Jason Delay hit a tiebreaking double in the seventh inning that benefited from a fortunate bounce off third base, and the Pirates edged the Yankees, 3-2, to avoid a three-game sweep in Pittsburgh.
New York remains two games clear of the last-place Red Sox in the AL East.
Delay turned on a curveball from Carlos Rodón (3-6) and hit a bouncer that nicked the outside of the bag and rolled away from New York third baseman Oswald Peraza and into foul territory in left field, allowing Jared Triolo to score from second.
“Shout out to the bigger bases,” Delay said with a laugh.
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David Bednar worked around a one-out double by Austin Wells in the ninth for his 36th save.
Rodón pitched relatively well across 6⅔ innings in his 12th start since returning from forearm and back injuries that sidelined him until early July. The lefthander allowed three runs on six hits. He struck out a season-high 10, reaching the 1,000-strikeout mark for his career when he fanned Ke’Bryan Hayes leading off the fourth.
The Yankees managed just four hits against five pitchers. Pittsburgh reliever Ryan Borucki (3-0) got two outs in the seventh to earn the win.
Miguel Andujar hit a solo home run against his former team as the Pirates (70-80) reached the 70-win plateau for the first time since 2018.
Twins close in on AL Central title
Sonny Gray closed on Gerrit Cole for the AL ERA lead, Edouard Julien and Jorge Polanco homered and the AL Central-leading Twins shut out the host White Sox, 4-0. Minnesota leads second-place Cleveland by seven games in the AL Central with 12 games to play.
Gray (8-7) lowered his ERA to 2.84, just behind the Yankees’ Cole, who leads the AL at 2.81. Gray gave up five hits in seven innings, struck out six and walked none.
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Bench coach Jayce Tingler was Minnesota’s acting manager while Rocco Baldelli is away — awaiting the birth of twins.
AL West-best Astros avoid being swept
Yordan Alvarez and Jake Meyers homered and Framber Valdez (12-10) went seven strong innings as the visiting Astros won, 7-1, against the Royals. Houston salvaged the final game of the series, expanding its AL West lead to 1½ games over Texas.
Jordan Lyles (4-17) has allowed 38 homers, tying a Royals record. Kansas City is 48-102.
Ramírez, Guardians keep Rangers down
José Ramírez homered on his 31st birthday to touch off a nine-run fourth inning, leading the host Guardians to a 9-2 win and three-game sweep of the playoff-chasing Rangers. Texas came in riding a six-game winning streak only to be held to six runs.
Dodgers roll on after clinching NL West
Jason Heyward, Austin Barnes, and James Outman homered to lead the Dodgers to a 6-1 win against the host Mariners to finish a three-game sweep one day after clinching the NL West title. Freddie Freeman, one of several players rested by Los Angeles, wasn’t in the lineup at first base for the first time this season.
Seattle is a game behind Texas for the final AL wild card.
Marlins complete sweep of NL-leading Braves
Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a grand slam for the second consecutive game and the wild card-contending Marlins routed the visiting Braves, 16-2, to complete a three-game sweep of the NL East champions. Jorge Soler, Jake Burger, and Nick Fortes (four hits) also went deep for the Marlins, and Luis Arraez had three hits to increase his majors-best average to .353.
Diamondbacks slide into second spot
Ketel Marte hit a two-run homer and the host Diamondbacks got 5⅔ scoreless innings from their bullpen in a 6-2 win over the Cubs to move a half-game ahead of Chicago for the second National League wild-card spot.
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Arizona completed a three-game sweep and handed the Cubs their fifth straight loss. The Cubs fell into a tie with Miami for the league’s final playoff spot. Cincinnati is a half-game behind, and San Francisco is two back.
Mets beat Reds, honor Colón
Pinch-hitter Daniel Vogelbach hit a three-run double in the seventh inning, and the host Mets hurt the sloppy Reds’ wild card chances with an 8-4 victory. Five years removed from his last big league pitch, Bartolo Colón, 50,was honored by the Mets when he announced his retirement . . . The NL wild card-leading Phillies said 2008 World Series manager Charlie Manuel “has made progress over the past 12 hours, and his doctors are encouraged” after he suffered a stroke Saturday during a medical procedure.