Blue Jays outslug Orioles, Rangers extend lead in AL west

Russell Martin hit a three-run homer at the bottom of the sixth inning for the Blue Jays, who claimed the four-game series in Toronto, having jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first.

The third consecutive win helped the Blue Jays move within two and a half games of joint leaders the Orioles and the Boston Red Sox, who went down 7-4 to the Minnesota Twins.

Nomar Mazara starred as the in-form Texas Rangers saw off the Seattle Mariners 6-4, producing a perfect throw to oust Robinson Cano as he attempted to advance to second base in the ninth inning, ending the game at Safeco Field.

Texas' second win from three games against the Mariners saw the Rangers, who clinched a seventh successive series, open up a five-game lead in the AL West.

John Lester won his fourth straight start as the Chicago Cubs crushed the Atlanta Braves 13-2, World Series champions the Kansas City Royals accounted for the Chicago White Sox 3-1 and the St Louis Cardinals swept the Pittsburgh Pirates with an 8-3 victory.

The New York Yankees went down 4-1 to the Detroit Tigers, the Arizona Diamondbacks blanked the Miami Marlins 6-0, the Tampa Bay Rays had a 5-0 shut-out win against the Houston Astros and the Oakland Athletics were too good for the Cincinnati Reds 6-1.

Tyler Anderson starred in his MLB debut as the Colorado Rockies defeated the San Diego Padres 2-1, the New York Mets lost 5-3 to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Los Angeles Angels were no match for the Cleveland Indians losing 8-3, the Washington Nationals saw off the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4, while the San Francisco Giants edged the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1.

COLLECTIVE CUBS STEAL THE SHOW

Almost the entire Cubs team could be in this spot on their own, but with so many of them producing special stat lines, we decided to include them all. Lester led the way by tossing seven innings with just one unearned run off of five hits with seven strikeouts against the Braves. He is now 8-3 with a 1.89 ERA this season. Jason Heyward and Anthony Rizzo helped the Cubs offensively by combining for six hits, five runs scored, two walks and three RBIs. Javier Baez then topped it off by collecting two hits, two runs, a home run and three RBIs.

CABRERA RISES IN HITS STANDINGS

Tigers star Miguel Cabrera became the fifth-youngest player to reach 2,400 hits. His first-inning double saw him achieve the feat aged 33 years, 55 days.

DAVIS HOMERS AGAIN, FULMER EXTENDS STREAK

With a towering shot in the fifth inning, Orioles first baseman Chris Davis has now smacked a home run in five straight games. He only had three home runs in all of May. He also became the first player to record a home run in five straight games this season.

Tigers rookie Michael Fulmer tossed six scoreless innings against the Yankees, extending his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 28.5 innings, which is second-most for a rookie in Tigers history. He is now 7-1 on the season with a 2.52 ERA.

CUBS AND NATIONS SET FOR BLOCKBUSTER

On Monday, MLB's best team face off against a hungry Nationals squad that wants revenge after getting swept by the Cubs in Chicago earlier this season. Washington will send Max Scherzer (7-4, 3.57 ERA) on the mound to take on Kyle Hendricks (4-5, 2.90 ERA).