Alex Rodriguez hit a two-run homer and Masahiro Tanaka gave up two hits over seven innings to lead New York to a 4-1 win against Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. Rodriguez hit his sixth home run of the year off Rays starter Chris Archer on an 0-1 pitch in the top of the sixth inning to give the Yankees a 3-0 lead. The Yankees scored their first run in the inning thanks to some shaky defense by the Rays. After Brett Gardner drew a one-out walk in the inning, Archer made a pickoff throw to first baseman Logan Morrison that went over his glove and into the outfield allowing Gardner to advance to third. Mets 6, Dodgers 5: Curtis Granderson hit a home run leading off the bottom of the ninth inning Friday night as the New York Mets beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5, at Citi Field. It was the second walk-off homer ever for Granderson. The Mets (28-19) won for the sixth time in seven games to move into a tie for first place with the Washington Nationals in the National League East. Cardinals 6, Nationals 2: Lefty starter Jaime Garcia allowed two runs in seven innings and Stephen Piscotty hit a grand slam as St. Louis, despite getting just four hits, beat Washington. Garcia (4-4), coming off a rough outing against Arizona, gave up seven hits and one walk with four strikeouts. The pitcher from Mexico, who was efficient with just 92 pitches, also began a third-inning rally with a one-out single. Cubs 6, Phillies 2: Jon Lester and David Ross combined for big games but in different ways on a rain-plagued afternoon at Wrigley Field. Lester (5-3) bounced back from two recent poor pitching outings with a strong 6 1/3-inning effort in Chicago's victory over Philadelphia. Ross clubbed his 100th career home run in the fourth inning — a three-run blast that put some distance between the Cubs and the Phillies. Blue Jays 7, Red Sox 5: Josh Donaldson hit two home runs and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Boston Red Sox 7-5 on Friday night at SkyDome for their third consecutive win. Donaldson also had a double, single and four RBIs to lead the Blue Jays (25-25). His two-run homer in the eighth put the Jays back in front after they squandered a 5-2 lead. Braves 4, Marlins 2: An overturned call and a clutch two-out hit with the bases loaded in the eighth inning proved to be the winning combination on Friday as the Atlanta Braves posted a 4-2 victory over the Miami Marlins to end their four-game losing streak. It appeared the threat ended when Atlanta catcher Tyler Flowers was called out at first base on what would have been an inning-ending double play. But the Braves appealed the call and the replay showed that Flowers beat the throw. Pirates 9, Rangers 1: Pittsburgh hit four home runs, chased Cole Hamels in the fifth inning and rolled to their fifth straight win with a victory over Texas. Hamels (5-1) had not lost since Aug. 7, 2015 — his second start with Texas — and was 12-0 since then coming into Friday's start. The Pirates ended any chance at Hamels continuing the streak by scoring five times in the fifth inning to take a 6-0 lead. Hamels was done after 4 2/3 innings after he was tagged for six runs (five earned) in his shortest start since joining the Rangers. Other results: Royals 7, White Sox 5; Rockies 5, Giants 2; Brewers 9, Reds 5; Orioles 6, Indians 4; Angels 7, Astros 2; Tigers 4, Athletics 1; Padres 10, Diamondbacks 3; Twins 7, Mariners 2.
