MLB ROUNDUP: GUARDIANS TOP ASTROS TO HALT 10-GAME SKID
Brayan Rocchio lined a go-ahead, two-run double into the left field corner with two outs in the top of the sixth inning, and a quartet of relievers protected the lead as the visiting Cleveland Guardians snapped a 10-game skid with a 7-5 victory over the red-hot Houston Astros on Monday.
After producing sacrifice bunts in his first two plate appearances, Rocchio broke a 4-all tie by drilling an 0-2 slider from Astros reliever Steven Okert over the outstretched glove of Houston third baseman Isaac Paredes. Angel Martinez and Bo Naylor scored to provide the Guardians a 6-4 advantage.
The Astros, who rallied from a four-run deficit with homers by Taylor Trammell and Paredes in the bottom of the fifth, sliced the Guardians’ two-run margin in half when Victor Caratini socked a solo homer to right field with two outs in the sixth off Guardians reliever Matt Festa (2-2).
Festa limited the damage to a lone run. Right-handers Paul Sewald and Hunter Gaddis followed by working a perfect inning of relief each before Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase retired the Astros in order in the ninth for his 19th save. David Fry added an insurance homer in the top of the ninth.
Brewers 9, Dodgers 1
Andrew Vaughn hit a three-run home run in his first at-bat with his new team and Freddy Peralta tossed six scoreless innings to pace Milwaukee to a victory over visiting Los Angeles in the opener of a three-game series.
Peralta (10-4), the Brewers’ lone All-Star selection, scattered five hits, striking out seven and walking one. Aaron Ashby allowed an RBI single to Esteury Ruiz in the eighth. Christian Yelich added a home run for the Brewers, who have won three of four.
Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto (8-7) failed to get out of the first inning, allowing five runs (three earned) on four hits with two walks. He needed 41 pitches to get two outs.
Blue Jays 8, White Sox 4
Joey Loperfido, Nathan Lukes and Addison Barger homered, and Jose Berrios pitched six strong innings as visiting Toronto defeated Chicago to stretch its winning streak to nine games, its longest since 2015.
A two-out rally in the second inning Monday helped the White Sox produce the game’s first run. After Lenyn Sosa struck out, rookie shortstop Colson Montgomery, making his home debut, worked a walk to bring up Brooks Baldwin, who grounded an RBI single off the glove of Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
The Blue Jays tied the game on Bo Bichette’s RBI single in the fourth inning, his first of two hits in the game. Toronto took the lead for good in the fifth, courtesy of back-to-back home runs. Loperfido connected against Chicago starter Sean Burke for his first homer of the season before Lukes followed with another solo shot.
Tigers 5, Rays 1
Colt Keith had three extra-base hits, including a solo home run, and Detroit opened a weeklong homestand with a victory over Tampa Bay.
Keith supplied two doubles and scored two runs as the American League-leading Tigers won their fourth straight. All-Star Javier Baez smashed a two-run homer while Zach McKinstry supplied a solo shot. Keider Montero (4-1), elevated from Triple-A earlier in the day, held the Rays to one run and four hits in six innings.
Tampa Bay starter Shane Baz (8-4) gave up three runs and seven hits with seven strikeouts in six innings. Jonathan Aranda had an RBI single for the Rays, who have lost six of their last eight contests.
Royals 9, Pirates 3
Bobby Witt. Jr. clubbed a two-run homer and had three RBIs, rookie Noah Cameron allowed two runs over seven strong innings and host Kansas City beat Pittsburgh.
Vinnie Pasquantino, Salvador Perez and Nick Loftin each hit solo homers for the Royals, who have won five of seven following a 5-14 rut. Cameron (3-4) struck out seven with a walk, while setting career highs for innings and pitches (109) in his 11th MLB start.
Tommy Pham’s two-run home run in the third snapped Pittsburgh’s 30-inning scoreless streak. Alexander Canario added a ninth-inning RBI single, one of the four hits for Pittsburgh, which has dropped six straight on the road. The Pirates’ Andrew Heaney (4-8) allowed four runs and six hits in just three innings.
Red Sox 9, Rockies 3
Roman Anthony hit his first career home run at Fenway Park en route to his sixth multi-hit game in his last nine, and Boston rolled past Colorado.
Anthony was 3-for-5 and scored twice to lead a 14-hit Boston attack, which earned Richard Fitts (1-3) his first career major league win after allowing just three runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings. Ceddanne Rafaela and Romy Gonzalez completed the night with eighth-inning homers for the Red Sox, who have now won four in a row and six of their last seven.
Austin Gomber (0-2) was charged with five runs (four earned) on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings for the Rockies. Ryan McMahon went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
Marlins 5, Reds 1
Janson Junk held Cincinnati to one hit over six innings and Agustin Ramirez provided the pop to lead Miami to a road win.
Junk (3-1), Lake Bachar and Anthony Bender teamed to hold the Reds to just three hits as the Marlins won for the 11th time in their last 14. Ramirez doubled and hit his 14th home run of the season, a seventh-inning shot to the second deck in left field. Xavier Edwards also went 3-for-5 with two doubles.
The Reds, who have lost three straight, have managed just three runs over their last 31 innings. They scratched across their run without a hit on back-to-back walks and a sacrifice fly by Tyler Stephenson.
MLB ALL-STAR GAME SNUBS: SOTO, SPRINGER AMONG GLARING OMISSIONS
The 2025 All-Star Game reserves have been revealed, but not everybody who deserved this honor will make the trip to Atlanta. Several notable names in both leagues were absent from this year’s Midsummer Classic rosters.
Let’s take a look at the most glaring omissions from the 2025 All-Star squads.
Note: Statistics do not include Sunday’s games unless otherwise stated.
American League
George Springer, Blue Jays
The 35-year-old is enjoying a remarkable comeback season with the red-hot Blue Jays. A year after putting up a career-worst 91 OPS+, Springer’s hitting .285/.378/.520 with 16 homers and 10 stolen bases. He should be one of the first names called as an AL injury replacement.
Zach McKinstry, Tigers
McKinstry has come out of nowhere to produce a career-best season for the AL-best Tigers, and it deserves recognition. The 30-year-old utility player, who’s started games at six different positions, entered Sunday ranking 11th in the AL in fWAR and second in triples and sporting an OBP above .350. If there’s a fifth Tiger to get the call, it should be him.
Joe Ryan, Twins
Ryan’s been the stabilizing ace the Twins sorely needed, and he should have gotten a call to Atlanta. He’s sitting in the top 10 in the AL in wins, ERA, strikeouts, FIP, and K/9, while also sporting a BB/9 rate below two in nearly 100 innings.
National League
Juan Soto, Mets
Soto shook off his slow start and is now doing exactly what was expected of him after he signed a $765-million deal with the Mets. Yet, somehow, he failed to earn a fifth straight All-Star berth despite leading the NL in walks, ranking second in OBP, and inside the top 10 in homers, OPS, runs scored, and wRC+. This one is not just baffling – it’s inexcusable.
Seiya Suzuki, Cubs
Suzuki has taken to his primary DH role with the Cubs. He entered Sunday with 24 homers and an MLB-best 75 RBIs while ranking top 10 in the NL in slugging, total bases, extra-base hits, doubles, and OPS+. Suzuki was a five-time All-Star in his native Japan and should have added an MLB All-Star berth to his resume.
Ranger Suárez, Phillies
A back issue that kept him on the IL for the first month of the season is the only reason Suárez isn’t qualified – and probably the only thing keeping him off the All-Star team. The left-hander’s 1.99 ERA ranks second among NL pitchers with at least 70 innings, and he’s surrendered only six home runs while posting a 2.2 BB/9 rate.
NATIONALS NAME BENCH COACH MIGUEL CAIRO AS INTERIM MANAGER
The Washington Nationals named bench coach Miguel Cairo their interim manager after Dave Martinez was fired on Sunday.
The decision was announced by interim general manager Mike DeBartolo, who took over his role when general manager Mike Rizzo also was fired on Sunday.
Cairo was reportedly hesitant to take over for Martinez and asked for some time to ponder the opportunity. The club reportedly considered Triple-A manager Matthew LeCroy on an interim basis.
“Miguel is well-respected in our organization and around baseball,” DeBartolo said in a news release Monday. “A diligent worker and student of the game, he has a proven track record of showing strong leadership in a variety of situations, and I believe that his voice and energy will serve as a catalyst to our team and our fan base in the second half of the season.”
Cairo, 51, finished the 2022 season as the Chicago White Sox manager after Tony La Russa stepped aside because of an undisclosed medical condition. The White Sox went 18-16 down the stretch but failed to reach the playoffs.
A native of Venezuela, Cairo played 17 seasons in the major leagues for nine different clubs, none of which were the Nationals. He was a career .264 hitter with 41 home runs and 394 RBIs in 1,490 games.
Martinez helped Washington win the 2019 World Series in his second year as manager, with a 500-622 record in 7 1/2 seasons.
DeBartolo was serving as assistant general manager before he was moved into the interim GM spot Sunday. DeBartolo, who has a background in analytics, started in the Nationals’ front office in 2012.
The Nationals headed into play Monday 37-53 and last place in the National League East, 16 games out of first.
Washington has MLB’s second-worst record since the start of 2020 at 325-473. Only the Colorado Rockies have been worse.
