Best of MLB: Daniel Murphy's huge night leads Nationals over Cardinals

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WASHINGTON -- Daniel Murphy homered, doubled twice and tied career highs with five RBIs and four hits and the Washington Nationals defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 8-3 on Tuesday night.

Matt Wieters and Jayson Werth also hit solo shots to help Washington earn a second home series victory.

Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez (1-0) allowed two runs -- one earned -- over seven innings. He allowed six hits before retiring his last 11 batters.

Lance Lynn (0-1) allowed six runs -- four earned -- and five hits and four walks over five innings.

Randal Grichuk and Aldemys Diaz homered for St. Louis.

Bryce Harper walked three times against Lynn to reach base in nine straight plate appearances going back to Monday, tying a career high set last season against the Chicago Cubs and manager Joe Maddon. He also doubled in the eighth (see full recap).

Brantley's walk-off single gives Tribe win in home opener
CLEVELAND -- Michael Brantley doubled home Francisco Lindor with two outs in the 10th inning as the Cleveland Indians celebrated their 2016 AL championship and then beat the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Tuesday in their home opener.

Brantley could only watch and cheer for his teammates last October during their postseason run after undergoing two surgeries on his right shoulder. But he's healthy now, and after playing in just 11 games last season, Brantley made the most of his first home game since May 10 with his game-winning hit.

Lindor walked with two outs off Tommy Kahnle (0-1) before Brantley sliced a 3-2 pitch down the left-field line. Lindor was running on the pitch and scored easily while Brantley danced around second base before being mobbed by his teammates.

It was the dramatic ending the Indians didn't get in their last home game, a 10-inning loss to the Chicago Cubs in Game 7 of the World Series. Cleveland led the majors with 11 walk-off wins last season.

Bryan Shaw (1-0), who took the loss when the Cubs won their first title in 108 years, got the win (see full recap).

Marlins top Braves with cat on the loose at Marlins Park
MIAMI -- A gray cat went scrambling for cover in the Marlins Park outfield midway through Tuesday night's game, and no wonder, given the barrage off Marcell Ozuna's bat.

Ozuna homered twice and had a career-high six RBIs to help Miami win its home opener against the Atlanta Braves, 8-4.

Announced attendance was 36,519, and that didn't include a cat that ran onto the field midway through the game. It scurried along the outfield warning track, ran away from right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, crawled up the center field wall and then appeared to get stuck in the animatronic home run sculpture.

Marlins president David Samson said if Ozuna had hit a third homer, the sculpture would not have been activated for fear of harming the cat.

Ozuna hit a sacrifice fly in the first inning, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run homer in the fifth, doubling his season RBI total and hiking his average to .423. The two-homer game was the second of his career (see full recap).

Pedroia drives in 4 as Red Sox clobber O's
BOSTON -- Drew Pomeranz struck out six in his season debut and Dustin Pedroia drove in four runs and the Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-1 Tuesday night.

Christian Vazquez added a two-run triple in the eighth, capping off a 4-for-4 game, as the Red Sox tagged Baltimore pitchers for 15 hits and had back-to-back three-run innings in the seventh and eighth to blow the game open.

Pomeranz, who opened the season on the disabled list with a strained left forearm, took a shutout into the seventh inning. He held Baltimore to four hits and one run in six innings and picked up his first win at Fenway Park.

Pablo Sandoval had a sacrifice fly in the second and Pedroia had one in the fifth off Dylan Bundy (1-1), who was strong through the first six innings. Bundy pitched 6 1-3 innings, allowing three runs and seven hits (see full recap).

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