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MLB Scores and Game Recaps: Guardians Take AL Central Lead on September 16

Cleveland won its showdown with Chicago, the Brewers reached 95 victories and the Twins outlasted the Yankees in 13 innings.

The Cleveland Guardians took sole possession of first place in the American League Central on Wednesday, September 16, 2026. Their 6-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox capped a 15-game MLB schedule that also brought an extra-inning win for Minnesota and a setback for Arizona in the National League wild-card race.

Cleveland Guardians 6, Chicago White Sox 3

Rookie Petey Halpin hit a three-run homer during Cleveland’s four-run sixth inning, sending the Guardians past Chicago and into first place by one-half game.

Tommy Pham had put the White Sox ahead 3-2 with a three-run homer in the fifth. Halpin reversed the score, José Ramírez added an RBI double, and Cade Smith recorded the final four outs. Chicago has lost seven of its past nine games.

Winning pitcher: Parker Messick (12-9)
Losing pitcher: Hagen Smith (3-2)
Save: Cade Smith (37)

San Francisco Giants 6, St. Louis Cardinals 5 — 10 innings

Drew Gilbert hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the 10th to give San Francisco a lead it narrowly held.

The Cardinals had tied the game with two runs in the ninth. Rookie Jonah Cox collected three hits and stole two bases for the Giants, while former Cardinal Andrew Knizner had three hits and an RBI. St. Louis scored once in the bottom of the 10th before Joel Kuhnel closed it out.

Winning pitcher: Reiver Sanmartin (3-0)
Losing pitcher: Riley O’Brien (3-9)
Save: Joel Kuhnel (8)

Minnesota Twins 5, New York Yankees 4 — 13 innings

Victor Caratini’s pinch-hit single brought home the winning run in the 13th inning, ending a game in which both clubs repeatedly answered late deficits.

Anthony Volpe’s two-run double tied it for New York in the ninth, and the teams exchanged runs in the 10th and 11th. Ryan Kreidler homered for Minnesota. Yankees slugger Aaron Judge exited in the sixth with lower-right-leg tightness.

Winning pitcher: Tommy Nance (3-3)
Losing pitcher: John Schreiber (2-4)

Toronto Blue Jays 5, Detroit Tigers 1

Max Scherzer allowed one run on three hits over five innings as Toronto avoided a three-game sweep.

The Blue Jays scored twice in the fourth, once in the fifth and twice in the sixth to break away. Miles Straw and Brett Bateman collected two hits apiece. Detroit’s six-game winning streak ended, while Toronto moved closer to the final AL wild-card spot.

Winning pitcher: Max Scherzer (3-8)
Losing pitcher: Keider Montero (9-9)
Save: Louis Varland (34)

Cincinnati Reds 6, Los Angeles Dodgers 2

Elly De La Cruz hit a two-run homer and Dane Myers added a solo shot as Cincinnati prevented Los Angeles from clinching the NL West.

The Dodgers took a 1-0 lead in the third, but De La Cruz put the Reds ahead for good in the bottom half. Cincinnati added two runs in the seventh. Dodgers starter Blake Snell left after one inning with left groin tightness.

Winning pitcher: Tejay Antone (3-2)
Losing pitcher: Seth Halvorsen (1-2)

Tampa Bay Rays 4, Athletics 3

Tampa Bay built a four-run lead over the first two innings and held on for its fifth consecutive victory.

Chandler Simpson and Jonny DeLuca each doubled and drove in a run. Tommy White and Henry Bolte homered as the Athletics cut the deficit to one, but Cole Sulser protected the lead in the ninth. The Rays increased their AL East advantage to 4½ games.

Winning pitcher: Nick Martinez (15-4)
Losing pitcher: Osvaldo Basso (1-3)
Save: Cole Sulser (3)

Milwaukee Brewers 5, Pittsburgh Pirates 4

Christian Yelich’s two-run single in the seventh inning supplied the decisive swing as the newly crowned NL Central champions earned their MLB-best 95th win.

Pittsburgh led 4-3 after six innings behind home runs from Oneil Cruz, Brandon Lowe and Rafael Flores Jr. Milwaukee answered in the seventh, then Trevor Megill handled the ninth for the save.

Winning pitcher: Antonio Senzatela (11-5)
Losing pitcher: Carmen Mlodzinski (7-7)
Save: Trevor Megill (28)

Philadelphia Phillies 3, Washington Nationals 0

Zack Wheeler pitched seven innings of four-hit ball as Philadelphia blanked Washington and split the two-game series.

Alec Bohm reached base five times with two hits and three walks, while Bryce Harper scored twice. The Nationals held the Phillies to five hits but issued 13 walks. Jhoan Duran retired Washington in order in the ninth.

Winning pitcher: Zack Wheeler (13-5)
Losing pitcher: Jared Simpson (1-1)
Save: Jhoan Duran (31)

Baltimore Orioles 7, New York Mets 1

Pete Alonso, Jeremiah Jackson and Christian Encarnacion-Strand homered for the second consecutive game as Baltimore completed a three-game sweep at Citi Field.

Samuel Basallo also went deep and drove in two runs. Chris Bassitt allowed one run over 6⅔ innings, and Baltimore scored six times across the first three frames. The Mets lost their fourth straight.

Winning pitcher: Chris Bassitt (8-5)
Losing pitcher: Xzavion Curry (0-1)

Chicago Cubs 8, Atlanta Braves 4

Pete Crow-Armstrong hit two home runs, bringing his season total to 44, as Chicago protected its narrow lead for the top NL wild-card spot.

Alex Bregman added a homer and four RBIs. The Cubs scored three runs in the fifth to build a 6-0 lead, and Shota Imanaga held Atlanta to one run over his start. The Braves scored twice in the ninth but could not erase the early deficit.

Winning pitcher: Shota Imanaga (11-10)
Losing pitcher: JR Ritchie (1-3)

Texas Rangers 7, Boston Red Sox 3

Texas broke a 3-3 tie with three runs in the seventh inning and moved level with Houston atop the AL West by record.

Josh Jung finished with three hits, while Jake Burger and Justin Foscue each contributed two hits and an RBI. Nathan Eovaldi pitched four scoreless relief innings. Boston managed just three hits, including Willson Contreras’ home run.

Winning pitcher: Nathan Eovaldi (11-9)
Losing pitcher: Erik Miller (4-1)

Kansas City Royals 5, Houston Astros 2

John Rave and Michael Massey homered as Kansas City handed Houston a loss that tightened the AL West race.

Daniel Lynch IV held the Astros scoreless on two hits over five innings. Massey finished with three hits, and the Royals added three runs in the eighth to stretch a 2-0 lead. Yainer Diaz homered for Houston, which ended the night tied with Texas at 76-76.

Winning pitcher: Daniel Lynch IV (6-5)
Losing pitcher: Cristian Javier (2-6)

San Diego Padres 9, Colorado Rockies 3

Twenty-year-old catcher Ethan Salas hit the first two home runs of his major-league career as San Diego won for the ninth time in 10 games.

Salas drove in three runs, becoming the youngest catcher since 1900 to record a multi-homer game. Jackson Merrill collected three hits, and Robbie Ray worked six innings. The Padres maintained their hold on the final NL wild-card position.

Winning pitcher: Robbie Ray (13-8)
Losing pitcher: Mason Adams (0-1)

Seattle Mariners 7, Los Angeles Angels 2

Cal Raleigh drove in three runs and Josh Naylor added two RBIs as Seattle avoided a three-game sweep.

The Mariners scored three times in the fifth and twice in the sixth to pull away. Randy Arozarena scored three runs, while Julio Rodríguez collected two hits. The Angels finished with 10 hits but stranded 14 runners.

Winning pitcher: Carlos Vargas (1-0)
Losing pitcher: Yusei Kikuchi (1-6)

Miami Marlins 4, Arizona Diamondbacks 3

Jakob Marsee hit a two-run homer and a double as Miami won the series and dealt Arizona another blow in the NL wild-card race.

The Marlins scored twice in both the second and third innings. Heriberto Hernández collected four singles and an RBI. Solo homers by Pavin Smith, Gabriel Moreno and Nolan Arenado kept Arizona close, but Sandy Alcantara secured the final outs for his first save.

Winning pitcher: Cade Gibson (5-1)
Losing pitcher: Merrill Kelly (9-14)
Save: Sandy Alcantara (1)

September 16 MLB Scores at a Glance

• Cleveland Guardians 6, Chicago White Sox 3
• San Francisco Giants 6, St. Louis Cardinals 5 (10 innings)
• Minnesota Twins 5, New York Yankees 4 (13 innings)
• Toronto Blue Jays 5, Detroit Tigers 1
• Cincinnati Reds 6, Los Angeles Dodgers 2
• Tampa Bay Rays 4, Athletics 3
• Milwaukee Brewers 5, Pittsburgh Pirates 4
• Philadelphia Phillies 3, Washington Nationals 0
• Baltimore Orioles 7, New York Mets 1
• Chicago Cubs 8, Atlanta Braves 4
• Texas Rangers 7, Boston Red Sox 3
• Kansas City Royals 5, Houston Astros 2
• San Diego Padres 9, Colorado Rockies 3
• Seattle Mariners 7, Los Angeles Angels 2
• Miami Marlins 4, Arizona Diamondbacks 3

Source: MLB’s September 16 scoreboard.

MLB Division Standings Through September 16, 2026

American League

East

• Tampa Bay Rays: 92-59
• New York Yankees: 88-64
• Boston Red Sox: 82-70
• Toronto Blue Jays: 76-77
• Baltimore Orioles: 75-78

Central

• Cleveland Guardians: 78-75
• Chicago White Sox: 77-75
• Detroit Tigers: 72-80
• Minnesota Twins: 71-81
• Kansas City Royals: 67-85

West

• Houston Astros: 76-76
• Texas Rangers: 76-76
• Seattle Mariners: 71-82
• Athletics: 61-91
• Los Angeles Angels: 58-94

National League

East

• Atlanta Braves: 89-64
• Philadelphia Phillies: 84-68
• Miami Marlins: 76-77
• Washington Nationals: 71-82
• New York Mets: 69-83

Central

• Milwaukee Brewers: 95-57
• Chicago Cubs: 85-68
• Pittsburgh Pirates: 75-77
• St. Louis Cardinals: 75-78
• Cincinnati Reds: 71-81

West

• Los Angeles Dodgers: 92-60
• San Diego Padres: 83-69
• Arizona Diamondbacks: 80-73
• San Francisco Giants: 64-89
• Colorado Rockies: 56-96

Records reflect all games completed September 16, as shown on the official MLB scoreboard. Houston and Texas have identical records; Houston holds the AL West tiebreaker, according to the Reuters roundup.

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