Braves win 11th straight, Phils have 9-game streak stopped

Adam Duvall homered twice off José Quintana, William Contreras and Matt Olson also connected, and the Atlanta Braves won their 11th straight game, 5-3 over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday. The defending World Series champion Braves began the day having trimmed five games off the New York Mets’ division lead since the winning streak started June 1. They are 5½ games back in the NL East. This stretch is the club’s best since it won 14 in a row from July 26 to Aug. 9, 2013. During the streak, Atlanta has outscored opponents 74-30 with 22 homers. The pitching staff has a 2.32 ERA over the same span. Pittsburgh has lost a season-high six straight games. The Pirates were swept for the fifth time this season. Wright (7-3) allowed five hits and three runs with two walks and seven strikeouts in six innings. Kenley Jansen earned his 18th save in 21 chances after facing four batters in the ninth. Quintana (1-4) was charged with six hits and four runs in five innings and had allowed two runs or fewer in nine of his previous 11 starts. DIAMONDBACKS 13, PHILLIES 1 PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Christian Walker had three hits and three RBIs, Jake McCarthy homered and Arizona ended Philadelphia’s nine-game winning streak, giving interim manager Rob Thomson his first loss. Ketel Marte and Alek Thomas each drove in two runs for Arizona, which finished a 10-game trip 4-6. The Phillies lost for the first time since May 31, and Thomson was beaten for the first time since replacing Joe Girardi on June 3. Thomson’s eight wins to start his managing tenure matched the most for a Phillies skipper and is second overall to Boston’s Joe Morgan, who won 12 straight in 1988. Luke Weaver (1-0), making his first appearance since April 7, allowed one run on three hits in three innings with four strikeouts and two walks after opener Kyle Nelson pitched a scoreless first. Ranger Suarez (4-4) needed 40 pitches to get through the first and left after 4 1/3 innings after allowing four runs – two earned – on four hits with four walks and two strikeouts. YANKEES 18, CUBS 4 NEW YORK (AP) – Matt Carpenter homered twice and tied his career high with seven RBIs, powering the New York Yankees to complete a weekend sweep of the Chicago Cubs for their 11th win in 12 games. The 36-year-old Carpenter, signed on May 26 after spending the first seven weeks at Texas’ Triple-A Round Rock, became the second player since 1900 to hit six home runs in his first 10 games for a team after Colorado’s Trevor Story in 2016. Kyle Higashioka added his first two homers this season, and Giancarlo Stanton and Isiah Kiner-Falefa had three RBIs each as the Yankees scored their most runs since beating Toronto 20-6 on Sept. 15, 2020. New York had a season-high 17 hits. Jameson Taillon (7-1) remained unbeaten in his last 11 starts, giving up three runs and seven hits in five innings. Manny Bañuelos pitched three innings for his first big league save. Ian Happ, who was a double shy of a cycle, put the Cubs ahead early with a first-inning home run. Keegan Thompson (6-2) allowed five runs – three earned – three hits and three walks while getting two outs and throwing 19 of 37 pitches for strikes for Chicago – which has lost a season-high six straight. BREWERS 4, NATIONALS 1 WASHINGTON (AP) – Willy Adames homered and drove in three runs, helping Milwaukee snap an eight-game losing streak. Milwaukee’s Craig Counsell tied Phil Garner for the most managerial victories in franchise history with 563 as the Brewers snapped their longest skid since September 2015.