Aaron Judge drove in a three-run homer in the ninth inning, but the New York Yankees fell short of clinching the East lead with a 9-7 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday.
Judge’s three RBIs on his 57th homer of the season make him the first MLB player to drive in 140+ runs in a season since 2009. Prince Fielder (Brewers) and Ryan Howard (Phillies) were the last to accomplish the feat.
With the win, the Orioles (88-70) are now four games behind the Yankees (92-66) for the division lead. The only way the Orioles could clinch the division is by winning their last four games and the Yankees losing their last four.
Baltimore improved to 8-4 against the Bronx Bombers this season. Gunnar Henderson led the offense with three hits and two RBIs while Colton Cowser had two hits and three RBIs.
Juan Soto also drove in three runs. He recorded his 41st long ball of the campaign in the defeat.
Starter Marcus Stroman (10-9) struggled on the mound. He allowed six runs and 10 hits before being pulled after 3 1/3 innings of work. The Orioles opened the game with six straight singles.
Mariners keep playoff hopes alive
Mitch Garver and Julio Rodriguez homered and the Seattle Mariners crushed the Houston Astros 8-1.
The Mariners (82-77) won for the fifth time in their last seven outings and are trying to secure one of the last two spots in the American League draft.
The Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals currently hold those positions.
The Mariners trailed 1-0 heading into their offensive surge in the sixth inning. Dylan Moore reached first on the first of four errors by rookie third baseman Shay Whitcomb, who entered the game in the fourth.
Victor Robles walked and Cal Raleigh singled with one out to load the bases.
Justin Turner then drove in two runs with a single to left. It was his 20th straight game with at least one at-bat.
Garver led off the seventh inning with a long fly ball into the left field bleachers. The Mariners added two runs in the inning, helped by three Astros errors, including two by Whitcomb.
George Kirby (14-11) was effective for six innings, allowing only one run, four hits and one walk for the Seattle squad.
Tigers, Royals maintain lead
The Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals won their games to maintain their lead for the final two spots in the American League draft.
Parker Meadows and Spencer Torkelson homered, helping the Tigers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 7-1.
Detroit (84-74) moved to ten games above .500 with a fourth consecutive victory.
The Tigers currently sit in second place among the American League draft teams, tied with the Royals (84-74). The Baltimore Orioles are firmly in the top spot and should stay there.
The Tigers will play one more game against the Rays on Thursday before closing out their season at home against the Chicago White Sox, the worst team in the majors.
The Michigan team has a 29-11 record since August 10, thanks in particular to the brilliance of ace pitcher Tarik Skubal, one of the favorites to obtain the American Cy Young Trophy.
Rookie pitcher Keider Montero allowed one run in 2 2/3 innings of work Wednesday before five relievers went 6 1/3 innings to shut out the Rays.
In Washington, five Royals relievers allowed just two hits to the Nationals over 6 2/3 innings on the mound in a 3-0 victory.
The Royals’ backup was called upon after starter Michael Lorenzen left the game following a visit from trainers in the third inning.
Michael Massey hit an RBI single off DJ Herz (4-9) before Robbie Grossman hit a two-run double. The Royals have won their last two games after a seven-game losing streak.
Daniel Lynch IV (2-0) gave up no runs in 2 2/3 innings in relief of Lorenzen, who was making his first start since Aug. 27.
Also in the playoff race, the Seattle Mariners took advantage of a home run from Mitch Garver and Julio Rodriguez to crush the Houston Astros 8-1.
The Mariners (82-77) won for the fifth time in their last seven outings and are trying to secure one of the last two spots in the American League draft.
They are two and a half games behind the Tigers and Royals with just three games remaining.
The Mariners trailed 1-0 heading into their offensive surge in the sixth inning. Dylan Moore reached first on the first of four errors by rookie third baseman Shay Whitcomb, who entered the game in the fourth.
Victor Robles walked and Cal Raleigh singled with one out to load the bases.
Justin Turner then drove in two runs with a single to left. It was his 20th straight game with at least one at-bat.
Garver led off the seventh inning with a long fly ball into the left field bleachers. The Mariners added two runs in the inning, helped by three Astros errors, including two by Whitcomb.
George Kirby (14-11) was effective for six innings, allowing only one run, four hits and one walk for the Seattle squad.
Hurricane postpones major series
The final two games of the all-important series between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves have been postponed due to heavy rains heralding the imminent arrival of Hurricane Helene.
Both clubs’ seasons were scheduled to end Sunday, but the Mets will now return to Atlanta for a doubleheader that could impact the playoffs.
Heading into Wednesday’s games, the Mets (87-70) have a half-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks (87-71) in the draft race, while the Braves (86-71) have a game back. Two of those three teams will make the playoffs, which are scheduled to begin Tuesday with a best-of-three first-round series.
The Braves beat the Mets 5-1 on Tuesday in the series opener.
Elsewhere in Major League Baseball:
Tampa Bay 1 – Detroit 7
TB: Junior Caminero (5) produced the Rays’ only run by stretching his arms.
DET: Parker Meadows (9) and Spencer Torkelson (10) each hit a home run.
Cubs 6 – Philadelphia 9
CHC: Nico Hoerner homers (6 and 7) hit two home runs and drove in four runs. Isaac Paredes had four hits.
PHI: Trea Turner (20), Nick Castellanos (23) and Kody Clemens (5) homered. Brandon Marsh hit a three-run double in the fifth.
Cincinnati 2 – Cleveland 5
CIN: Elly De La Cruz had two of the Reds’ six hits.
KEY : Steven Kwan (14) and José Ramírez (38) stretched their arms for home runs.
Milwaukee 1 – Pittsburgh 2
MIL: Jake Bauers (12) drove in the Brewers’ lone run with a home run.
PIT: Liover Peguero drove in two runs with a double for the Pirates, who had only three hits.
Kansas City 3 – Washington 0
KC: Robbie Grossman drove in two runs with a single.
WAS: The Nationals were held to two hits.
Miami 3 – Minnesota 8
MIA: Jake Burger hit his 29th long ball of the season and drove in three runs.
MIN: The Twins’ offense scored five runs in the seventh inning to walk away with the victory.
St. Louis 5 – Colorado 2
STL: Ryan Helsley tied the Cardinals’ single-season save record with 48.
COL: Brenton Doyle hit his 23rd home run of the season.
San Francisco 2 – Arizona 8
SF: Mason Black allowed four runs in two and two-thirds innings.
ARI: Pavin Smith hit a home run and drove in three runs.
Texas 5 – Oakland 1
TEX: Wyatt Langford hit his 14th home run of the season and drove in two runs.
OAK: Brady Basso had an outing to forget as he allowed five runs in three innings.
San Diego 3 – LA Dodgers 4
SD: Fernando Tatis Jr. recorded his 21st home run of the season.
LAD: Shohei Ohtani hit a double and a single in three at-bats.
