MLB roundup: Josh Bell hits 3 homers, drives in 7 as Pirates rout Cubs

Josh Bell hit three home runs to boost his season total to 25 and Pittsburgh routed Chicago 18-5 on Monday night in Pittsburgh.

Bell hit a three-run shot off rookie Adbert Alzolay (1-1) in the first, a two-run drive off Alzolay in the second and finished off a four-hit, seven-RBI night by taking new Chicago closer Craig Kimbrel deep in the eighth.

Adam Frazier finished 5 for 6 and tied a major league record with four doubles. Colin Moran had a career-high five hits for the Pirates.

Jung Ho Kang hit his seventh home run of the season off Chicago infielder Daniel Descalso, who made a cameo on the mound in the seventh with the game well out of hand. Jose Osuna hit a solo home run off Kimbrel, who came on to get some work after making his debut with the Cubs last week.

Bell became the 20th Pirates player to hit three home runs in a game and the first left-handed batter to do it since Hall of Famer Willie Stargell in 1971. Frazier’s four doubles matched a mark shared by many players – Matt Carpenter of St. Louis was the last to do it on Aug. 26, 2018.

Javier Baez hit his 21st home run for Chicago. Kris Bryant and David Bote had two hits each, but the Cubs couldn’t keep pace while dropping their third straight.

Trevor Williams (3-2) took advantage of the outburst to pick up his first victory since May 10.

Brewers 8, Reds 6: In Cincinnati, Christian Yelich singled with the bases loaded and hit his major league-leading 30th homer, helping Milwaukee rally for its sixth straight victory at Great American Ball Park.

Milwaukee sent 10 batters to the plate for five runs in the seventh inning, with Yelich contributing an RBI single. The reigning National League MVP hit a two-run homer in the ninth that made him the first Brewer with 30 before the All-Star break.

The Brewers have won 11 of 15 overall against their NL Central rival. This time, they overcame a pair of two-run homers by Eugenio Suarez, who has three in the last two games.

Lorenzo Cain and Keston Hiura added homers for the Brewers. Jesse Winker and Eugenio went deep for the Reds.

Alex Claudio (2-2) retired the three batters he faced for the win. Jeremy Jeffress allowed a run in the ninth while getting his first save.

Rays 6, Orioles 3: In St. Petersburg, Florida, Kevin Kiermaier’s three-run home run lifted Tampa Bay to a win over Baltimore in a game in which two-way player Brandon McKay went 0 for 4 in his major league debut as a hitter for the Rays.

Kiermaier’s 10th homer came off Branden Kline (1-4) in the sixth inning after a walk and a single by Avisail Garcia.

McKay, who gave up one hit in six scoreless innings Saturday night in his major league pitching debut against the Texas Rangers, grounded out four times and was picked off second base on a throw from catcher Pedro Severino.

Adam Kolarek (3-2) got the win and Jose Alvarado pitched the ninth for his first save since May 26.

Tom Eshelman made his major league pitching debut for the Orioles, giving up two runs on six hits in five innings without recording a strikeout.

Renato Nunez had two hits for Baltimore.

The crowd of 20,441 included about 10,000 fans who purchased $2 tickets.

Blue Jays 11, Royals 4: In Toronto, Freddy Galvis hit a pair of solo home runs, rookie Cavan Biggio had four RBIs and Toronto beat Kansas City.

Randal Grichuk had four hits and four RBIs and Teoscar Hernandez added a solo home run as the Blue Jays won for the 15th time in 19 regular-season home meetings with the Royals.

Wearing red caps and jerseys in honor of Canada Day, the Blue Jays scored in each of the first four innings and finished with a season-high 18 hits.

Clayton Richard (1-4) allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings to win for the first time since last August.

Royals right-hander Glenn Sparkman (2-4) allowed season highs of nine hits and eight runs in three innings.

Giants 13, Padres 2: In San Diego, Jeff Samardzija threw eight innings of five-hit ball and doubled, and Kevin Pillar, Evan Longoria and Austin Slater homered as San Francisco walloped San Diego.

Samardzija (5-7) went eight innings for the first time this season. He allowed two runs, struck out six and walked two.

San Francisco had nine extra-base hits. Padres rookie left-hander Logan Allen cruised through three innings before the Giants started hitting him hard. Longoria had an RBI double and Slater an RBI triple in the fourth.

Samardzija doubled to left field leading off the fifth and scored on Tyler Austin’s two-run double with the bases loaded. Buster Posey followed with an RBI double to chase Allen.

Phil Maton came on and retired the side, but allowed Brandon Belt’s RBI single in the sixth and then Longoria’s leadoff homer in the seventh and Slater’s solo shot with one out. It was Longoria’s eighth and Slater’s first.

Pillar’s three-run homer off Robert Stock highlighted the four-run eighth. It was his 12th.

Allen (2-1) was trying for his third straight win. He gave up six runs and seven hits in four-plus innings.