CHICAGO — Yu Darvish returned from the disabled list to strike out nine but was inefficient and wild at times, and Anthony Rizzo’s two-run double helped lead the Chicago Cubs past the Texas Rangers 3-1 on Saturday.
In his first start since June 8 because of shoulder pain, Darvish (2-1) reached 98 mph and allowed only two runs and two hits, but the Japanese right-hander lasted just 41/3 innings thanks to four walks and shoddy defense.
Jason Hammel (8-5) struck out seven in six innings for the Cubs, who won their second straight in the interleague matchup of division leaders.
Darvish, a three-time All-Star, was making his fourth start since missing all of 2015 following Tommy John surgery. A dominant slider dipping out of the strike zone accounted for seven of his strikeouts.
But he was lifted after 90 pitches when second baseman Rougned Odor dropped what could have been an inning-ending double play.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
ATHLETICS 5, BLUE JAYS 4: Khris Davis hit two home runs, Ryon Healy hit his first career homer and Sonny Gray (4-8) snapped a 12-game winless streak as Oakland won at home.
ORIOLES 2, RAYS 1: Chris Tillman became the AL’s second 13-game winner, backed by J.J. Hardy’s two-run homer in a win at St. Petersburg, Florida. Tillman (13-2) gave up one run and four hits, walked three and struck out three in seven innings.
MARINERS 1, ASTROS 0: Hisashi Iwakuma (10-6) limited Houston to two hits in seven innings while Robinson Cano provided the only scoring with a RBI single in the sixth as Seattle won at home.
ROYALS 8, TIGERS 4: Salvador Perez singled, doubled, scored a run and drew two of Kansas City’s seven walks as the Royals eased to a win at Detroit.
ANGELS 1, WHITE SOX 0: Chicago was shut out for the third game in a row, as hard-luck loser James Shields (2-4) threw eight innings of two-hit ball. Winner Matt Shoemaker (5-9) threw a six-hitter with 13 strikeouts.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
CARDINALS 5, MARLINS 0: Adam Wainwright (9-5) threw a three-hit shutout as St. Louis snapped Miami’s four-game winning streak with a win at home.
NATIONALS 6, PIRATES 0: Tanner Roark (9-5) pitched eight-plus innings of five-hit ball and had an RBI single during a three-run fourth as Washington won at home.
BREWERS 9, REDS 1: Jonathan Lucroy’s two-run homer started Milwaukee’s big third inning as the Brewers rolled to a win on the road.
ROCKIES 4, BRAVES 3: Trevor Story led off the ninth inning with a single, advanced to third on two wild pitches and scored the go-ahead run for visiting Colorado on a throwing error by bumbling Atlanta.
PHILLIES 4, METS 2: Ryan Howard homered and Maikel Franco singled home the tiebreaking run in the seventh at Philadelphia.
NOTES
ASTROS: Houston signed international free agent Yulieski Gurriel to a $47.5 million, five-year contract.
Gurriel was one of the most sought international free agents since defecting from Cuba in February after competing in the Caribbean World Series in the Dominican Republic. He is 32 years old and was declared a free agent last month. In 15 seasons in Cuba, he is a .335 hitter with 250 homers and 1,018 RBI.
BRAVES: Struggling closer Arodys Vizcaino went on the 15-day disabled list with a right oblique strain.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.