Atlanta’s Max Fried needed just 72 pitches to get through six innings Friday in an 8-0 win over the Chicago Cubs. Fried had been sidelined since May 5 because of a left forearm strain. Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press
CHICAGO — Max Fried dominated through six innings in his return from the injured list, Sean Murphy and Marcell Ozuna homered on back-to-back pitches in Atlanta’s seven-run fourth inning, and the Braves cooled off the Chicago Cubs with an 8-0 win Friday.
Fried allowed three baserunners, all on singles, in his first start since May 5 as he came back from a left forearm strain. Austin Riley added a deep solo shot in the seventh for major league-leading Atlanta, which has won three straight and six of seven.
Fried (3-1), the runner-up for the NL Cy Young Award last season, struck out eight before exiting after 72 pitches. The wiry 29-year-old left-hander retired the first 12 Cubs hitters with no hard contact before Cody Bellinger singled up the middle to lead off the fifth.
Bellinger finished with two of Chicago’s four hits. The Cubs entered having won three straight and 13 of 16.
Braves hitters, who lead the majors with 209 home runs, went deep consecutively for the the second straight game and for the 14th time this season.
Ronald Acuña Jr. had two of his three hits – a single and an RBI triple – in the fourth as Atlanta sent 11 hitters to the plate. Ozzie Albies, Matt Olson and Orlando Arcia doubled in the outburst.
Chicago starter Kyle Hendricks set down the first nine Atlanta batters before the Braves erupted. Hendricks (4-6) yielded seven runs on eight hits while striking out three and walking none in four innings.
Acuña singled to lead off the fourth, then scored on Riley’s groundout. Olson doubled in a run before scoring on Murphy’s line shot to the left-field bleachers that made it 4-0.
Ozuna followed with a 439-foot blast that reached Waveland Avenue. Michael Harris knocked in a run with a single, then scored on Acuña’s triple down the right-field line to extend the lead to 7-0.
NATIONALS 6, REDS 3: Lane Thomas hit his second homer of the game in the 10th inning to seal Washington’s comeback win at Cincinnati.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
RAYS 8, TIGERS 0: Jose Siri homered and drove in three runs, Zack Littell won his second straight start, and Tampa won at Detroit.
Littell (2-2) gave up three hits and a walk in six innings.
Harold Ramírez had three hits and scored twice, and former Tiger Isaac Paredes had two hits and two RBI. The Rays won for the fourth time in five games.
GUARDIANS 4, WHITE SOX 2: Andrés Giménez hit a two-run homer among his career-high three extra-base hits, and Logan Allen earned his first home victory in more than three months as Cleveland beat Chicago.
INTERLEAGUE
ORIOLES 10, METS 3: James McCann had three hits and five RBI and Jordan Westburg hit a three-run homer to help Baltimore rout the Mets in New York Manager Buck Showalter’s return to Camden Yards.
Showalter received a video tribute and a standing ovation from the fans in Baltimore, where he managed from 2010-18 and guided the Orioles to three postseason appearances. Then the AL East leaders won for the sixth time in eight games to stay two games ahead of Tampa Bay.
ROYALS 7, PHILLIES 5: Bobby Witt Jr. homered and stole a base, Michael Massey also went deep, and visiting Kansas City won its seventh straight game.
Witt became the first player in MLB history with at least 20 home runs and 30 stolen bases in each of his first two seasons.
RANGERS 6, MARLINS 2: Adolis García hit two solo homers, Corey Seager also went deep, and newly acquired left-hander Jordan Montgomery worked into the seventh inning to help Texas win at home.
NOTES
GUARDIANS: First baseman Josh Naylor has been placed on the 10-day injured list because of an oblique strain, leaving Cleveland without one of its top power hitters.
Naylor sat out the team’s past two games in Houston with the injury, which had been bothering him for longer.
The Guardians, who enter the weekend 2 1/2 games behind first-place Minnesota in the AL Central, made the move with Naylor – retroactive to Tuesday – on Friday before opening a three-game series against the Chicago White Sox.
Naylor has been Cleveland’s most productive middle-of-the-lineup hitter. He’s batting .306 with 15 homers and a team-high 79 RBI.
TWINS: Byron Buxton was placed on the 10-day injured list because of a strained right hamstring that is expected to keep him out for at least two weeks, and outfielder Jordan Luplow was claimed off waivers from Toronto to fill his roster spot.
The move was made retroactive to Wednesday. Buxton was hurt on Tuesday at St. Louis while running out a double. He’s batting .207 with 17 home runs and 42 RBI in 85 games, and has been serving as the designated hitter because of a right knee injury that has prevented him from playing center field.
PADRES: Right-hander Joe Musgrove has inflammation in his right shoulder capsule and will be shut down for at least three weeks, General Manager A.J. Preller said.
Musgrove was scratched from his scheduled start Wednesday and had an MRI that revealed the inflammation. He is 10-3 with a 3.05 ERA.
• Former World Series MVP Cole Hamels has retired after his attempt at a comeback with his hometown team fell short.
The Padres signed Hamels, 39, to a minor league contract in February, but he hasn’t pitched since making one start for the Atlanta Braves in 2020.
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