Cardinals Down Reds, Blue Jays Blank Cubs

Cardinals Down Reds

(Cincinnati, OH) -- Shelby Miller tossed seven shutout innings to lead the Cardinals in a 5-0 win over the Reds from Great American Ball Park. Miller allowed just three hits and struck out four to improve to 9-9. Matt Adams hit a three-run homer in the ninth to break the game open. Matt Carpenter also had a two-run single as St. Louis won its ninth in ten games and is 4 1/2 games up on the Pirates in the NL Central. Cincinnati starter Dylan Axelrod left after recording one out in the first with a right oblique strain. Manny Parra suffered the loss in relief while Brandon Phillips was 2-for-3 in defeat. The Reds have lost six of seven.

The Cardinals and Reds play the second of their four-game series tonight at Great American Ball Park. Michael Wacha is slated to take the mound for St. Louis. He's 5-5 with a 2.80 ERA. Mike Leake starts for Cincinnati. He's 10-11 with a 3.59 ERA.

The Cardinals will open the 2015 season on the road against the Cubs. The teams will meet Monday, April 6th at Wrigley Field. The Cards will play Interleague games against the Indians, Tigers, Royals, Twins and White Sox. The season ends Sunday, October 4 at Atlanta.

Blue Jays Blank Cubs

(Toronto, Ontario) -- Marcus Stroman went the distance to lead the Blue Jays in an 8-0 win over the Cubs at Rogers Centre. Stroman improved to 10-5 while striking out eight and allowing just three hits in his complete-game gem. Jose Bautista hit a three-run homer while Dioner Navarro was 2-for-3 with two RBI. Toronto has won seven of nine. Jacob Turner allowed five runs in six innings for Chicago and fell to 5-9. Jorge Soler, Mike Olt and Chris Valaika managed base hits for the Cubs, who have dropped four straight.

Flowers Lifts White Sox Past Athletics

(Chicago, IL) -- Tyler Flowers hit a game-tying solo homer in the ninth and a walk-off solo shot in the 12th to lift the White Sox past the Athletics 5-4 at U.S. Cellular Field. Conor Gillaspie also went deep and drove in two for the Sox, who snapped a four-game losing streak. Javy Guerra pitched two scoreless innings to pick up the win. Josh Reddick and Jed Lowrie hit back-to-back homers in the fifth for Oakland, which has dropped nine of 11. Sam Fuld plated the go-ahead run for the A's on a bunt-single in the eighth before Flowers tied things up for Chicago in the ninth. Jesse Chavez fell to 8-8 with the loss.

Fister Powers Nationals Past Braves

(Washington, DC) -- Doug Fister pitched seven scoreless innings to lead the Nationals in a 2-1 win over the Braves in DC. Fister moved to 13-and-6 while allowing two hits and three walks and Drew Storen notched his third save by striking out the side in the ninth. Ian Desmond had an RBI single in the first while Anthony Rendon knocked in a much-needed insurance run in the seventh. Washington has won three of five and maintains an eight-game lead on Atlanta in the NL East. Freddie Freeman singled in the lone Atlanta run in the eighth while Mike Minor took the loss to fall to 6-10. Minor gave up two runs in six frames as the Braves dropped their fifth in seven games and sit 1 1/2 games out of a Wild Card spot.

Pirates Hold Off Phillies

(Philadelphia, PA) -- Starling Marte finished a triple shy of the cycle as the Pirates held off the Phillies for a 6-4 win in the opener of a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park. Jordy Mercer and Brent Morel both had two hits and an RBI for the Bucs, who have won four in-a-row. Jeff Locke struck out nine over seven innings of one-run, three-hit ball as he improved to 7-and-4 with the victory. Mark Melancon closed it out for his 27th save. Chase Utley had a two-run triple, while Ryan Howard and Cesar Hernandez also plated a run each for the Phils, who have dropped two straight.  Kyle Kendrick fanned eight in seven-plus frames but allowed five runs and fell to 8-12 with the loss. Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins left in the fifth inning with a strained left hamstring.

Mets' Ninth-Inning Rally Tops Rockies

(Flushing, NY) -- Down 2-1 in the bottom-of-the-ninth, Curtis Granderson tripled in a run to tie the game and Wilmer Flores' sac-fly drove in the run that gave the Mets a 3-2 win over the Rockies from Citi Field. Lucas Duda doubled in the other run for New York, which has won five of six. Carlos Torres picked up the win in relief after Jonathon Niese struck out seven in 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball. Michael Cuddyer and Nolan Arenado both belted solo homers as Colorado saw a four-game winning streak come to an end. LaTroy Hawkins blew the save and took the loss.

Marlins Beat Brewers

(Milwaukee, WI) -- Giancarlo Stanton smacked his National League-leading 37th homer of the year as the Marlins beat the Brewers 6-4 in the opener of a four-game set at Miller Park. Garrett Jones added a solo shot and drove in two, while Marcell Ozuna went deep and scored twice for the Fish, who have won three of their last four. Brad Penny tossed six innings of one-run ball for his second win. Steve Cishek closed it out for his 33rd save. Jonathan Lucroy knocked in two runs and Carlos Gomez had an RBI and scored two times for the Crew, who have lost three straight and 12 of 13 overall. Yovani Gallardo gave up six runs, five earned, in less than four frames as he fell to 8-9.

Kershaw Wins 18th As Dodgers Pound Padres

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Clayton Kershaw became the first 18-game winner in the majors as the Dodgers pounded the Padres 9-4 in the opener of a three-game series at Chavez Ravine. Kershaw struck out eight while allowing three runs, one earned, in eight innings as he improved to 18-3. Carl Crawford went 3-for-4 with a three-run homer, while Hanley Ramirez had four hits, two RBI and scored for the Dodgers, who have won four in-a-row to increase their NL West lead to three-and-a-half games over the Giants. Juan Uribe also went deep in the victory. Yasmani Grandal homered for the Friars, who have dropped six straight. Odrisamer Despaigne was rocked for seven runs, six earned, in four-and-a-third frames as he slipped to 3-6 with the loss.

Angels Power Past Tribe

(Cleveland, OH) -- David Freese and Albert Pujols each hit three-run homers to help power the Angels to a 12-3 win over the Indians at Progressive Field. Kole Calhoun Howie Kendrick also went deep for Los Angeles, which banged out 16 hits in all. The game was a makeup from a rainout in June. Jered Weaver pitched six innings of three-run ball to improve to 16-and-8 on the season. The Angels have won five in-a-row. Danny Salazar was tagged for eight hits and six runs in 4 2/3 frames to fall to 6-7. Lonnie Chisenhall had a two-run homer and an RBI single for Cleveland.

Tigers Use Six-Run Third To Rough Up Royals

(Detroit, MI) -- The Tigers used a six-run third inning to break a 2-2 tie and cruise to a 9-5 win over the Royals in a key AL Central showdown at Comerica Park. Torii Hunter and Victor Martinez each went 3-for-5 with an RBI for Detroit, which banged out 15 hits in all. Justin Verlander pitched seven innings of four-run ball to improve to 13-12. The win moved the Tigers to within one game of the Royals for first place in the division. Jeremy Guthrie allowed 10 hits and eight runs in less than three innings to fall to 10-11 with the loss. Nori Aoki had a two-run single and Lorenzo Cain hit an inside-the-park homer for KC.

Orioles Blank Red Sox

(Boston, MA) -- Miguel Gonzalez blanked the Red Sox for six-and-a-third innings leading the Orioles in a 4-0 win over Boston at Fenway Park. Gonzalez moved to 9-and-7 after scattering six hits and three walks while fanning four. Nelson Cruz was 2-for-4 with two runs while Steve Pearce also went 2-for-4 and drove in a run. Baltimore has won five of seven and owns a ten-game AL East lead. Joe Kelly gave up four runs in 6 1/3 innings for Boston to take the loss. David Ortiz had a double, the lone extra base hit for the team. The Red Sox have lost four of six.

Mariners Drop Astros

(Seattle, WA) -- The Mariners used a three-run eighth inning to lift them to a 4-1 win over the Astros at Safeco Field.  Brad Miller went 2-for-4 with three RBI and Austin Jackson singled in a run to help Seattle pick up its sixth victory in its last seven.  Felix Hernandez struck out eight in six shutout innings for the no-decision with Danny Farquhar picking up the win and Fernando Rodney closing it out for his league-leading 44th save. Robbie Grossman went 3-for-5 and Jose Altuve plated the lone run for Houston, which has lost two of three since winning five straight. Mike Flotynewicz took the loss after starter Brad Peacock fanned six batters in five scoreless frames.

MLB Releases 2015 Schedule

Major League Baseball is releasing its 2015 regular-season schedule. The Cubs open the season at home against the Cardinals while the White Sox are on the road to play the Royals in Kansas City. The official start is Sunday, April 5 with a stand-alone contest between a pair of undetermined teams on ESPN. A full slate of 15 games will follow Monday, April 6. A total of 12 divisional contests are on the docket for Opening Day, while an interleague matchup will feature the Red Sox and Phillies in Philadelphia. World Series rematches from three of the last six seasons will also highlight the interleague schedule, with the Phillies visiting the Yankees and hosting the Tampa Bay Rays. In addition the Giants and Rangers will meet in Arlington. The final day of the 2015 regular season will be Sunday, Oct. 4. The regular season ends October 4, pushing potential World Series games to November.

Monday, September 8 Scoreboard

MLB National League

Washington Nationals 2, Atlanta Braves 1

Pittsburgh Pirates 6, Philadelphia Phillies 4

St. Louis Cardinals 5, Cincinnati Reds 0

New York Mets 3, Colorado Rockies 2

Miami Marlins 6, Milwaukee Brewers 4

Los Angeles Dodgers 9, San Diego Padres 4

MLB American League

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 12, Cleveland Indians 3

Detroit Tigers 9, Kansas City Royals 5

Baltimore Orioles 4, Boston Red Sox 0

Chicago White Sox 5, Oakland Athletics 4 (12 inn)

Seattle Mariners 4, Houston Astros 1

MLB Interleague

Toronto Blue Jays 8, Chicago Cubs 0

Tuesday, September 9 Schedule (All Times Central)

MLB National League

6:05 p.m. - Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals

6:05 p.m. - Pittsburgh Pirates at Philadelphia Phillies

6:10 p.m. - St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds

6:10 p.m. - Colorado Rockies at New York Mets

7:10 p.m. - Miami Marlins at Milwaukee Brewers

9:10 p.m. - San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Dodgers

9:15 p.m. - Arizona Diamondbacks at San Francisco Giants

MLB American League

6:05 p.m. - Minnesota Twins at Cleveland Indians

6:05 p.m. - Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees

6:08 p.m. - Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers

6:10 p.m. - Baltimore Orioles at Boston Red Sox

7:05 p.m. - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Texas Rangers

7:10 p.m. - Oakland Athletics at Chicago White Sox

9:10 p.m. - Houston Astros at Seattle Mariners

MLB Interleague

6:07 p.m. - Chicago Cubs at Toronto Blue Jays