Rays clinch 2nd consecutive AL East crown
Stanton’s slam lifts Yanks to win over Red Sox
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Sept. 26, (AP): The Tampa Bay Rays clinched their second straight AL East title, with Mike Zunino hitting a go-ahead homer and Brandon Lowe later adding a pair of RBI doubles to beat the Miami Marlins 7-3.
Pete Fairbanks retired Lewis Brinson on a foul popup with the bases loaded for the final out, giving the Rays the chance to celebrate on the field. Earlier in the day, Tampa Bay’s magic number was cut to one when the New York Yankees beat Boston 5-3.
There was a standing ovation from the season-high crowd of 23,783 at Tropicana Field when the Yankees’ victory was announced after the top of the sixth inning.
Tampa Bay improved to 96-59 and won its fourth division title since becoming a major league team for the 1998 season. The club debuted as the Devil Rays then, and wore jerseys with that name during this clinching victory.
The Rays, who lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games last season, have never won the championship.
Shane McClanahan (10-6) allowed one run and six hits over five innings.
Zunino connected off Sandy Alcantara (9-14) for his 32nd homer.
Yankees 5, Red Sox 3
In Boston, Giancarlo Stanton hit a goahead grand slam over the Green Monster in the eighth inning and New York tied Boston for the top spot in the AL wild-card race.
Both teams are two games ahead of Toronto and three up on Seattle in the chase for two postseason spots. But the Yankees now have a chance to nudge in front of their longtime rivals in Sunday night’s series finale at Fenway Park.
Stanton connected off reliever Darwinzon Hernandez with two outs to give the Yankees a 5-2 lead. The slugger also had three hits and a three-run homer Friday night to help New York win the series opener.
Cardinals 8, Cubs 5
In Chicago, the St. Louis Cardinals set a franchise record with their 15th straight win, boosted when catcher Yadier Molina and center fielder Harrison Bader helped pull off a wild double play against Chicago.
Bader, Tyler O’Neill and Paul DeJong homered as these Cardinals broke the team record of 14 wins in a row set in 1935, a year after Dizzy Dean and the
Gas House Gang won the World Series.
Bader went 4 for 4 and scored three times as the Cardinals held their comfortable lead for the second NL wild card.
Braves 10, Padres 8, 10 Innings
In San Diego, Jorge Soler hit a goahead double with one out in the 10th inning for his fourth RBI, and Atlanta maintained its 1 1/2-game lead in the NL East while eliminating San Diego from playoff contention.
The Padres were one out from a win in regulation when Eddie Rosario hit a tying single off major league saves leader Mark Melancon, who was trying for his 39th.
Soler, who hit a three-run homer in the sixth, then helped seal the biggest collapse in Padres history with his hit off Daniel Hudson (5-3). Ozzie Albies added a sacrifice fly.
Brewers 2, Mets 1
In Milwaukee, Corbin Burnes pitched seven brilliant innings to win his ninth consecutive decision and Milwaukee moved to the brink of clinching the NL Central title with a victory over New York.
The Brewers, already assured a fourth straight playoff berth, can wrap up the division crown Sunday with a win at home against the Mets or a Cardinals loss to the Cubs in Chicago.
Phillies 3, Pirates 0
In Philadelphia, ranger Suarez pitched a four-hit shutout, Bryce Harper homered and the Philadelphia Phillies kept up their playoff push by beating Pittsburgh for their fifth straight win.
The Phillies remained 1 1/2 games behind first-place Atlanta in the NL East. Philadelphia visits the Braves for a three-game series beginning Tuesday.
Suarez (7-5) allowed just four singles, walked none and struck out seven in his first major league complete game. He didn’t permit a runner past first base and faced only one batter more than the minimum.
Giants 7, Rockies 2
In Denver, Brandon Belt went deep twice as San Francisco set a franchise record for home runs in a season, and the Giants beat Colorado to extend their NL West lead.
BASEBALL
Belt hit a solo homer in the first inning and a three-run shot in the fifth off Jon Gray (8-12). His second drive was the team’s 236th homer of the season, surpassing the 235 hit by the 2001 club. That squad featured Barry Bonds’ major league-record 73 homers.
Diamondbacks 7, Dodgers 2
In Phoenix, Ketel Marte and Carson Kelly homered early off Clayton Kershaw, Zac Gallen pitched one-run ball for six innings and Arizona kept Los Angeles from reaching 100 wins.
The Dodgers (99-56) fell two games behind first-place San Francisco in the NL West. The second-place team will host the NL wild-card game on Oct. 6, likely against St. Louis.
Gallen (3-10), who hadn’t won since Aug. 26 against Philadelphia, struck out six in the first two innings.
Athletics 2, Astros 1
In Oakland, Calif., Starling Marte hit a game-ending double with one out in the ninth inning to lift Oakland over Houston.
The Athletics are four games behind co-wild card leaders New York and Boston, with Seattle and Toronto in between.
Houston’s magic number to clinch the AL West is two over the Mariners.
Elvis Andrus singled off Ryan Pressly (5-3) to begin the Oakland ninth and scored the winning run, but injured his left ankle on the play.
Blue Jays 6, Twins 1
In Minneapolis, Teoscar Hernández, Marcus Semien and George Springer homered, and Toronto held its position in the playoff chase by beating Minnesota.
Robbie Ray (13-6) scattered three hits in six innings as the Blue Jays ended a three-game slide.
Toronto stayed two games behind Boston and New York in the AL wildcard race with seven games remaining.
Semien hit his 43rd home run in the sixth for a 3-1 lead. That tied him with Dave Johnson of Atlanta in 1973 for the most home runs in a season by a second baseman. Springer snapped an 0-for-16 skid with a two-run shot in the seventh.
Angels 14, Mariners 1
In Anaheim, Calif., Shohei Ohtani tripled in his first two at-bats and Los Angeles damaged Seattle’s playoff chances by ending its six-game winning streak.
Jhonathan Diaz (1-0) pitched seven strong innings in relief for his first major league win and the Angels scored eight runs in the third as the Mariners dropped three games out in the AL wildcard chase with seven to play.
Boston and New York are tied atop the wild-card standings, with Toronto two games back in the race for two spots.
Indians 6, White Sox 0
In Cleveland, Eli Morgan allowed one hit in six innings and José Ramirez drove in three runs, powering Cleveland past the AL Central champion White Sox.
Chicago remained four games behind AL West leader Houston in the race for home-field advantage in the Division Series. Both teams have seven games remaining.
Morgan (4-7) struck out six and walked one, giving up only a double to Yoan Moncada in the fifth.
Tigers 5, Royals 1
In Detroit, Miguel Cabrera drove in four runs, including a go-ahead double in the sixth inning, and Detroit downed Kansas City.
Jeimer Candelario delivered an RBI double for the Tigers, who have won five of six. Jonathan Schoop had two hits and scored two runs.
Drew Hutchison (3-1) allowed only an unearned run in 2 2/3 innings of relief. Michael Fulmer got four outs for his 12th save.
Orioles 3, Rangers 2
In Baltimore, Jose Trevino and Nathaniel Lowe went deep for the Rangers, who have lost nine of 11 to fall to 56-99. Texas is headed toward its first 100-loss season since 1973.
The game was scoreless in the seventh when the 105-loss Orioles broke through against starter Jordan Lyles (913). Trey Mancini walked and scored on Pat Valaika’s double, and Gutierrez followed with his second homer.
Reds 7, Nationals 6
In Cincinnati, Nick Castellanos hit a solo home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Cincinnati a win over Washington.
The Reds remained six games behind St. Louis for the second NL wild card with seven remaining. Cincinnati won back-to-back home games for the first time since sweeping Miami in a fourgame series Aug. 19-22.
Barcelona and Levante players play during a Spanish La Liga soccer match between FC Barcelona and Levante at the Camp Nou Stadium in Barcelona, Spain. (AP)