Several playoff contenders had big days on July 21. The Rays continued to make life very hard for the Blue Jays, while the Chicago Cubs did the same for the Detroit Tigers. Texas, meanwhile, picked up a critical win against the Texas Rangers.
Rays win second straight versus Jays
The Rays defeated the Blue Jays 12-2.
Every single player, aside from Taylor Walls, in the Rays’ starting lineup had one hit. And out of those eight, all of them had at least two.
Chandler Simpson and Ben Williamson each had four hits, while Nick Fortes had three hits and four RBI. Three of those RBI came off a three-run shot in the fifth inning.
Cubs blow out Tigers
The Cubs chased Framber Valdez in the first inning, part of a game where the club posted an 11-2 victory over Detroit.
Valdez allowed six earned runs over .2 IP. Carson Kelly drove in two to start the game, while Michael Busch made it a three-run game one inning later with a single.
Chicago picked up 11 hits, one of which was a Michael Conforto two-run shot in the fifth for his ninth of the season.
David Peterson struck out four over 6.2 scoreless innings.
Rangers shut out White Sox
Kumar Rocker struck out six over six scoreless innings, as the Rangers shut out the White Sox 10-0.
It was a grand day for the Rangers’ offense, as Texas picked up 18 hits. Alejandro Osuna notched three hits, while Wyatt Langford and Ezequiel Duran had two. Brandon Nimmo had four, one of which was his 10th home run of the season.
Dodgers eke out win
The Dodgers were gifted a messy run-down double-play that got Justin Crawford and J.T. Realmuto in the ninth, which allowed LA to pick up a 2-1 victory in Philadelphia.
Both Justin Wrobleski and Zack Wheeler were excellent. Wrobleski struck out seven over 6.1 IP and allowed just one earned run, while Wheeler punched out nine over seven innings.
However, the big mistake was a two-run shot from Max Muncy that drove in the game-winning run.
Triple-play can’t save Miami
The Marlins turned a triple play in the eighth inning off a Jose Altuve grounder. However, Miami couldn’t overcome a two-run deficit and lost 5-3.
Jeremy Pena and Isaac Paredes both hit home runs for the Astros, while Tatsuya Imai struck out eight and allowed one earned run over six innings.
Joe Mack struck out three times but hit a two-run shot off AJ Blubaugh in the seventh inning.
Everything else
- Guardians def. Twins 5-2
- Padres def. Braves 8-3
- Royals def. Giants 3-2
- Mets def. Brewers 4-0
- Rockies def. Nationals 8-7
- Angels vs. Cardinals 5-1
- Diamondbacks def. Athletics 6-5 (10)
- Reds def. Mariners 4-2
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