William Contreras set the tone with an early three-run homer and Logan Henderson tossed five innings of two-hit ball to pace the Milwaukee Brewers to a 5-1 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday in the opener of the series between division leaders.

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Milwaukee, coming off a sweep of the Cubs, has won 12 of its last 14 to climb atop the NL Central. The NL West-leading Dodgers had won five of their previous six on their current road trip. It was the first meeting since the Dodgers swept Milwaukee in the NLCS last season.

Henderson (2-1) allowed two singles in five innings, striking out seven and walking three in an 85-pitch outing. The Dodgers, who managed just three hits, got on the board with an unearned run off Shane Drohan in the seventh on Shohei Ohtani’s sacrifice fly.

The Brewers jumped on Justin Wrobleski (6-2) for four runs on six hits in a 10-batter, 38-pitch first inning.

Contreras put the Brewers up 3-0 before Wrobleski recorded an out. Jackson Chourio and Brice Turang opened with consecutive singles. Contreras then sent the first pitch 410 feet to left for his fourth homer.

Milwaukee loaded the bases with one out on three consecutive singles. Sal Frelick’s sacrifice fly made it 4-0. Joey Ortiz walked to reload the bases, but Wrobleski escaped further damage by fanning Chourio on a 3-2 pitch to end a 10-pitch at-bat.

The Brewers added a run in the second when Contreras singled and scored on Andrew Vaughn’s double to the gap in right-center.

Wrobleski needed 100 pitches to get through five innings, allowing five runs on eight hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

The Dodgers loaded the bases in the fourth on a leadoff single by Ohtani, their first hit, and a pair of walks, but Henderson got Max Muncy on an inning-ending pop out.

Muncy was removed after being hit by a pitch in the eighth inning.

Garver, Gilbert help Mariners sneak by slumping Royals

Mitch Garver clubbed a two-run homer in the seventh inning, after Logan Gilbert was solid while pitching into the sixth, and the visiting Seattle Mariners edged the scuffling Kansas City Royals 2-0 on Friday night.

Gilbert allowed two hits and two walks while striking out six and never faced any real danger over 5 2/3 innings to open this three-game weekend series. Meanwhile, Kansas City starter Noah Cameron was just as stout as Gilbert, allowing four hits, two walks and matching a career high with eight strikeouts while throwing 96 pitches over six impressive innings.

But in the seventh, with Nick Mears (2-3) on the mound for the Royals, Cole Young walked to open the frame.

Then, Garver, who is batting .177 and entered this contest with just one homer in 2026, sent a towering drive into the left-field seats for what proved to be the only runs of the ballgame.

It was the third win in four games for Seattle, which is amid a 10-4 stretch on the road following a 1-8 start away from home.

Seattle managed just five hits on the night, but Garver and Julio Rodriguez posted two apiece.

Gilbert, Eduard Bazardo (3-2), Matt Brash and Andres Munoz (nine saves) combined to allow just four hits and strike out 10 against the Royals, who have totaled 28 runs while losing 10 of the last 11.

Kansas City has also been outscored 22-8 during a five-game home losing streak.

Maikel Garcia had two hits for Kansas City, which posed its only true threat in the bottom of the eighth inning, when the hosts placed runners on first and second with one out with the heart of the order coming up. However, Brash got Royals star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. to line out to center fielder Rodriguez and Vinnie Pasquantino on a fly ball that right fielder Luke Raley grabbed to end the inning.

Kansas City had swept a three-game set at Seattle to open the month of May.

Gausman
pitches Blue Jays to win over sloppy Pirates

Kevin Gausman struck out eight in 6 2/3 effective innings Friday night as the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates 6-2.

Gausman (4-3) allowed one run, six hits and one walk while earning his first win in five starts.

Louis Varland retired the final six batters to earn his seventh save.

The Blue Jays took advantage of three Pittsburgh errors — two in a three-run third — to win the opener of a three-game series.

Yohendrick Pinango and George Springer hit two-run doubles for the Blue Jays, who have won three straight.

Brandon Lowe had two hits and two runs for the Pirates, whose two-game winning streak ended.

Bubba Chandler (1-6) fanned a
career-best 11 while allowing three runs, one earned, on two hits and three walks in five innings.

Pittsburgh opened the scoring in the first inning.

Lowe singled to center with one out, took third on Nick Gonzales’ double off the top of the left field wall and scored on a sacrifice fly to center by former Blue Jay Spencer Horwitz.

The Blue Jays jumped ahead 3-1 in the third.

Springer reached base on catcher’s interference and advanced to third on Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s single to center. Springer was hung up between third and home on Daulton Varsho’s grounder to first but scored when Horwitz’s throw to third sailed high for an error that left runners at second and third. Pinango lashed a one-out, two-run double to right.

Lowe walked to start the eighth against Mason Fluharty, and Gonzales singled. Varland replaced Fluharty to face pinch hitter Bryan Reynolds.

After a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, a groundout to second scored a run. Varland struck out Konnor Griffin and got Jhostynxon Garcia to ground out, ending the inning.

Toronto tacked on three against Dennis Santana in the eighth. Ernie Clement and Jesus Sanchez hit consecutive doubles to make it 4-2.

Brandon Valenzuela walked and Springer stroked a two-run double that lodged in the padding in the right field corner after bouncing into foul territory.

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Pittsburgh’s Esmerlyn Valdez played right field in his major league debut Friday and had a walk while going 0-for-3.

Walk-off hit propels Braves past Nats in 11

Chadwick Tromp laced a walk-off RBI single in the 11th inning on Friday to propel the Atlanta Braves to a 5-4 victory over the visiting Washington Nationals.

After Washington reliever Paxton Schultz (0-2) retired the first two batters of the 11th, Tromp drove in his second run for the Braves, who won their major-league best 36th game in the opener of a three-game series.

Tyler Kinley (4-2) tossed a perfect 11th for Atlanta. Starter Bryce Elder pitched six strong innings, allowing one run on five hits, striking out four and walking one.

Richard Lovelady threw a scoreless first as an opener for Washington. Miles Mikolas then delivered five scoreless innings for the Nationals, allowing three hits while striking out three. CJ Abrams homered and drove in three for the visitors, who dropped their fourth game in six tries.

In the top of the 10th, Dylan Lee walked Andres Chaparro to place runners on first and second before retiring Curtis Mead. Abrams then doubled in two runs to give the Nationals a 4-2 lead.

Tromp began the bottom of the frame with a single to drive in automatic runner Ha-Seong Kim.

Mauricio Dubon then tied the game with a single to shallow left off Orlando Ribalta.

Two batters later, Ozzie Albies walked to load the bases with one out, but Ribalta retired Michael Harris II and Eli White to send the game to the 11th.

Washington struck first in the sixth, as Mead connected on his fifth home run of the season — a 404-foot leadoff shot to left-center.

Facing Mitchell Parker in the bottom of the seventh. Michael Harris II legged out an infield single and Riley worked a one-out walk before Dominic Smith’s RBI single knotted the score.

Kim then laid down a suicide squeeze bunt and scored Riley to give the Braves a 2-1 edge.

On his 31st pitch of the inning, Parker got Ronald Acuna Jr. to fly out and end the frame.

Robert Suarez took over in the eighth, yielding Abrams’ 11th homer of the year — a solo homer to right-center that tied the score at 2-all. It was Suarez’s first home run allowed this season.

Holliday’s HR
helps O’s extend Tigers’ skid to 7

Jackson Holliday’s first hit in three games since making his season debut this week was a two-run go-ahead home run in the fourth inning, and the Baltimore Orioles went on to beat the visiting Detroit Tigers 7-4 in the first game of a three-game series Friday night.

Pete Alonso smashed a three-run homer and finished with four RBIs as the Orioles snapped a three-game skid to open a 10-game homestand.

Gunnar Henderson racked up three hits and Holliday, Adley Rutschman and Leody Taveras all had two hits for Baltimore.

Kevin McGonigle homered for the Tigers, who suffered their seventh consecutive defeat. Hao-Yu Lee had two hits and drove in two runs.

The Orioles used Keegan Akin for one inning as an opener, with McGonigle homering to right-center on the game’s first pitch for his third long ball of the season.

Chris Bassitt (4-3) took over on the mound and lasted 4 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on six hits.

Anthony Nunez pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save.

Detroit starter Jack Flaherty (0-6) gave up six runs (three earned) on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings despite striking out seven without a walk.

Detroit’s Gage Workman doubled to lead off the third and scored on Lee’s double for a 2-0 lead.

Alonso’s three-run blast to right with two outs in the third gave the Orioles their first lead on his 10th homer of the season.

The Tigers countered in the fourth, with Zach McKinstry’s fielder’s choice grounder tying the game and Lee’s two-out infield single pushing across a run for a 4-3 edge.

Baltimore rallied in the bottom of the fourth, with Flaherty’s balk allowing Colton Cowser to score before Holliday’s home run with two outs.

Holliday’s opposite-field homer went down the left field line and the ball struck at the base of the foul pole, charting at only 337 feet.

He had gone 0-for-2 in both games at Tampa Bay earlier this week after beginning the season on the injured list with a broken bone in his right hand.

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