The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Los Angeles Angels cannot be ignored in MLB anymore following their wins on Thursday.

Through 12 games, the Pirates are 9-3 after beating the Chicago Cubs, while the Angels are 11-3 after 14 games and a rout of the Kansas City Royals.

The Pirates dropped the Cubs 6-1, taking two out of three from the National League Central Division favourites.

A big reason for Pittsburgh's hot start has been the play of the man who replaced a fan favourite in Andrew McCutchen. Corey Dickerson extended his hitting streak to seven games and scored yet another run marking the sixth time in seven games he has crossed the plate.

"I'm very pleased with what we're doing. I think they'll tell you the same thing," manager Clint Hurdle told reporters after the game, via MLB.com. "I don't think anybody will tell you they're satisfied."

For the Angels it has been about a little bit of everything, but Shohei Ohtani keeps on impressing following a 7-1 win over the Royals. This time as a hitter Ohtani cleared the bases with a triple. He is batting .346 through 26 at-bats this season.

MVP Mike Trout hit his fifth home run of the season and has now homered in all five series on the season.

The Angels, who led MLB with 20 home runs coming into Thursday's contest, added two more home runs against the Royals.

LEMAHIEU HELPS SINK NATS

DJ LeMahieu went four for five with two home runs, two doubles and four RBIs in the Colorado Rockies' 5-1 win over the Washington Nationals.

Rick Porcello threw seven innings of two-hit, no-run, six-strikeout ball in the Boston Red Sox' 6-3 victory against the New York Yankees. Porcello now has a 1.29 ERA against the Yankees at Fenway with seven straight starts, allowing two earned runs or less while pitching at least six innings.

Minnesota Twins pitcher Jose Berrios was dominant, tossing seven innings while allowing no runs with 11 strikeouts in a 4-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.

WEISS IN GAME TO FORGET

Cincinnati Reds reliever Zack Weiss threw 15 pitches in a 13-4 loss to the St Louis Cardinals. Only three of those pitches were strikes. He gave up two hits and four earned runs.

HEDGES WITH THE SPECTACULAR

Austin Hedges is known for his pitch framing, but his ability to make the highlight-reel play cannot go unnoticed.

THURSDAY'S RESULTS

Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 Chicago Cubs
Cleveland Indians 9-3 Detroit Tigers
Colorado Rockies 5-1 Washington Nationals
St Louis Cardinals 13-4 Cincinnati Reds
Boston Red Sox 6-3 New York Yankees
Minnesota Twins 4-0 Chicago White Sox
Los Angeles Angels 7-1 Kansas City Royals
San Francisco Giants 7-0 San Diego Padres

BREWERS AT METS

The New York Mets have been a pleasant surprise to start the season, but Steven Matz (0-1, 3.00 ERA) is still trying to find his best stuff as he has walked five batters already in nine innings. Zach Davies (0-1, 5.40 ERA) has not been nearly as good as he was last year, but he has shown he can be very good just like Matz. We will see if either pitcher finds it on Friday.