One team was maddeningly close to clinching a playoff spot and a three-way tie in one division was thwarted by some late-inning heroics.

AL East (Pee-Wee Wanninger Division):

The Red Sox got nine hits and ten walks against Oakland pitching and won 7-3. The Red Sox increased their lead in the division to 3 games and dropped their magic number to 3 because ...

The Yankees could not hold on to a 5-0 lead at Tampa Bay. Alex Rodriguez hit a grand slam in the third, but in the fifth, the Devil Rays rallied to score six times on an RBI double by Dioner Navarro, a bases-loaded walk by Akinori Iwamura, and then a grand slam by Jorge Velandia. The Yankees tied it in the 8th, but the Devil Rays won it in the 10th on a Navarro homer, 7-6. Yankee pitchers walked 11 Tampa Bay batters.

The Blue Jays clobbered Baltimore, 11-4.

AL West (Tim Salmon Division):

The Angels dropped their second straight after clinching the division, losing at Texas 3-1.

Seattle was eliminated from postseason play with a 4-3 loss to Cleveland in 12 innings at home. An errant pickoff throw from Ryan Rowland-Smith set up Kenny Lofton's game-winning sacrifice fly.

AL Central (Bob Feller Division):

Cleveland held on to the #1 spot in the AL by 1/2 game over Boston. The extra game will be made up tomorrow in an odd doubleheader in Seattle. The Indians will be the home team in the first game and Seattle will be the home team in the nightcap. The doubleheader is the last game to be made up from Seattle's snowout in Cleveland this April.

YORMAN BAZARDO threw seven shutout innings as the Tigers beat the Twins, 8-0.

Kansas City beat Chicago and the two are tied for last place in the division.

AL Wild Card (Dave Collins Division):

The Yankees lead Detroit by 4 1/2 games and their magic number to make the playoffs is 1. Still.

Wednesday's pitching matchups for games with postseason implications:

Joe Saunders (Los Angeles) vs Luis Mendoza (Texas), Joe Blanton (Oakland) vs Jon Lester (Boston), Johan Santana (Minnesota) vs Jair Jurrjens (Detroit), Fausto Carmona and Jeremy Sowers (Cleveland) vs Ryan Feierabend and Jarrod Washburn (Seattle), Chien-Ming Wang (New York) vs J.P. Howell (Tampa Bay).

NL West (Steve Finley Division):

Arizona, the division leader and the team with the best record in the NL, took on Pittsburgh, loser of nine straight. The DBacks came back from a 5-1 deficit with four runs in the eighth. But Josh Phelps drove in a run in the eighth and the Pirates won 6-5.

San Diego trailed San Francisco 4-2 in the ninth with two outs and a runner on third and Brady Clark. Clark blooped a single to score one run. Oscar Robles worked a walk. And then Brian Giles hit a 3-run homer and the Padres moved two games back with a 6-4 win.

Arizona's magic number is still 4. Their magic number to make the playoff is 3.

Colorado is now three games back after winning its ninth straight, 9-7, in Los Angeles. The loss eliminated the Dodgers.

NL Central (Ted Savage Division):

The first place Cubs had been cruising at home, but they were flat at last place Florida and lost 4-2. Dontrelle Willis went eight innings and gave up only a 2-run homer to Craig Monroe. The Cubs magic number is 4.

Second place Milwaukee is now just 2 games out after routing St. Louis 9-1. Prince Fielder hit a pair of home runs to bring his season total to 50. He is the youngest player ever to reach that mark.

Houston beat Cincinnati. The Astros could actually move up to fourth place!

NL East (Rico Brogna Division):

Tom Glavine got knocked around early and the Nats built up a 10-3 lead going to the 9th at Shea. The Mets scored six runs and had the tying run on third, but Jon Rauch was able to get the final out. Washington won 10-9. The Mets magic number is 4.

The Phillies missed a chance to pick up a game and lost their tie with San Diego for the wild card when they lost at home to Atlanta 10-6. The Braves have won 9 of their last 11 games. They are four games behind the Mets.

NL Wild Card (Andy Ashby Division):

Before Brian Giles' ninth inning homer, the stage was set for a three-way tie for the wild card. But the Padres now are in the lead by one game over both Phiadelphia and Colorado. The Braves are 3 games back. The Padres magic number is 5.

Wednesday's pitching matchups for games with postseason implications:

Livan Hernandez (Arizona) vs Matt Morris (Pittsburgh), Tim Hudson (Atlanta) vs Kyle Lohse (Philadelphia), Jason Marquis (Chicago) vs Daniel Barone (Florida), Mike Bacsik (Washington) vs Philip Humber (New York), Brad Thompson (St. Louis) vs Carlos Villanueva (Milwaukee), Josh Fogg (Colorado) vs Derek Lowe (Los Angeles), Jake Peavy (San Diego) vs Pat Misch (San Francisco)