​There was a moment when the Yankees’ hopes of flipping their series deficit grew a little brighter on Tuesday, as Ben Rice launched a three-run homer to put them in front by one in the third inning. Alas, an inning later those hopes dissolved when the Rays surged for four runs and grabbed a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. Now New York is chasing a series victory and a smaller deficit, but before they can even begin to close the gap, we’ve got to recap what happened around the majors while the Yankees battled in the Trop.
Credit is due to the Jays for rebounding strongly after Monday’s pounding by the Giants. In the second, Jonatan Clase delivered a three-run homer to put Toronto ahead, and after San Francisco scratched across a run, Toronto pressed the advantage in the third with five more tallies. The bottom fell quiet for the Giants until Toronto added to the onslaught. The first three Jays hitters all singled to push across a run, a groundout moved the runners over, then Sean Keys followed with a two-run single. Two more singles brought home another run, and a sacrifice fly capped the inning, extending Toronto’s cushion.
Spencer Miles faced a tough test as the Giants threatened to climb back in late, though he managed to keep them at bay for a stretch. In the bottom of the third, with the bases loaded and nobody out, Rafael Devers delivered a run with a double play that killed the frame’s momentum, and Miles escaped the inning with a groundout. He lasted four innings, allowing seven hits and mounting traffic on the bases, but kept the damage to a minimum thanks to enough soft contact to keep them in check. Patrick Corbin followed for his second relief appearance of the year and, in just his third relief outing outside his rookie season, held the line for 2.1 innings, allowing one run before the bullpen closed the door and sealed the win for the late leads.
Welcome to the Roundup, Chicago. With the Rays on the docket against the Yankees this week and the White Sox sitting atop the Central, it’s a fitting moment to roll out some test coverage for the city, even if Boston didn’t put their best foot forward in this game. The Red Sox jumped in front 3-0 in the second inning thanks to a pair of homers from Andruw Monasterio and Ceddanne Rafaela, then added another run in the fourth with a successful safety squeeze. They poured it on late, scoring four in the ninth as Willson Contreras and Romy González delivered RBI doubles and Jarren Duran added an RBI single to seal the deal. Payton Tolle pitched six scoreless innings for Boston, while Danny Coulombe was the lone hiccup in relief, loading the bases with his first three batters in the seventh, allowing Chicago’s only run of the inning. The late surge wasn’t enough to spark a comeback for Chicago, and Boston rode the late-inning insurance to the victory.