Future first-ballot Hall-of-Famer Albert Pujols turned back the clock in the St Louis Cardinals' 6-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, connecting on two long home runs.

It was a game where every run came via the long-ball, with Brewers outfielder Hunter Renfroe getting things started as he blasted a two-run homer in the second inning.

The Brewers would not score again until the ninth frame as Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas put in a terrific performance, giving up two runs from four hits and no walks in eight complete innings, striking out six.

With the bat, the Cardinals registered their first tally later in the second when Pujols sent a 392-foot lead-off shot over the left-field wall, and after three innings of scoreless baseball, Tyler O'Neill tied the game at 2-2 with a 420-foot moonshot to center-field.

Heading into the eighth inning with the scores tied, Dylan Carlson was the next to connect on a home run – the shortest of the game at 373 feet – and after an infield single to O'Neill and a walk to NL MVP favourite Paul Goldschmidt, Pujols stepped back up to the plate and launched a 443-foot nuke to left.

The 443-foot blast from Pujols was his longest of the season, and more than 20 feet further than any of his home runs that he hit in last month's Home Run Derby. He is only the third player in MLB history to have more than one game with multiple home runs after turning 42 years old – along with Barry Bonds and Carlton Fisk – and his 63 career multi-homer games is the fifth most ever.

With the win, the Cardinals opened up a one-and-a-half game lead over the Brewers atop the NL Central.

Yankees go down at Fenway Park

The New York Yankees have now lost four series in a row after being shut-out by the Boston Red Sox 3-0 on Sunday night.

It was a starring performance on the mound from Red Sox starter Michael Wacha in his return from injury, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out nine batters in seven innings.

Despite the Yankees only collecting two hits total for the night, the game was locked at 1-0 until the sixth inning when Red Sox star Rafael Devers – who many consider the future of the franchise – gave his side some breathing room with a 433-foot, two-run home run.

The Yankees still hold a 10-game lead in their division, but now trail the Houston Astros by two-and-a-half games for the best record in the American League.

Estrada walks it off for the Giants

Thairo Estrada treated the San Francisco Giants home fans to a walk-off home run as they defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-7.

In the back-and-forth contest, the Giants jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, but the Pirates came storming back to lead 6-5 after a massive 442-foot, three-run homer from Bryan Reynolds in the seventh inning. Reynolds would finish the game three-for-four at the plate with five RBIs.

The Giants evened things up later in the seventh, before the Pirates were able to grab a lead in the ninth inning due to a fielding error, but they got away with it as Estrada delivered the winning blow with one out.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are the first National League team in 100 years to win 12 consecutive games by multiple runs after they hammered the Kansas City Royals 13-3 away from home on Saturday.

Fans were still finding their seats when Dodgers lead-off hitter Mookie Betts opened the scoring from the fifth pitch of the game, connecting on a 421-foot home run.

It was the first of five runs from the Los Angeles side in the opening frame, with Max Muncy, Justin Turner and Gavin Lux also driving in runs.

Dodgers catcher Will Smith added another couple of tallies with a two-run homer an inning later to establish a 7-0 lead early, and after the Royals snatched two runs back through a Michael Massey triple later in the second, Lux homered in the third and Muncy homered in the fourth to open up a 10-2 buffer.

Cody Bellinger and Joey Gallo gave Dodgers fans who stuck around for the ninth inning a treat, with another two home runs putting the icing on the cake.

Muncy finished with four hits and four RBIs, while Betts went three-for-four at the plate and both Smith and Lux picked up a pair of hits.

Starting on the mound for Los Angeles, Andrew Heaney made it through three innings before he was forced to leave the game early, suffering a contusion in his throwing forearm.

The last National League team to match the Dodgers' feat were the 1922 Pittsburgh Pirates, who had their 13-game multi-run winning streak snapped exactly 100 years ago to the day.

DeGrom dominates the Phillies

New York Mets ace and arguably the best pitcher in all of baseball Jacob deGrom looked at the peak of his powers in his third start of the season, holding the Philadelphia Phillies scoreless through six innings in a 1-0 win.

DeGrom retired 18 of the 20 batters he faced, striking out 10 and making it through his six innings in an efficient 76 pitches. 

The game's only run came in the first inning, with Pete Alonso's base hit scoring Starling Marte, as Phillies starter Aaron Nola also pitched beautifully, going eight full innings with eight strikeouts, allowing one run from four hits and a walk.

Kiner-Falefa the unlikely Yankees hero

The New York Yankees will have a chance to win their three-game series away from home against the Boston Red Sox tomorrow after coming back to win 3-2.

After dropping the first game of their slate 3-2 in extra innings yesterday, the Yankees were in danger of losing their fourth series in a row when they trailed 2-0, before Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit a two-run shot in the fifth inning for his first home run of the season.

With the scores still tied at 2-2 in the last frame, Kiner-Falefa came through again as he was able to bunt for a hit while bringing home Andrew Benintendi from third base. From his 103 games this season, it is only the second time he has collected three RBIs.

The worrying form of the New York Yankees continued as they were downed the Seattle Mariners 4-3 after Carlos Santana's seventh-inning go-ahead two-run homer on Wednesday.

The Yankees have lost seven of their past eight games and are 2-7 in August, with the skid putting their top seed hopes in the American League in jeopardy.

Sam Haggerty had blasted the Mariners into a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the sixth inning.

After Tuesday's 1-0 extras' loss to the Mariners, the Yankees actually went scoreless across 19 innings, breaking that run in the seventh inning on Wednesday.

Kyle Higashioka crushed a go-ahead two-run homer to left-center field in the seventh inning, before Aaron Judge added another, his 45th home run of the season, to extend the lead.

But the Mariners, who won the season series against the Yankees for the first time since 2002, fought back through Santana, with his two-run blast being his 11th homer of the season.

Mariners pitcher Robbie Ray played his part, striking out seven batters as well as Seattle moved to 61-52, while the Yankees are 71-41.

Dodgers clinch 10 straight wins

Joey Gallo blasted a three-run homer to help the Los Angeles Dodgers secure their 10th win in a row with an 8-5 triumph over the Minnesota Twins.

The Dodgers were trailing 4-2 in the fifth inning but rallied back with Chris Taylor homering the go-ahead run. Gallo, who was traded to the Dodgers from the Yankees last month, came up with his 13th home run of the season in the seventh inning.

The 10-game win streak is the Dodgers' longest since they won 11 in a row in July 2017, while they swept the four-game series against the Twins with a 32-10 run record.

Lindor stars as Mets winning run continues

The New York Mets extended their run of wins by three or more runs to six with a 10-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds fueled by Francisco Lindor again.

The shortstop helped the Mets clinch a series sweep with a second-inning two-run single, opening up a 4-0 lead and making franchise history.

Lindor, who finished with three runs, two hits and two RBIs, moved to 81 RBIs for the season, tying with Jose Reyes in 2006 for a Mets' single-season record.

A single run in the 13th inning gave the Seattle Mariners a memorable win over the New York Yankees late on Tuesday in "one of the best games I've ever seen", according to Scott Servais.

The Mariners held their own in a pitching battle with the Yankees, as new signing Luis Castillo marked his first home start by giving up just three hits through eight scoreless innings.

Seattle's relief pitching was similarly effective, while there were a series of stunning defensive plays as the two teams repeatedly failed to bat in runners in scoring positions.

Eventually, after more than four hours of play, a pinch-hit single from Luis Torrens scored Eugenio Suarez to the delight of a raucous Seattle crowd.

"Baseball's not a boring game," Mariners manager Servais said after the 1-0 victory.

"I've been at a lot of major league games, I've been in a lot of major league games, and that was one of the best games I've ever seen.

"The electricity in our ballpark tonight, the fans were incredible. As we sit here in early August, we've got big things ahead of us."

The Mariners occupy the second AL wild card place at 60-52 as they bid to end a 21-year playoff drought.

"I don't know, because we haven't been to the postseason in a while, but I'm assuming it would be like this and maybe a little bit better," Servais added.

"Our fan base is starved for this type of baseball. We have a team that can provide it. We're fun to watch. We can be frustrating to watch.

"I get all that as a fan and what it means to hang on the edge of your seat for every pitch. That's what baseball is about, and our team embodies that."

Matt Carpenter is bullish he still has a part to play for the New York Yankees this season, stating that "my mindset is that I'll be back" after fracturing his left foot.

The third baseman fouled off a slider from Seattle Mariners starter Logan Gilbert during the first inning on Monday, and is facing an indefinite spell on the sidelines.

Despite the loss of the 36-year-old, arguably in the best form of his league career for over half a decade, the Yankees still went on to a 9-4 victory to snap a season-worst five-game losing streak.

That solidifies their position atop AL East, and keeps them on track for a rosy postseason spot, though they will now almost certainly have to secure their berth without Carpenter.

But the ex-Cardinals man and three-time All-Star remains optimistic he will get back on the diamond before the close of the season, insisting he is not limiting himself on his return timeframe until he sees a specialist.

"I don't want to say a number because I just don't know, but I'm holding out hope that it'll be a situation where I could come back in the middle of September and can contribute towards a stretch run," Carpenter said.

"So we'll see. I mean, that's my mindset is that I'll be back."

Carpenter finished the at-bat after initially hobbling around, and struck out swinging on the next pitch, and admits it was likely a good thing he failed to make the connection, lest he worsen his injury.

"When I went to swing on the next pitch, as soon as I started to plant and rotate on that back foot, my lower body like gave out and I wasn't able to," he added.

"Thankfully, probably the best thing that happened was to swing and miss – because if I hit it and had to run, I might have made it worse. But I knew it wasn't good."

Carpenter becomes the latest major injury concern for the Yankees, who lost Giancarlo Stanton, Luis Severino, Michael King and Miguel Castro last month.

New York continue against the Mariners this week at T-Mobile Park, before heading back east on Friday to face the Boston Red Sox.

Aaron Judge ended his four-game home-run drought as the New York Yankees snapped their five-game losing skid with a 9-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Monday.

The Yankees, who are top of the American League (AL) with a 71-39 record, had been swept in a three-game series by the St Louis Cardinals along with two defeats to the Mariners at Yankee Stadium in their past five.

But they responded at T-Mobile Park from the outset, with Josh Donaldson hitting a first-inning two-run single along with a third-inning solo home run, sandwiched by Mitch Haniger's blast as the Yankees claimed an early 4-1 lead.

The Yankees pulled clear with three runs in the fifth inning, as Andrew Benintendi doubled on a line drive with Donaldson and Gleyber Torres scoring, followed by Benintendi from Isiah Kiner-Falefa's sac fly.

Judge, who leads the majors in home runs, RBIs, runs, slugging percentage and on-base plus slugging this season, re-discovered his form in the ninth inning after his recent lean stretch.

The Yankees outfielder had a close call with a high ball falling just short of the wall in the third inning, but blasted a solo home run in the ninth with a fly ball over deep center field.

The home run was Judge's 44th home run of the season, continuing his march to history with the AL single-season record of 61, from Roger Maris in 1961, within sight. It also ensures Judge's longest run without a home run this season remains seven games.

More Mets momentum with Reds win

The New York Mets kept up their momentum after winning four games in their five-game series against the Atlanta Braves with a 5-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

Starling Marte crushed a two-run home run in the first inning off ex-Mets pitcher Justin Dunn, but Francisco Lindor was sensationally denied a fifth-inning blast by a leaping Albert Almora with a high catch on the wall. Tyler Naquin's eighth-inning two-RBI triple sealed the win.

Chris Bassitt sent down eight strikeouts across eight innings for the Mets, whose starters have pitched a league-best 2.21 ERA since July 5. The Mets have won 13 of their 15 games.

Orioles maintain Wild Card push

The in-form Baltimore Orioles boosted their AL Wild Card aspirations with a 7-4 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

Home runs from Ramon Urias, Anthony Santander, Ryan Mountcastle and Austin Hays helped the O's clinch their sixth win from their past seven games.

Felix Bautista closed out the victory, with Bo Bichette grounding into a double play, as the O's improved to 57-52 in the AL Wild Card hunt behind the Blue Jays (60-49), Tampa Bay Rays (58-50) and Mariners (59-52).

It was far from a warm welcome for newly acquired New York Yankees starting pitcher Frankie Montas, getting smacked around in a 12-9 away loss to the St Louis Cardinals.

Montas, who was traded from the Oakland Athletics before the deadline, struggled mightily, conceding six runs in the first two innings, with four coming off the bat of Nolan Arenado.

Arenado collected an RBI single in the first inning to cancel out an early Yankees run, and after the visiting side jumped ahead 4-1 in the second frame thanks in large part to a two-RBI base hit from AL MVP favourite Aaron Judge, it all began to fall apart.

Dylan Carlson's RBI double started the rally and cut the margin to 4-2, a sacrifice-fly from NL MVP favourite Paul Goldschmidt made it 4-3, and then Arenado connected on a three-run home run to lead 6-4 after two innings.

Montas would be pulled to begin the fourth frame, finishing with figures of six earned runs from five hits and three walks in his 64 pitches.

To the Yankees' credit, they refused to lay down, with Judge driving in another two runs with a double in the fifth inning to tie the game at 6-6, but the Cardinals continued to answer right back, adding three more runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth.

The Yankees again cut the lead to 9-8, but Paul DeJong put the game to bed in the eighth inning with a three-run homer to grab a winning break.

Overall, the teams combined for 21 runs from 27 hits, with Arenado going three-for-five at the plate with four RBIs, and Judge finishing two-for-five with four RBIs. Judge now leads the majors in RBIs with 97, two more than New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso.

DeGrom makes his case as the game's best pitcher

There were concerns that perhaps injuries would strip New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom of his status as the sport's most elite pitcher, but he continued to dispel that myth on Sunday in his side's 5-2 win against the Atlanta Braves.

DeGrom, in his second start of the season, struck out 12 of the 19 batters he faced, going on to finish with two earned runs from one hit and one walk in five-and-two-thirds innings.

Through five innings, deGrom had a perfect game with 10 strikeouts, but was pulled in the sixth after his first walk of the game was followed by a home run from Dansby Swanson to cut the Mets' lead to 5-2, with both bullpens keeping things scoreless the rest of the way.

Rays pull off improbable late rally

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, there had yet to be a run in the Tampa Bay Rays' road game against the Detroit Tigers, before an incredible offensive explosion saw the Rays prevail 7-0.

The Rays as a team conceded only three hits and no walks as six pitchers combined beautifully, while the Tigers relied on Matt Manning to get them through most of the game, pitching seven scoreless frames for seven baserunners and seven strikeouts.

In the ninth inning, after two outs, the Rays rattled off consecutive at-bats resulting in a double, three walks, a single, a double and another single as seven straight batters reached base.

Max Scherzer delivered 11 strikeouts across seven innings to cap a perfect day for the New York Mets who swept their divisional double-header with the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.

The Mets got past the Braves 8-5 in the matinee game, followed by a 6-2 victory in the evening led by Scherzer's impressive outing.

The wins were critical in the National League (NL) East where the Mets improved to a 69-39 record ahead of the reigning world champions at 64-45.

Scherzer was at his vintage best for the Mets, amid tension given the Braves had recently closed in on Mets in the race for first place ahead of the five-game series.

"This is what you play the game for," Scherzer said. "You play to face the best, especially deep in the season. You grind it out here in the NL East."

Scherzer's 11 KS means he sits fourth on the all-time MLB list for most 10 or more strikeout games by a pitcher with 109, behind Nolan Ryan (215), Randy Johnson (212) and Roger Clemens (110).

Yankees shut out as Montgomery stars

Jordan Montgomery came back to haunt his former employers only days after being traded as the St Louis Cardinals defeated the New York Yankees 1-0.

Montgomery pitched five scoreless innings for the Cardinals who triumphed courtesy of Paul Goldschmidt's first-inning run driven in by Nolan Arenado.

The Cards new left-handed pitcher, who was involved in the trade deal for Harrison Bader, only managed one strikeout but only allowed two hits and a walk.

Dodgers edge divisional rivals

Max Muncy's fifth-inning go-ahead three-run blast helped the Los Angeles Dodgers topple the San Diego Padres 8-3 in their National League (NL) West battle.

The Dodgers were trailing 3-2 at the time, but Muncy's intervention turned the tide. The Dodgers extend their lead in the NL West with a 74-33 record compared to the Padres who are 61-49.

The home run was Muncy's 11th for the season. Will Smith also had a solo home run, to finish with three hits with two runs and three RBIs.

The Houston Astros received a big boost from new recruit Trey Mancini as he blasted a pair of home runs, punctuated by a grand slam, in his side's 9-3 away win against the Cleveland Guardians on Friday.

Mancini, who was acquired from the Baltimore Orioles this past week, has now hit a home run in each of his two starts for his new club. In doing so, he became the first player in the modern era to hit a home run in his first two starts for his first two teams, after also accomplishing the feat back when he began with the O's.

He struck first in the second inning, tying the game at 1-1 after Amed Rosario hit his own home run to begin the game for the Guardians, and Mancini's second home run of the game came with bases loaded in the third frame for the first grand slam of his career.

Arguably the best hitter in baseball this season Yordan Alvarez went two-for-five and notched his 73rd RBI for the season – the seventh most in the league – and his future Hall-of-Fame teammate Jose Altuve tallied one RBI from his three hits.

On the mound, Framber Valdez secured his 18th consecutive 'quality start' – defined by a pitcher going at least six innings while conceding three or fewer runs – finishing with three earned runs from seven hits and three walks in his six-and-a-third innings.

He now leads the league with 19 quality starts, and his streak of 18 consecutive is the longest since Jacob deGrom rattled off 26 in a row beginning in May 2018.

The win moves the Astros' record to 70-38 – one game behind the New York Yankees for the best record in the American League.

Yankees, Holmes blow late lead 

The New York Yankees led nearly the entire game before eventually falling 4-3 to the St Louis Cardinals, courtesy of a blown save from All-Star reliever Clay Holmes.

Josh Donaldson drove in a pair of runs for the Yankees, while AL MVP favourite Aaron Judge collected two hits and came home to score twice, giving their side a 3-2 lead heading into the eighth inning.

Determined to take no risks, the Yankees brought in Holmes an inning early to try and get to the ninth inning with their lead still in tact, but it was not to be as Holmes conceded a walk and two hits, the second being a two-run double from Paul deJong to steal the lead.

Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley made no such mistakes, closing the door and collecting the save.

Gibson produces near-perfect start for the Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Kyle Gibson had a perfect game through six innings in his side's 7-2 win against the Washington Nationals.

Gibson retired the first 18 batters he faced, striking out three as he relied on strong fielding behind him to accumulate quick outs. His bid for a perfect game was eventually broken up by a hit-by-pitch to begin the seventh frame, and a single from the next batter ended the no-hitter.

He finished with one earned run from two hits and one walk in eight complete innings, while Kyle Schwarber hit his 34th home run of the season to help on the offensive side of the ball. Only Judge has more home runs this season than Schwarber.

Juan Soto scored on his San Diego Padres debut to rapturous applause as his new side won 9-1 over the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday.

Reigning Home Run Derby winner Soto, who sealed a Deadline Day trade from the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, was given a raucous applause upon his first at-bat by the Petco Park faithful.

Soto's first at-bat ended with a four-pitch walk, before hitting home plate when Jake Cronenworth was walked after being struck by Chad Kuhl's pitch.

However it was another new addition, Brandon Drury, who stole the show with a first-inning grand slam to open up a 5-0 lead with his 21st home run of the season.

Manny Machado and Cronenworth both hit home runs in the fifth inning, while Soto finished with two walks from his two at-bats, with the one run.

Cole aced by Mariners and Castillo

Gerrit Cole allowed six runs in the first inning as his poor form since the All-Star Game continued in the New York Yankees' 7-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday.

Cole was on the mound for the first inning, with blasts from Eugenio Suarez, Carlos Santana and Jarred Kelenic opening up a 6-0 lead. The last time Seattle hit three homers in the first inning of a game was in May 2002.

The six runs were the most allowed in any inning of the career of Cole, who became the second pitcher in the modern era to allow three homers in the first inning of a game multiple times in the same season. He has given up five or more earned runs in consecutive outings for the first time since 2017 and has an ERA of 7.00 in three starts since the All-Star Game, having gone at 3.02 prior to that.

Luis Castillo, in his first start for the Mariners, put on a clinic with eight strikeouts, allowing five hits across six-and-two-third innings.

Vogelbach grand slam in Mets triumph

Daniel Vogelbach hit a grand slam as the New York Mets knocked off the Washington Nationals 9-5 to improve their record to 66-38.

Pete Alonso blasted his 28th home run of the season in the second inning, which was also the 21st of his career against the Nats, which is the most of any opponent he has faced.

Vogelbach's moment came in the fifth inning with the Mets 2-0 up and bases loaded, hitting high deep down the right field line.

The Seattle Mariners rode a hot start to a strong 8-6 win on the road against the New York Yankees, despite missing rookie All-Star Julio Rodriguez.

With their 21-year-old superstar out of the lineup temporarily as he battles through a minor injury, Adam Frazier did a good impression in the lead-off spot, collecting two hits and two walks from his five plate appearances.

Early on, it was Eugenio Suarez coming through as he blasted a 432-foot, two-run homer in the opening frame, and Cal Raleigh made it 3-0 with his own solo shot an inning later.

A Carlos Santana sacrifice-fly made it 4-0 before the Yankees started to fight back, with Josh Donaldson's RBI double and Jose Trevino's two-run shot over the left-field wall trimming the margin to 4-3 in the fourth inning.

Santana drove in his second and third runs of the day with a clutch double in the fifth frame, but a pair of sixth-inning home runs to Yankees Donaldson and Anthony Rizzo had things tied at 6-6.

As was the theme on the day, every time the Yankees tried to make it a game again, the Mariners had the answers, again jumping straight back out in front through Sam Haggerty's pinch-hit home run in the seventh.

Frazier finished off the scoring with an RBI single in the top of the ninth, giving Mariners closer Andres Munoz an extra run of breathing room, and he finished off the save despite allowing a hit and two walks to load the bases.

Pirates win after a three-run Cruz missile

The Pittsburgh Pirates pulled off an upset win against Milwaukee Brewers ace Corbin Burnes, with rookie Oneil Cruz delivering the decisive blow.

After the Brewers hit three consecutive home runs in the sixth inning – courtesy of Willy Adames (355 feet), Rowdy Tellez (412 feet) and Kolten Wong (394 feet) – Cruz brought things back to square with his own three-run, 408-foot home run to get Burnes pulled from the game.

The Pirates ended up piling on another two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Wil Crowe coming in to strike out the side for the save.

Jacob deGrom returns in Mets loss

Arguably the best pitcher in all of baseball returned to action on Tuesday as Jacob deGrom started on the mound in the New York Mets' 5-1 loss to the Washington Nationals.

In his first start of the season after a series of injuries, deGrom looked like his devastating self, striking out four of the first six batters he faced, and going on to finish with figures of one earned run from three hits and no walks in five innings, striking out six.

As soon as deGrom was withdrawn from the game, the floodgates opened for the Nationals, connecting on three home runs across the next two innings to pull away for the win.

The Minnesota Twins signalled their win-now mindset with a trio of pitching moves, while the Los Angeles Dodgers took on a big-name reclamation project on Tuesday's MLB trade deadline day.

Minnesota lead their division by one game from the Cleveland Guardians, so the decision to push their chips into the middle and make a run at the playoffs is one that makes sense, and to make any noise, they needed pitching reinforcements.

A strong hitting side, the Twins are sixth in the majors in both on-base percentage (.321) and slugging percentage (.419) – but sit in the bottom half of the league in key pitching stats ERA (19th, giving up 4.03 runs per nine innings), strikeouts (21st) and walks allowed (19th).

Out of all 30 teams in the majors, only the Washington Nationals have had fewer 'quality starts' than the Twins – defined by the starting pitcher conceding three or fewer runs in six complete innings. The Nationals are also the only team to have less 'saves' collected by closing pitchers than the Twins.

In a bid to remedy both of those issues, the Twins acquired starting pitcher Tyler Mahle from the Cincinnati Reds, and All-Star closing pitcher Jorge Lopez from the Baltimore Orioles.

The nature of a starting pitcher is that they will throw more innings, and accumulate more overall value, but Lopez is arguably the more significant addition.

One of the best closers in all of baseball this season, 29-year-old Lopez boasts a terrific 1.68 ERA and is 10th in the league in saves with 19. He has allowed 47 total baserunners in 48 innings of work for an impressive WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 0.97.

Mahle, 27, does not have spectacular numbers this season (4.40 ERA), but that was mainly due to a rocky start.

He has since rebounded with a run of nine starts of at least five innings pitched with no more than four runs conceded, including back-to-back showings against the Arizona Diamondbacks where he totalled 22 strikeouts and one earned run from 15 innings.

Completing their haul, the Twins also traded pitching prospect Sawyer Gipson-Long for established reliever Michael Fulmer from the Detroit Tigers in another win-now move.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers acquired Joey Gallo from the New York Yankees in the midst of the power-hitting outfielder's worst season of his career.

Gallo, who has a pair of 40 home run seasons on his resume, and is still only 28 years old, has been a disaster since being traded to the Yankees last season, batting .159 with just 37 hits compared to 106 strikeouts.

One of the best teams in baseball, the Dodgers are hoping a change of scenery is all that is needed to re-energise the hard-hitting lefty, and they were able to acquire him as a depth piece for only minor league pitcher Clayton Beeter, who did not figure to contribute in any way to the major league side this eason.

League leader Aaron Judge continued his remarkable form after the All-Star Game with his 43rd home run of the season as the New York Yankees flexed with a 7-2 win over the Seattle Mariners on Monday.

Judge made majors history with his 10th home run since the All-Star Game, joining Albert Belle in achieving that feat in only 12 games after the break.

The Yankees outfielder had hit a first-inning double, before Anthony Rizzo's three-run blast – his 26th home run of the season – opened up an early 3-0 lead.

Judge took center stage in the second inning with his home run putting the Yankees up 5-1, marking 12 blasts in his past 14 games.

Jose Trevino got in on the act, after a lean month, with home runs in the fourth and eighth innings for his first career multi-homer game.

The result keeps the Yankees top of the American League (AL) East with a 70-34 record, while the Mariners are second in the AL West with a 55-49 record.

Judge leads the majors for home runs this season with 43 with a league-high .680 slugging percentage, batting at .299 with 89 runs, 115 hits and 93 RBIs.

Hot property Soto stars as Mets see off Nats

Amid trade speculation, Juan Soto underlined his value with the Washington Nationals with a fine all-round performance in their 7-3 loss to the New York Mets.

Soto showed off his speed around the bases to score for 1-0 in the first inning, before some brilliance from the outfield saw him throw out runner Tomas Nido on the home plate.

After Pete Alonso's 27th blast of the season put the Mets 4-1 up, Soto returned fire with his own home run in the fourth inning, his 21st of the year.

Francisco Lindor's sixth inning homer rounded out the win for the Mets who improve to 65-37.

Dodgers too strong for Giants

Max Muncy and Trea Turner both homered as the Los Angeles Dodgers proved too good for National League (NL) West rivals San Francisco Giants 8-2.

Muncy's second-inning two-run blast put the Dodgers ahead after Darin Ruf scored in the first, with Freddie Freeman driving in Mookie Betts in the fourth to open up a 4-1 lead.

Turner unleashed his 17th home run of the season at the top of the seventh inning with a fly ball to center field to settle the contest, helping the Dodgers move to 69-33 at the top of the NL West.

The San Diego Padres have made a key addition after trading in All-Star closer Josh Hader from the Milwaukee Brewers ahead of Tuesday's MLB Trade Deadline.

The addition of 28-year-old left-hander Hader is a major boost for the Padres, who have struggled in late-inning situations this season.

Hader is the 2022 league leader in saves, with 29 from 31 save opportunities this season, although he has career-worst 4.24 ERA which dipped to 12 during July.

The deal sees left-handed reliever Taylor Rogers, left-handed pitching prospect Robert Gasser, right-hander Dinelson Lamet and outfielder Esteury Ruiz sent to the Brewers.

"Josh Hader is one of the best closers in the league," Padres general manager A.J. Preller said.

"He's been there, done that, pitched in big spots, big playoff games. He's got elite stuff."

Hader, who has been with the Brewers since 2017, joins the Padres who have a 57-46 record to sit second in the National League West this season.

"Thank you for the support throughout my career," Hader wrote on Instagram. "Y'all have been great to me. The people, the energy, the love! There will always be a special place in my heart for MKE."

In other moves, the New York Yankees added right-handed starting pitcher Frankie Montas and closer Lou Trivino from the Oakland Athletics, along with reliever Scott Effross from the Chicago Cubs.

The Yankees, who have a 69-34 record, had previously brought in All-Star outfielder Andrew Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals.

The Houston Astros acquired first baseman Trey Mancini from the Baltimore Orioles along with catcher Christian Vazquez from the Boston Red Sox.

According to reports, outfielder Tommy Pham is set to join the Red Sox from the Cincinnati Reds.

The New York Yankees made a move to bolster their already strong bullpen on Monday by acquiring right-hander Scott Effross from the Chicago Cubs for minor league pitcher Hayden Wesneski.

Effross made his major league debut for the Cubs last August and had a 3.68 earned run average (ERA) over 14 2/3 innings in 2021.

He has been solid this season, posting a 2.66 ERA with 50 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 44 innings over 47 appearances.

New York entered Monday's action with the best record in the AL at 69-34, and their 2.92 bullpen ERA ranks second in the majors behind the Houston Astros (2.79).

The Yankees, though, recently lost right-hander Michael King (6-3, 2.29 ERA, 66 strikeouts in 51 innings) to a season-ending elbow injury and were looking to upgrade their relief corps ahead of Tuesday's MLB trade deadline.

Wesneski was a sixth-round selection by the Yankees in the 2019 Amateur Draft. The right-hander has gone 6-7 with a 3.51 ERA in 19 starts this season at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.