Sonny Gray strikes out 11, allows only 1 hit in dominant complete game as Cardinals blank Guardians
CLEVELAND — Sonny Gray allowed only one hit and struck out a season-high 11 for his first complete game since 2017 as the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Cleveland Guardians 5-0 on Friday night.
Alec Burleson and Pedro Pagés homered, and Nolan Arenado had a pair of RBIs for the Cardinals, who bounced back after being shut out in their previous two games.
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Associated Press
18 minutes ago
- Associated Press
LAFC loses Olivier Giroud's farewell match, falling 1-0 to Vancouver Whitecaps
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Emmanuel Sabbi scored on Vancouver's only shot on goal, Yohei Takaoka made four saves and the Whitecaps spoiled Olivier Giroud's farewell match with a 1-0 victory over Los Angeles FC on Sunday night. Giroud started and played 60 minutes in his final appearance for LAFC. The famed French forward is expected to sign with Lille after one disappointing year in Los Angeles during which he was largely an unproductive substitute, scoring just five goals in 38 matches. Giroud had a chance to go out with a bang when Denis Bouanga fed him an exceptional cross while he was unmarked deep in Vancouver's penalty area in the 50th minute, but Giroud volleyed it over the bar. Giroud still left the field to a standing ovation 10 minutes later, but LAFC failed to equalize without him in its first match back from a winless three-game stint at the Club World Cup. LAFC scored one goal in the entire FIFA tournament, but still netted at least $9.5 million for earning the final spot in the field. Back in Los Angeles, its nine-match unbeaten run in league play ended with even more offensive frustration against Vancouver. Takaoka secured his 10th clean sheet for the depleted Whitecaps, who won for just the second time in six matches while falling out of first place in the Western Conference. Vancouver doesn't have key contributors Brian White, Jayden Nelson and Sebastian Berhalter due to Gold Cup international duty. Sabbi scored in the 20th minute with an exceptional effort, starting a counterattack with a midfield steal before controlling Jeevan Badwal's pass in midair on the run and scoring his first goal since April 12. Backup goalkeeper David Ochoa made his first appearance for LAFC in place of Hugo Lloris, who got the day off after playing the entire Club World Cup. ___ AP soccer:
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Is Reese Olson ready for Detroit Tigers return after 3rd rehab start? A.J. Hinch answers
Detroit Tigers right-hander Reese Olson completed the third start of his rehab assignment Wednesday, June 25, with Triple-A Toledo, throwing four innings on 74 pitches. The 25-year-old is recovering from a right ring finger injury. He seems ready for his MLB return. Advertisement The Tigers won't make a decision about Olson's next step until evaluating him in his upcoming bullpen session, but when asked directly, manager A.J. Hinch didn't say Olson needed another rehab start. "We won't make a decision until we absolutely have to at the very last second," Hinch said Wednesday afternoon. "He's in a good spot. There's no reason to talk about a week from now until a week from now." PLAYER OF THE GAME: Wenceel Pérez does it all for Tigers, including two outfield assists in one inning Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch takes the ball from starting pitcher Reese Olson during a pitching change in the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on April 29, 2025 in Houston. If cleared, Olson could start for the Tigers as early as Tuesday, July 1, against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. He hasn't pitched for the Tigers since May 17. Advertisement He has missed more than one month with finger inflammation. "The next step would be a bullpen in the next day or two," Hinch said. "We'll have an update when we can." The finger injury forced Olson to stop throwing his elite changeup, which he couldn't implement into bullpen sessions until two weeks ago. He threw zero changeups in his first rehab start, seven changeups in his second rehab start and 14 changeups in his third rehab start. Celebrate 125 epic seasons with the Tigers! He threw his changeup 18.9% of the time in Wednesday's rehab start, approaching the usage of his changeup in nine pre-injury starts, at 25.3%. Advertisement The increased usage is a good sign. In Wednesday's rehab start, Olson allowed two runs on three hits and one walk with five strikeouts in four innings, throwing 49 of 74 pitches for strikes. He generated 10 whiffs with two fastballs, two sinkers, two changeups, three sliders and one curveball. HIs fastball averaged 94.5 mph. "I know Reese got to his pitch count," Hinch said. "Not quite to his innings count that we were hoping, but from what I was told — I haven't talked to Reese directly — things checked out really, really well. He was happy with all of his pitches, and the fact that he got through it unscathed, in terms of health-wise, is a great step forward." Advertisement [ MUST LISTEN: Make "Days of Roar" your go-to Detroit Tigers podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ] Dietrich Enns arrives Left-hander Dietrich Enns will be selected by the Tigers from Triple-A Toledo for the game Thursday, June 26, against the Athletics. The 34-year-old reported to Comerica Park on Wednesday for an acclimation day, but he isn't allowed to be in the dugout during the game. FIRE UP, CHIPS: Tigers calling up 34-year-old lefty Dietrich Enns for first MLB game since 2021 To activate him, the Tigers need to create space on the 26-man and 40-man rosters. Advertisement "He can spend the day with us," Hinch said. "He can get his prep work in. He can get all the hellos out of the way and watch the game. We plan on activating him." Joining the Tigers, Enns posted a 2.89 ERA with 15 walks and 71 strikeouts across 62⅓ innings in 14 starts for Triple-A Toledo. His only MLB experience entering Thursday's game: two games with the Minnesota Twins in 2017 and nine games with the Tampa Bay Rays (including two wins in appearances against the Tigers) in 2021. Riley Greene 'on a heater' Since June 8, left fielder Riley Greene is hitting .418 with four home runs, six walks and 15 strikeouts in 14 games, posting a 1.231 OPS. Before this stretch, the 24-year-old hit .272 with an .812 OPS in his first 64 games. Advertisement Hinch said Greene has been "on a heater" recently. Greene ranks second among American League players with 45 RBIs since May 1, trailing only Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who leads the AL with 51 RBIs. "It's fun to watch him when he's hitting to all fields, he's hitting for power, he's hitting in big spots," Hinch added. "I love that he's letting the game come to him a little bit more. Now that's a little bit easier when you're piling up the success that he's piled up in the last few weeks, but it coincides with getting good pitches to hit and getting good counts and not trying to do too much. It's amazing in this sport, for guys like him, not trying to do too much actually has you do a lot of things well. He's an example of that." Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@ or follow him @EvanPetzold. Advertisement Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at Order your copy of 'Roar of 125: The Epic History of the Detroit Tigers!' by the Free Press at This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Reese Olson injury update: A.J. Hinch talks Detroit Tigers return
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Tarik Skubal strikes out 13 as Detroit Tigers beat Minnesota Twins, 3-0
Detroit Tigers starter Tarik Skubal tied the MLB lead with his 10th win of the season. In the process, he tied a career high and came close to making history. On a nationally televised broadcast on ESPN, the Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins 3-0 at Comerica Park on Sunday, June 29. Skubal matched a career-high with 13 strikeouts over seven innings pitched, allowing no runs, one hit and one walk. Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) throws a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the fourth inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Sunday, June 29, 2025. BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG TIGERS: Detroit Tigers relish night in the spotlight on ESPN vs. Minnesota Twins Advertisement After Skubal (10-2) notched a clean first inning, right fielder Kerry Carpenter opened the scoring with a two-out, solo home run in the bottom of the first. It was Carpenter's 16th home run of 2025 and the seventh time he has homered in the first inning this season. Carpenter came through again with two outs in the fifth inning, lining a shot down the right field line. With the ball taking bounces against the corner outfield walls and away from Twins right fielder Willi Castro, Spencer Torkelson was able to score from first base as Carpenter cruised to his second triple of the season, giving the Tigers a 3-0 lead. It was all the scoring Skubal would need for the Tigers (53-32). Tarik Skubal matches career high in strikeouts Skubal struck out 13 batters in the game, matching his career high, set twice (May 25, 2025 and July 7, 2024). Advertisement Considering how well he was pitching early on, his strikeout count could have been a lot higher. Skubal struck out the side in the second and third innings after setting down the order in the first, striking out eight of the first nine batters he faced. He was two strikeouts away from tying the American League record for consecutive strikeouts in a game (nine), a record set by Tigers pitcher Doug Fister at Comerica Park on Sept. 27, 2012. Twins star Byron Buxton ended the pursuit of that record with a flyout to left field to lead off the fourth inning, but Skubal got right back to his strikeout form by punching out designated hitter Ryan Jeffers next. He was perfect through the first four innings, striking out nine batters with a brisk 52 pitches. The MLB record for consecutive strikeouts in a game is held by three pitchers: Tom Seaver (1970), Aaron Nola (2021) and Corbin Burnes (2021), all righties who reached that mark with National League teams. Advertisement Skubal carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning before first baseman Ty France broke it up with a one-out single. He struck out left fielder Harrison Bader in the next at-bat, however, for his fifth double-digit strikeout game of the season on his 15th batter faced of the game. He struck out Twins second baseman Brooks Lee next batter, giving him his fifth game with at least 11 strikeouts this season. Only two pitchers in MLB, Spencer Schwellenbach of the Atlanta Braves and Garrett Crochet of the Boston Red Sox, have even reached three such games this season. Only three other Tigers pitchers have ever recorded at least five games of at least 11 strikeouts in a season: Justin Verlander (2009), Max Scherzer (2014) and Mickey Lolich, who did it twice (1969, 1971). Skubal now joins that list —before the All-Star break. The Tiger ace tied his career high in strikeouts in a game (13), set during his complete-game shutout against the Cleveland Guardians on May 25. He matched that mark in the seventh inning, getting France to strike out looking to end the inning. Advertisement He left the game after the seventh with 93 pitches, one strikeout away from setting a career high. Middle of the order provides the power Detroit Tigers right fielder Kerry Carpenter (30) celebrates after hitting a solo home run against the Minnesota Twins in the first inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Sunday, June 29, 2025. GREENE DAZE: Detroit Tigers' Riley Greene on All-Star Game voting: 'Just trying to help this team win' Carpenter was removed from the game after his triple in the fifth inning, having already homered and notched two RBIs for the Tigers. And he wasn't the only lefty to bring the thump on Sunday. Tigers left fielder Riley Greene stayed hot in the fourth inning, hitting a solo home run to give the Tigers a 2-0 advantage. The All-Star finalist is hitting .444 with five home runs over his past 12 games and now leads the team with 19 home runs on the season. Advertisement He finished 1-for-4. Also going 1-for-4 on the night was first baseman Spencer Torkelson, who sent a ball 382 feet to deep center field in the second inning for a loud out and rocketed into another out on a hard line drive to second base in the seventh inning. But even though those hits didn't find the grass, Torkelson got dirty for one of his most spectacular plays of the season. With the speedy Bader on first base after a leadoff single in the eighth inning, Tigers reliever Tommy Kahnle forced a hard ground ball from Twins second baseman Brooks Lee. Torkelson dove to his right, snagged it, threw a strike to second base to get Bader out, then rushed back to first in time to receive the throw from Javier Báez for the 3-6-3 double play. Advertisement For his effort, Torkelson got one of the loudest ovations of the night. The loudest, of course, was saved for Skubal when he left the game. You can reach Christian at cromo@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers ride dominant Tarik Skubal in 3-0 win over Minnesota
