A's run winning streak to 12, beating Orioles 3-1

BALTIMORE (AP) – The Oakland Athletics won their 12th consecutive game – their longest winning streak in almost two decades – with a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night. Oakland’s string is its longest since it won a franchise-record 20 in a row in 2002. It is the Athletics’ third-longest winning streak since moving to Oakland in 1968, and is the longest in the majors since Houston’s 12-game run from June 6-18, 2018. Ramón Laureano homered and Cole Irvin won consecutive starts for the first time in nearly two years as the A’s improved to 13-1 since dropping their first six games. Baltimore has lost seven of its eight home games. Irvin (2-2) had won back-to-back starts just once before, his first two career starts for Philadelphia in May 2019. Coming off six shutout innings against Detroit on Saturday, he stymied the Orioles for five innings. But Baltimore stitched together four singles in the sixth, capped by Pedro Severino’s RBI single, to end Irvin’s night. Jake Diekman worked the ninth to earn his second save in as many tries. Jorge López (1-3) was the loser. METS 6, NATIONALS 0 NEW YORK (AP) – Jacob deGrom struck out a career-high 15, pitched a two-hitter and boosted the sagging Mets’ offense with a go-ahead double from the No. 8 spot in the batting order, powering New York over Washington. DeGrom has struck out 43 in his last three starts and 50 overall this season, breaking the major league record for most in a pitcher’s first four starts set just last weekend by Cleveland ace Shane Bieber with 48. Perennially plagued by a lack of run support, just like Mets star Tom Seaver decades earlier, deGrom lowered his career ERA to 2.55 and overtook Seaver (2.57) as New York’s franchise leader. The two-time Cy Young Award winner retired the final 19 batters of his second shutout and fourth complete game in 187 starts, walking none. DeGrom also made the final putout, leaping on first base to catch Pete Alonso’s toss on Josh Harrison’s grounder. Brandon Nimmo hit his first home run of the season, an eighth-inning drive off Kyle McGowin, and had four RBIs. The Mets stopped a three-game slide after getting to Citi Field at 4:15 a.m. after a Thursday night game at Chicago’s Wrigley Field. DeGrom (2-1) was coming off consecutive 14-strikeout games against Miami and Colorado, and New York gave him a fifth day of rest. DeGrom’s opposite-field double in the fifth against Erick Fedde (1-2) put the Mets ahead 1-0 and gave him a five-game hitting streak dating to 2019. TWINS 2, PIRATES 0 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Minnesota left-hander J.A. Happ lost his bid for a no-hitter when Jacob Stallings doubled with one out in the eighth inning, and the Twins beat Pittsburgh. Happ, in his first season with the Twins, was immediately removed by manager Rocco Baldelli with a two-run lead and replaced by Tyler Duffey. The 38-year-old Happ (1-0) walked two batters, both in the second, and struck out three. He threw 95 pitches, with 51 strikes, and lowered his ERA after three starts to 1.69. Duffey walked Wilmer Difo after the double by Stallings, but struck out Adam Frazier with runners at second and third to end the eighth. Duffey retired the first batter in the ninth. Then Taylor Rogers took the last two outs for the save to finish the one-hitter, preserving just the second win for the Twins in their last 11 games. Willians Astudillo and Jake Cave each hit their first home runs of the season for Minnesota, spoiling another stellar start by JT Brubaker (2-1). CUBS 15, BREWERS 2 CHICAG0 (AP) – Jake Marisnick homered and matched a career high with five RBIs and Chicago pounded Milwaukee for its fourth straight victory.