STEPHEN VOGT

Hey guys, it’s Ari Alexander and the Astros are cruising along with a massive lead in the AL West, so not to sound overly negative but this newsletter is going to be all about nitpicking.

Stephen Vogt hit a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning and the Oakland Athletics wrapped up a shaky first half by beating the Houston Astros 4-3.

Justin Verlander took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, Yordan Álvarez cleared the bases with a go-ahead double in the ninth and the Houston Astros beat the Oakland Athletics 5-4 to complete a three-game sweep.

The Oakland Athletics posted a farewell photo on social media featuring pitching ace Chris Bassitt and their former superstar slugging Matts, third baseman Matt Chapman and first baseman Matt Olson, after trading them away in cost-cutting moves so familiar to this low-budget franchise. Missing in the mix: departed manager Bob Melvin, who left in October to take over the San Diego Padres. Meanwhile, the A's welcomed back a pair of veterans who have meant so much to the franchise: catcher Stephen Vogt and infielder Jed Lowrie.

The San Diego Padres have hired Bob Melvin from the Oakland Athletics as their new manager, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.

The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired All-Star third baseman Eduardo Escobar from the Arizona Diamondbacks for two prospects.

Jeff McNeil laced his second go-ahead hit in two days Monday night, when his RBI double in the fifth inning sent the New York Mets to a 1-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves and a doubleheader split.

The first-place Mets are waiting for news on Francisco Lindor, who left Friday night’s 4-1 loss in Pittsburgh with soreness on his right side.

Merrill Kelly pitched seven effective innings, Ketel Marte had two hits and the Arizona Diamondbacks finally snapped a 17-game losing streak by beating the Milwaukee Brewers 5-1 on Monday night.

Walker Buehler had another masterful mound performance, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the skidding Arizona Diamondbacks 9-3.

The Arizona Diamondbacks dropped their 22nd straight road game, matching the 1963 Mets and ’43 Philadelphia Athletics for the major league record with a 13-7 loss to the San Francisco Giants.

Shohei Ohtani struck out eight, hit two doubles at the plate and pushed through an injury scare to lead the Los Angeles Angels past the slumping Arizona Diamondbacks 6-5 in 10 innings.

Will Smith hit a tiebreaking, solo home run in the seventh inning, Albert Pujols slugged a two-run shot, his first for the Dodgers, and Los Angeles defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-2.

Mets ace Jacob deGrom was pulled after five innings with right side tightness in his return from an injury to a similar area, but the bullpen closed out a four-hitter as New York beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-2 for its fifth straight win.

Madison Bumgarner threw a seven-inning no-hitter, an achievement that won’t count in the Major League Baseball record book but completed a dominant day of Arizona Diamondbacks pitching for a 7-0 win over the Atlanta Braves and a doubleheader sweep.

David Peralta hit a three-run triple in a six-run 10th inning to finish with five hits and a career-best seven RBIs, and the Arizona Diamondbacks overcame six Cincinnati home runs to beat the Reds 14-11.

Trevor Williams went five innings in his fourth start, allowing a run on three hits. Austin Gomber made his fourth start for Colorado, allowing two runs on three hits, striking out four in 4 1/3 innings. Dylan Cease made his second start, allowing three hits and three walks in 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Matthew Boyd made his fourth start, allowing one run on four hits and a walk in four innings, striking out five. Tyler Anderson went five innings in his fourth start for Pittsburgh, giving up one run on two hits.

New York starter Jordan Montgomery gave up two hits in three scoreless innings. Brubaker allowed two hits over two scoreless innings and Chase De Jong followed with two shutout innings. MARLINS 4, METS 4Miami starter Pablo Lopez gave up a hit and a walk over three scoreless innings. German Marquez scattered three hits and a walk over three scoreless innings for Colorado. Kansas City starter Jakob Junis pitched three innings and gave up one hit, a leadoff homer to Trent Grisham.

The deal did not include last year’s experimental rule to extend the designated hitter to the National League or expanded playoffs. After allowing 16 teams in the postseason last year instead of 10, MLB had proposed 14 for this year before withdrawing that plan last month. “We’re comfortable with both rules,” San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler wrote in a text to the AP. About 12% of games were part of doubleheaders, the highest percentage since 13.6 in 1978. “I actually liked both the seven-inning doubleheaders and the runner on second,” Oakland manager Bob Melvin wrote in a text to the AP.

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)DENVER Charlie Blackmon raised his batting average to an amazing .500 with three more hits, including a key double during a six-run burst in the eighth inning that led the Colorado Rockies over the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-7 Tuesday night. Blackmon doubled off Kevin Ginkel (0-1) during the Rockies' big inning that made it 8-2. Gallen went seven innings and allowed two runs on seven hits, with seven strikeout and no walks. Kyle Freeland went seven innings for Colorado and allowed two runs on seven hits. UP NEXT Arizona RHP Luke Weaver (0-3, 12.19 ERA) returns to the mound seeking his first win of the season.

The Astros built their 4-0 lead with the help of Kyle Tucker's two-run homer and Abraham Toro's solo shot. But the right-hander fell apart in the fourth inning and was eventually pulled after facing 10 batters. George Springer hit a two-run homer in the fifth to pull the Astros within a 9-6 margin but they couldn't get any closer. Once it opened, the homers started flying in the desert: The Astros hit three and the D-backs hit four over the final six innings. Diamondbacks: RHP Zac Gallen (0-0, 2.70) will try to win his first game of the year after getting a no-decision in his first two starts.

PHOENIX Jos Altuve and Carlos Correa hit solo homers, George Springer added a two-run double and the Houston Astros roughed up Madison Bumgarner in an 8-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night. Altuve hit his homer in the first inning and Correa connected in the second. The Astros put the game away in the fifth inning with five runs, including two on Springer's bases-loaded double. Weve spoken and budgeted for rough times.DODGERS AFTERMATHCorrea was in the spotlight during the Astros' series with the Los Angeles Dodgers last week. The 26-year-old Young was playing in just his second game in the big leagues.

Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Archie Bradley, left and catcher Stephen Vogt celebrate the 4-1 win over the Texas Rangers in a baseball game Tuesday, July 28, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. Manfred and Clark talked about what needs to be done to finish the season, a person familiar with the conversation said. So its just like every other rule that MLB has for players now its going to be enforced, so to speak. I would rather not see any more positive cases.The six idled teams Friday represented 20% of MLB. Aside from the Marlins, there were eight positive tests for the 29 other teams, only two involved major league players.