LEADING OFF: Braves rookie Toussaint vs Boston, Yanks-A’s
A look at what's happening around the majors today:
IN THE FIRST PLACE
The Red Sox and Braves begin a three-game series between division leaders at SunTrust Park. Atlanta rookie Touki Toussaint pitches for the second time in the majors — the 22-year-old righty threw six sharp innings on Aug. 13 to beat Miami.
Toussaint was picked over fellow prospects Bryse Wilson and Kyle Wright after winning his last three starts at Triple-A Gwinnett in impressive fashion. Boston leads the majors with 94 wins, is 50 games over .500 and ranks first in the majors in runs, batting average and slugging percentage.
"You dream of this as a little kid," Toussaint said. "You want to be in the World Series pitching against the best."
Nathan Eovaldi (5-7, 4.35) starts for the Red Sox.
PLAYOFF PREVIEW?
The New York Yankees and Oakland Athletics own the top two spots in the AL wild-card race by a comfortable margin going into their three-game set at the Coliseum. CC Sabathia (7-5, 3.36 ERA) starts for the Yanks, who are 4 1/2 games ahead of the A's. Trevor Cahill (5-3, 3.60) pitches for the Athletics, who are 5 1/2 games ahead of Seattle. Cahill is 4-0 with a 0.85 ERA in eight home starts.
CY YOU
Mets ace Jacob deGrom aims to enhance his credentials for the NL Cy Young Award when he starts at Dodger Stadium. DeGrom leads the majors with a 1.68 ERA despite an 8-8 record. Los Angeles is coming off three straight wins over Arizona by identical 3-2 scores that put the Dodgers alone atop the NL West.
NO TRIP FROM TRIPLE-A
Byron Buxton was once the shining star in the Twins' farm system, and he was a Gold Glove outfielder for Minnesota last season. Now he's been told that he won't be recalled from Triple-A Rochester.
"We've talked about all the frustration and difficulties he's had to endure," Twins manager Paul Molitor said, "and when we came down to making the final decision, there were some things around the idea of how he played, injuries that he dealt with, his future. All those things came into play."
The 24-year-old Buxton played only 28 games from Minnesota this season and hit just .156.
TIGER TRY
Michael Fulmer (3-10, 4.71 ERA) will look to win for the first time in 2 1/2 months when the Tigers visit the Chicago White Sox. He is 0-5 with a 5.90 ERA in seven starts since his most recent win June 14.
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