The AL East Wild card is heating up. The last couple of weeks of the regular season will be exciting. Let’s see what happened during the week.
TAMPA BAY RAYS
Collin McHugh pitched 2.1 scoreless innings. Ryan Yarbrough went 2.1 innings and gave up seven runs. Cash tried the opener in hopes that Yarbrough pitched better but the man was tired. He shouldn’t be pitching if the Rays want to keep the division. Austin Meadows hit his 25th home run. The Rays lost 8-1.
David Rasmussen pitched five scoreless innings. Ji-Man Choi went 2-for-3 and hit his 10th home run. Brandon Lowe hit his 34th home run. The Rays won 2-0.
Michael Wacha went six innings and gave up six runs. Mike Zunino hit his 30th home run. Brett Phillips hit his 12th home run. The Rays lost 6-3.
The Tigers came into town and Louis Head took the mound. He was the opener and pitched one inning. Dietrich Enns went four innings and gave up one run. Yandy Diaz hit his 11th home run and went 2-for-4. Zunino hit his 31st home run. The Rays won 5-2.
Z B💣MB no. 31 pic.twitter.com/NRSDbi1I9p — Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) September 17, 2021
The series against the Tigers continues over the weekend. Luis Patino and Ryan Yarbrough (not sure why they are going to keep having him start games) are scheduled to pitch.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Alek Manoah went eight scoreless innings against the Rays. Bo Bichette hit his 24th home run. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his 45th home run. Teoscar Hernandez went 5-for-5. Lourdes Gurriel Jr.and Ryan Grichuk went 3-for-4. The Jays won 8-1.
Jose Berrios went seven innings and gave up one run. George Springer went 1-for-4. The Jays lost 2-1.
Robbie Ray went seven innings and gave up one run. Bichette went 2-for-3 and hit his 25th home run. Guerrero Jr went 2-for-3. The Jays won 6-3.
FUN FACT: @RobbieRay currently leads the AL in… 🔥 ERA (2.64) 🔥 Strikeouts (233) 🔥 Quality Starts (22) 🔥 Innings (177.1) pic.twitter.com/pmMlOfmLWH — Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) September 16, 2021
The Jays next face the Twins at home. Hyun Jin Ryu and Steven Matz are scheduled to pitch.
BOSTON RED SOX
Eduardo Rodriguez went six innings and gave up two runs, one earned. Jose Iglesias went 2-for-3 and hit his 9th home run. Xander Bogaerts went 2-for-4 and hit his 21st home run. J.D. Martinez returned to the lineup and went 0-for-3 with a walk. Ryan Brasier gave up three runs in the 0.2 innings he pitched. The Sox lost 5-4.
Nathan Eovaldi went five innings and gave up two runs, one earned. The defense committed two errors. Martinez went 2-for-5 and hit his 26th home run, which was the first run in the game. Bogaerts went 2-for-5. Bobby Dalbec hit his 22nd home run. Alex Verdugo went 2-for-4 and hit his 13th home run. The Sox won 8-4.
Nate has a 1.90 ERA in his last 7 starts, his lowest ERA over any 7-start span in a single season.#RedSox x @NationalPro pic.twitter.com/CSXFHI3Egn — Red Sox (@RedSox) September 15, 2021
Tanner Houck went 4.1 innings and gave up three runs. Iglesias went 2-for-2. Hunter Renfroe hit his 28th home run. The Sox won 9-4.
The Orioles head to Fenway for three games over the weekend. Chris Sale is said to possibly return today. Nick Pivetta is scheduled to pitch on Saturday.
NEW YORK YANKEES
Monday was the make-up game against the Twins. I was fortunate to go since I was supposed to be in Boston that hurricane weekend. Luis Gil went six innings but gave up five runs. He threw 102 pitches in his outing. Andrew Heaney might be a good bullpen weapon Yankee fans aren’t expecting as he threw a scoreless 1.2 innings.
Joey Gallo hit his 33rd home run and went 2-for-4. Aaron Judge hit his 33rd home run as well, which was the 3-run home run that the team desperately needed. Aroldis Chapman and Clay Holmes kept the Twins scoreless as the offense won the game in the 10th inning on a base hit by Gary Sanchez. The Yanks won 6-5.
HERE COME THE O’S
The Orioles came to town for three games. Gerrit Cole started the game after leaving early in his last start due to a potential injury. He struggled but went five innings and gave up one run. DJ Lemahieu went 2-for-5 and hit his 10th home run. Judge and Gallo hit their 34th home run. Giancarlo Stanton went 2-for-3 and hit his 28th home run. Luke Voit hit his 10h home run and Anthony Rizzo went 2-for-4. The Yanks won 7-2.
Nestor Cortes Jr.went 6.1 innings and gave up one run. Gio Urshela hit his 12th home run. Brett Gardner went 3-for-4 and got the game-winning hit in the 9th to bring in two runs. Gleyber Torres went 2-for-3 and had a mental error fielding that resulted in the lead being lost. Although I don’t think you can solely blame it on that. The out was made, just not at the right runner. Even then, you can’t assume the runner on first wasn’t going to score. Chad Green continues to give up the big hits in the game. Chapman got his 27th save. The Yanks won 4-3.
Jordan Montgomery went 5.2 innings and gave up one run. Gallo hit his 35th home run of the season. Be on the lookout for Gallo, he is starting to heat up. Stanton went 2-for-5. Clay Holmes blew his second game of the season and Wandy Peralta gave up the winning run in extra innings. The Yanks lost 3-2. It’s ridiculous how the Yankees have a tough time winning against the Orioles.
What’s the opposite of shallow? Gallo. pic.twitter.com/K0aAkXvE5f — New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 16, 2021
The Indians enter the Bronx for a 3-game set. Corey Kluber will face his former team, Luis Gil looks to bounce back to dominance, and Gerrit Cole looks to go deep into the game over the weekend.
BALTIMORE ORIOLES
The O’s were in the Bronx hoping to spoil the Yankees chances of holding a wild card spot. Alexander Wells went four innings and gave up five runs. Cedric Mullins and Ryan Mountcastle went 1-for-5. The O’s lost 7-2.
John Means went 5.2 innings and gave up two runs. Austin Hays hit two home runs in the game. The O’s lost 4-3.
Chris Ellis went 4.2 innings and gave up two runs. Mountcastle hit his 29th home run. Mullins and Richie Martin went 2-for-4. The O’s won 3-2.
The O’s head to Fenway next as they face the Red Sox in hopes to ruin their chance at a wild card spot. Keegan Akin, Zac Lowther, and Alexander Wells are scheduled to pitch.
AL EAST STANDINGS
The Yankees moved down to fourth place after their loss to the O’s. The Jays and Red Sox currently hold the two wild-card spots. The AL East will for sure hold the two spots. It is just a matter of which two teams will hold it. The magic number for the Rays to clinch is seven.
More to come in the AL East.
Boston Red Sox fans Wake Up out of the Playoffs
MLB AL East week wrap up | Jessica Marie | 9-17-21
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