Snell throws a no-hitter in 3-0 Giants win over Reds

CINCINNATI — Blake Snell pitched his first career no-hitter on Friday night, striking out 10 as the San Francisco Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds 3-0.

The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner walked three and threw 114 pitches, 78 for strikes, in his first complete game in 202 major league starts.

The 31-year-old Snell sailed into the ninth inning, striking out Santiago Espinal and inducing a soft come-backer from leadoff man Jonathan India. Then came Elly De La Cruz, who ripped Snell’s first pitch, a 97.8-mph fastball, to the right-center field gap, but right-fielder Mike Yastrzemski ran it down and leaped to make the catch. Snell’s teammates mobbed him.

Snell was especially effective against the top of Cincinnati’s order, striking out India three times, and De La Cruz and Spencer Steer twice each.

Snell recorded the 18th no-hitter in Giants’ franchise history and the third in the majors this season. Houston’s Ronal Blanco no-hit Toronto on April 1, and San Diego’s Dylan Cease pitched a no-hitter against Washington on July 25.

Casey Schmitt and Tyler Fitzgerald homered for the Giants on Friday.

Rangers deck Bosox

ARLINGTON, Texas — Jonah Heim and Leody Taveras homered back-to-back from the bottom of the order to erase a three-run deficit in the fourth inning, and the Texas Rangers beat the Boston Red Sox 7-4 on Saturday night.

Rob Refsnyder, who tied a career with four hits and had three RBIs, hit solo home runs his first two times up — his sixth and seventh of the season — to help the Red Sox build a 3-0 lead before Heim’s tying three-run shot.

Two pitches after Heim’s 10th homer on a high drive down the line in right field, Taveras pulled a liner into the first row in right for his ninth in the second win over the past eight games for the defending World Series champions.

Texas reliever José Leclerc (5-4) struck out Ceddanne Rafaela on a checked swing on a full-count pitch in the dirt with the bases loaded when the Rangers trailed 3-0 in the top of the fourth.

Kirby Yates, the sixth Texas pitcher and only reliever in the majors without a blown save in at least eight opportunities, got the last four outs for his 20th save.

Yates ended the eighth with a bases-loaded strikeout of Jarren Duran, who was the All-Star Game MVP after hitting the tiebreaking, two-run homer in the AL’s 5-3 victory at the home of the Rangers last month.

The fourth set of consecutive homers for Texas this season came after Tanner Houck struck out seven in the first three innings. That included six consecutive outs on strikes, capped by a 13-pitch at-bat against Marcus Semien to end the third.

Houck (8-8) was replaced after allowing three consecutive hits to start the sixth, and the Rangers added three more in a row against Brennan Bernardino in a three-run inning. Ezequiel Duran, Taveras and Josh Smith, who had three hits, each drove in a run with a single.

The first multihomer game of Refsnyder’s nine-year career was followed by Connor Wong’s RBI single in the fourth against Cody Bradford. The left-hander who opened the season with wins in his first three starts was making his second appearance and first start after missing 3 1/2 months with a back injury.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Red Sox: OF Tyler O’Neill was unavailable because of an illness. He stayed at the team hotel, and manager Alex Cora said it would likely be Monday before O’Neill played again. … RHP Chris Martin, who has been sidelined a month with elbow inflammation, threw a 35-pitch bullpen session and could go on a rehab assignment Wednesday. … RHP Liam Hendriks, recovering from Tommy John surgery, is set to throw the first of at least three live batting practice sessions Tuesday.

Rangers: RHP Jacob deGrom threw a 45-pitch bullpen session with no apparent issues and is set to face hitters for the first time since right elbow surgery in June 2023.

UP NEXT

Red Sox RHP Nick Pivetta (5-7, 4.47 ERA) faces Texas RHP Nathan Eovaldi (8-4, 3.38) in the series finale. Eovaldi, who spent four-plus seasons in Boston before joining the Rangers last year, has gone 43 innings and 166 batters over six consecutive starts without a walk. It’s the longest such streak in franchise history.

Zach Eflin gives Baltimore strong start, Gunnar Henderson gets 3 hits, RBI as O’s stop Guards 7-4

Orioles dump Cleveland

CLEVELAND — Zach Eflin won his second straight start since joining Baltimore’s rotation and Gunnar Henderson had three hits and an RBI as the Orioles stopped Cleveland’s five-game winning streak, beating the Guardians 7-4 on Saturday night.

Eflin (7-7) cooled off the AL Central-leading Guardians, holding them to two runs and four hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander was acquired from Tampa Bay on July 26 for three minor leaguers.

Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman had a pinch-hit, two-run triple in the eighth inning when the Orioles scored four times to take a 7-2 lead.

Henderson snapped a 2-2 tie with an RBI single in the fifth as Baltimore stayed tied with the New York Yankees atop the AL East.

José Ramírez and rookie Angel Martínez hit two-run homers for the Guardians, who still have the majors’ best record at 67-43.

Ramírez’s homer in the eighth was his 29th and Cleveland’s 125th this season, surpassing the club’s total in 2023.

The Orioles were leading 3-2 and had runners at first and third in the eighth, when Rutschman ripped a liner to right that fooled rookie Jhonkensy Noel. When Noel slipped and fell, the ball rolled to the wall, allowing both runners to score and Rutschman scrambled into third safely with a headfirst slide.

Pinch-hitter Ryan O’Hearn followed with an RBI single to make it 6-2 and rookie Jackson Holliday’s run-scoring hit capped the Orioles’ outburst.

Elfin was followed by Cionel Pérez and Seranthony Domínguez, who got it to thr ninth before Yennier Cano worked the ninth for his fifth save.

Rookie Joey Cantillo (0-1) started for Cleveland in place of Tanner Bibee, who had his outing pushed back a few days due to tightness in his right shoulder. Bibee leads the Guardians in innings and strikeouts.

Marlins nip Braves

ATLANTA — Jesús Sánchez hit a tiebreaking double in the seventh inning and the Miami Marlins beat the red-hot Atlanta Braves 4-3 on Saturday night, halting Atlanta’s four-game winning streak.

The Braves had won four straight and six of seven entering the game and were 5-0 against the Marlins at Truist Park this season.

Jake Burger was 2 for 5 with a home run and two RBIs. It was the fourth home run in five games for Burger and his 17th of the season. Sánchez was 3 for 5 with two doubles, two RBIs and a steal while Nick Fortes was 2 for 4 with two runs scored. Xavier Edwards extended his on-base streak to 20 games by going 1 for 3 with two walks in the win.

“Since the beginning of the game, we were doing the little things, and we were going to play until the end of the game,” Sánchez said. “We took advantage of our chances.”

Declan Cronin (3-3) picked up the win with two scoreless innings. Calvin Faucher earned his first save of the season and second of his career by striking out two in the ninth.

Faucher gave up three runs to the Braves on Friday night as the Marlins saw a 3-2 lead turn into a 5-3 loss.

“It was important to get him back out there,” said Marlins manager Skip Schumaker. “The way we are managing the bullpen now, you figured he would have a chance to get out there sooner rather than later. Really good to see him go on the attack, no walks and went through a similar part of the lineup. He went through a little bit of a rough game yesterday, so for him to come back like that and close it out is pretty special.”