Jimmy Herget perfect in ninth for second save

Boyd allowed three hits, walked two and struck out seven. He’s 2-0 with a 1.72 ERA in three starts since coming off the IL and 4-1 with a 4.31 ERA in eight starts overall this season. He’ll finish off the first half for the Cubs with a start in Cincinnati on Sunday.

It’s his third save in 221 career relief appearances. The 32-year-old has a 2.63 ERA in 27 1/3 innings over 22 appearances since being called up by the Cubs two months ago, and he’ll remain an option in the ninth until Daniel Palencia returns.

He gave up six hits, walked three and struck out three. Baz came into the night averaging 3.12 runs allowed and 5.94 innings in his 17 starts, but this is actually the first time he’s turned in a three-run, six-inning outing. Although he’s been adequate with his 4.12 ERA, he fell to 4-9 tonight and the Orioles dropped to 5-13 in his starts. He’ll face the Royals on Sunday.

Amala also scored three runs last Wednesday, though the Cubs scored 23 runs against the Padres in that game. Tonight, he scored three of their five runs. Amaya is hitting .234/.362/.363 on the season and has been splitting time evenly with Carson Kelly of late after serving as more of a backup early on.

The Astros won this game 6-3 despite being outhomered three to one and outhit 11 to six. Altuve has homered in back-to-back games and also has a triple, a double and three walks during his current four-game hitting streak.

Imai appeared to be dealing with a finger issue that led to a visit from a trainer at one point. It’s the third time in five starts that Imai has failed to make it out of the fourth. In the other two outings during the span, he allowed three runs with a 21/1 K/BB over 12 innings. The talent is there, but the consistency probably won’t be until maybe next year. He’ll be available to start Sunday against the Rangers, but it’s unclear if he’ll get the nod.

Using Hader for a third straight day wasn’t the plan. Alimber Santa opened the ninth with a 6-2 lead and gave up a homer and a single while getting two outs. The Astros went to Hader then, and the lefty allowed an infield single and a walk before striking out Dylan Crews to end the game. He’ll certainly be off Wednesday after this, so Bryan Abreu might wind up with a save chance.

Alvarez also hit a batter and the Astros went 3-for-3 stealing bases against him, which helps explain how he gave up five runs despite allowing just four singles and no extra-base hits. Alvarez has walked 21 in 47 innings in the majors this year. He’s managed a 3.64 ERA anyway, but he can’t keep putting guys on base like this. Since he won’t be needed to make another start before the break, the Nationals might send him down to the minors to keep him sharp.

Last year, Wood hit his 24th homer in his 92nd game of the season and then need 22 games to finally connect on his 25th. This year, Wood also hit his 24th homer in his 92nd game and then needed about 24 hours to connect on No. 25. It seems like a good omen as he looks to finish with more than 31 this time around.

Osuna drew a walk and scored a run in the second inning before coming through in a big spot for the Rangers. With two runners on and a two-run lead in the eighth, he extended the Texas lead with a three-run blast off Sam Bachman for his first home run of the season. The 23-year-old outfielder is hitting .252/.343/.296 with 20 runs scored and 18 RBI across 182 plate appearances.