The New York Yankees' power-hitters flexed their muscles in Tuesday's 10-4 away win against the Minnesota Twins, with three towering home runs.

Nervous Yankees fans only needed to wait until the second batter of the game to jump out to a lead, with a lead-off single to D.J. LeMahieu setting up a 431-foot, two-run bomb from Aaron Judge.

A 431-foot blast would normally be the biggest hit of the game, but it was not even the biggest hit from the top of the first inning, as Giancarlo Stanton stepped up and launched his solo home run 445 feet to make it 3-0.

Max Kepler's sacrifice-fly in the bottom of the first frame and an RBI double from Jorge Polanco in the third pegged the score back to 3-2, before each side grabbed a run each in the fourth and fifth innings the have the Yankees leading 5-4 after Polanco drove in his second run of the day with a solo home run.

From that point on it was all Yankees, scoring the last five runs of the game, including a 410-foot, three-run homer to Anthony Rizzo to give his side some breathing room in the seventh inning.

It was a rare rough start on the mound for Yankees pitcher Jameson Taillon, giving up four earned runs from nine hits in four innings, but their bullpen was excellent down the stretch, giving up just three hits and no walks the rest of the way.

With the bat, it was Stanton's 12th home run, tying him for 15th in the league, while Rizzo sits in a tie for fifth after hitting his 14th of the season. 

Judge, however, is in a class of his own, hitting his league-leading 22nd homer, five ahead of second-placed Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros with 17.

The win moves the Yankees' league-best record to 40-15, three games clear of cross-town rivals the New York Mets (38-19).

The Rays walk-off in extra innings

Taylor Walls was the hero in the Tampa Bay Rays' 4-2 home win against the St Louis Cardinals, ending the game with a three-run, walk-off home run.

In an excellent display of starting pitching, neither team was able to score in the first six innings as Cardinals starter Dakota Hudson pitched seven frames for one run and six strikeouts, while Rays starter Jeffrey Springs pitched six scoreless innings, giving up six hits and two walks.

The Rays manufactured a run in the seventh, before the Cardinals tied it at 1-1 in the eighth to force extra innings.

St Louis was able to score one run in the top of the 10th, but Walls made sure the game would not see an 11th as he drove in the runners on first and second base by hooking a home run straight into the foul-pole at right-field to end the game.

Phillies take Hader deep

Milwaukee Brewers closer Josh Hader was not able to finish the job against the Philadelphia Phillies, blowing his save opportunity to gift the visitors a 3-2 win.

In his first 19 appearances of the season, Hader had not allowed opposing teams to score a single run, but he blew his first save on Tuesday after entering the final inning with a 2-1 lead.

Hader gave up a lead-off home run to Alec Bohm, tying the game, before pinch-hitter Matt Vierling repeated the feat to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead. It is also the first game this season that Hader has conceded multiple hits.

Phillies closer Corey Knebel made tough work of the save – issuing three walks – but he was able to get out of the jam with bases loaded.

Luis Severino combined with two relievers for a one-hitter to hand the New York Yankees a 3-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday.

Along with the solitary hit, Severino struck out 10 over 92 pitches, before being pulled after the seventh inning for Michael King and Clay Holmes to close the game out.

Tigers pitcher Beau Brieske struck out seven and gave up three hits in six innings, while Miguel Cabrera claimed his 3,033rd career hit, but the damage for the Yankees was done early.

Aaron Judge went deep off Brieske, mashing the rookie on the first pitch in the bottom of the first inning for his 21st home run for the season, before Anthony Rizzo followed suit.

The Pinstripes moved to 38-15 for the season with their fifth consecutive win, extending their lead over the Toronto Blue Jays atop the American League East.

Gore and Cronenworth propel Padres

MacKenzie Gore and Jake Cronenworth were vital for the San Diego Padres as they won their high-profile National League match-up, defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 4-0 on the road.

Gore continued the impressive start to his rookie season, striking out 10 and giving up only three hits over an astounding 108 pitches in six innings.

Cronenworth homered off Aaron Ashby meanwhile, as well as driving in three runs for the important win.

Pivetta continues impressive form for Red Sox

Nick Pivetta pitched for his fifth consecutive win as the Boston Red Sox won their third straight, defeating the Oakland Athletics 8-0.

Pivetta allowed only two hits and struck out seven over 100 pitches in seven innings, before Tanner Houck and Hirokazu Sawamura closed out for the Red Sox.

Alex Verdugo claimed three hits and two RBIs while Trevor Story doubled twice, as Boston moved to within a game from .500.

Luis Severino combined with two relievers for a one-hitter to hand the New York Yankees a 3-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday.

Along with the solitary hit, Severino struck out 10 over 92 pitches, before being pulled after the seventh inning for Michael King and Clay Holmes to close the game out.

Tigers pitcher Beau Brieske struck out seven and gave up three hits in six innings, while Miguel Cabrera claimed his 3,033 career hit, but the damage for the Yankees was done early.

Aaron Judge went deep off Brieske, mashing the rookie on the first pitch in the bottom of the first inning for his 21st home run for the season, before Anthony Rizzo followed suit.

The Pinstripes moved to 38-15 for the season with their fifth consecutive win, extending their lead over the Toronto Blue Jays atop the American League East.

Gore and Cronenworth propel Padres

MacKenzie Gore and Jake Cronenworth were vital for the San Diego Padres as they won their high-profile National League matchup, defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 4-0 on the road.

Gore continued the impressive start to his rookie season, striking out 10 and giving up only three hits over an astounding 108 pitches in six innings.

Cronenworth homered off Aaron Ashby meanwhile, as well as driving in three runs for the important win.

Pivetta continues impressive form for Red Sox

Nick Pivetta pitched for his fifth consecutive win as the Boston Red Sox won their third straight, defeating the Oakland Athletics 8-0.

Pivetta allowed only two hits and struck out seven over 100 pitches in seven innings, before Tanner Houck and Hirokazu Sawamura closed out for the Red Sox.

Alex Verdugo claimed three hits and two RBIs while Trevor Story doubled twice, as Boston moved to within a game from .500.

The best team in baseball put on a show for their home fans on Friday as the New York Yankees hammered the Detroit Tigers 13-0.

The Yankees did it with bat and ball, with ace pitcher Gerrit Cole taking a perfect game into the seventh inning before it was finally broken up by a Jonathan Schoop single.

Cole finished with nine strikeouts, no walks and just two hits in seven full innings, while with the bat the Yankees hit four big home runs.

After a couple of scoreless innings to begin the game, Jose Trevino got things started with a 405-foot homer in the third inning, with MVP candidate Aaron Judge knocking his own 378-footer just three batters later to make it 2-0.

Trevino stayed hot with a two-run triple in the fourth inning, before Anthony Rizzo crushed the biggest hit of the game with a three-run, 430-foot home run to right-field to make it 8-0 in the fifth.

Recent signing Matt Carpenter got in on the fun as well, hitting a 386-foot blast later in the fifth inning. For Carpenter, it was his fourth home run for the Yankees in just seven appearances.

Judge finished with four hits from five at-bats, and the home run was his 20th of the season. Nobody else in the majors has more than Mookie Betts' 16.

Machado shows MVP power

In a battle between the National League's top MVP and Cy Young candidates, San Diego Padres slugger Manny Machado got the better of Milwaukee Brewers ace Corbin Burnes in a 7-0 win.

With the Padres leading 2-0 in the fourth inning, Machado put his stamp on the game by taking Burnes deep, connecting on a three-run home run to make it 5-0 and signal the end of Burnes' night, getting pulled just two batters later.

Joe Musgrove was the real star for the Padres, though, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning before it was finally broken up. He finished with six strikeouts in eight innings, giving up one hit and three walks.

Twins order homers with extra Garlick

Jose Miranda and Kyle Garlick hit two home runs each for the Minnesota Twins in their 9-3 away win against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Garlick hit his first as the third batter of the game, giving the Twins a 2-0 lead in the first inning, and as soon as the Blue Jays were able to tie it back up, it was Miranda's turn, putting Minnesota back up 3-2 in the second frame.

Garlick's second came in the third inning, with Toronto's Vladimir Guerrero answering in the same frame, before Miranda finally gave the Twins some breathing room with his two-run blast in the sixth, pulling ahead 6-3 to grab a winning buffer.

Shohei Ohtani had a bad time in the Bronx on Thursday, as the New York Yankees took the first of two games in a double-header against the Los Angeles Angels.

Matt Carpenter continued his solid form since signing as a free agent, seeing his way through an 11-pitch at-bat to score a lead-off home run off Ohtani in the 6-1 win.

Carpenter now has three home runs from 16 at-bats for the Yankees, while the reigning American League MVP gave up eight hits and four runs on the way to being pulled after three innings.

Jameson Taillon took a perfect game into the eighth inning as the Pinstripes won Thursday's second game 2-1, moving their record for the season to 36-15.

Further misfortune was dealt to Ohtani in the second game, with Wandy Peralta striking him out to confirm the save.

Rookie Ashcraft leads Reds in Nationals win

Rookie starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft continued his impressive start in the major leagues, as the Cincinnati Reds defeated the Washington Nationals 8-1.

The 24-year-old secured his first win last Friday, throwing six scoreless innings against the San Francisco Giants, and did not have to wait long for his second in another dominant performance.

The right-hander struck out five and gave up four hits over 92 pitches in seven innings, setting up what was only the Reds' 18th win of the season.

Alcantara assumes control against Giants

Sandy Alcantara allowed only three hits in an assured display, leading the Miami Marlins to a 3-0 win over the San Francisco Giants.

The 26-year-old walked two and struck out eight, while extending his run of at least seven innings pitched to five starts, and lowering his ERA to 1.81.

The Marlins scored early via a Jacob Stallings single, and that was all the run-support Alcantara needed, moving them to 21-28 for the season.

Mark Canha and Starling Marte led the New York Mets, who claimed 17 hits in their 10-0 thrashing of the Washington Nationals on Tuesday.

Canha claiming four of those hits leading off for the Mets, and Marte got it rolling with his home run in the first inning, going deep off Patrick Corbin.

Jeff McNeil also had three hits while Eduardo Escobar homered off Nats reliever Francisco Perez, as Francisco Lindor extended his RBI streak to nine games.

The Mets' hitting did not have to counteract for any poor performances from the mound, with Trevor Williams giving up only three hits over 80 pitches in a full five innings.

Every Mets starter claimed a hit as the National League East leaders went to secure their season-best fifth consecutive win.

Thor hammered as Halos lose to Yankees

Across town, former Met Noah Syndergaard had a disappointing return to New York, as the Yankees defeated the Los Angeles Angels 9-1.

Syndergaard allowed five runs and seven hits, including a two-run homer from Matt Carpenter, and he was pulled after only 45 pitches.

Jordan Montgomery pitched solidly as the Yankees kicked off a high-profile three-game series against the Halos, striking out four and giving up four hits over 87 pitches in seven innings.

Kody Clemens hitless as Tigers

Jonathan Schoop starred for the Detroit Tigers as Kody Clemens made his major league debut, beating the Minnesota Twins 4-0 on Tuesday night to split a double-header.

Schoop claimed a home run and drove in four runs against the American League Central leaders, while the 26-year-old Clemens went zero-for-three on debut, with his father and seven-time Cy Young winner Roger Clemens watching from a suite.

Clemens was without such blemishes in the field at second base, however, handling a ground-ball for the final out of the game.

Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani hit a home run in each of his first two at-bats on Sunday, but it was not enough to stop the Toronto Blue Jays from winning the high-scoring battle 11-10.

Ohtani scored the game's opening run with a solo home run in the first inning, but by the time he stepped to the plate for a second time, his side trailed 6-2.

After sending his first blast 413 feet to center field, his second shot was a 425-foot, two-run homer, trimming the score back to 6-4.

Los Angeles catcher Max Stassi tied the game with a two-run single later in the third inning, before Travis Ward's two-run home run in the fourth frame made it 8-6 Angels.

Ward drove in another run with an RBI double in the sixth inning, but the Blue Jays tied things up at 9-9 in the seventh when three runs came home from a pair of bases-loaded walks, and an RBI single to Raimel Tapia.

Stassi made sure that tie was short-lived with a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh, before Bo Bichette again pulled the Blue Jays level with his own solo homer in the eighth.

After Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr was intentionally walked, Lourdes Gurriel made the Angels pay, driving in what would be the game-winning run with a double to make it 11-10, setting the table for David Phelps to come in and secure the save.

Overall the two teams combined for 25 hits, and while nine players finished with multiple knocks, Stassi was the top performer with the bat, going four-for-five with three singles and a home run.

McClanahan bests the Yankees

New York Yankees MVP candidate Aaron Judge hit his league-leading 18th home run, but his side was no match for Tampa Bay Rays Cy Young candidate Shane McClanahan, going down 4-2 on the road.

McClanahan pitched six complete innings, striking out seven, while conceding just one run from seven hits and no walks.

As he kept the Yankees quiet, the Rays were able to build a lead thanks in large part to solo home runs from Choi Ji-man and Taylor Walls, leading 4-1 before Judge blasted a 420-foot consolation shot in the eighth inning.

Red Sox hold their own Home Run Derby

The Boston Red Sox hit a season-high five home runs in their 12-2 home win against the Baltimore Orioles – and they were the first five scoring hits of the game.

Bobby Dalbec got things started with a two-run homer in the second inning, with Franchy Cordero adding a solo shot later in the inning – his 448-foot bomb would be the biggest of the day.

Rafael Devers sent his moonshot 431 feet over the right-field wall in the third frame, and just an inning later both Christian Arroyo and Enrique Hernandez chipped in with their own solo home runs to make it 6-0.

Nick Pivetta was terrific on the mound in front of the Fenway Park faithful, pitching six innings for one earned run and five strikeouts.

Jeff McNeil delivered the go-ahead home run as the New York Mets continued their excellent start to the season with an 8-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday.

Trailing 2-1 in the fourth inning with two runners on base, McNeil stepped up for the Mets for a three-run blast over right field.

McNeil revealed after the game that he thought he spotted an eagle in the crowd moments before stepping up. "I was kind of staring out into space, into nothing, and I saw something," McNeil said. "I don't know what it was. It was a bird."

McNeil's blast put the Mets up 4-2, before Francisco Lindor extended his RBI streak to a career-best six games.

Lindor's triple moved the Mets further ahead, with his long fly ball skipping off the wall at left-center field. He has 14 RBIs during his six-game run.

Pete Alonso was more quiet by comparison, but still drove in another RBI as he homes in on a franchise record held by Gary Carter of 34 RBIs in any month. Alonso now has 29 for May which is a franchise record for that specific month.

 

Kluber and Cole face off as Rays win

The Tampa Bay Rays ended the New York Yankees' four-game winning run with a 3-1 victory in their AL East clash.

Manuel Margot extended his hitting streak to 15 games with an RBI single in the eighth with Wander Franco scoring.

Corey Kluber and Gerrit Cole jousted on the mound across six innings, with Kluber allowing one run and three hits while striking out five. Cole struck out 10, giving up one run, two hits with three walks.

 

Betts blasts Dodgers to victory

Mookie Betts continued his stellar May form with a leadoff homer in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Betts' leadoff homer was his 14th home run of the season and 11th of the month. It was also his 32nd career leadoff home run.

The win means the Dodgers improve to a 32-14 record in the NL West.

The Boston Red Sox could not finish the job with a six-run lead against the Baltimore Orioles, going down 12-8 after leading 8-2 through the sixth inning.

It was a red-hot start for the surging Red Sox, who had won seven of their past eight games leading into Friday's contest, jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning thanks in large part to a three-run homer from Xander Bogaerts.

Boston's lead was extended to 6-0 in the second inning through a bases-loaded automatic double from Alex Verdugo, before the Orioles finally got on the board through a two-run home run from Anthony Santander in the fourth inning.

Those would be the only runs given up by Red Sox starter Garrett Whitlock, who pitched six full innings for two earned runs from five hits and one walk, striking out four; but when he was withdrawn, everything fell apart for the home side.

The Orioles would score 10 runs in the final three frames, as a three-run blast from Jorge Mateo in the seventh and a two-run homer in the eighth from Austin Hays quickly helped make it 8-8 heading into the final inning.

Baltimore racked up another five hits in the ninth as the Boston bullpen simply could not close the show, before Orioles closer Jorge Lopez showed them how it was done, retiring the last three Red Sox batters in order.

Taillon pitches a gem for Yankees

The New York Yankees have extended their league-best record to 33-13 after a 2-0 shutout win away at the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.

It was all about Yankees starting pitcher Jameson Taillon, who proved nearly unhittable, pitching eight complete innings for just two hits and no walks, striking out five in the process.

The Yankees were kept scoreless in eight of their innings as well, but had a pair of game-winning swings of the bat in the fourth frame, with solo home runs to Gleyber Torres and Matt Carpenter.

Carpenter has only been with the Yankees for less than a week, being picked up in the midst of an injury crisis after he was released by the Texas Rangers.

Polar Bear delivers for Mets

New York Mets first-baseman Pete Alonso – nicknamed the 'Polar Bear' – was terrific in his side's 8-6 win against the Philadelphia Phillies, finishing with a game-high four RBIs.

Alonso drove in his first run in the first inning through a sacrifice-fly, before doing it in a more emphatic fashion in the third frame, hitting a 400-foot, two-run home run to left-field.

His fourth RBI came from another hard-hit ball, this time a double to deep right-field, opening up a 7-0 lead in the process.

The Phillies would threaten a comeback, cutting the margin back to 7-6, but the Mets' bullpen was able to shut things down in the final three innings.

Nestor Cortes carried a three-hit shutout into the ninth inning as the New York Yankees defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 7-2 on Thursday.

Cortes was in impressive form, finishing with five struck out and four hits over 109 pitches before Wandy Peralta came in to close the game out.

The Yankees came into this game with Giancarlo Stanton and Josh Donaldson both unavailable while DJ LeMahieu also deals with wrist soreness.

Requesting a release after 21 games in Triple-A ball for the Round Rock Express, the Texas Rangers' affiliate, Matt Carpenter scored twice from two at-bats as the designated hitter in his debut game for the Pinstripes.

Now on a three-game winning streak, the Yankees moved to 32-13 to extend their lead over the Rays atop the American League East.

Nola propels Phillies to win over Braves

The Philadelphia Phillies bounced back to defeat the Atlanta Braves, splitting their four-game series with a 4-1 win.

Aaron Nola struck out 10 and gave up only four hits while pitching a shutout coming into the ninth inning, giving up one more hit over an eventual 109 pitches before Corey Knebel closed.

The Phillies and Braves are now even on a 21-24 record in the National League East, both seven-and-a-half games behind the New York Mets.

Brewers beat Cardinals, extend NL Central lead

Josh Hader made the eventual save for the Milwaukee Brewers, earning a 37th consecutive scoreless appearance as they defeated the St Louis Cardinals 4-3.

Eric Lauer started slowly for the Brewers, giving up two runs and four hits in the opening two innings, before closing with four hits and a strikeout over 96 pitches in five innings.

Tyrone Taylor drove in for the seventh game in a row while Luis Urias scored a home run, as the Brewers extended their lead over the Cards in the NL Central.

The New York Yankees have signed 36-year-old three-time All-Star Matt Carpenter to a major league deal, and have added him to their active roster.

Carpenter was with the Texas Rangers on a minor league deal earlier this season before being released.

He spent the first 11 seasons of his career leading up to this season with the St. Louis Cardinals, where he finished top-10 in MVP voting twice, but had three poor seasons in a row to end his tenure there.

The Yankees were in desperate need of some competent major league help due to a spate of injuries, with Carpenter believed to be able to provide a steadying presence in the infield – at least defensively.

With the bat, Carpenter's value is buoyed by the fact that he is a left-hander who will play half of his games in Yankee Stadium, which is the friendliest ballpark for lefties with their notorious short-porch at right-field.

It remains to be seen if he will be used in any starting line-ups, or is purely a depth signing.

Atlanta Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr and New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton were both absent from their teams' line-ups on Wednesday as they battle minor injuries.

Acuna, 24, returned at the beginning of May from a knee reconstruction that ended his 2021 season, and has looked largely like the two-time All-Star and Rookie of the Year that he is, even though his power numbers are down.

He had every intention of playing when he went to bed on Tuesday, but he reportedly woke up on Wednesday with tightness in his quad, before an MRI revealed a grade-one strain. He is considered day-to-day.

Stanton, on the other hand, has been placed on the 10-day injured list with what the team originally called a "right calf strain", before changing it to "right ankle inflammation". 

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said while any injury is frustrating, he feels the prognosis for Stanton is positive.

"I feel like we got good news," he said. "The Achilles is fine, and no strain. 

"So [we] just feel like this is something that's going to be short, and like we should knock it out and not mess with it and maybe it becomes something else. 

"Hopefully he got out in front of it a little bit, and hopefully it's just 10 days."

The Atlanta Braves had it working with both bat and ball as they defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 8-4 at home on Wednesday.

The Phillies opened the scoring through a massive 431-foot solo home run to Odubel Herrera in the top of the second inning – the biggest hit by either team in the game.

But they would not finish the second inning in the lead as William Contreras connected on his own home run to left-field, tying the game, before Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson drove in another three runs with base hits.

Philadelphia mounted a comeback in the middle innings, with Herrera driving in his second run via a base hit in the fourth, followed by Nick Castellanos' ground-out RBI and Jean Segura's RBI single, tying it at 4-4.

It would be all Braves from that point on as their bullpen allowed just two hits from the last 14 outs, with Spencer Strider striking out five in two innings.

After Swanson scored on a fielding error to put the Braves up 5-4, they made no doubt about the result with further solo home runs to Austin Riley and Swanson to put the game to bed.

Swanson finished with four hits from five at-bats, with two runs and two RBIs.

Phillies MVP candidate Bryce Harper also played well, with four hits from his five at-bats, including two doubles.

Long ball reigns supreme for Tigers

The Detroit Tigers came back from an early deficit to defeat the Minnesota Twins 4-2 in extra innings – with every score coming from home runs.

Trevor Larnach put the Twins ahead 2-0 with his two-run homer in the fourth inning, before Tigers shortstop Harold Castro pegged one back with a solo shot in the sixth frame.

Castro struck again in the eighth inning, hitting another solo home run to tie the game and force extra innings. 

In the extra inning, Jeimer Candelario was the hero, blasting the first pitch of his at-bat over the center-field wall to make it 4-2 and set the table for closing pitcher Andrew Chafin to come in for the save.

Yankees pitcher holds Orioles scoreless in debut start

The New York Yankees grinded out a hard-fought 2-0 victory against the Baltimore Orioles, thanks in large part to a terrific debut start for pitcher J.P. Sears.

Sears, 26, had two relief appearances for the Yankees this month before being trusted with his first start, and he repaid their faith with five scoreless innings, striking out five batters while giving up three hits and two walks.

The Yankees' bullpen also contributed, allowing just three baserunners, while Miguel Andujar had the most clutch hit of the game to break the deadlock in the fourth inning.

The Boston Red Sox offense enjoyed a game of season highs as they destroyed the Chicago White Sox 16-3 on Tuesday, led by the in-form Trevor Story.

The Red Sox piled on a season-high 16 runs, along with a season-high 19 hits, nine extra-base hits and four home runs with all nine batters having a hit.

Kike Hernandez, who finished with two runs, two hits and two RBIs, started it off with a lead-off homer, followed by Story with a three-run blast to open up a 4-0 first-innings lead.

The punishment did not stop, with Rafael Devers homering in the fourth inning, while Christian Vazquez delivered a three-run effort in the fifth.

J.D. Martinez went four-for-five for three runs and one RBI, while Story and Vazquez both had four RBIs for the game.

Martinez has an American League-best average of .366, while Story has eight home runs including six in his past five games.

Trevino snaps Yankees skid

The New York Yankees snapped their three-game skid with a walk-off 7-6 win over the Baltimore Orioles led by Jose Trevino.

Trevino homered in the third inning and drove in three runs for the game, including a game-winning RBI in the 11th.

The win was the Yankees' fifth walk-off victory of the season and ended an alarming run of losses to improve to a 30-13 record atop the AL East.

Wild end as Braves rally to victory

The Atlanta Braves rallied in a wild ninth-inning thriller to get past the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 on William Contreras' walk-off single in center field.

The Phillies entered the ninth down 4-3, but Bryce Harper's two-run blast put them up, before the Braves levelled it up when Ronald Acuna's sacrifice fly was dropped, allowing Dansby Swanson home.

From the next at-bat, Contreras' drive to center field off Nick Nelson was enough for Acuna, on second base, to get the walk-off run.

Labelling Tim Anderson as "Jackie" has landed the New York Yankees' Josh Donaldson with a one-game suspension and a fine from Major League Baseball disciplinary chiefs.

Donaldson admitted making the remark to Anderson in Saturday's game between the Yankees and the Chicago White Sox, referencing Jackie Robinson, baseball's black breakthrough star of the 1940s and 1950s.

Shortstop Anderson, who is black, had previously compared himself to Robinson in a 2019 Sports Illustrated interview where he said he hoped to break down baseball's "have-fun barrier".

White Sox manager Tony La Russa said he considered Donaldson had made "a racist comment", and Anderson was angry at the 36-year-old Yankees player's attitude.

"[Donaldson] basically tried to call me Jackie Robinson, like, 'What's up, Jackie?'," said Anderson on Saturday. "I don't play like that. I don't need to play at all. I wasn't really bothering [anybody] today, but he made the comment, and it was disrespectful."

The league said the comments had been "inappropriate", with a one-game suspension accompanied by an undisclosed fine, both of which Donaldson intends to challenge.

MLB's Michael Hill said: "MLB has completed the process of speaking to the individuals involved in this incident. There is no dispute over what was said on the field.

"Regardless of Mr Donaldson's intent, the comment he directed toward Mr Anderson was disrespectful and in poor judgement, particularly when viewed in the context of their prior interactions. In addition, Mr Donaldson's remark was a contributing factor in a bench-clearing incident between the teams, and warrants discipline."

Donaldson admitted he had made the "Jackie" comment to Anderson previously in 2019, while an Atlanta Braves player.

Anderson and Donaldson clashed on the field in a May 13 game this year, setting off tensions between the pair. Donaldson said he had tried to defuse the broiling rivalry with the "Jackie" remark eight days later, but it served only to inflame the situation.

The Yankees put Donaldson on a COVID-19 absentee list before Monday's 6-4 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. His suspension is on hold while he mounts an appeal.

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