Rangers close in on playoff berth
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Adolis García had a homer and an RBI double, Dane Dunning yielded three hits over seven dominant innings, and the Texas Rangers moved to the brink of clinching their first playoff berth since 2016 with a 5-0 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night.
Evan Carter hit a two-run homer and Marcus Semien added a solo shot in the ninth inning for the Rangers, who have won seven of eight. They've also set the stage to wrap up both a postseason spot and their first AL West title in seven years when they finish the regular season with four consecutive games in Seattle.
Dunning (12-6) remained unbeaten since Aug. 25 and shook off memories of shaky recent starts by throttling the Angels. The righthander walked one and struck out seven in his longest appearance in his last eight starts.
Orioles 5, Nationals 1: Adley Rutschman homered and drove in three runs, Grayson Rodriguez pitched into the sixth inning and host Baltimore lowered its magic number to one in the AL East.
Baltimore will try for its first AL East crown since 2014 on Thursday night.
Rays 5, Red Sox 0: Tyler Glasnow pitched five scoreless innings in his final start before the postseason, combining with four relievers on a three-hitter in Boston.
Yankees 6, Blue Jays 0: Gerrit Cole pitched a twohitter to close in on his second AL ERA title, Aaron Judge homered twice and New York beat host Toronto, ensuring the Yankees won’t finish with their first losing record since 1992.
Marlins split with Mets: Jon Berti hit a leadoff homer to complete his cycle for the day and the Miami Marlins pulled even with the Cubs in the race for the final National League playoff spot, beating the New York Mets 4-2 for a doubleheader split after dropping the opener 11-2.
Braves 6, Cubs 5 (10): Ronald Acuña Jr. established the 40-70 club, Ozzie Albies walked him off with a 10thinning single and Atlanta clinched home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs.
Diamondbacks 3, White Sox 0: Rookie Brandon Pfaadt pitched shutout ball for the second time in three starts, and Arizona moved closer to an NL wild-card berth with its eighth win in 10 games.
Guardians 4, Reds 3: Shane Bieber shut down Cincinnati for six innings and Cleveland sent manager Terry Francona off with a victory in his final home game over Cincinnati, which missed an opportunity to gain ground in the NL wild-card race.