The Cleveland Guardians can't stop winning, and as a result, they are in the driver's seat for the final playoff spot in the American League.
Cleveland picked up a sixth straight win Wednesday by beating the Angels, and combined with a Rangers loss, now has a two-game cushion for the final AL wild-card spot.
The Blue Jays and Orioles were able to avoid losing ground by picking up wins of their own Wednesday, but still sit three and 2.5 games back of the Guardians, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Mariners, Tigers and Twins all lost Wednesday to fall further back of Cleveland.
Here's a look at how the standings look after Wednesday's results:
THURSDAY'S GAMES FOR WILD-CARD CONTENDERS (all times ET)
Toronto: vs. Kansas City, 7:07 p.m. (Sportsnet, Sportsnet+)Houston: at New York Yankees, 7:05 p.m. New York Yankees: vs. Houston, 7:05 p.m. Baltimore: at St. Louis, 12:15 p.m.Boston: OffTexas: OffCleveland: OffMinnesota: OffSeattle: OffDetroit: Off
TORONTO — Seven Toronto pitchers combined on a six-hitter, Nathan Lukes hit a three-run homer and the Blue Jays beat the Royals 3-0 on Wednesday night, ending Kansas City’s nine-game winning streak.
Chad Dallas (2-1) struck out four in 2 2/3 hitless innings for his second career win and Louis Varland got the final four outs for his 30th save in 31 chances.
The Royals were seeking their longest win streak since a 10-game stretch from June 7-18, 2014.
Toronto used its ninth shutout to bounce back after losing consecutive games for the first time in a month. The Blue Jays lost 8-3 at New York on Sunday and 5-3 Tuesday to Kansas City, their first back-to-back defeats since a four-game skid from July 19-22.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Steven Kwan hit a tying double in the ninth inning, Travis Bazzana followed with a sacrifice fly and the Cleveland Guardians rallied past the Los Angeles Angels 4-3 on Wednesday for their seventh straight victory.
Hunter Gaddis (2-3) retired the final two batters in the eighth to earn the win. Erik Sabrowski worked a scoreless ninth for his second major league save and first since 2024.
With a runner on second, Sabrowski struck out pinch-hitter Travis d’Arnaud and got pinch-hitter Oswald Peraza to pop up to second as Cleveland completed a three-game sweep.
Chase DeLauter, slowed this week by left hamstring tightness, sparked the winning rally with a one-out single off reliever Ryan Watson (1-1) in the ninth.
