BAILEY OBER

Justin Verlander pitched six shutout innings, Yordan Alvarez homered twice and the Houston Astros held on for a 6-4 win over the Minnesota Twins in their AL Division Series opener.

Houston reliever Kendall Graveman was left off the AL Division Series roster against the Minnesota Twins because of right shoulder discomfort.

There’s been a sense all season that whoever wins the AL Central will be the weak link in the American League playoffs.

The Chicago White Sox watched manager Tony La Russa announce he was leaving his position, and then beat the Minnesota Twins 3-2 behind Johnny Cueto’s seven effective innings.

The San Diego Padres are going back to the playoffs for the first time in a full season since 2006, a spot that they clinched during the seventh inning of a 2-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox.

Minnesota rookie Joe Ryan and reliever Jovani Moran combined to pitch no-hit ball until Bobby Witt Jr. doubled with one out in the ninth inning as the Twins beat the Kansas City Royals 6-3.

Oscar Gonzalez tied the game with a two-run single and scored on Owen Miller’s go-ahead sacrifice fly as the Cleveland Guardians rallied for four runs in the ninth inning to beat the Minnesota Twins 11-10.

The AL Central-leading Twins start a home series against the AL East-leading Yankees with their rotation in a dire situation.

The Cleveland Guardians are dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak that has sidelined manager Terry Francona and several of the team’s coaches, prompting the first coronavirus-related postponement in Major League Baseball this season.

Michael Wacha pitched five shutout innings in his Fenway Park debut with Boston and Trevor Story drove in his first two runs in his new home, leading the Red Sox to a 8-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins.

Gary Sánchez hit a grand slam into the third deck and Carlos Correa launched his first homer for the Minnesota Twins in a 10-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners.

The Minnesota Twins took their first significant step toward restocking their starting pitching by acquiring right-hander Sonny Gray in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds.

Albert Pujols is sure to get a big ovation at Busch Stadium when the Los Angeles Dodgers slugger returns to face the Cardinals.

Franmil Reyes homered over the Green Monster to spark a three-run third inning _ Cleveland’s franchise-record tying 19th straight game with a home run _ and the Indians salvaged the finale of the series with an 11-5 victory over the COVID-impacted Boston Red Sox.

Shohei Ohtani hit his major league-leading 35th home run and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2.

Patrick Sandoval had his no-hit bid broken up with one out in the ninth inning on a soft double by rookie Brent Rooker, and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Minnesota Twins 2-1.

Lucas Giolito lobbed an expletive-laced response in Josh Donaldson’s direction after the slugger appeared to yell “Not sticky anymore,” after a first-inning homer, overshadowing Gavin Sheets’ successful debut for the White Sox in a 7-6 victory over the Twins.