NATIONAL LEAGUE

Puig smashes 2-run home run to carry Dodgers

SAN DIEGO - Yasiel Puig hit a 410-foot drive for a two-run home run and Zack Greinke won his season debut, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 3-2 victory against the San Diego Padres on Tuesday.

Carl Crawford started the game with a base hit and Puig then drove a 2-1 pitch from Ian Kennedy into the balcony on the third deck of the Western Metal Supply Co. Building in the left-field corner. It was his first home run.

It was the second time Kennedy faced the Dodgers since June 11, when, while with Arizona, he hit Puig and Greinke with pitches, inciting a brawl at Dodger Stadium. Kennedy was suspended 10 games. He was traded to the Padres on July 31.

San Diego loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth against Kenley Jansen, on singles by Yonder Alonso and Will Venable, and a walk to Yasmani Grandal. The closer then struck out pinch-hitter Nick Hundley to earn his second save in two chances.

Greinke retired his first 10 batters before Seth Smith homered into a party deck atop the right-field wall, trimming San Diego’s deficit to 3-1. Smith earned the start in left field against the right-handed Greinke after homering to start an eighth-inning rally in a 3-1 victory Sunday night.

Greinke (1-0) went 5 innings, allowing 2 runs and 2 hits while striking out 5 and walking 2.

Kennedy (0-1) allowed three runs and five hits in five innings.

MARLINS 4, ROCKIES 3 Nathan Eovaldi pitched six innings and host Miami made the most of five hits to beat Colorado for the second night in a row. The Marlins’ 2-0 start hints at big improvement from last year, when they began 14-41 en route to a 100-loss season. The Rockies are 0-2 after finishing last in the NL West in 2013. Miami’s rotation stifled the Rockies for the second game in a row. Eovaldi (1-0) allowed two runs and struck out six after Jose Fernandez limited Colorado to one run in the season opener. Eovaldi gave up six hits, walked one and reached 99 mph on the radar gun. Brett Anderson (0-1) pitched six innings and allowed four runs, three earned. It was the left-hander’s first start with the Rockies after he was acquired in a trade with Oakland in December.

BRAVES 5, BREWERS 2 Freddie Freeman hit a pair of solo home runs and Jason Heyward added a two-run shot to back a solid outing by Alex Wood and power the Atlanta Braves to a victory over the host Brewers. Heyward’s first home run of the season off Kyle Lohse (0-1) put the Braves on top 2-1 in the fifth and snapped a string of 22 scoreless innings against the Brewers. Freeman opened the sixth with his first home run and added a two-out home run in the eighth to make it 4-1. Wood (1-0) settled down after allowing a home run to Carlos Gomez on his first pitch. The left-hander allowed 1 run on 5 hits in 7 innings. Craig Kimbrel struck out the side in the ninth for the save.

AMERICAN LEAGUE ASTROS 6, YANKEES 2 Jesus Guzman and L.J. Hoes homered off CC Sabathia to help host Houston roll to a victory in the first game of Derek Jeter’s farewell tour with the New York Yankees. Jeter’s final big league season began by being plunked on the left arm by Scott Feldman and ended 1 for 3 with a single. The 13-time All-Star who helped New York to five World Series titles announced in February his 20th season would be his last. Dexter Fowler had two doubles as Houston jumped on Sabathia for six runs in the first two innings. Feldman allowed two hits in 6 2/3 innings in his Houston debut after signing a three-year, $30 million contract.

BLUE JAYS 4, RAYS 2 Drew Hutchison won his first start in almost two years, Adam Lind homered, and the visiting Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Rays. Hutchison (1-0) allowed 3 hits, 3 walks and struck out 4 over 5 1/3 shutout innings in his first big league game since June 15, 2012. The right-hander had elbow ligament replacement surgery in August 2012. Alex Cobb (0-1) gave up 4 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks and had 3 strikeouts in five innings.

INTERLEAGUE RANGERS 3, PHILLIES 2 Adrian Beltre singled home Shin-Soo Choo with the game winner in the ninth inning, and the host Texas Rangers saved a run on a successful replay challenge in a victory against the Philadelphia Phillies. Choo, who also scored the tying run in the seventh, reached base for the fourth time on a walk to start the ninth against Phillies left-hander Mario Hollands (0-1). . Beltre singled softly to right-center field, scoring Choo without a throw. New Texas closer Joakim Soria got the victory with a perfect ninth inning in his season debut.

Tuesday’s games

NATIONAL LEAGUE LA Dodgers 3, San Diego 2 Miami 4, Colorado 3 Atlanta 5, Milwaukee 2 Arizona 5, San Francisco 4

AMERICAN LEAGUE Houston 6, NY Yankees 2 Toronto 4, Tampa Bay 2 Seattle at LA Angels, (n) Cleveland at Oakland, ppd., rain

INTERLEAGUE Texas 3, Philadelphia 2

Sports, Pages 24 on 04/02/2014

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