Both the Houston Astros’ Jose Altuve and Washington Nationals’ Bryce Harper extended their hitting streak to 17 games, although only Altuve was able to help his club win.
Altuve hit a double in the sixth of Houston’s 5-0 road win over the Philadelphia Phillies, as the Astros stay as the American League’s winningest team (67-33) and lead the A.L Western Division by 17 games in front of the Seattle Mariners.
Pitcher Charlie Morton struck out nine in seven innings of work to earn his eighth win of the season, while Nick Pivetta of the Nationals allowed five earned runs in six innings to take the loss and fall to 3-6.
Menwhile, Harper’s double in the eighth could not help spark the Nationals’ offense as Washington lost at home to the Milwaukee Brewers 8-0. The Brewers’ Zach Davies took the win to improve to 12-4, while the Nats’ Edwin Jackson earned the loss to fall to 1-1.
Both Brewers and Nationals still lead their respective divisions in the National League. The Nationals in the East, 11.5 games ahead of the Atlanta Braves, and the Brewers in Central, only half a game ahead of the suddenly hot Chicago Cubs who have won eight of their last 10 games.
Whit Merrifield hit a home run in the first pitch of the game, as the visitng Kansas City Royals defeated the Detroit Tigers 3-1 to win their seventh game in a row.
The 2015 World Series champions have raised their game and improved their record to 52-47 to cement themselves in second place of the A.L Central, just 1.5 games behind the Cleveland Indians (53-45).
The New York Yankees celebrated returning from their 11-game road trip with a 4-2 win over the visiting Cincinnati Reds, while the travelling Boston Red Sox lost 6-5 against the Mariners in 13 innings.
Following these results, the Yankees trail the Red Sox by just one game in the A.L East.
In other games, the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Oakland Athletics 4-1; while the St. Louis Cardinals won 3-2 over the Colorado Rockies, who have lost three of their last five games.
