THURSDAY’S GAMES
HOME team in caps
Reds 1, PIRATES 0: Tyler Mahle cruised through six innings, Asdrúbal Cabrera hit a go-ahead, pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the seventh, and Reds avoided a threegame sweep. Mahle allowed five hits – all singles – and struck out four with a walk.
Angels 9, WHITE SOX 3: Alex Cobb pitched five scoreless innings, Luis Rengifo and Jose Rojas hit home runs, and the Angels coasted over the White Sox. Cobb was activated from the 10day injured list after suffering right wrist inflammation and allowed two hits in his first start since July 23.
Athletics 7, ROYALS 2: Salvador Perez tied Johnny Bench’s record for homers in a season by a catcher with his 45th, but Chad Pinder’s two-run single spurred a third-inning rally for Oakland. Perez’s 45 homers and 112 RBIs both lead the majors this season.
Padres 7, GIANTS 4: Fernando Tatis Jr. hit his NL-leading 39th home run and the Padres earned a series split. The Padres moved within half a game of the idle Cardinals for the second NL wild card. San Diego starts a threegame series in St. Louis on Friday.
Yankees at ORIOLES, late: Brett Gardner blooped a two-run single in the ninth inning that was set up by a double steal, and the New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 4-3 Wednesday night for their third straight win.
Cubs at PHILLIES, late: Andrew Knapp scored on a passed ball in the ninth inning to bolster the Philadelphia Phillies’ tenuous playoff push with a 6-5 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. The Phillies bullpen blew it in the late innings.
Tigers at RAYS, late: Bo Bichette homered and drove in five runs, Robbie Ray fanned 13 over seven innings to claim the major league strikeout lead and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-3 Wednesday.
Astros at RANGERS, late: Jake Meyers and Marwin Gonzalez hit consecutive homers in a three-run second inning, Kyle Tucker homered among his three hits, and Jose Urquidy allowed one run and two hits in six innings as Houston beat Texas 7-2 on Wednesday.
Rockies at BRAVES, ppd.: The Rockies-Braves game was postponed on Thursday due to a soggy field caused by rain. A makeup date was not immediately announced, but it’s possible the game could be played on Oct. 4, the day after the final scheduled game of the regular season.