Baz wins debut; Rays hold off Jays
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Shane Baz pitched two-hit ball for five innings to win his major league debut and the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays cut Toronto’s lead in the wild-card chase, holding off the Blue Jays 6-4 on Monday night.
Tampa Bay holds a seven-game advantage over second-place Boston with 11 games remaining.
The Blue Jays, who scored twice in the ninth inning and left the bases loaded, had their edge over the New York Yankees for the second AL wild-card spot drop to a half-game.
Baz (1-0) gave up a pair of home runs and little else, striking out five and walking none. The 22-year-old righty, a product of Concordia Lutheran in Tomball, was on this year’s silver medal-winning U.S. Olympic baseball team.
YANKEES 4, RANGERS 3: Gary Sanchez hit a goahead home run, four pitchers combined for scoreless relief and host New York gained in the AL wild-card race with a victory over Texas.
MARINERS 4, ATHLETICS 2: Kyle Seager had a tworun single in the decisive third inning among his three hits and three RBIs, Mitch Haniger added two doubles and visiting Seattle ended Oakland’s five-game winning streak.
CARDINALS 5, BREWERS 2: Jon Lester notched his 200th career win, Nolan Arenado hit a two-run homer and visiting St. Louis beat NL Central-leading Milwaukee for a ninth consecutive win.
ROYALS SWEEP INDIANS: Salvador Perez hit his 46th home run, breaking Johnny Bench’s record for most by a catcher in a season to highlight the opener, then Kansas City completed a doubleheader sweep by beating Cleveland 4-2 Monday night. Perez hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning of a 7-2 win, topping Bench’s total from 1970 for the highest total by a player who spent at least 75 percent of his team’s games at catcher.
TIGERS 4, WHITE SOX 3: Carlos Rodon was pulled after three rocky innings and Chicago, closing in on the AL Central title, squandered a three-run lead in a loss at Detroit. Chicago’s magic number to clinch the division is two.
BRAVES 11, DIAMONDBACKS 4: Austin Riley drove in three runs on three hits and Adam Duvall had a tworun home run as Atlanta won at Arizona.
ORIOLES 2, PHILLIES 0: John Means struck out six and visiting Baltimore stymied Bryce Harper and Philadelphia.
REDS 9, PIRATES 5: Joey Votto tied the game with his second homer of the night, Eugenio Suarez followed with a go-ahead shot and Cincinnati rallied from a fiverun deficit to win at home.
MARLINS 8, NATIONALS 7 (10): Jazz Chisholm Jr. homered twice before scoring from third on a wild pitch in the 10th inning and Miami won at home.