Boston Celtics

Cubs rookie Christopher Morel has homered in three straight games and looks to keep up the run when he faces Boston at Wrigley Field on Saturday. The 23-year-old Morel connected Friday night for a two-run drive as Chicago rallied past the Red Sox. Morel got five hits, including a home run, on Thursday in a romp over Cincinnati. He also homered Wednesday and made a terrific throw from center field to nail a runner at the plate. Against Boston, he started at second base. And as far as he’s concerned, that’s just fine.

Sean Murphy came up with a pair of key two-out hits, including a solo home run, and the Oakland Athletics beat the Seattle Mariners 3-1 to snap a four-game losing streak. Murphy had a two-out RBI single in the fifth inning off Seattle starter Marco Gonzales that scored Tony Kemp to give the A’s a 1-0 lead. He came through two innings later with an opposite field homer off reliever Penn Murfee to give Oakland a 3-1 lead. The homer was Murphy’s ninth of the season. Oakland starter James Kaprielian earned his first victory of the season, keeping Seattle in check for six strong innings.

NEW YORK (AP) — Eduardo Escobar hit a tiebreaking three-run homer, expectant father David Peterson tied a career high with 10 strikeouts in six innings and the New York Mets beat the Texas Rangers 4-3 Friday night to stop a season-high three-game losing streak.

Byron Buxton hit his second game-ending home run of the season, a two-run drive off Jorge López in the ninth inning that lifted the Minnesota Twins over the Baltimore Orioles 3-2. Baltimore took a 2-1 lead in the eighth, but Luis Arraez singled off Jorge López (3-4) to begin the ninth, ending a string of 21 consecutive batters retired by Baltimore pitchers. Buxton ended the game four pitches later, pulling an outside slider into the left-field seats for his 21st home run. Buxton hit a three-run, 10th-inning homer off Liam Hendriks of the Chicago White Sox on April 24.

Cristian Javier pitched another gem, striking out a career-high 14 while allowing just one hit in seven innings to lead the Houston Astros to an 8-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels. The 25-year-old was brilliant in his first start since striking out 13 in seven innings of a combined no-hitter against the Yankees on Saturday. Shohei Ohtani was the only Angels baserunner off Javier. Ohtani homered with two outs in the first. Javier sailed through the rest of his outing, retiring the next 19 batters before leaving to a standing ovation. Houston won its fourth in a row.