Cubs Sweep Blue Jays, Bell Powers Pirates Past Cardinals

By ESPN

Alex Avila felt for Raffy Lopez. It was quite a day for catchers.

Avila capped Chicago's three-run 10th inning with a two-run single, and the Cubs swept the Toronto Blue Jays with a wild 6-5 victory on Sunday.

With two outs and the bases loaded, Avila lined a base hit into right field against Roberto Osuna (3-4). Ben Zobrist scored easily and Javier Baez slid in safely just ahead of the tag attempt by Lopez.

"The first pitch that I fouled off was a cutter in deep and he tried to go back in there with another cutter and just kind of left it more middle of the plate," Avila said.

The improbable rally also included two batters reaching on swing-and-miss strikeouts and a wild pitch that scored Kyle Schwarber -- all with Lopez behind the plate. The 29-year-old backstop also got beat up by a couple other balls in the inning.

"It is a tough one," he said. "You feel like it's your fault. Sometimes the game gets the best of you. You've just got to bounce back. Just learn from it. I just have to respond."

Toronto grabbed the lead with two runs in the top of the inning on Kevin Pillar's RBI single off Koji Uehara, and Norichika Aoki's bases-loaded loaded walk against Justin Wilson (4-4).

Osuna, however, was handed his eighth blown save of the year.

"They've got the magic here. There's no doubt about it," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said.

Pillar also robbed Kris Bryant of extra bases with a spectacular leaping catch against the ivy-covered wall in center in the seventh, drawing appreciative cheers from the crowd of 41,459 at Wrigley Field.

Albert Almora Jr. hit a three-run double for NL Central-leading Chicago, which completed its fifth three-game sweep of the season. Kyle Hendricks allowed three runs and six hits in six innings.

"I do love that we don't quit," manager Joe Maddon said. "We talk about it all the time. We do not quit."

Chicago jumped in front on Almora's big hit in the third, but Toronto responded with single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth, capped by Miguel Montero's second homer since the Cubs traded the catcher to the Blue Jays. After Jose Bautista flied out to begin the sixth, Montero drove Hendricks' next pitch over the wall in left-center.

Montero helped Chicago win the World Series last year, but was designated for assignment on June 28 after he blamed pitcher Jake Arrieta for allowing seven stolen bases in a loss to Washington. Montero and Arrieta quickly patched things up, and each side has said everything is fine.

"We've already been texting," Hendricks said after allowing the homer to Montero. "Those were just dumb pitches honestly, bad pitches to him. He's a good hitter. He can hit mistakes."

Pirates 6, Cardinals 3

Despite spending the afternoon with 12-year-old Little Leaguers who idolize pros like himself, Josh Bell didn't find himself dispensing much advice.

"No one came to me and asked, `What do you think about my swing?" Bell said. "It was more like, `Follow me on Instagram' or like this or that picture. It was more lighthearted."

So he gave them a firsthand demonstration of how to hit one out.

Bell homered and drove in four runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates over the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3 in the Little League Classic on Sunday night.

The teams played at renovated Bowman Field, a 91-year-old minor league ballpark located 5 miles from where the Little League World Series is taking place. Sitting in the front rows were admiring Little Leaguers who got to mingle with the big league stars earlier in the day, part of a Major League Baseball initiative to celebrate youth baseball.

After the final out of MLB's first regular-season game in Williamsport, the Pirates shook hands on the field as usual following a victory. And then -- in a nod to Little League baseball -- both teams lined up at home plate and shook hands with each other, throwing in some hugs and high-fives to finish off a feel-good day.

"It was refreshing every once in a while to be able to look in the stands and see the kids watching the game," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "It was one of the highlights of my career."

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny also appreciated the atmosphere inside a 2,366-seat venue that was packed with 2,596 fans.

"You can't help but get caught up, especially these kids treating our players like they're heroes as they walk through there," Matheny said. "Pretty special stuff. I think that's something they never get used to completely."

Bell sent a pitch from Mike Leake (7-12) over the right-center wall for a two-run shot in the first inning. The rookie slugger added a two-run single in the third to give Pittsburgh the lead for good.

"He's a maturing player," Hurdle said. "His overall game has just found a good, competitive place at this level. He's become a very definite guy that can do some damage at the plate."

Adam Frazier homered for the second straight game and Andrew McCutchen added an RBI grounder for the Pirates, who were the "home" team and won their second in a row to split the four-game series. They snapped a six-game skid with a rain-delayed victory Saturday in Pittsburgh.

Pirates starter Ivan Nova (11-10) wasn't affected by Saturday's late finish. The team sent him to Williamsport early that day so he'd be rested and ready. And he was. Nova gave up three runs on eight hits and struck out five in 5 2/3 innings.

He got through a tough stretch in the fourth when St. Louis put two runners on with no outs. Nova struck out Kolten Wong and Randal Grichuk before getting Jose Martinez to ground out.

"No panic, no panic," Nova said. "I was just trying to stay ahead."

Felipe Rivero got three outs for his 14th save in 15 chances. With runners on first and second, Paul DeJong hit a long fly to center field for the final out.

Jedd Gyorko cut Pittsburgh's lead to 3-2 with a two-run homer in the second, his 17th of the season. Wong had an RBI single for St. Louis in the sixth.

The Pirates' bullpen held the Cardinals to two hits after Nova's exit.

White Sox 3, Rangers 2

Miguel Gonzalez and Juan Minaya pitched out of trouble just well enough on Sunday.

Gonzalez escaped early trouble to finish six scoreless innings and Minaya recorded the final out after giving up a two-run homer, leading the Chicago White Sox over the Texas Rangers 3-2.

Texas dropped 2 1/2 games behind the Twins and the Angels for the AL's second wild-card spot. The Rangers finished a 10-game homestand 7-3, but split the four-game series against Chicago.

Gonzalez (7-10) pitched out of one-out, bases-loaded jams in both the second and third innings.

"I just didn't have that feel in the second and third inning," he said. "I was just pushing the ball instead of going through my catcher."

Rangers manager Jeff Banister said his batters couldn't take advantage.

"I felt like Gonzalez made some pitches," he said, and added, "There were no productive outs in today's game."

With the bases loaded, Texas batters went down on two popups and two short flyballs.

After allowing singles to the first two batters in the fourth, Gonzalez retired the last nine batters he faced.

"Just one of those days where you had to think through it and make adjustments while the game went on."

Gonzalez tied his season high with six strikeouts, and gave up four walks and four hits, all singles. He's 2-0 in his last three starts, allowing two runs in 20 innings.

"I thought he was running the ball, cutting the ball, working both sides of the plate, staying on the fringes," White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. "He never really left anything to the middle that allowed them to do a whole lot."

Minaya recorded his second save, both in the last three games, despite giving up Rougned Odor's 27th homer with two outs in the ninth.

Minaya got pinch hitter Shin-Soo Choo to ground into a double play ahead of the homer. After it, Minaya retired Elvis Andrus on a game-ending flyball.

The Rangers left 10 runners on base after scoring 29 runs in the series' first three games. They were 2 for 12 with runners in scoring position.

Chicago capitalized on the Rangers' stranding runners by scoring three runs in the fourth inning against A.J. Griffin (6-4).

Omar Narvaez stretched his hitting streak to eight games with an RBI single and Tyler Saladino followed with a two-run double. Saladino had only six RBI in his 53 previous games this season.

"I just wasn't able to get ahead," Griffin said. "They got a couple of base hits with guys on and scored a couple of runs."

Sunday, August 20 Scoreboard

Detroit 6, Los Angeles Dodgers 1

Miami 6, New York Mets 4

Tampa Bay 3, Seattle 0

Boston 5, New York Yankees 1

Los  Angeles Angels 5, Baltimore 4

Atlanta 8, Cincinnati 1

Minnesota 12, Arizona 5

Oakland 3, Houston 2

Kansas 7, Cleveland 4

Chicago Cubs 6, Toronto 5 (F/10)

Chicago  White Sox 3, Texas 2

Milwaukee 8, Colorado 4

Philadelphia 5, San Francisco 2

Washington 4, San Diego 1

Pittsburgh 6, St. Louis 3

Monday, August 21 Schedule (All Times Central)

Minnesota at Chicago White Sox, 4:10 p.m.

Oakland at Baltimore, 6:05 p.m.

Los Angeles Dodgers at Pittsburgh, 6:05 p.m.

Boston at Cleveland, 6:10 p.m.

Arizona at New York Mets, 6:10 p.m.

Seattle at Atlanta, 6:35 p.m.

Minnesota at Chicago White Sox, 7:10 p.m.

Texas at Los Angeles Angels, 9:07 p.m.

Milwaukee at San Francisco, 9:15 p.m.