The Baltimore Orioles gave their fans a glimpse into an exciting future as starting pitcher Dean Kremer and rookie catcher Adley Rutschman delivered in a 6-0 win against the Houston Astros.

Houston entered the contest with a seven-game lead atop the American League standings, but they were no match for Kremer in what ended up being the first complete game shutout of his career.

Kremer, 26, is in the midst of a breakout season, with nine scoreless innings against the Astros bringing his ERA to 3.07 from 114 innings this year – a sharp improvement from his 7.55 ERA in 53 innings a season ago.

Overall, Kremer allowed four hits and two walks in the complete game, and he received some solid run support from another young star on his team.

Rutschman, 24, would be considered a strong chance for Rookie of the Year if Seattle Mariners phenom Julio Rodriguez had not already locked up the award, and the young catcher finished three-for-three at the plate on Friday.

He singled in his first at-bat, followed by a solo home run in the fourth inning, and a double in the seventh.

With the win, the Orioles are now three games behind the Mariners in the race for the last AL Wildcard spot.

The wrong Aaron homers for the Yankees

Aaron Judge remains one home run away from the American League and New York Yankees' single-season record, but his side emerged 5-4 victors against the Boston Red Sox with the help of his namesake.

It was Aaron Hicks doing the damage for the Yankees, hitting a solo home run in the third inning and an RBI single in the fifth to score the first two runs, before Gleyber Torres' two-run single doubled their advantage to 4-1.

A three-run homer to Boston's Alex Verdugo tied things at 4-4 in the sixth inning, but All-Star catcher Jose Trevino tacked on the winner for the Yankees with a single in the eighth inning.

Judge finished one-for-four with a single and two strikeouts.

Nola, Hoskins dominate the reigning champions

Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins were at the peak of their powers to help the Philadelphia Phillies to a dominant 9-1 home win against the reigning World Series champion Atlanta Braves.

Already leading 2-0 in the second inning, Hoskins stepped up to the plate and added two more runs with a double, and he chipped in another two with a homer in the fourth inning on his way to final figures of three-for-four with four RBIs.

On the mound, Nola was terrific, striking out eight batters in six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and three walks.

Travis d'Arnaud focused on the Atlanta Braves' "marathon" pursuit of the New York Mets after their postseason place was confirmed for a fifth straight year on Tuesday.

The defending World Series champions defeated the Washington Nationals 3-2 at Truist Park, with their playoff spot clinched shortly afterwards as the Mets rallied to beat the Milwaukee Brewers 7-5.

It was not necessarily the outcome the Braves wanted, however, as a victory for the Brewers would have seen Atlanta level with the Mets atop the NL East.

As it is, the Braves are one game back, but d'Arnaud warned their rivals they have plenty still left in the tank.

"It's a marathon, it's not over," d'Arnaud said. "So we'll just keep going after it until the end."

All-Star catcher d'Arnaud had extended his career-high home run total to 18, while William Contreras, his backup, has 19.

They are just the fourth catching duo in NL or AL history to each hit at least 18 homers in a season with at least two-thirds of their games played at catcher.

And Arnaud was effusive in his praise of Contreras, adding: "It's been so much fun.

"The energy he brings every day honestly inspires me and makes me feel young. So I don't know if I'd be having as good of a year if he wasn't here."

The Braves face the Nationals again on Wednesday, looking for a clean sweep as the Mets do likewise against the Brewers.

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies will miss at least the rest of the regular season after the two-time All-Star broke his right pinky finger sliding head-first into second base in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday night. 

The two-time Silver Slugger Award winner just returned from the 60-day injured list on Friday after missing 81 games due to a fractured left foot, which he suffered on June 13 against the Washington Nationals. 

"I hate it for him because my heart breaks for him," Braves manager Brian Snitker said. "After everything he went through to get back here and then have that happen, God it's horrible for him. He was having so much fun, being the old Oz, playing ball. What he loves to do."

Albies is batting .247 with eight home runs and 35 RBIs in 64 games this season for the defending World Series champion Braves, who beat Philadelphia 4-3 to remain one game behind the first-place New York Mets in the NL East. 

Atlanta is a lock to make the playoffs as they own a 10-and-a-half-game lead over the Phillies for the top wild card spot in the NL.  

Atlanta Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies will miss at least the rest of the regular season after the two-time All-Star broke his right pinky finger sliding head-first into second base in the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday night. 

The two-time Silver Slugger Award winner just returned from the 60-day injured list on Friday after missing 81 games due to a fractured left foot, which he suffered on June 13 against the Washington Nationals. 

"I hate it for him because my heart breaks for him," Braves manager Brian Snitker said. "After everything he went through to get back here and then have that happen, God it's horrible for him. He was having so much fun, being the old Oz, playing ball. What he loves to do."

Albies is batting .247 with eight home runs and 35 RBIs in 64 games this season for the defending World Series champion Braves, who beat Philadelphia 4-3 to remain one game behind the first-place New York Mets in the NL East. 

Atlanta is a lock to make the playoffs as they own a 10-and-a-half-game lead over the Phillies for the top wild card spot in the NL.  

Chicago White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease lost his no-hitter bid on the last out as his side won 13-0 over the Minnesota Twins in the MLB on Saturday.

Cease enjoyed his longest no-hit bid of his career, and had two outs in the ninth inning before it was spoiled by a Luis Arraez line-drive single into right-center.

It was a cruel ending for Cease who had allowed only two base runners with walks, with seven strikeouts up until that point.

Cease became the second pitcher this season to fall one out short from a no-hitter, after St Louis Cardinals' Miles Mikolas in June.

The White Sox right-hander is the third pitcher to fall one short over the last five seasons. It would have been Chicago's third no-hitter of the last two years.

Cease instead settled for a career-first shutout, striking out Kyle Garlick shortly after Arraez spoiled his party.

Judge homers again as Yankees lose once more

Aaron Judge remains on track for 63 home runs this season after blasting his 52nd of the season in the New York Yankees' 2-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.

Judge's solo home run came in the ninth inning after the Yankees had gone 21 innings without scoring, with another defeat leaving them with a 15-26 record since the All-Star break.

Yandy Diaz came up with the decisive two-run single in the third inning while Corey Kluber allowed only two hits and no runs with four strikeouts across seven innings.

Riley keeps up streak as Braves walk it off

Austin Riley homered in the fourth consecutive game as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Miami Marlins in a 2-1 walk-off win. Riley also continued his 10-game on-base streak and seven-game hitting streak.

Riley hammered a line-drive blast left in the fourth inning to put the Braves up 1-0 but the Marlins would square it up in the ninth inning before a remarkable finale.

With bases loaded, Robbie Grossman provided the finish with a walk-off walk from Marlins closer Steven Okert.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have lost three games in a row for the first time since mid-June after going down 7-1 at home against the San Diego Padres on Friday.

Yu Darvish was spectacular starting on the mound for the visitors, pitching seven scoreless innings while only allowing two hits and two walks to go with nine strikeouts.

While Darvish was taking the Dodgers' offense out of the contest, the Padres' big bats came through with some timely hits, with star Manny Machado's two-run home run breaking the deadlock in the third inning.

Just three batters after Machado in the same inning, it was teammate Brandon Drury's turn to do the damage, connecting on his own two-run shot to double the Padres' lead to 4-0.

With Drury and Todd Grisham on base in the sixth frame, Padres lead-off hitter Jurickson Profar put the game beyond doubt with a three-run home run, before the Dodgers salvaged one consolation run in the ninth frame through a Joey Gallo base hit.

Overall, the Dodgers only registered four hits as a team, with their MVP candidates Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman combining to go zero-for-six.

Despite their three-game losing streak, the Dodgers are still five-and-a-half games clear for the best record in the majors at 90-41, and they lead the Padres by 17 games in the NL West.

Castillo, Raleigh lead Mariners to convincing win

Luis Castillo held the Cleveland Guardians scoreless through the first six innings as the Seattle Mariners prevailed 6-1 away from home.

Castillo finished with four strikeouts, allowing five hits and one walk, while with the bat it was Cal Raleigh doing the damage.

Raleigh hit a 366-foot solo home run in the third inning, and he topped that in the sixth frame when he blasted a 424-foot, three-run shot over the right-field wall.

AL Rookie of the Year favourite and the recent recipient of a contract worth up to $470million if all its incentives are hit, Julio Rodriguez came around to score two runs, going one-for-five at the plate.

D'Arnaud and the Braves get to Alcantara

It was a rough outing for NL Cy Young Award shoo-in Sandy Alcantara, giving up six runs in five innings as the Atlanta Braves made him look average in an 8-1 win.

Alcantara leads the majors comfortably in innings pitched (190 – 20 more than second-place) and wins-above-replacement, or WAR (6.9 – 1.9 more than second-place), but he had no answer for a switched-on Braves offense.

Travis d'Arnaud had a day to remember, blasting a pair of 400-foot home runs, while rookies Michael Harris II and Vaughan Grissom also went deep.

Adding to the launch party was Austin Riley, who hit his 34th long-ball of the season – the third-most in the majors – and he has the second-most total bases, trailing only New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge.

Rookie right-hander Spencer Strider made history with a franchise-record 16 strikeouts in the Atlanta Braves' 3-0 win over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday.

The 23-year-old's 16 K's was the most ever by a Braves pitcher in a nine-inning game, bettering John Smoltz's previous record of 15, coming in only his 17th career Major League start.

Strider, who had 79 strikes from 106 pitches, allowed two hits and did not walk a batter, with a mix of fastballs and sliders across eight innings.

The 16 strikeouts were the most in the majors since Walker Buehler had 16 against the Rockies in June 2019.

"I lost track after five [innings]," Strider said about his strikeouts count. "I came out of the game and Kyle [Wright] was telling me something about John Smoltz or whatever. It didn't make any sense.

"It's pretty wild, the guys who've thrown in this organization, it's a long, incredible list. I'm just grateful to be here and having success."

Austin Riley and Michael Harris II hit solo home runs for the Braves, who improve to 81-51 to be three games behind the New York Mets (84-48) in the National League East.

Kershaw shakes off the rust in Dodgers defeat

Clayton Kershaw returned from the injured list with an efficient display but he could not inspire the Los Angeles Dodgers to victory, losing 5-3 to the New York Mets.

After a rusty start, Kershaw had six strikeouts across five innings, allowing one hit, one earned run while walking three batters.

Francisco Lindor was the hero with a tying RBI double in the sixth inning before scoring the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh, while Edwin Diaz struck out Gavin Lux to escape a jam in the eighth.

Red Sox rally wth Refsnyder career-first walk-off

Rob Refsnyder's single clinched a walk-off win for the Boston Red Sox who rallied with a four-run ninth inning to win 9-8 over the Texas Rangers.

The Red Sox, who had been behind 8-3 in the eighth, trailed 8-5 entering the ninth with Rafael Devers hitting a two-run double to narrow the deficit before Kike Hernandez's RBI single tied it up.

Refsnyder walked it off for the first time in his career with a line shot that drove home Devers.

The Los Angeles Dodgers made sure to put Monday's sorry home defeat to the Milwaukee Brewers well and truly behind them with another emphatic victory.

Having been blanked for the first time at home in 2022 in the first game of the series, the Dodgers hit back on Tuesday with a 10-1 rout of the Brewers, and they followed that win up in style a day later.

There was more resistance from Milwaukee this time around, but the Dodgers - who have the best record in Major League Baseball (86-37) and hold a huge 19.5-game lead in the National League West - still cruised to a 12-6 victory.

Pitcher Andrew Heaney appeared in his first win since April and was key as he struck out 10, one off his season best, while he has back-to-back 10 strikeout outings for the first time in over three years.

"It seems like he's got 10 punchouts every game and you don't know it until you look up at the scoreboard," Trea Turner said of Heaney. "There's always one guy that gets no run support and one that gets runs on every team. I guess he's been the lucky one."

"Feeling better, trying to get deeper in games and get more pitch efficient and stay away from a couple of mistakes that have cost me big-time the last couple games," Heaney said.

The Dodgers' emphatic win, which sees them clinch their season series against the Brewers 4-3, came on the back of huge victories for the Atlanta Braves and the Texas Rangers.

World Series champions Atlanta made light work of the Pittsburgh Pirates, winning 16-2, with Kyle Wright recording 21 outs from 73 pitches as he tied with Justin Verlander and Tony Gonsolin for the most victories in the majors. The Rangers, meanwhile, hammered the Colorado Rockies 16-4.

Quantrill does the damage in San Diego

Cal Quantrill returned to haunt his old team as the Cleveland Guardians stormed to a 7-0 victory over the San Diego Padres.

Playing in San Diego for the first time since he was traded to Cleveland in 2020, Quantrill struck out six and walked one.

"Apparently I really did care a lot. It just felt important," Quantrill told reporters of facing his former side. "I wanted that game to be clean. I didn't want to trail off."

Cubs and Cardinals set for series decider

The Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals will face off on Thursday with everything on the line in their five-game series.

That is after Zach McKinstry homered and drove in three runs to help the Cubs to a 7-1 triumph that ties the series at 2-2.

Elsewhere, the Tampa Bay Rays claimed a fifth straight win by edging out the Los Angeles Angels 4-3, while the Philadelphia Phillies are in line for a four-game clean sweep of their series with the Cincinnati Reds after a 7-5 success.

The red-hot Atlanta Braves have now won 10 of their past 11 games after defeating the Houston Astros 6-2 on Friday, with their top-three batters combining for seven hits.

After two scoreless innings to begin the game, the Braves' big-three delivered, with singles to Ronald Acuna Jr and Dansby Swanson followed by a three-run home run to National League MVP candidate Austin Riley.

It was Riley's 31st dinger of the season, which ties him for third in the majors, and his 267 total bases trails only New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge (285).

The Astros fought back in the fifth inning as Kyle Tucker launched a 445-foot solo moon shot, and Jose Altuve delivered an RBI single later in the same frame to cut the margin to 3-2.

But an inning later the Braves re-established their dominance, as Swanson came through with a two-run double, and Matt Olson's sacrifice fly made it 6-2.

The Atlanta bullpen was flawless after coming in to relieve Kyle Wright, who was credited with his 15th win of the season for giving up two runs in six complete innings, striking out seven.

In relief, Collin McHugh and Kenley Jansen combined to allow just one hit and no walks from the final three innings, striking out five of the 10 batters they faced.

The Braves own the third-best record in the National League at 74-47, five-and-a-half games back from the New York Mets (77-43) and nine games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (81-36).

Yankees cold streak continues

The New York Yankees have not won a series since July, and they will not win their current slate against the Toronto Blue Jays after dropping the first two of the four-game series, getting shut out 4-0 on Friday.

Blue Jays ace Kevin Gausman was at the top of his game, making it through seven complete innings while only allowing four hits and one walk, striking out seven.

The most significant swing of the bat came from Teoscar Hernandez, who sent Jameson Taillon's pitch 421 feet over the center-field wall in the fourth inning, while Vladimir Guerrero Jr became the youngest in Blue Jays history to reach 500 hits.

McKenzie strikes out 14 in Guardians win

The Cleveland Guardians may be unearthing their ace of the future as 25-year-old starter Triston McKenzie struck out 14 batters in his side's 5-2 win against the Chicago White Sox.

McKenzie, standing at six-foot-five, has the seventh-best WHIP (walks and hits per inning) in the majors, and has now struck out at least six batters in four of his past six starts, including an eight-inning, 12-strikeout, shut-out performance against the Detroit Tigers last month.

With the bat, Cleveland's most valuable player Jose Ramirez hit his 23rd home run of the season, and rookie Steven Kwan collected an RBI triple to raise his batting average to over .300 for the season. 

Josh Donaldson produced a remarkable 10th-inning walk-off grand slam to snap the New York Yankees' slump with an 8-7 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday.

Trailing 7-4 in the 10th inning after losing 11 of their past 13 games, Donaldson had his signature moment with bases loaded, blasting Jalen Beeks with a high fly ball deep right over Randy Arozarena's head into the stands.

The victory from the jaws of defeat, was the 10th walk-off grand slam win in Yankees history and first since 2016.

The win also comes amid the Yankees recent offensive struggles, with the slam marking Donaldson's 12th home run of the season.

The Rays had appeared destined for victory after Francisco Mejia's three-run double at the top of the 10th inning, but the Yankees responded by filling the bases before Donaldson's blast.

The result snapped the Yankees' third-game losing streak and ensures they avoided their first sweep at home this season, improving their record to 73-45.

Shohei's one-man show not enough

Shohei Ohtani starred with a two-run homer among his feats but it was not enough to prevent the Los Angeles Angels from being swept by the Seattle Mariners, losing 11-7 on Wednesday.

Ohtani had four hits, four RBIs, with a run-scoring triple in the seventh inning and his two-run blast in the ninth inning, marking his 27th home run of the season.

But the Mariners moved into the top American League Wild Card slot led by two homers from Cal Raleigh, along with two-run shots from Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker each.

Baty's dream major league debut

Rookie Brett Baty homered in front of his family in a fairytale MLB debut as the New York Mets won 9-7 over the Atlanta Braves.

Baty struck a two-run homer out of the yard in his first major league at-bat from the second pitch he faced from Jake Odorizzi. He becomes the fifth Met to homer in their first at-bat.

The Mets withstood a late Braves push after Max Scherzer had eight strikeouts across six-and-one-third innings.

The Atlanta Braves on Tuesday made a long-term commitment to a player with less than three months of major league experience, as they signed center-fielder Michael Harris II to an eight-year, $72million contract. 

The deal runs through 2030 and includes club options for the 2031 and 2032 seasons as well.  

Harris becomes the latest core player to be locked up to a long-term deal by the Braves. He will be the fifth Atlanta player signed through at least 2025, along with outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., second baseman Ozzie Albies, first baseman Matt Olson and third baseman Austin Riley. 

The 21-year-old Harris, the youngest player in the majors, was called up from Double-A on May 28 and has made a huge impact for the Braves. He is batting .287 with 12 home runs and 39 RBIs, while adding 13 stolen bases and 46 runs in 71 games.  

Harris was named National League Rookie of the Month for June after he hit .347 with 13 extra-base hits and four steals.  

An outstanding defensive center fielder, Harris’ two-way play has made him a favourite to win NL Rookie of the Year, with teammate Spencer Strider perhaps his chief competitor. 

Tuesday’s 5-0 win over the New York Mets improved the Braves to 50-21 since Harris made his debut against the Miami Marlins on May 28. Atlanta pulled to within three-and-a-half games of the NL East-leading Mets with their eighth consecutive victory.  

The Atlanta Braves received an MVP-level performance from Austin Riley as they went into Fenway Park and left with a 9-7 extra-innings win on the road against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.

Riley – who is the second-favourite for National League MVP, trailing only Paul Goldschmidt from the St Louis Cardinals – got things going for the Braves in the opening inning, with an RBI triple scoring the first run of the game.

After Red Sox second-baseman Christian Arroyo connected on a two-run home run an inning later, travelling 403 feet, Riley answered back in the third frame with his own two-run shot, with his sailing 426 feet for the longest hit of the game.

The Red Sox rallied back in the middle stages, with home runs to Tommy Pham and Jarren Duran, as well as another RBI double from Arroyo, to jump ahead 5-4 in the fifth inning.

National League Rookie of the Year contender Michael Harris II tied the game with a double in the sixth frame, and Dansby Swanson gave the Braves a 6-5 lead as his double brought home Ronald Acuna Jr for his second run of the game.

That lead would be short-lived, with Boston tying things up at 6-6 in the bottom of the eighth through a J.D. Martinez base hit, and that score would hold through the end of regulation to force extra innings.

Both teams tallied a single run in the 10th, before Riley came through again in the 11th, driving in his fourth and fifth runs of the day with a single as Acuna crossed home plate for the third time to snatch a 9-7 lead.

Tyler Matzek made no mistakes on the mound, finishing things off and collecting his first save of the season, striking out two.

Riley finished three-for-five at the plate with five RBIs, and he now sits third in the league in home runs (30), eighth in RBIs (74) and second in total bases (255), trailing only New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge (273).

Ohtani delivers with bat and ball

It was another starring performance for baseball's most unique player as Shohei Ohtani pitched six scoreless innings and hit his 25th home run of the season to carry the Los Angeles Angels to a 5-1 victory away against the Oakland Athletics.

Only 11 players have hit more home runs this season than Ohtani, while only five pitchers have struck out more batters than his 157 in 19 starts. Everyone ahead of him on the strikeout list has started at least two more games, and he trails only Braves rookie Spencer Strider in strikeouts-per-nine-innings among starters.

He struck out five batters against the Athletics while giving up four hits and three walks in his six innings, and finished two-for-three at the plate, with two runs and one RBI.

Padres get mixed results from new recruits

The San Diego Padres needed some late heroics when newly acquired closer Josh Hader blew a three-run lead in the ninth inning, before Manny Machado came through in the clutch for a 7-4 win.

While Hader was the Padres' big pitching recruit, Juan Soto was the prize of their trade deadline dealings, and he was terrific as he finished with two hits and two walks from his five plate appearances, including his first home run since arriving in San Diego.

Leading 4-1 in the ninth inning, Hader failed to secure the save, giving up three runs to tie the game. But the Padres would get away with it, with a single to Jurickson Profar and a walk to Soto bringing Machado to the plate for the walk-off home run.

Aaron Judge ended his four-game home-run drought as the New York Yankees snapped their five-game losing skid with a 9-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Monday.

The Yankees, who are top of the American League (AL) with a 71-39 record, had been swept in a three-game series by the St Louis Cardinals along with two defeats to the Mariners at Yankee Stadium in their past five.

But they responded at T-Mobile Park from the outset, with Josh Donaldson hitting a first-inning two-run single along with a third-inning solo home run, sandwiched by Mitch Haniger's blast as the Yankees claimed an early 4-1 lead.

The Yankees pulled clear with three runs in the fifth inning, as Andrew Benintendi doubled on a line drive with Donaldson and Gleyber Torres scoring, followed by Benintendi from Isiah Kiner-Falefa's sac fly.

Judge, who leads the majors in home runs, RBIs, runs, slugging percentage and on-base plus slugging this season, re-discovered his form in the ninth inning after his recent lean stretch.

The Yankees outfielder had a close call with a high ball falling just short of the wall in the third inning, but blasted a solo home run in the ninth with a fly ball over deep center field.

The home run was Judge's 44th home run of the season, continuing his march to history with the AL single-season record of 61, from Roger Maris in 1961, within sight. It also ensures Judge's longest run without a home run this season remains seven games.

More Mets momentum with Reds win

The New York Mets kept up their momentum after winning four games in their five-game series against the Atlanta Braves with a 5-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

Starling Marte crushed a two-run home run in the first inning off ex-Mets pitcher Justin Dunn, but Francisco Lindor was sensationally denied a fifth-inning blast by a leaping Albert Almora with a high catch on the wall. Tyler Naquin's eighth-inning two-RBI triple sealed the win.

Chris Bassitt sent down eight strikeouts across eight innings for the Mets, whose starters have pitched a league-best 2.21 ERA since July 5. The Mets have won 13 of their 15 games.

Orioles maintain Wild Card push

The in-form Baltimore Orioles boosted their AL Wild Card aspirations with a 7-4 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

Home runs from Ramon Urias, Anthony Santander, Ryan Mountcastle and Austin Hays helped the O's clinch their sixth win from their past seven games.

Felix Bautista closed out the victory, with Bo Bichette grounding into a double play, as the O's improved to 57-52 in the AL Wild Card hunt behind the Blue Jays (60-49), Tampa Bay Rays (58-50) and Mariners (59-52).

It was far from a warm welcome for newly acquired New York Yankees starting pitcher Frankie Montas, getting smacked around in a 12-9 away loss to the St Louis Cardinals.

Montas, who was traded from the Oakland Athletics before the deadline, struggled mightily, conceding six runs in the first two innings, with four coming off the bat of Nolan Arenado.

Arenado collected an RBI single in the first inning to cancel out an early Yankees run, and after the visiting side jumped ahead 4-1 in the second frame thanks in large part to a two-RBI base hit from AL MVP favourite Aaron Judge, it all began to fall apart.

Dylan Carlson's RBI double started the rally and cut the margin to 4-2, a sacrifice-fly from NL MVP favourite Paul Goldschmidt made it 4-3, and then Arenado connected on a three-run home run to lead 6-4 after two innings.

Montas would be pulled to begin the fourth frame, finishing with figures of six earned runs from five hits and three walks in his 64 pitches.

To the Yankees' credit, they refused to lay down, with Judge driving in another two runs with a double in the fifth inning to tie the game at 6-6, but the Cardinals continued to answer right back, adding three more runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth.

The Yankees again cut the lead to 9-8, but Paul DeJong put the game to bed in the eighth inning with a three-run homer to grab a winning break.

Overall, the teams combined for 21 runs from 27 hits, with Arenado going three-for-five at the plate with four RBIs, and Judge finishing two-for-five with four RBIs. Judge now leads the majors in RBIs with 97, two more than New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso.

DeGrom makes his case as the game's best pitcher

There were concerns that perhaps injuries would strip New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom of his status as the sport's most elite pitcher, but he continued to dispel that myth on Sunday in his side's 5-2 win against the Atlanta Braves.

DeGrom, in his second start of the season, struck out 12 of the 19 batters he faced, going on to finish with two earned runs from one hit and one walk in five-and-two-thirds innings.

Through five innings, deGrom had a perfect game with 10 strikeouts, but was pulled in the sixth after his first walk of the game was followed by a home run from Dansby Swanson to cut the Mets' lead to 5-2, with both bullpens keeping things scoreless the rest of the way.

Rays pull off improbable late rally

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, there had yet to be a run in the Tampa Bay Rays' road game against the Detroit Tigers, before an incredible offensive explosion saw the Rays prevail 7-0.

The Rays as a team conceded only three hits and no walks as six pitchers combined beautifully, while the Tigers relied on Matt Manning to get them through most of the game, pitching seven scoreless frames for seven baserunners and seven strikeouts.

In the ninth inning, after two outs, the Rays rattled off consecutive at-bats resulting in a double, three walks, a single, a double and another single as seven straight batters reached base.

Max Scherzer delivered 11 strikeouts across seven innings to cap a perfect day for the New York Mets who swept their divisional double-header with the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.

The Mets got past the Braves 8-5 in the matinee game, followed by a 6-2 victory in the evening led by Scherzer's impressive outing.

The wins were critical in the National League (NL) East where the Mets improved to a 69-39 record ahead of the reigning world champions at 64-45.

Scherzer was at his vintage best for the Mets, amid tension given the Braves had recently closed in on Mets in the race for first place ahead of the five-game series.

"This is what you play the game for," Scherzer said. "You play to face the best, especially deep in the season. You grind it out here in the NL East."

Scherzer's 11 KS means he sits fourth on the all-time MLB list for most 10 or more strikeout games by a pitcher with 109, behind Nolan Ryan (215), Randy Johnson (212) and Roger Clemens (110).

Yankees shut out as Montgomery stars

Jordan Montgomery came back to haunt his former employers only days after being traded as the St Louis Cardinals defeated the New York Yankees 1-0.

Montgomery pitched five scoreless innings for the Cardinals who triumphed courtesy of Paul Goldschmidt's first-inning run driven in by Nolan Arenado.

The Cards new left-handed pitcher, who was involved in the trade deal for Harrison Bader, only managed one strikeout but only allowed two hits and a walk.

Dodgers edge divisional rivals

Max Muncy's fifth-inning go-ahead three-run blast helped the Los Angeles Dodgers topple the San Diego Padres 8-3 in their National League (NL) West battle.

The Dodgers were trailing 3-2 at the time, but Muncy's intervention turned the tide. The Dodgers extend their lead in the NL West with a 74-33 record compared to the Padres who are 61-49.

The home run was Muncy's 11th for the season. Will Smith also had a solo home run, to finish with three hits with two runs and three RBIs.

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