Francisco Alvarez's solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the New York Mets to a dramatic 4-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles in Monday's opener of an important three-game series for both teams.

With one out and the game tied at 3-3, Alvarez crushed a 3-0 fastball from Seranthony Dominguez well clear of the wall in left center field to allow the Mets to close the gap in the National League wild card race and knock the Orioles out of first place in the American League East.

J.D. Martinez had a two-run homer in the first inning for New York, which moved within 1 1/2 games of the Atlanta Braves for the NL's final wild card spot with its third win in four games.

The Orioles have now lost three of four and dropped a half-game back of the idle New York Yankees for the AL's top spot.

Baltimore made it interesting, however, by scoring twice in the seventh inning to erase a 3-1 deficit.

Ryan Mountcastle began the rally with a lead-off double and took third on a groundout before being forced home when Mets starter David Peterson was called for a balk. Ramon Urias then followed with a solo home run to knot the score at 3-3.

Peterson had been cruising up until that point and departed after allowing three runs - two earned - while striking out eight through seven innings.

Martinez followed a first-inning single by Mark Vientos with his 13th homer of the season to give the Mets an early advantage. They increased the margin to 3-0 in the fourth when Pete Alonso doubled and later crossed the plate on Tyrone Taylor's two-out single.

The Orioles answered in the fifth with the help of an error by Peterson, who threw errantly on a pickoff attempt to send Urias to third after the infielder reached on a double. Urias would then score on a groundout by Jackson Holliday.

Urias and Mountcastle each finished with two hits for the Orioles, while Baltimore starter Trevor Rogers struck out five while permitting three runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Diaz's homer in ninth caps rally, keeps Astros hot

The Houston Astros also earned a key win via a walk-off home run, as Yainer Diaz's ninth-inning blast gave the AL West leaders a 5-4 comeback victory over the Boston Red Sox.

Houston scored once in each of the final two innings to rally for its 11th win in 12 games, with Diaz delivering the final blow by launching Kenley Jansen's pitch well over the left field wall with one out in the bottom of the ninth.

The Astros tied the game at 4-4 with a two-out rally an inning earlier, as Chas McCormick singled off reliever Lucas Sims and stole second before racing home on Mauricio Dubon's clutch single.

Yordan Alvarez and Victor Caratini each collected three hits to help Houston increase its lead over the second-place Seattle Mariners to five games in the division.

The slumping Red Sox lost for the eighth time in 12 games despite taking a 4-2 lead on Masataka Yoshida's pinch-hit two-run homer off reliever Tayler Scott in the top of the sixth inning. Romy Gonzalez was aboard for the blast after reaching on an error by Houston second baseman Jose Altuve, one of a season-high four miscues for the Astros.

Houston got closer in its half of the sixth, however. Back-to-back singles by Jeremy Pena and Caratini put runners on first and third for Jon Singleton, who drove in Pena with a sacrifice fly to trim the lead to 4-3. 

Astros starter Yusei Kikuchi struck out seven over 5 2/3 innings while allowing three runs, one earned, though his night began ominously when Boston's Jarren Duran connected on his 16th homer of the season on the game's first pitch.

Rob Refsnyder and Rafael Devers each singled later in the first inning before another Houston error - a misplay by rookie third baseman Shay Whitcomb - enabled another run to score.

The Astros were held scoreless by Tanner Houck through the first three innings before breaking through in the bottom of the fourth, which Alvarez began with a double and Diaz followed with a single. Alvarez was later thrown out at home on a fielder's choice grounder, but Caratini singled in Diaz and Pena also scored on the play on an errant throw by Boston catcher Danny Jansen.

Houck worked six innings and struck out eight while surrendering three runs - two earned.

Stone, Muncy propel Dodgers over Mariners in Turner's Los Angeles return

Gavin Stone racked up a career-high 10 strikeouts in seven innings, Max Muncy homered in his first game back from the injured list, and the Los Angeles Dodgers spoiled Justin Tuner's return to Dodger Stadium with a 3-0 win over the Seattle Mariners.

Muncy, sidelined since May 16 by a right oblique strain, came through with a two-run homer in the seventh inning to back Stone's superb start and help the Dodgers win the opener of this three-game series between playoff hopefuls.

Gavin Lux homered earlier in the seventh to break a scoreless deadlock and a terrific pitching duel between Stone and Bryan Woo, who had allowed just one hit until Lux drove a pitch over the wall in center field.

Woo (5-2) then hit Will Smith with a pitch and was removed in favour of Yimi Garcia, who was greeted by Muncy's towering drive to right that quickly made the lead 3-0.

Stone (11-5) yielded just two hits and two walks before departing, with Joe Kelly pitching a scoreless eighth before Evan Phillips retired the side in order in the ninth to notch his 16th save.

Woo was charged with two runs in 6 1/3 innings in slumping Seattle's sixth loss in seven games. The defeat dropped the Mariners five games back of first-place Houston in the AL West.

Turner went 1 for 3 in his first appearance at Dodger Stadium in nearly two years. The 39-year-old infielder made two NL All-Star teams during a successful nine-year tenure with the Dodgers from 2014-22. 

Justin Turner homered twice and tied a career high with six RBIs and Masataka Yoshida had two of Boston’s eight doubles as the Red Sox pounded the rival New York Yankees 15-5 on Friday.

Turner’s two-run homer off Domingo German in the second inning extended Boston’s lead to 4-1 and he capped a six-run third with a grand slam - a 429-foot blast to center - to make it 10-1.

Turner fell a triple shy of the cycle and drove in six runs for the second time in his career, also done against the Atlanta Braves while with the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 7, 2019.

Yoshida put Boston ahead to stay with a two-run double in the first inning, singled in the six-run third and doubled again and scored in the sixth. The Japanese rookie had his first four-hit game in the majors. 

The Red Sox tacked on three more runs in the fourth inning on a two-run single by Connor Wong and an RBI hit by Pablo Reyes.

Josh Donaldson homered and Anthony Rizzo knocked in three runs for New York.

There was a scary incident in the fifth inning when Boston starter Tanner Houck was struck on the face with a line drive off the bat of Kyle Higashioka. Houck immediately went to the ground and stayed down for a few minutes but was able to leave the field under his own power with a towel covering his cheek.

The Red Sox later announced that Houck received stitches and was checked out at a hospital.

Rays’ McClanahan first in majors to 11 wins

Shane McClanahan became the first pitcher in the major leagues to win 11 games, pitching into the seventh inning in the Tampa Bay Rays’ 6-2 victory over the San Diego Padres.

McClanahan, who entered as the only MLB pitcher with 10 wins, held the Padres to one run and three hits over 6 2/3 innings with three walks and five strikeouts. He won his third consecutive start and lowered his ERA to 2.12.

Isaac Paredes hit a solo home run and Randy Arozarena added a three-run shot and four RBIs to help major league-leading Tampa Bay win its third straight.

Arraez goes 5 for 5 with home run in Marlins’ win

Luis Arraez ended an 0-for-15 slump with a 5-for-5 performance that included a home run and three RBIs as the Miami Marlins topped the Washington Nationals 6-5.

Arraez had four singles and his first home run since April 11, ending a 52-game stretch without one. The five hits matched his career high, set June 3 against Oakland.

The Marlins won for the 10th time in 13 games to improve to 39-31, their best 70-game start since they went 42-28 in 1997, when they won the World Series.

New Boston Red Sox signing Justin Turner was taken to hospital to receive 16 stitches in his face after being nailed by a fastball during the first inning of Monday's spring training game against the Detroit Tigers.

Turner, 38, is a two-time All-Star with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he spent the previous nine seasons before signing with the Red Sox as a free agent in December.

Starting at first base on Monday, and batting third in the line-up, Turner stepped up to the plate in the first inning following a four-pitch walk to Rafael Devers.

Tigers starter Matt Manning was struggling with his control, and the first pitch he threw to Turner tailed up and in, missing his helmet and drilling him directly in the face.

Blood immediately started to flow and the medical staff raced to his aid, although he was able to walk off the field under his own strength with a blood-soaked towel over his face.

He was taken to a local medical facility in Florida where he received 16 stitches in his face, but Turner's wife, Kourtney, shared a positive update through social media.

"16 stitches and a lot of swelling but we are thanking God for no fractures and clear scans," she wrote. 

"Thank you to everyone that reached out about Justin and sent prayers. We're home now and he's resting (okay – maybe listening to the replay of the game)."

In a statement, the Red Sox said: "He's receiving treatment for soft tissue injuries, and is being monitored for a concussion. He will undergo further testing, and we'll update as we have more information. 

"Justin is stable, alert, and in good spirits given the circumstances."

Shohei Ohtani became the first player in American League/National League history to record 10 wins on the mound and 30 home runs after his go-ahead blast in the Los Angeles Angels' 3-2 triumph over the New York Yankees.

The Angels two-way star homered at the bottom of the sixth inning off Gerrit Cole with two runners on and his side trailing 2-0.

Ohtani's three-run shot means he has three homers in his past four games and delivered the winning blast for the second time in the three-game series against the Yankees.

He also became the first Japanese-born player with multiple 30-homer seasons, after blasting 46 home runs last year.

Aaron Hicks had made a leaping catch on the wall in the first inning to deny Ohtani, who had four at-bats for his three RBI.

Left-hander Patrick Sandoval allowed two runs on three hits over seven innings for the Angels, while the Yankees move to 79-52.

Nimmo robs Turner with unbelievable catch

Brandon Nimmo plucked one of the catches of the season to rob Justin Turner a game-tying homer in the New York Mets' 2-1 triumph over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

At the top of the seventh inning, Turner blasted Jacob deGrom over his head to deep center field where a leaping Nimmo produced his moment of magic.

Starling Marte hit a two-run homer, while DeGrom was typically stingy with nine strikeouts across seven innings and only three hits, before Edwin Diaz closed it out.

Albert Pujols closed in further on 700 career home runs after blasting two homers in the St Louis Cardinals' 16-7 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday.

The 42-year-old, who started the game on 690 home runs, blasted over deep left center for a second-inning home run from Madison Bumgarner to put the Cards up 3-0.

Pujols made it a multi-homer game with a near-identical blast from a 3-2 pitch from Bumgarner in the fourth inning, bringing up his 692nd career home run.

The 11-time All-Star, who has said this is his last season, had hit a career-first pinch-hit grand slam earlier this week against the Colorado Rockies.

Pujols backed that up with a four-hit game, with a sixth-inning hit slamming into the wall for a single, while he grounded to left field in the seventh.

The veteran passed Stan Musial into second for total bases in majors' history in the process, reaching 6,143.

Pujols also closed within two home runs of Alex Rodriguez (694) in fourth for most homers all-tme.

Yankees slump again as Cole jeered

Aaron Boone was left fuming once again as the New York Yankees slumped to their 15th loss from their past 19 games, going down 5-2 to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Gerrit Cole had not allowed a hit until the Jays piled on four fifth-inning runs to pull clear, leaving the home crowd to jeer the Yankees pitcher who was televised yelling and punching the dugout.

The defeat means the Yankees are 9-20 since the All-Star break, with their margin over second-placed Toronto down to seven games in the American League East.

May on fire in Dodgers return

Right-hander Dustin May returned with nine strikeouts in five scoreless innings in his first game in 15 months as the Los Angeles Dodgers won 7-0 over the Miami Marlins.

May had not played since May 2021, dating back 476 days, having undergone Tommy John surgery but he exploded back on to the scene for the Dodgers, falling one short of a career-high for Ks.

Justin Turner and Will Smith both blasted three-run homers for the Dodgers, who improved to 83-36 in the National League.

Former World Series champion Jorge Soler has been cleared to return for the Atlanta Braves ahead of Game 5 of the National League Championship Series (NLCS) against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday.

The Braves opened up a 3-1 NLCS lead with Wednesday's 9-2 victory, leaving the World Series champions needing to win three elimination games to progress.

Soler has been absent for the Braves after testing positive to COVID-19 during their National League Division Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The 2019 American League run leader hit .269 with 14 home runs and 33 RBIs across 55 games for Atlanta after his trade deadline deal from the Kansas City Royals.

"He's been working out on his own," Braves manager Brian Snitker said. "I think he's good to go. That's a great weapon off the bench right there."

The Dodgers have lost third baseman Justin Turner to a hamstring injury, with Andy Burns added to their roster to replace him.

Turner hit .278 with 27 home runs, 87 RBIs and 148 hits across the regular season.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has revealed his misfiring offense has been dealt another blow in the National League Championship Series (NLCS) with Justin Turner ruled out for the postseason.

The Dodgers were beaten 9-2 by the Atlanta Braves, who took a 3-1 lead in the NLCS, meaning the World Series champions will need to three elimination games to progress.

LA only managed four hits for the game, with their only runs coming from A.J. Pollock's fifth inning two-run single. The Dodgers also only managed four hits in the 5-4 loss to the Braves in Game 2.

Turner, who hit at .278 with 27 home runs, 87 RBIs and 148 hits across the regular season, also limped out of Game 4 with a hamstring injury when running to first base in the seventh inning in a further blow.

"Early indications is it's a grade two [hamstring]. I think that'll be it for him," Roberts said during the post-game news conference. "Obviously he's very disappointed.

"We're talking through [his replacement] right now. It'll be a position player but not sure who."

Roberts had no answers when asked to explain his side's inconsistent offensive performance throughout the series, needing Cody Bellinger's miraculous eighth-inning three-run blast to rescue a 6-5 victory in Game 3.

"That's a very fair question," Roberts said when asked about the inconsistency. "I know it's not from a lack of work or preparation, so the last part is execution.

"I just don’t have an answer. Every time I write the lineup out, I feel very good, but it just hasn’t been as consistent as anyone expected… We've got to change that. I wish I had an answer."

Thursday's Game 5 will represent the fourth game this postseason that the Dodgers have faced elimination.

The Dodgers also trailed the Braves 3-1 in last year's NLCS, before storming back to win the next three games and the World Series, offering Roberts hope.

"You never want to have your back against the wall, that's not how you draw it up," he said. "We have a very resilient team, a very tough team.

"It's not going to get much tougher than facing Max Fried in an elimination game but we've done it before. We've got to win tomorrow and I believe we're equipped to win tomorrow's ball game."

Eddie Rosario starred as the Atlanta Braves moved within one win of the World Series thanks to a 9-2 victory over defending champions the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.

Rosario delivered four hits, four RBIs and three runs in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series (NLCS), including a ninth-inning three-run homer to ice the victory, giving the Braves a commanding 3-1 series lead in the MLB playoffs.

Atlanta raced to a 4-0 lead after three innings via solo home runs from Rosario, Adam Duvall and Freddie Freeman, before Joc Pederson drove in Rosario.

A.J. Pollock hit a two-run single in the fifth inning to offer hope of another Dodgers fightback following Tuesday's 6-5 win, but the Braves pulled away again led by Rosario – who became the first-ever player with two four-hit NLCS games. The 30-year-old is hitting at .600 with nine-for-15 in the NLCS.

Rosario needed a double from his ninth inning at-bat to complete a cycle and become the second player in MLB history to achieve the feat, but instead settled for a game-sealing three-run blast. 

According to Stats Perform, Rosario is the first player in major league playoff history to have two four-hit games in a three-game span in a single postseason.

Teams with a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series have won 75 of 89 times. To make matters worse for the Dodgers – who are on the brink of elimination and being dethroned, Justin Turner limped out of the game with an apparent hamstring injury.

The Houston Astros shut down the Boston Red Sox behind Framber Valdez as they delivered a five-run sixth-inning rally to cruise to a 9-1 triumph and a 3-2 lead in the American League Championship Series (ALCS).

Valdez pitched eight innings, allowing only three hits and one earned run with five strikeouts, with the Red Sox only managing three hits for the game at Fenway Park in Boston.

Yordan Alvarez, who had a second-inning homer and finished with three hits, drove in two during the fifth inning, along with Jose Siri with a fly ball to open a 6-0 lead.

The Astros had won 9-2 in Game 4, meaning the Red Sox have allowed nine or more runs and been held to five or fewer hits in back-to-back wins for the first time ever at Fenway Park.

Houston, meanwhile, are the first team in MLB postseason history to be trailing in a series and then win back-to-back games on the road by seven-plus runs, according to Stats Perform.

Braves at Dodgers

The Braves can secure their first World Series appearance since 1999 when they face the Dodgers in Game 5 of the NLCS on Thursday.

Dave Roberts refused to blame either Cody Bellinger or Justin Turner for the bizarre mix-up that cost the Los Angeles Dodgers in their Opening Day defeat to the Colorado Rockies.

World Series champions the Dodgers outhit the Rockies 15-11, had eight runners on base via walk and 20 total bases, but they scored only five runs.

While an 8-5 defeat ultimately was not decided by one play, the first run of the game summed up a day on which manager Roberts said "all the way around, we didn't play well".

Bellinger hit a home run at the top of the third, with Turner already at first base.

But rather than a two-run homer, Bellinger ended up being given out and had to settle for a one-run RBI.

His hit slipped through the glove of left fielder Raimel Tapia before clearing the park and Turner thought the ball had been caught, meaning he hared back to first and passed the advancing Bellinger in the process.

"I don't think there's blame to be placed," Roberts said.

"I think Cody was coming out of the box hard, which he should have, and he's looking at where the ball was at, going hard.

"Justin was just past second base and when he saw the ball in Tapia's glove, he retreated and put his head down to try to get back to potentially be doubled up.

"And then at that point in time, they just kind of crossed between first and second."

The Dodgers finished with a 43-17 record last season and went 7-3 against the Rockies, with their results against the rest of the NL West a slightly more modest 20-10.

They will hope there are few further mishaps in 2021, although Roberts was also reluctant to criticise the umpire.

"From what I understand, he didn't give the out call, so he was just trying to see it," Roberts said. "And once he did see the ball go over, he gave the home run call.

"At that point in time, Justin had already retreated.

"It's just one of those funky plays that I don't think is going to happen again this year."

Three of first baseman Bellinger's 12 homers last season came against the Rockies and he will get the opportunity to atone for Thursday's error on Friday.