NATIONAL LEAGUE
Left-hander Madison Bumgarner got his career-high sixth straight win, as the San Francisco Giants beat the Reds 6-1 on Thursday, taking a series in Cincinnati for the first time in five years.
San Francisco moved a season-high 18 games over .500 with their 11th win in 14 games. The Giants have the best record in the majors at 39-21.
Photo: AFP
Bumgarner (8-3) gave up three hits in eight innings, including a Todd Frazier homer, and retired the final 16 batters he faced. He is 6-0 in his past seven starts, the best such streak of his career.
Michael Morse hit a two-run homer, and Brandon Crawford broke out of a slump with a three-run shot off Mike Leake (3-5), who had overwhelmed the Giants the past four times he faced them.
NATIONALS 4, PHILLIES 2
Doug Fister kept himself and his club on a roll, allowing two runs and four hits over seven innings as the Washington Nationals capped a sweep.
Fister (4-1) struck out five and did not walk any as he won his fourth consecutive start for what is starting to look like the tough-act-to-follow rotation expected from the Nationals this season.
The Nationals have won five of six. They have outscored opponents 38-12 in those half-dozen games, including 19-6 in each of the three-game series against the Texas Rangers and the Phillies.
Kyle Kendrick (1-6) allowed four runs over seven innings and walked five as the Phillies dropped their season-high sixth in a row.
CUBS 7, METS 4
Anthony Rizzo hit a tiebreaking homer and Travis Wood went deep and drove in three runs as the Chicago Cubs beat the New York Mets 7-4 on Thursday to complete a three-game sweep.
Rizzo’s solo drive off Vic Black (1-1) with one out in the seventh gave Chicago a lead after New York’s Andrew Brown capped a four-run comeback with a two-run shot in the top half.
Junior Lake added a two-run triple in the eighth, as the Cubs came away with their first series sweep since they took three in San Francisco in July last year.
Wood delivered at the plate and was in line for the win, before New York rallied from a 4-0 deficit. Justin Grimm (2-2) got the win.
In the other NL game, it was:
‧ Diamondbacks 12, Rockies 7
AMERICAN LEAGUE
BLUE JAYS 7, TIGERS 3
Juan Francisco and Brett Lawrie hit consecutive home runs in the sixth inning off Justin Verlander, as Toronto completed a three-game sweep of Detroit.
The AL East-leading Blue Jays have won 19 of 23, including sweeps of defending champion Boston, AL West-leading Oakland and AL Central-leading Detroit. J.A. Happ (5-2) allowed three runs and seven hits in 6-1/3 innings for Toronto.
Casey Janssen got the final out for his 10th save in 11 chances. He needed only one pitch to retire Nick Castellanos on a line drive to left with two on.
Melky Cabrera also homered for the Blue Jays.
Verlander (6-5) allowed six runs — five earned — and eight hits in seven innings. He walked four and struck out four. Toronto scored six runs over the fourth and sixth.
YANKEES 2, ATHLETICS 1
Masahiro Tanaka tamed the team with the most runs in the majors, as New York stopped a four-game skid, beating Oakland and ending the Athletics’ five-game winning streak.
Facing the A’s for the first time, Tanaka (9-1) got an early jolt when John Jaso homered as the second batter in the game. That was the only run Tanaka allowed in six innings.
David Robertson worked the ninth for his 13th save in 15 chances, helped by a lucky bounce.
Stephen Vogt singled with one out and pinch-runner Craig Gentry stole second. Alberto Callaspo followed with a hard grounder that deflected off Robertson’s leg, and first baseman Mark Teixeira corralled the carom and flipped to the pitcher covering the bag for an out.
In other AL games, it was:
‧ Rangers 8, Orioles 6
‧ Astros 8, Angels 5
In interleague play, it was:
‧ Royals 3, Cardinals 2
‧ Marlins 11, Rays 6
‧ Brewers 8, Twins 5
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