Rangers upended in Toronto, 19-4

Toronto Blue Jays' Teoscar Hernandez, right, is tagged out by Texas Rangers' Isiah Kiner-Falefa while trying to steal third during third-inning baseball game action in Toronto, Monday, Aug. 12, 2019. (Fred Thornhill/The Canadian Press via AP)
Toronto Blue Jays' Teoscar Hernandez, right, is tagged out by Texas Rangers' Isiah Kiner-Falefa while trying to steal third during third-inning baseball game action in Toronto, Monday, Aug. 12, 2019. (Fred Thornhill/The Canadian Press via AP)

TORONTO - Brandon Drury hit his first career grand slam, Justin Smoak had a two-run homer among his three extra-base hits, and the Toronto Blue Jays routed the Texas Rangers 19-4 Monday night.

Bo Bichette had the first four-hit game of his career and Randal Grichuk had three hits, including a solo homer as the Blue Jays won for the 10th time in 15 games.

Drury had five RBI, while Smoak and Grichuk each had four.

Blanked for the ninth time this season in Sunday's 1-0 defeat to the New York Yankees, the Blue Jays responded with season-highs in runs and hits (21) against six Rangers pitchers, including catcher Jeff Mathis, who gave up a two-run home run to Danny Jansen in the eighth.

Toronto scored eight runs in the fourth, its biggest inning since an eight-run outburst against Seattle on Sept. 20, 2016.

Nomar Mazara, Willie Calhoun and Rougned Odor hit solo home runs but Texas lost for the fifth time in six games. The Rangers were beaten by 11 or more runs for the third time this season.

Texas arrived in Toronto on the heels of a 1-0 shutout victory at Milwaukee on Sunday. Right-hander Ariel Jurado pitched around Vladimir Guerrero Jr. double to keep it scoreless in the first, but Drury and Bichette each hit RBI singles in the second as the Blue Jays immediately overturned Mazara's solo homer in the top half of the inning.

Jurado (6-8) allowed career-highs of eight runs and 11 hits in 3 2/3 innings. He has won just once in his past eight outings.

Smoak hit a two-run homer in the third, his 19th, and Grichuk followed with a shot to left, his 21st. It was the 10th time this season the Blue Jays have hit back-to-back home runs.

Neil Ramirez opened for Toronto and threw seven pitches, all strikes, in a perfect Blue Jays debut. Brock Stewart (2-0) took over in the second and pitched 5 1-3 innings, allowing three runs and five hits.

 

Nationals 7, Reds 6

WASHINGTON - Trea Turner and Matt Adams homered, Erick Fedde pitched well after allowing a solo shot on the game's first pitch and the depleted Washington Nationals held on to edge the Cincinnati Reds 7-6.

Washington led 7-2 but blew most of that advantage before Sean Doolittle got his 27th save in 32 chances. He entered in the ninth with a 7-4 lead, but the struggling lefty closer's first pitch of the evening became Phillip Ervin's pinch-hit homer. The next batter singled, and came around on Joey Votto's two-out double off the wall in left. Doolittle finally ended things on Josh VanMeter's foul pop to third baseman Anthony Rendon.

Coming off a 5-4 trip that left them tied for the lead in the NL wild-card race, the Nationals opened a six-game homestand without three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, left fielder Juan Soto or first baseman Ryan Zimmerman - all injured - while second baseman Brian Dozier was ill and limited to pinch-hitting duty.

And Washington quickly trailed, because Jesse Winker drove a sinker from Fedde to left for his 16th homer - and third leading off a game this season.

Votto then walked and took second on a groundout. But when VanMeter singled up the middle, Votto headed home and easily was thrown out by center fielder Victor Robles, who picked up his eighth assist of 2019.

Fedde (3-2) settled down and ended up going six innings, giving up two runs and six hits. He finished by wriggling out of a two-on, one-out jam, striking out rookie sensation Aristides Aquino and getting Nick Senzel to ground out.

Aquino, who received NL Player of the Week honors Monday, hit his eighth homer - a record for a player's initial 12 major league games - off former Reds reliever Tanner Rainey in the eighth to make it 7-4.

Adams, starting in place of Zimmerman, hit a two-run shot, his 18th homer, to straightaway center off a slider in the first. Turner connected off a slider for a three-run homer in the fourth, his 11th. Both came off Anthony DeSclafani (7-7).

Turner's shot followed two-out singles by No. 8 hitter Robles and Fedde.

DeSclafani's 100th career start ended after four innings, during which he allowed six runs for the third time this year.

Turner tacked on an RBI single in the seventh off Jared Hughes.

 

Yankees 8, Orioles 5, 1st Game

Yankees 11, Orioles 8, 2nd Game

NEW YORK - Gleyber Torres hit three more home runs, including a pair of three-run drives in the night game that gave him 13 of New York's record 59 long balls against Baltimore this season, and the Yankees completed a doubleheader sweep.

The Yankees' winning streak against the Orioles is 14 games.

Gio Urshela had six hits in the twinbill, including a 461-foot homer in the opener.

Torres set a big league record with his fifth multihomer game against a team in a season, breaking a tie with Ralph Kiner (1947), Gus Zernial (1951) and Roy Sievers (1955). His 26 homers are two more than his total as a rookie last year, and the 13 against Baltimore matched Roger Maris in 1961 against Cleveland for the second-most against one team in a season by a Yankees player, one behind Lou Gehrig's total in 1936 versus Cleveland.

Didi Gregorius hit a three-run homer in the first inning of the day game and had four RBIs. Urshela, Torres and Cameron Maybin added solo shots, all off Gabriel Ynoa (1-7).

Brett Gardner hit a three-run triple off Ty Blach (0-1) in the first inning of the night game and Mike Ford had a solo homer.

James Paxton (8-6) started the opener and won a third straight start. Left-hander Joe Mantiply (1-0) got his first big league win in his Yankees debut.

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