September 11

2018 – With a 7 – 2 win over the Blue Jays, the Red Sox become the first team this year to clinch a postseason berth. The Sox now have 99 wins, thanks to Brock Holt’s three-run pinch homer off Ryan Tepera in the 7th, and lead the second-place Yankees by 9 games. They are assured of at least a wild card spot, but are obviously looking for more.

2017 – In a game moved from Tropicana Field to Citi Field in Queens, NY because of Hurricane Irma, Jacoby Ellsbury of the Yankees breaks Pete Rose’s career mark for reaching base on catcher’s interference. It is the 30th time that Ellsbury has managed the otherwise rare manner of making it to first base. The Yankees win the game, 5 – 1, over the Rays thanks to a three-run homer by Todd Frazier.

2015 – The Orioles hit two grand slams in the 8th inning in beating the Royals, 14 – 8. In the eventful inning, Nolan Reimold hits a slam against Kelvin Herrera, then Manny Machado adds a solo shot. After Chris Davis is plunked by Franklin Morales, O’s manager Buck Showalter comes out of the dugout to complain and is ejected. After the bases are loaded again, Steve Clevenger hits another slam against Joba Chamberlain. It is the seventh time since 1900 that a team hits two bases-loaded homers in one inning.

Alex Cobb of the Rays makes a bid for a no-hitter against the Yankees, keeping them hitless until Chris Young doubles with one out and New York trailing 4 – 0 in the 8th. Pinch-hitter Martin Prado follows with a pinch homer off reliever Brad Boxberger that cuts the lead in half. Not content with having spoiled Cobb’s big night, Young then hits a walk-off three-run homer off Jake McGee in the 9th to give the Yanks a 5 – 4 win.

Giancarlo Stanton is hit in the face by a ball thrown by the Brewers’ Mike Fiers in the 5th inning. The Marlins’ best player suffers multiple facial fractures and broken teeth after lying motionless at home plate, bleeding profusely, for several minutes after the beaning and is carried away on a stretcher. Stanton was swinging on the pitch, so it is called a strike; pinch-hitter Reed Johnson completes the at-bat, and strikes out on a pitch that hits him on the hand, prompting both benches to clear. Marlins manager Mike Redmond and 3B Casey McGehee are both ejected for arguing umpire D.J. Reyburn’s decision to call both pitches strikes. In the 6th, Miami pitcher Anthony DeSclafani is also thumbed, for hitting Carlos Gomez on the left elbow in a gesture that is seen as retaliation; bench coach Rob Leary also gets the heave-ho since he is now the acting manager and both benches had been warned. For his part, Fiers leaves the game after striking out Johnson and issues an immediate emotional apology, denying any intention to hit Stanton. Incidentally, the Brewers win the game, 4 – 2.

At Marlins Park, benches clear when Brian McCann confronts Jose Fernandez as the Miami starting pitcher crosses home plate after hitting his first career home run. The Braves’ backstop and third baseman Chris Johnson take exception to the 21 year-old rookie right-hander admiring the home run from the batter box, then glaring into the Atlanta dugout as he was rounding the bases.

Wladimir Balentien takes Kan Otake deep for his 55th homer of the 2013 season. He ties the Nippon Pro Baseball record for dingers shared by Sadaharu Oh, Tuffy Rhodes and Alex Cabrera. Balentien, who had set the Arizona League home run mark 10 years earlier, led the Central League in homers the past two years, while the league juiced up the ball prior to the season.