J.T. Realmuto hit a home run into deep left field as the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in the MLB on Monday.
Trailing 1-0 at the bottom of the first, Realmuto hit his third home run of the season with a second tier two-run homer to put the Phillies 2-1 up.
For the Brewers, they welcomed back Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain from injury but that failed to fire their offense, which has not quite been on song this season.
Cain did return from his quadriceps injury with a lean-back home run in the first inning.
The Phillies improve to 14-15, while the Brewers are now 17-12.
Big homers from Laureano and Mullins
On a day where 21 home runs were scored, Ramon Laureano creamed a beauty for the Oakland Athletics in their 5-4 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
With scores 3-3 at the bottom of the fifth, Laureano made it three straight games with home runs to help his side to a 5-3 lead, which they hung on to.
Cedric Mullins got the ball rolling for the Baltimore Orioles as they scored five times in the eight inning in their 5-3 win over the Seattle Mariners.
Down 1-0 at the top of the eighth, Mullins hit a home run which just eluded Mitch Haniger in center-field.
The Los Angeles Angels went down 7-3 to the Tampa Bay Rays although Shohei Ohtani hit another home run to take his season tally to nine.
'How about that play!?'
Pittsburgh Pirates third-baseman Erik Gonzalez made a brilliant play diving to his right and firing to first base to run out Will Myers in the San Diego Padres' 2-0 win.
Lights out in St. Louis
With two out in the ninth inning, the lights quite literally went out at the Busch Stadium with batter Alex Reyes quickly backing away in the Cardinals' win over the Mets, although it was only a brief delay.
Monday's results
Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 Milwaukee Brewers
Minnesota Twins 6-5 Texas Rangers
St. Louis Cardinals 6-5 New York Mets
Cleveland Indians 8-6 Kansas City Royals
Tampa Bay Rays 7-3 Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics 5-4 Toronto Blue Jays
San Diego Padres 2-0 Pittsburgh Pirates
Baltimore Orioles 5-3 Seattle Mariners
Brewers at Phillies
There is a full fixture card on Tuesday including two double-headers, while the Philadelphia Phillies continue their series against the fast-starting Milwaukee Brewers.
Ohtani excited to face Team USA 'superstars' in WBC final after 'epic' Japan win
MLB Opening Day is still over a week away but several of baseball's biggest names will be in action on Tuesday – and Shohei Ohtani cannot wait.
The final of the World Baseball Classic will pit Ohtani's Japan against the might of defending champions the United States.
With Ohtani planning to hit and pitch in relief as he ramps up his preparations for the new season, all eyes will be on his potential matchup with Los Angeles Angels team-mate Mike Trout, the Team USA captain.
"It's not only Mike Trout, but one through nine in that order is filled with superstars, household names," Ohtani said.
"I'm just excited to face that lineup. It's a great thing for Japanese baseball."
Ohtani was speaking after Japan's dramatic 6-5 comeback win over Mexico that booked their spot in the final.
In an apparent nod to the Angels' eight-year absence from the MLB playoffs – spanning his entire career – Ohtani said: "It's been a while since I've played in a win-or-lose game, in a playoff atmosphere."
Munetaka Murakami, a Japanese Triple Crown winner last year, clinched Japan's victory with a walk-off double at the bottom of the ninth.
"It was the best, epic," said Boston Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida, while Mexico manager Benji Gil graciously added: "Japan advances, but the world of baseball won tonight."
That is still not enough for Ohtani, though, as the two-way superstar said: "Obviously, it's a big accomplishment to get to the championship series.
"But there's a big difference from being in first and second, so I'm going to do all I can to get that first place."
Astros star Jose Altuve out indefinitely after fracturing thumb at World Baseball Classic
Houston Astros All-Star second baseman Jose Altuve suffered a fractured right thumb at the World Baseball Classic and will require surgery, sidelining him indefinitely.
Astros general manager Dana Brown revealed the severity of the injury on Sunday, a day after Altuve was hit by a pitch from reliever Daniel Bard in the fifth inning of Venezuela’s 9-7 quarter-final loss to the United States.
The Astros said he will undergo surgery in the coming days, and they will then determine a prognosis for him.
There is no official timeline for when he will return, but it has been reported that similar injuries have sidelined players for eight-to-10 weeks.
A major part of Houston’s dominance over the last half-dozen years, the 32-year-old Altuve is coming off his eighth All-Star season.
In helping the Astros win the 2022 World Series, Altuve hit .300 with 28 home runs, 39 doubles, 18 steals and 103 runs while earning his sixth Silver Slugger Award and finishing fifth in AL MVP voting.
He won the 2017 AL MVP – the same year he helped the Astros win the franchise’s first World Series championship.
Among active players, Altuve ranks seventh in hits (1,935), eighth in doubles (379) and 12th in runs (986).
He is the second MLB All-Star to suffer a serious injury at the World Baseball Classic after elite New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz tore his patellar tendon, ruling him out for the entire season.
Mets pitcher Diaz expected to miss 2023 season after injuring knee in Puerto Rico celebrations
New York Mets pitcher Edwin Diaz is expected to miss the entire MLB season after suffering a serious knee injury while celebrating a Puerto Rico win in the World Baseball Classic.
Diaz left the field in a wheelchair after injuring his right knee while celebrating Wednesday's win over the Dominican Republic, with his team-mates visibly upset by the incident.
On Thursday, the Mets revealed Diaz – who penned a five-year, $102million contract with the team in the offseason – had undergone surgery after sustaining a complete patellar tendon tear.
"Edwin Diaz underwent successful repair of the patellar tendon in his right knee today," read an update from the team. "He is expected to begin a formal rehab program in about a week."
Earlier on Thursday, Mets general manager Billy Eppler suggested the closer – widely considered to be the best in the game – could be sidelined for around eight months, a timeline which would rule him out for the entire 2023 season.
Eppler noted some athletes have returned from similar injuries within a six-month timeframe, but added such cases were "more the exception than the rule".
Diaz took to social media to update his fans after the surgery, writing on Twitter: "To all my beloved fans, especially the Mets fans, I want to let you know that I am doing well and healing.
"I feel blessed and grateful for your support with messages and prayers, thank you very much! I can't wait to see you guys in NY again and play those trumpets."
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