Kolek pitches into the 6th in first MLB start as Padres blank Pirates

MLB

San Diego Padres pitcher Stephen Kolek delivers during the first inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh, Sunday, May 4, 2025. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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PITTSBURGH >> Stephen Kolek pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings in his first major league start and combined with four relievers for the San Diego Padres’ eighth shutout of the season, a 4-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates Sunday for their fifth straight win.

Kolek was recalled from Triple-A El Paso before the game. He made 42 relief appearances for the Padres last season as a rookie after being selected from Seattle in the Rule 5 draft.

Kolek, who had a 6.38 ERA in five starts for El Paso this season, allowed four hits, struck out four and walked two.

Cardinals 6, Mets 5 >> Willson Contreras drove in three runs on three hits, including a homer, and Brendan Donovan had two hits and two RBIs to spark the St. Louis Cardinals to a 6-5 victory over the New York Mets in the first game of a doubleheader on Sunday.

Erick Fedde (2-3) pitched into the sixth inning, allowing three runs on six hits and five walks. Ryan Helsley worked the ninth for his fifth save in seven chances.

Royals 11, Orioles 6 >> Maikel Garcia hit two of Kansas City’s franchise-record seven home runs, a rare long-ball barrage that enabled the Royals to beat the Baltimore Orioles 11-6 on Sunday.

Bobby Witt Jr. broke a 5-5 tie with a seventh-inning solo shot off Yennier Cano (0-1), and Vinnie Pasquantino followed with drive into the right-field seats. Cano had not allowed a run in his previous 12 outings this season.

Athletics 3, Marlins 2 >> Rookie Nick Kurtz tripled with one out in the ninth inning and scored on a pinch hit by Tyler Soderstrom to lift the Athletics to a 3-2 victory over the Miami Marlins on Sunday.

Kurtz sent an 0-1 pitch from Anthony Bender (1-1) down the left-field line and Soderstrom singled up the middle two pitches later to give the Athletics the three-game series and improve to an AL-best 13-7 on the road.

Brewers 4, Cubs 0 >> Freddy Peralta pitched six sharp innings to help Milwaukee beat the Chicago Cubs 4-0 on Sunday, with the Brewers’ lineup breaking through after an injury knocked out left-hander Shota Imanaga in the sixth inning.

Milwaukee prevented the Cubs from earning their first road sweep of the Brewers since October 2015.

Guardians 5, Blue Jays 4 >> Tanner Bibee pitched five innings before leaving because of leg cramps, Gabriel Arias had three hits and two RBIs, and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 on Sunday.

Six-time All-Star José Ramírez was back in the lineup for Cleveland, two days after leaving in the third inning because of a right ankle sprain. Ramírez went 0 for 4 with a walk.

Rangers 8, Mariners 1 >> Corey Seager and Adolis García hit two-run singles to highlight Texas’ six-run third inning, Jacob deGrom won his second start in a row and the previously run-starved Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 8-1 on Sunday to end a season-high four-game losing streak.

DeGrom (2-1) allowed the one run and three hits in five innings. His 89 pitches were seven shy of his season high. He had three strikeouts to surpass 1,700 for his career, the 13th active major leaguer to reach the milestone.

Rays 7, Yankees 5 >> Jonathan Aranda homered and added a two-run single, boosting Tampa Bay over the New York Yankees 7-5 on Sunday to end the Rays’ eight-game stretch of scoring four runs or fewer.

Tampa Bay matched its season high with 16 hits, including four by No. 9 hitter Taylor Walls and three each by Travis Jankowski, Yandy Díaz and Aranda. Brandon Lowe hit a two-run single and speedy Chandler Simpson scored from second on an infield hit.

White Sox 5, Astros 4 >> Luis Robert Jr. tied it with an RBI single with two outs in the sixth inning, stole second base and scored the go-ahead run on Edgar Quero’s single as the Chicago White Sox rallied to beat the Houston Astros 5-4 on Sunday in a game shortened to seven innings by rain.

The game was delayed for 80 minutes before being called. It was the White Sox’s second series victory of the season and their first series win against the Astros since July 2021. Chicago had lost or split its last six series with Houston.

Giants 9, Rockies 3 >> Willy Adames homered twice and drove in three runs, helping the San Francisco Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 9-3 on Sunday.

TIGERS 13, ANGELS 1 . >> Trey Sweeney and Kerry Carpenter each homered and had four hits, and they combined to drive in 11 runs as the Detroit Tigers pounded the Los Angeles Angels 13-1 on Sunday to win three of four in the series.

Nationals 4, Reds 1 >> Luis García Jr. homered during Washington’s three-run seventh inning, and the Nationals beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-1 on Sunday.

Diamondbacks 11, Phillies 9 >> Josh Naylor hit an RBI single in Arizona’s three-run 10th inning, and the Diamondbacks topped the Philadelphia Phillies 11-9 on Sunday to salvage the finale of their weekend series.

Geraldo Perdomo and Corbin Carroll each had three RBIs for Arizona, which led 7-2 after five innings.

Braves 4, Dodgers 3 >> Austin Riley hit two two-run homers, and the Atlanta Braves stopped the Los Angeles Dodgers’ seven-game win streak with a 4-3 victory on Sunday night.

Cardinals 5, Mets 4 >> Victor Scott II robbed Juan Soto of a three-run homer and later hit a tiebreaking double, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to 5-4 victory over the New York Mets for a doubleheader sweep on Sunday night.