Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was a late scratch from Wednesday night’s game against the host New York Yankees because of right knee discomfort.

Guerrero was originally slated to bat third and serve as the designated hitter. He was replaced by Spencer Horwitz, who will bat fifth. First baseman Cavan Biggio moved into the three-hole.

Guerrero went 0-for-5 in Tuesday’s 7-1 win, though he reached base twice due to New York errors. He is hitting .264 with 24 homers and 90 RBIs through 147 games this season.

The Blue Jays (84-67) enter Tuesday riding a four-game winning streak while owning the second American League wild card, a half-game above the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers.

–Field Level Media

Pinch hitter Ji Man Choi drove in the tiebreaking run with a sacrifice fly as the San Diego Padres rallied for two runs in the seventh inning to defeat the visiting Colorado Rockies 3-2 Wednesday afternoon and complete a three-game sweep.

The Padres extended their longest winning streak of the season to seven straight games.

The Rockies scored both of their runs in the top of the first inning.

Juan Soto opened the Padres’ seventh by drawing his major league-leading 126th walk. After Rockies starter Chase Anderson retired Manny Machado on a long fly to center, Garrett Cooper beat out an infield single to short.

Justin Lawrence replaced Anderson and was greeted by a bunt single up the third base line by Matthew Batten that loaded the bases. Pinch hitter Luis Campusano then dropped a game-tying single to short right, Soto scoring just ahead of right fielder Sean Bouchard’s throw to the plate for a possible forceout.

Choi then drove a sinker to deep center easily scoring pinch runner Trent Grisham from third as Rockies center fielder Brenton Doyle made an over-the-head catch on the warning track. It was Choi’s first RBI with the Padres.

Luis Garcia (2-3) worked a scoreless top of the seventh to earn the win. Josh Hader picked up his 31st save, getting Brendan Rodgers on a game-ending fly to right with the tying run on third. Hader had a win and two saves in the sweep.

Anderson took the loss to fall to 0-6 despite allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts in his first outing since pitching seven no-hit innings against the Giants last Friday.

The Rockies scored their runs off Padres starter Seth Lugo. Rodgers hit his first homer of the season with one out. Nolan Jones followed with a single and came around on singles by Ryan McMahon and Ezequiel Tovar.

The Padres got a run back in the bottom of the first. Xander Bogaerts opened with a single, stole second, moved to third on a throwing error by catcher Austin Wynns and scored on a groundout by Soto.

Lugo gave up two runs on seven hits and two walks with seven strikeouts over six innings.

–Field Level Media

Corbin Carroll had four hits, scored three runs and stole two bases to help the host Arizona Diamondbacks to a 7-1 win against the San Francisco Giants in the finale of their two-game series on Wednesday afternoon in Phoenix.

Carroll, who also slugged his 25th homer, became the first rookie in major league history to record at least 25 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season.

Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly (12-7) allowed one run and three hits in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked three.

Ketel Marte also homered, and Christian Walker and Gabriel Moreno each had three hits and an RBI for Arizona (81-72), which has won five in a row in its bid for a wild-card spot.

LaMonte Wade Jr. homered for the Giants (76-76), who are three games back of the Chicago Cubs for the third and final wild card. Seven of San Francisco’s final 10 games are against the National League West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers.

Giants starter Logan Webb (10-13) was tagged for three runs and nine hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked two.

Wade led off the game by pulling a 2-2 sinker over the right field fence forlead.

Carroll singled to start the first for the Diamondbacks, stole second, went to third on a groundout and came home on an infield single to deep third base by Walker, tying the score at 1-1.

Carroll singled with one out in the third, stole second and went to third on a throwing error by catcher Patrick Bailey. He then came home on a fielder’s-choice groundout by Tommy Pham to give Arizona a 2-1 lead. After a single by Walker put runners on the corners, Alek Thomas doubled to right to score Pham for a 3-1 lead.

Michael Conforto doubled into the right field corner to begin the seventh for San Francisco, but he was stranded at third after Ryan Thompson replaced Kelly and struck out No. 9 hitter Thairo Estrada to end the inning.

Carroll and Marte hit back-to-back solo home runs in the seventh to stretch the lead to 5-1.

Moreno and Emmanuel Rivera tacked on RBI singles later in the inning to make it 7-1.

–Field Level Media

Dominic Canzone drove in a season-best four runs, George Kirby threw seven effective innings and the Seattle Mariners kept pace in the American League West by completing a three-game sweep of the host Oakland Athletics, 6-3 on Wednesday afternoon.

Seattle’s 12th win in 13 games over the A’s in the season series allowed the Mariners (84-68) to remain tied with the Texas Rangers for second place in the AL West, a half-game behind the Houston Astros. All three won Wednesday.

Playing in his 53rd major league game, Canzone teed off on debuting A’s rookie Joey Estes for a two-run homer in the second inning. A fielding error by Oakland third baseman Jordan Diaz had put Ty France aboard before Canzone’s sixth homer of the season.

Having seen the A’s (46-106) get within 2-1 on Zack Gelof’s 13th homer, the Mariners created some breathing room with a four-run fifth that ended Estes’ day.

Julio Rodriguez bombed his 31st homer and Cal Raleigh his 29th leading off the fifth. Two outs later, after Estes had been lifted following a ground-rule double by Eugenio Suarez and a hit batsman, Canzone greeted reliever Adrian Martinez with a two-run double, opening a 6-1 lead.

The four RBIs were one more than Canzone’s previous best, set in July at Atlanta.

Seeking to avoid a seventh straight loss, the A’s got within 6-3 on a two-run homer by Brent Rooker, his 27th, in the sixth.

But Kirby (11-10) pitched a scoreless seventh and Andres Munoz a scoreless eighth, setting the stage for Justin Topa to record his third save with a hitless ninth.

Kirby was charged with three runs on eight hits in his seven innings. He struck out three and did not issue a walk.

Promoted from Triple-A to make the start, Estes went 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (five earned) and six hits. He walked one and struck out two.

Raleigh joined Canzone with two hits, while France scored twice for the Mariners, who now head for a three-game series at Texas.

Gelof and Seth Brown had two hits apiece for the A’s, whose eight hits equaled the Mariners’ total.

–Field Level Media

Nelson Velazquez homered to lead the Kansas City Royals past the visiting Cleveland Guardians 6-2, completing a three-game sweep Wednesday afternoon.

After a pair of first-inning Guardians errors, Velazquez pounded his 15th homer above the left field bullpen for a 3-0 lead. It was the 37th home run surrendered by Guardians starter Lucas Giolito, third most in baseball.

Giolito (8-14) allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits over 5 1/3 innings, walking three with six strikeouts. He has lost six of his last seven starts and 3 of 4 for Cleveland.

Andres Gimenez’s RBI single and Myles Straw’s sacrifice fly rallied the Guardians for a pair of fourth-inning runs, driving Royals starter Zack Greinke from the mound.

Greinke allowed two runs on five hits in 3 2/3 innings, throwing first-pitch strikes to 13 of 16 batters. With his five strikeouts, he moved past Bret Saberhagen for fourth in Kansas City history at 1,094.

Angel Zerpa (3-3) recorded his second consecutive long-relief win, striking out four and allowing three hits while retiring 16 of 19 batters over 5 1/3 shutout innings. It was Zerpa’s career-long relief appearance.

Bobby Witt Jr.’s two-out RBI single extended the Royals’ lead to 4-2 in the fourth. Edward Olivares added an RBI grounder in the seventh.

A third Guardians’ miscue allowed Witt to score with two out in the eighth, capping the scoring.

Witt, Nick Loftin and Drew Waters each had two of Kansas City’s 10 hits and Waters stole two bases.

The Royals (51-102) have won seven of eight, sweeping the Guardians for the first time since April 12-14, 2019, also at Kauffman Stadium.

Josh Naylor collected two of Cleveland’s eight hits.

The Guardians (72-81) suffered their fourth series sweep and first since July 31-Aug. 2 at Houston. Despite the sweep, Cleveland won the season series against Kansas City, winning 7 of 13 games, and they have not lost a season series to the Royals since 2015.

Cleveland fell nine games behind the Minnesota Twins, who rallied for a 5-3 win at Cincinnati, reducing their magic number to one.

–Field Level Media

Mauricio Dubon delivered a walk-off RBI single Wednesday afternoon for the host Houston Astros, who maintained their tenuous hold on first place in the American League West by earning a come-from-behind 2-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

The Astros (85-68) salvaged the finale of the three-game series shortly after the Texas Rangers, tied for second in the AL West, routed the Boston Red Sox 15-5 earlier in the day. Seattle beat Oakland to remain tied with the Rangers, a half-game behind Houston.

The AL East-leading Orioles (95-57) had their four-game winning streak snapped. With Tampa Bay also losing Wednesday, Baltimore maintained its 2 1/2-game lead over the Rays in the division.

Houston needed just six pitches to score the winning run off Danny Coulombe (5-2) in the bottom of the ninth. Yainer Diaz doubled on Coulombe’s first pitch and moved to third when Chas McCormick grounded out to second. Dubon singled to right on the next pitch.

Ryan Pressly (4-5) threw a perfect top of the ninth to earn the win for Houston.

Orioles starter Kyle Bradish struck out nine and allowed just two hits over six scoreless innings. Reliever Jacob Webb tossed a perfect seventh before the Astros scored the tying run in the eighth. Shintaro Fujinami walked two of the three batters he faced and Jeremy Pena’s double off Michael Baumann scored Dubon.

Astros starter Cristian Javier allowed one run on three hits and two walks while striking out 11 over five innings. The strikeouts tied a season high for Javier, who also whiffed 11 against the Los Angeles Angels on May 10.

The Orioles scored their lone run in the first, when Adley Rutschman doubled with one out and came home on Anthony Santander’s single. Javier retired 14 of the last 17 batters he faced.

Santander had two hits and a stolen base.

Bradish issued two walks while throwing at least six scoreless innings for the fifth time this season. He lowered his ERA to 3.01, the third-lowest mark in the AL.

–Field Level Media

The Texas Rangers responded to an early four-run deficit with 15 unanswered runs on Wednesday, crushing the visiting Boston Red Sox 15-5 in Arlington, Texas.

Boston (75-78) received a three-run homer from Adam Duvall and a solo shot from Bobby Dalbec to take a 4-0 lead into the home half of the second inning. That’s when the Rangers’ offense came to life, however.

Jonah Heim headlined the six-run frame with a three-run blast of his own, with Mitch Garver clubbing a solo home run and Marcus Semien ripping a two-run single.

Texas (84-68) scored at least two runs in each of the next four frames to turn a modest two-run edge into a 15-4 advantage.

Josh Jung and Evan Carter also went deep during the rout as the Rangers remained tied with the Seattle Mariners (84-68) a half-game behind the Houston Astros (85-68) in the American League West. Houston beat the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 Wednesday afternoon.

Jung and Carter each finished with three hits, while Semien and Leody Taveras added two apiece.

Despite the offensive showcase, Texas starter Jon Gray couldn’t pick up a win after logging just 2 1/3 innings. He allowed four runs on four hits with one walk and one strikeout.

Martin Perez (10-4) took over for Gray and kept his former team at bay, limiting the Red Sox to just three hits over 4 2/3 scoreless innings.

Boston starter Brayan Bello (12-10) was tagged for eight runs on eight hits in three innings to take the loss.

In losing for the 12th time in their last 15 games, the Red Sox left six men on base and grounded into two double plays. Duvall and Dalbec both finished with a pair of hits.

After the Rangers’ ferocious second, Taveras had an RBI single and Semien walked with the bases loaded in the third to make it 8-4. Adolis Garcia chipped in with a run-scoring double as part of a two-run fourth, and Jung contributed a two-run shot in a three-run fifth.

The onslaught ended in the sixth with Carter’s two-run homer.

Boston’s Ceddanne Rafaela had an RBI single in the ninth to cap the scoring.

–Field Level Media

Lane Thomas belted a grand slam to help the host Washington Nationals cruise to a 13-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday in the rubber match of the three-game series.

Washington’s Joey Meneses homered among his three hits and Dominic Smith also went deep. CJ Abrams hit a two-run double and Luis Garcia had three hits and scored four runs for the Nationals.

The Nationals (68-85), who won the last two games of the three-game series, posted their most runs in a game this season. Their previous high came in a 12-10 win at Kansas City on May 26.

The White Sox (58-95) have lost seven consecutive series. Andrew Vaughn posted two of the team’s six hits and drove in a run with a groundout.

Nationals starter Josiah Gray (8-12) posted his first victory since July 22 after holding the White Sox to one run in five innings.

The Nationals benefitted from 14 hits and seven walks. They struck out only twice – both times by Keibert Ruiz.

The big blow was Thomas’ 26th home run of the season in the third inning. That began a stretch of one Washington home run in three straight innings. Smith drilled his 11th homer in the fourth, and Meneses smacked his 13th in the fifth.

Meneses, who hit a game-winning home run on Tuesday, drove in the game’s first run on a fielder’s choice grounder.

The White Sox pulled even on Gavin Sheets’ sacrifice fly in the second inning. The Nationals were back in front courtesy of a three-run bottom of the second, with Luis Vargas driving in a run with a single and Abrams knocking in the next two with a double.

The White Sox used Michael Kopech in an opener role for one inning. Chicago sent three pitchers to the mound to get through the first two innings, with Tanner Banks (0-4) taking the loss after giving up three runs (two earned) while recording one out.

–Field Level Media

Jorge Polanco hit a two-out, two-run single in the top of the top of the ninth inning to rally the Minnesota Twins to a 5-3 victory over the host Cincinnati Reds in the deciding game of a three-game series Wednesday afternoon.

Willi Castro homered and had two hits and two runs scored, Christian Vazquez had a double among his two hits. The win by Minnesota (81-72) — coupled with Cleveland’s loss to Kansas City on Wednesday — lowered the Twins’ magic number for clinching the American League Central to one.

Jhoan Duran (3-6) picked up the win with a scoreless eighth inning and Griffin Jax pitched around a leadoff walk in the ninth to notch his third save.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand hit a home run and Will Benson tripled and scored twice for Cincinnati (79-75), which wasted a 14-strikeout effort by starter Hunter Greene.

Greene, who allowed one run on three hits over seven innings, reached a career high in strikeouts. He walked one, hit a batter and left after throwing 92 pitches, 63 for strikes. His 14 strikeouts were the most by a Reds pitcher since Ron Villone struck out 16 against the St. Louis Cardinals on Sept. 29, 2000.

Trailing 3-2 entering the ninth inning, Minnesota rallied for three runs against Cincinnati’s All-Star closer Alexis Diaz (9-5).

Castro led off with a bunt single, stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by catcher Luke Maile, then scored on a single by Kyle Farmer to tie the game 3-3.

One out later, Vazquez walked and Sam Moll replaced Diaz. After Farmer and Vazquez executed a double-steal, Ryan Jeffers was walked intentionally to load the bases. Polanco singled to right to drive in Farmer and Vazquez.

Cincinnati took a 1-0 lead in the third inning when Benson led off with a walk, Jonathan India was hit by a pitch and TJ Freidl singled to score Benson.

The Reds extended the lead to 2-0 in the fourth inning when Encarnacion-Strand led off with his ninth homer of the season, a 393-foot drive into the left field bleachers.

Minnesota cut the lead to 2-1 in the seventh on Castro’s ninth home run. But the Reds answered with a run in the bottom half of the inning to increase their lead to 3-1 when Benson led off with a triple to right-center and scored on a single by Maile.

The Twins closed to 3-2 in the eighth inning against reliever Ian Gibaut. Vazquez led off with a double into the right-field corner and scored one out later on a single by Edouard Julien.

–Field Level Media