logo
Vargas has tiebreaking hit in 8th inning as White Sox rally to beat Blue Jays 4-2

Vargas has tiebreaking hit in 8th inning as White Sox rally to beat Blue Jays 4-2

Yahoo5 hours ago

Chicago White Sox pitcher Adrian Houser works against Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Chicago White Sox pitcher Adrian Houser works against Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (88) is tagged out at second base by Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette (11) during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt (40) works against Chicago White Sox during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt (40) works against Chicago White Sox during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Chicago White Sox pitcher Adrian Houser works against Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Chicago White Sox pitcher Adrian Houser works against Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (88) is tagged out at second base by Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette (11) during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt (40) works against Chicago White Sox during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Sunday June 22, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
TORONTO (AP) — Miguel Vargas hit a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning and the Chicago White Sox rallied to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Sunday.
Vargas had two hits and drove in a pair as the White Sox won a series for the first time since taking two of three against Kansas City from June 6-8.
Advertisement
Chicago had lost nine of 10 coming into Sunday's game. The White Sox snapped an eight-game losing streak with a 7-1 win Friday.
Bo Bichette's RBI single in the seventh gave Toronto a 2-1 lead but the Blue Jays' bullpen couldn't hold it. Left-hander Brendon Little (3-1) took the loss while closer Jeff Hoffman blew his fourth save opportunity in 21 chances.
Activated off the paternity list before the game, White Sox right-hander Adrian Houser allowed two runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings.
Jordan Leasure (2-4) got two outs in the seventh and Brandon Eisert worked the eighth. Rookie Grant Taylor finished for his first career save.
Advertisement
With temperatures in Toronto hovering around 90 degrees and high humidity making it feel even warmer, the retractable roof at Rogers Centre was kept closed Sunday.
Key moment
Hoffman came on in the eighth with two outs and runners at first and second. After walking Chase Meidroth to load the bases, Hoffman fumbled Andrew Benintendi's slow roller, allowing the tying run to score. Vargas followed with his two-run hit.
Key stat
The White Sox won their second road series of the season. They took two of three at Cincinnati from May 13-15.
Up next
White Sox: RHP Shane Smith (3-4, 2.85 ERA) is scheduled to start Monday against Arizona LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (2-4, 5.93).
Blue Jays: Toronto had not announced a starter for Tuesday's game at Cleveland. LHP Logan Allen (5-4, 4.21 ERA) is scheduled for the Guardians.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Dodger Details: Shohei Ohtani's 2-way show, Freddie Freeman's struggles and more
Dodger Details: Shohei Ohtani's 2-way show, Freddie Freeman's struggles and more

New York Times

time38 minutes ago

  • New York Times

Dodger Details: Shohei Ohtani's 2-way show, Freddie Freeman's struggles and more

LOS ANGELES — Baseball's most novel between-innings entertainment starts as soon as Shohei Ohtani throws his final pitch in the top of the first inning. The ensuing 130 seconds are the equivalent of a NASCAR pit crew removing the equipment that makes Ohtani, the pitcher, and applying all necessary for Ohtani, the batter, to step up to the plate as the reigning National League MVP. Advertisement Ohtani's 18th and final pitch Sunday afternoon was a cutter that Washington Nationals first baseman Nathaniel Lowe flailed at, starting the chain with little time for Ohtani to celebrate a scoreless second outing off of elbow surgery or his first two strikeouts in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform. He hustled to a foreign substance check with home-plate umpire Carlos Torres before walking toward the front of the Dodgers dugout, where a buffet of equipment options awaited him all ready to go. He quickly stuffed his sliding pad into his back right pocket and rolled up his right pants leg to strap on a shin guard. Next came his white elbow guard that he slid onto his twice-repaired right arm. A brief interruption came when he reached for his batting gloves, accidentally dropping them onto the ground and adding a couple of seconds to his tally. He slid his helmet onto his head and did not have time to spray his usual adhesive onto his bat. A minute and 40 seconds had elapsed before Ohtani took his first practice swing. Total time elapsed before stepping in against Nationals starter Michael Soroka: 2 minutes, 10 seconds. When Ohtani finally returned to the dugout after chasing an elevated fastball for a strikeout, it had been 11 minutes between his first pitch and his first time taking a seat to catch his breath in the Dodgers' 13-7 win. 'I marvel at it,' Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. That doesn't mean it will always be this way. Roberts broached the idea of moving Ohtani down in the order on his start days when speaking with the superstar ahead of his first start Monday. Ohtani assured he was fine with leading off, even with the quick turnaround. Still, the door is open to hitting Ohtani second, third or even fourth to assure Ohtani more of a break between the mound and the plate — especially during home games. Shohei records his first strikeout as a Dodger! — Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 22, 2025 This is all new for the Dodgers and something Ohtani hasn't had to do since 2023. Ohtani was 4-for-23 with 11 strikeouts since returning to the mound in big-league games entering Sunday. Just a seven-game sample that largely would go ignored if it didn't coincide with Ohtani returning to pitching. 'I've been able to come back to game action earlier than expected. In that sense, I do feel like I do have to work on some things,' Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. 'But at the same time, I do feel like I can perform better, even better than I used to be able to perform at.' Advertisement Roberts said he hadn't noticed any fatigue with Ohtani, who had expanded the strike zone quite often with his swings this week. The manager noted that Ohtani's bat speed and other internal metrics are 'in line' with his norms. (For what it's worth, his average swing speed had gone from 76.2 mph to 75.4 mph entering Sunday, still a small sample of just 38 swings.) He ran a bat speed of 79.6 mph in the seventh inning, hooking a hard-hit grounder fair for a bases-clearing triple down the line to break the game open. Then, 76.2 mph in the eighth when he lofted his first home run during a game when he pitched since Aug. 23, 2023 — the game when he re-tore his ulnar collateral ligament. Ohtani's bat speed seems fine. So did his pitching. He touched 98.8 mph with his fastball and showed much better command in the zone, something Ohtani said was because he cleaned up his delivery with pitching coaches Mark Prior and Connor McGuiness. While the Dodgers have floated the idea of building Ohtani's workload on each successive outing, the plan was always for him to go just one inning Sunday. 'It's going to be a gradual process,' Ohtani said. It's something to keep in mind as the Dodgers deliberately stretch him out. Everything appears fluid, including just how built up the Dodgers would like Ohtani to be pitching-wise. 'I think we're always gonna be cautious,' Roberts said. 'So I don't even know what that's going to look like, to be 'fully built-up.' I don't think anyone knows what that looks like. Because it's not a normal starting pitcher. So to say six (innings) and 90 (pitches), I don't even know if we'll get to that point.' Between rounds of treatment on his surgically repaired right ankle that has become routine, Freddie Freeman vented. His swing has not been right. The Dodgers' three former MVPs atop the lineup — Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freeman — have slumped. It coincided with baseball's best lineup looking quite mortal before breaking out Sunday afternoon against a Nationals pitching staff that entered ranked 26th in the majors with a 4.89 ERA. Advertisement Freeman has felt his struggles acutely. He's now 15-for-75 (.200) since the start of June after going 1-for-4 with a bloop single and two strikeouts Sunday. 'I haven't been very good for a while,' Freeman said Saturday night. He's repeated his typical net drill 'many, many times.' He's tried having his third round of hitting outside on the field, one of his normal troubleshoot strategies when he's scuffling. 'I've gone through every cue 16 times over again in the last six weeks, so just waiting for it to click,' Freeman said. His season line remains sterling (.321 average, .914 OPS). In all likelihood, his June will be a blip. Freeman's frustration was palpable, nonetheless. The good news is, his ankle is still manageable. The quad issue he was dealing with for part of this slump is a thing of the past. 'No aches. No pains,' Freeman said. 'The only pain is the swing. Maybe tomorrow.' Max Muncy had more than a handful of minutes to think in the sixth inning, a rarity in the pitch clock era. Nationals reliever Jose A. Ferrer had entered into a jam, went down 2-1 in the count to Muncy and then lingered uncomfortably around the mound. 'It was very difficult to throw in the zone (with the mound like that),' Ferrer explained in Spanish. Catcher Keibert Ruiz joined him to try to find a solution. So did a pair of umpires until Prior ran down the tunnel to retrieve the grounds crew to work on the mound. 2025年6月23日 WSH vs LAD ソロカから変わった Jose A. Ferrerの要求で、水入り?土入れ 流れが、うーんと思ってたら 10号グランドスラム イイネ 7回、守備も溌剌としてきた — Ozzy_Days (@Jiji_Days) June 22, 2025 So, Muncy waited. He'd already seen Ferrer the night before, and the lefty was pitching for the fourth time in five days. Familiarity was on Muncy's side. Now, so was time. 'For me, it was just catch your breath,' Muncy said. 'When he's ready, he's ready. And let's get a swing off.' The delay appeared primed to stunt the only momentum the Dodgers had generated all afternoon. Soroka had struck out a career-high 10 Dodgers through the first five innings and held a 3-0 lead. When Dalton Rushing led off the sixth with a double, it marked Los Angeles' second hit of the game. A walk and hit by pitch left them loaded as the Nationals turned to Ferrer, who went down in the count and asked for work to be done on the mound. Advertisement Two pitches later, Muncy got a sinker over the heart of the plate and laced it to left center for a go-ahead grand slam, his 200th home run in a Dodger uniform. He got No. 201 an inning later, launching a center-cut fastball from Cole Henry into the pavilion seats for a three-run homer. Muncy's season has more than just stabilized after a brutal start. He might even be sneaking into All-Star discussions, entering the day fourth among National League third baseman in FanGraphs WAR (1.6) even before Sunday's two-homer, seven-RBI outburst. He's up to a 131 wRC+, nearly matching his 135 mark from a year ago. Since trying on glasses to correct an astigmatism in his right eye, he's hit .282/.423/.570 with 11 home runs. 'It's definitely a snowball effect,' Muncy said. 'Confidence is high right now. I feel good in the box. I feel really good with my mechanics. I'm seeing the ball well.'

Shohei Ohtani pitches 1 sharp inning, then drives in 5 runs in Dodgers' 13-7 win over Nationals
Shohei Ohtani pitches 1 sharp inning, then drives in 5 runs in Dodgers' 13-7 win over Nationals

CBS News

timean hour ago

  • CBS News

Shohei Ohtani pitches 1 sharp inning, then drives in 5 runs in Dodgers' 13-7 win over Nationals

Shohei Ohtani pitched one hitless inning in his second mound start of the season before hitting a three-run triple and a two-run homer, and Max Muncy had a grand slam and a three-run homer in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 13-7 victory over the Washington Nationals on Sunday. Ohtani recorded two strikeouts while throwing 18 pitches, allowing his only baserunner on an error when Mookie Betts dropped a popup in the sun. The two-way superstar is easing his way back onto the mound with short starts, and he was more effective against the Nats than in his season mound debut last Monday against San Diego. Ohtani then had his most productive offensive game in some time, delivering two huge hits in the late innings. He cleared the bases with a drive into the right field corner during the Dodgers' seven-run seventh, and he added his 26th homer in the eighth to put LA up 13-3. The defending World Series champions finished their 10-game homestand at 7-3, taking two of three from Washington. The Dodgers trailed 3-0 in the sixth when Muncy delivered his seventh career grand slam — also his 200th homer. Muncy then hit a three-run shot off Cole Henry in the seventh for his 18th multi-homer game. Nathaniel Lowe hit a three-run homer and Michael Soroka struck out a career-high 10 while pitching two-hit ball into the sixth inning for the Nats, who have lost six straight series while going 4-16 in June. Ben Casparius (6-1) allowed three runs and five hits over five innings after coming on behind Ohtani. Soroka retired 14 of the Dodgers' first 15 batters, issuing just one walk until Hyeseong Kim roped a long double to left with two outs in the fifth. The Dodgers finally responded in the sixth, chasing Soroka right before Muncy's slam off José A. Ferrer (2-3). Key moment Ferrer stopped the game with a 2-1 count on Muncy to complain about the mound conditions, compelling the grounds crew to come onto the field for significant work. Muncy blasted Ferrer's second pitch after the delay deep into the left field bleachers. Key stat Muncy tied his career high with seven RBIs. The slugger has done it three times, most recently May 31 against the Yankees. Up next Washington's Mitchell Parker (4-8, 4.59 ERA) takes the mound Monday in San Diego. The Dodgers have a day off before a probable bullpen game at Colorado on Tuesday.

Alexi Lalas' Top 5 U.S. Players With the Most to Gain at Gold Cup
Alexi Lalas' Top 5 U.S. Players With the Most to Gain at Gold Cup

Fox News

timean hour ago

  • Fox News

Alexi Lalas' Top 5 U.S. Players With the Most to Gain at Gold Cup

The 26 players currently representing the United States are trying to win this Gold Cup. But let's call it as it is – this is also an audition to make the 2026 World Cup squad. So when opportunity knocks, you better answer. And for a handful of U.S. players on this squad, this is time to make the most of these games. Here are the ones with the most to gain as the U.S. prepares for the Gold Cup knockout stage: He's had two starts, two wins and a shutout. He hasn't made a mistake. He hasn't put a foot wrong in the entire tournament. Defenders have to care about him as a striker. He's not a finished product by any stretch of the imagination — I know it's a low bar — but there's not a lot of options at striker for this U.S. team. He's consistent. I love his fire on the field, and let's be honest: from a set piece perspective, I think he's better than Pulisic. He had two goals in the first game and a really good second half in the second game. So, for three out of four halves, he was wonderful. I don't think anyone's going to disagree. He hasn't put a foot wrong in the tournament. He's doing what he has to from a defensive standpoint and in the attack, getting the goal last game.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store