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There are just two full days left in the regular season, yet there is still plenty of excitement in both the American and National Leagues when it comes to the wild-card qualifiers.

Both leagues are set as far as the division winners are concerned, as the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers have taken the East, Central and West, respectively, in the American League.

The Washington Nationals, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched their divisions as well. The Cubs will have home-field advantage throughout the National League playoffs.

The Texas Rangers will have home-field advantage as long as they remain alive, as they clinched the AL’s top seed after their 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night, and should they advance to the World Series, they would have home-field advantage there as a result of the AL’s victory over the NL in the All-Star Game.

Any AL representative will have the home-field edge in the Fall Classic.

The Toronto Blue Jays suffered 5-3 loss Friday night to the Red Sox at Fenway Park. They now hold the second wild-card spot by just a half game over the Detroit Tigers. The loss was exacerbated by the Baltimore Orioles’ 8-1 victory over the New York Yankees and the Tigers’ 6-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves.

The Orioles have a one-game lead over the Blue Jays and sit in the No. 1 wild-card spot, and the Seattle Mariners remain in contention. The Mariners whipped the Oakland A’s 5-1 on Friday night.

The NL race for the wild card is still wide open, but the New York Mets have a magic number of one after beating the Philadelphia Phillies 5-1. At worst, the Mets will play an extra game at the end of the season because they will be in no worse position than a tie for the second wild-card spot.

When they take the field Saturday at Philadelphia, the Mets will have a one-game lead over the San Francisco Giants, who used a seven-run rally in the bottom of the sixth inning to beat the Dodgers 9-3 on Friday night.

The St. Louis Cardinals are two games behind the Mets and one game behind the Giants, as they rolled to a 7-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

World Series Odds

The Cubs remain the favorites to capture their first World Series since 1908.

Manager Joe Maddon’s team clinched the NL Central earlier in September and has a whopping 19-game lead over the second-place Cardinals. Chicago is a 9-4 favorite to win baseball’s championship, according to Odds Shark, meaning a $100 wager would return a profit of $225 should the Cubs go all the way.

The Red Sox surged to the division title with a remarkable 11-game winning streak earlier in September and are the second choice to win the World Series at 5-1. The Rangers, Blue Jays and Nationals all follow at 13-2.

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Tim Tebow took his next steps toward trying to reach Major League Baseball by going 1-for-6 with a solo home run in his first instructional league game as a member of the New York Mets against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

Any doubters were silenced, at least in Tebow’s first at-bat. The former Heisman Trophy winner hit a home run on the first pitch he saw, driving the ball over the wall in left-center field. 

Making Tebow’s homer even more impressive is that it came off a left-handed pitcher, and he went the other way with the pitch. 

While Tebow does deserve all of the praise for hitting that first pitch out, Shandel Richardson of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel shared his thoughts on the Cardinals pitcher:

SB Nation’s Michael Katz was able to humorously equate Tebow’s prolific power to an MLB legend:

The Cespedes Family BBQ podcast jokingly speculated about Tebow helping the Mets in October if they are able to make the postseason:

Before we get Tebow’s bust ready for Cooperstown, Joe Trezza of MLB.com did run down the list of players who homered in their first-ever at-bat at the MLB level:

A home run in your first at-bat doesn’t guarantee any kind of success, regardless of the level of baseball at which it occurs. Tebow still has a long way to go while learning the craft of playing the game, and things will only get more difficult when he moves up the minor league ladder. 

Things did calm down for Tebow after that home run. He followed it up by grounding into a double play, grounding out to shortstop, hitting a hard liner to center that was caught and grounding out to third base in his final plate appearance.   

Tebow also played in left field for five innings, though he didn’t have many chances to showcase his defensive skills. 

Per ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin, Tebow’s only defensive chance came when he cut off a ground ball that held a St. Louis hitter to a single. 

After a three-inning game Tuesday in preparation for Wednesday’s contest, Tebow’s confidence as a baseball player seemed like it was as high as it has been since his workout in August.

“I feel like every day I’m getting a little more comfortable,” Tebow said, per Bill Whitehead of the AP. “It’s great just to see live pitching and get live at-bats. I’m just getting a little bit better every day. That’s the goal.” 

This is a perfect setting for Tebow to continue honing his skills as a baseball player because instructional league games are a low-key environment with young minor leaguers still developing and an occasional veteran MLB player rehabbing injuries. 

Tebow won’t be hitting a homer every day, but as long as he is showing improvement as a baseball player, the Mets’ investment in him will give him a chance to make the 25-man roster at some point. 

It’s going to take Tebow at least two years because of the difficult nature of baseball. He also hasn’t played in an organized setting since his junior year of high school, so the acclimation process is going to take some time, but the first homer showed there is something for the Mets and Tebow to build off going forward.

Post-Game Reaction

In a funny bit on social media, Cardinals pitcher John Kilichowski had some words for Tebow about the first-pitch homer he allowed:

As he is known to be, Tebow was very positive about the way his professional baseball debut went. 

“It was fun,” Tebow said, per USA Today. “I just wanted to have the approach that I was going to be aggressive,” Tebow said. “That’s something that we’ve been talking about here every day and practicing it.”

While the solo homer will get most of the attention because it was his only hit in six at-bats, Tebow was encouraged by most of his plate appearances.

“I liked a lot of my at-bats today,” Tebow said. “I hit the ball really hard four out of the six times. … Four of the at-bats I felt really, really good about. Didn’t swing at any breaking balls, didn’t feel like I got fooled seeing it out of the (pitcher’s) hand.”

Baseball is a game built on adjustments. As he gets more at-bats and scouting reports come out, his ability to make adjustments and attack offspeed stuff will determine how far he goes. 

For now, though, Tebow can enjoy owning his first professional home run.

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There was no celebration for the Boston Red Sox in Yankee Stadium Tuesday night, as the AL East leaders saw their 11-game winning streak go by the board in a 6-4 loss to the New York Yankees.

That loss coupled with a 5-1 victory by the Toronto Blue Jays over the Baltimore Orioles cut Boston’s lead to five games and left its magic number at one to clinch the division title. 

But there is no panic in the Boston locker room, and there shouldn’t be. One more Red Sox victory or one more Toronto defeat will give Boston the division title. The Red Sox have already clinched a playoff spot.

The Cleveland Indians have already clinched the AL Central, while the Texas Rangers have already done the same in the AL West.

The real race in the American League is for the wild-card spots, and the Blue Jays are in an excellent position to nail one down.

After the Blue Jays finish their three-game series with the Orioles, they will travel to Boston and close the season with three games against the Red Sox.

The Jays currently hold the top wild-card spot and have a two-game edge over the Orioles, who have had an up-and-down 13-11 record in September. 

Nevertheless, the Orioles hold a one-game lead over the Detroit Tigers, and it seems that those two teams will engage in a fight to the finish for the final wild-card spot.

The Tigers rolled to a huge 12-0 victory over the Indians Tuesday night.

The Tigers appear to have the scheduling edge over the O’s. After two more home games with the Indians, they go to Atlanta to close the season with three games against the Braves.

While Atlanta has played better baseball recently, winning seven of its last 10 games, it has been buried in last place in the National League East for months.

The Orioles have two more games at Toronto, where the Blue Jays have the support of their raucous fans. After that series, the Orioles stay on the road and close the regular season with three games in New York against the Yankees.

The Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros and Kansas City Royals are still alive in the wild-card race, but they are far less likely to reach the playoffs.

The Mariners are two games behind the Orioles, but it would be difficult for them to leapfrog both the Tigers and the Orioles, and it would be even tougher for the Astros, Yankees and Royals.

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Former NFL quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow held a workout in front of “roughly 25” Major League Baseball teams in Los Angeles on Tuesday, according to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, and reviews of his performance were mixed.  

Participating in the workout as an outfielder, Tebow—who earned all-state honors playing baseball at Allen D. Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, according to the Washington Post‘s Marissa Payne—impressed with a 60-yard dash in the ballpark of 6.6-6.8 seconds.

Former MLB pitcher and ESPN broadcaster Dallas Braden relayed video of Tebow’s sprint: 

Morosi reported that the 60-yard dash was officially 6.65 seconds, which would make Tebow an “above-average runner” based on MLB scouting standards. 

However, other scouts in attendance didn’t come away as impressed, according to Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller:  

After showing off his speed, Tebow moved to the outfield—where he struggled a bit more on throws out of right field. 

According to Miller, one scout in attendance graded Tebow’s throwing a 40 on the scouting scale that ranges from 20-80, while another handed out a lackluster mark of 30. 

MLB on Twitter posted several photos of Tebow in action during the fielding portion of the program: 

The highlight of the afternoon, though, was Tebow’s performance at the plate.

Although he went just 1-for-5 with a single and walk against veteran pitcher Chad Smith, per Morosi, Tebow was able to rebound and finish with a rock-solid day at the dish. 

The former Florida Gators standout, who squared off against both Smith and David Aardsma, finished 8-for-19 with two doubles and three strikeouts. 

Tebow also mashed several pitches over the outfield wall during batting practice, as MLB on Twitter documented: 

Scout Media’s Taylor Blake Ward snapped a photo that displayed just how impressive Tebow’s power was: 

“I thought he was OK. Better than I expected, to be honest,” an anonymous MLB scout told USA Today‘s Josh Peter. “For not having played as long as he had, I thought he did OK. That’s a big dude, for as fast as he can run. The power was impressive, but I wish he could have translated it maybe a little better [against live pitching].”

As all of the scouts’ observations suggest, Tebow appeared a bit raw in certain phases of the game. Then again, that should have been expected since he hadn’t been on a diamond like he was Tuesday since turning his attention to football. 

But now that he’s completed his workout, Tebow can focus on fine-tuning his game as he continues to look for a shot in the big leagues. 

When asked whether or not the door was closed on football, Tebow replied, “oh yeah,” per Nate Davis of USA Today.

“I want to be someone to pursue what I believe in, what I’m passionate about,” Tebow said, according to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. “A lot of people will say, ‘But what if you fail? What if you don’t make it?’ Guess what, I don’t have to live with regret. I did everything I could. I pushed it.

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Moore fell one out short of throwing the first no-hitter of his career against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday.

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Moore gave up a single to shortstop Corey Seager and was immediately pulled from the game, likely due to his high pitch count. Santiago Casilla recorded the final out to seal the Giants’ 4-0 win.

In 8.2 innings, Moore struck out seven batters and walked three on 133 pitches. It was the most pitches a starter has thrown in a game this season, per the Dodgers’ telecast.

In the eighth inning, concerns over whether Moore would be able to go the distance were growing.

He surpassed his season high of 114 pitches in the frame, and by the time Joc Pederson lined out to Denard Span to end the inning, Moore was up to 119 pitches. His previous career high was 120 in 2013. 

But he batted in the bottom of the eighth, which signaled he’d be back on the mound for the ninth inning.

Moore and manager Bruce Bochy discussed the game plan, per CSN Bay Area’s Alex Pavlovic:

Enrique Hernandez made a bid to end the no-hitter, rocketing a line drive to center field to lead off the ninth, but Span made a sliding catch to record the first out.

After going to a 3-2 count against Howie Kendrick, Moore got him to ground out to third base. 

On his bobblehead night, it all came down to Seager to prevent Moore from making history. On the 133rd pitch of Moore’s outing, Seager fisted a blooper over second baseman Joe Panik’s head to spoil the evening. 

While Moore’s wait to achieve one of the greatest feats a major league pitcher can attain will continue, he didn’t seem too broken up about it after the game, per Pavlovic:

Even the Dodgers appreciated Moore’s performance:

Moore was making just his fifth start with the Giants since the Tampa Bay Rays, the team with which he spent the first five seasons of his career, dealt him ahead of the non-waiver trade deadline.

Only once in his career had Moore gone seven innings or more while allowing only one hit. That came in 2012, his second year in the majors, against the Miami Marlins.

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After 22 years and 2,784 MLB games, Alex Rodriguez laced up his cleats for the final time with the New York Yankees on Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays, going 1-for-4 with an RBI in a 6-3 win.

Rodriguez got the Yankees on the board in the first inning with an RBI double off Rays starter Chris Archer, which scored Brett Gardner from first base to tie the game at 1-1:

Mike Petriello of MLB.com provided the Statcast information on A-Rod’s first-inning hit:

There was some ominous weather before the game, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post noted:

Even though Rodriguez was not done after his first at-bat, New Yorkers are a notoriously impatient group of people. USA Today‘s Ted Berg noted how restless the fans were getting:

Rodriguez’s first-inning double would be the extent of his contributions to the Yankees’ win. He grounded out in the fourth inning, struck out in the fifth and—in his final career at-bat—grounded out to end the seventh inning.

However, that at-bat would not be the last time fans saw Rodriguez in the game. With the Yankees leading 6-3 in the ninth inning, manager Joe Girardi put A-Rod in at third base to make sure he was part of the action one last time.

After Yankees closer Dellin Betances struck out Mikie Mahtook for the first out of the ninth inning, Ronald Torreyes replaced Rodriguez so he could get a proper standing ovation from the New York faithful.

Pinstripe Alley captured a wonderful moment between the two Yankees whose careers are ending in 2016:

ESPN’s Marly Rivera captured an overhead image of the Yankees dugout after Girardi pulled Rodriguez:

After the final out, Wallace Matthews of ESPN.com noted Rodriguez went back onto the Yankee Stadium field to take some dirt as a souvenir. 

The start of the game was delayed for nearly an hour, prompting NBC Sports’ Craig Calcaterra to offer this possible explanation:

Before Friday’s game, some of Rodriguez’s former teammates released statements to congratulate the 41-year-old on a historic career. 

Derek Jeter, who had a season-long retirement tour in 2014, had this to say about Rodriguez, per Teddy Mitrosilis of Fox Sports:

I’ve spent 22 years playing against, playing with and watching Alex from afar, and there are two things that stand out to me the most: the conversations we had when we were young — hoping for the opportunity to play at the Major League level and then somehow finding a way to stick around — and the championship we won together in 2009. That was a season everyone on that team can cherish. What people don’t realize is how much time, effort and work that Alex put in on a daily basis. He lives and breathes baseball. I know it will be difficult for him to not be on the field, but I’m sure he will continue to give back to the game. Congrats, Alex.

Former Yankees closer Mariano Rivera walked onto the field with Rodriguez’s two daughters, as Pinstripe Alley showed:

It was not an easy road for Rodriguez or the Yankees to reach this moment.

A-Rod announced this past Sunday that he would play his last game Friday and the Yankees would unconditionally release him from his contract, at which point he would work as a special adviser with the team through 2017, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

However, Girardi did not play Rodriguez in Boston on Tuesday and gave him one pinch-hit appearance Wednesday before finally putting him in the lineup Thursday and letting him hit third for his final game Friday.

Girardi managed to make Rodriguez a sympathetic figure, telling reporters Wednesday that he didn’t want to make A-Rod the focus, per Maureen Mullen of USA Today:

But I believe that (I) have a responsibility to the organization, to the team, to the players in that room to put out what (I) feel is the best lineup and try to win every game. Also (I) have a responsibility to baseball because there are teams fighting for (playoff) spots here and you have to do what you feel is the best, and that becomes difficult.

No one is going to deny that Rodriguez has been awful this year. He was hitting .199/.247/.348 coming into Friday, but Girardi is just two years removed from playing Jeter every day in the No. 2 spot when he had a .304 on-base percentage. Girardi was hearing it from the New York fans before the game, per Mike Axisa of CBS Sports:

There has been plenty of negativity regarding Girardi’s handling of Rodriguez, but Friday was a moment to celebrate. 

Regardless of any personal feelings fans have toward Rodriguez, he was one of Major League Baseball’s defining stars for two decades. He walks away from the game with three American League MVP awards, 696 home runs, 14 All-Star appearances and one World Series title. 

Rodriguez’s career did not end with the monumental bang that every superstar athlete hopes to achieve before walking away, but his imprint on the sport from the time the Seattle Mariners made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 1993 draft to his final at-bat can’t be understated.

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Buyers and sellers got together on trade deadline day as major league teams played a high-priced game of poker.

While some late trades were still coming in, the 4 p.m. ET deadline has passed, and we look at some of the biggest deals that were made.

The Los Angeles Dodgers made one of the first moves as they acquired left-handed starting pitcher Rich Hill and outfielder Josh Reddick from the Oakland Athletics, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

Minor leaguers Frankie Montas, Grant Holmes and Jharel Cotton are moving from the Dodgers to the A’s. Rosenthal credited Jeff Passan of Yahoo for reporting that Montas was included in the package. 

Impact: The Dodgers are getting a dependable outfielder who has the ability to play well in important games and give the team an overall upgrade. Hill can be an effective pitcher when healthy, but there are no guarantees he will deliver for the Dodgers.

The New York Mets tried to keep their playoff hopes alive by adding a big bat in Jay Bruce from the Cincinnati Reds. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick was the first to report the deal.

The Mets have struggled to hit and drive in runners with clutch hits this season. That’s an area where Bruce may be able to help. Bruce has belted 25 home runs this season and has driven in 80 runs. He also has a .559 slugging percentage.

The Mets are sending high-level prospect Dilson Herrera and Max Wottel to the Reds. It appeared that pitcher Brandon Nimmo would be the centerpiece going from the Mets to the Reds, but he is staying with New York.

“The only thing to do now is play baseball,” Bruce said, according to Rosenthal. “I’m a baseball player, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Impact: Bruce is a big-time hitter who will make the Mets’ lineup much more dangerous. However, this may not be a playoff team and the former Red may not be enough to put them over the top. Herrera is one of the top second base prospects in baseball and he should become a key asset for the Reds.

The New York Yankees continued to sell off their assets when they moved outfielder Carlos Beltran to the Texas Rangers for top right-handed pitching prospect Dillon Tate, Erik Swanson and Nick Green, in a trade that was reported by Jeff Passan.

Impact: The 39-year-old Beltran helps fortify an already strong Texas lineup. Beltran has hammered 22 home runs, 70 RBI and he has a .304/.344/.546 slash line. The Rangers will have the ability to feature Beltran and Adrian Beltre back-to-back in their lineup. The key for the Yankees is Tate, who must continue to develop and become an impact pitcher. It appears to be an outstanding deal for the Rangers.

After failing to trade catcher Jonathan Lucroy to the Cleveland Indians, the Milwaukee Brewers traded Lucroy and relief pitcher Jeremy Jeffress to the Rangers, according to Rosenthal.

Lucroy is one of the best offensive catchers in baseball and he has a .299/.359/.482 slash line. Prospects Lewis Brinson and Luis Ortiz are going to the Rangers. 

Impact: Another huge move for the Rangers, who appear to have a legitimate chance at representing the American League in the World Series. The fact that they did not have to send highly regarded prospect Joey Gallo to Milwaukee makes it a big win for the Rangers.

The Cleveland Indians got the ball rolling with a successful trade for New York Yankees relief pitcher Andrew Miller.

The move saw the Indians send four minor leaguers to the Yankees for the versatile left-handed reliever. Outfielder Clint Frazier and pitcher Justus Sheffield are the two main acquisitions, according to ESPN. Frazier was the fifth overall pick in the 2013 draft, while Sheffield was a first-round selection in 2014.

The Yankees also acquired minor-league pitchers Ben Heller and J.P. Feyereisen.

Impact: Miller appears to be an excellent acquisition for the Indians. In addition to his superb work on the mound, he is under contract through the 2018 season. Miller is averaging 15.3 strikeouts per nine innings and he has a 1.39 earned run average to to go with his 6-1 record. The Yankees did an excellent job in continuing to acquire young prospects.

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Boston Red Sox first baseman Hanley Ramirez sported a mere eight home runs in 2016 coming into Wednesday’s game at Fenway Park against the San Francisco Giants, but he looked like a 50-homer presence in the lineup during his team’s 11-7 victory.

Ramirez drilled three home runs as part of Boston’s offensive explosion and finished with six RBI in five plate appearances. His outburst was a timely one considering the Red Sox pitching staff allowed seven runs and failed to put the Giants away for much of the game despite the early offensive support. 

Ramirez’s first home run started the scoring in the hitting slugfest. He drove Matt Cain’s offering the other way and sent Mac Williamson tumbling over the wall in an effort to rob the first baseman:

Ramirez was far from done. He connected on another Cain pitch in his second at-bat and put Boston ahead 5-0 with another two-run dinger in the third. It was a moonshot that cleared the tall fence in left-center field and appeared to give the Red Sox comfortable breathing room in the early going:

While the Giants battled back with seven runs in the fourth and fifth innings after falling behind 8-0, Ramirez helped the Red Sox answer with his third home run of the game in the sixth. The two-run homer also scored David Ortiz and gave Boston a 10-7 advantage, which the team shared on Twitter:

On his third home run, Ramirez confirmed he was swinging for the fences, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com: “Yep, I got lucky on that one. Yep, I was trying to hit a homer. I was trying to go to the moon.”

He also may have been motivated even more after getting hit in an earlier at-bat, as he said after the game, via Smith: “Every time I get hit that fires me up. It makes a better player. … Sometimes, it’s not Hanley. It’s somebody else.”

Fox Sports: MLB and ESPN Stats & Info put Ramirez’s effort into historical perspective:

David Schoenfield of ESPN.com called it Ramirez’s “best game of his life,” and Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald noted the Fenway Park crowd didn’t seem to care that the first baseman didn’t manage a fourth homer in his final plate appearance:

Ramirez talked about his final at-bat and the possibility of hitting four homers, per Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal: “Everybody was telling me, ‘You’ve got to for it.’ I said, ‘I don’t hit homers when I try to hit homers.’ (They said), ‘It don’t matter. You’ve got three already. Swing as hard as you can.'”

While Ramirez hadn’t boasted much power this season before Wednesday, he does have an impressive resume when it comes to hitting the ball out of the park. His three homers give him 11 on the campaign, which marks his 11th straight season with double-digit home run totals. He connected on 19 in 2015 in his first year with the Red Sox and has six different seasons with 20 or more long balls.

The three-time All-Star and 2006 National League Rookie of the Year posted 33 home runs in 2008 and has the potential to be a masher in the middle of Boston’s lineup heading into the stretch run if Wednesday’s showing is any indication. 

First-place Boston already leads all of baseball in runs scored and will be even more dangerous if Ramirez parlays his three-homer game into a power surge over the final two-plus months of the schedule.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals’ Sunday matinee ended up being the equivalent of two games. The showdown at Nationals Park stretched all the way into the 18th inning before the visitors prevailed, 2-1.

In terms of highlights, they were few and far between thanks to exceptional pitching by both clubs, and, well, quiet bats played a big part, too.

Pirates left fielder Starling Marte opened the scoring in the top of the sixth with an RBI double off Max Scherzer—and broke the long drought with a two-out home run off Oliver Perez in the top of the 18th:

Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reacted to Marte’s game-winner:

Although Washington managed two singles in the bottom of the 18th, it couldn’t plate the equalizer. Jonathon Niese capped off his third inning of scoreless work by getting Danny Espinosa to strike out swinging.

All-Star closer Mark Melancon entered for Pittsburgh to try to slam the door in the bottom of the ninth—and came close to doing so until Washington foiled his bid for his 28th save of the season.

On a 2-2 count, Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy changed the game with one swing, jacking a two-out, pinch-hit solo shot to right field to tie the game.

And then there was a whole lot of nothing in terms of scoring.

The closest call prior to Marte’s decisive dinger came in the top of the 16th, when Pittsburgh’s Eric Fryer drew a two-out walk. Josh Harrison doubled to center field thereafter, but the Nats threw Fryer out at home plate to preserve the 1-1 deadlock, as the team’s Twitter account showed:

To that point, Washington had only one hit in the extra innings, while the Pirates had three following Harrison’s extra-base hit. After another hitless inning for the Nats in the 16th, their official Twitter account noted the historical significance of Sunday’s contest:

The symbolism in the photograph was appropriate. Fans may have been seeing stars as they bore witness to an extraordinarily lengthy game.

ESPN Stats & Info supplied additional context as the duel proceeded:

At least one youngster in the stands was growing impetuous as the action unfolded, courtesy of the Pirates’ official Twitter account:

Thankfully for the emotional youth and the Pittsburgh faithful, Marte came through on multiple occasions to give the Pirates the win.

Homer McFanboy captured the essence of how Nationals fans had to be feeling afterward:

A lot of credit should go to Pittsburgh starting pitcher Chad Kuhl, whose appearance on the mound had to be a distant memory for anyone watching. Kuhl pitched six innings of one-hit ball with no walks and five strikeouts, setting the Pirates up to win in regulation.

Matt Sunday of DK Pittsburgh Sports praised Kuhl for the role he played in the victory:

In the midst of a tight National League wild-card race, every game holds significance for Pittsburgh. It was a much-needed triumph for the Pirates after they had dropped their prior two games to the Nationals.

Washington can take solace in knowing it has a six-game lead in the NL East—that is, until taking into account what happened last year.

Touted as 2015 World Series contenders, the Nats collapsed down the stretch and failed to qualify for the playoffs.

It’d be foolish to weigh one game so heavily with plenty of baseball left this season, but Sunday’s loss had to be draining for Washington. The club will at least have a day of rest before Tuesday’s home game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Postgame Reaction

Pirates manager Clint Hurdle spoke on the epic play that denied his team the go-ahead run in the 16th.

“It’s the best relay in the history of the game in the 16th inning. Ever,” said Hurdle, per the Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno.

Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post passed along a fascinating anecdote from Nats manager Dusty Baker:

Marte made light of his game-winning heroics, saying, per Brink, “Too many innings, we were tired, it was time for a home run.”

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The 2016 MLB All-Star Game started with plenty of fireworks at Petco Park in San Diego on Tuesday. Though the National League got on the board first, the American League prevailed 4-2 for its fourth win in a row.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant captivated the crowd with a solo shot in the top of the first off Chicago White Sox ace Chris Sale.

MLB.com shared video of Bryant’s win in the Windy City matchup:

Adam Jacobi of SB Nation had a great reaction to Bryant’s dinger:

But the NL’s celebration and lead were relatively short-lived. In the bottom of the second, the AL went to work, and two reigning World Series champions served as the catalysts.

Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer blasted an equalizing homer off former teammate Johnny Cueto—now of the San Francisco Giants—and Royals catcher Salvador Perez hit a two-run long ball to put his side on top.

ESPN.com’s Jim Trotter responded to the explosive action to begin the contest:

ESPN Stats & Info noted the significance of the Kansas City duo’s homers:

David Ortiz is in the midst of his last season, so the Boston Red Sox legend got a warm reception when he was lifted for a pinch runner after drawing a walk, courtesy of Fox Sports on Twitter:

The MMQB’s Peter King commented on Ortiz’s grand exit:

It didn’t take long for Hosmer to add some insurance thereafter, as he drove in Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion, Ortiz’s substitute, with a single in the third to stretch the AL’s advantage to 4-1.

The 2-for-3, two-RBI performance garnered Hosmer the MVP Award.

The NL scored a run in the fourth on a single by Miami Marlins center fielder Marcell Ozuna that plated Giants catcher Buster Posey, but the AL bullpen held its foe in check the rest of the night.

One of the most notable occurrences during the latter stages of the game was a review, as highlighted by MLB Replay:

In addition to being at the center of the maiden All-Star replay, Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy made a key defensive play in the seventh.

With the bases loaded and two outs, Murphy denied Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor a hit with a fine stop and throw to first.

The NL filled the bags in the top of the eighth against New York Yankees reliever Andrew Miller. Milwaukee Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy and Pittsburgh Pirates left fielder Starling Marte singled before Cincinnati Reds left fielder Adam Duvall walked. Miller had thrown 28 pitches, and Royals manager Ned Yost pulled him.

It was up to Will Harris of the Houston Astros to retire the side. He did so in suspenseful fashion, striking out shortstop Aledmys Diaz of the St. Louis Cardinals looking with a low fastball on the outside corner on a 3-2 pitch.

Jose Silva tweeted how Astros and AL fans felt after the clutch K:

Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton slammed the door in the ninth but not without some minor drama.

Britton allowed a leadoff single to Murphy before Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt grounded into a fielder’s choice. Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado then grounded into a double play to end it.

For pitching a perfect second, Indians starter Corey Kluber got the winning decision for the AL.

With the victory, the American League gained home-field advantage for the World Series. The Texas Rangers own the best record in the Junior Circuit, but the Indians and Orioles aren’t far behind. The Red Sox and Blue Jays hold the wild-card positions, and the Astros are two games back.

After three straight victories from 2010-12, the NL has fallen into a slump at the Midsummer Classic. It’s not as bad as its last drought, though. After the Senior Circuit won in 1996, the AL claimed 12 wins in 13 years with an extra-innings tie in 2002.

San Francisco topped Kansas City without home-field advantage in the 2014 World Series, but the National League will have to hone its game in the years to come to reverse its fortunes at the All-Star Game.

Postgame Reaction

Perez shared his thoughts on the AL’s victory with Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal:

Beyond the implications of what Tuesday’s outcome meant to the entire American League, Hosmer cited the victory as a possible spark for his Royals club.

“Hopefully this is something we can all rally upon for the second half and find a way to use that home-field advantage,” Hosmer said, per the Associated Press’ Ronald Blum.

Hosmer elaborated on the importance of that edge in the World Series, saying, per Blum, “We know how much that home-field advantage helped us. It just brings that sense of comfort to the team and gives you a jump-start for the whole series.”

Cueto implied he was banged up but didn’t say it impacted his performance.

“This morning I got up and didn’t feel well. That is not an excuse,” Cueto said, per Blum. “I just left two pitches up, and that was the story.”

Marlins ace Jose Fernandez talked about facing Oritz, saying, per Blum, “I couldn’t believe that I was actually pitching to him. We both looked at each other and smiled.”

Ortiz thought he had an agreement with Fernandez to get some favorable pitches, but apparently the youngster pulled some trickery on him.

“I was supposed to hit a home run in my second at-bat. My boy told me he was going to throw me a fastball, and the first pitch was a changeup,” Ortiz said, per Blum. “Then 3-2 he threw me a slider, and I’m like, ‘Are you trying to break my back?’ But he said it was the catcher’s fault.”

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