WASHINGTON — Eight years later, Max Scherzer still finds a little extra motivation when he faces his first major league team.

Scherzer struck out a season-high 11 to bounce back from his worst outing this season, and Washington defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-2 after losing Bryce Harper to a groin injury Thursday.

Scherzer (4-2) allowed one run and two hits in seven innings against the team that drafted him in 2006.

“He came out strong and had that look in his eye,” Nationals Manager Dusty Baker said. “And you could tell by that opening pitch that he wanted to beat the Diamondbacks.”

REDS 4, PIRATES 2: Joey Votto doubled twice, drove in two runs and scored twice, leading Cincinnati at home.

Adam Duvall drove in Votto both times as the Reds won for the fourth time in five games. Cincinnati is 6-1 against the Pirates this year.

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CUBS 5, PHILLIES 4: Albert Almora Jr. doubled leading off the 13th inning and scored on a throwing error by shortstop Freddy Galvis, giving Chicago a win at home.

Kris Bryant had four hits, Miguel Montero homered and drove in two runs, and Matt Szczur and Addison Russell hit run-scoring doubles as the Cubs extended their winning streak to three.

ROCKIES 3, PADRES 2: Ryan Hanigan’s RBI infield single in the 11th inning lifted Colorado at San Diego.

Hanigan, who had homered earlier in his Rockies debut, hit a grounder up the middle that Erick Aybar fielded, but he was unable to flip the ball to Cory Spangenberg at second for a force. That allowed Ian Desmond to score.

BREWERS 5, CARDINALS 4: Jesus Aguilar’s first major league home run broke a seventh-inning tie, leading Milwaukee at St. Louis.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

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ATHLETICS 8, TWINS 5: Jharel Cotton struck out nine in six innings and Ryon Healy hit his fourth home run of the season to lift Oakland at Minneapolis.

Cotton (3-3) gave up three runs and three hits, and Stephen Vogt had two hits and two RBI to help the A’s avoid a three-game sweep. Santiago Casilla struck out Miguel Sano with the bases loaded in the ninth for his fifth save in six tries – Sano’s fourth strikeout of the afternoon.

RANGERS 10, ASTROS 4: Joey Gallo homered and drove in three runs, Rougned Odor and Elvis Andrus also homered and Texas won at Houston to stop a season-worst four-game skid.

After twice giving up leads earlier in the series, the Rangers went ahead 4-0 in the first inning and used the bullpen to help avoid a four-game sweep.

WHITE SOX 8, ROYALS 3: Derek Holland scattered three hits while pitching into the seventh inning, Jose Abreu and Matt Davidson went deep off Ian Kennedy and Chicago won at Kansas City, Missouri, to split their four-game series.

Holland (3-2) exited with two outs in the seventh after giving up two runs, only one of them earned. He also struck out seven with only one walk in his latest dominant start for Chicago.

INTERLEAGUE

RAYS 5, MARLINS 1: Tim Beckham homered twice in a game for the second time in eight days, driving in four runs to lead Tampa Bay at St. Petersburg, Florida.

Matt Andriese (2-1) scattered five hits, walked three and struck out eight over seven innings.


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