Kerry Carpenter leads Tigers to win over Mets

DETROIT (AP) — Kerry Carpenter hit a three-run homer and scored twice to help the Detroit Tigers beat the New York Mets 6-2 on Wednesday.

Riley Greene gave Detroit a 3-1 lead with a two-run single in the fifth inning. The AL Central leaders had lost seven of nine, including the first two games of the series.

Pete Alonso had three hits for the Mets, including an RBI double. They finished a stretch of 16 games in 16 days with a 9-7 record.

New York began the day with a five-game lead over Cincinnati and San Francisco for the final National League wild card.

Carpenter walked and scored in the fifth, then homered off struggling reliever Ryan Helsley to give the Tigers a 6-2 lead in the seventh.

Casey Mize (13-5) got the win, allowing one run and five hits in five innings.

NATIONALS 10, MARLINS 5

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nasim Nuñez hit his first two career homers, and Washington beat Miami to complete its first three-game sweep at home this season.

It was only the second three-game sweep this season for Washington, which took three at Baltimore from May 15-17. The Nationals’ last three-game sweep at home was July 19-21, 2024, against Cincinnati.

Brady House also went deep for Washington, and Luis García Jr. had two RBIs. Jackson Rutledge (3-2) pitched a scoreless inning for the win.

Joey Wiemer homered for Miami, which was swept for the fourth time this season and the first time since June 2-4 against Colorado.

Nuñez, who spent all of last season on Washington’s roster as a Rule 5 pick, had three hits and four RBIs in his 75th career game.

He hit a one-out drive off Eury Pérez (6-5) into Washington’s bullpen in right in the second. He also singled home a run in the sixth and connected for a two-run shot in the eighth off Luarbert Arias.

House hit a two-run shot in the fourth to make it 7-0. It was the rookie’s first homer since July 12.

Wiemer hit a two-run homer in the fifth, and Heriberto Hernández chased Washington starter Mitchell Parker with a two-run single. Parker allowed four runs — two earned — in 4 2/3 innings.

DIAMONDBACKS 2, RANGERS 0

PHOENIX (AP) — Zac Gallen pitched six scoreless innings in his latest quality start and Arizona beat Texas.

Gallen (11-13) allowed four hits and struck out five with no walks.

The Diamondbacks scraped together two early runs against Rangers starter Jack Leiter (9-8) and their bullpen did the rest. Jake Woodford, the last of Arizona’s five pitchers, worked around a walk in the ninth for his third save.

The Diamondbacks have won six of eight. Texas dropped two games back of the final AL wild card spot.

ORIOLES 7, SAN DIEGO 5

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jackson Holliday hit a leadoff homer and Colton Cowser, Coby Mayo and Alex Jackson hit consecutive shots in the third inning — all off Nestor Cortes — and Baltimore beat San Diego for their first three-game sweep of the Padres.

The Orioles, last in the AL East, took a 7-0 lead in the third, when Cortes allowed three homers on four pitches. The Padres closed the deficit when Manny Machado hit a two-run homer against his original team in a four-run sixth and Fernando Tatis Jr. homered leading off the seventh.

Mason Miller had the second immaculate inning in Padres history when he struck out Jeremiah Jackson, Ryan Mountcastle and Emmanuel Rivera on nine pitches in the eighth.

PIRATES 3, DODGERS 0

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Andrew McCutchen and Bryan Reynolds homered off last-minute spot starter Emmett Sheehan and Pittsburgh beat Los Angeles.

Sheehan (5-3) got the nod when the Dodgers opted to let Shohei Ohtani skip his scheduled start while dealing with an illness. Ohtani remained in the lineup, however, and had two of Los Angeles’ five hits. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the hope is Ohtani can return to the mound this weekend in Baltimore.

Five Pirate pitchers combined for the club’s major-league leading 17th shutout of the season. Mike Burrows (2-4) got the win with three innings in relief of starter Braxton Ashcraft. Dennis Santana finished off a perfect ninth by striking out Ohtani for his 13th save.

Reynolds hit his 15th homer of the season, a shot over the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall in right field. McCutchen added his 13th of the year and 332nd of his career in the second inning, tying him with Moises Alou and Bobby Bonds for 121st on the career list. Joey Bart had three hits and drove in an insurance run for the Pirates.

GUARDIANS 8, RED SOX 1

BOSTON (AP) — Gabriel Arias hit a two-run homer that sparked a six-run second inning, and Cleveland routed Boston to avoid a three-game sweep.

Steven Kwan had three hits and scored twice for the Guardians, and José Ramírez drove in two runs. Rookie left-hander Joey Cantillo (4-3) pitched six impressive innings, giving up one run on five hits and two walks with seven strikeouts.

Boston threw a pair of wild pitches in the first two innings and committed two costly errors in the second. The Red Sox began the day leading the majors with 103 errors this season.

BLUE JAYS 13, REDS 9

CINCINNATI (AP) — George Springer had one of Toronto’s five home runs as the Blue Jays rallied from five runs down to beat Cincinnati.

Daulton Varsho and Alejandro Kirk hit consecutive homers in the fourth inning, and Addison Barger and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. went back to back in the fifth. The Blue Jays tied a season-high with five home runs.

AL-East leading Toronto went deep 11 times and scored 29 runs in the three-game series, setting up a big weekend matchup with the second-place Yankees beginning Friday.

Cincinnati remained five games behind of the New York Mets for the third NL wild-card spot. The Reds and Mets begin a three-game series on Friday.

RAYS 9, MARINERS 4

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Yandy Diaz had a career-high five hits to lead Tampa Bay to a win over Seattle, completing a three-game series sweep.

The Rays (70-69) matched a season high by winning their sixth straight game. Tampa Bay added the Seattle sweep to its three wins over the Washington Nationals for its first consecutive series sweeps since opening 2023 with four straight.

With the win, Tampa Bay moved within 2½ games of the last American League wild-card spot.

Diaz had four singles and a double for the 11th five-hit game in franchise history. The Rays had a season-high 19 hits and six players had multi-hit games.

Adrian Houser (8-4) allowed four runs in seven innings and finished with eight strikeouts and a walk.

Seattle (73-67) has lost five of six and 14 of 20.

BRAVES 5, CUBS 1

CHICAGO (AP) — Ha-Seong Kim hit a three-run homer, Bryce Elder pitched seven innings of four-hit ball and Atlanta rallied for a win over Chicago.

Ozzie Albies added a solo shot the eighth and hit a single in the seventh that broke up a combined no-hit bid by Chicago.

Elder (6-9) allowed one unearned run while striking out six and walking none. The right-hander retired 15 of the last 17 hitters he faced.

Tyler Kinley pitched a perfect eighth, then Raisel Iglesias worked around two walks in the ninth to complete a four-hitter.

CARDINALS 5, ATHLETICS 1

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Willson Contreras had three hits and four RBIs, Nolan Gorman homered and Matthew Liberatore pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings in St. Louis' victory over the Athletics.

Liberatore (7-11) struck out seven. JoJo Romero got the final four outs for his seventh save.

Gorman hit a solo home run in the seventh inning, his 14th of the season. He also had two singles.

Contreras provided the first runs in the third inning with a two-run single to right off Jeffrey Springs (10-10). In the eighth, Contreras added a two-run triple to left.

Nick Kurtz hit an opposite-field home run for the A’s in the eighth, his 28th of the year. It was his 14th home run of the year to the opposite field, second in baseball behind Aaron Judge (16).

BREWERS 6, PHILLIES 3

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Isaac Collins hit a three-run homer and Jose Quintana pitched effectively into the seventh inning as Milwaukee beat Philadelphia.

Milwaukee (86-54) and Philadelphia (80-59) entered with the two best records in the National League. The Brewers increased their Central Division lead to six games over the Cubs, who lost 5-1 to Atlanta. The Phillies remained 5 1/2 games up in the East over the Mets, who lost 6-2 at Detroit.

Collins’ drive capped a five-run first inning against Aaron Nola (3-8). Brice Turang walked to open, Jackson Chourio was hit by a pitch and William Contreras singled to load the bases. Sal Frelick followed with an RBI single and Chourio continued home on a throwing error by center fielder Harrison Bader. Collins then sent a 1-0 pitch 358 feet to right for his ninth homer.

WHITE SOX 4, TWINS 3

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Brooks Baldwin had an RBI single and Michael A. Taylor followed with a go-ahead two-run double as Chicago rallied to beat Minnesota for their fourth straight win.

Baldwin’s hit pulled the White Sox to 3-2 with Andrew Benitendi advancing to third.. After Baldwin stole second, Taylor pulled a ball down the left field line to give the White Sox their first lead of the night.

Edgar Quero had a solo homer in the second and then scored in the ninth on Baldwin’s single against Justin Topa (1-5).

Grant Taylor (1-4) pitched 1 1/3 innings to get the win, and Jordan Leasure got the last three outs for his sixth save.

ANGELS 4, ROYALS 3

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jo Adell homered and drove in every run for Los Angeles in their victory over the Kansas City.

Adell hit a go-ahead homer in the sixth inning for the second consecutive game. His three-run shot to center field on the first pitch he saw from reliever John Schreiber gave the Angels a 3-2 lead in this one.

Yoán Moncada, aboard on a single when Adell went deep, doubled off Lucas Erceg (6-4) in the eighth before scoring on Adell’s two-out single for a 4-3 advantage. Adell’s 33 homers and 90 RBIs are career highs.

Reid Detmers struck out two in the ninth for his third save.

Angels star Mike Trout sat out again after getting scratched from the lineup Tuesday night because of a skin infection on his left arm.

ASTROS 8, YANKEES 7

HOUSTON (AP) — Taylor Trammell worked a bases-loaded walk to score the go-ahead run as part of a four-run eighth inning, and Houston rallied for a win over New York.

Devin Williams (3-6) walked the bases loaded with one out, but struck out Ramón Urías before walking Trammell on five pitches to score Carlos Correa.

Jeremy Peña followed with an RBI single off Camilo Doval, who was called for a balk on the next pitch, scoring Christian Walker. Doval then uncorked a wild pitch, scoring Trammell.

Williams and Yankees manager Aaron Boone were ejected in the eighth by plate umpire Brian Walsh for arguing balls and strikes. It was Boone’s sixth ejection this season.

With the Astros trailing 4-1, Peña homered leading off the sixth, and Jose Altuve hit an RBI groundout later in the inning. Yordan Alvarez, who had four hits, had an RBI single in the seventh to tie it at 4.

GIANTS 10, ROCKIES 8

DENVER (AP) — Matt Chapman hit two home runs after appealing a one-game suspension, and San Francisco beat Colorado to finish a three-game sweep with their fourth straight victory.

Chapman gave the Giants a 1-0 lead in the second with a 450-foot shot to center field off Germán Márquez. He hit his 20th of the season in the sixth — a 423-foot three-run shot to left-center off Juan Mejia for a 9-5 advantage. Chapman was suspended by for his part in a benches-clearing brawl in Tuesday night in a 7-4 victory.

Rookie Drew Gilbert hit his third homer — a solo shot off Mejia in the seventh for the Giants’ final run.

Heliot Ramos and Patrick Bailey both went 2 for 4 with an RBI and two runs scored as the Giants won for the 10th time in 11 games to pull within four games of the New York Mets for the final NL wild card.

Robbie Ray allowed five runs — four earned — on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out eight.

Detroit Tigers shortstop Zach McKinstry, left, and left fielder Riley Greene celebrate after the team's win over the New York Mets in a baseball game, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting Thursday to discuss Iran's deadly protests at the request of the United States, even as President Donald Trump left unclear what actions he would take against the Islamic Republic.

Tehran appeared to make conciliatory statements in an effort to defuse the situation after Trump threatened to take action to stop further killing of protesters, including the execution of anyone detained in Tehran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “All options remain on the table for the president.”

Iran’s crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,615, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The death toll exceeds any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The sound of gunfire faded Thursday in the capital, Tehran. The country closed its airspace to commercial flights for hours without explanation early Thursday and some personnel at a key U.S. military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate. The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait also ordered its personnel to “temporary halt” travel to the multiple military bases in the small Gulf Arab country.

Here is the latest:

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that U.S. President Donald Trump and his team had communicated to Iranian officials that there would be “grave consequences” if killing continues against protesters in Iran.

“The president understands today that 800 executions that were scheduled and supposed to take place yesterday, were halted,” she said.

But Trump continues closely watching the situation, she said.

“All options remain on the table for the president,” Leavitt said.

Abdul Malik al-Houthi, leader of the Iran-backed Yemeni rebel group, said on Thursday that “criminal gangs” were responsible for the situation in Iran, accusing them of carrying out an “American-Israeli” scheme.

“Criminal gangs in Iran killed Iranian citizens, security forces and burned mosques,” he said without providing evidence. “What’s being committed by criminal gangs in Iran is horrific, bearing an American stamp as it includes slaughter and burning some people alive.”

He also said that the U.S. imposed economic sanctions on Iran to create a crisis leading to the current issues in the country with the end goal of controlling Iran.

Yet he said the U.S. has “failed in Iran” and that Iranians “will not yield to America.”

The president of the European Union’s executive arm says the 27-member bloc is looking to strengthen sanctions against Iran as ordinary Iranians continue their protests against Iran’s theocratic government.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday following a meeting of the EU’s commissioners in Limassol, Cyprus that current sanctions against Iran are “weakening the regime.”

Von der Leyen said that the EU is looking to sanction individual Iranians —apart from those who belong to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard — who “are responsible for the atrocities.”

She added that the people of Iran who are “bravely fighting for a change” have the EU’s “full political support.”

Canada’s foreign minister says a Canadian citizen has died in Iran “at the hands of the Iranian authorities.”

“Peaceful protests by the Iranian people — asking that their voices be heard in the face of the Iranian regime’s repression and ongoing human rights violations — has led the regime to flagrantly disregard human life,” Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand posted on social media Thursday.

“This violence must end. Canada condemns and calls for an immediate end to the Iranian regime’s violence,” she added.

Anand said consular officials are in contact with the victim’s family in Canada. She did not provide details.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies announced Thursday that a local staff member was killed and several others were wounded during the deadly protests in Iran over the weekend.

Amir Ali Latifi, an Iranian Red Crescent Society worker, was working in the country’s Gillan province on Jan. 10 when he was killed “in the line of duty,” the organization said in a statement.

“The IFRC is deeply concerned about the consequences of the ongoing unrest on the people of Iran and is closely monitoring the situation in coordination with the Iranian Red Crescent Society,” the statement continued.

U.S. President Donald Trump has hailed as “good news” reports that the death sentence has been lifted for an Iranian shopkeeper arrested in a violent crackdown on protests.

Relatives of 26-year-old Erfan Soltani had said he faced imminent execution.

Trump posed Thursday on his Truth Social site: “FoxNews: ‘Iranian protester will no longer be sentenced to death after President Trump’s warnings. Likewise others.’ This is good news. Hopefully, it will continue!”

Iranian state media denied Soltani had been condemned to death. Iranian judicial authorities said Soltani was being held in a detention facility outside of the capital. Alongside other protesters, he has been accused of “propaganda activities against the regime,” state media said.

Trump sent tensions soaring this week by pledging that “help is on its way” to Iranian protesters and urging them to continue demonstrating against authorities in the Islamic Republic.

On Wednesday Trump signaled a possible de-escalation, saying he had been told that “the killing in Iran is stopping.”

In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union’s main foreign policy chief said the G7 members were “gravely concerned” by the developments surrounding the protests, and that they “strongly oppose the intensification of the Iranian authorities’ brutal repression of the Iranian people.”

The statement, published on the EU’s website Thursday, said the G7 were “deeply alarmed at the high level of reported deaths and injuries” and condemned “the deliberate use of violence” by Iranian security forces against protesters.

The G7 members “remain prepared to impose additional restrictive measures if Iran continues to crack down on protests and dissent in violation of international human rights obligations,” the statement said.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has spoken with his counterpart in Iran, who said the situation was “now stable,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Abbas Araghchi said “he hoped China will play a greater role in regional peace and stability” during the talks, according to the statement from the ministry.

“China opposes imposing its will on other countries, and opposes a return to the ‘law of the jungle’,” Wang said.

“China believes that the Iranian government and people will unite, overcome difficulties, maintain national stability, and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests,” he added. “China hopes all parties will cherish peace, exercise restraint, and resolve differences through dialogue. China is willing to play a constructive role in this regard.”

“We are against military intervention in Iran,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told journalists in Istanbul on Thursday. “Iran must address its own internal problems… They must address their problems with the region and in global terms through diplomacy so that certain structural problems that cause economic problems can be addressed.”

Ankara and Tehran enjoy warm relations despite often holding divergent interests in the region.

Fidan said the unrest in Iran was rooted in economic conditions caused by sanctions, rather than ideological opposition to the government.

Iranians have been largely absent from an annual pilgrimage to Baghdad, Iraq, to commemorate the death of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, one of the twelve Shiite imams.

Many Iranian pilgrims typically make the journey every year for the annual religious rituals.

Streets across Baghdad were crowded with pilgrims Thursday. Most had arrived on foot from central and southern provinces of Iraq, heading toward the shrine of Imam al-Kadhim in the Kadhimiya district in northern Baghdad,

Adel Zaidan, who owns a hotel near the shrine, said the number of Iranian visitors this year compared to previous years was very small. Other residents agreed.

“This visit is different from previous ones. It lacks the large numbers of Iranian pilgrims, especially in terms of providing food and accommodation,” said Haider Al-Obaidi.

Europe’s largest airline group said Thursday it would halt night flights to and from Tel Aviv and Jordan's capital Amman for five days, citing security concerns as fears grow that unrest in Iran could spiral into wider regional violence.

Lufthansa — which operates Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings — said flights would run only during daytime hours from Thursday through Monday “due to the current situation in the Middle East.” It said the change would ensure its staff — which includes unionized cabin crews and pilots -- would not be required to stay overnight in the region.

The airline group also said its planes would bypass Iranian and Iraqi airspace, key corridors for air travel between the Middle East and Asia.

Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for several hours early Thursday without explanation.

A spokesperson for Israel’s Airport Authority, which oversees Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, said the airport was operating as usual.

Iranian state media has denied claims that a young man arrested during Iran’s recent protests was condemned to death. The statement from Iran’s judicial authorities on Thursday contradicted what it said were “opposition media abroad” which claimed the young man had been quickly sentenced to death during a violent crackdown on anti-government protests in the country.

State television didn’t immediately give any details beyond his name, Erfan Soltani. Iranian judicial authorities said Soltani was being held in a detention facility outside of the capital. Alongside other protesters, he has been accused of “propaganda activities against the regime,” state media said.

New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Thursday that his government was “appalled by the escalation of violence and repression” in Iran.

“We condemn the brutal crackdown being carried out by Iran’s security forces, including the killing of protesters,” Peters posted on X.

“Iranians have the right to peaceful protest, freedom of expression, and access to information – and that right is currently being brutally repressed,” he said.

Peters said his government had expressed serious concerns to the Iranian Embassy in Wellington.

Women cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A demonstrator lights a cigarette with a burning poster depicting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a rally in support of Iran's anti-government protests, in Holon, Israel, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide mass protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide mass protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)