The Yankees took a brutal loss out in Sacramento on Saturday, allowing the Athletics to come back late to salvage an 11-7 win. To add insult to injury, their primary competitor in the East coasted to an easy victory amidst what was a packed day of American League action. Let’s take a peek at how it all played out.

Boston Red Sox (21-20) 10, Kansas City Royals (24-17) 1

As mentioned, it was a bit of a laugher for the Sox Saturday evening, and it all started with an excellent outing from their new ace. Garrett Crochet hurled seven strong innings against the talented Royals, allowing just one earned run and racking up nine strikeouts.

Although the Royals only plated a single run, it wouldn’t have mattered much, as the Boston bats more than carried their weight. The recently-frustrated Rafael Devers started his squad’s scoring with a double in the third inning, his first of three RBIs. Jarren Duran and Alex Bregman pitched in with RBI knocks of their own, and Trevor Story did some large-scale damage with a three-run home run in the seventh, which was the nail in the coffin for KC.

The Red Sox ended with a 10-spot in the run column, and they popped a game over .500, on a day that the Yankees took a loss. They are still a couple games back in the East, but these are the kinds of days that make the difference in a division.

Cincinnati Reds (20-21) 13, Houston Astros (19-19) 9

Despite the unceremonious scoring difference, this game was just about open and shut from the very beginning. The Reds hung a crooked number in the first inning against Houston starter Lance McCullers Jr., making just his second start since the 2022 season, and never really looked back.

Cincinnati’s 10 first frame runs began with a couple of free baserunners, followed by a three-run blast from Elly De La Cruz to get the party started. McCullers Jr. only recorded one out in his outing, and five hits and six walks/HBPs later, the Reds were up 10-0 after just a half inning.

Matt McLain grew the lead to 12-1 in the top of the third inning with a two-run shot, though the Astros did their part in cutting the deficit in the bottom half when they put up six runs. But, in the end, that whopping 10-run outpouring from the Reds in the first inning was too much to overcome, even with Houston outscoring them 9-3 after the first half inning.

The Reds are doing their best to hang around in the NL Central, while the ‘Stros once again fall to .500. The return of McCullers Jr. would certainly be a boost for them, but he’ll need a rebound in the worst way come his next start.

Other Games

Texas Rangers (19-21) 10, Detroit Tigers (26-14) 3: The Rangers took control against the first-place Tigers on Saturday and never let go. A pair of homers and three RBIs from Corey Seager led the Rangers to double-digit runs, while 10 strikeouts in half as many innings from Jacob deGrom held the Detroit bats in check for much of the night.

Philadelphia Phillies (23-16) 7, Cleveland Guardians (23-16) 1: The Phillies cruised to victory against the Guardians on the back of an excellent start from Ranger Suárez. The left-hander tossed seven shutout innings, allowing just three hits and striking out five. It was actually a 1-0 ballgame all the way through the eighth inning, when a two-run blast from Bryce Harper and a trio of knocks from the bottom of the Philadelphia lineup put them comfortably ahead.

Los Angeles Angels (16-22) 5, Baltimore Orioles (14-24) 2: The losses are coming hard and fast for the Orioles, and nothing changed in this one. Jack Kochanowicz tossed 5.2 innings of one-run ball for Los Angeles. The Angels went up 4-0 through four innings, fueled by a Jo Adell homer, and though the Orioles scored two unanswered runs to finish things out, it was too little too late for Baltimore. There’s a lot of season left, but things are looking grim for the O’s at this juncture.

Toronto Blue Jays (19-20) 6, Seattle Mariners (22-16) 3: In a back-and-forth affair, the Jays netted a good win in Seattle on Saturday evening. Down 3-0, the Blue Jays tied things up thanks in large part to a two-run blast from Bo Bichette in the fifth inning. They took the lead with three runs in their half of the eighth, with Myles Straw leading the way with his two-run single. Jeff Hoffman was able to secure the save in the comeback win.