Mookie Betts went 2 for 4 with a homer and three RBIs in a dazzling return from the injured list that sparked the Los Angeles Dodgers to a key 5-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday.

In his first game since fracturing his left hand on June 16, Betts hit a two-run homer that broke a scoreless tie in the third inning and later added a run-scoring single to lead Los Angeles in the opener of this four-game series between National League division leaders.

Shohei Ohtani also had a two-run homer, his NL-leading 36th of the season, to help Clayton Kershaw earn his first win since September in the three-time Cy Young Award winner's best start of the season.

Kershaw (1-2) held the Brewers to one run and three hits through 5 2/3 innings in his fourth start since returning from offseason shoulder surgery.

The Dodgers have now won four straight and moved a half-game ahead of the East-leading Philadelphia Phillies in the race for the NL's best record. Milwaukee dropped to 2 1/2 games behind Los Angeles and has lost two in a row following a five-game winning streak.

Betts stepped to the plate with Teoscar Hernandez aboard in the third inning and drove a 2-1 pitch from Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta over the left field wall to stake Kershaw to a 2-0 lead. 

Ohtani made it 4-0 two innings later by following a Kevin Kiermaier single with an opposite-field homer off Peralta (7-7), who was tagged for four runs on five hits in six innings.

Kershaw departed with two out and a runner on in the sixth in favour of Joe Kelly, who was greeted by a home run by William Contreras that brought the Brewers within 4-2.

Betts struck again in the seventh, however, with a two-out single that plated Ohtani, who drew a walk and advanced to second with his 33rd stolen base of the season.

Three Dodger relievers then combined to keep the Brewers scoreless over the final three innings, with Daniel Hudson working a perfect ninth to notch his ninth save. 

Valdez stars again as Astros win sixth straight

Framber Valdez and the Houston Astros both extended their unbeaten runs as the American League West leaders opened a three-game series with the Tampa Bay Rays with a 6-1 victory.

Valdez (12-5), who lost a no-hit bid with two outs in the ninth inning in his previous outing, struck out nine while yielding just one run and three hits over 5 2/3 innings to improve to 7-0 with a 2.68 ERA over his last nine starts. The Astros have won all of those appearances.

Yainer Diaz supplied the big blow in Houston's sixth consecutive win with a three-run homer in the third inning. Alex Bregman added a solo shot to help the Astros move a half-game ahead of the Seattle Mariners for sole possession of the AL West lead.

Bregman's blast off Taj Bradley in the first inning put Houston ahead quickly, and the Astros broke the game open with four runs in the third.

After Bradley walked Chas McCormick and gave up a single to Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez drove in McCormick with a two-out hit to increase the margin. Diaz then belted the first pitch he saw into the left field seats for a 5-0 advantage.

The Rays got on the board in the bottom of the third when Taylor Walls tripled and scored on Jose Caballero's sacrifice fly, but managed just two hits off Valdez and two Houston relievers the rest of the way en route to their fifth loss in seven games.

Houston tacked on one more run in the fifth as Alvarez doubled, advanced to third on Jeremy Pena's infield single and scored on a fielder's choice groundout off the bat of Jake Meyers.

Bradley (6-7) lost his third straight start after allowing six runs and eight hits over 4 1/3 innings.

Braves score in 10th to win duel of aces with Giants

Travis d'Arnaud drove in the game's lone run with a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning as the Atlanta Braves earned a needed 1-0 win over the San Francisco Giants in the opener of a four-game series.

The game featured a matchup of standout pitchers that lived up to its advanced billing, as both Atlanta's Chris Sale and the Giants' Blake Snell turned in dominant performances despite neither factoring in the final outcome.

Sale racked up a season-high 12 strikeouts while permitting just three hits over seven scoreless innings, while the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Snell fanned 11 Braves and surrendered two hits in 6 1/3 shutout innings.

The Braves finally broke the deadlock with Orlando Arcia placed as the designated runner to start the 10th. Sean Murphy then singled off Taylor Rogers to move the go-ahead run to third before d'Arnaud's fly ball to right was deep enough to enable Arcia to score.

Raisel Iglesias was able to strand the Giants' designated runner in the bottom of the inning by recording two strikeouts before getting Patrick Bailey to fly out and end the game. The Atlanta closer also pitched a scoreless ninth to keep the contest at 0-0.

The lack of run support prevented Sale from becoming the majors' first 14-game winner this season, though his outstanding effort helped the Braves increase their lead over the rival New York Mets to one game for the NL's final wild card spot.

Atlanta entered the series having gone 7-14 over its previous 21 games to fall out of the top spot in the wild-card race.

The Giants have now dropped two straight following a 12-3 stretch that got them back into the play-off picture. San Francisco is now 2 1/2 games behind Atlanta in the standings.

Chris Bassitt tossed 6 1/3 effective innings to lead the way as the Toronto Blue Jays dealt the New York Yankees their first losing streak of the season with Monday's 3-1 win to open a three-game series.

Bassitt allowed just one run on four hits to help Toronto to its season-high third straight win. The right-hander has now won back-to-back starts after losing his first two outings of the season. 

The Blue Jays managed just four hits but took advantage of seven walks issued by New York starter Luis Gil in five innings of work.

Gil walked three straight Toronto hitters to force in a run after Cavan Biggio opened the bottom of the second inning with a ground-rule double with the Blue Jays trailing 1-0. The right-hander later uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Alejandro Kirk to cross the plate for a 2-1 lead.

Kirk recorded two of the Blue Jays' four hits, including a two-out double in the third that scored Bo Bichette, who had reached on an infield single.

The Yankees had briefly gone ahead in the top of the second on Oswaldo Cabrera's run-scoring single, the last of three consecutive hits off Bassitt.

Bassitt did not surrender a hit from the fourth inning on, however, and relievers Tim Mayza and Chad Green combined for 1 2/3 scoreless innings before Yimi Garcia retired the side in order in the ninth for his second save.

Gil struck out six but permitted all three Toronto runs as the Yankees lost consecutive games for the first time in 2024. New York was coming off Sunday's 8-7 defeat at Cleveland in which the Guardians rallied for three runs in the 10th inning.

Riley helps Braves pull away from Astros

Austin Riley collected three hits, including an RBI single during a four-run ninth inning that enabled the Atlanta Braves to pull away for a 6-1 win over the Houston Astros.

Four Atlanta relievers combined for 5 1/3 scoreless innings to protect an early 2-1 lead and allow the Braves to take the opener of this three-game series between the two participants in the 2021 World Series.

Aaron Bummer was credited with the win after retiring two of three hitters in relief of Darius Vines, who held Houston to one run and four hits over 4 2/3 innings.

The Astros did touch Vines for a run in the first inning as Kyle Tucker drew a walk, stole second and scored on Alex Bregman's two-out single.

Atlanta answered by scoring two runs in the second off Houston starter Spencer Arrighetti, all with two out.

Travis d'Arnaud started the rally with a double and later scored on an error by Houston shortstop Jeremy Pena, who threw wildly to first base after fielding Luis Guillorme's infield single.

Arrighetti then walked Ronald Acuna Jr. to load the bases before hitting Ozzie Albies with a pitch to bring in the go-ahead run.

The score remained 2-1 until the Braves erupted in the ninth off struggling Houston closer Josh Hader, who surrendered four hits and a walk while recording just one out.

Hader also threw a wild pitch that allowed Adam Duvall to advance to second in front of Orlando Arcia's run-scoring single that gave Atlanta a 3-1 advantage. Riley and Marcell Ozuna later delivered RBI singles and the Braves scored another run on a fielder's choice groundout.

Arrighetti struck out five over four innings in his second major league start, but took the loss after permitting two runs.

Cubs rally in ninth inning, then beat Diamondbacks in 11

Nico Hoerner's run-scoring single in the 11th inning capped a late rally that propelled the Chicago Cubs to a 3-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the opener of a three-game series.

Hoerner finished 2 for 4 and also scored the tying run in the ninth when he raced home from second base on a wild pitch thrown by Arizona reliever Kevin Ginkel.

Michael Busch tied a franchise record for Chicago with his fifth consecutive game with a home run. The first baseman achieved the feat with a solo shot off Diamondbacks' starter Merrill Kelly in the top of the second inning that gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead.

Kelly did not allow a run over the remainder of his five-inning stint, helping the Diamondbacks eventually move ahead when Randal Grichuk doubled in the eighth and scored on Corbin Carroll's single off reliever Drew Smyly to put Arizona up 2-1.

Ginkel surrendered one-out singles to Hoerner and Mike Tauchman in the ninth, however, before Hoerner hustled home from second on the closer's errant pitch to the plate with the Cubs down to their final out.

Hoerner put Chicago ahead in his next at-bat by delivering a bases-loaded single off Bryce Jarvis in the 11th. Keegan Thompson then stranded the tying run at third in the bottom of the inning to wrap up the Cubs' third straight victory.

Chicago starter Ben Brown worked six innings and yielded just one hit, a single to Jake McCarthy in the second that brought in Arizona's first run.