Around the Bases: A no-hit bid and two near-cycles

Rangers 12, Mariners 4: Felix Hernandez has been one of the best and most consistent pitchers in the majors over the last five seasons. On Wednesday, for the first time in a long time, Hernandez struggled. He lasted three innings and allowed nine runs (eight earned) on 11 hits and a walk. He struck out two batters. It's the third time in his career and the first time since 2007 that he did not last more than three innings. It's the first time he has ever allowed more than eight runs. That was enough to doom the Mariners, who were kept in check by Martin Perez.

Dodgers 4, Cubs 0: Ricky Nolasco has been fantastic for the Dodgers since being acquired from the Marlins mid-season. Wednesday may have been his best start with the team yet. Nolasco went eight shutout innings, allowing just three hits and a walk while striking out eleven batters. Hanley Ramirez and Andre Ethier supported him with a solo home run each, and a two-run fifth inning solidified the win.

Nationals 4, Marlins 3: The Nationals took an early 2-0 lead, but Miami battled back with three runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Jeff Mathis and Giancarlo Stanton each homered for the Marlins. Jayson Werth brought the game back to even in the bottom of the sixth with a home run of his own and Ian Desmond hit a two-out RBI single in the seventh to put Washington back on top. The Marlins failed to reach base after that.

Pirates 7, Brewers 1: Charlie Morton posted his fifth consecutive quality start, holding the Brewers to one unearned run in just under seven innings. His counterpart, Tom Gorzelanny, did not fare so well. After starting off on a good note when placed in the starting rotation, Gorzelanny has struggled recently. He allowed four runs on nine hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings Wednesday. Marlon Byrd made his first hit as a Pirate count, launching a three-run homer.

Blue Jays 7, Yankees 2: Yankees catcher Chris Stewart has played solid defense all season long, but a passed ball and throwing error allowed the Blue Jays to put two runs on the board early. That set up a long first few frames for New York as Toronto scored all seven of their runs in the first three innings. Despite some control issues, Todd Redmond kept New York's offense in check and the Blue Jays' bullpen took care of the rest.

Athletics 14, Tigers 4: Torii Hunter fell just a triple shy of a cycle, but that couldn't keep the Tigers in this game. The Athletics had their own player fall a triple short of a cycle, and Brandon Moss' attempt was even more impressive. Moss was 4-5 in this game with two home runs, six RBI, and three runs scored. The A's had seven extra base hits altogether as they blew out Detroit in a laugher.

Red Sox 4, Orioles 3: Boston let Baltimore keep the lead for most of the game, but stole away any hope for an Orioels win in the late innings. Down 3-1 in the seventh and with runners on the corners with two outs, Dustin Pedroia singled into left field, scoring two runs and tying the game as Jacoby Ellsbury raced home all the way from first base. The Red Sox waited for two outs in the eighth inning as well before Mike Carp singled in the go-ahead run. The Orioles couldn't make strong contact against Koji Uehara as he picked up his 14th save. Chris Davis hit his MLB leading 47th home run.

Braves 3, Indians 2: The Indians won the middle innings, but a good start and finish by the Braves earned Atlanta the victory. Atlanta scored two runs in the second inning, but were then held down pretty well by Justin Masterson, who allowed five hits and four walks over six innings. Mike Aviles put Cleveland on the board in the fourth with a solo home run and the Indians tied it up at two apiece in the eighth. With two outs and runners on first and second in the ninth, Chris Johnson hit a walk-off single to send Braves fans home happy.

Rays 4, Angels 1: Garrett Richards did not start the Angels off well, allowing all four Tampa Bay runs in just over three innings of work. Los Angeles' bullpen shut the Rays down after that, but the damage was already done. Chris Archer was excellent, giving up just one run on five hits over seven innings. The 5-9 spots in the Angels order failed to pick up a single hit all game.

Phillies 6, Mets 2: Cole Hamels gave up a decent amount of base runners with nine hits and a walk, but allowed just two runs to New York and struck out eight Mets' hitters to stay out of any real trouble. Hamels helped himself at the plate, as well, hitting a two run single in the fifth inning to give Philadelphia a 4-1 lead at the time. Daisuke Matsuzaka struggled again in his second start for New York, giving up four runs in 4 1/3 innings and doing so slowly.

Eric Young Jr. tags up on a pop-up to catcher dot gif http://t.co/OkrIMDIqu1 Seriously, he knows how to run the bases.

— Kazuto Yamazaki (@LaBlynne) August 29, 2013

White Sox 6, Astros 1: In a night with plenty of great pitching performances, Chris Sale was among the best. He went eight innings, allowing a run on four hits and two walks. The Astros couldn't capitalize when they did have baserunners. Sale struck out 12 hitters to set a White Sox single-season record with his fourth outing of 12 or more strikeouts. Houston's lone run tied the game at 1-1 in the seventh inning, but Chicago brought home four runs in the bottom half of the frame. That would be more than enough for the win.

Royals 8, Twins 1: Salvador Perez and Danny Duffy put this game out of reach. Perez reached base successfully in his first four plate appearances and hit two two-run homers. Duffy pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings while striking out seven batters. Minnesota's lone run came in the ninth off Aaron Crow and proved inconsequential with Kansas City already leading 8-0.

Reds 10, Cardinals 0: Cincinnati scored nine runs in the first two innings. After that, it was only a matter of time before their win was official. Homer Bailey kept St. Louis off the board for over seven innings and the Reds bullpen finished the job. The Reds batted around in the first inning when they scored six runs. The overall ten-run differential makes this the worst Cardinals loss of the season.

Rockies 5, Giants 4: For almost seven innings Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin kept the Giants from picking up a single hit, though San Francisco scored a run via walks and errors. Brandon Crawford got the Giants first hit with two outs in the seventh inning. The Giants staged a comeback down 5-1 in the eighth inning and managed to score three runs, but fell just short of tying the game up.

#Rockies Chacin's 6 2/3 no-hits deepest no-hit bid ever by Rox pitcher at Coors Field.

— Patrick Saunders (@psaundersdp) August 29, 2013

Padres 5, Diamondbacks 1: Rookie Robbie Erlin had one of the best starts of his young career, allowing one run over six innings and outdueling Arizona's Wade Miley, who allowed two runs. Similarly, the Padres bullpen proved to be better than the D-Backs' relief corps, as San Diego scored three insurance runs late. Will Venable hit a two-run home run in the 8th inning, giving him 20 homers for the first time in his career.