Mookie Betts led an electric power display Thursday, hitting three home runs while finding his way into the record book, as the Los Angeles Dodgers rolled to an 11-2 victory at home over the San Diego Padres.
Betts matched Johnny Mize and Sammy Sosa as the only players in major league history to hit three home runs in a game six times. According to STATS, Betts is also the first player in major league history to hit three home runs in the first five innings of a game three times.
In just his 19th game with his new club, Betts hit home runs in the second, fourth and fifth innings. One came off Padres starter Chris Paddack, while the other two were off Luis Perdomo. Betts has seven home runs on the season.
Corey Seager, A.J. Pollock and Austin Barnes also went deep as the Dodgers emerged from some recent scuffles that saw them score just three total runs in the first two games of the series against the Padres, both defeats.
Cubs 4, Brewers 2
Yu Darvish carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and Chicago held on to win at Milwaukee.
Brewers slugger Justin Smoak broke up Darvish’s no-hit effort with one out in the seventh when he ripped a solo home run down the right-field line. The blast marked the only hit of the night against Darvish (3-1), who walked two and struck out 11 before yielding to the bullpen to start the eighth. Chicago won for the 13th time in 16 games this season, improving its best record in the major leagues. It is the best start for the franchise since 1907.
Kyle Schwarber went deep for the Cubs, who have won seven home games in a row. Ian Happ finished 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI, while Javier Baez and David Bote also notched RBIs. Brewers starter Brett Anderson (0-2) drew the loss after allowing two runs on five hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out five.
Rays 17, Red Sox 8
Hunter Renfroe slugged a pair of home runs to help Tampa Bay notch a four-game series sweep over host Boston It was the first time in club history that the Rays scored at least eight runs in all four games of a series, and they set a new mark by totaling 42 runs in that span.
