The Indians also light up the scoreboard in winning the battle of Ohio, 19 – 5, over the Reds. Jose Ramirez homers twice and drives in 5, as Tyler Mahle gives up 7 runs in 2 1/3 innings and his successor, Tanner Rainey, another 8 runs in just two-thirds of an inning. IF Alex Blandino is called on to pitch mop-up duty in the 8th and is the only Reds pitcher not to allow a run.

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The Indians also light up the scoreboard in winning the battle of Ohio, 19 – 5, over the Reds. Jose Ramirez homers twice and drives in 5, as Tyler Mahle gives up 7 runs in 2 1/3 innings and his successor, Tanner Rainey, another 8 runs in just two-thirds of an inning. IF Alex Blandino is called on to pitch mop-up duty in the 8th and is the only Reds pitcher not to allow a run.

The Rockies go on a scoring binge in crushing the Diamondbacks, 19 – 2. The Rox hit five homers, including two by Carlos Gonzalez and one by pitcher German Marquez, while position players Daniel Descalso and Alex Avila combine for 4 2/3 innings of relief in order to spare Arizona’s bullpen. D-Backs starter Shelby Miller does not make it out of the 1st inning, allowing 5 runs before exiting due to tightness in his elbow, and relievers Jorge De La Rosa and Yoshihisa Hirano are shelled for 7 and 4 runs respectively.

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The Rockies go on a scoring binge in crushing the Diamondbacks, 19 – 2. The Rox hit five homers, including two by Carlos Gonzalez and one by pitcher German Marquez, while position players Daniel Descalso and Alex Avila combine for 4 2/3 innings of relief in order to spare Arizona’s bullpen. D-Backs starter Shelby Miller does not make it out of the 1st inning, allowing 5 runs before exiting due to tightness in his elbow, and relievers Jorge De La Rosa and Yoshihisa Hirano are shelled for 7 and 4 runs respectively.

The Astros get a walk-off win on a ball that barely travels two feet. With runners on first and second and one out in the 11th after the Astros have just tied the score at 5-all against the Athletics, Alex Bregman taps a ball that bounces off home plate, briefly rolls foul, before returning to fair territory. C Jonathan Lucroy picks it up and attempts to tag Bregman, who has not moved yet, but he somehow drops the ball. He then throws to 1B but his relay glances off Bregman’s helmet and past 1B Mark Canha, allowing Kyle Tucker to score the winning run from second base. “I think it was the softest ball anyone’s ever hit,” Bregman reflects after the bizarre play.

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The Astros get a walk-off win on a ball that barely travels two feet. With runners on first and second and one out in the 11th after the Astros have just tied the score at 5-all against the Athletics, Alex Bregman taps a ball that bounces off home plate, briefly rolls foul, before returning to fair territory. C Jonathan Lucroy picks it up and attempts to tag Bregman, who has not moved yet, but he somehow drops the ball. He then throws to 1B but his relay glances off Bregman’s helmet and past 1B Mark Canha, allowing Kyle Tucker to score the winning run from second base. “I think it was the softest ball anyone’s ever hit,” Bregman reflects after the bizarre play.

Not to be outdone, the Indians lose a game on a strange 9th-inning managerial gaffe. They lead the Reds, 4 – 0, coming into the top of the 9th, after a brilliant start by Trevor Bauer, but closer Cody Allen gives up 4 runs and loads the bases with two outs, prompting manager Terry Francona to call in lefty Oliver Perez to face Joey Votto. Trouble is, its not Perez who’s been warming up, but righty Dan Otero, the result of a miscommunication with pitching coach Carl Willis: Francona asked to get “OP” warmed up, whereas Willis understood “OT” (Otero’s nickname). Given a favorable match-up, Votto lines a 3-2 pitch into right-center field to clear the bases and send Cincinnati on its way to a 7 – 4 win.

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Not to be outdone, the Indians lose a game on a strange 9th-inning managerial gaffe. They lead the Reds, 4 – 0, coming into the top of the 9th, after a brilliant start by Trevor Bauer, but closer Cody Allen gives up 4 runs and loads the bases with two outs, prompting manager Terry Francona to call in lefty Oliver Perez to face Joey Votto. Trouble is, its not Perez who’s been warming up, but righty Dan Otero, the result of a miscommunication with pitching coach Carl Willis: Francona asked to get “OP” warmed up, whereas Willis understood “OT” (Otero’s nickname). Given a favorable match-up, Votto lines a 3-2 pitch into right-center field to clear the bases and send Cincinnati on its way to a 7 – 4 win.

Starters and reserves for the 2018 All-Star Game that will be played at Nationals Park in Washington, DC on July 17th are announced. Beyond the expected participants like Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, the game will feature more unexpected actors, such as 2B Gleyber Torres, who began the year in the minors, voted as the starter for the AL at his position; Matt Kemp back for the first time since 2012 as a starter in the NL outfield; Nick Markakis, who is voted to star in the outfield for the NL and in the process establishes a new record with 1,928 games played before a first selection; and former journeyman pitcher Miles Mikolas, who has been outstanding after being signed out of Japan, on the NL roster.

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Starters and reserves for the 2018 All-Star Game that will be played at Nationals Park in Washington, DC on July 17th are announced. Beyond the expected participants like Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, the game will feature more unexpected actors, such as 2B Gleyber Torres, who began the year in the minors, voted as the starter for the AL at his position; Matt Kemp back for the first time since 2012 as a starter in the NL outfield; Nick Markakis, who is voted to star in the outfield for the NL and in the process establishes a new record with 1,928 games played before a first selection; and former journeyman pitcher Miles Mikolas, who has been outstanding after being signed out of Japan, on the NL roster.

It’s a high-scoring day in the majors as a number of marks are set or matched: Mark Reynolds ties the Nationals club record with 10 RBIs in an 18 – 4 win over the Marlins; the Diamondbacks set a franchise record by scoring 20 run in beating the Padres, 20 – 5; and the Red Sox score the most runs they have all season as they dispose of the Royals, 15 – 4. Wil Myers has a three-homer game for the Padres, but, obviously, it has little bearing on the final score.

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It’s a high-scoring day in the majors as a number of marks are set or matched: Mark Reynolds ties the Nationals club record with 10 RBIs in an 18 – 4 win over the Marlins; the Diamondbacks set a franchise record by scoring 20 run in beating the Padres, 20 – 5; and the Red Sox score the most runs they have all season as they dispose of the Royals, 15 – 4. Wil Myers has a three-homer game for the Padres, but, obviously, it has little bearing on the final score.

Almost three years after first being issued a lifetime ban for repeated violations of Baseball’s Drug Program, P Jenrry Mejia is granted reinstatement by the Commissioner, after petitioning for it as allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement. He will be allowed to resume all baseball activities next spring training, but it is made clear that this is a final chance for him and that no further missteps will be tolerated.

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Almost three years after first being issued a lifetime ban for repeated violations of Baseball’s Drug Program, P Jenrry Mejia is granted reinstatement by the Commissioner, after petitioning for it as allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement. He will be allowed to resume all baseball activities next spring training, but it is made clear that this is a final chance for him and that no further missteps will be tolerated.

Trailing 9 – 0 to the Marlins in the 4th, the Nationals stage a great comeback, eventually winning, 14 – 12 to get back to .500. Trea Turner hits a pair of homers, including his first career grand slam, and drives in 8 runs while Matt Adams adds 4 hits in his first game since coming off the disabled list.

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Trailing 9 – 0 to the Marlins in the 4th, the Nationals stage a great comeback, eventually winning, 14 – 12 to get back to .500. Trea Turner hits a pair of homers, including his first career grand slam, and drives in 8 runs while Matt Adams adds 4 hits in his first game since coming off the disabled list.

The Rays win a wild game over the Marlins, 9 – 6. The score is tied at 4 through 15 innings when the Rays break through for 5 runs in the top of the 16th. Pitcher Vidal Nuno contributes to the rally with an RBI single, but injures his leg while running to first and has to be replaced by a pinch-runner, starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, who scores the final run. However, the Rays try to avoid using another pitcher for the bottom of the frame by calling back-up catcher Jesús Sucre to the mound. The Marlins manage to load the bases on three singles, none of them hit particularly hard, before Bryan Holaday hits a sacrifice fly. At that point Rays manager Kevin Cash has no choice but to bring in a real pitcher, Jose Alvarado, who allows another run to score on a ground out, then walks P Dan Straily, who is pinch-hitting for P Brett Graves. Cameron Maybin comes up to bat representing the tying run, but he grounds out to second to end the game, as Alvarado picks up an unusual save. At 5 hours and 31 minutes, it is the longest road game in Rays history.

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On July 3, 2018 The Rays win a wild game over the Marlins, 9 – 6. The score is tied at 4 through 15 innings when the Rays break through for 5 runs in the top of the 16th. Pitcher Vidal Nuno contributes to the rally with an RBI single, but injures his leg while running to first and has…

In an interleague meeting between top postseason contenders and former Cy Young Award winners, Rick Porcello of the Red Sox gets the better of former teammate Max Scherzer of the Nationals when he surprizes him with a bases-clearing double in the 2nd, the first extra-base hit of his career. Those 3 runs are the only ones Scherzer allows in 6 innings, but they are enough to saddle with a 4 – 3 loss.

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On July 2, 2018 In an interleague meeting between top postseason contenders and former Cy Young Award winners, Rick Porcello of the Red Sox gets the better of former teammate Max Scherzer of the Nationals when he surprizes him with a bases-clearing double in the 2nd, the first extra-base hit of his career. Those 3 runs are the only ones Scherzer allows in 6 innings, but they are enough…