All 16 runs of the Los Angeles Dodgers' 10-6 win over the Miami Marlins were scored after the fifth inning, with Mookie Betts collecting four hits and driving home four runs in a big day at the plate on Friday.

After a scoreless opening five frames, Chris Taylor drove in the first run of the game for the Dodgers with a sacrifice fly in the sixth, only for the Marlins to respond with a two-run double to Joey Wendle to give the Marlins a 2-1 lead.

Betts connected on his 28th home run of the season with a two-run shot to left-field in the seventh inning, but the lead was again short-lived as the Marlins responded in the bottom of the frame, with Miguel Rojas and Wendle driving in a run each to lead 5-4.

In the ninth inning, trailing by one run, Betts came through again with his 29th homer to tie the game, and when Justin Turner made it 6-5 with his RBI single, it looked like the Dodgers were going to get the job done in regulation, but a big Peyton Burdick home run took things to extra innings.

The Dodgers made sure it would not drag on all night, piling on four runs in the 10th, highlighted by an RBI double to Betts for his fourth hit of the night.

With the win, the Dodgers extended their league-best record to 87-37, giving them a seven-and-a-half game lead atop the National League, and 19-and-a-half game lead over the San Diego Padres in the NL West.

Judge, Cole carry the Yankees

The New York Yankees received starring performances from their marquee players as they defeated the Oakland Athletics 3-2 on the road.

Setting the foundations for the win was ace pitcher Gerrit Cole, who struck out 11 batters in his seven-and-a-third innings, allowing one run from three hits and two walks. It was the first time Cole has been credited with a win this month.

With scores tied at 0-0 in the fifth inning, Oswaldo Cabrera and D.J. LeMahieu were able to string together a couple singles to put two runners on base for Aaron Judge, and the AL MVP favourite delivered, crushing his 49th home run of the season. No other player has more than 35.

After a rough month, the Yankees have now won five in a row.

Harper returns in style for the Phillies

Reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper returned from a two-month injury layoff on Friday, and delivered a two-run hit with his very first at-bat in his side's 7-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Harper finished one-for-four at the plate with two RBIs as he came back in the designated hitter spot, while Rhys Hoskins, Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos all collected multiple hits.

Bailey Falter banked the win on the mound, making it through six innings while conceding three runs from six hits and no walks, striking out six.

Julio Rodriguez has made quite an impact during his rookie season for the Seattle Mariners, and now it appears the sides are entering into a long-term relationship. 

Rodriguez and the Mariners are reportedly putting the finishing touches on a contract extension that would guarantee at least $210million for 14 years, with the potential to exceed $400m over the life of the contract. 

According to sources, the contract could max at out at $470m.  

The deal guarantees Rodriguez the most money for a player with less than one full year in the major leagues. The San Diego Padres signed Fernando Tatis Jr to a 14-year, $340m contract after his second season, and the Tampa Bay Rays guaranteed $182m over 11 seasons to Wander Franco last winter.  

Rodriguez’s deal, which has not been officially announced, has a base of $120 million and goes through the 2029 season. The Mariners can exercise an option after the 2028 season for an additional eight to 10 years, depending on where he finishes in MVP voting in the preceding seasons. 

The 21-year-old Rodriguez is the leading contender for American League Rookie of the Year. He’s batting .269 with a .799 OPS with 20 home runs, 20 stolen bases and 64 RBIs in 108 games.  

'J-Rod', as he is affectionately known, won AL Rookie of the Month in May and June and was one of six rookies to make the All-Star roster.  

He is among the biggest reasons why Seattle holds one of the three wild cards as the franchise attempts to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2001 and end the longest postseason drought in major pro sports.  

''He's learned a lot over the last four-and-a-half, five months about Major League Baseball and things he needed to work on and continue to improve upon,'' Mariners manager Scott Servais said. ''Really good teammate. I mean, you can go on and on describing where he's at. But there's a lot of baseball, really good baseball ahead of him, and I know that's what excites me and the organization.'' 

When he homered Wednesday against the Washington Nationals, Rodriguez became the fastest player in American League history to reach 20 homers and 20 stolen bases, surpassing Mike Trout. 

Rodriguez broke out nationally during the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium. He reached the final where he lost to Juan Soto, but had a memorable first two rounds where he hit 63 total home runs to beat Corey Seager and Peter Alonso.  

On the same day they activated slugger Giancarlo Stanton, the New York Yankees put All-Star pitcher Nestor Cortes on the 15-day injured list with a strained left groin. 

Stanton, who had been sidelined by left Achilles tendinitis since July 23, returned to the lineup as designated hitter for the start of a four-game series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday night.

Batting third, he connected on a two-out, bases-loaded single to drive in two runs in the second inning, before collecting his third RBI with a bases-loaded walk in the third inning of his side's 13-4 win.

Cortes' loss is a big one for the first-placed Yankees, who entered Thursday with a seven-and-a-half game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East.  

The left-hander is 9-4 with a 2.68 ERA in 23 starts, while throwing a career-high 131 innings this season. An All-Star for the first time earlier this year, Cortes said he felt discomfort in his push-off leg early during his last start against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday and pitched through it. He expects to return on schedule and contribute to the September stretch run. 

''I feel like if there was a time for it to happen, it would be now, instead of the middle of September or late September going into the playoffs or October,'' Cortes said. ''I've got to take care of my body so I can be one of the guys when playoff time comes around.'' 

Cortes played light catch from between 100 and 120 feet at the Oakland Coliseum on Thursday, making 30-40 throws. He could throw in the bullpen in the next few days. 

''I'm hoping 15 days is enough,'' he said. ''I think the fact that I'm feeling pretty well – I don't think there will be any hiccups along the way.'' 

The Yankees could move Clarke Schmidt into the rotation after he was stretched out to pitch starter innings when he was sent to the minors on August 1.  

Luis Severino is recovering from a lat strain, but is expected to return to the rotation from the injured list by mid-September.  

The Boston Red Sox blew a golden opportunity with bases loaded, no outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, going on to lose 6-5 to the Toronto Blue Jays in extra innings on Thursday.

In a game where the two sides combined for 28 hits, the Blue Jays got off to a hot start with a pair of scores in the opening inning courtesy of a Bo Bichette two-run double.

The Red Sox, in front of their home fans, tied things up in the second frame with RBI singles to Carlos Arroyo and Bobby Dalbec, before Rafael Devers' double an inning later gave his team a 3-2 lead.

It was then Vladimir Guerrero's turn to put the Blue Jays ahead with a two-run single in the fourth, which was another short-lived lead as the Red Sox tied things at 4-4 later in the inning through a Dalbec sacrifice-fly.

When Danny Jansen's solo home run in the six inning again gave the visitors a one-run lead, it seemed like it was destined to be the Red Sox's day as they instantly answered back, with Jarren Duran's double making it a 5-5 tie, which would hold until the ninth inning.

After the Blue Jays were unable to get a run across, the Red Sox manufactured runners on second and third base in the bottom of the ninth, with no outs. After an intentional walk, the bases were loaded for Franchy Cordero.

Cordero struck out swinging, before Enrique Hernandez grounded to third-base, where elite fielder Matt Chapman gathered, stepped on third base and threw to first for the game-saving double-play.

A pair of well-directed ground-outs brought across the go-ahead run for the Blue Jays, with Jordan Romano securing the save and the win.

DeGrom puts on a clinic

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom showed once again why he is considered the best pitcher in the sport, dominating the early stages of his side's 3-1 win against the Colorado Rockies.

DeGrom, in only his fourth start of the season after he missed the first half due to lingering injuries, sat down the first 12 batters he faced, including seven strikeouts, before the Rockies finally got their first baserunner in the fifth inning.

As he ticked over 75 pitches he lost some life in his pitches, but he still finished with one earned run from six complete innings, allowing three hits and one walk to go with nine strikeouts.

Goldschmidt adds to his MVP case

Heavy favourite for the National League MVP, Paul Goldschmidt, hit two home runs as his St Louis Cardinals defeated the Chicago Cubs 8-3.

After a three-run first inning, every score from that point on for the Cardinals came courtesy of Goldschmidt's bat, with a two-run single in the fourth inning, followed by a 403-foot solo home run in the sixth, and a two-run, 428-foot home run in the eighth.

Goldschmidt now leads the NL in batting average (.339), on-base percentage (.420), slugging percentage (.637), RBIs (105) and total bases (284), and is second in home runs (33).

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.

Major League Baseball teams will face every opponent across both leagues for the first time in 2023 under the schedule revealed by the league on Wednesday.

The revised format is intended to provide a more balanced schedule that will make races for the three Wild Card spots in each league more equitable, as well as providing fans a more diverse option of visiting opponents and players in an effort to boost attendance.

Teams will now play a total of 46 interleague games, a substantial increase from the 20 games on the 2022 slate. Divisional play will be de-emphasised as a result, with teams now set to play 13 games per season against each opponent within their division after having 19 such games in recent years.

MLB has used the unbalanced format with increased intra-divisional play since 2001.

"This new format creates more common opponents, both in the division and among your league opponents, so that typically when you're competing for the Wild Card, there's a much higher percentage of common opponents across divisions," MLB chief operations and strategy officer Chris Marinak told The Associated Press. "And we think that equity is good for the competition on the field.

"On the marketing side, we think that the new schedule gives our fans more opponents at home, so they get to see a broader array of clubs in their ballpark. And probably more importantly, it gives us a chance for our star players to get exposure more nationally and be seen in more places throughout the season."

Travel is expected to be only minimally impacted by the revisions, as teams will have the same amount of total road series as previously.

Teams will now play one three-game series per season against all interleague foes with the home site alternated year to year, as well as home-and-home series of two games against a designated opponent from the other league that is usually determined geographically.

Most of those series include natural interleague rivals such as the New York Mets and Yankees, Chicago Cubs and White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels, San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics, Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians, Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals, Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers and Minnesota Twins.

For teams that have less-defined interleague rivals, the Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies and Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners are among the most notable pairings.

Opening day will be March 30 – the earliest since 2019 – with all 30 teams scheduled to play. Three interleague series are slated for opening weekend, with the Giants visiting the Yankees, the Cardinals hosting the Blue Jays and the Phillies visiting the Texas Rangers.

Other highlights include a two-game series in London between the Cardinals and Cubs from June 24-25 and the Phillies and Nationals meeting in Williamsport, Pennsylvania on August 20 for the Little League Classic.

The 2023 All-Star Game will take place on July 11 at Seattle's Safeco Field, which will be followed by a two-day break before the resumption of the second half.

Fernando Tatis Jr. knows "there's no excuses" for a failed drugs that have seen the San Diego Padres shortstop's dreams turn into his "worst nightmares".

Tatis was this month given an 80-game suspension after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Clostebol.

The 23-year-old said he tested positive due to taking a skin medication that contained the steroid.

Tatis' ban ensured he will not play in the majors this season and he will also miss the first 32 games of the next campaign.

An All-Star last season after hitting .282 with an NL-leading 42 home runs and 97 RBIs, Tatis has decided to undergo shoulder surgery while serving a ban that he knows he can have no complaints over.

"There's no excuses," Tatis told reporters. "There's no excuses. I need to do a way better job on what is going inside my body. There's no excuse for these actions."

He added: "I have seen how my dreams have turned into my worst nightmares. 

"There's no other one to blame than myself. I haven't made the right decisions these past few weeks, month, even starting at the beginning of the year.

"I have made a mistake, and I regret every single step I have taken in these days. But there's a long way going forward. There's a very long way going forward.

"I'm gonna remember how this feels, and I'm gonna make myself not ever be in this position ever again. I know I have a lot of love that I have to gain back. I have a lot of work to do."

Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller says Tatis deserves a chance to make amends.

"Every relationship worth having – there's gonna be some great moments, there's gonna be some challenging moments," Preller said.

"I've talked to Fernando a lot about mistakes. We all make mistakes. I've made plenty of mistakes here as the general manager of this team, as I'm sure Padres fans will let me know from time to time.

"But the key is how you learn from those mistakes, how you grow from those mistakes, what you do going forward."

Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander added to his already convincing case for the American League Cy Young Award as he pitched six innings without allowing a hit in his side's 4-2 win against the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday.

Verlander, 39, is almost guaranteed to finish top-five in voting for best pitcher in the league for the ninth time in his career, and he showed why against the Twins as he struck out 10 while also allowing no walks.

He was pulled after six innings and 91 pitches with a no-hitter intact, before former Astros player Carlos Correa broke it up as he collected a hit from the very first pitch thrown by reliever Ryne Stanek.

Despite some late struggles by Astros bullpen arm Hector Neris, allowing a pair of runs in the ninth inning, the early offense highlighted by Alex Bregman's two-run home run was enough to get the job done.

Mauricio Dubon and Trey Mancini drove in a run each for the Astros, while rookie Jeremy Pena collected a couple of hits and Bregman went three-for-four.

With this performance, Verlander now leads the majors in wins (16-3), ERA (1.87) and walks-plus-hits-per-inning, or WHIP (0.85).

The win moves the Astros to 79-45, giving them a three-game buffer over the Yankees for the best record in the AL.

Yankees break streak of six consecutive series losses

The New York Yankees have finally rediscovered some form after a miserable month, winning their two-game series against local rivals the New York Mets as Frankie Montas pitched his best game in pinstripes in the 4-2 victory.

Montas, who arrived in a trade from the Oakland Athletics at the deadline, pitched five-and-two-thirds innings while giving up two runs from six hits and a walk after struggling in his first few starts in a Yankees uniform.

After four scoreless innings to open the game, Aaron Judge put the first run on the board with his league-leading 48th home run of the season, launching a 453-foot bomb. He now has 14 more home runs than second-placed Kyle Schwarber (34) from the Philadelphia Phillies.

Phillies win on a walk-off

The Philadelphia Phillies blew their lead in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds, but it only set up a thrilling 7-6 walk-off win for the home fans.

Leading 5-4 heading into the final frame, closing pitcher Brad Hand was not able to finish off the job, as a fielding error and an infield single allowed two runners on base, who were both driven in by a pinch-hit RBI triple to T.J. Friedl.

In response, a lead-off walk to Jean Segura led to the tying run as Bryson Stott's RBI double made it 6-6, before pinch-hitter Nick Maton was the hero with a walk-off base hit.

The Los Angeles Dodgers already knew they would not have Walker Buehler available to pitch this season, and now it appears he will have to sit out all of their 2023 campaign as well. 

Buehler, 28, underwent Tommy John surgery and a repair to his flexor tendon on Tuesday and is unlikely to pitch next season. The news comes after the Dodgers announced in June that the right-hander would undergo an elbow procedure that would end his 2022 season. 

This is the second Tommy John surgery for Buehler, who also had the operation done not long after he was selected in the first round of the 2015 draft. He missed the remainder of that season and virtually all the following year in recovery, making three brief appearances late in his first full pro season. 

Tommy John recoveries typically take upwards of 14 months, and Buehler’s rehab could take longer due to his personal injury history, as the second Tommy John procedure is known to be a slower recovery process. 

Buehler was 6-3 with a 4.02 ERA in 12 starts over 65 innings this season, and made his final appearance at San Francisco on June 10.  

He went 16-4 with a 2.47 ERA last season and finished fourth in voting for the NL Cy Young Award. 

Aaron Judge plundered a 47th home run of the season as the New York Yankees bounced back to form with a 4-2 Subway Series win over the New York Mets.

The Yankees had gone 6-14 in August prior to Monday's derby and the pressure seemed to be on.

Manager Aaron Boone had received the backing of GM Brian Cashman ahead of the first game of the series, but the Yankees needed a big performance after a run of 14 losses in 18 games.

Up stepped Judge, whose dispatching of a Max Scherzer fastball ended a nine-game homerless streak and set the Yankees on their way to a second successive win on the back of three straight defeats to the Toronto Blue Jays. The turnaround began with a 4-2 win in the fourth game against Toronto.

Judge is closing in on Roger Maris' single-season American League record of 61 home runs, set in 1961, though he claimed to be unaware of that prospect.

"It's news to me," said Judge, who has nine homers in 20 games against the Mets and is 13 clear of next-best Kyle Schwarber across all MLB players when it comes to round trips this season. "I really don't worry about that. I was just happy to barrel something up and add to the lead that we already had against one of the best pitchers in the game.

"We've got a special group of individuals that are mentally tough enough to bounce back. It's a long season and we haven't been playing the type of ball we want to. It's time to get back to what we do."

Subway Series debutant Andrew Benintendi picked up the mantle in the later innings, and said: "To string together a couple of wins in a row against two really good pitchers, your confidence can really go up."

Daniel Vogelbach went deep for the Mets, smashing a huge two-run homer beyond the fence and into the crowd, while the Yankees' Jonathan Loaisiga pitched brilliantly alongside Ron Marinaccio.

Philadelphia hit back

The Mets went into the clash in the Bronx after three wins out of four against the Philadelphia Phillies, who responded to that disappointing run by comfortably dispatching the Cincinnati Bengals 4-1.

Noah Syndergaard (8-8) allowed one run on three hits with one strikeout and two walks, as the pitcher continued his fine start to life with the Phillies following his move from the Los Angeles Angels at the trade deadline, while Nick Castellanos and Bryson Stott both homered.

"Noah threw the ball well like he's been doing for us, and we hit the ball," Stott said, while Syndergaard added: "My time here so far has been amazing. I feel like I'm on cloud nine."

Dodgers blanked at home

The Los Angeles Dodgers do not tend to draw blanks at home. Indeed, they were on a nine-game winning streak at Dodger Stadium, yet that run came to a shuddering halt at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers, who cruised to a 4-0 triumph.

The Dodgers, who had won five of their last seven, including two successes against the Brewers last week, were blanked for a sixth time this season, but it is the first time they have failed to score on home turf in 2022.

Eric Lauer was on top form for the Brewers, claiming two strikeouts and two walk-outs, while Willy Adames, Christian Yelich, Luis Urias and Keston Hiura got the runs, with Milwaukee now 34-32 on the road for the season.

The New York Mets won a barnburner on Sunday as they came from behind in the ninth inning to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 10-9 on the road.

It looked early on like it would be a fun night for the Philly fans in attendance, with the hosts jumping ahead 3-0 through a three-run Alec Bohm home run before they recorded a single out.

Philadelphia ended up with their first five batters reaching base, and Nick Maton batted in the fourth run of the frame with his single.

The Mets showed fight in the middle innings, with Michael Perez bringing in two runs with his base hit in the second, before Daniel Vogelbach trimmed the margin to one with his RBI double in the third, and Starling Marte tied things at 4-4 in the fourth with a single.

Just when the Phillies started to feel the pressure, Bohm came through with his second three-run homer of the night to jump back ahead 7-4 later in the fourth inning, and that score would hold until the seventh.

After Pete Alonso and Tyler Naquin got on base, Mets left-fielder Mark Canha tied things up with a single swing as his 345-foot shot barely scraped over the left-field wall, and there were plenty of fireworks still to come.

Jean Segura sent the home fans into raptures with his solo home run in the eighth inning, giving the Philles an 8-7 lead, before Canha delivered once again, connecting on a two-run shot for his second home run of the game. Brandon Nimmo then launched his own solo homer to add one more insurance run for the Mets.

That extra tally would be needed, as the Phillies were able to score once in the ninth inning through a sacrifice fly, but they could not manufacture a 10th run to force extra innings.

Bohm finished with six RBIs and Canha had five, while eight more players had multiple hits as the two sides combined for 30 knocks.

Yankees steady the ship

The New York Yankees collected a much-needed 4-2 victory at home against the Toronto Blue Jays, avoiding a series sweep, although they have now lost six consecutive series after dropping the first three games.

New York had won three of their past 17 games entering Sunday's contest, and they benefited from a strong start by pitcher Nestor Cortes, who finished with one earned run from three hits and one walk in his six innings.

With the bat, D.J. LeMahieu batted in two of the four runs, although one was not credited as an RBI due to a fielding error, before newly acquired lead-off hitter Andrew Benintendi came through with the scores tied at 2-2 with his first home run as a Yankee to grab the winning break.

Lou Trivino shut the door out of the bullpen, pitching the last two-and-a-third innings for the Yankees, giving up just one walk and no hits.

Ohtani struggles on the mound

A disappointing pitching performance from Shohei Ohtani doomed the Los Angeles Angels to a 4-0 away loss against the Detroit Tigers.

Ohtani, who has struck out no fewer than five batters in each of his past 11 starts – averaging 9.1 per game over that span – finished with just two strikeouts as he was only able to make it through four innings, making it his second-shortest start since April.

He allowed five hits, but a season-high four walks in a showing that got off to the worst possible start, with Tigers lead-off hitter Riley Greene sending Ohtani's very first pitch of the game 448 feet over the right-field wall.

Tempers boiled over during and after yet another defeat for the New York Yankees, with manager Aaron Boone scolding his side's efforts and imploring them "to play better".

The Yankees suffered a familiar fate on Saturday, losing 5-2 to the Toronto Blue Jays as the New York franchise succumbed to a 15th defeat in just 19 games.

Gerrit Cole voiced his frustrations throughout the match and was caught on camera banging on the dugouts in anger, yet that fury could not stop the Yankees from further squandering their advantage at the top.

The Yankees entered the All-Star break with a 64-28 record but have since gone 9-20, with their AL East lead over second-placed Toronto down to just seven games.

Boone offered his honest thoughts after defeat on Friday, but was enraged by yet another failure the following day as he doubled down on his comments and urged his side to improve.

"We have to play better. Period," he said, pounding the table as he spoke. "And the great thing is, it's right in front of us. It's right here, and we can fix it.

"It's there and we can run away from this thing. And we got the dudes in there to do it. But we have to do it. If we don't score, it's tough to win.

"The good thing is we are in first place. We get to write the script the rest of the way. No one else can get in our way if we go play our game."

Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge echoed Boone's sentiments, though he suggested his side will bounce back sooner rather than later. 

"We're not happy about it. If you lose one game, or if you lose 10 games, you're not happy at all," he added.

"But if we sit here and stay frustrated about one game, it's going to lead into the next game.

"So, it's about us picking ourselves up, and not forgetting we're the New York Yankees. And we have to go out there and show people that."

The Yankees will look to avoid a four-game sweep against Toronto on Sunday.

Albert Pujols closed in further on 700 career home runs after blasting two homers in the St Louis Cardinals' 16-7 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday.

The 42-year-old, who started the game on 690 home runs, blasted over deep left center for a second-inning home run from Madison Bumgarner to put the Cards up 3-0.

Pujols made it a multi-homer game with a near-identical blast from a 3-2 pitch from Bumgarner in the fourth inning, bringing up his 692nd career home run.

The 11-time All-Star, who has said this is his last season, had hit a career-first pinch-hit grand slam earlier this week against the Colorado Rockies.

Pujols backed that up with a four-hit game, with a sixth-inning hit slamming into the wall for a single, while he grounded to left field in the seventh.

The veteran passed Stan Musial into second for total bases in majors' history in the process, reaching 6,143.

Pujols also closed within two home runs of Alex Rodriguez (694) in fourth for most homers all-tme.

Yankees slump again as Cole jeered

Aaron Boone was left fuming once again as the New York Yankees slumped to their 15th loss from their past 19 games, going down 5-2 to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Gerrit Cole had not allowed a hit until the Jays piled on four fifth-inning runs to pull clear, leaving the home crowd to jeer the Yankees pitcher who was televised yelling and punching the dugout.

The defeat means the Yankees are 9-20 since the All-Star break, with their margin over second-placed Toronto down to seven games in the American League East.

May on fire in Dodgers return

Right-hander Dustin May returned with nine strikeouts in five scoreless innings in his first game in 15 months as the Los Angeles Dodgers won 7-0 over the Miami Marlins.

May had not played since May 2021, dating back 476 days, having undergone Tommy John surgery but he exploded back on to the scene for the Dodgers, falling one short of a career-high for Ks.

Justin Turner and Will Smith both blasted three-run homers for the Dodgers, who improved to 83-36 in the National League.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone has hit out at his team following another lacklustre performance on Friday.

A 4-0 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays marked the Yankees' fifth shutout loss in August, more than anyone else in the majors, having come into the month with six shutout defeats all season.

The Yankees now hold a 5-12 record this month, being held to two or fewer runs in eight of those games, which has seen their season derail.

A record of 44-16 (.733) in the first 60 games of the season saw the Yankees ranked as baseball's best but the franchise has subsequently gone 29-31 in their past 60, becoming the first team in MLB history with a .700 win percentage across their first 60 to then go sub .500 in their next 60.

Naturally, that has left Boone furious and he criticised his team following the most recent loss.

"We should be ticked off right now and we need to start playing better. Plain and simple," he said.

"You pour a lot into trying to shake hands at the end of the day, and we've been able to do that on balance on a really high clip this year. We've hit a rough patch and we've got to dig ourselves out.

"We can sit here, and I can keep answering questions and talk about it but we've got to go do it. And the good news is we've got all the pieces in that room to do that. I know that's coming. I know it's going to happen, but it really sucks going through it."

With the record earlier in the season, Boone remains encouraged that the team can turn their fortunes around.

"We've done it most of the year. I have total faith in that room and those players. We've got more than our share of struggling right now. But we've got to find a way," he said.

"I don't really care about the number [of games in the divisional lead]. If we play like this and keep walking away at the end of the night, it ain't going to matter. 

"If we get it together and play our game, then we'll run away. So eight, nine, 10, seven, five, we've got to play better. We've got to start racking up some wins. And hopefully that starts tomorrow afternoon."

The Yankees currently hold a lead of eight in their division, having seen their margin dwindle from 15.5 on August 8.

The Yankees have cleared Giancarlo Stanton for a rehab assignment that could have the All-Star slugger back in the team’s slumping lineup sometime next week.

Manager Aaron Boone told reporters Friday that Stanton, who has been out since July 24 with left Achilles tendinits, will serve as the designated hitter for the Double-A Somerset Patriots on Saturday and Sunday before returning to New York. The 2017 National League MVP is then scheduled to take live batting practice Tuesday at Yankee Stadium against Luis Severino, who’s rehabbing a strained lat muscle.

The Yankees will determine whether to activate Stanton from the injured list following Tuesday’s workout. Boone said it’s possible Stanton could return to the lineup for Tuesday’s game against the rival New York Mets, though it’s more likely he’ll be reinstated Thursday for the opener of a four-game series with the Athletics in Oakland.

Stanton, who appeared in only 42 regular-season games between 2019 and 2020 due to a number of injuries, will be used exclusively as a designated hitter upon his return. The Yankees used a similar approach when he came back from a quadriceps strain last season, as he made 45 consecutive starts at DH before receiving more time in the outfield during the second half.

"We’ll kind of, like we did last year where we built on the run, (add) the outfield reps and hopefully make that a part at some point, but not immediately," Boone said prior to Friday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Stanton, who was tied for third in the American League with 24 home runs at the time of his current injury, will be counted on to provide a boost to an offense that’s been dormant for much of August. The Yankees rank 26th in the majors in runs per game (3.50) for the month and have been held to three runs or less 11 times during a current 3-12 stretch.

Stanton has had his struggles at the plate as well. After hitting .309 with a .925 OPS through his first 36 games of 2022, the five-time All-Star has produced a .153 average and a .699 OPS in 44 games since May 22.