Indians notch first win with quick start
A little of the pressure to contribute right away with his new club has been lifted from Yonder Alonso.
Hitting a grand slam in just the second game of the season will take away some stress.
“After this game, doing something for the team, I think it helps you get settled a little bit, which is nice,” Alonso said.
Alonso hit his third career grand slam in the first inning, Yan Gomes added a two-run shot and the Cleveland Indians held on for a 6-5 win over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday.
Alonso and Gomes provided the big blows off Seattle starter James Paxton, who struggled with command and failed to make it out of the fifth inning.
Alonso was the beneficiary of a pair of two-out walks in the first inning to Edwin Encarnacion and Rajai Davis that loaded the bases. Davis’ at-bat was crucial as he fouled off three 3-2 pitches before walking. Paxton (0-1) left a fastball in the middle of the plate and Alonso clubbed his first grand slam since June 6, 2015, when he was with San Diego. It was just his 12th career home run against left-handed pitching.
“(Rajai) had what felt like a 20-pitch at-bat,” Alonso said. “Just kept fouling off pitches and the guys obviously before him had really good at-bats. … I think it was all brought because of the guys in front of me.”
Gomes’ two-run shot became the difference, driving a 2-2 fastball from Paxton to the deepest part of Safeco Field. Paxton gave up six earned runs and walked four.
“I wasn’t locating my fastball very well, and when I did, it was over the plate,” Paxton said.
Paxton’s day would have been worse if not for Ichiro Suzuki showing that he can still be a defensive star even at age 44.
Suzuki robbed Jose Ramirez of a home run leading off the third inning, timing his leap perfectly to reach above the wall in left field and pull back a ball that appeared destined for the bullpens beyond the fence. Suzuki also had his first two hits for Seattle since July 21, 2012, before he was traded to the New York Yankees.
Houston 9, Texas 3: Lance McCullers Jr. struck out 10 in 5 1/3 innings, Carlos Correa and Jake Marisnick hit two-run homers and the Houston Astros beat the Texas Rangers 9-3.
Correa and AL MVP Jose Altuve each had four hits for the World Series champions. Marisnick hit second homer, connecting early against Matt Moore.
L.A. Angels 8, Oakland 3: Mike Trout had three hits and two RBI, Zack Cozart also drove in two runs and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Oakland Athletics 8-3.
Los Angeles finished with 12 hits. Albert Pujols had two hits and two RBI, and No. 9 batter Rene Rivera had two hits and scored two runs.
Toronto 5, N.Y. Yankees 3: Yangervis Solarte hit a tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning and Kevin Pillar added an insurance run by stealing second, third and home to send the Toronto Blue Jays over the New York Yankees 5-3 for their first win of the season.
The Blue Jays bounced back from two straight losses. Tyler Austin homered twice for the Yankees.
Washington 13, Cincinnati 7: Adam Eaton had solo homer among his career-high five hits and Brian Goodwin hit his first career grand slam, powering the Washington Nationals to a 13-7 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
The Nationals are 2-0 under new manager Dave Martinez. The last time they opened a season 3-0 was 2013.
N.Y. Mets 6, St. Louis 2: Yoenis Cespedes and Travis d’Arnaud homered, Todd Frazier drove in three runs and the New York Mets beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-2.
Jacob DeGrom pitched effectively into the sixth inning and the Mets, under new manager Mickey Callaway, opened at 2-0 for the first time since 2013.