Robinson Cano’s two homers lead the Mariners past the Astros Monday
Emotions were high in baseball on Monday, be it tears in Miami for Jose Fernandez or a bench-clearing brawl in Toronto. Dee Gordon’s emotional leadoff home run was easily the top moment of the night, but there were still many important games for the playoff race, with Wild Card chasing teams struggling. Two matchups of American League wild card competitors will open this daily update for September 27, 2016.
Get free start/sit and waiver wire advice for your fantasy team 
Recap
Yankees win wild game with Blue Jays
Mark Teixeira and Aaron Hicks had home runs to give the Yankees a lead over the Blue Jays and New York survived a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the bottom of the ninth inning to win 7-5. Gary Sanchez, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Hicks each had two RBI while Brett Gardner finished 3-for-4 with a double and three runs scored for the Yankees. J.A Happ allowed two runs (one earned run) on six hits in 7 1/3 innings while Edwin Encarnacion finished 1-for-3 with an RBI and two walks and Troy Tulowitzki had an RBI double for Toronto.
Mariners beat Astros in extra-innings
The AL Wild Card will be tighter after the Astros and Mariners finish their series this week. The Mariners beat the Astros 4-3 on Monday in 11 innings behind two home runs from Robinson Cano. Cano finished 3-for-4 with a walk, double, run scored, and two RBI while Nelson Cruz had two hits and an RBI and Hisashi Iwakuma allowed one run on four hits for Seattle. Collin McHugh allowed two runs on six hits in seven innings, striking out six batters, while Carlos Correa finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and both Jose Altuve and Marwin Gonzalez had two hits and an RBI for Houston.
Indians damage Tigers’ Wild Card chances
The bottom of the Indians’ lineup showed up in a 7-4 win against the Tigers, as the Tigers lost a game in the AL Wild Card race. Roberto Perez finished 3-for-4 with a solo home run and Coco Crisp was 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored, and two RBI while Jason Kipnis finished 1-for-5 with a double, run scored, and RBI for Cleveland. J.D. Martinez finished 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI while Ian Kinsler finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored and Miguel Cabrera finished 2-for-4 with two RBI for Detroit.
Cubs land major blow on Pirates’ Wild Card chances
Kyle Hendricks saw his ERA drop under 2.00 for the season, allowing seven hits in six scoreless innings, striking out five batters in the Cubs’ 12-2 win over the Pirates. Hendricks (16-8) now has a 1.99 ERA while Javier Baez finished 2-for-5 with a grand slam and six RBI, Albert Almora Jr. finished 3-for-6 with a double and two runs scored, and Kris Bryant had a two-run home run for the Cubs. Chad Kuhl (5-4) allowed five runs on eight hits in five innings, striking out three batters and walking two, while Matt Joyce and David Freese each had solo home runs for Pittsburgh.
Reds demolish playoff chasing Cardinals
Three potential starting pitchers for the Cardinals struggled on Monday and the Reds hit four home runs in a 15- win over the Cardinals on Monday. Adam Duvall finished 4-for-6 with two home runs, four runs scored, and five RBI while Joey Votto had a home run and three runs scored, Brandon Phillips was 4-for-5, and Steve Selsky finished 5-for-5 with a home run and four RBI for Cincinnati. Jaime Garcia allowed two runs in one inning, Michael Wacha allowed seven runs in 2 2/3 innings, and Luke Weaver allowed five runs in 2/3 innings while Jhonny Peralta had a double and Stephen Piscotty had a triple for St. Louis.
What to Watch For
An AL Wild Card matchup of Aaron Sanchez and the Blue Jays and Kevin Gausman and the Orioles will be the top matchup of the day on Tuesday. Sanchez has three quality starts in his last four starts, but has gone without a decision in his last three starts, even with a 13-2 record and 3.12 ERA. Gausman was thought to be limited by a rib injury, but has pitched four scoreless outings in his last six starts to see his ERA drop to 3.57. Max Scherzer, David Price, and Chris Sale will also pitch today.
Chris Zolli is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Chris, check out his archive and follow him @thezman2010.
