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Category: Professional

Royals-Rays game postponed Tuesday

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Tampa Bay Rays’ game against the Kansas City Royals was washed out Tuesday night, and the teams will make it up at part of a doubleheader Wednesday with the first game starting at 12:15 p.m.

The second game will begin 45 minutes after the first game.

The Rays planned to send Blake Snell to the mound Tuesday in his second start since hurting his toe in a freak accident at home, while the Royals planned to counter with Jakob Junis.

Tampa Bay intended to use an opener against the Royals’ Danny Duffy in their game Wednesday.

The Rays (19-9) rolled to an 8-5 win in the opener Monday night, building upon the best record in baseball. The rainout means Kansas City (9-20) will avoid matching its worst March-April loss total of 21, set just last season.

— Associated Press —

Kansas City loses series opener to Tampa Bay 8-5

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Tommy Pham, Yandy Diaz and Ji-Man Choi each drove in a pair of runs, sending the hot-hitting Tampa Bay Rays to an 8-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday night.

Michael Perez and Kevin Kiermaier also drove in runs for the Rays (19-9), who have won five of six to build upon the best record in baseball. They also moved to 10-2 on the road.

Yonny Chirinos went 5 2/3 innings in relief of effective opener Ryne Stanek, allowing two earned runs on two hits and a walk. Chirinos improved to 4-0 after going 0-3 last season.

The Rays did most of their damage against Brad Keller (2-3), who struggled in his return from a five-game suspension for his role in a fracas with the Chicago White Sox. The big right-hander allowed five runs on six hits and three walks over five innings.

The Rays jumped on Keller in the first when Choi drew a two-out walk, went to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a balk. When he scored on Diaz’s base hit, Tampa Bay had outscored its opponents 29-4 in the first inning this season.

The Rays added three more in the second after Kiermaier was hit by a pitch, beginning a parade of batters to the plate. Perez delivered an RBI double and Pham provided the big blow with a two-run triple, staking the Rays’ pitching staff — with the best ERA in baseball — to a 4-0 lead.

They nearly gave it right back in the third.

The Royals took advantage of an error by Rays shortstop Daniel Robertson and a walk to Whit Merrifield when Adalberto Mondesi tripled to right. He scored on Alex Gordon’s sacrifice fly.

Jorge Soler homered in the seventh for Kansas City, but the Rays added a run in the eighth and Choi’s two-run double off Wily Peralta in the ninth to put the game away.

FRIENDS IN LOWE PLACES

Rays DH Nate Lowe doubled in the eighth for his first big league hit. The slugger roared through three minor league levels last season and was hitting .300 at Triple-A Durham.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rays: INF Matt Duffy took some at-bats in extended spring training as he rehabs from a sore back and ailing hamstring. He hopes to return in the next couple of weeks. “He felt good,” manager Kevin Cash said. “Progress is being made.”

Royals: OF Billy Hamilton got another day off after leaving Saturday night’s game against the Angels with a sore hamstring. “That’s one of his main strengths,” manager Ned Yost said of Hamilton’s speed. “I’m going to wait until he’s really good, then I’m going to give him one more day.”

UP NEXT

AL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell (2-2, 2.54 ERA) makes his second start after returning from a toe injury on Tuesday night against the Royals. Snell was on a 65-pitch limit and got knocked around his last time out. Jakob Junis (2-2, 5.57) will be on the mound for Kansas City.

— Associated Press —

Cardinals score six in 5th inning to beat Nationals 6-3

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Harrison Bader homered to spark a six-run fifth inning as the surging St. Louis Cardinals rallied past Patrick Corbin and the Washington Nationals 6-3 on Monday night in the opener of a four-game series.

Marcell Ozuna put the Cardinals ahead 4-3 with a two-run single. Jose Martinez had an RBI double and Yadier Molina added a run-scoring single off Corbin, who took a 3-0 lead into the fifth.

Michael Wacha (2-0) went five innings after being activated from the 10-day injured list earlier in the day. The right-hander allowed three runs and four hits while striking out five.

Jordan Hicks pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his ninth save.

St. Louis has won three straight and eight of nine, while Washington fell to 1-9 in series openers this year.

After yielding only one hit through the first four innings, Corbin (2-1) let the Cardinals bat around in the fifth. He gave up six runs — five with two outs — in his first loss since joining the Nationals as a $140 million free agent from Arizona.

Following Bader’s solo homer, Corbin got Wacha to ground out but then allowed the next six batters to reach. Matt Carpenter walked and later scored on a wild pitch to Ozuna.

Molina’s single extended his hitting streak to 16 games, tying a career high.

Washington took a 3-0 lead in the second on a bases-loaded walk to Corbin and a two-run single by Adam Eaton.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: RHP Luke Gregerson (right shoulder impingement) was set to arrive in Washington. The 34-year-old reliever began the season on a rehab assignment with Double-A Springfield, where he had allowed two runs in 11 innings.

Nationals: 3B Anthony Rendon (bruised left elbow) was out of the lineup for the second consecutive game and the seventh time in eight after being hit by a pitch April 20 in Miami. “At this point, he’s almost day to day,” manager Dave Martinez said. … RHP Trevor Rosenthal (viral infection), placed on the 10-day injured list Friday, left for extended spring training in Florida without a timetable for his return.

ROSTER MOVE

Washington recalled infielder Adrian Sanchez from Double-A Harrisburg. Sanchez was with the Nationals in early April but did not appear in a game. In the corresponding move, the team optioned RHP Erick Fedde — who pitched four scoreless innings on Sunday — to Double-A.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (2-2, 3.96 ERA) is 8-4 with a 3.38 ERA in 15 career games against Washington.

Nationals: RHP Anibal Sanchez (0-3, 6.00) is still looking for his first win with Washington in his sixth start of the season.

— Associated Press —

Royals drop series finale to Angels 7-3

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Albert Pujols opened the weekend by passing Lou Gehrig on the career RBI list and ended it by moving past Barry Bonds.

Pujols’ go-ahead, two-run double in the first inning Sunday started the Los Angeles Angels to a 7-3 win over the Kansas City Royals.

He pulled a fastball from Homer Bailey (2-3) just past third baseman Kelvin Gutierrez. Pujols has 1,997 RBI and trails only Hank Aaron (2,297) and Alex Rodriguez (2,086) in RBI, which became an official statistic in 1920.

Pujols did not speak with reporters after the game.

“He’s had an unbelievable career,” Angels manager Brad Ausmus said. “He continues to add onto it.”

Matt Harvey (1-2) got his first win with the Angels, allowing one run and two hits in seven innings.

“I thought he picked up where he left off in his last inning of his last outing,” Ausmus said. “He was aggressive. He attacked the hitters. His stuff was good. He threw some really good changeups and curveballs.”

Harvey lowered his ERA from 8.03 to 6.54 as the Angels won a road series for the first time this season.

“The big thing was putting together a decent start from the last outing. I was trying to keep that going. The thought crept into my head early this morning,” Harvey said. “I used that as energy to stay focused and keep my attention. I wasn’t striking out the world, but the guys were making plays behind me. I knew, especially with the wind blowing in, that I could attack the zone.”

The key pitches for Harvey were improved changeups and curveballs. Pitching coach Doug White has cautioned Harvey not to overuse his slider.

“For him to stay on me about the changeup and the curveball and going through the drills we do in between starts has been huge,” Harvey said.

Kansas City’s Alex Gordon, who faced Harvey in the 2015 World Series against the New York Mets, said the 30-year-old right-hander “kind of looked like the Matt Harvey of old.”

Bailey gave up six hits to his first 13 batters and retired his final 10. He allowed four runs in six innings as the Royals dropped to an AL-worst 9-19.

“I thought Homer didn’t have his best stuff today, but really grinded it out, really competed and really battled through it to get us six good innings,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said.

Tommy LaStella’s RBI groundout in the first and Andrelton Simmons’ RBI single in the third boosted the lead to 4-0.

“Soft singles, but singles nonetheless,” Bailey said. “Then Albert’s ball, if that’s 6 inches the other way it’s a double play. That’s just the way it goes with good hitters.”

Kansas City scored in the fourth without a hit when Alex Gordon reached on a wild pitch as he struck out, advanced on a walk, took third on a flyout and came home on Jorge Soler’s sacrifice fly.

Hunter Dozier’s RBI single off Ty Buttrey in the eighth cut the Royals’ deficit to 4-2. Justin Bour hit a three-run home run in the ninth against Ben Lively.

MOVES

Angels: Optioned RHP Jaime Barria to Triple-A Salt Lake and recalled RHP John Curtiss.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: OF/RHP Shohei Ohtani continues to improve in his return from Tommy John surgery, taking batting practice each day. Manager Brad Ausmus would not say when he might be ready to hit in a game.

Royals: OF Billy Hamilton was out of the lineup with right hamstring tightness, a day after leaving in the fifth inning.

UP NEXT

Angels: Los Angeles plans to bring up top pitching prospect Griffin Canning to start Tuesday at Toronto in his major league debut. The 22-year-old right-hander is 1-0 with a 0.56 ERA at Salt Lake, allowing one earned run in 16 innings with 17 strikeouts and two walks. “I think we’ve always liked the stuff,” manager Brad Aumus said. “There’s been a little caution because of the limited time in the professional ranks, and of course, the pitch count, which we addressed by sending him to Arizona to get up to 90 pitches.”

Royals: RHP Brad Keller (2-2) starts Monday against Tampa Bay after serving a five-game suspension for hitting Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox with a pitch April 17.

— Associated Press —

Flaherty blanks Reds for 7 innings, Cardinals win 5-2

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis right-hander Jack Flaherty noticed a trend from the beginning of his outing against the Cincinnati Reds.

“My defense came to my rescue every time I needed them to,” Flaherty said. “That was the difference today.”

Flaherty tossed seven scoreless innings, Yadier Molina drove in three runs and the Cardinals beat the Reds 5-2 on Sunday, taking two of three from their NL Central rivals.

Jose Martinez had two hits and drove in a run for the Cardinals, who have won seven of eight overall.

Scott Schebler hit a two-out, two-run double in the ninth for the Reds, who have lost three of five.

Molina extended his hitting streak to 15 games, one short of his career best, with a bases-loaded single in the eighth.

Flaherty (3-1) gave up four hits in an 89-pitch outing. He struck out four and walked one. He was helped by three double plays, two of which ended innings.

“I loved his tempo, loved his aggression, loved his game plan,” St. Louis manager Mike Shildt said. “He had a lot of quality pitches in the strike zone.”

Molina said Flaherty was locked in from the outset.

“He was throwing first-pitch strikes,” Molina said. “That slider was obviously the best pitch he had.”

Flaherty said the biggest defensive play of the game was second baseman Kolten Wong’s diving catch of a line drive by Tucker Barnhart that ended the first inning. Flaherty walked Yasiel Puig with two away after getting ahead in the count 0-2.

“That was frustrating,” Flaherty said.

Wong’s play set the tone for the rest of Flaherty’s day.

“We got a lot of momentum after that,” Flaherty said. “Those guys made every single play.”

John Gant picked up his second save in three chances by retiring Derek Dietrich after Schebler’s double.

St. Louis scored twice in the fourth off Sonny Gray (0-4), who gave up three hits in five innings. He struck out five and walked two.

Martinez brought in Paul DeJong with a two-strike single to right. Dexter Fowler followed with an infield single, and Molina pushed the lead to 2-0 with a sacrifice fly.

Martinez has worked his way into the starting lineup and went 14-for-32 (.438) during St. Louis’ nine-game homestand.

“Every chance they give you, you have to take advantage,” Martinez said.

Wong started a three-run outburst in the eighth with a double to right that Puig lost in the sun.

John Brebbia, Andrew Miller and Jordan Hicks each recorded an out in the eighth.

Joey Votto reached base twice for the Reds, who are 10-8 since a 1-8 start to the season.

Gray, making his first career appearance against the Cardinals, set down the first six batters and struggled in only one inning.

“I got zero swings on my breaking balls and that’s normally my best pitch,” Gray said. “I didn’t quite have a feel for it today.”

END OF THE LINE

Paul Goldschmidt had a 13-game hitting steak snapped.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: RHP Alex Reyes was placed on the 10-day injured list with a broken left pinkie. The 24-year-old punched a wall in frustration after his outing with Triple-A Memphis on Thursday. Reyes gave up three runs on three hits in 2 2/3 innings at Omaha. “He made a decision that I’m sure he would choose to do over,” Shildt said. “He cares.”

UP NEXT

Reds: RHP Tanner Roark (1-1, 3.42 ERA) will start on Monday against the New York Mets. Zack Wheeler (2-2, 4.85) will pitch for the Mets in the first of a four-game set. Roark is 8-4 with a 3.07 ERA in 22 career starts against New York.

Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (1-0, 4.64) starts in the opener of a four-game series at Washington on Monday against LHP Patrick Corbin (2-0, 2.48). Wacha will be coming off the 10-day injured list. He missed one start because of left knee patellar tendinitis.

— Associated Press —

Brian Waters to be inducted into Chiefs Hall of Fame

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt announced on Saturday that former offensive guard Brian Waters will be the 2019 inductee into the Chiefs Hall of Fame. Waters is the 49th individual and 45th player to earn this coveted honor. The official enshrinement ceremony into the Chiefs Hall of Fame will be held during Chiefs Alumni Weekend at Arrowhead Stadium this fall.

“In his 13 seasons with the Chiefs, Brian Waters was a fixture on some of the best offensive lines in franchise history,” Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said. “Although he was undrafted coming out of college, Brian made the most of his opportunity here in Kansas City, and his work ethic, talent and toughness made him an undisputed leader on the field and in the locker room. Brian also has a tremendous heart of service, and his commitment to the Kansas City community earned him the prestigious Walter Payton Man of the Year Award in 2009. We look forward to adding Brian’s name to the Ring of Honor at Arrowhead this fall.”

Over 13 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs (2000-10), the New England Patriots (2011) and the Dallas Cowboys (2013), Waters played in 186 games with 170 starts, earning six Pro Bowl selections and two first-team All-Pro recognitions by the Associated Press. He became the first offensive lineman to be named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week, which occurred following Kansas City’s 56-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons on October 24, 2004 when the team rushed for an NFL record eight touchdowns in the game.

During Waters’ time with the Chiefs, he helped pave the way for each of the top four individual single-season rushing performances in franchise history. He was also on the field for three of the top five individual single-game rushing efforts in club annals, including RB Jamaal Charles’ franchise-record 259-yard performance at Denver (1/3/10). In 2004, he teamed with Pro Football Hall of Fame G Will Shields to form the first tandem of Pro Bowl guards from the same team since Larry Allen and Nate Newton did it for Dallas following the 1995 season. He and Shields also became the first guard duo from the same team to be named to three-consecutive Pro Bowls (2004-06).

In 2009, the entire National Football League community honored Waters as the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year winner for his on-field accomplishments, as well as his commitment to community outreach. Waters became the fifth member of the Chiefs to receive this honor, tying the Chiefs for the most award winners in the NFL. Since the launch of the “Brian Waters 54 Foundation” in 2004, tens of thousands of children and families in the Greater Kansas City area as well as his home state of Texas have been positively impacted through his back-to-school program where he provided backpacks full of school supplies as well as haircuts and medical check-ups prior to the start of school. At the time of his Man of the Year selection, he had granted more than 80 college scholarships for low-income students. The 54 Foundation partnered with more than 20 different agencies annually.

Waters was signed by Dallas as an undrafted free agent and released after training camp in 1999. Following his release from Dallas, he arrived in Kansas City for a free agent workout in March of 2000 when the Chiefs convinced him to make the move to offensive line, a position he had never played. He spent the spring of 2000 playing for the Berlin Thunder of NFL Europe where he started every game at center. The Waxahachie, Texas, native played in 44 games at North Texas, starting at tight end for three years before switching to defensive end prior to his senior season. Waters hauled in 86 receptions for 975 yards and nine touchdowns in three years as a tight end. As a senior defensive end, he recorded 45 tackles (32 solo) and 5.0 sacks, earning him first-team All-Big West Conference honors. He also caught four passes for 66 yards with one touchdown as a senior.

— Chiefs Communications —

Ozuna has 5 RBIs to lead Cardinals to 6-3 win over Reds

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Marcell Ozuna’s right shoulder is healthy and he can focus on hitting, not adjusting to a new team

“I’m just working harder every day, especially if healthy,” Ozuna said after hitting a three-run homer and driving in five runs to lead the St. Louis Cardinals over the Cincinnati Reds 6-3 on Saturday. “I’m just going to work and work and work every day, and then have success at the plate.”

Ozuna’s 10th home run of the season came after the Reds took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third.

Cincinnati took a 2-0 lead in the third, and Ozuna’s homer put the Cardinals ahead in the bottom half.

Ozuna became the third Cardinals player to hit 10 by the end of April after Mark McGwire, who hit 11 in 1998, and Albert Pujols, who had 14 in 2006. Ozuna, fighting his sore shoulder, didn’t hit his 10th home run last season until June 16.

“I hit the ball harder every time,” Ozuna said. “When you hit the ball harder, everything’s going to happen.”

Ozuna gave the Cardinals a 5-2 lead in the fifth when he hit a two-out double off the right-field wall.

Dakota Hudson (2-1) allowed three runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings, pitching into the sixth for the first time as a major league starter.

“We made adjustments in my last bullpen — moved over on the rubber a little bit,” Hudson said. “I felt like my fastball execution was a little better, and that’s a result of me getting a little bit better sink on it.”

Jordan Hicks pitched a perfect ninth for his eighth save in nine chances.

Harrison Bader had a run-scoring single in the sixth, his first RBI since he was activated from the injured list on Wednesday.

Tyler Mahle (0-3) allowed five runs, seven hits and three walks in five innings.

“I just pitched poorly all day,” Mahle said. “I was honestly lucky to only give up five there.”

Jose Peraza and Eugenio Suarez hit RBI singles in the third. Jesse Winker followed with a single, and center fielder Dexter Fowler made a one-hop throw to the plate to Yadier Molina, who tagged Suarez for the third out.

“Two outs there, you definitely have to take a chance and try to score right there,” Reds manager David Bell said. “If the throw’s off just a little bit it’s a run, and in most cases, it is off a little bit. In this case, Dexter Fowler made a perfect throw, and it was still very close.”

Derek Dietrich hit a sacrifice fly in the sixth.

HITTING STREAKS

Molina extended his hitting streak to 14 games with a single in the fourth. Teammate Paul Goldschmidt extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a single in the third.

MOLINA MILESTONE

Molina made his 1,797th start at catcher, passing Benito Santiago for seventh place.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: LHP Alex Wood (back spasms) suffered a setback and was scratched from his scheduled bullpen session in Goodyear, Arizona.

Cardinals: RHP Carlos Martinez (right shoulder cuff strain) will throw a 30-pitch batting practice session at the team’s Jupiter, Florida, complex on Monday. Martinez is scheduled to throw another session later in the week, and if he checks out well after that he will begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment as he prepares to rejoin the club pitching out of the bullpen.

“Right now, I feel comfortable,” Martinez said. “I think with one inning, it’s OK for my arm right now. I just have focus on the bullpen right now.”

UP NEXT

Reds RHP Sonny Gray (0-3) will be making his first career appearance against the Cardinals on Sunday. St. Louis RHP Jack Flaherty (2-1) is 0-2 with a 4.41 ERA in four starts against Cincinnati.

— Associated Press —

Royals lose to Angels 5-1 in Duffy’s 2019 debut

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Albert Pujols hit a two-run homer in the first inning and moved passed Lou Gehrig into fourth place on the career RBI list, and Tyler Skaggs pitched five shutout innings as the Los Angeles Angels beat the Kansas City Royals 5-1 Friday night.

Pujols has 1,995 RBI, one behind Barry Bonds in third place. Only Hank Aaron (2,297) and Alex Rodriguez (2,086) have more than 2,000 RBI.

Skaggs (2-2) continued to baffle the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. The left-hander didn’t allow a run in five innings plus one batter.

Skaggs has allowed just one earned run over 26 innings (0.35 ERA) in four starts. He now has the best ERA all-time in Kansas City (0.35) with a minimum of 20 innings. In four starts against Kansas City, the Royals have hit .227 against (17-of-88, .193 average, with three doubles).

The Royals’ Danny Duffy (0-1) gave up three runs on five hits in five innings in his first start of the season after spending the nearly two months on the injured list with left shoulder impingement.

Duffy struggled in the first inning, allowing two runs on three hits. He gave up another run in the fifth on a two-out double by Andrelton Simmons.

The Angels got their fourth run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Luis Rengifo. It was Rengifo’s first career RBI. The Angels added another run in the eighth on Kole Calhoun’s seventh homer of the season.

Pujols passed Gehrig by hitting a 2-1 pitch to left-center that traveled 430 feet.

The Royals nearly got to Skaggs in the fourth. With two outs, Alex Gordon and Hunter Dozier singled and Jorge Soler drew a walk. But Skaggs got Ryan O’Hearn to swing at a 3-2 fastball.

The Royals got a run in the ninth on a sacrifice fly by Adalberto Mondesi.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels OF/RHP Shohei Ohtani continues to take live batting practice in his attempt to return from Tommy John surgery. He underwent the operation Oct. 1, 2018. … OF Mike Trout was the DH against the Royals, but manager Brad Ausmus said it was because the Angels got in late following a late 11-5 victory over the New York Yankees in Anaheim.

Royals 3B Hunter Dozier was back in the lineup, but not on defense. He served as the designated hitter. He came out of Monday’s game in Tampa with back spasms. Kansas City manager Ned Yost said Dozier probably would be the DH for a couple of days. “He’s making progress. He’s feeling better. He feels good today, but he’ll probably DH for a couple of days until he’s feeling better.”

ROSTER NEWS

The Angels reinstated LHP Tyler Skaggs from the 10-day injured list, where he’d been since April 13 with a left ankle sprain. He took the spot of RHP Cody Allen, who was placed on the 10-day IL with a lumbar spine strain. “It first came up probably three or four days ago,” Los Angeles manager Brad Ausmus said. “We actually had a game where it locked up in the bullpen; he was unavailable. It seemed to be better the next day, and then better even more the following day. Just prior to coming out from his last outing, he said that it tightened up again.”

The Angels also recalled RHP Luke Bard from Triple-A Salt Lake and optioned RHP Matt Ramsey to Salt Lake.

The Royals activated LHP Danny Duffy from the 10-day IL. He made his first appearance — and first start — of the season against the Angels on Friday night. Duffy was placed on the injured list with left shoulder impingement syndrome during spring training. He had one appearance at Double-A Northwest Arkansas (five innings, four hits, one unearned run and seven strikeouts). To make room, the Royals optioned LHP Tim Hill to Triple-A Omaha. Hill was 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA in eight relief appearances.

The Royals also placed 1B Lucas Duda on the 10-day IL (retroactive to April 24) with a lumbar strain, and recalled IF Kelvin Gutierrez from Omaha. Gutierrez was hitting .333 (22-for-66) with a double, two homers and 10 RBI in his first 18 games with the Storm Chasers this season.

UP NEXT

Angels RHP Jaime Barria (2-1, 4.26 ERA) will take the mound for the first time against the Royals. He is in his second stint with the club, after being recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on April 15.

Royals RHP Jorge Lopez (0-2, 4.50 ERA) will pitch for the Royals. He has pitched at least six innings in each of his four starts this season, including seven against the Yankees in New York in his last start (no decision).

— Associated Press —

St. Louis gives up five HRs in 12-1 loss to Reds

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Joey Votto, Yasiel Puig and Eugenio Suarez homered, and the Cincinnati Reds snapped St. Louis’ five-game win streak with a 12-1 victory over the Cardinals on Friday night.

Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker also connected as the Reds matched a season high with five homers in their third win in four games. Anthony DeSclafani tossed six scoreless innings in his first win since Aug. 28.

St. Louis ace Miles Mikolas (2-2) gave up four runs and six hits in five innings. He pitched eight effective innings in a 10-2 victory over the New York Mets in his previous start.

Matt Carpenter had two hits and walked twice for St. Louis, which finished with eight hits. Carpenter scored on Paul DeJong’s single in the eighth for the Cardinals’ only run.

DeSclafani (1-1) gave up four hits in a 91-pitch outing. He struck out six and walked three.

Suarez put Cincinnati in front with his sixth homer in the first. Winker hit his team-best seventh homer leading off the fourth, and Votto made it 4-0 with a solo shot in the fifth. Puig drove in Winker with a two-run drive in the eighth, and Peraza homered during the Reds’ six-run ninth.

Curt Casali finished with three hits and four RBI for the Reds, who are 3-0-1 in their last four series against the Cardinals.

St. Louis infielder Jedd Gyorko struck out pinch hitter Phillip Ervin on four pitches to end the ninth.

STREAKING

St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a single in the second. Teammate Paul Goldschmidt extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a single in the seventh.

ROSTER MOVE

St. Louis activated Tyler O’Neill from the 10-day injured list and optioned fellow outfielder Lane Thomas to Triple-A Memphis. O’Neill had been sidelined by a right elbow injury.

O’Neill grounded into a double play as a pinch hitter in the seventh.

TRAINING ROOM

Reds: LHP Alex Wood (back spasms) threw a bullpen session Wednesday in Arizona and is scheduled to throw another Saturday.

Cardinals: RHP Luke Gregerson (right shoulder impingement) tossed a scoreless inning with two strikeouts for Double-A Springfield on Wednesday.

UP NEXT

St. Louis right-hander Dakota Hudson (1-1, 5.89 ERA) will start the second game of the three-game series on Saturday against right-hander Tyler Mahle (1-3, 3.52 ERA). Hudson pitched a career-high five innings to earn his first win as a starter on Sunday. Mahle is seeking to stop a two-game skid and is 1-1 with a 4.35 ERA in two career starts against St. Louis.

— Associated Press —

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes on cover of ‘Madden NFL 20’

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Photo courtesy of EA Sports

Electronic Arts announced Thursday that the Kansas City quarterback and reigning NFL MVP will grace the cover of “Madden NFL 20” when it is released Aug. 2. The announcement was made before the first round of the NFL draft.

“It is awesome and definitely a full circle moment for me,” Mahomes said during an interview with The Associated Press before the cover was revealed.

In his first season as the Chiefs’ starting QB, Mahomes threw for 5,097 yards and 50 touchdowns during the regular season and led them to the AFC championship game for the first time since 1993. He began last season with an overall Madden rating of 77 but finished the season with a 94.

Mahomes said he was approached by Electronic Arts prior to the Pro Bowl in late January about appearing on the cover. He also has given a lot of input on the development of the Face of the Franchise: QB1 feature that will be in this year’s game.

The feature allows players to create their own quarterback to play through the College Football Playoff, NFL combine, draft and career with a team.

“It has been great to be able to discuss my experiences going through everything, especially the draft process, and to see how that will develop in the game,” Mahomes said.

Mahomes, who is an avid video game player, said games like Madden have become more realistic and that the same concept of reading a playbook applies to learning football.

Players have appeared on the Madden cover since 1999. Mahomes is the eighth quarterback to be featured on the Madden cover and the second in the past three years. New England’s Tom Brady was on the cover two years ago.

Appearing on the cover has also had a stigma attached at times. Most of the cover athletes during the first 10 years suffered significant injuries the year they appeared. Recently retired Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski was the most recent player to be beset by injuries when he started only six games in 2016.

Wide receiver Antonio Brown, who was traded from Pittsburgh to Oakland during the offseason, was on the cover last year.

— Associated Press —

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