Luis Castillo allowed one hit over seven scoreless innings and the Seattle Mariners held on for a 3-2 win over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday to take sole possession of the American League West lead.

Sunday's victory coupled with the Texas Rangers' 13-inning loss to the Minnesota Twins moved the resurgent Mariners one game ahead of slumping Texas and the Houston Astros atop the division. 

Seattle trailed the Rangers by 7 1/2 games in the standings on Aug. 15, but has now won 11 of its last 12 while Texas has lost nine of 10. The Mariners are an MLB-best 24-6 since July 25.

Castillo permitted just two baserunners in winning his fourth consecutive start and was supported by two home runs, a solo shot from Teoscar Hernandez in the second inning and a two-run blast from Julio Rodriguez in the fifth. 

Nelson Velazquez's two-run homer off reliever Gabe Speier in the eighth brought Kansas City within 3-2, but Andres Munoz struck out the side in order in the ninth to finish off the Mariners' sweep of the three-game series. 

Royals starter Alec Marsh struck out nine over 5 2/3 innings but allowed both Seattle homers to fall to 0-7 in 11 appearances (seven starts) this season.

Twins rally from five runs down to top reeling Rangers in 13 innings

The spiraling Rangers lost their share of the AL West lead after blowing a five-run cushion in a wild, 7-6 loss to the AL Central-leading Minnesota Twins in 13 innings.

Minnesota trailed 5-0 after five innings before rallying to tie the game in the ninth, then took advantage of three walks by Rangers reliever Jonathan Hernandez in the 13th to push home the winning run.

Hernandez struck out the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the 13th before walking Joey Gallo, Matt Wallner and Michael A. Taylor in succession to gift Minnesota its third victory of the four-game series.

Texas pitchers issued a season-high 10 walks on the afternoon, including one to Taylor by closer Aroldis Chapman with the Rangers clinging to a 5-4 lead with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Chapman was then called for a balk to send Taylor to second before surrendering a single to Donovan Solano that tied the game.

Royce Lewis began Minnesota's comeback with a grand slam off reliever Chris Stratton in the sixth that pulled the Twins within a run.

Jonah Heim had a grand slam off Twins starter Bailey Ober in the fourth inning that staked Texas to a 5-0 lead. The Rangers opened the scoring on J.P. Martinez's solo homer in the second.

Dylan Floro earned the win by stranding two Texas runners after coming on in the top of the 13th, while Dallas Keuchel tossed five scoreless innings after relieving Ober to start the fifth.

Brewers blast Padres to extend winning streak to eight games

The National League's hottest team resides in Milwaukee, where the Brewers used a seven-run sixth inning to rally to a 10-6 victory over the San Diego Padres and extend their season-high winning streak to eight games.

William Contreras went 2 for 4 with a homer and two RBIs, while Sal Frelick drove in three runs as the NL Central-leading Brewers completed a three-game sweep heading into an important three-game road series with the division-rival Chicago Cubs.

Milwaukee owns a four-game lead on second-place Chicago, which kept pace with Sunday's 10-1 rout of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Brewers trailed 4-2 before loading the bases with one out in the sixth in front of Rowdy Tellez's pinch-hit, two-run double off Steven Wilson, who later walked Carlos Santana with the bases full to force in the go-ahead run.

Frelick followed with a two-run double off Nick Martinez to stretch the lead to 7-4 before Mark Canha capped the big inning with a two-run single.

Bryse Wilson recorded the win with four scoreless innings in relief of Brewers starter Adrian Houser, who lasted just two innings and allowed four runs.

Gary Sanchez went 2 for 4 with a two-run homer to lead San Diego, which dropped to a season-high nine games under .500 at 61-70.

Adrian Houser pitched five effective innings and Tyrone Taylor drove in two runs as the Milwaukee Brewers completed a three-game sweep of the American League West-leading Texas Rangers with Sunday's 6-2 win.

Milwaukee chased three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer in the fourth inning to maintain a three-game advantage on second-place Chicago in the National League Central. The Cubs kept pace with Sunday's 4-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

Houser allowed just one run on six hits and struck out seven to help the Brewers deal the slumping Rangers a fourth consecutive loss. Taylor finished 2 for 3 with three runs scored and Christian Yelich had a pair of hits, including an RBI double, as Milwaukee took advantage of an uncharacteristically wild outing from Scherzer.

Scherzer walked four batters and hit another while being charged with three runs in just 3 2/3 innings. The star hurler entered Sunday's matchup having allowed just four runs in 20 innings in winning each of his first three starts since being traded to Texas by the New York Mets on July 30.

The 39-year-old did record his 3,343rd career strikeout in the third inning to pass Hall of Famer Phil Niekro for 11th place on MLB's all-time list.

Corey Seager went 2 for 4 and accounted for the Rangers' lone run off Houser with a solo homer in the third inning.

Surging Mariners hold off Astros to sweep three-game series

The AL West is quickly becoming a three-team race thanks to the recent tear of the Seattle Mariners, who won for the 14th time in 17 games by holding on for a 7-6 victory over the division-rival Houston Astros on Sunday.

Seattle built a 6-0 lead after 2 1/2 innings en route to a sweep of the three-game series and sixth straight win overall. The surge has moved the Mariners within three games of the first-place Texas Rangers in the AL West and a half-game back of Houston for the league's second wild card.

Dominic Canzone and Dylan Moore each went 4 for 5 with an RBI to lead Seattle's 15-hit attack, while Eugenio Suarez had a two-run homer as the Mariners pounded Astros starter Hunter Brown for six runs in 2 2/3 innings.

The Astros rallied with five runs in the bottom of the third, but were held scoreless by the Seattle bullpen over the final three innings to lose for the fifth time in seven games.

Gabe Speier protected the one-run lead in the ninth to record his first career major league save.

Yordan Alvarez and Mauricio Dubon each knocked in two runs during Houston's big third inning, while Alex Bregman finished 2 for 4 with an RBI triple.

Red Sox extend Yankees' skid to eight games, finish series sweep

Justin Turner's ninth-inning double drove in the deciding run as the Boston Red Sox earned a 6-5 victory over the New York Yankees that sent the Bronx Bombers to their longest losing streak in 28 years.

The Yankees have now dropped eight games in a row for the first time since Aug. 19-26, 1995 despite rallying from a three-run deficit and nearly going ahead in the eighth inning.

New York appeared to take a 6-5 lead when Isiah Kiner-Falefa was called safe at home while attempting to score on Anthony Volpe's single with two outs in the bottom of the eighth. The ruling was overturned after the Red Sox challenged the play, however, to keep the game tied entering the ninth.

Pablo Reyes led off the ninth with a single off Clay Holmes and stole second before crossing the plate on Turner's opposite-field double, the veteran's fourth RBI of the game.

Kenley Jansen then worked around a leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth to earn his 29th save and close out Boston's eighth win in nine meetings with New York this season.

Turner also had a three-run homer in the seventh that snapped a 2-2 tie, while Rafael Devers delivered a solo shot for Boston and finished 3 for 4 with three runs scored.

The Yankees homered three times on the day, including Volpe's three-run blast off reliever John Schreiber in the bottom of the seventh that tied the game at 5-5. Gleyber Torres and Kyle Higashioka had solo shots in defeat.

Austin Barnes provided the game’s only run with an eighth-inning home run and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Brewers 1-0 for their 11th straight win on Thursday.

After Corbin Burnes and counterpart Lance Lynn each put up zeroes for seven innings, Barnes lined an 0-1 pitch from Joel Payamps into the lower seats in left for his first home run of the season with one out in the eighth.

The Dodgers improved to 15-1 in August, outscoring opponents 93-38.

Lynn allowed four hits with one walk and three strikeouts in his fourth start since joining the Dodgers in a trade with the White Sox.

Caleb Ferguson worked the eighth and Evan Phillips pitched the ninth for his 18th save in 20 opportunities.

Burnes limited the red-hot Dodgers to two hits while walking two and striking out nine but remained winless in his last five starts.

Milwaukee totalled just three runs in the series and had its NL Central lead trimmed to two games over the Cubs and Cincinnati.

Rodriguez leads Mariners past Royals

Julio Rodriguez capped his first career five-hit game with a two-run homer and the Seattle Mariners continued their playoff push with a 6-4 win over the Kansas City Royals.

Rodriguez went 5 for 5 with a career high-tying five RBIs and finished the four-game series with 12 hits, setting a franchise record for any series.

He is the fourth Mariners player with at least four hits in consecutive games, the fifth player in team history with a five-hit, five-RBI game, and the first Seattle player with at least 20 homers in each of his first two seasons.

Cal Raleigh also homered as the Mariners pulled within one-half game of idle Toronto for the third and final AL wild-card spot.

Gallen shuts down Padres as Diamondbacks win

Zach Gallen pitched six strong innings and was backed by home runs from Tommy Pham and Gabriel Moreno in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ 3-1 win over the San Diego Padres in the opener of a four-game series.

Gallen limited the Padres to one run and three hits with one walk and three strikeouts to beat the Padres for the second straight start. He became the fourth 13-game winner in the majors.

Kyle Nelson fanned three in 1 1/3 scoreless innings and rookie Justin Martinez got the final four outs for his first career save.

Pham followed Corbin Carroll’s one-out walk in the fourth inning with his 12th home run and Moreno added his fourth of the season an inning later.

Arizona has won five of six following a nine-game losing streak to get within one game of the third and final NL wild-card spot.

Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Will Smith each had three hits and the Los Angeles Dodgers rolled to their 10th straight victory, 7-1 over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday.

Betts had three singles and scored four times, Freeman added a pair of doubles and a single and Smith went 3 for 4 with two RBIs.

Chris Taylor and Miguel Rojas homered as Los Angeles improved to 14-1 in August to open a 10-game lead over San Francisco in the NL West.

The Dodgers have outscored opponents 61-22 during the win streak.

Clayton Kershaw limited NL Central-leading Milwaukee to three hits and one run – Mark Canha’s homer – over five innings with two walks and two strikeouts in his second start back from the injured list.

Rojas’ second-inning home run put the Dodgers up 2-1 and Betts scored later in the frame when J.D. Martinez reached on interference by catcher William Contreras with the bases loaded.

Smith followed singles by Betts and Freeman in the fourth with a sacrifice fly and Freeman doubled home Betts in the sixth before he scored on Smith’s single.

Cubs win on Morel’s walk-off homer

Christopher Morel drilled a dramatic three-run home run in the ninth inning to lift the Chicago Cubs to a 4-3 win over the rival Chicago White Sox.

The Cubs entered the ninth trailing 3-1 but got a leadoff double from Cody Bellinger against Gregory Santos. After Dansby Swanson walked, Morel drove a 1-2 pitch into the bleacher sets in right-centre field for his 19th home run.

Morel’s blast was the Cubs’ first hit with runners in scoring position all night after they were 0 for 6.

Nick Madrigal hit a pinch-hit home run in the eighth to set the stage for Morel’s heroics.

Gavin Sheets had a two-run homer for the White Sox, who had won six straight at Wrigley Field.

Detmers flirts with no-hitter in Angels’ win

Reid Detmers took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and Shohei Ohtani homered in the Los Angeles Angels’ 2-0 win over the Texas Rangers.

Detmers held Texas hitless until Marcus Semien lined a double into the left-centre field gap with one out in the eighth on his 108th and final pitch.

Detmers, who threw a no-hitter last season as a rookie, finished with five strikeouts and four walks.

Ohtani took Jon Gray deep in the first inning for AL-best 42nd home run.  

The Rangers were shut out for the ninth time this season and had a nine-game home winning streak snapped.

Rookie Bobby Miller pitched one-hit ball over six innings to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to their ninth straight win, 6-2 over the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday.

Miller allowed his only hit to the first batter he faced and earned his first win since July 22. He struck out four and walked one before Ryan Yarbrough pitched three innings for his first career save.

The Dodgers sent 10 batters to the plate and scored five runs in the sixth to knock out starter Adrian Houser.

J.D. Martinez doubled off the wall in left to score Will Smith, who reached on a throwing error by third baseman Andruw Monasterio.

Pinch-hitter Kike Hernandez singled home a pair of runs off reliever Hoby Milner and scored on Miguel Rojas’ single before Mookie Betts’ RBI single made it 6-1.

Los Angeles has outscored opponents 54-21 during the nine-game streak to open a nine-game lead over San Francisco in the NL West.

Carlos Santana homered for NL Central-leading Milwaukee, which had a four-game winning streak snapped but remained 3 ½ games of the Cubs and Reds.

Elder goes 7 as Braves 1-hit sliding Yankees

Bryce Elder was nearly unhittable for seven innings, Ronald Acuna Jr. and Marcell Ozuna went deep and the Atlanta Braves beat the struggling New York Yankees 5-0.

The Yankees’ only hit of the night was a second-inning DJ LeMahieu single off Elder, who bounced back from losses in his previous two starts to pitch his best game of the year.

A.J. Minter and Kirby Yates pitched an inning each to complete the one-hitter for the MLB-best Braves, who have won seven of their last nine.

Acuna stayed on his MVP-caliber pace by hitting his 26th home run and scoring two runs. He is hitting .368 this month with a 1.040 OPS.

The last-place Yankees continued their slide, falling to 11-18 since the All-Star break and dropping to .500 for the first time since May 1.

Mariners recover to beat Royals

Ty France singled home a pair in the 10th inning and the Seattle Mariners topped the Kansas City Royals 10-8 after blowing a seven-run lead.

Seattle took an 8-5 lead into the bottom of the ninth but were unable to hold a late lead for the second straight night.

An error and two walks loaded the bases with two outs before Michael Massey delivered a two-run single. Salvador Perez followed with another hit to make it 8-8.

Seattle scored seven runs in the fourth inning off Jordan Lyles, starting with back-to-back home runs by Eugenio Suarez and France before Teoscar Hernandez followed Cal Raleigh’s walk with a longball of his own.

Jose Caballero doubled home a run later in the inning and scored on Josh Rojas’ first home run of the season.

Hernandez tied a career high with five hits and had three RBIs, while France went 4 for 6 with three RBIs.

Kansas City cut the deficit to 7-5 in the fifth, highlighted by Bobby Witt Jr.’s second grand slam in 18 days.

Sal Frelick had a very memorable debut in the major leagues.

The Brewers rookie had three hits, the game-winning sacrifice fly and made two spectacular catches to lift Milwaukee to a 4-3 win over the major league-leading Atlanta Braves on Saturday.

Selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft, Frelick was called up from Triple-A Nashville before the game and started in right field batting sixth.

He had an infield single in the second inning for his first major league hit in his first career plate appearance, singled and scored in the fifth and singled home a run an inning later to tie the game. His hard liner to right in the eighth scored Willy Adames and snapped a 3-3 tie.

Devin Williams loaded the bases in the ninth but struck out Ozzie Albies to end it.

Frelick showed off his defence in the sixth inning to keep the Brewers down 3-2.

He made a leaping catch of Marcell Ozuna’s shot near the top of the right-field wall and one out later raced into the right-center field gap, jumped and banged against the wall to snare a drive from Orlando Arcia.

Austin Riley’s three-run homer in the third inning opened the scoring and gave him home runs in five straight games. He is 10 for 21 with six home runs and 16 RBIs during that span.

Orioles recover to beat Rays

Ryan O’Hearn came through with a pinch-hit RBI single in the ninth inning and the Baltimore Orioles recovered after blowing a five-run lead to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays, 6-5 in matchup of the American League’s top teams.

Baltimore has won two of the first three games in the four-game set to move one game ahead of Tampa Bay in the AL East.

Rays ace Shane McLanahan was bidding to become the majors’ first 12-game winner but was reached for a season-high five runs in four innings.

The Rays dropped to an AL-worst 4-13 in July.

Freeman hits two home runs as Rangers win easy

Freddie Freeman hit two of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ five homers and the NL West leaders rolled to a 16-3 rout of the Texas Rangers.

Max Muncy and J.D. Martinez also went deep as the Dodgers matched season highs with five homers and 18 hits in their 10th win in 12 games.

Freeman became the first Dodgers player with 20 home runs and 35 doubles before August. He is 12 for 21 with three home runs, three doubles and seven RBIs in his past five games.

Rangers slugger Adolis Garcia was hit on the right hand by a pitch in the fourth inning. He initially stayed in the game but was lifted for a pinch-runner and inning later.

Corbin Burnes overcame a brief dizzy spell to strike out 13 batters over six innings and lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a 1-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday.

Milwaukee recorded its fourth win in five games to move into a first-place tie with Cincinnati atop the National League Central.

In a game played in high heat and humidity, Burnes bent over behind the mound after striking out TJ Freidl in the fifth inning to prompt a visit from the Brewers' training staff and manager Craig Counsell. Following a brief pause in play and after drinking some water, the 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner continued on and got Matt McClain to pop up to end the bottom of the fifth.

Burnes then struck out the side in the sixth to finish a dominant outing in which he held the Reds to two hits and two walks.

Cincinnati's Graham Ashcraft kept the game scoreless until the seventh, when Willy Adames led off with a double and Owen Miller followed with a single to chase the Reds' starter. Victor Caratini then greeted reliever Lucas Sims with a single to plate Adames with the game's only run.

Ashcraft was charged with one run in six-plus innings while yielding five hits and two walks. 

Astros beat Ohtani, extend Angels' skid to six games 

Jose Abreu went 3 for 4 with an RBI single as the Houston Astros dealt Shohei Ohtani a second straight loss with a 7-5 win over the badly slumping Los Angeles Angels.

Mauricio Dubon added a two-run single to help send the Angels to a season-high sixth consecutive defeat and 10th loss in 11 games.

Ohtani kept Houston scoreless over the first three innings, but was reached for two runs in the fourth as the Astros overcame a 2-0 deficit. The 2021 American League MVP surrendered two more runs in the fifth before exiting in the sixth following a leadoff walk to Corey Julks. 

The two-way star's departure may have been due to a finger blister he developed in his final start before the All-Star break. Ohtani was charged with five runs - four earned - on five hits and three walks while recording seven strikeouts in five-plus innings.

Ohtani did go 2 for 5 with a run scored at the plate for the Angels, while Mickey Moniak finished 3 for 5 with an RBI and Taylor Ward had a solo home run in defeat.

Urias, Dodgers blank Mets for fifth straight win

The Los Angeles Dodgers put together a stellar pitching performance of their own on Friday, as Julio Urias and three relievers combined on a one-hitter in a 6-0 win over the New York Mets.

Hours after the Dodgers announced ace Clayton Kershaw would remain sidelined into August, Urias filled his injured teammate's role by yielding just one walk and a hit batter after New York's Brandon Nimmo led off the bottom of the first inning with a double. The left-hander added seven strikeouts to help the Dodgers to a fifth consecutive victory.

The win, coupled with Arizona's loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, moved Los Angeles a game ahead of the Diamondbacks for first place in the NL West.

At the plate, the Dodgers took advantage of Justin Verlander's six walks in five innings to score three times off the star right-hander in the fifth, with Freddie Freeman delivering the big blow with a two-run double.

Mookie Betts knocked in the first run with a single and ended 2 for 5 for Los Angeles, while fellow All-Star J.D. Martinez tacked on a solo homer in the eighth. 

The Mets have now dropped three in a row after beginning July with a season-high six-game winning streak. 

Superstar duo Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout made their presence felt on Sunday as they hit back-to-back home runs in the Los Angeles Angels' 4-3 home win against the Kansas City Royals.

Despite coming into the contest with the second-worst record in the majors (4-16), the Royals struck first through an opening-inning home run from young outfielder M.J. Melendez.

The Angels tied things up before the end of the first inning after Trout's double put Taylor Ward on third base, setting up Ohtani for the sacrifice fly.

Neither team scored in the next four frames as Angels starter Reid Detmers and Royals pitcher Jordan Lyles kept things tight, but the runs started to flow again in the sixth.

Vinnie Pasquantino gave Kansas City a 2-1 lead with his solo home run, signalling the end of Detmers' day, before Lyles had a rotten finish to his six innings.

Lyles threw a total of nine pitches in the sixth. The very first was hit 376 feet to left-field by lead-off batter Ward, before Trout followed with a 389-foot blast to center field three pitches later. Ohtani made it three in a row five pitches after that, launching a curveball 415 feet to center for the biggest of the bunch.

Top Royals youngster Bobby Witt Jr tried to drag his side back into it with his own solo homer an inning later, but Carlos Estevez was able to secure his third save of the season to pull the Angels' record even at 11-11.

It was the fifth home run of the season for both Ohtani and Trout, leaving them tied for 17th on the major league leaderboard.

Gausman guts the Yankees

Toronto Blue Jays ace Kevin Gausman pitched his best start of the young season in a 5-1 road victory over the New York Yankees.

Gausman made it through seven complete innings in 103 pitches, allowing only three hits and no walks to go with 11 strikeouts. The Yankees' only run would come from a consolation solo shot from Anthony Rizzo in the ninth inning.

For the Blue Jays, 24-year-old franchise star Vladimir Guerrero Jr connected on his fifth home run of the season, opening the scoring with a two-run bomb in the sixth inning. His batting average of .341 is eighth-highest in the majors, and his 29 total hits is tied for the sixth-most.

Yoshida stars for the Red Sox

AL Rookie of the Year contender and top international signing from the offseason Masataka Yoshida was the star of the show in the Boston Red Sox's 12-5 come-from-behind victory against the Milwaukee Brewers.

After signing a five-year, $90million free agent deal to come over from Japan's Orix Buffaloes, the 29-year-old Yoshida had his first game-changing performance for his new team, becoming the first Red Sox player since David Ortiz in 2008 to hit two home runs in the same inning.

The left-fielder, who starred for Japan in March's World Baseball Classic, hit a solo home run early in the eighth inning to give the Red Sox a 5-4 lead, and eight batters later he stepped up again and hit a 407-foot grand slam to make it 12-4. Brewers third baseman Brian Anderson also hit two home runs of his own.

The Tampa Bay Rays improved to 6-0 with their second series sweep of the 2023 season, downing the Washington Nationals 7-2 on Wednesday.

The Rays' exceptional start has included winning all six games by four or more runs, outscoring their opponents by 31 runs (44-13) in the process.

Tampa Bay are the first team win their first six games by at least four runs since the St Louis Maroons in 1884, who managed 13 in a row.

It is Tampa Bay's best start in franchise history and the best start of any franchise in the majors since the Baltimore Orioles opened 7-0 in 2016.

It has been a spread of contributions for Tampa Bay as well, with starting pitcher Shane McClanahan having six strikeouts across six innings, with Wander Franco and Harold Ramirez hitting homers.

Franco's third-inning two-run shot opened up a 3-1 lead, with Ramirez's sixth-inning solo blast over center restoring their two-run lead at 4-2 with two outs.

The Rays added two further runs in the sixth, with Taylor Walls driving home Manuel Margot, before Jose Siri singled to right for Walls to score with Victor Robles losing the fly ball in the sun.

Walls along with Randy Arozarena both had two hits, while the latter took a fine leaping catch on Joey Meneses in the first.

Cole outpitches Nola as Phillies slump

Gerrit Cole piled more misery on the struggling Philadelphia Phillies with eight strikeouts in the New York Yankees' 4-2 win.

The Phillies had claimed their first win of the season against the Yankees on Tuesday but slumped to 1-5 with the defeat, where Jose Trevino's seventh-inning two-run shot opened up a 4-1 lead, with Gleyber Torres having three hits with two RBI singles.

Cole outpitched Phillies right-hander Austin Nola, who had seven Ks across six innings. The Yankees pitcher allowed one run with three hits and three walks across six-and-one-third innings.

The Phillies, who were NL champions last year, were held to two or less runs for the third time in four games with Kyle Schwarber hitting a ninth-inning consolation homer.

More Brewers blasts in walk-off win

Rookie Garrett Mitchell blasted a ninth-inning walk-off home run as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the New York Mets 7-6.

Leading off at the bottom of the ninth, Mitchell fell behind 1-2 in the count before unleashing his game-winning shot into the right-field stands, marking his third blast in his past two games.

The result means Milwaukee have won five games in a row, leading the NL Central division with a 5-1 record. The Brewers, who have homered seven times in two games, have scored 38 runs in their past 36 innings.

For the Mets, Pete Alonso hit a duo of two-run homers, the latter putting his side up 6-4 in the fifth.

Elite starting pitcher Corbin Burnes feels his relationship with the Milwaukee Brewers has been seriously damaged after his salary arbitration hearing.

Players with between three and six years of service time in the majors are eligible for salary arbitration, which is where both the individual and the team submit a salary figure to an independent arbitrator that they feel is fair.

Burnes, the 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner as the National League's best pitcher, submitted a figure of $10.75million, while the Brewers offered $10.01m.

During such a process there is a hearing, where each side presents their case, and oftentimes the scenario whereby a team tries to diminish the value of a star player does not go down well.

That was again the case this time around, with Burnes acknowledging he was disappointed to hear the team disparage his efforts after emerging as one of the best young arms in the sport.

"Obviously, it's tough to hear," he said. "It's tough to take. They're trying to do what they can to win a hearing.

"There's no denying that the relationship is definitely hurt from what [transpired] over the last couple weeks. There's really no way of getting around that.

"You kind of find out your true value. You think you work hard for seven years in the organisation, and five years with the big-league team, and you get in there and basically they value you much different than what you thought you'd contributed to the organisation.

"They won it [the arbitration]. But when it came down to winning or losing the hearing, it was more than that for me.''

He felt the Brewers crossed a line by implying he was the reason the team did not reach the playoffs in 2022, despite leading the National League with a career-high 243 strikeouts.

"That's something that probably doesn't need to be said,'' explained Burnes. "We can go about a hearing without having to do that.

"There was no attacking of character or the person who I was, but just some of the stuff that was said, that definitely didn't need to be said, is something that I think kind of disappointed everyone."

In damage control, Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold put out a statement trying to reiterate the franchise's commitment to their top starter.

"The arbitration process always presents uncomfortable situations for both the club and player involved," he said. "It is never easy to present a case against a member of the Brewers family.

"I'd like to reiterate that we view Corbin as one of the leaders of our franchise and value him as an elite talent in the game. Corbin is a major contributor to the organisation both on and off the field, and we look forward to another outstanding season from him in 2023."

Burnes will be eligible for arbitration again next offseason if the two parties do not strike a long-term extension beforehand, while a trade is now also on the table if Burnes suggests he has no intention of remaining in Milwaukee.

The Los Angeles Dodgers became the first National League (NL) side in 113 years to reach 110 wins in a single season after rallying for a 6-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday.

The last NL side to achieve that fear were the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1909. The Dodgers better their record still, with four regular-season games remaining.

The Dodgers also became just the seventh side in MLB history to record 110 wins in a single season, joining the 2001 Mariners (116), 1906 Cubs (116), 1998 Yankees (114), 1954 Cleveland (111), 1927 Yankees (110) and 1909 Pirates (110).

It was not easy this time, trailing 4-1 entering the seventh inning before a patient batting performance where they drew five straight walks, before Cody Bellinger's sacrifice fly tied the game.

Joey Gallo's sac fly put the Dodgers ahead in the eighth inning before Bellinger's RBI single padded the win.

The victory was the Dodgers' 47th comeback of the season, improving their overall record to 110-48.

Swanson steps up as Braves edge Mets

Dansby Swanson underlined his quality in the big moments with a game-changing two-run blast from Max Scherzer in the Atlanta Braves' crunch 4-2 win over the New York Mets in the NL East battle.

Trailing 2-1 at the bottom of the fifth inning with one out on a 3-2 pitch, Swansby blasted Scherzer over center field to homer for the second consecutive day.

The result means the Braves (99-59) lead the NL East by one game with four remaining, sitting ahead of the Mets (98-60).

Padres slug three home runs

Jake Cronenworth, Manny Machado and Juan Soto all crushed homers as the San Diego Padres sliced their magic number to one with a 5-2 win over the Chicago White Sox.

At 1-1 at the bottom of the sixth inning, Cronenworth deposited a slider from Cy Young hopeful Dylan Cease for a two-run blast over right field.

The Padres' win, combined with the Milwaukee Brewers' 4-3 loss to the Miami Marlins was significant in the NL Wild Card race.

San Diego are in the second slot with a 87-71 record, while the Brewers are fourth at 84-74, either side of the Philadelphia Phillies (85-73) who beat the Washington Nationals 8-2 after Kyle Schwarber's leadoff blast.

Shohei Ohtani's no-hit bid was spoiled in the eighth inning with two outs as the Los Angeles Angels won 4-2 over the Oakland Athletics on Thursday.

The reigning American League (AL) MVP was four outs shy of a no-hitter, with Conner Capel managing a two-out single in the eighth inning to end his bid.

Ohtani finished the game with 10 strikeouts across eight scoreless innings allowing two hits and one walk. Dermis Garcia singled after Capel's hit but Ohtani got out of the jam with Shea Langeliers grounding out to third.

The Angels two-way superstar also went two-for-four at the plate with an RBI single in the first inning, meaning his hit streak to reach a career-high 14 games.

Ohtani's performance adds further intrigue to the AL MVP race with New York Yankees' history-making outfielder Aaron Judge who matched Roger Maris' franchise and AL record with his 61st home run this season on Wednesday.

Blue Jays clinch playoff spot despite not taking field

The Toronto Blue Jays secured their postseason berth despite not playing on Thursday, benefitting from the Baltimore Orioles' 5-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox as J.D. Martinez hit a two-run go-ahead home run in the eighth inning.

The result means the Jays (87-69) are assured of an American League (AL) Wild Card spot, with the Orioles back at 80-76 in fourth in the AL Wild Card race.

Toronto are second in the AL East behind the New York Yankees (96-59), with the Seattle Mariners (85-70) and the Tampa Bay Rays (85-71) in the box seats for the other AL Wild Cards.

The Mariners claimed a 10-9 walk-off win over the Texas Rangers in a game that included nine homers, including two each for Seattle's MItch Haniger and Jarred Kelenic.

Garcia grand slam dents Brewers' Wild Card hopes

The Philadelphia Phillies and the Milwaukee Brewers both lost crucial games in the National League (NL) Wild Card race.

The Phillies, who hold the third NL Wild Card spot with an 83-72 record, went down 2-0 to the Chicago Cubs with both runs scored by Seiya Suzuki.

The Brewers (83-73) looked on track to capitalise on the Phillies' loss before Avisail Garcia's eighth-inning grand slam earned the Miami Marlins a 4-2 win.

Aaron Judge could not hit an historic 61st home run but the New York Yankees claimed a 5-4 walk-off win over the Boston Red Sox to clinch their postseason berth on Thursday.

Judge walked three times and came agonisingly close in the ninth inning with a fly out to center-field, meaning his 2022 season home-run tally remains at 60, equal with Babe Ruth and one behind Roger Maris for the American League (AL) record.

With scores locked at 4-4 in the ninth inning, Judge fell a few feet short of his historic 61st home run for the season, caught at deep center-field by Enrique Hernandez.

But there was plenty for the fans at Yankee Stadium to get excited about, with Josh Donaldson's 10th-inning RBI single getting Marwin Gonzalez home for the walk-off win. Donaldson hit a bouncing ball to the left side past third baseman Rafael Devers from Kaleb Ort for the game-winning run.

Earlier, Giancarlo Stanton headlined a four-run seventh-inning rally after trailing 3-0 with a two-run blast.

The victory means the Yankees clinch a playoffs berth for the sixth consecutive year, with an AL East-best record of 91-58 this season.

Wong's career-first three-homer game

Kolten Wong had a career game as he blasted three home runs out of the five-spot as the Milwaukee Brewers won 5-1 over the Cincinnati Reds.

Wong crushed a second-inning two-run blast to open the scoring, before backing that up with another two-run homer in the sixth inning to provide some insurance.

In the eighth inning, Wong homered again over right-field, bringing up his 15th blast of the season and his maiden three-homer game and first five-RBI game in his career.

Rookie's immaculate inning in Cubs win

Rookie Chicago Cubs pitcher Hayden Wesneski registered the first immaculate inning for the franchise since 2004 in their 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In just his second start, Wesneski struck out Jack Suwinski, Zack Collins and Jason Delay across nine second-inning pitches.

Wesneski finished the game with six strikeouts and two walks, allowing two runs on five hits, having turned in six-and-one-third innings.

The New York Mets clinched their place in the MLB postseason for the first time since 2016 with Max Scherzer securing his 100th career win in a 7-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday.

The 38-year-old Mets right-hander, reinstated from the injured list, struck out nine across six innings where he threw 68 pitches. Scherzer was pulled after six innings with a perfect game intact, with the Mets opting not to risk injury to the three-time Cy Young Award winner on his return from an oblique issue.

The win means the Mets have booked a postseason berth, guaranteed at least a spot in the National League (NL) Wild Card Game, holding a 94-55 record.

Pete Alonso's three-run homer in the fourth inning headlined five runs against NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes.

The Mets will be making only their 10th postseason appearance in the franchise's 61-season history.

"This is what you play the game for," Scherzer said. "You play to get into the postseason. There's a lot of ways for it not to work out. For us to be able to find a way to get into the postseason, that's awesome. That's what we celebrate. That's what you play the game for.

"We have a lot of things in front of us. We understand that. But you got to celebrate the good times, too."

Astros clinch fifth AL West title in six years

The Houston Astros secured the American League West title for the first time in the past six seasons with a 4-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Jose Altuve's leadoff home run set the tone for the Astros, while Luis Garcia gave up two hits and four walks in five innings with four strikeouts as Houston claimed their 16th shutout.

The Astros also won for the eighth time in nine games ahead of their sixth straight postseason. Houston are assured of a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Kershaw dominates Diamondbacks

Clayton Kershaw tossed down 10 strikeouts as the Los Angeles Dodgers toppled the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-2.

The Dodgers, who have already clinched the NL West, saw Joey Gallo blast a second-inning homer, before Chris Taylor's three-run blast opened up a 5-0 lead.

But Kershaw grabbed the headlines, managing to strike out at least 10 batters with no walks in a game for the 27th time in his career.

Aaron Judge seems determined to end any discussion about who the American League MVP is, slugging his 58th and 59th home runs of the season in the New York Yankees' 12-8 road win against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Judge now has 20 home runs more than any other player this season, and he is two home runs away from both the Yankees' and American League's single-season record of 61 – set 61 years ago in 1961 by Roger Maris. With his 59th, he set a new Yankees and American League record for a right-hander.

It was a massive day for Judge, who finished four-for-five at the plate, also adding a two-run double in the ninth inning to give his side some breathing room.

In a game where the two teams combined for 28 hits, Anthony Rizzo and Oswaldo Cabrera both collected three each for the Yankees, while Tyrone Taylor and Kolten Wong had three each for the Brewers, including a home run each.

It was a mediocre start on the mound for Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, giving up four runs in five innings while striking out eight batters, but he was still credited with the win as the Yankees never surrendered their lead after he left the game.

The win moves the Yankees' record to 88-58, leaving them with a five-and-a-half game lead over the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL East, while they remain seven-and-a-half games behind the Houston Astros for the best record in the American League.

Soto shines in Padres win

Juan Soto has been in a slump for the past month, but he began to break out of it with three hits in the San Diego Padres' 6-1 away win against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Soto, 23, was acquired by the Padres in a blockbuster trade at the deadline that saw the Washington Nationals receive one of the biggest hauls in the history of the league, but he is yet to live up to his hefty price.

After just 10 hits in the past month (10-of-74, .135 batting average), Soto went three-for-four on Sunday with a walk, a single, a double and a home run. It was his first home run of September.

Meanwhile, on the mound, Yu Darvish was excellent for the Padres, striking out eight batters in six scoreless innings while allowing only one hit and one walk.

Alvarez stays red-hot for the Astros

Other than Judge, there is arguably not a hotter hitter in the league right now than Yordan Alvarez, who notched another four RBIs in the Houston Astros' 11-2 home win against the Oakland Athletics.

While Soto had only 10 hits in 30 days before Sunday, Alvarez is now on a 10-game hitting streak, and he has 13 hits from his past six games after a pair of doubles against the Athletics.

In any other year, Alvarez would be considered a real chance to win AL MVP, as he boasts the third-most home runs in the league (37), the second-best slugging percentage (.630) and the third-best on-base percentage (.407) – but he trails Judge in all three categories.

On the mound, Framber Valdez gave up two earned runs in six innings, giving him his league-leading 26th 'quality start' of the season. No other pitcher has more than 23.