The Boston Red Sox emerged 13-9 victors in an action-packed game against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday.
It continued a high-scoring series after the Orioles won the opener on Monday 14-8, marking the first time either team have played in back-to-back games this season totaling 22 or more runs.
Despite the loss, it was a memorable game for Orioles left-fielder Anthony Santander as he finished three-for-five at the plate with two home runs. Incredibly, it is the third time in the past four games he has hit multiple home runs, rocketing him up to 12th in the majors with 33 this season.
The Red Sox only had one home run in the game – a two-run shot from rookie Triston Casas, who finished three-for-four at the plate – but they scored all 13 runs within the first four innings.
Lead-off hitter Tommy Pham led the way with three RBIs, while Casas, Rafael Devers and Connor Wong had two each.
Standout Orioles rookie Adley Rutschman also went deep for his 13th home run of the season, quickly becoming one of the best young catchers in the sport.
In a difficult start on the mound for Boston's Michael Wacha, his six earned runs in three-and-a-third innings raised his ERA for the season from 2.70 up to 3.06.
Blue Jays walk Judge four times in Yankees win
The Toronto Blue Jays made headlines when they intentionally walked New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge in extra innings on Monday, and they still wanted nothing to do with him in Tuesday's 5-2 loss.
Toronto only issued four walks in the whole game, and all four went to Judge. None were credited as intentional walks, with all four coming after he worked his way to a full-count.
With Judge not getting much of a chance to swing the bat, it was Gleyber Torres picking up the slack, going three-for-five at the plate with three RBIs, while Anthony Rizzo and Aaron Hicks also drove in one run each.
Jameson Taillon pitched a quality start for the Yankees, giving up two earned runs in seven-and-a-third innings.
With the win, the Yankees clinched the AL East for the 20th time – the second-most division titles for any team, trailing only the Atlanta Braves with 21.
Acuna delivers for the Braves
Ronald Acuna Jr hit home runs in back-to-back at-bats in the Atlanta Braves' 8-2 road win against the Washington Nationals.
Both of Acuna's home runs were solo shots, while Rookie of the Year hopefully Michael Harris II also collected a pair of RBIs as he finished two-for-five with a triple and an infield-single.
The Braves are tied with the New York Mets for the lead in the NL East, with a three-game series between the two sides still to come.
MLB: Astros hit 3 homers, boost wild-card hopes with win over Mariners
Mauricio Dubon hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and Michael Brantley had four hits to lead the Houston Astros to an 8-3 win over the Seattle Mariners in a testy game featuring teams battling for a wild card.
Yordan Alvarez and Martin Maldonado also went deep for the Astros, who took two of three in the series and pulled within one-half game of Toronto for the second wild card in the AL.
They also moved one game ahead of Seattle and remained 2 ½ games behind West-leading Texas, which defeated the Angels 5-0.
It was the fifth loss in six games for the Mariners, who host Texas for the final four games of the season starting Thursday.
Tensions flared at the end of the sixth inning after Astros reliever Hector Neris struck out Julio Rodriguez.
Neris charged at Rodriguez while yelling and that caused both benches and bullpens to clear, though no punches were thrown.
Alvarez led off the fourth inning with his 31st home run to make it 1-1, and after Jose Abreu and Brantley singled, Dubon took Bryce Miller over the wall in left for a 4-1 lead.
Seattle made it a one-run game in the bottom half on Eugenio Suarez’s two-run single, but Houston struck for three runs in the seventh on Kyle Tucker’s run-scoring double and RBI singles by Abreu and Brantley.
Orioles win to trim magic number to one
Adley Rutschman homered and drove in three runs to back Grayson Rodriguez’s strong start and the Baltimore Orioles took another step toward the AL East title with a 5-1 win over the Washington Nationals.
Baltimore’s fourth straight win and 99th of the season means it can clinch its first division title since 2014 with a win or a loss by Tampa Bay.
The Orioles haven’t won 100 games since going 100-62 in 1980.
Rutschman opened the scoring in the third with a two-run blast – his 20th – off Patrick Corbin and added an RBI single in the fifth.
Rodriguez allowed a run and six hits over 5 2/3 innings before Baltimore’s bullpen finished with 3 1/3 perfect innings.
Marlins split doubleheader, tie for final NL wild card
The Miami Marlins scored twice in the ninth inning with the help of an error and defeated the New York Mets 4-2 in the nightcap for a doubleheader split.
After losing the opener 11-2, the Marlins were tied 2-2 entering the ninth inning of the second game and loaded the bases on two singles and an intentional walk.
Xavier Edwards scored the go-ahead run when third baseman Brett Baty flubbed a grounder by pinch-hitter Yuli Gurriel Jr. One out later, Bryan De La Cruz’s single made it 4-2.
Jon Berti and Jesus Sanchez homered in the second game for Miami, which is tied for the third wild card with the Cubs, who lost 6-5 in 10 innings to Atlanta.
New York’s Francisco Lindor had three home runs and six RBIs in the doubleheader.
MLB: Phillies clinch postseason berth with walk-off, 10-inning win over Pirates
The Philadelphia Phillies clinched a return trip to the postseason in thrilling style, as rookie Johan Rojas delivered an RBI single in the 10th inning for a walk-off 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.
The defending National League champion Phillies lost the World Series to the Houston Astros last season and now will have a chance to take it one step further.
After Jeff Hoffman worked a scoreless top of the 10th, Rojas’ single up the middle off David Bednar easily scored pinch-runner Cristian Pache and sent the crowd of more than 30,000 fans into a frenzy.
The Phillies celebrated their first clinch of a postseason spot at Citizens Bank Park since Sept. 18, 2011, when they won their fifth straight NL East title.
Brandon Marsh homered for Philadelphia, which is poised to earn the No. 1 wild card and host all games next week in the second year of the wild-card series.
Bryce Harper’s sacrifice fly in the sixth gave the Phillies a 2-0 lead but Bryan Reynolds homered in the seventh and Henry Davis took Craig Kimbrel deep in the eighth to forge a 2-2 tie.
Aaron Nola limited the Pirates to one run and four hits over 6 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts.
Pittsburgh’s Mitch Keller took a no-hitter into the sixth before Marsh’s 11th home run opened the scoring.
Suzuki commits costly error, Cubs blow 6-run lead in loss
Seiya Suzuki dropped a fly ball in the eighth inning to allow the tying and go-ahead runs to score as the Chicago Cubs squandered a six-run lead in a disheartening 7-6 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
The loss gave Milwaukee the NL Central title and dropped the Cubs a game behind Arizona for the second of three NL wild cards.
Chicago is one-half game ahead of fourth-place Miami, which was rained out at the Mets.
Ronald Acuna Jr hit his 41st home run – a two-run shot - in the seventh to pull Atlanta within 6-5 after the Braves scored three in the sixth on Kevin Pillar’s homer, Matt Olson’s RBI single and Marcell Ozuna’s double.
Pilllar’s drive made the Braves the third team in major league history (2019 Twins, 2019 Yankees) with 300 home runs in a season.
Kirby stifles Astros in Mariners’ win
George Kirby pitched six scoreless innings and the Seattle Mariners took advantage of three Houston errors to snap a four-game losing streak with a 6-2 win over the Astros.
Kirby allowed five hits with one walk and four strikeouts to win his second straight start.
Cal Raleigh had two hits and one RBI and Ty France homered to help Seattle pull within one-half game of Houston in the race for the final AL wild card.
Jose Altuve had three hits for the Astros, who tied a season high with three errors and dropped to 9-14 this month.
Orioles great and Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson dies at 86
Hall of Fame third baseman and Baltimore Orioles icon Brooks Robinson has died, the team announced in a statement Tuesday. He was 86 years old.
The smooth-fielding third baseman was so iconic to the Baltimore franchise that he was nicknamed “Mr. Oriole.”
An 18-time All-Star selection, Robinson won 16 consecutive Gold Gloves, the most ever by a position player, and was voted the AL’s Most Valuable Player in 1964. He was named the World Series MVP in 1970 after the Orioles defeated the “Big Red Machine” Cincinnati Reds.
The Robinson family and Orioles released a joint statement reading, “We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Brooks Robinson. An integral part of our Orioles Family since 1955, he will continue to leave a lasting impact on our club, our community, and the sport of baseball.”
An 18-year-old Robinson made his MLB debut for the Orioles in 1955 but continued to spend some of his time in the minor leagues until July 1959. He won his first Gold Glove in 1960.
Robinson played his entire career in Baltimore until 1977, when he retired mid-season after hitting .149 in 24 games. The Orioles retired his iconic No. 5 jersey later that year.
On Sept. 29, 2012, the Orioles unveiled a statue of Robinson outside of Camden Yards.
“Brooks Robinson truly was Mr. Oriole,” the club said in a statement. “He played the game for 23 years with a childlike spirit, earning MVP awards in the American League, All-Star Game and World Series. Third basemen from all levels of the game will forever look to Brooks for inspiration.
“Off the field, there was not a kinder, more giving person who embraced the Baltimore community and gave his time and energy to support causes large and small. He embodied everything great not only about the Orioles, but the game of baseball and the city of Baltimore.
“The Orioles were blessed to have Brooks as a player and broadcaster for 39 years and, for the past five years, as a Special Advisor and Community Liaison.”
Robinson’s case as a Hall of Fame player was cemented in the 1970 World Series, during which he dazzled spectators and his Cincinnati opponents alike with remarkable defensive plays and delivered timely hits as the Orioles avenged their loss in the 1969 Series to the Mets.
“I’m beginning to see Brooks in my sleep,” Reds manager Sparky Anderson said during the Series. “If I dropped this paper plate, he’d pick it up on one hop and throw me out at first.”
Anderson later added, “He can throw his glove out there, and it will start 10 double plays by itself.”
Robinson crucially hit a tiebreaking home run in the seventh inning of Game 1 and finished the 1970 Series batting .429 with two home runs, two doubles and six RBIs, making him an obvious choice for World Series MVP.
Robinson played in four World Series and helped the Orioles win two of the franchise’s three championships.
He accumulated 2,848 hits in his 23-year career while batting .267, adding 268 home runs and 1,357 RBIs.
Robinson was at his best when the stakes were highest, batting .303 in 39 career playoff games.
After hearing of Robinson’s passing, the baseball community was effusive in its praise of an all-time great.
“Today is an incredibly sad day for Baltimore and baseball fans everywhere,” fellow O’s Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. said on social media. “Brooks was Mr. Oriole. He was beloved and rightfully so. His historical career on the field pales to the impact he's made on so many of us.”
Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, who was Robinson’s teammate for 13 years, commented on MASN before the Orioles’ game on Tuesday. “I think as a young player you make a decision early in your life – who do I want to emulate? Who do I want to be like? Brooks was that guy.”
Brooks Calbert Robinson Jr. was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, on May 18, 1937. He is survived by his wife Constance, their children Brooks David, Christopher, Michael and Diana, 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
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