The New York Yankees are leaning into their bullpen extensively and seeing mixed results as they attempt to hold onto a playoff spot.

The Yankees hope left-hander Max Fried can give them some significant distance and their offense can produce enough big hits Sunday afternoon when they attempt to secure a series win over the visiting Houston Astros.

New York’s starters have not completed six innings since Will Warren on July 30 against the Tampa Bay Rays. New York needed five innings from its relievers on Friday and Devin Williams allowed three runs (two earned) in the 10th inning of a 5-3 loss.

The Yankees used relievers Mark Leiter Jr, Luke Weaver, Camilo Doval and David Bednar for a combined 3 2/3 innings on Saturday.

Before Trent Grisham hit a tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning of Saturday’s 5-4 win, Doval committed a throwing error that set up an RBI single by Jose Altuve, and Bednar issued a bases-loaded walk to Christian Walker to tie the game 4-4.

The Yankees had taken a 4-2 lead in the fifth inning on an RBI single by Giancarlo Stanton and a double-play grounder by Ben Rice that scored Cody Bellinger.

New York enters Sunday with two wins in its past eight games and a 4.24 ERA from its relievers this season. Since the All-Star break, the Yankees have seen their relievers produce a 4.87 ERA.

“The pitching staff as a whole protects each other, and then it starts with starting pitching,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “They have done a pretty good job here (in) this turn of giving us those opportunities to stay in games, to win games. Hopefully, along the way here, we get a handful that gets us deeper into games, that allow the bullpen to set up in a better way day in and day out.”

Fried (12-4, 2.78 ERA) has completed six innings in 15 of 23 starts this season but only once during his past five outings since July 1.

Fried is 1-2 with a 5.85 ERA in 20 innings over his past four starts and allowed at least four runs each time. He allowed four runs on a season high-tying eight hits in five innings during Monday’s 10-inning loss at Texas.

The Astros, who are 10-17 over their past 27 games, saw Altuve and Carlos Correa combine for four of their seven hits on Saturday along with a leadoff homer by Jeremy Pena.

Altuve is hitting .340 (33-for-97) over his past 25 games while Correa is 13-for-32 (.406) since being acquired from the Minnesota Twins and also is batting .338 (46-for-136) in his past 37 games.

“One swing away from taking the lead,” Houston manager Joe Espada said. “I like the fight. Just came up a bit short.

After Hunter Brown and Framber Valdez started the first two games for the Astros, right-hander Jason Alexander (2-1, 5.97) makes his sixth appearance and fifth start for Houston.

Formerly with the Athletics this season, Alexander is coming off his best outing with the Astros when he allowed three hits in six scoreless innings to earn the win in an 8-2 victory at Miami on Monday.

Alexander’s only previous career appearance against the Yankees was Sept. 18, 2022, while playing for Milwaukee. He allowed three homers among six hits in 3 2/3 innings during a no-decision.

–Field Level Media

When the Athletics have their offense rolling, they’ve shown the ability to really tack on runs.

They’ll try for that again Sunday afternoon when their road series concludes against the Baltimore Orioles.

This is the rubber game of a three-game series between last-place teams in separate American League divisions.

Baltimore needs to win in order to forge a split of their six-game season series.

After an earlier stop in Washington, the Athletics are 3-2 as their road trip winds down.

“You get through and you grind,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said.

The Athletics have eclipsed the 10-run mark in three of their last 14 games. The team’s pitching has been stellar so far in the series.

“They’re not names that are familiar, by any means, but it’s good stuff,” Baltimore interim manager Tony Mansolino said of the Athletics’ pitchers. “This team over there on the other side, they’re not that far off. It’s a couple really good arms they threw at us, the starters, the last two nights.”

The Athletics will be shuffling their pitching plans after right-hander Luis Severino (6-11, 4.82 ERA) was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday because of a left oblique strain.

Severino, considered the team’s ace, was the scheduled starter after four consecutive victories. He topped playoff contenders Cleveland, Houston and Seattle before going six innings and giving up three runs in Tuesday’s 16-7 victory at Washington. During Severino’s winning streak, he has struck out 22 batters to go with six walks. In those 23 innings, he surrendered 17 hits.

That’s much different from his June 7 home matchup with Baltimore, which tagged him for six runs (five earned) in 5 2/3 innings as he took the loss. Ramon Laureano and Colton Cowser homered off Severino in that game, but Laureano has been traded to San Diego since that matchup.

And now Severino won’t be returning to the mound to face the Orioles. Instead, right-hander Luis Morales (0-0, 4.50 ERA) will throw in his second big-league game.

“Results extend from the starting pitching,” Kotsay said. “It all starts with starting pitching.”

The Orioles will go with left-hander Cade Povich (2-6, 5.25), whose lone big-league outing since mid-June went awry in Monday’s loss at Philadelphia. He gave up four runs in 5 2/3 innings.

In parts of two seasons in the majors, Povich’s lone matchup with the Athletics was a disaster in a July 2024 game when he gave up eight runs in one inning in an 19-8 loss.

The Orioles will need stout pitching if their offense doesn’t perk up. They had three hits on Friday and four on Saturday.

“Back-to-back nights like that, probably not what we would want,” Mansolino said. “There’s a lot of pressure on those top five guys to create something. I just think, with where the roster is at and where the lineup is at, there’s a lot of pressure on those first five guys and they’re going to live up to it and they’re going to have better nights.”

Because of deals made at the trade deadline, the Orioles are sending out a relatively inexperienced lineup.

“A lot of the guys who are here now started in Triple-A, so they weren’t in the big leagues because they had things to work on, and now they get thrust into the big leagues,” Mansolino said.

–Field Level Media

While Jen Pawol made Major League Baseball history by serving as the first-base umpire, Atlanta starter Hurston Waldrep allowed one run in six innings as the host Braves defeated the Miami Marlins 7-1 Saturday afternoon in Game 1 of a day-night doubleheader.

Pawol, 48, became the first woman to umpire an MLB game and handled her duties without incident. Waldrep (2-0), making his first start this season, struck out six, walked one and scattered four hits.

Michael Harris went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in the seventh to pace the Braves’ offense. Matt Olson and Drake Baldwin added two hits apiece and Baldwin drove in two.

Marlins starter Ryan Gusto (7-5) made his first start since being acquired from Houston at the trade deadline and allowed three runs in six innings while amassing a career-high-tying eight strikeouts. Xavier Edwards’ sixth-inning single drove in the Marlins’ lone run.

Braves 8, Marlins 6 (Game 2)

Marcell Ozuna hit a pair of long home runs to power host Atlanta over Miami to sweep a day-night doubleheader following a victory in the opener.

Ozuna was 2-for-4 with four RBIs and two runs scored. It gives him 18 home runs this season. Atlanta rookie Drake Baldwin went 2-for-5 with three RBIs and has driven in 10 runs in the series. Starter Erick Fedde (4-12) pitched five innings and allowed four runs on five hits. It was Fedde’s first victory since May 9 when he was with St. Louis.

Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara (6-11) worked five innings and allowed five runs on seven hits, four walks and four strikeouts. He gave up both of Ozuna’s home runs.

Yankees 5, Astros 4

Trent Grisham slugged a tiebreaking homer with two outs in the eighth inning as New York topped visiting Houston.

Grisham had three hits after entering the game in a 5-for-36 slide and snapped a 4-4 tie by blasting a full-count fastball from Bryan King (3-3) into the second deck in right field. Grisham’s 21st homer occurred after recent bullpen acquisitions Camilo Doval and David Bednar contributed to the Yankees blowing a two-run lead in the top half of the eighth. But Bednar (3-5) pitched out of a jam then fired a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his third win. Giancarlo Stanton drove in two runs for New York.

Yankees starter Luis Gil allowed two runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings in his second start back from a strained lat. For the Astros, Jeremy Pena hit his fourth career leadoff homer and Carlos Correa hit a tying RBI single in the fourth as the Astros lost for the 17th time in 27 games.

Nationals 4, Giants 2

James Wood belted the third pitch of the game for a home run, Brad Lord worked six strong innings, and Washington held on for a road victory over San Francisco.

Paul DeJong and Josh Bell also homered, while Lord (3-6), limited the Giants to one run and four hits in six innings. Jose A. Ferrer pitched out of eighth- and ninth-inning jams to help the Nationals even the three-game series at a win apiece with just the second victory in the last 10 games.

A home run by Rafael Devers, his 22nd of the season, ended Lord’s shutout bid in the sixth. Devers added a single and two walks to his home run, while Heliot Ramos also collected two hits for the Giants, who saw a three-game winning streak come to an end.

Angels 7, Tigers 4

Taylor Ward had three hits, including a go-ahead two-run homer and Los Angeles defeated host Detroit.

Ward scored two runs and knocked in three. Jo Adell hit a three-run homer and Luis Rengifo added a solo shot. Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi (6-7) gave up four runs on eight hits in five innings. Los Angeles closed out the game with four relievers each tossing an inning of scoreless relief, with Kenley Jansen picking up his 21st save.

Javier Baez had three hits and scored a run for the Tigers. Matt Vierling, Gleyber Torres, Andy Ibanez and Jake Rogers drove in a run apiece. Charlie Morton (7-10), making his second start since being acquired from Baltimore, surrendered six runs on seven hits while recording 10 strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.

Reds 2, Pirates 1

Noelvi Marte had three hits and an RBI and scored the eventual winning run to lead Cincinnati to a victory over host Pittsburgh.

Marte’s efforts backed up a quality start from Nick Martinez (10-9), who gave up one run on four hits over seven innings to help the Reds snap a three-game skid. Reds closer Emilio Pagan secured his 25th save of the season.

The Pirates had one last chance in the ninth to record what would have been their fifth win in a row against Cincinnati this season and third of this series. Spencer Horwitz led the Pirates with two of their seven hits.

Athletics 11, Orioles 3

Brent Rooker and Shea Langeliers each homered and combined to drive in seven runs as the Athletics blew out host Baltimore.

Jack Perkins (1-2) pitched six innings for his first major league victory, giving up three runs on three hits. Hogan Harris took care of the ninth to ensure a split in the first two games of this series between two teams occupying last place in their respective American League divisions. Rooker knocked in four runs and Langeliers had three hits to go with his three RBIs.

Gunnar Henderson provided Baltimore’s offense with a three-run homer in the first. Brandon Young (0-6) took the loss as he surrendered six runs and six hits over three innings.

Guardians 3, White Sox 1

C.J. Kayfus hit his first home run and Joey Cantillo pitched into the sixth inning as visiting Cleveland beat Chicago for its fifth straight win.

Cantillo (3-2) allowed one run on four hits over 5 2/3 innings for Cleveland, which has won nine of its last 10. Nic Enright, Hunter Gaddis and Erik Sabrowski combined for 2 1/3 scoreless innings before Cade Smith retired the White Sox in order in the ninth for his fifth save.

Michael A. Taylor hit a solo homer for Chicago, which was held to four hits and lost its sixth straight.

Brewers 7, Mets 4

William Contreras hit an insurance two-run homer immediately after his inning-ending flyout was negated by a pitch clock violation for host Milwaukee, which beat skidding New York.

The Brewers rode the four-run seventh to their eighth win in as many games this month. Milwaukee has won 11 of its last 12 overall to improve its record to a baseball-best 72-44.

Pete Alonso tied Darryl Strawberry atop the Mets franchise’s all-time home run list by hitting the first of the team’s three solo homers Saturday, but New York still lost its sixth straight game and for the 10th time in 11 games. Alonso’s homer in the top of the second inning was his 26th of the season and the 252nd of his career.

Royals 2, Twins 0

Maikel Garcia and Jonathan India drove in one run apiece, and that was more than enough for Kansas City as it held on for a shutout win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Garcia’s RBI double was the lone extra-base hit for Kansas City, which evened the series at one victory apiece with the rubber match set for Sunday afternoon. Kyle Isbel finished 2-for-4 and scored a run. Royals left-hander Noah Cameron (6-5) tossed 5 2/3 scoreless innings to earn the victory.

Ryan Jeffers went 3-for-4 to lead Minnesota, which totaled eight hits, all singles. Austin Martin tallied a pair of singles from the leadoff spot. Twins right-hander Bailey Ober (4-7) allowed one run on four hits in six innings.

Dodgers 9, Blue Jays 1

Blake Snell struck out 10 over five shutout innings and Shohei Ohtani blasted his 40th home run of the season to boost Los Angeles to a win over visiting Toronto.

Max Muncy also homered and singled, and Andy Pages contributed two hits and two RBIs for Los Angeles, which will try for a three-game sweep of the American League East leaders on Sunday. Snell (2-1) allowed three hits and walked three in his second game back following a four-month absence with an injury to his throwing shoulder.

Ernie Clement spoiled the shutout with a solo homer in the eighth for the Blue Jays, who had won three in a row heading into the series. Toronto right-hander Chris Bassitt (11-6) allowed three runs on six hits over 4 2/3 innings.

Cubs 9, Cardinals 1

Michael Busch hit a three-run home run and scored twice to lead visiting Chicago past St. Louis.

Busch went 2-for-5 with a double and the homer to power this victory. Matt Shaw (2-for-3, homer, two runs, two RBIs), Carson Kelly (3-for-4, RBI), Dansby Swanson (3-for-4, stolen base, two runs) and Kyle Tucker (1-for-4, walk, two runs, RBI) also had productive games. Chicago starter Colin Rea (9-5) limited St. Louis to one run on three hits in six innings.

Cardinals starter Andre Pallante (6-9) allowed six runs on seven hits in 1 2/3 innings.

Phillies 3, Rangers 2

Max Kepler’s two-run double in the seventh inning propelled Philadelphia to the front and backed the solid outing by Jesus Luzardo as the Phillies beat Texas and struggling ace Jacob deGrom in the second of a three-game interleague series in Arlington, Texas.

The Phillies guaranteed their third straight series win and have captured five of their past six games. Texas, meanwhile, has dropped three in a row. Luzardo (11-5) was the beneficiary of the Phillies’ seventh-inning rally after hurling six frames while allowing a run on seven hits with four strikeouts and a walk. He won his third straight start and is 4-0 over his past six appearances while allowing 14 runs over 35 2/3 innings over that stretch.

deGrom (10-5) lost for the third outing in a row despite cruising through 6 1/3 scoreless innings.

Diamondbacks 6, Rockies 5

Corbin Carroll homered for the third straight game, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. drove in three runs and had a walk-off double in the ninth, and Arizona beat Colorado in Phoenix.

Geraldo Perdomo doubled with one out in the ninth off Jimmy Herget (0-2) and scored on Gurriel’s double, which gave rookie right-hander Andrew Hoffman (1-0) his first major league win in his sixth appearance. Carroll tied his career high with 25 homers and has four in the last seven games.

Brenton Doyle had two hits including a homer and Ezequiel Tovar had two hits and an RBI for the Rockies, who have lost six in a row and have been outscored 66-17 in the stretch.

Padres 5, Red Sox 4 (10 innings)

Ramon Laureano’s RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning lifted host San Diego over Boston.

Xander Bogaerts was placed on second to start the inning and Red Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock (5-2) issued an intentional walk to Ryan O’Hearn. Laureano chopped the first pitch over the head of third baseman Alex Bregman and Bogaerts easily beat Roman Anthony’s throw home.

The Padres’ Jason Adam (7-3) stranded a pair of runners in the top of the 10th, inducing an inning-ending fielder’s choice grounder from Ceddanne Rafaela to earn the win.

Mariners 7, Rays 4

Julio Rodriguez hit two home runs and Cal Raleigh added his major league-leading 44th long ball of the season as host Seattle defeated Tampa Bay.

Josh Naylor added a pair of doubles and rookie right-hander Logan Evans (6-4) gave up three runs on three hits over 5 1/3 innings as the Mariners won their sixth in a row and improved to 8-1 on their 10-game homestand that concludes Sunday. Andres Munoz worked the ninth for his 27th save.

Brandon Lowe and Junior Caminero homered for the Rays. Tampa Bay starter Joe Boyle (1-2) struggled with his command, giving up six runs on four hits in 3 1/3 innings. The right-hander walked five and fanned five.

–Field Level Media

The Atlanta Braves will send left-hander Joey Wentz to the mound on Sunday when they try to take four of five games in the series against the visiting Miami Marlins.

The Braves swept a doubleheader from the Marlins on Saturday, winning the opener 7-1 and taking the nightcap 8-6. The losses knocked Miami back to three games under .500 and leave them six games behind in the chase for the final National League wild-card playoff spot.

Wentz (2-3, 5.34 ERA) will be matched against Miami right-hander Cal Quantrill (4-9, 5.21) in the series finale.

Wentz has provided some emergency assistance for the decimated Atlanta starting rotation since he was picked up on July 11 after being waived by Minnesota. In five games with the Braves, the left-hander is 0-2 with a 3.09 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings.

He is coming off his worst start when he took the loss against visiting Milwaukee on Tuesday. He worked 5 1/3 innings and allowed five runs on seven hits and one walk with three strikeouts.

“Joey did a lot better,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. “We missed some balls (in the field) and there were a lot of things that he couldn’t control. I thought he threw the ball really well again.”

Wentz has made three career appearances against the Marlins, all out of the bullpen, going 2-1 with a 0.96 ERA in 9 1/3 innings. He faced Miami on March 29 while still playing for Pittsburgh and took the loss, allowing two unearned runs in two innings.

“It’s your job to keep executing and keep going,” Wentz said.

Quantrill will be making his 23rd start this season. He was roughed up in his last outing after three consecutive starts that saw him allow one run in 16 innings. On Tuesday against visiting Houston, Quantrill gave up seven runs on nine hits and three walks with two strikeouts.

“It wasn’t the same kind of rhythm, wasn’t in the same flow that he has been,” Miami manager Clayton McCullough said. “One of those nights where you just don’t execute at the same level that he has been going for a while. I expect Cal to wash this one away and come back ready for his next one.”

Quantrill said, “I just didn’t locate; I wasn’t ahead in as many counts as I usually am and I paid the price. It’s been a good two months. So put this one in the past and keep going.”

Quantrill has made four career starts against the Braves, going 1-2 with a 3.00 ERA in 21 innings. He faced the Braves on April 5 and earned the victory when he fired five scoreless innings, allowing four hits, no walks and four strikeouts.

Quantrill will need to find a way to slow down Atlanta’s Drake Baldwin, who has driven in 10 runs in the first four games of the series, and Michael Harris II, who had four hits in the doubleheader and is batting .354 (35-for-99) in his last 25 games.

Atlanta will need to stop Miami second baseman Xavier Edwards. He had three hits in the doubleheader and is 8-for-19 in the series.

–Field Level Media

The Kansas City Royals remain steadfast in their goal to pursue a wild-card playoff berth.

First, the Royals will have to climb back to .500. They have a chance to do so Sunday afternoon when they play the Minnesota Twins in the rubber match of a three-game series in Minneapolis.

The Twins won the series opener 9-4 on Friday night before the Royals evened the series with a 2-0 victory on Saturday evening.

Sunday’s matchup marks the end of a grueling nine-game road trip for the Royals, who traveled to face the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and Twins for three games apiece. Kansas City is 4-4 on the trip heading into the series finale against Minnesota.

A win on Sunday could give the Royals positive momentum before they start a 10-game homestand. They will face the Washington Nationals for three games, the Chicago White Sox for three games and the Texas Rangers for four games as they look to gain ground in the standings.

Meanwhile, the Twins are aiming for their second series win in a row. Minnesota is 4-4 since its front office conducted a fire sale at the trade deadline, and the new-look Twins are eager to show what they can do with extended playing time down the stretch.

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said he remained confident in his young hitters despite Saturday’s shutout loss. Before scoring zero runs on Saturday, the Twins scored 24 runs over their previous three games.

The difference, Baldelli said, was how the Twins performed with runners in scoring position.

“It’ll frustrate you a little bit,” Baldelli said. “We did a heck of a job finding our way on, especially early on in the game. We did that perfectly. That’s exactly what you want to see. We had a lot of good at-bats. …

“And then we didn’t get any hits (with runners in scoring position). That’s it. That’s really it.”

Rookie right-hander Ryan Bergert (1-1, 2.83 ERA) will make his ninth start of the season and his second since joining Kansas City. The Royals acquired him from San Diego before the deadline in a trade that sent catcher Freddy Fermin to the Padres.

In his Royals debut, Bergert gave up two runs on two hits in 5 2/3 innings in a 6-2 loss to the host Red Sox. He walked two and struck out two.

Bergert never has faced the Twins.

Minnesota will counter with right-hander Jose Urena (0-0, 5.24), who will make his fourth start of the season and his second with the Twins. He gave up two runs on five hits in four innings in his first start for Minnesota against the host Cleveland Guardians last weekend.

The 33-year-old Urena has appeared in four games with one start against the Royals. He is 1-0 with a 4.97 ERA in 12 2/3 innings in those games.

Maikel Garcia will try to stay hot for Kansas City after ripping an RBI double on Saturday. Garcia is hitting .299 with 11 homers, 51 RBIs and 21 stolen bases in 115 games.

“Just trying to look fastball,” Garcia told the Royals’ radio broadcast team after Saturday’s win. “He gave me a good fastball right on the outside corner, and I just went that way.”

–Field Level Media