BOSTON (AP) β The Los Angeles Angels have sole possession of the AL West lead for the first time since May 10, 2011, moving a half-game ahead of Oakland with a 4-2 victory in Boston. C.J. Wilson was reached for five hits and five walks in just 5 1/3 innings but left the game with a 2-1 lead. Mike Trout put the Angels ahead with an RBI double in the Angels’ two-run second.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) β Kansas City has a two-game lead over Detroit in the AL Central following the Royals’ 21st victory in 26 games. Erik Kratz socked a pair of solo homers and Salvador Perez lined a two-run single as the Royals held off Minnesota 6-4. Jason Vargas gave up just one run and four hits in seven innings for his 10th win.
CHICAGO (AP) β The Baltimore Orioles still have the largest division lead, moving 7 Β½ games ahead of the Yankees in the AL East with an 8-2 rout of the White Sox in Chicago. It was a 3-2 game in the eighth inning until Jonathan Schoop (skohp) hit a three-run double and scored on a two-run homer by Nick Markakis (mahr-KAY’-kihs). Nelson Cruz tied Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton for the major league home run lead by hitting his 32nd in the sixth inning.
UNDATED (AP) β The Seattle Mariners have fallen into a tie with Detroit for the final AL wild-card berth. The Mariners were beaten 4-1 in Philadelphia as Andres Blanco hit a three-run homer and Jerome Williams held Seattle to a run and three hits in seven-plus innings. St. Louis beat Cincinnati 6-5 on Jhonny Peralta’s (JAH’-nee peh-RAHL’-tahz) walkoff single in the 10th inning, putting the Cardinals within 2 Β½ games of NL Central-leading Milwaukee.
WASHINGTON (AP) β Washington still tops the NL East by six games over Atlanta after Adam LaRoche homered in the bottom of the 10th to give the Nationals a 5-4 win over Arizona. The Nats blew a 4-3 lead in the ninth before earning their seventh straight win. The Braves kept pace as Jason Heyward and Andrelton (AN’-drel-tuhn) Simmons hit solo homers to ignite a six-run first in Atlanta’s 7-3 victory at Pittsburgh.
