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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers secured a crucial three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners in the tight AL West by hanging on through a rough patch from a bullpen that not long ago threatened to derail a promising season.

Suddenly 2 1/2 games up in the division after a 9-8 victory in their home finale Sunday, the Rangers hit the road for the final seven games looking to wrap up the No. 2 seed in the American League playoffs and home-field advantage in a Division Series.

“I packed like a normal seven-day trip,” Texas starter Nathan Eovaldi said. “We can always buy more clothes on the road. Yes, it’s a lot more clear. But we still have a lot of work that has to be done.”

Marcus Semien homered twice, and Corey Seager had an early two-run shot among a season-high six homers for the Rangers as they withstood two Seattle rallies.

Adolis Garcia, Leody Taveras and rookie Evan Carter also went deep for the Rangers, who had their most homers in a game at Globe Life Field, which opened four seasons ago.

Texas (85-70), in its first winning season since 2016, won its fifth consecutive game while defending World Series champion Houston, which started the weekend with a half-game lead in division, was swept at home by 102-loss Kansas City.

Teoscar Hernandez, who homered, drove in two runs for the Mariners along with Jarred Kelenic and Eugenio Suarez. Seattle nearly erased deficits of five and four runs before getting swept for the second time in three series.

Seattle (84-71) trails Houston by a half-game for the third and final wild card.

The Mariners play their final seven games at home, starting with the Astros on Monday before meeting Texas again in a season-ending four-game series. The Rangers start the week at the Los Angeles Angels.

“We will turn the page,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “We will let it go. I know there will be 45,000 of our closest friends there helping us out the way they can. It’s going to be super exciting. What can I say?”

Texas reliever Chris Stratton gave up consecutive two-out RBI singles to Hernández, Kelenic and Suárez as Seattle closed to 9-8 in the seventh before Jonathan Hernandez came on to get pinch-hitter Dominic Canzone on a popout.

After Jonathan Hernández faltered with two outs in the eighth, Brock Burke replaced him and struck out Cal Raleigh with runners on second and third.

Jose Leclerc finished for his fourth save, with first baseman Nathaniel Lowe making a nifty snag of a sharp grounder down the line from pinch-hitter Jose Caballero for the final out with the potential tying run at second base.

“We got through it,” Texas manager Bruce Bochy said. “We used a lot of pitchers, but we found a way to get through it. Great series. Entertaining series. A lot of drama.”

That bullpen was a big part of the reason the Rangers dropped as far as three games back earlier this month after leading the division all but one day of the season into late August, but Texas got the crucial outs needed in all three games to improve to 8-1 against the Mariners this season.

“We did what we were hoping to do,” Bochy said. “To get a sweep, that’s tough to do against a good club like Seattle. We have seven games left here so we’re in better position than … not too long ago. Just shows you the fight in this club, the determination.”

Semien hit his 10th leadoff homer this season, extending his club record. The drive came off Bryan Woo, who gave up a double to Semien and a single to Seager on the first two pitches of his major league career in his debut at Texas in June.

A solo shot in the fourth gave Semien his third multi-homer game this season, all in September, on a drive to center that caromed out of the glove of Julio Rodriguez and over the wall.

Semien’s 27th homer that could have been an out on a spectacular play gave him 178 hits for the season, but Rodríguez retook the AL lead with two hits for 179 as they jockey for tops in the league in that category.

“No, I think it was more Julio saying I owe him one,” Semien, a second baseman, said when asked if his teammates said anything in the dugout. “I don’t think a ball at second base can get over the fence, so I’ll have to figure out a way to give him something back.”

Seager’s 33rd homer gave the Rangers a 3-2 lead in the third, and Taveras ended Woo’s outing with his 13th home run, a two-run shot in the fourth.

Woo (4-5) matched the six runs he allowed in his debut against the Rangers, in 3 1/3 innings this time after lasting just two innings in Texas’ 16-6 win on June 3.

Eovaldi (12-4) won for the first time since July 18, making his fifth start since missing seven weeks with a right forearm strain. He left with the bases loaded and a 7-2 lead in the sixth, but ended up allowing five runs in five-plus innings.

Attendance spike

The Rangers drew 35,412 fans to finish the season at 2,533,044, an average of 31,272. The total was the club’s largest since 2016, the last time Texas had a winning record. The Rangers saw a 26% increase from last season, the biggest year-to-year jump since a 31% increase from 1995 to 1996.

Up next

RHP Luis Castillo (14-7, 3.06 ERA) pitches for Seattle against Houston. He is fourth in the AL in ERA.

RHP Jon Gray (8-8, 4.22) is set for Texas to open a three-game series at the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. He hasn’t made it through the fourth inning in any of his past three starts.

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Dodgers do ‘smartest thing,’ put Yamamoto on IL

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Dodgers do 'smartest thing,' put Yamamoto on IL

LOS ANGELES — Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto was placed on the 15-day injured list before Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Royals with tightness in the triceps of his pitching arm.

Manager Dave Roberts said Yamamoto, 25, would undergo testing Sunday to determine the severity of the injury and a recovery timeline.

“He’s a guy that we’re still trying to learn a lot about, and appreciate the fact that the most important time of the season is yet to come,” Roberts said. “His health is paramount. So for us to be proactive and put him on the IL seems like the smartest thing.”

Yamamoto, playing his first year in the majors after departing his native Japan and signing a record $325 million, 12-year contract, is 6-2 with a 2.92 ERA.

Yamamoto left Saturday’s loss to Kansas City after two innings. He said through an interpreter after the game that his scheduled start the previous Thursday against Texas had been pushed back because of the tightness.

He also said the tightness was gone for most of Saturday, but he started feeling it again when he was warming up before the game.

Yamamoto threw two-hit ball over seven innings at the New York Yankees on June 7. He tossed 106 pitches, the fourth straight time he had thrown more than 100.

Roberts said he has been mindful of Yamamoto’s pitch count, but also noted Yamamoto was used to throwing 120 pitches or more when he pitched in Japan.

With Bobby Miller returning to the rotation for Wednesday’s game at Colorado, the Dodgers will still have a five-man starting staff. Clayton Kershaw will also make his first rehab start this week.

Los Angeles’ rotation went into Sunday’s game with the majors’ seventh-lowest ERA at 3.49.

The Dodgers also placed right-hander Michael Grove on the IL with a right intercostal strain. Right-handers J.P. Feyereisen and Michael Petersen were called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City. To make room for Petersen on the 40-man roster, right-hander Joe Kelly was transferred to the 60-day IL.

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Yankees prospect Dominguez (left side) off to IL

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Yankees prospect Dominguez (left side) off to IL

BOSTON — New York Yankees top prospect Jasson Dominguez was placed on Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s injured list Sunday with a left side injury.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Dominguez suffered the injury on an “awkward” checked swing in his third plate appearance Saturday. He finished the at-bat, striking out looking, and played another inning in center field before he was removed from the game. He went 1-for-3 with a stolen base and two strikeouts.

“He’s getting testing today,” Boone said before the Yankees faced the Boston Red Sox on Sunday. “But it’s enough to put him on the IL right away at least. I’m sure we’ll have an idea — hopefully have an idea — with what exactly we got by tonight or [Monday].”

One of the more heralded prospects in recent years, Dominguez, nicknamed “The Martian,” made his major league debut last September before his 21st birthday. He played in eight games for the Yankees, batting .258 with four home runs, before tests revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He returned to the field after surgery in mid-May on rehab assignment.

The rehab assignment ended Wednesday when the Yankees, who have a surplus of outfielders, activated Dominguez from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Dominguez slashed .389/.405/.609 in nine games in Triple-A before the injury.

Dominguez was in the outfield for Gerrit Cole‘s dominant rehab start Friday for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The question now is whether Cole’s next outing will be his season debut in New York this week.

The Yankees are choosing between having Cole and Cody Poteet start Wednesday against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium. The team has “TBA” listed for now.

“I think we’re just going to get through today and probably make it tonight or certainly [Monday],” Boone said.

Cole, 33, has made three rehab starts since returning to game action after being diagnosed with nerve irritation and edema in his right elbow in mid-March. On Friday, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner held the Rochester Red Wings to one unearned run on two hits over 4⅓ innings. He struck out 10, walked none and threw 68 pitches. In all, he has given up two runs (one earned) across 12⅓ innings in his rehab showings.

“We don’t have to make that final call right now,” Boone said. “He’s going to pitch, probably in that five- or six-day window coming off his last one. Let’s just not tie ourselves to something until really we have to.”

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Astros RHP Blanco pulled after 7 amid no-hit bid

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Astros RHP Blanco pulled after 7 amid no-hit bid

HOUSTON — Ronel Blanco had the second hitless outing of his brief major league career but was pulled after seven innings as the Houston Astros beat the Detroit Tigers 4-1 on Sunday.

Manager Joe Espada shared part of the conversation he had with Blanco when he removed the dominant right-hander from the game.

“I just told him how proud I am of what he’s doing,” Espada said. “This is a guy that came out of nowhere and he continues to perform at a high level. He has really picked his team up through injuries and he goes out there and he does things we need him to do.”

Blanco (7-2), who threw the only no-hitter in the majors this season April 1 against Toronto, was just as good this time in the 20th start and 37th appearance of his career. The 30-year-old threw 94 pitches with 65 strikes and tied a season best with eight strikeouts. He walked three.

“I was just attacking the strike zone,” he said through an interpreter.

Ryan Pressly replaced Blanco to start the eighth and gave up the Tigers’ first hit, a two-out single by Wenceel Perez.

Jose Altuve hit a three-run homer for Houston.

Blanco is the second pitcher in franchise history to have two starts with at least seven hitless innings in the same season, joining Framber Valdez, who did it last year.

The Tigers couldn’t do much of anything against Blanco a day after they had a season-high 19 hits in a 13-5 trouncing of the Astros.

Blanco didn’t allow a baserunner until he walked Gio Urshela with two outs in the fifth.

He then walked Akil Baddoo and Carson Kelly to load the bases, but retired Zach McKinstry on a flyout.

Espada said it wasn’t a difficult decision to replace Blanco because of how many pitches he has thrown this year, noting that he has had four outings with more than 100 pitches and two with 98.

“But did I want him to be more efficient earlier and give him a shot? One hundred percent,” Espada said.

Blanco said he wasn’t upset when Espada took him out.

“I threw a lot of pitches and I wasn’t going to be able to finish it,” he said. “So, I just accepted it.”

Blanco made a good defensive play for the second out of the sixth when he grabbed a comebacker hit by Matt Vierling. He then sat down Riley Greene on a popup.

Urshela reached with two outs in the seventh on a throwing error by third baseman Alex Bregman. Blanco then retired Baddoo on a fly ball that center fielder Jake Meyers caught on the warning track.

“We did battle,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “We obviously couldn’t get anything started against him. The three walks, you have a chance with two outs, but he wiggles out of it. And then he just continued to hit spots and threw a lot of different pitches.”

After the hit by Pérez, Pressly sat down Vierling before Josh Hader took over for the ninth. Mark Canha singled with one out and scored on a double by pinch hitter Andy Ibanez.

Urshela grounded out and Hader struck out pinch hitter Jake Rogers to end it.

Detroit starter Kenta Maeda (2-3) permitted five hits and four runs in five innings.

Altuve hit a leadoff single before moving to second on a wild pitch with one out. The Astros took a 1-0 lead when he scored on a single by Yordan Alvarez.

Mauricio Dubon singled with one out in the second and Chas McCormick drew a two-out walk. Altuve made it 4-0 with his shot to center field.

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