UNDATED (AP) — Baseball’s defending champs were able to win a series for just the second time this season.
The Braves scored four runs in the second inning and led 9-0 by the fifth inning of a 9-2 rout of the Brewers. Matt Olson hit a two-run double in the second, one inning before Duvall homered off starter and loser Aaron Ashby. William Contreras added a three-run drive in the fifth off Jandel Gustave to pad the lead.
Charlie Morton entered the game with a 7.85 ERA in four starts this season before allowing two hits and three walks over five shutout innings.
Atlanta took the last two games of the series to cool off the NL Central leaders.
Also on major league diamonds:
— The Mets split a pair with the Phillies, earning a 6-1 win following a 3-2 loss in the opener. Bryce Harper homered off former Nationals teammate Max Scherzer for the second straight meeting, Harper also had an RBI single to help the Phillies bounce back from Thursday’s 8-7 loss to the Mets.
— The Mets improved to 8-0-1 in series this season when Pete Alonso homered twice and drove in five runs. Alonso hit a two-run shot and a three-run blast after going 0-for-3 in the opener. Chris Bassitt allowed one run in 5 ⅔ innings for the NL East-leaders, including Jean Segura’s home run.
— Walker Buehler was a winner in his 100th career start by holding the Cubs to one run and four hits over seven innings of the Dodgers’ 7-1 victory. Cody Bellinger had three hits for Los Angeles, and Justin Turner and Freddie Freeman each contributed a sacrifice fly. Mookie Betts went 2 for 5 while extending his hitting streak to a team-high nine games.
— The Padres pulled out a 3-2 win over the Marlins on Jorge Alfaro’s three-run homer with two out in the bottom of the ninth. Trent Grisham and CJ Abrams got on base ahead of Alfaro, who victimized his former team. Jazz Chisholm homered for the Marlins, who have lost seven of eight.
— Mike Yastrzemski belted a tiebreaking home run into McCovey Cove in the sixth inning of the Giants’ 4-3 verdict over the Cardinals. LaMonte Wade Jr. also homered in his third game off the injured list to help the Giants win their second straight after a five-game losing streak. San Francisco closer Camilo Doval got slugger Nolan Arenado to strike out swinging with the tying run on second base to complete his fifth save.
— The Diamondbacks were 4-0 winners over the Rockies as Zac Gallan struck out seven while yielding five hits over seven frames. Jose Herrera hit a two-run double for his first big-league RBIs, and Ketel Marte had three hits to boost his average to .206. Arizona has won nine of its last 12.
— Colin Moran was the hitting star in the Reds’ 7-3 win against Pittsburgh, providing a grand slam and a two-run homer against his former team. Tyler Mahle pitched five solid innings and the Reds rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the sixth. Cincinnati took two of three in the series after entering the weekend with a major league-worst 3-22 record.
— The Angels scored three times in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Nationals, 5-4. Shohei Ohtani ied it with a two-run double and scored on Anthony Rendon’s walk-off single. Jack Mayfield also drove in two runs for the Angels.
— The Yankees had to settle for a split of their doubleheader, winning 2-1 before absorbing a 4-2 loss in the nightcap. Gleyber Torres ended the opener with a walk-off homer in the ninth inning. Gerrit Cole allowed a run and five hits in 6 1/3 innings for a no-decision in Game 1.
— In Game 2 in the Bronx, Brad Miller hit a go-ahead pinch hit two-run homer in the seventh inning that ended Michael King’s string of 14 1/3 scoreless innings. Eli White also homered as Texas won for the fifth time in six games. Giancarlo Stanton belted a two-run homer for the Yankees, who lost for only the second time in 14 games.
— The Astros ran their winning streak to seven games as Aledmys Díaz hit a grand slam and Jake Odorizzi threw five innings of one-hit ball in a 5-0 shutout of the Tigers. Alex Bregman later padded the lead with a solo homer off Joe Jimenez for his fifth home run of the season. Houston’s winning streak followed an 11-11 start.
— Abraham Toro hit a tying homer in the ninth inning and Ty France singled home the winning run in the 10th to give the Mariners their first win in seven games, 2-1 versus the Rays. Toro connected off Andrew Kittredge with one out in the bottom of the ninth for his fourth home run. Manuel Margot hit his third home run of the series for the Rays, who had won six straight overall and eight in a row on the road.
— It’s now a nine-game losing streak for the Athletics after the Minnesota bullpen combined for 6 2/3 innings of shutout work in a 4-3 downing of Oakland. Jorge Polanco laced a two-run single in the third inning for a 4-3 lead. The Twins allowed only four runs over three games against the Athletics.
— Oscar Mercado’s RBI single in the eighth inning gave the Guardians a 4-3 decision over the Blue Jays. Toronto took a 3-2 lead into the eighth, but Owen Miller’s one-out homer off Tim Mayza tied it. José Ramírez furnished an RBI triple in the win.
— The Orioles and Royals split a pair in Baltimore, with the Birds taking a 4-2 win in the nightcap following Kansas City’s 6-4 victory. Michael Taylor hit a tiebreaking single in the ninth of the opening after a pair of two-out Baltimore errors. Kansas City manager Mike Matheny recorded his 700th career win in the majors with the Royals and St. Louis.
— José Abreu poked a two-run double and Leury García added an RBI single as the White Sox beat the Red Sox, 3-2 for their season-high sixth straight victory. Dallas Keuchel allowed two runs on eight hits to end a three-start losing skid. The White Sox are over .500 for the first time since April 20.
Red Sox put Wacha on IL
UNDATED (AP) — Red Sox right-hander Michael Wacha was scratched from his scheduled start in Sunday’s series finale against the Chicago White Sox and placed on the 15-day injured list.
Manager Alex Cora said Wacha was feeling sore on his left side after his last bullpen session. Cora said the 30-year-old Wacha had an MRI Saturday and “everything was clean.”
Also in the majors:
— The Mets have released second baseman Robinson Canó, a week after the 39-year-old was designated for assignment despite nearly $45 million remaining on his contract. Cano is hitting .195 this season.
— The Cubs scratched Marcus Stroman before their game against the Dodgers, putting the right-hander on the injured list without a designation. The move likely means Stroman’s absence is connected to a COVID-19-related issue.
