Offseason acquisition Pete Alonso homered for the second time in as many games to fuel the Baltimore Orioles to a 4-4 tie against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday in Lakeland, Fla.
Signed to a five-year, $155 million contract in December, Alonso belted a two-run homer in Friday’s game against the New York Yankees before going deep in the third inning on Sunday.
Heston Kjerstad also homered and Jose Barrero ripped an RBI double in the fourth to stake the Orioles to a 4-3 lead. However, Max Clark forged a tie with a run-scoring single in the ninth.
Austin Slater launched a solo homer in the third inning for the Tigers.
Pirates (ss) 4, Phillies 3
Esmerlyn Valdez belted a grand slam in the sixth inning to propel Pittsburgh past Philadelphia in Clearwater, Fla.
Nicholas Dombrowski struck out four batters and allowed one run on two hits in two innings to pick up the win for the Pirates.
Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber, who led the National League with a career-best 56 homers last season, launched a solo shot in the first inning. Carson DeMartini added a solo shot in the sixth inning for the Phillies.
Pirates (ss) 7, Rays 4
Bryan Reynolds collected three hits to help Pittsburgh overcome an early three-run deficit in Bradenton, Fla.
Nicholas Cimillo launched a solo homer to forge a 4-4 tie in the sixth before Shawn Ross had a go-ahead single later in the inning.
Ray Delgado had an RBI single among his two hits and Jacob Melton went deep for Tampa Bay.
Nationals 16, Marlins 8
Brady House belted a pair of homers to pace Washington’s 14-hit attack in Jupiter, Fla.
House set the tone early by launching a three-run homer in the first inning and added a solo shot as part of a six-run fifth.
The Nationals benefited from 13 walks from the Marlins, who saw Ethan O’Donnell launch a grand slam and Jared Serna belt a two-run homer in the ninth inning.
Twins 8, Braves 1
Alan Roden belted a grand slam in the sixth inning to pace Minnesota past Atlanta in North Port, Fla.
Emmanuel Rodriguez launched a two-run shot in the eighth inning for the Twins.
Drake Baldwin had a solo shot for the Braves.
Red Sox 11, Blue Jays 10
Braiden Ward had a pair of RBI singles, the first coming amid a six-run sixth inning, to help Boston outlast Toronto at Fort Myers, Fla.
Nate Eaton had a two-run double to highlight his three-hit performance for the Red Sox, who recorded 15 hits.
Eloy Jimenez ripped an RBI double in the first inning and a solo homer in the sixth for the Blue Jays.
Mets 6, Yankees 4
JT Schwartz belted a three-run homer in the eighth inning to fuel the Mets to victory in Tampa, Fla.
Hayden Senger launched a pinch-hit solo shot in the sixth for the Mets, who had 11 hits.
Kenedy Corona belted a three-run homer in the eighth inning for the Yankees.
Cardinals 6, Astros 5
Yohel Pozo and Cesar Prieto each drove in two runs to lead St. Louis past Houston in Palm Beach, Fla.
Jordan Walker and Nelson Velazquez each scored two runs for the Cardinals, who had nine hits and benefited from two errors.
Jack Winkler belted a solo homer and Riley Unroe added two hits for the Astros.
