>>> A good night for the Atlanta Braves, who clinched a playoff berth with Freddie Freeman's two-run walkoff home run in the ninth inning against the Marlins. The Braves have now won each of the last 22 games started by Kris Medlen, the hottest pitcher in baseball. His ERA on the season sits at 1.64 (no typo). Unsurprisingly, he is lined up to pitch the do-or-die wild card game for the Braves, making them the instant favorites against whichever opponent rises from the fray.
>>> Anibal Sanchez of the Detroit Tigers was even better than Medlen on Tuesday night. The midseason trade acquisition spun a dominant complete game shutout against the Royals, striking out 10 and allowing just three hits. The 2-0 victory moves the Tigers into a tie for first place with the...
>>> Chicago White Sox, who fell for the sixth time in seven games. Three solo homers couldn't cut it in a 4-3 loss to the Indians. After the series finale with Cleveland, a four game series with the desperate Rays looms large. It's an eight game season to determine the AL Central champ, and the Tigers get to play all eight games against the Royals and Twins. Baseball is rarely fair.
>>> An AL West duel between the Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics went into extra innings for the second consecutive night. This time, the A's pulled out the one-run victory thanks to a George Kottaras solo homer in the top of the tenth. It's a huge win for Oakland, one which keeps the Angels at bay in the wild card race. The Rangers' magic number to win the AL West remains five with eight games to play.
>>> Zack Greinke only lasted 15 outs for the Los Angeles Angels, but he struck out 13 batters (including four in one inning) against the Mariners, becoming the first pitcher since 1920 to strike out that many in five innings. Whoa. Still, the Angels did their best to spoil another Zack Greinke start. This time, they hung on to win 5-4 staying two back of the A's.
>>> The Baltimore Orioles lost for the third time in four games, failing to score against Aaron Laffey and the Jays bullpen in a 4-0 defeat. They can still earn a split with the Jays on Wednesday before the Red Sox come to town for a weekend series. Thanks to the wild card, Baltimore's playoff odds are still quite high, though they still have their sights set on the AL East title and thus avoiding the dreaded one-game playoff.
>> Luckily for the Orioles, the New York Yankees lost 5-4 after the Twins rallied in the seventh inning. New York's lead in the AL East remains at 2 games in the loss column, with C.C. Sabathia going for the series win on Wednesday.
>>> David Price threw a complete game against the Red Sox in a 5-2 win for the streaking Tampa Bay Rays. They've taken advantage of the soft part of their schedule to win six games in a row. After the finale with Boston, the hill gets much steeper: a four game series with the White Sox and a three game series with the Orioles. They're still three games back of the A's for the wild card, and the Angels are ahead of them, too.
>>> The St. Louis Cardinals continue to take care of business against inferior opponents, blanking the Astros 4-0. And it's a good thing, too--their final six games are against the Nationals and Reds.
>>> The Los Angeles Dodgers failed to keep pace with the Cardinals after losing to the Padres 2-1. LA has been a massive disappointment since the big trade with Boston, falling to 4.5 games back in the wild card. That early-season magic has run dry.
>>> The Cincinnati Reds moved into a tie for the best record in the National League with a 4-2 win. Even though they've already clinched the division title, they're still playing their starters, which was bad news for the losing Milwaukee Brewers. Despite their inspiring run at a playoff spot, they've all but dropped out of the race with three losses in their last four games.
>>> Now tied with the Reds for the top NL record are the Washington Nationals, who fell to the Philadelphia Phillies 6-3. Despite the win for Philly, they're in the same boat as Milwaukee. This is too little, too late.
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