The Yankees took a tough loss at the hands of the White Sox on Thursday, as a tie game was broken open by an Andrew Benintendi grand slam in the eighth inning. Their loss and Tampa Bay’s offday brings New York’s lead in the East to three games, and they’ll remain home for a three-game interleague dance with the Reds next. There was some other notable action around the Junior Circuit, so let’s take a peek at the day’s action.
Toronto Blue Jays (37-38) 4, Boston Red Sox (29-43) 3
The Toronto offense
got things started early on, but a ninth inning run would be the difference for the Jays, as they creep closer to .500 with a win on the road, picking up a sweep of the hapless Red Sox in the process.
That early start came thanks to a line drive solo homer off the bat of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., just his fourth of the season. The blast over the Monster put Sonny Gray in the hole 1-0, and gave the Jays their first lead. An inning later, Andrés Giménez would double that lead with a sacrifice fly into left field.
On the pitching side, it was smooth sailing for much of the afternoon for Trey Yesavage. With that two-run lead in the pocket, the right-hander cruised though six consecutive scoreless innings to kick off his start, which was a nice change of pace, as he had allowed 11 earned runs across his previous two starts. He allowed just three hits in those first six innings, and had Toronto sitting pretty headed into the final third of this game.
Both offenses woke back up in the seventh. The Blue Jays did so with a Nathan Lukes solo home run, while the Red Sox finally got on the board when Willson Contreras recorded a productive out with a groundball in the bottom half, which put them down 3-1.
An inning later, however, the Sox would make a much larger move. With Yesavage still on the mound, the bottom of the order actually did the damage, as back-to-back homers from Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Caleb Durbin tied this game up in a flash, and brought Yesavage’s evening to an end.
After holding a lead from the top of the first onward, the Jays were tasked with a clean slate for the ninth inning againt Aroldis Chapman. The bats would rise to the occasion, however, as a high, arcing double from Brandon Valenzuela off the Green Monster gave the Jays the final lead in the decisive blow in this game. The Jays get to within a game of .500 with the win, which also moves them precariously into the final playoff spot in the AL as things stand, though they have plenty of work to do in the East.
Other Games
Cleveland Guardians (40-35) 4, Milwaukee Brewers (45-27) 2
Against one of the better teams in baseball, the Guardians rode the long ball en route to their 40th win of the 2026 season. Solo shots from David Fry and Kyle Manzardo accounted for their only scoring through the first six innings, though that only kept them even with the Brewers. In the seventh, Cleveland jumped ahead for good with a pair of runs, with the go-ahead blow coming on a Travis Bazzana solo shot. The win keeps the Guards even with Chicago atop the Central.
Seattle Mariners (39-37) 3, Baltimore Orioles (35-41) 0
The M’s scored three runs in the first inning on Thursday, which accounted for all of the offense in T-Mobile Park. After run-scoring hits from Cole Young and Colt Emerson, It was all Bryan Woo in Seattle. The talented righty worked seven scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and striking out nine Orioles. The Baltimore lineup mustered just three hits on the day, while the Mariners were able to maintain their 1.5-game lead over the A’s in the West.
