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After a quiet off day on Monday, all the MLB teams were back on the field yesterday. We already know that the Yankees did themselves no favors in the home-field advantage race, as they lost to Rays 2-1 in extra innings. That move allowed Tampa Bay to gain some ground in the Wild Card competition. Here is a look at the other important games that took place:
Astros beat Mariners, because Mariners
The home-field advantage fight between the Yankees and Astros isn’t officially over, but it is close. Houston, led by Alex Bregman who hit his 40th home run of the year, easily beat Seattle 3-0. That brings the Astros’ record to 103-54, compared to the Yankees’ 102-56.
Twins victorious over Tigers, reduce magic number to 2
Jake Odorizzi tossed six innings of one-run ball and struck out seven Tigers on the way to a 4-2 win over Detroit. The Tigers have lost a whopping 110 games now. With this win, the Twins’ magic number dropped to 2, and the Indians are just about out of time to get back into the AL Central fight.
AL Wild Card race remains close
Speaking of Cleveland, they dominated the White Sox 11-0. Mike Clevinger notched ten strikeouts across seven innings, and third baseman Jose Ramirez hit a grand slam, followed by a three-run blast. While it still doesn’t look like they can catch the Twins, all they can do is win and hope for the best in the WC race.
Although the Rays won, the Athletics fell to the Angels. As a result, Oakland’s lead over the top Wild Card spot dropped to just 0.5 games. Our hopes and dreams of a three-way tie on the final day of the season are still alive.
Dodgers stay in the mix for best record
With a 5-3 win over the Padres, the Dodgers improved to 101-56. They still could finish with the best record in baseball and be awarded home-field advantage in the World Series.