The New York Mets avoided being swept by the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night, rallying for a hard-fought 5-4 victory at Citi Field behind a clutch performance from Juan Soto. The star slugger delivered the decisive blow in the seventh inning, launching a go-ahead solo home run that helped New York snap St. Louis’ six-game winning streak. Soto finished 2-for-4 at the plate and provided the offensive spark the Mets needed in a tightly contested matchup.
New York jumped out to an early lead thanks to first-inning home runs from Bo Bichette and Jared Young. However, the Cardinals battled back against Mets starter Christian Scott, who surrendered four runs on seven hits over 4 2/3 innings. The Mets bullpen then stepped up, with Brooks Raley earning the win after a scoreless seventh inning and Devin Williams closing out the game with a perfect ninth inning to secure his ninth save of the season.
The Cardinals received home runs from Alec Burleson, Lars Nootbaar, and Jimmy Crooks. Burleson continued his strong run at the plate by extending his hitting streak to 11 games, but St. Louis could not overcome Soto’s late-game heroics. Reliever JoJo Romero was charged with the loss after allowing the pivotal homer.
Elsewhere around Major League Baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-6 behind another standout effort from Shohei Ohtani. The Japanese superstar homered for the second consecutive game and reached base four times before leaving the contest due to left knee inflammation. Despite injury concerns involving both Ohtani and starting pitcher Justin Wrobleski, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expressed optimism after the game. Kyle Tucker and Miguel Rojas each contributed two RBIs as Los Angeles claimed the deciding game of the three-game series.
In Detroit, the Tigers delivered one of the most dominant performances of the day, crushing the Minnesota Twins 11-0. Colt Keith hit his first home run of the season and drove in three runs, while Spencer Torkelson, Wenceel Perez, Riley Greene, Gleyber Torres, and Zach McKinstry also went deep. Keider Montero led a stellar pitching effort, allowing just four hits over 6 1/3 scoreless innings as Detroit secured its third consecutive series victory.
The Miami Marlins continued their hot streak by shutting out the Arizona Diamondbacks 2-0 for their fifth straight win. Tyler Phillips starred on the mound, tossing more than five scoreless innings while lowering his ERA to an impressive 1.86. Miami has now won eight of its last nine games, while Arizona’s struggles deepened as the Diamondbacks were shut out for a second consecutive contest and dropped to 3-10 over their last 13 games.
The Chicago Cubs avoided a series sweep against the Colorado Rockies with a convincing 9-3 victory in Denver. Seiya Suzuki provided the highlight with a grand slam, while Alex Bregman and Carson Kelly added home runs. Colorado’s Brett Sullivan enjoyed a career-best performance with his first multi-home-run game, but it was not enough to prevent the Cubs from salvaging the series finale.
The Texas Rangers edged the Kansas City Royals 4-2 in a rain-delayed contest that lasted well into the evening. Corey Seager’s home run proved crucial, while Ezequiel Duran and Brandon Nimmo also contributed offensively. The win allowed Texas to capture the series and return to the .500 mark for the first time since May 1.
Meanwhile, the Baltimore Orioles earned a split of their four-game series against the Seattle Mariners with a 7-5 victory. Adley Rutschman drove in three runs, while Colton Cowser and Pete Alonso supplied home runs. Baltimore’s bullpen dominated late, with Tyler Wells earning the win and Andrew Kittredge recording his first save of the season.
The day’s action was highlighted by Juan Soto’s game-changing homer for the Mets, Ohtani’s continued power surge for the Dodgers, Detroit’s offensive explosion, and several key series-deciding victories as teams continued jockeying for position across both leagues.
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