Each night we'll provide you with the nine top story lines from the day's action, beginning with the stars of the day, and look ahead to the next day's matchups.
The Dodgers continued their domination of the Nationals on Sunday with yet another stellar pitching performance. This time, Zack Greinke was king of the mound, pitching eight scoreless and lowering his ERA to 1.31 to shut out Washington 5-0. He has tossed 43 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, the longest streak by a pitcher since Orel Hershiser's record 59 in 1988.
Meanwhile, after 18 long innings, the Mets finally defeated the Cardinals on a Ruben Tejada hit that broke the 1-1 tie. The Mets added insurance to their eventual win when Eric Campbell hit a sacrifice fly to score Curtis Granderson. The game is the second-longest of the season after a 19-inning Red Sox-Yankees game in April.
Here are more highlights from Sunday's games:
Impact players:
C — Josh Phegley, Athletics: During the A's rout of the Twins, Phegley smashed a two-run homer and an RBI during his three appearances at the plate.
1B — Mark Teixeira, Yankees: Going 3 for 4 at the plate, Teixeira hit a solo homer in the eighth that lifted the Yankees to a 2-1 victory over the Mariners. The home run was his 23rd of the season.
2B — Jonathan Schoop, Orioles: Schoop was 2 for 4 on the day, blasting a three-run home run to lead the Orioles' routing of the Tigers. It was his third homer in nine games since returning from the disabled list.
SS — Jose Iglesias, Tigers: Even with the loss to the Orioles, Iglesias still went 4 for 4 at the plate with three singles and a double, and scored all three of the Tigers' runs.
3B — Luis Valbuena, Astros: Valbuena had a career-tying four RBIs while going 4 for 5 at the plate to lead the Astros' shutout of the Rangers.
OF — Jake Smolinski, Athletics: In only his fourth start with the A's, Smolinski cracked a solo home run in the third inning, smashed a three-run homer in the eighth and had an RBI single in five at-bats.
DH — Evan Gattis, Astros: Gattis went 2 for 3 at the plate with two singles. He also walked twice and scored on a Jon Singleton sacrifice fly.
SP — Jake Arrieta, Cubs: Arrieta earned his career-high 11th win of the season in a 10-strikeout performance against the Braves — his second double-digit strikeout game this season.
Key injuries:
Padres outfielder Justin Upton left the game against the Rockies, which was suspended in the fifth inning, because of muscle tightness in his back.
Justin Upton left the game for precautionary reasons (impending weather) with lower back tightness.
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) July 19, 2015Tigers third baseman Nick Castellanos took a ground ball to the face and left the game in the fifth inning. He also injured his right ring finger and is listed as day-to-day with a left cheek contusion.
Nick Castellanos took one off the face ... https://t.co/8BemC3PcRx #Tigers
— But ... (@CanHeGetOnBase) July 19, 2015Twins rookie Miguel Sano was injured before the game even started Saturday after he stepped on a rogue ball during pregame drills. He still played Saturday but is expected to be out for at least a few days until the swelling on his ankle subsides.
Play of the day:
Jeff Francouer's walkoff homer clinched a come-from-behind win for the Phillies against the Marlins. The win resulted in Philadelphia's second sweep of the season.
Surprise performers:
Good: Marco Estrada pitched eight shutout innings in a 4-0 Blue Jays win against the Rays. He struck out five and allowed three hits on the way to his seventh win of the season, which lowered his ERA to 3.22.
Bad: Justin Verlander's rotten luck continued as the Orioles demolished the Tigers. He allowed six runs in the fourth inning alone, which resulted in him being pulled. Since his return from a triceps injury June 13, Verlander hasn't won a game, which matches the longest winless streak in his career.
Facts of the day:
Reds closer Aroldis Chapman became the fastest pitcher to record 500 career strikeouts in major league history, completing the feat in just 292 innings. He surpassed Craig Kimbrel, who reached 500 strikeouts in 305 innings.
Outfielder Josh Reddick continues to do work for the Athletics, smashing a 431-foot grand slam Sunday.
Josh Reddick's grand slam was calculated at 431 feet, his 4th 430-foot HR this season. He has 3 of the 4 longest HR hit by A's this year
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 19, 2015The Angels had their first rainout in 20 years after a 2 1/2 hour rain delay. They will face the Red Sox in a double header Monday.
Trade rumor roundup:
Athletics pitcher Scott Kazmir is reportedly being scouted by the Blue Jays, Yankees, Royals and Tigers. The lefty threw for a strong 8 1/3 innings in Saturday's win over the Twins.
The Angels are eyeing Reds outfielder Jay Bruce, Fox Sports' Jon Morosi reports. The Angels reportedly had a scout at the Reds-Indians game Sunday, but there is yet to be any talk of a specific trade. Bruce is batting .255/.342/.474 with 14 home runs in 86 games this season.
Justin Upton seems to be the man of the hour. The Orioles and the Astros are both reportedly gunning for the Padres outfielder before the July 31 deadline. Upton, whose contract with the Padres expires after this season, has 15 home runs, 49 RBIs and is batting .252/.331/.426.
Off the field:
The Nationals are the latest team to celebrate 'Star Wars Night', and even the racing presidents dressed the part.
First baseman Freddie Freeman was spotted taking some ground balls and throwing to second base before the Braves' game against the Cubs on Sunday. He has been out of Atlanta's lineup since June 18 with a wrist injury.
The White Sox have designated third baseman Conor Gillaspie for assignment to make room for Matt Albers, who was reactivated from the disabled list, Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago reported. Gillaspie has been mediocre at the plate, hitting just .237/.276/.364 in 185 plate appearances.
Edwin Jackson's time with the Cubs came to a close when the team designated him for assignment to make room on the roster for reliever Rafael Soriano.
Sunday's Scores:
American League
Yankees 2, Mariners 1
Blue Jays 4, Rays 0
Orioles 9, Tigers 3
Royals 4, White Sox 1
Astros 10, Rangers 0
Athletics 14, Twins 1
Angels, Red Sox, PPD
National League
Dodgers 5, Nationals 0
Phillies 8, Marlins 7
Brewers 6, Pirates 1
Mets 3, Cardinals 1 (18)
Cubs 4, Braves 1
Giants 2, Diamondbacks 1
Padres, Rockies, PPD
Interleague
Indians 5, Reds 3 (11)
A look ahead (All times Eastern):
Mariners (42-50) vs. Tigers (45-46), 7:08 p.m.: J.A. Happ (4-5, 4.14 ERA) will be recalled from Class A Advanced Bakersfield to start for the Mariners after after being sent down to open up a roster spot for Jesus Montero, who was sent down again Sunday. In his last start, Happ took a no-decision against the Tigers July 8 in the Mariners' 5-4 loss.
Pirates (53-38) vs. Royals (55-35), 8:10 p.m.: A.J. Burnett (7-3, 2.11 ERA) starts the second half of his last season in the majors against the Royals. The righty has yet to face the likes of Lorenzo Cain and Dusty Coleman, both of whom could give the veteran some trouble.
Red Sox (42-49) vs. Angels (50-40), 10:05 p.m.: For the second game during Monday's doubleheader, Andrew Heaney (3-0, 1.32 ERA) will strive to keep his record perfect as he wraps up a four-game series against the Red Sox. Heaney has had a great start with the Angels since his debut June 24, hurling seven shutout innings and striking out six during his last outing on July 12.