MAJOR LEAGUES
Chris Tillman allowed just three hits into the eighth inning as the Baltimore Orioles moved within 1.5 games of idle Tampa Bay for the second AL wild-card spot by beating the New York Yankees 4-2 on Monday.
The Yankees fell three games behind Tampa Bay after a game that featured an on-field confrontation between the teams’ managers.
Photo: Reuters
Both dugouts emptied briefly after the first inning, when Orioles manager Buck Showalter angrily exchanged words with Yankees manager Joe Girardi after Girardi apparently said something to Baltimore third-base coach Bobby Dickerson. Showalter had to be restrained by home plate umpire Ed Hickox.
Alex Rodriguez hit his 652nd homer.
In Miami, NL’ Atlanta (86-57) passed Boston (87-58) for baseball’s best record after Evan Gattis drove in two runs to highlight the Braves’ highest-scoring inning in more than a month to break a four-game losing streak with a 5-2 win over the Marlins.
Justin Upton, Freddie Freeman and Gattis all doubled to lead off what became a five-run fourth, Atlanta’s biggest inning since a five-run fifth against Philadelphia on Aug. 2. Kris Medlen (13-12) was the beneficiary that night against the Phillies and again on Monday, getting the win after allowing six hits and two runs in 6-1/3 innings.
Cleveland’s Ubaldo Jimenez struck out 10 batters over seven innings and Asdrubal Cabrera, Yan Gomes and Carlos Santana each hit solo homers to lead the Indians to a 4-3 win over the Kansas City Royals in a matchup between two teams in the thick of the AL wild-card chase.
The Indians, who won despite having only five hits, stayed even with Baltimore, 1.5 games back from Tampa Bay for the second wild-card spot. The Royals dropped to four games behind the Rays.
Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer off Cody Allen in the eighth.
In other AL games, the Minnesota Twins downed the Los Angeles Angels 6-3, the Chicago White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 and the Houston Astros defeated the Seattle Mariners 6-4. The Pittsburgh Pirates blanked the Texas Rangers 1-0 in interleague play.
In the NL, Travis Wood beat Cincinnati for the first time in his career, repeatedly pitching out of threats for seven innings as the Chicago Cubs shut out the Reds 2-0.
Gio Gonzalez held the Mets hitless into the seventh, before pinch-hitter Zach Lutz broke up the bid with a soft single as the Washington Nationals trounced the Mets 9-0.
The San Francisco Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 3-2 over 10 innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers thrashed the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-1.
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