Mookie Betts connects for a two-run double – his fifth hit of the game – as the Dodgers won 6-1 against the Guardians in the completion of a suspended game Thursday in Cleveland. Nick Cammett/Associated Press
CLEVELAND — Mookie Betts matched his career high with five hits in the completion of a suspended game, and Kiké Hernández homered and doubled twice in the scheduled game to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Cleveland Guardians, 6-1 and 9-3 on Thursday.
Betts singled four times in the first six innings in the early game and had a two-run double in the eighth for the NL West-leading Dodgers, who are 19-3 in August. The seven-time All-Star, who also had five hits for Boston against Kansas City on Aug. 26, 2016, had three RBI on the day. Betts was 9 for 11 in the three-game series and is batting .568 during a 12-game hitting streak.
Hernández had four hits and four RBI in the two games.
Michael Busch hit his first major league homer in the scheduled game as the Dodgers rallied from a 2-0 deficit. Busch and James Outman each had two RBI, and Freddie Freeman went 2 for 4.
Los Angeles led 3-1 after two innings Wednesday when heavy rain forced play to be suspended after a stoppage of 1 hour, 37 minutes. Another round of storms arrived after the bottom of the eighth Thursday, delaying the game for 72 minutes.
NATIONALS 6, YANKEES 5: Alex Call hit a go-ahead, two-run homer off Tommy Kahnle in the seventh inning, CJ Abrams followed with a solo shot, and Washington sent host New York to its 10th loss in 11 games.
A day after his first career three-homer game, Aaron Judge homered on his first pitch from Patrick Corbin (9-11). Gleyber Torres hit a two-run homer in the third as the Yankees built a 3-1 lead.
Last-place New York (61-66) has not won consecutive games since Aug. 2-3 and is 1-11-3 in its last 15 series, losing seven straight rubber games.
Washington has won four straight series and nine of its last 12 games.
Giancarlo Stanton had his first four-hit game since May 4, 2021. He homered in the eighth off Jordan Weems and hit an RBI single off Kyle Finnegan in the ninth before Harrison Bader hit a game-ending flyout to a stumbling Call on the center-field warning track.
RAYS 5, ROCKIES 3: Josh Lowe hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the eighth inning, and Tampa Bay completed a three-game sweep in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Luke Raley and Isaac Paredes also homered for Tampa Bay, which began the day two games behind Baltimore in the AL East but in a position for a wild card. The Rays have won four straight and six of seven.
Jason Adam (4-2) struck out five of six batters, and Pete Fairbanks struck out three around a single in the ninth for his 16th save in 17 chances.
NOTES
NATIONALS: Pitcher Stephen Strasburg has decided to retire, ending a career that began as a No. 1 draft pick, included 2019 World Series MVP honors, and was derailed by injuries.
The Washington Post first reported Strasburg’s decision to retire, saying the announcement is expected to come Sept. 9.
Strasburg, who turned 35 last month, had his career knocked off course and ultimately cut short by injuries after leading the Nationals to their first title four years ago. He had surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, a nerve and blood disorder that involved removing a rib and two neck muscles.
A three-time All-Star, Strasburg went 113-62 with a 3.24 ERA in 247 career regular-season starts. In the 2019 playoffs, he went 5-0 with a 1.98 ERA and won each of his two starts against Houston in the World Series.
• Nationals right fielder Stone Garrett broke his left leg trying to rob a home run from the New York Yankees’ DJ LeMahieu on Wednesday night.
The team said Garrett has a fractured fibula and put him on the 10-day injured list.
REDS: First baseman Joey Votto was placed on the 10-day injured list because of left shoulder discomfort.
Votto, who turns 40 on Sept. 10, didn’t make his season debut until June 19 while rehabbing from left shoulder surgery last August. The six-time All-Star is hitting .200 with 13 homers.
Cincinnati recalled utilityman Nick Senzel from Triple-A Louisville to take Votto’s place on the roster.
METS: Dwight Gooden’s No. 16 and Darryl Strawberry’s No. 18 will be retired in separate pregame ceremonies next year honoring players who were keys to the team’s last World Series title.
Gooden and Strawberry were integral parts of the 1986 Mets, who went a major league-best 108-54 and beat Boston in a seven-game World Series. Both players then derailed their careers with drug problems.
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