The Yankees took care of their end of the scoreboard race on Monday, besting the Nationals 10-5 after jumping out to a double-digit lead. They let the shutout slip away in the ninth, but had built enough of a lead to survive walking in a run and giving up a grand slam with relative ease. Meanwhile, the rest of the field minus the Astros were active, so there was plenty to watch out for around the league. Let’s see what went down in the Junior Circuit:
Toronto Blue Jays (77-55) 10, Minnesota Twins (59-72) 4
Two innings were decisive enough for Toronto to walk
away with an easy win over the Twins, and one of them came right away. The Blue Jays scored four runs in the first inning, thanks to an RBI single from Bo Bichette, a sac fly from Daulton Varsho, and then a two-run blast from Alejandro Kirk. They added another run in the second inning when Andrés Giménez led off with a homer, and it looked like this was going to be a quick and painless stomp despite facing Twins ace Joe Ryan.
That wasn’t quite the case. Minnesota got on the board in the fourth inning against Max Scherzer, as Matt Wallner drove a first-pitch slider over the middle for a solo shot. Toronto got that run back in the bottom half via a George Springer RBI single, but after a scoreless fifth the Twins got to Scherzer again. This time they put up a crooked number, as Brooks Lee drove a run in on a ground out before Wallner took Scherzer deep for the second time, this one a two-run home run. Scherzer got Ryan Jeffers to ground out to end the frame and complete his night, going six innings with four runs allowed — the most runs he’s allowed since July 22nd against the Yankees, but it was also his sixth straight start going six or more innings as he fights off Father Time.
Toronto picked up their starter, getting those runs back with interest in the bottom of the sixth. A pair of walks sandwiched an Ernie Clement double to load the bases, and Nathan Lukes doubled to score a pair of them before Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singled the rest of them in. It was 10-4 at that point, and the offenses for both sides quieted down as Toronto’s relief corp wrapped this one up.
Boston Red Sox (72-60) 4, Baltimore Orioles (60-71) 3
Boston set up a bullpen game to get through Monday, and initially started off well with Roman Anthony leading off with a homer to get them on the scoreboard first. Their bulk reliever, Richard Fitts, got into some trouble though, beginning in the second inning when Colton Cowser hit a solo shot to tie the game. Then in the third, after getting the first two outs with ease Fitts issued a pair of walks and hit a batter to load the bases. Cowser struck again with a two-run single to give Baltimore the lead.
The Red Sox offense didn’t have much going for them after Anthony’s home run until the fifth inning, when they got a rally going against Tomoyuki Sugano. Connor Wong led off with a single, and Anthony chained one of his own to put runners on for Jarren Duran two batters later. Duran got a middle-middle slider and didn’t miss it, hitting one out to straightaway center field for a three-run home run.
That was all that Boston’s pitching staff needed, as Stephen Matz, Garrett Whitlock, and Aroldis Chapman combined to get through the final four innings after Fitts exited without incident.
Athletics (61-72) 8, Detroit Tigers (78-55) 3
It’s a tough look to waste a Tarik Skubal start, especially one where he was in a groove, and especially against a weak opponent in the A’s. Detroit managed just that though, as their ace took the loss in a game where he struck out 12 and allowed just a single earned run.
Skubal and J.T. Ginn both traded zeroes for the first five innings, but the Tigers got to Ginn first. Gleyber Torres led off the sixth with a home run, and back-to-back singles with a wild pitch put runners in scoring position with no outs. Spencer Torkelson popped out for the first out of the inning, but the A’s made a pitching change and brought in Sean Newcomb to face Wenceel Pérez. The move backfired — Pérez lined a double to right that scored both runners, and gave Detroit a 3-0 lead with the Cy Young favorite on the mound.
However, you can’t predict baseball. JJ Bleday led off the bottom of the sixth with a double and came around to score following a pair of well-placed ground outs. Then in the seventh, Colby Thomas led off with a homer to cut the lead to 3-2. A pair of hits put the go-ahead run aboard, and then Zach McKinstry botched a grounder at short to load the bases. Skubal nearly managed to pick up his defense, striking out Zack Gelof and Bleday, but Shea Langeliers crushed a 2-1 sinker for a go-ahead grand slam. Just like that, the Athletics had a 6-3 lead and Skubal was pulled in favor of Brenan Hanifee, who got the final out of the inning without incident.
Hanifee stayed on for the seventh and got the first batter, but then Lawrence Butler singled and the A’s brought in a pinch-runner prompting AJ Hinch to go back to his bullpen, summoning Drew Sommers. Nick Kurtz greeted him with a two-run blast to give the A’s more breathing room, and they closed the game out with a 1-2-3 ninth.
Other Games
Seattle Mariners (71-61) 9, San Diego Padres (74-58) 6: Cal Raleigh launched his league-leading 50th home run of the year in the first inning, adding to his AL MVP resumé. The Padres jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the second thanks to a trio of homers from Gavin Sheets, Jake Cronenworth, and Fernando Tatis Jr., but Seattle clawed back a pair on Jorge Polanco’s two-run blast in the bottom half. They took the lead for good in the fifth, led by a two-run double from Polanco and two-run single from J.P. Crawford.
Chicago White Sox (48-83) 7, Kansas City Royals (67-65) 0: The Yankees gained ground on the field outside of the playoffs currently, as the Royals were blanked by Chicago. The White Sox took a 3-0 lead after the first thanks to RBI doubles from Edgar Quero, Lenyn Sosa, and Curtis Mead, and then doubled their advantage in the fourth with homers from Korey Lee and Brooks Baldwin. Meanwhile, Shane Smith dealt seven shutout innings, allowing just a single hit in the process, before Tyler Gilbert came in for the final two innings and kept the zeroes coming.
