Adam Wainwright worked around traffic on the bases to pitch five solid innings and earned the 199th win of his career as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the AL-leading Baltimore Orioles 5-2 on Tuesday.

Wainwright gave up seven hits and three walks but allowed just two runs, thanks in large part to his defense turning three groundball double plays.

The 42-year-old right-hander got win No. 198 on June 17 and had been 0-10 with a 10.72 ERA over his previous 11 games heading into Tuesday’s start.

Richie Palacios hit two solo home runs and Paul Goldschmidt hit his 24th of the season to provide support for Wainwright, whose quest for the 200-win milestone has become the last remaining point of interest for a disappointing Cardinals team.

As long as he remains healthy, Wainwright will likely have three chances to get his 200th win this season and his next start is scheduled for Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Orioles left-hander John Means took the loss, pitching in his first game since April 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Means gave up four hits and three runs in five innings while throwing 75 pitches.

Baltimore went 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on.

Olson hits milestone homer in Braves’ win

Matt Olson hit his major league-leading 51st home run to match the Atlanta Braves’ season record in a 7-6 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in 10 innings on Tuesday.

Marcell Ozuna had a three-run homer and Ronald Acuna Jr. added a two-run shot to reduce Atlanta’s number for its sixth straight NL East title to one.

The Braves blew a 6-1 lead, but Eddie Rosario had an RBI single in the top of the 10th and Brad Hand worked a scoreless bottom half.

Trea Turner tied it at 6 in the ninth - his 11th home run in 13 games - off closer Raisel Iglesias.

Bryce Harper notched his 1,500th hit with his 17th home run in the eighth and Bryson Stott hit a two-run shot in the inning to draw the Phillies within 6-5.

Rangers’ Scherzer exits in win over Blue Jays

Max Scherzer pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings before leaving with a right triceps spasm and the Texas Rangers picked up a key 6-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

Scherzer allowed three hits, walked one and struck out two while throwing 73 pitches.

He was removed after feeling discomfort on his first pitch to Bo Bichette in the sixth and will undergo an MRI on Wednesday.

Robbie Grossman hit a two-run homer and Corey Seager had three hits for Texas, which won its fourth straight to leapfrog Toronto in the AL wild-card race and pull within one game of AL West-leading Houston.

Matt Olson extended his major-league lead with his 49th and 50th home runs of the season, but the Philadelphia Phillies chased Kyle Wright and beat the Atlanta Braves, 7-5, on Monday to split a doubleheader between the National League East's top two teams. 

In the opener, Braves closer Raisel Iglesias blew a save opportunity by allowing two runs in the ninth, but Kevin Pillar and Orlando Arcia had RBI hits in the 10th to lift Atlanta to a 10-8 win.

Olson had a three-run homer in the third inning and a solo shot in the sixth to become the first left-handed hitter to reach the 50-home run milestone since Chris Davis had 53 for the Baltimore Orioles in 2013.

The first baseman is only the second player in Braves history to hit the mark along with Andruw Jones, who hit 51 in 2005. 

The Phillies hung six runs on Wright in three-plus innings and Brandon Marsh had a solo homer in the fifth to add insurance as Philadelphia stayed atop the NL wild card standings. The Phillies' lead over Chicago for the top spot was trimmed to two games, however, after the Cubs rallied for a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies. 

Atlanta's win in the opener reduced the Braves' magic number to four to capture their sixth straight NL East title, which they can clinch by winning the final two contests of this four-game series. 

Heim's grand slam highlights Rangers' rout of Blue Jays

Jonah Heim capped a five-run seventh inning with a grand slam as the Texas Rangers pulled away for a 10-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in the opener of a key four-game series between American League playoff contenders.

The victory put the Rangers a half-game ahead of slumping Seattle for the AL's final wild card spot and allowed Texas to close the gap on first-place Houston in the AL West. The Astros were dealt a 4-0 loss by the Oakland Athletics, while the Mariners suffered their fourth straight loss with an 8-5, 11-inning defeat to the Los Angeles Angels.

Texas is now two games back of the Astros and also moved within a half-game of Toronto for the AL's second wild card.

Heim also had an RBI double in the top of the sixth inning before connecting for his third career grand slam, a blast off Genesis Cabrera that staked the Rangers to a 10-3 lead.

Evan Carter added two hits, including his first major league home run, to back six solid innings from Rangers starter Dane Dunning. Corey Seager and Robbie Grossman also finished with two hits and an RBI.

Dunning struck out seven while allowing three runs to record his 10th win of the season. 

Cavan Biggio homered for Toronto and drove in two of the Blue Jays' four runs.

Woodruff throws first shutout as NL Central-leading Brewers trounce Marlins

Brandon Woodruff spun a six-hitter for his first career shutout and the Milwaukee Brewers racked up 17 hits in a 12-0 rout of the Miami Marlins that opened a four-game series.

Woodruff struck out seven while issuing just one walk in a 106-pitch masterpiece that helped Milwaukee to its third win in four games. The Brewers maintained a three-game edge on the second-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central standings.

The right-hander got plenty of offensive support as the Brewers battered Miami starter Jesus Luzardo for six runs in five innings, then scored five times off the Marlins' bullpen in the sixth.

Willy Adames led the charge with three hits and four RBIs, while Tyrone Taylor went 3 for 5 with two RBIs and Mark Canha homered among his two hits.

The Marlins entered the series having won eight of 10 to get back into the NL wild-card race, where they now trail Arizona by 1 1/2 games for the final spot. The Diamondbacks came through with a 4-3 win over the New York Mets on Monday. 

The New York Yankees didn't get their first hit until the 11th inning of Sunday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers, yet still managed to pull out a dramatic 4-3 victory in 13 innings against the National League Central leaders.

New York trailed 1-0 when Oswaldo Cabrera broke up the no-hit bid with an RBI double off Joel Payamps with one out in the bottom of the 11th, and were down 3-1 in the 12th before Giancarlo Stanton connected for a game-tying two-run homer.

After Anthony Misiewicz held the Brewers scoreless in the top of the 13th, Kyle Higashioka drove in automatic runner Everson Pereira with a one-out double off Hoby Milner to allow the Yankees to prevent a three-game series sweep. 

Corbin Burnes kept New York hitless through eight innings before being pulled after 109 pitches, and Devin Williams threw a perfect ninth before giving way to Abner Uribe, who gave up a deep drive to the Yankees' Anthony Volpe that right fielder Sal Frelick snared with a leaping catch to keep the no-hit bid intact and the game scoreless.

Tyrone Taylor drove in Milwaukee's first run with a single in the 11th and the Brewers scored twice in the 12th, highlighted by Joey Wiemer's RBI double.

Gerrit Cole matched Burnes through the first seven innings, as the Yankees ace yielded just three hits and struck out nine without a walk.

The loss reduced Milwaukee's lead atop the NL Central to three games over second-place Chicago after the Cubs recorded a 5-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Braves rally to become first team to clinch playoff berth

The Atlanta Braves are now officially in the playoffs after scoring four times in the seventh inning to rally for a 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Atlanta, which owns the major leagues' best record at 93-49, secured a sixth consecutive postseason berth and moved closer towards a sixth straight NL East title. The Braves lead second-place Philadelphia by 15 games, and will visit the Phillies for a four-game series starting Monday needing to win three of those contests to wrap up the division.

Pirates rookie Luis Ortiz held Atlanta's potent lineup to one run over 5 1/3 innings, but the Braves' bats came alive against the Pittsburgh bullpen while trailing 2-1 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh.

Orlando Arcia drew a walk off reliever Colin Selby to start the comeback and Michael Harris singled in front of Ronald Acuna Jr.'s base hit, which plated both runners for a 3-2 Atlanta lead.

The Braves then loaded the bases before Matt Olson knocked in two more runs with a single off Thomas Hatch.

Olson finished 2 for 3 with three RBIs, while Braves starter Allan Winans struck out eight while allowing two runs over 6 1/3 innings.

Pittsburgh had taken a 2-0 lead on RBI doubles by Bryan Reynolds and Jack Suwinski in the top of the sixth. 

Eflin picks up 14th win, helps Rays take series from Mariners

Zach Eflin moved into a tie for the American League wins lead and the Tampa Bay Rays scored five early runs en route to a 6-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners in the finale of a key four-game series.

Tampa Bay built a 5-0 lead after three innings before holding on for its third straight win over Seattle after the Mariners took Thursday's series opener. The Rays also closed within three games of first-place Baltimore in the AL East after the Orioles had a seven-game winning streak snapped with Sunday's 7-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox.

Harold Ramirez had a two-run double as the Rays scored three times off Mariners starter Bryce Miller in the first inning, and Luke Raley's two-run double off Miller in the third increased the margin to 5-0.

Eflin (14-8) allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out six to join Toronto's Chris Bassitt and Baltimore's Kyle Gibson for the AL lead in wins.

Four Tampa relievers held the Mariners scoreless the rest of the way, with Pete Fairbanks striking out all three batters he faced in the ninth for his 22nd save.

The Mariners have lost six of eight following a 22-6 stretch from Aug. 2-Sept. 2 that briefly gave them the AL West lead. They now trail first-place Houston by 2 1/2 games in the division after the Astros posted a 12-2 rout of the San Diego Padres on Sunday. 

Sam Haggerty went 2 for 3 with an RBI to lead Seattle offensively. 

James McCann hit two of the Orioles’ five home runs and Baltimore held on for its seventh straight win, topping the Boston Red Sox 13-12 in a wild slugfest on Saturday.

Baltimore had leads of 7-2 in the fourth inning, 12-6 in the seventh and 13-9 in the ninth before Yennier Cano retired Emmanuel Valdez on a game-ending flyout to strand the tying run at third and give the Orioles their AL-best 90th win.

The Red Sox, who outhit the Orioles 23-14, got a two-run, two-out double from Trevor Story and an RBI single from rookie Wilyer Abreu before left fielder Austin Hays caught Valdez’s flyball to end a three-hour, 40-minute contest.

Baltimore became the first team to win when allowing at least 23 hits since the Seattle Mariners on September 3, 1981, at Boston in a 20-inning game.

No team had done that in a nine-inning game since the St. Louis Cardinals on June 3, 1930.

Aaron Hicks and Gunnar Henderson hit three-run homers, McCann had a two-run shot and a solo blast and Jordan Westburg also went deep for Baltimore, which has won 13 of 16 to maintain a four-game lead over Tampa Bay in the AL East.

Justin Turner hit a two-run homer in the first and Abreu went 5 for 5 with three RBIs, but Boston dropped its fourth straight.

Diaz’s home run lifts Rays over Mariners

Yandy Diaz hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Tampa Bay Rays a 7-5 win over the Seattle Mariners.

After Taylor Walls drew a two-out walk from Taylor Saucedo, Diaz drilled an opposite-field shot to right.

The win kept Tampa Bay four games behind Baltimore in the AL East and moved it 7 ½ games ahead of Seattle and Toronto in the race for the top wild card.

Julio Rodriguez went deep for his 29th home run and is one short of joining Alex Rodriguez as the only Mariners to have 30 homers and 30 steals in a single season.

Seattle blew a lead for a second straight day to drop 1 ½ games behind AL West-leading Houston.

Diamondbacks beat Cubs again

Tommy Pham delivered an RBI single to cap a two-run 10th inning and the Arizona Diamondbacks made it four straight wins, 3-2 over the Chicago Cubs.

Gabriel Moreno scored on a wild pitch in the 10th to snap a 1-1 tie before Pham drove home Jordan Lawlar with a liner to left.

Paul Seward gave up Cody Bellinger’s run-scoring single with two outs in the 10th but got Dansby Swanson to foul out for his 32nd save.

Arizona pulled within one game of Chicago for the No. 2 spot in the wild-card race.

The Cubs have just four runs through the first three games of the four-game series and have fallen four games behind NL Central-leading Milwaukee.

Zac Gallen turned in a masterful performance with a three-hitter and the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Chicago Cubs 1-0 on Friday afternoon.

Gallen struck out nine and walked one to record his second career complete game and second shutout.

His other complete game came in a one-hitter in a 5-0 victory over Atlanta in a seven-inning doubleheader on April 25, 2021.

Rookie Corbin Carroll had a two-out RBI single in the eighth inning for the game’s only run.

Seiya Suzuki nearly made an outstanding catch in right field, but the ball hit the grass and the out call by first base umpire Stu Scheurwater was overturned in a video review.

Arizona won for the fourth time in five games and moved within two games of Chicago for the No. 2 spot in the NL wild-card race.

Cubs starter Jameson Taillon was also outstanding, pitching six innings of one-hit ball with one walk and nine strikeouts.

The loss dropped Chicago three games behind NL Central-leading Milwaukee though it remained two games in back of Philadelphia, which holds the top wild-card spot.

Suzuki had two of the Cubs’ three hits, with his one-out single in the fifth the first hit off Gallen.

Surging Orioles roll past Red Sox

Kyle Bradish continued his stellar pitching and Adley Rutschman homered and drove in three runs to lead the Baltimore Orioles to an 11-2 rout of the fading Boston Red Sox.

Bradish limited Boston to two runs and four hits over six innings with nine strikeouts to win his fourth consecutive start.

He is 5-0 with a 2.38 ERA in his past seven starts.

Ryan O’Hearn also homered, and Cedric Mullins had a two-run double during a four-run sixth inning as Baltimore won for the 12th time in 15 games.

Connor Wong went deep for the Red Sox, who have lost three straight and eight of 11.

Pinto, Ramirez homers in 7th rally Rays past Mariners

Rene Pinto and Harold Ramirez hit two-run home runs in the seventh inning and the Tampa Bay Rays came from behind to beat the Seattle Mariners, 7-4.

Pinto went deep on George Kirby’s 102 and final pitch to forge a 4-4 tie, and Ramirez’s drive off Isaiah Campbell came after Yandy Diaz’s walk and made it 6-4.

Isaac Paredes added a home run in the eighth inning and the Rays held on to remain four games behind AL East-leading Baltimore.

Julio Rodriguez, Cal Raleigh and Eugenio Suarez homered for Seattle, which stayed one-half game behind AL West-leading Houston.

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced Friday that pitcher Walker Buehler will not return this season, thereby ending the two-time All-Star's attempt to come back from Tommy John surgery and help the team's beleaguered rotation for the playoff chase.

Buehler, who underwent the second Tommy John procedure of his career in August 2022, was seemingly on track to rejoin the Dodgers later this month. The right-hander threw two perfect innings Sunday in a rehab start for the team's Triple-A affiliate in Oklahoma City and was scheduled to pitch again Friday.

The 29-year-old is expected to be fully recovered in time for the start of the 2024 season. 

"My goal since last year has been to return to a major league mound this season," Buehler said in a statement issued by the Dodgers. "After many conversations with my doctor, the Dodgers' front office, training staff and my family, we concluded that waiting until next season is the right course of action.

"I am disappointed that I will not be able to help this team go after a title in the 2023 postseason, but I look forward to returning fully healthy in 2024 and bringing another World Series to L.A."

The news of Buehler's shutdown brings further uncertainty to a Dodgers rotation that became further thinned when former 20-game winner Juio Urias was placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball on Wednesday. Two other starters, 2022 All-Star Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May, underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this season.

Urias was arrested Sunday on a felony charge of corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant. The alleged incident occurred at BMO Stadium in Exposition Park, home of Major League Soccer team Los Angeles FC, during a game between LAFC and Lionel Messi's Inter Miami side.

Buehler, who went 16-4 and finished third in the majors with a 2.47 earned run average in 2021, has not pitched in the majors since June 10, 2022. He also played a key role on the Dodgers' 2020 World Series champion team by compiling a 2-0 record and a 1.80 ERA in five starts that postseason.

The Dodgers hold a commanding 13-game lead atop the National League West division, but are currently using a rotation with rookies Bobby Miller, Ryan Pepiot and Emmet Sheehan slotted in behind three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw and veteran Lance Lynn.

Pepiot took a perfect game into the seventh inning of Thursday's start against the Miami Marlins and has thrown 12 scoreless innings over his last two outings. Miller also has pitched well down the stretch, having posted a 3-1 record and a 2.87 ERA over his last five starts. 

Rookie Ryan Pepiot pitched a perfect game for 6 2/3 innings and Chris Taylor homered and drove in five runs to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 10-0 drubbing of the Miami Marlins on Thursday.

Pepiot was recalled from Triple-A before the game to take place of Julio Urias, who was placed on the restricted list.

The rookie didn’t allow a baserunner until Josh Bell grounded a single up the middle with two outs in the seventh.

Pepiot struck out three and induced nine groundouts, throwing 60 of his 84 pitches for strikes.

Caleb Ferguson and Evan Phillips finished up the two-hitter to give the first-place Dodgers their second win in seven games.

Miami had a six-game winning streak snapped and dropped one-half game behind Arizona in the race for the NL’s third and final wild-card spot.

Will Smith’s RBI single in the third inning opened the scoring, and Taylor singled in a run in a two-run fifth that also included Kike Hernandez’s run-scoring double.

Taylor added an RBI double in the sixth and his three-run homer in the eighth made it 10-0.

Pham’s 2 home runs lift Diamondbacks

Tommy Pham hit a pair of first-pitch homers to back Ryne Nelson’s strong start and the Arizona Diamondbacks cooled the Chicago Cubs with a 6-2 victory.

Ketel Marte also went deep for Arizona, which moved a half-game ahead of Miami for the last of the three NL wild-card spot.

Nelson limited the Cubs to one run and two hits over 5 2/3 innings after he was recalled from Triple-A Reno a day earlier.

Four relievers followed Nelson before Paul Sewald got the final out for his 31st save.

Chicago had a four-game winning streak stopped and dropped two games behind NL Central-leading Milwaukee. The Cubs hold the second NL wild card, three games ahead of the Diamondbacks.

Castillo wins again as Mariners blank Rays

Luis Castillo and three relievers combined on a shutout and the Seattle Mariners beat the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 in a matchup of playoff contenders.

Castillo allowed four hits over six innings with four walks and eight strikeouts to win his sixth straight decision.

Isaiah Campbell struck out the side in the seventh, Matt Brash worked a perfect eighth and Andres Munoz fanned two in the ninth for his 12th save.

Eugenio Suarez doubled leading off the second inning and scored on Mike Ford’s single for the game’s lone run.

Seattle moved within a half-game of idle Houston for the AL West lead, while Tampa Bay dropped four games behind Baltimore in the East.

Jose Abreu had two home runs and seven RBIs and Justin Verlander outpitched former teammate Max Scherzer to power the Houston Astros to a 12-3 rout of the Texas Rangers and a three-game sweep on Wednesday.

The game was billed as a marquee pitching matchup between Verlander and Scherzer, who both began this season with the New York Mets and were also teammates with Detroit from 2010-14.

The pitcher’s duel never materialised, however, as the Astros roughed up Scherzer for seven runs – all on home runs - and six hits over three innings.

Abreu’s grand slam in the third inning was the third homer against Scherzer, who also was taken deep by Yordan Alvarez in the first inning and by Michael Brantley in the second.

Rangers All-Star slugger Adolis Garcia was injured trying to make a leaping catch at the wall on Brantley’s homer.

He jammed his right leg hard after coming down to the ground, and the Rangers said he had knee discomfort.

Verlander scattered four hits and one earned run over seven innings. He struck out six and walked one for his fifth win in his past six starts.

The sweep put Houston in sole possession of the AL West lead for the first time this season, one game ahead of Seattle.

Marcus Semien hit a pair of solo homers for Texas, which has lost 15 of 19 to fall three games behind the Astros.

Surging Cubs finish sweep of reeling Giants

Seiya Suzuki had a bases-clearing double and Cody Bellinger homered to lead the Chicago Cubs to an 8-2 win over the San Francisco Giants.

Chicago won its fourth straight to move a season-best 12 games over .500 and pulled within 1 ½ games of NL Central-leading Milwaukee.

Rookie Jordan Wicks allowed two runs and nine hits over 6 2/3 innings to improve to 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA in his first three major league starts.

The Giants lost their sixth straight and fell 2 ½ games behind the third and final NL wild-card spot.

Marlins rout Dodgers for 6th straight win

Joey Wendle had four RBIs and fell a triple shy of the cycle as the Miami Marlins won their sixth in a row, 11-4 over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The victory came after the Marlins placed reigning Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara and All-Star slugger Jorge Soler on the injured list earlier in the day.

Wendle, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jesus Sanchez homered during Miami’s 9-run fifth inning against Lance Lynn.

Jacob Stallings had two hits in the inning for the Marlins, who moved ahead of Cincinnati into the third wild-card spot.

The red-hot Miami Marlins took a major hit Wednesday as they placed reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara and star slugger Jorge Soler on the injured list.

Alcantara will miss time due to a right forearm strain, while Soler is out because of a right oblique strain.

The injuries come at a terrible time for the Marlins, who have won five straight and entered the day a half-game behind Cincinnati in the race for the National League’s third wild-card spot.

Alcantara first experienced discomfort during his last start against Washington on Sunday but completed eight innings in a 6-4 win.

“I didn’t feel bad, but I talked to my trainer about it,” Alcantara said. “Knowing of the hard work that I put on my body, I just have to take it.”

Alcantara missed one start this season because of biceps tendinitis but has made at least 30 starts in each of the previous two seasons.

He is 7-12 with a 4.14 ERA in 26 starts this season and leads the majors with three complete games and is second in innings (184.2).

Soler earned his first All-Star selection this season and ranks among the NL leaders with 35 home runs.

The native of Cuba missed five games with hip tightness before returning Tuesday in a 6-3 win over the Dodgers.

“It’s not ideal at this time of year, but these things happen in the game,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “It gives another guy an opportunity to step up because we’re right in the middle of this thing.”

The Marlins are seeking their first playoff berth in a 162-game season since the 2003 team won the World Series.

Jose Altuve hit home runs in each of his first three plate appearances, Framber Valdez threw seven strong innings and the Houston Astros routed the Texas Rangers 14-1 Tuesday.

With the win and Seattle Mariners’ loss, the Astros pulled into sole possession of first place in the AL West for the first time this season.

Altuve hit all three of his homers in the first three innings, one-upping the two home runs he hit in Monday’s series opener. The 2017 AL MVP has five deep balls in the last two games after hitting just one in his previous 21 games.

Altuve’s first two round-trippers came against Nathan Eovaldi, who lasted just 1 1/3 innings in his return from a six-week stint on the injured list.

Martin Maldonado added two home runs for the Astros, and Yordan Alvarez hit one.

Valdez kept the Rangers’ bats quiet most of the night, allowing one run and six hits over seven innings.

Houston (79-61) have a two-game lead over Texas (76-62) in baseball’s closest division race. Seattle (77-61) sits between, one game back of the Astros.

Wednesday’s series finale features a matchup of three-time Cy Young Award winners when the Astros send Justin Verlander to the mound to face the Rangers’ Max Scherzer.

Stanton hits 400th HR, Yankees back to .500

Giancarlo Stanton scorched a line-drive for his 400th career home run and the New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 for their seventh win in their last eight games.

Stanton’s two-run blast off Jose Ciserno in the sixth inning broke a 1-1 tie and made him the 58th slugger to reach 400 home runs in a career.

Gerrit Cole produced another quality start, allowing one run and eight hits over six innings. Cole has bolstered his case for the AL Cy Young Award by winning each of his last three starts and dropping his season ERA to 2.90.

New York (69-69) got back to .500 with the win but remains in last place in the AL East and are 7 ½ games back of a wild card spot.

Reds rally late to edge Mariners

Nick Martini hit a game-tying three-run homer in the eighth inning, Christian Encarnacion-Strand delivered the winning RBI in the ninth and the Cincinnati Reds rallied for a 7-6 walk-off win over the Seattle Mariners.

The Reds trailed 6-3 with one out in the eighth before Martini came off the bench to tie the game with one swing. An inning later, Encarnacion-Strand’s single drove in Elly De La Cruz from second base.

Cincinnati survived a big night from Seattle’s Julio Rodriguez, who had two home runs and four RBIs. Teoscar Hernandez also went deep for the Mariners, giving him six homers in his last 10 games.

The dramatic win kept the Reds (73-68) slotted for the NL’s final wild card spot, remaining half a game ahead of the Miami Marlins.

Mauricio Dubon and Jose Altuve hit back-to-back home runs on two different occasions to help power the Houston Astros to a 13-6 rout of the Texas Rangers in Monday's opener of a pivotal three-game series between American League West rivals.

Yanier Diaz added a three-run homer, part of a 16-hit barrage that enabled the defending World Series champions to bounce back after being swept at home by the New York Yankees in a three-game series over the weekend.

The win moved the Astros in a virtual tie with Seattle for first place in the AL West after the Mariners lost at Cincinnati on Monday. Texas, which is in the midst of a 4-13 stretch since mid-August, is one game back in the standings.

Houston trailed 3-0 after four innings before scoring three times in the fifth, highlighted by Alex Bregman's game-tying two-run single. After the Rangers went back ahead in the bottom of the inning on Corey Seager's second home run of the game, Dubon and Altuve each homered off Glenn Otto in the sixth to give the Astros a 5-4 edge.

Texas drew back even in the bottom of the sixth on Mitch Garver's solo homer, but the Astros scored six runs in the seventh to put the game out of reach.

After Seager's error allowed two runs to score to put Houston up 8-5, Diaz launched his 21st homer of the season to extend the margin to six runs.

Dubon and Altuve again went back-to-back in the ninth. The hit was Altuve's fourth of the day and he finished with three runs scored.

Seager ended 3 for 5 with three RBIs and Garver went 2 for 3 with two RBIs for Texas, which also got a solo homer from Josh Smith.

Steer's three-run homer helps Reds down Mariners

The Astros got help in their chase for the AL West lead from the Cincinnati Reds, who scored five early runs en route to a 6-3 win over the Seattle Mariners.

Spencer Steer delivered the big blow for Cincinnati with a three-run homer off Bryan Woo in the second inning that staked the Reds to a 5-0 lead. Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Renfroe drove in the first two runs with RBI singles in the first.

While Seattle lost sole possession of first place in the AL West with its third loss in four games, the Reds moved into a tie with Arizona for the National League's final wild card spot. The Diamondbacks kept pace with a 4-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies behind 12 strikeouts from starting pitcher Merrill Kelly. 

Renfroe and Tyler Stephenson each had two hits and an RBI to help Cincinnati withstand solo homers from Julio Rodriguez and Mike Ford.

Woo was handed the loss after surrendering five runs over a five-inning stint in which he walked three batters and hit three others.

Steele dominates Giants as Cubs gain ground in NL Central

Justin Steele allowed just two hits over eight scoreless innings to earn his 16th win of the season and lead the Chicago Cubs to a 5-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants in the opener of another key September three-game series.

Steele (16-3) struck out a career-high 12 while issuing only two walks to win his seventh straight decision and tie Atlanta's Spencer Strider for the major league lead in victories.

The left-hander's show-stopping performance also enabled the Cubs to pull within 2 1/2 games of first-place Milwaukee in the NL Central after the Brewers were dealt a 4-2 loss by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Seiya Suzuki supplied the offence for Chicago with a solo homer in the second inning, an RBI double in the seventh and a run-scoring fielder's choice in the eighth.

Slumping San Francisco was shut out for a second straight game and has now lost four in a row to fall out of a tie for the NL's final wild card spot. The Giants now trail both Cincinnati and Arizona by one game.

Giants starter Logan Webb lasted 6 2/3 innings but lost a third straight start after being charged with three runs on five hits.

Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias was arrested Sunday night and faces felony domestic violence charges, the Los Angeles police told ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Urias was also arrested on suspicion of domestic battery in 2019 and given a 20-game suspension by Major League Baseball despite not being charged.

“We are aware of an incident involving Julio Urias,” the Dodgers said Monday. “While we attempt to learn all the facts, he will not be traveling with the team.

“The organization has no further comment at this time.”

Urias, 27, is 11-8 with a 4.60 ERA in 2023 after going a combined 37-10 with a 2.57 ERA in the previous two seasons.

His 48 wins since the beginning of the 2021 campaign are the most in MLB, while Urias’ .727 win percentage over that span is the fifth-best in baseball.

Los Angeles entered Monday with an 84-52 record and a 14 ½-game lead in the NL West.

The Dodgers visit the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals during a six-game road trip that runs from Tuesday through Sunday.

Rookie Jasson Dominguez's two-run homer in the sixth inning accounted for the go-ahead runs as the New York Yankees completed a stunning three-game road sweep of the Houston Astros with a 6-1 victory on Sunday night.

Dominguez took Astros starter Cristian Javier's pitch over the right-field wall to snap a 1-1 tie for the 20-year-old's second big hit of the series. He homered off 2022 American League Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander in his first major league at-bat during New York's 6-2 victory in Friday's opener.

DJ LeMahieu had an RBI double earlier in the Yankees' three-run sixth inning, while Gleyber Torres homered in the ninth while finishing 2 for 4.

The defending World Series champion Astros entered the series on a five-game winning streak and missed out on a chance to move into a first-place tie in the AL West. Division leader Seattle remained a game up on Houston despite the Mariners losing, 6-3, to the New York Mets on Sunday.

Michael King allowed one run and five hits over five innings to help the Yankees to their sixth win in seven games.

Javier struck out eight over six innings but was reached for three runs on four hits. 

Garcia's homer in ninth lifts Rangers over Twins

The Texas Rangers did manage to gain ground on the Mariners in the AL West race after Adolis Garcia's walkoff home run in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the playoff hopefuls to a 6-5 win over the Minnesota Twins.

Garcia had struck out in each of his previous four at-bats before launching his 34th homer of the season, a leadoff drive off Josh Winder, to break a 5-5 deadlock and end Texas' three-game losing streak.

The Rangers won for just the fourth time in their last 16 games and moved within one game of first-place Seattle.

Mitch Garver had a three-run homer in the first inning for Texas and finished 4 for 4 with four RBIs.

The Twins forged a 5-5 tie on Royce Lewis' RBI single off reliever Jose Leclerc in the eighth, though Rangers closer Will Smith prevented further damage by inducing an inning-ending double play from Carlos Correa with the bases loaded. 

Lewis earlier tied the contest with a three-run homer in the fifth and ended 3 for 5 for AL Central-leading Minnesota. Correa also had three hits, including an RBI single in the seventh.

Rookie Miller stars as Dodgers prevent sweep from Braves

Bobby Miller threw seven outstanding innings to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a needed 3-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves in the finale of a four-game series between the National League's top two teams.

NL East-leading Atlanta had taken the first three matchups of the weekend set, but managed just one run on three hits off Miller as the talented rookie stopped the Braves' six-game winning streak and improved to 9-3 on the season.

Miller took a shutout into the seventh before surrendering Matt Olson's 44th home run of the season, which tied the Atlanta slugger with Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani for the major league lead.

Braves starter Charlie Morton kept the NL West-leading Dodgers off the board until the bottom of the fifth, which he began by walking James Outman before Miguel Rojas delivered an RBI double for the game's first run. Mookie Betts followed with a single that plated Rojas for a 2-0 lead. 

Betts went 3 for 4 on the afternoon, while Olson had two of Atlanta's five total hits.

Orlando Arcia drilled a three-run homer in the 10th inning and the Atlanta Braves won their sixth straight game, 4-1 over the Los Angeles Dodgers in a matchup of the National League’s best teams.

With the initial runner at second, Alex Vesia got the first two outs of the 10th but walked Sean Murphy before Arcia sent a first-pitch fastball over the left-centre field wall for his 17th home run and a 4-1 lead.

Max Muncy had a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th, but Raisel Iglesias struck out Amed Rosario with a runner on for his 28th save.

Major league-leading Atlanta has won the first three games of this much-anticipated series, becoming the first team to reach 90 victories.

The Braves are cruising to their sixth straight NL East title with a 16-game lead over Philadelphia.

Ronald Acuna Jr. opened the scoring in the third inning with his third home run of this series and 32nd of the season.

The Dodgers got the run back in the bottom half when Austin Barnes doubled, moved to third on two walks and scored on a double-play grounder.

Bryce Elder pitched six innings for the Braves and allowed one run and five hits.

Joe Jimenez, A.J. Minter and Michael Tonkin each pitched one hitless inning before Iglesias took over in the 10th.

Reds rally to walk-off Cubs again

Elly De La Cruz delivered a tying single and newcomer Hunter Renfroe beat out a double-play ball as the Cincinnati Reds rallied for their second straight walk-off win, 2-1 over the Chicago Cubs.

Chicago took a 1-0 lead to the ninth after a brilliant eight-inning performance from Javier Assad but Cincinnati scored twice in the ninth to win.

Jake Fraley opened the inning with a double off Mark Leiter Jr. and pinch-runner Harrison Bader stole third. After TJ Friedl walked and Spencer Steer was hit by a pitch, De Le Cruz’s hit tied it.

Nick Martini flied out to keep the bases loaded and Renfroe – claimed off waivers from the Angels earlier this week – hit a grounder to short and barely beat the throw to first, allowing the winning run to score.

Guardians score 2 in 11th to rally past Rays

Steven Kwan had a sacrifice fly and after a key hit by rookie Jose Tena and the Cleveland Guardians rallied for their fourth straight win, 7-6 over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Brandon Lowe gave the Rays a one-run lead in the top of the 11th with a sacrifice fly, but Chris Devenski was unable to protect it in his first appearance with the team.

With one out, Myles Straw stole third and Bo Naylor walked to put runners at the corners. Tena’s single to right tied the game and moved Naylor to third before Kwan’s fly ball to shallow right-centre scored the winning run.

The loss dropped the Rays 2 ½ games behind AL East-leading Baltimore, while the Guardians remained five games in back of Minnesota in the Central.

Aaron Judge became the fastest in major league history to reach 250 home runs and Jasson Dominguez homered in his first career at-bat to lead the New York Yankees to a 6-2 win over the Houston Astros on Friday.

After DJ LeMahieu sent Justin Verlander’s second pitch of the game into the right-field seats for a leadoff home run, Giancarlo Stanton drew a two-out walk.

Dominguez, called up from the minors earlier in the day, connected for an opposite-field shot to become the first Yankees player to go deep in his initial big league at-bat since Judge on Aug. 13, 2016.

At 20 years, 206 days old, Dominguez became the youngest player to appear in a game for the Yankees since 19-year-old pitcher Jose Rijo in July 1984.

Judge’s solo blast off Verlander in the fifth extended New York’s lead to 6-2.

It came in his 810th career game, surpassing Phillies slugger Ryan Howard, who hit his 250th home run in his 855th game in 2010.

Verlander allowed six runs and eight hits in six innings. The four homers he surrendered were a season high.

Jose Abreu homered for Houston, which had a five-game winning streak snapped but remained just a percentage point behind Seattle for the AL West lead.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve left after the first inning due to a bruised left leg.

Red-hot Braves hit 3 homers to defeat Dodgers

Ronald Acuna Jr., Marcell Ozuna and Travis d’Arnaud homered to back Max Fried’s stellar outing as the Atlanta Braves won their fifth straight, 6-3 over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Fried limited the Dodgers to three hits over seven scoreless innings with two walks and a season-high 10 strikeouts to win his third consecutive decision.

D’Arnaud’s home run in the second inning off Julio Urias opened the scoring and Acuna took him deep in the third for his second homer in two days and 31st of the season.

Ozuna led off the fourth inning with his 32nd home run and he singled home a run in the fifth to extend Atlanta’s lead to 5-0.

The Braves lead the Dodgers by six games for the majors’ best record and potential home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

Kolten Wong hit a three-run home run in the eighth in his Dodgers debut.

Bohm’s key error helps Brewers beat Phillies

Alec Bohm’s error in the eighth inning allowed three runs to score and the Milwaukee Brewers rallied for a 7-5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

With two outs, the bases loaded and the Brewers trailing 5-4, Owen Miller hit a grounder to third that Bohm failed to backhand. The ball rolled down the left-field line and all three runners scored.

The four-run bottom of the eighth came after the Phillies scored four in the top half, with Trea Turner’s two-run homer capping the outburst.

Milwaukee extended its NL Central lead to 3 ½ games over the Cubs, who split a doubleheader with Cincinnati.