Texas Rangers outfielder Choo Shin-soo is tagged out by Chicago White Sox shortstop Alexei Ramirez in a steal attempt of second base in the first inning on Sunday. The Korean went 0 for 1 with a walk and an RBI. ( AP-Yonhap)
LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Yasiel Puig hit a three-run homer and threw out a runner at second base, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-1 Sunday.
Puig flipped his bat after connecting to cap a four-run sixth inning. His second homer of the season came after a two-out intentional walk to Adrian Gonzalez.
Dodgers starter Josh Beckett pitched five innings of one-hit ball, striking out seven and walking two.
Jamey Wright (1-0) got three outs for his 93rd career victory, spread over 19 big league seasons and 10 different clubs.
Kenley Jansen struck out the side in the ninth for his seventh save and fifth against the Diamondbacks.
The Dodgers won on manager Don Mattingly’s 53rd birthday.
Josh Collmenter (0-2) gave up Puig’s homer.
Chris Perez relieved Wright in the seventh with two on and none out. He retired his first batter, then gave up an RBI double by Eric Chavez.
Beckett threw 83 pitches and allowed only a leadoff single to right field in the second by Miguel Montero. But Montero tried to stretch it into a double and was thrown out by Puig.
Beckett has made three starts, with none of them going past the fifth inning.
The three-time All-Star right-hander remained winless since Sept. 30, 2012, when he beat Colorado at Dodger Stadium. Beckett was 0-5 with a 5.19 ERA in eight starts last season before sitting out the final five months because of a groin strain and a subsequent bout with thoracic outlet syndrome, a nerve condition that required him to undergo surgery in July.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin signs autographs prior to a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday. (AP-Yonhap)
White Sox explode for 16 runsARLINGTON, Texas (AP) ― Chicago White Sox manager Robin Ventura succinctly and aptly described the series finale at Texas.
“It’s an odd game,” Ventura said after the 16-2 victory Sunday that ended Chicago’s four-game losing streak.
There was the bases-loaded triple by the fill-in leadoff hitter Marcus Semien after an intentional walk to the No. 9 batter, the strikeout that stood on a replay challenge after Alejandro De Aza insisted he was hit by the pitch, and White Sox starter Erik Johnson allowing two runs on only one hit over five innings.
“It’s always a good day if you get a win, the team gets a win,” Johnson said. “If you can go out and compete without your best stuff and your team overcomes and puts up a lot of runs, it’s always a positive.”
Jose Abreu and Jordan Danks each had two-run homers while Johnson combined with three relievers on a two-hitter against the Rangers, who had won five in a row.
The White Sox went ahead to stay with three unearned runs off Robbie Ross (1-1) in the fifth, including Abreu’s fifth homer of the season for a 5-2 lead.
Brewers beat Pirates in 14 PITTSBURGH (AP) ― Ryan Braun homered in the ninth inning to tie it, then Khris Davis hit a home run in the 14th that put Milwaukee ahead for good.
Yet those were hardly the big blows that attracted all the attention Sunday in the Brewers’ 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez, Pirates outfielder Travis Snider and Milwaukee bench coach Jerry Narron were ejected after a shouting match quickly escalated into a punch-filled brawl in the third. “I’m not apologetic for anything that I did today,” Gomez said. “I was just doing my job.”
The problems started when Gomez paused at the plate and flipped his bat to watch his two-out drive off Pirates starter Gerrit Cole.
Gomez said he thought the ball would be caught. Instead, it hit the wall and he sped into third base, making a headfirst slide for a triple.
Minnesota 8, Kansas City 3
Cleveland 6, Toronto 4
Detroit 2, LA Angels 1
NY Mets 4, Atlanta 3
Miami 3, Seattle 2
Washington 3, St. Louis 2
NY Yankees 5, Tampa Bay 1
Cincinnati 8, Chicago Cubs 2
Oakland 4, Houston 1
San Francisco 4, San Diego 3
Philadelphia 10, Colorado 9
Boston 6, Baltimore 5