AROUND THE HORN Sunday’s other MLB games

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Athletics 7, Rangers 2

OAKLAND, CALIF.

Stephen Piscotty homered and Oakland rallied from an early three-run deficit for its fourth straight win and sixth in seven games. Matt Olson had two hits including a double for the A’s, who are 30 games over .500 (87-57) for the first time since closing out 2013 at 96-66. They’ve won nine of their last 10 against the Rangers.

Rays 8, Orioles 3

ST. PETERSBURG, FLA.

Brandon Lowe hit a three-run homer in a five-run first inning and Tampa Bay tied a team record with its 11th consecutive home win. Tampa Bay also won 11 in a row at Tropicana Field during the 2008 AL pennant-winning season. The Rays have won 16 of 19 overall, and outscored the Orioles 32-10 in a three-game sweep.

Angels 1, White Sox 0

CHICAGO

Andrew Heaney tossed three-hit ball over seven innings and struck out a career-high 12, lifting Los Angeles to the three-game sweep. Kole Calhoun drove in the only run with a seventh-inning single. Mike Trout went 2 for 4 and finished the series 8 for 11 with two homers and five RBIs for the Angels.

Twins 3, Royals 1

MINNEAPOLIS

Willians Astudillo hit a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning that lifted Minnesota. Max Kepler doubled off Jason Hammel (2-13) with two outs in the Twins ninth. Astudillo then hit a drive deep to left field for his third home run of the season. Trevor Hildenberger (4-3) got two outs to pick up the win.

Mariners 3, Yankees 2

SEATTLE

Mitch Haniger dashed home to score the go-ahead run on a grounder in the eighth inning, then made a diving catch for the final out that gave Seattle thee win.

The Yankees’ lead atop the AL wild-card race was cut to 2 1/2 games over Oakland.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Pirates, Marlins rained out

PITTSBURGH

Sunday’s game between the Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates was cancelled more than four hours before its scheduled 1:35 p.m. ET start time because of heavy rain that was expected to continue into the evening. The game was rescheduled for Oct. 1, the day after the regular season is scheduled to end. It was not immediately clear if the game will be played if it does not impact the postseason race.

Cubs, Nationals rained out

WASHINGTON

Sunday’s game between the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals was postponed because of rain and rescheduled for Thursday at 4:05 p.m. The decision was announced three hours after the scheduled 1:35 p.m. start time. Thursday is the teams’ only remaining mutual day off.

Mets 6, Phillies 4

NEW YORK

Even after Jacob deGrom was scratched on a rainy afternoon, the fading Phillies stumbled again when Vince Velasquez wasted a two-run lead in a loss to New York. Michael Conforto hit a three-run homer in a four-run fifth inning, tied a career best with four RBIs and made a fine catch.

Brewers 6, Giants 3

MILWAUKEE

Jonathan Schoop hit a grand slam after Ryan Braun was hit by a pitch in a tense sixth inning, and Milwaukee completed a series sweep and preserved its lead in the NL wild-card race.

Dodgers 9, Rockies 6

DENVER

Justin Turner hit a two-run homer and finished with four hits as Los Angeles closer to the first-place Colorado in the NL West. The Dodgers captured two of three from the Rockies in a pivotal series and moved within a half-game for the division lead. Colorado has never won the NL West crown.

Braves 9, Diamondbacks 5

PHOENIX

Ender Inciarte hit a three-run homer during a six-run rally in the ninth inning and Atlanta increased its NL East lead to 4 1/2 games. The Braves took advantage of a loss by Philadelphia and matched their biggest division edge of the season. Atlanta took three of four in the series. They stayed 2 1/2 games behind NL West-leading Colorado.

Padres 7, Reds 6

CINCINNATI

Eric Hosmer led off the ninth inning with a home run and San Diego overcame a lengthy rain delay in the middle of the eighth inning for the win. Hosmer took Raisel Iglesias (2-4) deep for his third homer in three days. Austin Hedges and Luis Urias each hit a two-run homer to help San Diego overcome a three-run blast from Joey Votto and salvage a split in the soggy four-game series.

INTERLEAGUE

Cardinals 5, Tigers 2

DETROIT

The St. Louis Cardinals needed something to get them going on Sunday against the Detroit Tigers. Out of nowhere — again — a squirrel appeared. In an episode sure to revive St. Louis fans’ memories of the 2011 Rally Squirrel, this game at Comerica Park was scoreless going into the seventh inning. That’s when a squirrel took up residence between second and third base. There was a delay and, with some prompting, the critter moved into foul territory and eventually made its escape in right field. The Cardinals wound up scoring five times in the inning and avoided a series sweep. St. Louis has a one-game lead for the second NL wild card spot.

Associated Press