Yankees Rivalry Roundup: AL East rivals all keep pace with wins

It was a good weekend for the Yankees, as they powered their way to a sweep over the Cubs. They started a little slow on Friday night, but they went off over Saturday and especially Sunday, piling on 18 runs. They continue to roll along with the best record in baseball, having now won 11 of their last 12.

With the Yankees handling their business on Sunday, let’s check in on how their competition from across the AL faired yesterday.

Toronto Blue Jays (35-24) vs. Detroit Tigers (24-35)

Six innings of one-hit ball from Ross Stripling powered the Blue Jays to a fairly easy win over the Tigers. Detroit just had two runners reach base all game, and neither of them even advanced past first base as Toronto cruised. On the offensive side of things Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered, while Lourdes Gurriel Jr. drove in three runs, providing more than enough to secure their team the win.

Tampa Bay Rays (35-25) vs. Minnesota Twins (35-27)

The Rays took a third inning lead and never looked back as their pitching shut down the Twins en route to a shutout win. Jeffrey Springs went 5.1 innings, while Tampa’s bullpen added 3.2 more scoreless innings. Minnesota had some chances, recording five hits and four walks on the day, but they went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position, stranding eight. Kevin Kiermaier was the star on offense for the Rays, homering as part of a two-hit, two-RBI day.

Houston Astros (37-23) vs. Miami Marlins (27-31)

The red hot Marlins had gotten Houston in the first two games of the series, but the Astros avoided the sweep in the finale. It was a big day for Houston’s offense, as they recorded 14 hits, with all but one starter recording at least one hit. José Altuve led the way, recording a home run and a double as part of a three-hit, three-RBI day. Yordan Álvarez also recorded three hits. Meanwhile, it was also a weird day on the pitching font for the Astros. None of the four runs Justin Verlander allowed went down as earned runs, thanks mostly to errors from the Houston defense.

Boston Red Sox (32-29) vs. Seattle Mariners (27-33)

After seven innings of a pitchers’ duel, the Red Sox finally broke through in the eighth, and that ended up being enough to take the series over the Mariners. Reigning Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray hasn’t been great so far this season, but he was good on Sunday, going seven scoreless innings while allowing just three hits and one walk. Unfortunately for him, his team still comes away with the loss as Boston’s pitching was just as good and his bullpen couldn’t hang on. In his second career MLB start, Kutter Crawford struck out seven in five scoreless innings, before handing it over to the bullpen, who walked one hitter and allowed no hits over the last four innings. The decisive moment in the game ended up being Rafael Devers’ two-run homer in the eighth inning.