Former Tigers watch: Cameron Maybin hits game-winning homer for Astros

With the Detroit Tigers struggling something fierce as we head down the stretch, we Tigers fans need something else to entertain ourselves. The minor league season is over and we don’t want to watch football, so we’re turning to the next best thing: other baseball. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be checking in on our old friends as they make a push towards the 2017 postseason.

Houston Astros 5, Seattle Mariners 3 (box)

Cameron Maybin pinch-hit for left fielder Tony Kemp in the seventh inning, and hit a game-winning two-run home run off Mariners closer Edwin Diaz in the ninth. The win was Houston’s seventh in a row; they have not lost since Maybin and Justin Verlander joined the team last week.

Maybin: 1-2, HR, R, 2 RBI, SO

Chicago Cubs 1, Pittsburgh Pirates 0 (box)

Alex Avila tripled (!) and drove in the lone run of the game for the Cubs on Thursday. He finished 1-for-4 on the day.

No, really, the triple happened.

Avila: 1-4, 3B, RBI, 2 SO

Arizona Diamondbacks 3, Los Angeles Dodgers 1 (box)

The Diamondbacks won their 13th game in a row and capped off a sweep of the Dodgers on Wednesday. J.D. Martinez struggled, going 0-for-3 with a walk and three strikeouts. Fernando Rodney earned his 36th save of the year.

Martinez: 0-3, BB, 3 SO

Oakland Athletics 3, Los Angeles Angels 1 (box)

Justin Upton went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts as the Angels dropped their series finale against Oakland.

Upton: 0-4, 3 SO

AL PLAYOFF PICTURE

Minnesota Twins 10, Tampa Bay Rays 6 (box)

Eduardo Escobar and Ehire Adrianza drove in three runs apiece for the Twins as they beat the Rays at Tropicana Field. Let’s see if Sports Illustrated makes fun of the Rays for their attendance during a hurricane again.

Texas Rangers 12, Atlanta Braves 8 (box)

Elvis Andrus had four hits and three RBI to pace the Rangers in a big win. They are just two games back of the AL Wild Card.

Atlanta Braves 5, Texas Rangers 4 (box)

The Braves potentially playing spoiler to a team’s playoff chances? Where have we seen that one before?

Boston Red Sox 6, Toronto Blue Jays 1 (box)

Doug Fister struck out nine in seven strong innings while the Sox broke the game open with a four-run fourth. No Apple Watches were harmed in the making of this production.

Cleveland Indians 5, Chicago White Sox 1 (box)

Carlos Carrasco struck out nine in a complete game win. Rookie Reynaldo Lopez went toe-to-toe with Carrasco for six innings, but the Sox bullpen faltered late.

LOL IS THIS REALLY BASEBALL (NL PLAYOFF PICTURE)

Washington Nationals 8, Miami Marlins 1 (box)

Can we talk about this?

It’s... yeah.

San Francisco Giants 11, Colorado Rockies 3 (box)

Something called a Kyle Freeland is pitching for the Rockies in a playoff race. That probably explains why this game went sideways.

Cincinnati Reds 7, Milwaukee Brewers 1 (box)

Luis Castillo (not that Luis Castillo) buckled down after giving up a run in the first and struck out 10 Brewers in eight innings. Milwaukee dropped into third place with the loss.

St. Louis Cardinals 3, San Diego Padres 1 (box)

How foreign is NL baseball? Tell me if you have ever heard of any of the pitchers who appeared in this game.

New York Mets 6, Philadelphia Phillies 3 (F/6) (box)

This game was called after six innings because even the baseball gods were sick of watching it.