Baseball-Highlight of Thursday's MLB games

(Adds later games) July 30 (The Sports Xchange) - Highlights of Major League Baseball games on Thursday: - - - - Padres 8, Mets 7 Justin Upton hit a three-run homer with two outs in the top of the ninth inning to complete the San Diego Padres' stunning comeback in an 8-7 victory over the New York Mets in a game that featured two rain delays totalling more than 3-1/2 hours. The Padres trailed 7-1 in the seventh when first baseman Derek Norris hit a grand slam. The Mets still led 7-5 entering the ninth before heavy rain arrived and umpires waved the teams off the field. Play resumed 44 minutes later before heavy rain again began falling as Upton hit the first pitch he saw from Familia (2-1) beyond the center-field wall for his 18th homer of the season. Play finally resumed again after a 2:52 delay and Padres right-hander Craig Kimbrel retired the side in order to notch his 30th save. - - Nationals 1, Marlins 0 First baseman Ryan Zimmerman hit a solo home run and right-hander Max Scherzer pitched seven scoreless innings, leading the Washington Nationals to a 1-0 win over the Miami Marlins. Jonathan Papelbon pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his first save as a Nationals player. He was acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday. - - Blue Jays 5, Royals 2 Dioner Navarro hit a two-run homer as the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Kansas City Royals. Designated hitter Russell Martin and third baseman Josh Donaldson added solo shots as the Blue Jays celebrated the acquisition of left-hander David Price in an earlier trade with the Detroit Tigers. - - Phillies 4, Braves 1 Aaron Harang ended a personal eight-game losing streak in his return from the disabled list as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Atlanta Braves. Harang, out since July 1 with plantar fasciitis of the left foot, went five innings and allowed one run and nine hits, while striking out three and walking one. - - Red Sox 8, White Sox 2 Steven Wright gave up two runs in seven innings and had a career-high eight strikeouts as the Boston Red Sox completed a 8-2 win over the Chicago White Sox. Wright (4-4) allowed six hits and two walks while throwing a season-high 116 pitches. - - Tigers 9, Orioles 8 Yoenis Cespedes hit a two-run homer to lead a 16-hit Detroit attack as the Tigers held off a late rally to record a 9-8 victory over the Orioles. Designated hitter J.D. Martinez hit two doubles and drove in three runs while center fielder Rajai Davis added a two-run triple as the Tigers raced to a 7-0 lead in the fourth inning. Detroit starter Alfredo Simon (10-6) gave up four runs on just two hits -- two-run homers from Adam Jones and Chris Davis -- in 5-2/3 innings. - - Reds 15, Pirates 5 Brandon Phillips hit two three-run home runs and had a career-high seven RBIs, while Marlon Byrd added a three-run shot as the Cincinnati Reds pounded the Pittsburgh Pirates 15-5. David Holmberg (1-0), who was recalled from Triple-A Louisville to take Johnny Cueto's spot in the rotation after he was traded to Kansas City on Sunday, allowed two runs and five hits in six innings. - - Cubs 5, Brewers 2 Anthony Rizzo's three-run homer in the eighth inning powered the Chicago Cubs to a 5-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Rizzo had earlier accounted for the only two hits allowed by Brewers right-hander Jimmy Nelson, who struck out eight in seven shutout innings, but his bullpen could not protect the 2-0 lead. - - Astros 3, Angels 0 Catcher Jason Castro slugged a walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning as the Houston Astros completed a 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Castro was batting .111 (6-for-54) with runners in scoring position before crushing a 1-2 fastball from Angels right-hander Fernando Salas (2-2) out to right field, scoring both third baseman Jed Lowrie and designated hitter Marwin Gonzalez. - - Twins 9, Mariners 5 Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Phil Hughes did not have nearly his best stuff against the Seattle Mariners but his team mates provided him with more than enough offensive support in a 9-5 win over the Seattle Mariners. Hughes allowed five runs on 10 hits over five innings but got the win anyway, thanks to three-hit performances from outfielders Eddie Rosario and Aaron Hicks. - - Cardinals 9, Rockies 8 Third baseman Greg Garcia's bases-loaded walk capped a three-run scoring burst in the bottom of the ninth that gave St. Louis a 9-8 win over the Colorado Rockies. - - Rangers 7, Yankees 6 Josh Hamilton's two-out, run-scoring single in the bottom of the ninth lifted the Texas Rangers to a 7-6 victory over the New York Yankees. Hamilton, who also hit a three-run homer in the first inning, sent a pitch from Yankees closer Andrew Miller into right field to score center fielder Leonys Martin. - - Indians 3, Athletics 1 Right-hander Carlos Carrasco pitched his fifth career complete game while first baseman Carlos Santana hit a two-run homer to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 3-1 victory against the Oakland A's. Carrasco (11-8) allowed just two hits, matching his career best for a complete game. He struck out seven, raising his season total to 140, and walked one. - - - - (Compiled by Greg Stutchbury)