NATIONAL LEAGUE

Marlins rally in 8th to halt Scherzer's no-hitter

Washington Nationals' Max Scherzer delivers a pitch during the eighth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Miami. Scherzer's bid for the third no-hitter of his big league career ended with one out in the eighth inning, and he then gave up two unearned runs as the Miami Marlins rallied to beat the Washington Nationals 2-1. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Washington Nationals' Max Scherzer delivers a pitch during the eighth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Miami. Scherzer's bid for the third no-hitter of his big league career ended with one out in the eighth inning, and he then gave up two unearned runs as the Miami Marlins rallied to beat the Washington Nationals 2-1. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

MARLINS 2, NATIONALS 1

MIAMI -- When Max Scherzer's bid for the third no-hitter of his big league career ended with an infield single in the eighth inning, he picked up the ball and flung it toward his dugout.

Not as a souvenir. Seven innings of dominance followed by an eighth-inning disaster left Scherzer in no mood for keepsakes.

Backup catcher A.J. Ellis beat out a chopper for the first hit off Scherzer, who then gave up two unearned runs as the Miami Marlins rallied to beat the Washington Nationals 2-1 Wednesday.

After Ellis reached, Scherzer tried to gather himself as pitching coach Mike Maddux visited the mound.

"Those type of plays happen," Scherzer said. "Obviously you're frustrated, but you've got to move on. I hit the reset button. We went through how we wanted to finish, and I just wasn't able to do it.

An error by backup first baseman Adam Lind, who bobbled a low throw, and a hit batter loaded the bases with two outs. Scherzer threw a wild pitch that scored the tying run, and Giancarlo Stanton lined an RBI single -- the Marlins' only other hit -- to put them ahead.

"A couple of sliders got away from me," Scherzer said. "That's what cost me. That's what lost the game."

Scherzer (8-5) threw no-hitters against the Pirates and Mets in 2015, and a third seemed in his grasp when he began the eighth with a 1-0 lead.

He retired 18 in a row before Ellis topped a high-hopper that bounced in front of the plate and glanced off the tip of Scherzer's glove as he reached overhead for it. The ball rolled to shortstop Trea Turner, who failed in his attempt to make a barehanded pickup and rush a throw.

Scherzer said the chopper was nearly a routine 1-3 putout.

"I was able to get a glove on it, and I thought I had caught it," Scherzer said. "When I looked at the glove, it was empty."

"A cheap infield hit," Nationals Manager Dusty Baker said.

The Marlins pitched well, too, and Washington totaled only five hits against Dan Straily and three relievers. Kyle Barraclough (3-1) pitched the eighth, and A.J. Ramos worked around a two-out single in the ninth for his 10th save.

Miami took the three-game series against the NL East leaders, winning twice by a single run.

Scherzer had 11 strikeouts, reaching double figures for the sixth game in a row, the team's longest such streak since the franchise moved to Washington for the 2005 season.

He lowered his ERA to 2.08, best in the NL. He also leads the league with 145 strikeouts.

PADRES 3, CUBS 2 Erick Aybar hit a tying home run in the sixth inning, Luis Torrens walked with the bases loaded against Koji Uehara in the eighth and San Diego beat host Chicago.

CARDINALS 7, PHILLIES 6 (10) Tommy Pham’s second solo home run in the ninth inning tied it and visiting St. Louis rallied from a 5-0 deficit to beat Philadelphia.

BRAVES 5, GIANTS 3 (11) Matt Kemp hit a two-run home run in the 11th inning to lift host Atlanta to a victory over San Francisco.

BREWERS 4, PIRATES 3 Domingo Santana hit a two-run home run off visiting Pittsburgh reliever Daniel Hudson in the seventh inning to lift Milwaukee to a victory.

DIAMONDBACKS 16, ROCKIES 5 Taijuan Walker pitched six solid innings and slapped an RBI single during Arizona’s biggest inning ever on the road — a 10-run fourth — as the team went on to beat host Colorado.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

ROYALS 6, RED SOX 4 Salvador Perez hit his first career grand slam, connecting in the eighth inning to rally host Kansas City over Boston.

INDIANS 5, ORIOLES 1 Carlos Carrasco struck out 10, Francisco Lindor homered and visiting Cleveland defeated skidding Baltimore for its seventh victory in eight games.

YANKEES 8, ANGELS 4 Didi Gregorius and Matt Holliday each hit a go-ahead home run and New York piled on from there, lifting the host Yankees over Los Angeles to snap a season-high seven-game losing streak.

BLUE JAYS 7, RANGERS 5 Darwin Barney’s two-run home run capped a six-run first inning and visiting Toronto held on for a victory over Texas. TWINS 4, WHITE SOX 2 Jose Berrios won his fourth consecutive start for Minnesota and Miguel Sano homered for the second consecutive game as the Twins beat visiting Chicago.

INTERLEAGUE

RAYS 8, REDS 3 Tampa Bay left fielder Mallex Smith rushed in to tag out speedy Billy Hamilton after a lengthy rundown, highlighting the Rays’ victory over visiting Cincinnati.

Sports on 06/22/2017

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