The tension continued as the Washington Nationals edged a high-scoring 13-12 thriller over the Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB on Wednesday.
The slugfest included both sides scoring grand slams, along with a three-run homer for the first time in MLB history.
It also came after things got heated on Tuesday when Phillies manager Joe Gerardi got ejected after a dispute with Nats pitcher Max Scherzer.
Scherzer did not play this time around, with Kyle Schwarber taking center stage for the Nats, with a three-run homer, his 19th home run of the season. It was also his 10th in 12 games.
Andrew McCutchen had hit a grand slam for the Phillies but Josh Bell responded with one of his own to put the Nats up 11-9.
"We had leads and we gave them away by issuing so many bases on balls and you can’t do that," Girardi said. "We have to be better."
Lucky 13 for Giants
The San Francisco Giants piled on seven runs in an incredible 13th inning as they won 9-3 over the Los Angeles Angels.
Shohei Ohtani, who went 0-3 with the bat, sent down nine strikeouts across six innings, only allowing one run, before the late drama.
Giants pitcher Kevin Gausman also yielded four hits with nine strikeouts over seven innings.
The Angels were not helped by injuries, with left-fielder Taylor Ward drafted in as catcher and pitcher Griffin Canning required at left field.
Steven Duggar helped the Giants blow it open in the 13th inning after an RBI double in the 12th, as Angels pitcher Alex Claudio walked three straight.
Brandon Lowe, Mike Zunino and Austin Meadows hit homers as the Tampa Bay Rays got back to winning ways, ending their seven-game losing run with an 8-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox.
Trevor Bauer had 10 strikeouts across six innings but the San Diego Padres got up over the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 with Jake Cronenworth and Manny Machado homering in the first inning.
No respite for struggling Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks ended their franchise-worst 17-game losing run earlier this week against the Milwaukee Brewers but that has not fixed their issues. The Diamondbacks succumbed to a 3-2 loss to the Brewers, meaning they have lost 19 of their past 20 games.
Skyrocketing Astros
The Houston Astros claimed their 10th straight win, crushing the Baltimore Orioles 13-0. Houston has the second best differential across a 10-game span since 2000, behind the 2019 Astros. The Astros have scored 21 home runs in that streak, allowing only 21 runs at the same time and are now 17-4 for June.
Wednesday's results
Chicago White Sox 4-3 Pittsburgh Pirates
Washington Nationals 13-12 Philadelphia Phillies
Detroit Tigers 6-2 St Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers 3-2 Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants 9-3 Los Angeles Angels
Colorado Rockies 5-2 Seattle Mariners
New York Yankees 6-5 Kansas City Royals
Houston Astros 13-0 Baltimore Orioles
Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 Miami Marlins
New York Mets 7-3 Atlanta Braves
Tampa Bay Rays 8-2 Boston Red Sox
Texas Rangers 5-3 Oakland Athletics
San Diego Padres 5-3 Los Angeles Dodgers
Red Sox at Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays (44-31) have snapped their losing run and will round out their series against the Boston Red Sox (44-30).
Texans sign Schultz and Singletary
The Houston Texans are still over a month away from picking their quarterback of the future, but they are continuing to build around him.
On Monday, the Texans added a starting tight end to their roster, signing Dalton Schultz to a one-year deal worth up to $9million, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
Schultz did not have the market he might have anticipated after his contract with the Dallas Cowboys expired, but he will have the chance to cash in next offseason if he can thrive in Houston playing with the quarterback whom the Texans will almost certainly select with the second overall pick in the NFL Draft.
Last season, Schultz finished with 577 receiving yards and five touchdowns, having racked up 808 yards and eight touchdowns in 2021.
His 13 receiving touchdowns over the last two seasons rank fifth among tight ends.
Houston also added to their backfield, signing former Buffalo Bills running back Devin Singletary.
Singletary is unlikely to be the starter following the emergence of Dameon Pierce, who had 939 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground as a rookie.
Also arriving on a one-year deal, according to multiple reports, Singletary gives the Texans versatile depth at running back.
He has produced over 1,000 yards from scrimmage in each of the last two seasons. In 2022, he finished with 819 yards rushing and five touchdowns, as well as 280 yards receiving and a further touchdown through the air.
Singletary has 2,197 scrimmage yards since 2021, putting him 20th among running backs across that span.
NBA Game of the Week: Slumping Nets try to win rebound challenge against Cavs
The Brooklyn Nets will attempt to arrest their slide in the Eastern Conference when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday.
Brooklyn and the Cavs square off twice in New York this week, the second meeting coming on Thursday.
And the Nets head into the first game of the doubleheader on the back of a three-game losing streak.
The Nets, sixth in the East, are now 39-32, just two games in the loss column ahead of the Miami Heat at 39-34.
As such, they are at risk of slipping into the play-in tournament places, and the Nets understand they must get better at rebounding if they are to return to winning ways.
The Nets are last in total rebounds in home games and were outrebounded 40-33 by the Denver Nuggets in Sunday's loss to the Western Conference leaders.
Cleveland represent formidable opposition, with the Cavs sitting at 45-28, fourth in the East. They have won seven of their last 10 games.
But this is a matchup in which the Nets may actually have an edge on the boards to help them end their losing run.
PIVOTAL PLAYERS
Brooklyn Nets – Mikal Bridges
Bridges has quickly become the Nets' talisman having been acquired in the trade that sent Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns, and he has been one of the most prolific scorers in the NBA in March.
He is averaging 27.1 points per game this month, putting him 10th in league. No other Brooklyn player is averaging 20.
Cleveland Cavaliers – Jarrett Allen
The player who will bear much of the responsibility for ensuring the Nets continue to struggle on the boards is a former Brooklyn player.
Cavs center Allen has thrived on the glass this season, averaging 9.8 rebounds per game, the 11th-most in the NBA.
KEY BATTLE – Can Nets win the rebound challenge?
After their struggles on the boards against the Nuggets, head coach Jacque Vaughn was asked about how the Nets need to go about improving their rebounding.
"We have to accept it, it's truth, it's staring us in the face," he said. "The scouting report says try to go to offensive rebound versus the Nets, and we have to understand that and really do a diligent job of trying to do it together. We can't do it with two people or three people.
"We're trying to be systematic in how we embrace this problem, but I just want our guys to embrace it and realise that it is really a big difference from us being a pretty good defensive team, and that challenge we have to take on, and we have to win it. We have to win that challenge."
Winning that challenge may be easier against the Cavs who, despite Allen's prowess on the glass, are 25th in the NBA in rebounds per game with 41.4, just 1.2 more than the Nets.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Nets were victorious over the Cavs in their previous meeting in Cleveland on December 26 and have won five of the last six games between the teams.
Panthers sign veteran WR Thielen to three-year deal
The Carolina Panthers have signed Adam Thielen to a three-year deal as they look to prepare a strong offense for their expected number one pick quarterback.
Thielen spent 10 years with his hometown team, the Minnesota Vikings, before being released in early March.
The 32-year-old was voted to two Pro Bowls in his time with Minnesota and was an All-Pro Second Team selection in 2017.
Starting all 17 games last season, Thielen finished with 70 catches for 716 yards and six touchdowns, though he was not used as often towards the end of the campaign, making just seven catches in the Vikings' final four games.
He had previously expressed a desire to play his entire career with the Vikings, but their offense has shifted towards younger players like T.J. Hockenson and K.J. Osborn to support All-Pro Justin Jefferson.
Overall, Thielen recorded 534 catches for 6,682 yards and 55 touchdowns in 135 appearances for Minnesota.
The Panthers will get the number one pick in the NFL Draft after trading wide receiver D.J. Moore to the Chicago Bears, with Thielen providing plenty of experience in his place, which should aid whichever young starting quarterback they presumably acquire in late April.
It continues a busy time for Carolina, who have also recently added running back Miles Sanders, tight end Hayden Hurst and backup quarterback Andy Dalton.
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