Offense wasn’t an issue but pitching was suspect as the Oakland Athletics and Cincinnati Reds tied 14-14 on Wednesday in a game featuring 29 hits and 28 earned runs in Goodyear, Ariz.
Reds left fielder Richie Martin drove in five runs as he was 2-for-2 with a double, a home run and three runs scored. Teammate Christian Encarnacion-Strand also had five RBIs while batting 2-for-3 with a homer.
Cincinnati, which totaled 12 hits, had a 10-run eighth inning and also scored in the third, sixth and seventh innings.
The Athletics had 17 hits, including homers from Kevin Cron, Cody Thomas and Tyler Soderstrom, who was 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
Oakland pitchers walked 10 and threw three wild pitches, while Cincinnati hurlers walked six with three wild pitches and two hit batsmen.
Yankees 4, Nationals 2
Carlos Narvaez hit a walk-off two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to boost New York over Washington in Tampa, Fla.
Nationals starter Cory Abbott struck out two and walked one with no hits allowed in two scoreless innings.
Red Sox 2, Astros 2
Outfielder Jacob Melton hit a two-run homer in the sixth, and Ronel Blanco came on in middle relief and struck out three in two shutout innings as Houston tied Boston in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Red Sox leadoff batter Raimel Tapia went 2-for-3 with a double.
Phillies 4, Twins 4
Minnesota scored twice with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, including Braden Zarbnisky walking Kala’i Rosario on five pitches with the bases loaded, to forge a tie with Philadelphia in Fort Myers, Fla.
Designated hitter Jake Cave went 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBI and a run scored for Philadelphia, while teammate Darick Hall went 1-for-2 with a homer, two RBI and one run scored.
Braves 3, Rays 3
Atlanta starter Jesse Chavez went two shutout innings, allowing one hit, no walks and striking out three in a tie with Tampa Bay in North Port, Fla.
Braves pitchers combined for nine strikeouts, while Rays pitchers totaled 10 as each team collected three runs and six hits, including Tampa Bay leadoff hitter Josh Lowe’s solo homer in the third inning.
Blue Jays 2, Orioles 1
Philip Clarke’s eighth-inning solo homer proved the difference as Toronto compiled nine hits in a win over Baltimore in Sarasota, Fla. Zach Thompson picked up the decision with three strikeouts in two perfect innings.
The Orioles halved the deficit by plating an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth on a Heston Kjerstad’s single and a fielding error.
Tigers 8, Pirates 7
Detroit hit three homers, including Nick Maton’s 401-foot shot off reliever Osvaldo Bido with one out in the bottom of the ninth, to beat Pittsburgh in Lakeland, Fla.
Eric Haase and Tyler Nevin also homered for the Tigers, who had led 4-0 after the first inning, while the Pirates got power shots from Oneil Cruz and Travis Swaggerty (three RBI).
Mets 8, Marlins 4
Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Ronny Mauricio homered as New York compiled 11 hits in topping Miami in Sarasota, Fla.
Shortstop Jon Berti was 2-for-2 with an RBI as the only Marlins player with multiple hits.
Angels 4, Brewers 3
The starting pitchers on both sides got touched up before Los Angeles emerged with a victory over Milwaukee in Tempe, Ariz.
Angels right-hander Chase Silseth earned the win after yielding three hits, two runs (earned) and one walk with four strikeouts in two innings. Brewers right-hander Lucas Erceg took the loss after allowing two hits, three runs (earned) and two walks with no strikeouts in 2/3 of an inning.
Diamondbacks 8, Giants 5
Carson Kelly went 3-for-3 with a home run and four RBI as Arizona doubled up San Francisco in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The Giants relied on the long ball to create offense, as Austin Wynns hit a solo homer and Brett Auerbach and Blake Sabol each hit two-run shots.
Guardians 9, White Sox 6
Johnathan Rodriguez hit a three-run homer and Zack Collins followed with a solo shot in a four-run seventh as Cleveland took an 8-1 lead and held off Chicago in Phoenix.
First baseman Zach Remillard drove in three runs in the bottom of the seventh for the White Sox, who pushed across two more runs in the eighth and did not bat in the bottom of the ninth.
Dodgers 4, Rangers 2
Mookie Betts led off the game with his first homer of the spring and Jason Heyward also went deep as Los Angeles doubled up a Texas split squad in Surprise, Ariz.
Texas collected seven hits over seven innings of play, with two extra-base hits from right fielder Adolis Garcia (double, triple) and a home run from first baseman Blaine Crim.
Cubs 5, Mariners 3
Chicago rode a five-run fourth inning, and Cubs pitchers scattered 13 hits in allowing three runs (all earned) to defeat Seattle in Mesa, Ariz.
Among the Mariners’ hits were home runs from Julio Rodiguez (his first of the spring) and Jarred Kelenic (his third).
Royals 8, Rockies 6
Kansas City scored five runs in the top of the ninth inning on four hits to surge past Colorado in Scottsdale.
Rockies left-hander Josh Rogers entered in the ninth and allowed a double, a walk, another double, an RBI-groundout and two singles. Right-hander Blair Calvo came on in relief and walked the first batter and allowed a sacrifice fly and another walk before retiring the side.
Padres 5, Rangers 1
Nelson Cruz homered for the first time this spring and Juan Soto went 2-for-3 with an RBI as San Diego downed a Texas split squad in a seven-inning game in Peoria, Ariz.
Texas had a total of four hits as Padres starter Nick Martinez pitched four shutout innings with one hit, one walk and four strikeouts.
–Field Level Media