The Twins strengthen their bullpen for the postseason, picking up Brian Fuentes from the Angels in return for a player to be named later, a few days after claiming Randy Flores on waivers from the Rockies.

Braves starter Tommy Hanson, who begins the game without having given up a homer in his last 47.2 innings on the mound, sees his streak end when Marlin leadoff hitter Cameron Maybin drills the first pitch of the game into the left-field seats at Turner Field. Logan Morrison, the next batter, then connects off the Atlanta right-hander for his first major league round-tripper, making it the first time in franchise history that Florida has led off a game with back-to-back homers.

The Nationals announce 22 year-old right-hander Stephen Strasburg will undergo Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament, which will require about 12 to 18 months of rehabilitation. The rookie sensation, whose presence on the mound earlier in the season brought President Obama, along with his two daughters, to Nationals Park to watch the phenom pitch against the White Sox, finishes his freshman year with a 5-3 won-loss record in his 12 starts, striking out 92 batters in 68 innings while compiling an ERA of 2.91.

Alex Ramirez becomes the first player in Nippon Pro Baseball to drive in 100 runs for eight straight seasons, breaking Sadaharu Oh’s record set from 1963 to 1969. Ramirez’s three-run homer off Kazuki Yoshimi in the 1st puts him over the century mark in a 10 – 4 Yomiuri Giants win over the Chunichi Dragons.

Albert Pujols of St. Louis hits the 400th homer of his career, off Jordan Zimmermann of the Nationals in the 4th inning. Pujols becomes the 47th major leaguer to hit that many and is the third-youngest to do so after Alex Rodriguez and Ken Griffey Jr. However, the hit is a distant memory by the time the game reaches its conclusion after 13 innings with an 11 – 10 Nats win. Ian Desmond drives in Nyjer Morgan from third base with a single through a drawn-in infield to end the roller-coaster game, giving him 3 hits and 4 RBI on the night as Blake Hawksworth takes the loss. 15 pitchers see action during the game. The Cards take a 10 – 8 lead in the top of the 9th with a four-run outburst, only to see Roger Bernadina blast a two-run homer off Ryan Franklin to send the contest into extra innings. The Cards have now lost 8 of 11.

Cedric Hunter of Portland has a great day at the plate in a 17 – 12 win over Tacoma in the Pacific Coast League. He collects a franchise-record 8 RBI with a pair of three-run homers, a double and a single both plating a run, and another single for good measure. Dusty Ryan, with a grand slam, and Sean Kazmar also homer for Portland, while five Tacoma players do the same, including Mike Carp who hits two.

Félix Hernández of the Mariners beats the Red Sox in the second game of a doubleheader, fanning nine. That makes him the fourth-youngest hurler to 1,000 career strikeouts, following Bob Feller, Bert Blyleven and Dwight Gooden. David Ortiz is his 1,000th victim.

The Reds blow a nine-run lead over San Francisco, but manage to tie the game in the ninth on Paul Janish’s single and get a 12-11 victory on Joey Votto’s two-out, tie-breaking hit in the 12th inning. Earlier in the day, the Braves squander the same size lead at Coors Field, but lose the game, 12-10, to the Rockies, who match their largest comeback in franchise history.

In the California League, Lancaster defeats Lake Elsinore, 3 – 1, in 10 innings, as five pitchers combine on a no-hitter. Starter Robert Donovan goes 5 2/3 innings before running out of gas and giving way to Edwin Walker. Lake Elsinore ties the game at 1 in the 8th against David Berner, the result of a walk and two sacrifice bunts that both result in throwing errors by Berner. David Carpenter succeeds him, finishes the 8th and pitches a perfect 9th to get credit for the win when his teammates score two in the top of the 10th inning. Another reliever, Jose Trinidad, completes the unusual no-no by pitching the bottom of the 10th, allowing only a walk.