Cardinals ease past Cubs to claim top spot in National League Central
The St Louis Cardinals eased past the Chicago Cubs 8-0 to leapfrog their opponents and take the lead of the National League Central.
Jack Flaherty was the star of the show, pitching seven innings and only giving up one hit as he struck out nine.
The Cards were up early when a Jose Martinez single brought home Tommy Edman, with a three-run homer from Matt Wieters in the sixth giving the home side a commanding lead at Busch Stadium.
The Goldy Glove! 😱 pic.twitter.com/X4RVDYPfZk
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 1, 2019
Three runs in the final inning saw the Miami Marlins force extras against the Minnesota Twins, in a 12-inning thriller.
Harold Ramirez had already got an RBI triple in the second when he came to the plate in the 12th and notched up his seventh home run of the season to seal a 5-4 win.
The San Francisco Giants suffered a 10-2 defeat to the Philadelphia Phillies, the New York Mets shutout the Chicago White Sox 4-0 and the Oakland Athletics scored three in the eighth for a 5-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.
Put another one in the win column. #MetsWin! pic.twitter.com/qOIqrknSlb
— New York Mets (@Mets) August 1, 2019
Elsewhere, Vladmir Guerrero Junior claimed two homers in Toronto Blue Jays’ 11-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles, while the Houston Astros saw off the Cleveland Indians 7-1.
The Cincinnati Reds went down to the Atlanta Braves 4-1 in seven innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers scored five in the sixth to record an 8-2 win over the San Diego Padres.
