for the first time this season.

José Cisnero, Tyler Holton and Jason Foley each tossed a scoreless inning and Alex Lange finished with a perfect ninth for his second save in three chances.

Colin Rae (0-1), making his third start since being called up after Brandon Woodruff went on the injured list, allowed four runs on five hits in five innings, walking four with one strikeout.

REDS 7, RANGERS 6

CINCINNATI (AP) — TJ Friedl drove in the game-winning run with a ninth-inning single and the Cincinnati Reds snapped a six-game losing streak.

José Leclerc (0-1) walked Jonathan India to lead off the ninth. India went to second on a passed ball and scored on Friedl’s single to right.

The Reds came back from a 5-1 third-inning deficit and tied the game in the eighth on back-to-back bases-loaded walks to Henry Ramos and Nick Senzel by Leclerc.

Alexis Díaz (1-1), Cincinnati’s fourth relief pitcher, pitched a perfect ninth for the win.

Josh Jung hit home runs in consecutive innings and drove in three runs for the AL West-leading Rangers.

ORIOLES 5, RED SOX 4

BALTIMORE (AP) — Ramón Urías hit a two-run double in the fourth inning, and Baltimore rallied from a four-run deficit for its seventh straight victory.

Chris Sale (1-2) allowed nine hits — one by each member of the Baltimore batting order — in five innings, failing to hold onto a 4-0 lead after Triston Casas and Rafael Devers homered for Boston. Dean Kremer (2-0) wasn’t great either for the Orioles, but he made it into the sixth inning after some early struggles and gave his team a chance to come back.

After Kremer exited, the Baltimore bullpen pitched 3 1/3 hitless innings. After Danny Coulombe allowed a leadoff walk in the ninth, Yennier Cano came on and balked the runner to second. Kiké Hernandez struck out looking, Casas went down swinging and Jarren Duran lined out for Cano’s first career save.

BLUE JAYS 5, WHITE SOX 2

TORONTO (AP) — Chris Bassitt pitched 6 1/3 innings before leaving because of a sore lower back, Cavan Biggio hit a three-run home run and Toronto Blue beat Chicago.

Bassitt (3-2) called manager John Schneider and the trainer to the mound in the seventh after bouncing his first pitch to Luis Robert Jr. Zach Pop came on and finished the inning. Jordan Romano finished for his eighth save in nine chances.

Chicago’s Andrew Vaughn opened the scoring with a two-run double off Bassitt in the third, but the Blue Jays answered with a four-run fourth off White Sox right-hander Lance Lynn (0-3), who allowed four runs and five hits in five innings.

Robert soared over the low wall in deep center to deny Matt Chapman for the second out of the inning, but the next five Blue Jays batters reached safely. Whit Merrifield hit an RBI double before Biggio followed with his second home run.

TWINS 6, YANKEES 1

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Sonny Gray pitched seven scoreless innings and Joey Gallo homered as the two former Yankees helped Minnesota beat New York.

Jorge Polanco added two hits and three RBIs for the Twins, who have won three of the first five meetings with their longtime nemesis this year. The Yankees are 100-41 against Minnesota in the regular season since 2002, the best record for any team versus one opponent during that span.

New York is also 16-2 against the Twins in the postseason during that stretch.

Gray (3-0) gave up three hits and struck out eight, dropping his ERA to a big league-best 0.62. The veteran right-hander went 15-16 with a 4.51 ERA in parts of two seasons for New York.

Rookie right-hander Jhony Brito (2-2) had another tough outing against the Twins, allowing three runs on three hits and three walks in 2 2/3 innings.

DIAMONDBACKS 5, ROYALS 4

PHOENIX (AP) — Christian Walker scampered home for the go-ahead run in the eighth inning on Nick Ahmed’s infield single, leading Arizona past Kansas City.

Ahmed — who was pinch hitting — brought home Walker on a one-out infield single off reliever Aroldis Chapman (0-1). Ahmed hit the ball off the end of his bat and the result was essentially a swinging bunt down the first base line. Vinnie Pasquantino tried to get Walker at home, but the throw was late.

D-backs lefty Andrew Chafin (2-0) got the win with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. He struck out Salvador Perez and Franmil Reyes to end the game.

ROCKIES 6, GUARDIANS 0

CLEVELAND (AP) — Austin Gomber bounced back from a hideous start to get his first win, Jurickson Profar drove in three runs and Colorado won for just the second time in 13 games.

Gomber (1-4) held the Guardians to three singles — all by Steven Kwan — in five scoreless innings. The left-hander was pounded for nine runs and nine hits in just two innings in a loss to Pittsburgh on April 19.

Profar homered in the first off Cal Quantrill (1-2), who lost for only the second time in 36 career starts at Progressive Field. Quantrill has lost both starts at home in 2023 after going 14-0 over his first 44 appearances in Cleveland.

The Rockies stopped a three-game losing skid to improve to 7-17.

GIANTS 4, CARDINALS 0

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Alex Cobb pitched his first shutout in 11 years and J.D. Davis hit a three-run homer, leading San Francisco over St. Louis.

Cobb (1-1) scattered six hits and struck out four in his fifth career complete game and first since 2018 with Baltimore. His only other major league shutout was a four-hitter for Tampa Bay against Oakland in August 2012.

It was the third complete game in the majors this season. Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and Marlins star Sandy Alcantara each tossed a shutout against Minnesota this month.

Cobb walked one and threw 70 of his 109 pitches for strikes as the Giants won their third straight game for the first time this year.

Cardinals starter Jordan Montgomery (2-3) allowed an unearned run over six-plus innings in his third consecutive loss. St. Louis has dropped all eight series openers this season, matching a dubious franchise record set in 1988.

ATHLETICS 11, ANGELS 10, 10 INNINGS

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Noda hit a two-run double in the 10th inning, Brent Rooker and Jesús Aguilar became the first Athletics teammates to hit back-to-back homers twice in one game and Oakland rallied past Los Angeles after blowing an early six-run lead.

The Angels got within a run on Brandon Drury’s two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th and had runners on first and second with two outs, but Mike Trout hit a grounder to third that ended the game.

Adam Oller (1-0) got the win and Jeurys Familia earned his second save.

With runners at the corners, Noda lined a double off Jaime Barría (1-1) to make it 10-8. Noda, who came off the bench in the ninth and scored the tying run when Rooker walked with the bases loaded, then scored on Tony Kemp’s single.

Aguilar had three hits and Rooker drove in three runs for the A’s, who had lost nine of 10. Kevin Smith also went deep as Oakland launched five home runs in the first three innings.

Drury had two homers among his three hits and drove in four for the Angels. Chad Wallach also homered and drove in two.

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