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| Sanchez came up huge for his ballclub Tuesday. (AP) |
While the Cardinals created a bit more distance in the NL wild-card race, the Braves clinched a playoff berth in most dramatic fashion and the AL Central is all knotted up.
Full Tuesday scoreboard with recaps and box scores for every game
3 UP
Anibal Sanchez, Tigers: The White Sox played a day game Tuesday and lost, so the Tigers knew they had a shot to tie things up in the Central, and boy did Sanchez get the job done. He threw his first shutout of the season, racking up 10 strikeouts while only allowing three hits and a walk. And with one week to play, it's tied atop the Central.
David Price, Rays: Just when it looked like the Rays may be falling out of the race, they've now won six straight games. Price threw a complete game, allowing seven hits and two earned runs, but the strikeouts were the most impressive part here. He struck out a season-high 13 in the 5-2 win. The Rays have some work to do, as they trail the A's by three games for the final playoff spot, but that's workable if the Rays stay hot. As for Price, he solidified his status as AL Cy Young frontrunner.
George Kottaras, Athletics: The A's entered Tuesday night reeling, having lost six of their past eight games, but still held onto the second wild-card spot in the AL. Of course, the Angels and Rays are fighting to catch them so the A's needed a win in Texas. And they got it in the 10th inning, after Kottaras' homer cleared the way.
3 DOWN
The White Sox: They scored three runs, but those came on three solo homers. Otherwise they only managed three hits. Starting pitcher Francisco Liriano couldn't get through four innings, either, working 3 2/3 innings and allowing four runs on seven hits and two walks. And they lost to the last-place Indians. As mentioned above a few times, the Tigers and White Sox are now tied for first in the AL Central.
Orioles' offense: They were shut out by the Blue Jays, 5 2/3 innings worth from the hand of Aaron Laffey. And the Orioles have now lost three of four.
Mariners contact hitting: Against the Angels, the Mariners tied a league record by striking out 20 times in a nine-inning game. 
Angels or a King? The Angels have won four straight and are just two behind the A's and 2.5 behind the Orioles in the wild-card standings. In order to stay hot on the heels of the two Cinderella stories, however, the Angels better bring their sticks. They are facing Felix Hernandez (13-8, 2.85) and the Mariners. The struggling C.J. Wilson (12-10, 3.82) gets the ball for Los Angeles. 10:05 p.m. ET
Carp Start No. 2: Chris Carpenter didn't have his best stuff in his season debut Friday against the Cubs, but he battled through five innings and left the game in position for a win. Wednesday he'll have an even easier task than the Cubs, as he gets the lowly, 50-105 Astros. Bud Norris (5-13, 5.05) takes the hill for Houston. 8:05 p.m. ET
Streaking Rays: The hottest team in baseball looks for its seventh consecutive win Wednesday in Boston. Alex Cobb (9-9, 4.27) gets the start for the red-hot Rays, while the disappointing Jon Lester (9-13, 4.96) starts for the Red Sox. 7:10 p.m. ET
Also, obviously, watch those Tigers and White Sox games ...
Wednesday's probable pitchers
• Weird injury club: In light of Josh Hamilton's recent sinus issues, New York Times' Bats blog takes a look at some of baseball's most bizarre injuries for the 2012 season. My favorite is Rockies pitcher Josh Outman straining his oblique while vomiting.
• Longshot new Rays stadium: There are so many hurdles to jump through this is barely newsworthy, but a St. Petersburg developer is pitching a new stadium for the Rays Friday in a special St. Petersburg City Council meeting. Keep in mind, there's no word on how the stadium will be paid for, if the Rays are interested or if Major League Baseball is interested. (TBO.com)
• The other triple crown: The triple-slash stats have been growing more and more mainstream -- that is: Batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage -- because they tell so much about a ballplayer. How good a hitter is he when he doesn't walk? How often does he not make an out? How much power does he have? It's all there. And so, how many players would have won the "Slash-Stat Triple Crown?" SI.com takes a look, and guess what? We would have had five winners in the past 13 seasons, the most recent being Joe Mauer in 2009.
• Quote of the day: Jim Leyland is a beauty. And an honest one:
Leyland on watching Dunn go-ahead HR last night: “I’m ashamed of myself for what I called Vinnie Pestano.”
— Jason Beck (@beckjason) September 25, 2012
• Photo of the day: Check out the Babe Ruth look alike here (Big League Stew). The top picture says it all, it is uncanny.
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