Nationals earn first four-game series win over Braves since 2016

ATLANTA —

Trevor Williams combined with four relievers on five batters and Washington beat Atlanta 3-1 on Thursday night for the Nationals’ first four-game series win over the Braves since 2016.

Williams (5-0) allowed just four hits and one run in 5 2/3 innings. It was the seventh start in his last eight outings where he did not allow more than one earned run. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 2.22.

The Nationals won three of four games for their first four-game series victory over Atlanta since Aug. 18-21, 2016 — the year before the Braves moved to Truist Park. The Braves have won the season series against the Nationals in each of the last six years, overlapping Atlanta’s six years of NL East titles.

Washington closer Kyle Finnegan walked Ozzie Albies to open the ninth. Albies stole second base, but Finnegan retired the next three batters for his 15th save.

Joey Meneses gave Washington a 2-0 lead over Ray Kerr (1-2) with a double in two points in a three-run third inning.

Atlanta is 12-14 in May and has scored three points or fewer in 11 of the losses.

The Nationals entered the game with 89 stolen bases, the most in the majors, and added three bases to that total in the third inning. Jesse Winker and Jacob Young each stole third base with Kerr on the mound – each time without making a throw.

MILWAUKEE 6, CUBS 4

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Gary Sánchez hit a game-tying two-run homer with two outs in the eighth inning and Milwaukee beat Chicago.

The NL Central-leading Brewers won three of four games against Chicago in a series that marked Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s return to American Family Field. Counsell, the winningest manager in Brewers history, was booed every time he left the dugout this week.

After the Cubs came from behind twice with game-tying home runs against Bryan Hudson (4-0), Sánchez made the biggest shot of all to put Milwaukee back in front for good. His 422-foot drive over the center field wall came on a 3-2 sweep by Tyson Miller.

The Brewers missed a golden opportunity to score in the eighth. After Luke Little (1-1) walked Christian Yelich and Willy Adames to start the inning, pinch hitter Owen Miller hit a double play on a 3-2 pitch.

Tyson Miller came out of the bullpen and gave up Sánchez’s powerful homer.

It wasn’t the first time Sánchez won a game with an eighth-inning blast this season. He hit a two-run homer off Aroldis Chapman in the eighth inning of a 7–5 victory at Pittsburgh on April 25.

RAYS 6, ATHLETICS 5, 12 SLEEVES

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Jose Siri tied the game in the ninth with a home run and Richie Palacios hit an RBI single in the 12th to give Tampa Bay a victory over Oakland.

Siri tied the Rays at 4 on his second home run of the game, a solo shot off Mason Miller. It was the rookies’ first blown save in 12 occasions.

Abraham Toro led off the 10th with an RBI single against Pete Fairbanks, who then got out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam without further damage. Randy Arozarena had a sacrifice fly to keep the Rays in.

In the 12th, Richard Lovelady (1-3) left runners stranded at second and third. Palacios’ RBI then gave Tampa Bay its second win of the three-game series and its third in its last 10 games.

Tyler Ferguson (0-1) suffered the loss for the A’s after pitching 1 1/3 innings. TJ McFarland replaced him in the 12th and gave up the hit to Palacios.

Isaac Paredes hit a two-run homer in the first inning before Siri hit a solo shot in the second against Oakland starter Hogan Harris.

TWINS 7, ROYALS 6

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Ryan Jeffers homered twice and Carlos Correa added a two-out triple and cleared the bases in the sixth inning and Minnesota rallied from a four-run deficit for a victory against Kansas City.

Reliever Chris Stratton (2-3) allowed an RBI single to pinch hitter Max Kepler and walked two batters to load the bases with two outs.

Correa lifted a 3-1 fastball down the right field line to break a 4-4 tie. It was Correa’s second triple of the season.

Jeffers’ first home run of the game, a two-run blast into the left field bullpen in the bottom of the fourth, cut the Royals’ 4-0 lead in half. Jeffers, who leads the Twins with 12 homers, was 5 for 43 since his previous homer on May 14.

Reliever Caleb Thielbar (2-1) got the win for the Twins, who have won three of four in the series.

Vinnie Pasquantino and MJ Melendez each scored for Kansas City. Starting pitcher Daniel Lynch IV allowed two earned runs in five innings just hours after being recalled from Triple-A Omaha.

ASTROS 4, SAILORS 0

SEATTLE (AP) — Spencer Arrighetti allowed two hits in six shutout innings to help Houston beat Seattle and avoid a four-game sweep.

Alex Bregman hit a two-run homer in the fourth against Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (3-3). Kyle Tucker led off the inning with a single and Bregman gave Houston a two-run lead with a shot that barely cleared the left field wall.

Bregman added a sixth-inning triple that narrowly escaped the grasp of a leaping Julio Rodríguez in center field, and scored on a ground ball to second base by Victor Caratini to give Houston a four-point lead. points.

Caratini also hit a solo homer in the fifth against Gilbert, who allowed four earned runs and eight hits in six innings of work.

While the Astros had success against Gilbert, the Mariners’ offense couldn’t do much against Arrighetti (3-5), who allowed just two singles while walking three and striking out eight batters from Seattle, a career high.

Mariners shortstop JP Crawford made a scoring play in the seventh when he dove for a ground ball right off Mauricio Dubón and returned it with his glove to second baseman Dylan Moore, who threw to first for the out.

METS 3, DIAMOND BACK 2

NEW YORK (AP) — JD Martinez homered in the eighth inning, Francisco Lindor had four hits and drove in the tying run after Pete Alonso doubled as a pinch hitter and New York maintained its dominance of the ‘Arizona with a victory.

Arizona ace Zac Gallen was injured on his sixth pitch, forcing the National League champions to use relief pitchers for most of the game. The Diamondbacks then blew a two-run lead and lost their fourth straight game, tying their season high of six games under .500. Arizona has scored nine points in its last six games.

New York ended a four-game losing streak and won for just the second time in 10 games. The Mets have won 20 of their last 24 games against the Diamondbacks and 16 of their last 18 against Arizona at Citi Field.

Ketel Marte hit a two-run double in the third against rookie Christian Scott, who allowed four hits in six innings.

Lindor homered in the third inning against Brandon Hughes and an RBI single in the seventh against Ryan Thompson (2-2) after Alonso doubled in his first hitting appearance since 2021. Alonso left Wednesday’s game when ‘he was hit in the right hand by a step; the scans were negative.

TIGERS 5, RED SOX 0

BOSTON (AP) — Jack Flaherty allowed one hit in 6 2/3 innings, Akil Baddoo, Riley Greene and Gio Urshela homered and Detroit beat Boston.

Flaherty (2-4) had no hits through 6 1/3 innings. His bid was canceled when Boston outfielder Rob Refsnyder singled to left field on a 3-2 pitch. The only other Red Sox player to reach Flaherty came in the fifth when Rafael Devers led off the inning with a walk.

Flaherty struck out nine and threw 66 of his 104 pitches for strikes. He was still playing a mid-90s fastball before getting knocked out by Detroit 2-0.

The Red Sox were held hitless for six innings as recently as last Saturday against Milwaukee. Boston finished Thursday’s game with two hits and four runners on.

After walking the leadoff batter, Boston right-hander Nick Pivetta (2-4) tied Roger Clemens for the Red Sox record with eight consecutive outs. His bid for nine straight punchouts was cut short on a ground ball to second base that started the fourth inning.

Recalled from Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday, Baddoo produced the game’s first run with a single hit. With one down in the fifth, the Detroit outfielder jumped and sent the ball into the first row of Green Monster seats.

YANKES 8, ANGELS 3

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Aaron Judge hit his 275th home run, Juan Soto opened the game with a bases-clearing triple in the seventh inning and New York beat Los Angeles at the end of two streaks.

Anthony Volpe went 0 for 4, ending his 21-game hitting streak. He tied Arizona’s Ketel Marte for the longest time in majors this season.

Carlos Rodón (7-2) allowed three runs in six-plus innings, ending the team’s MLB record for going at least five innings and allowing two or fewer runs in 16 games .

Logan O’Hoppe hit his fourth home run in eight games, but the Angels’ woes at home continued. They have lost five of six on their homestand and are 7-21 in the Big A this season.

Judge has 18 home runs, which is tied with Baltimore’s Gunnar Henderson and Houston’s Kyle Tucker for the MLB lead. Judge joined Lou Gehrig as the only Yankees players to hit at least 12 homers and 12 doubles in a calendar month with a two-run shot off Patrick Sandoval (2-8) in the fourth inning. Gehrig accomplished the feat in July 1930.

After Soto led off the inning with a walk, Judge put the Yankees ahead when he connected on a Sandoval sweeper that didn’t have much of a break and drove it 433 feet into the stands at center left. The homer also tied Judge with Jorge Posada for eighth in franchise history.