Major League Baseball Last Night in Baseball: Padres, Mariners Tie for 1st as Pace Quickens Across the League
Published Aug. 13, 2025
There was no shortage of late-summer drama as teams jockeyed for position in the standings and for playoff momentum. Here’s a look at the weekend’s standout moments and what they mean as teams push toward September.
Padres surge into a tie atop the NL West
The Padres continued their solid stretch, bolstered at the trade deadline by adding Ryan O’Hearn, Ramon Laureano and Freddy Fermin, along with flamethrowing closer Mason Miller. They rolled to an 8-3 August start so far, and on Tuesday they beat the Giants 5-1 to pull even with the Dodgers at the top of the NL West.
In that win, Nestor Cortés started and logged 4.2 innings of one-run ball before exiting. Laureano, patrolling left field, went 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs. The Padres’ bullpen held San Francisco scoreless the rest of the way, keeping San Diego on track for a potential division crown. The Giants, meanwhile, sit 9 games back in the West and 5.5 games out of a wild-card spot, continuing a difficult stretch as they try to rebound from a rough period.
Mariners join the Padres in first place chatter
Not to be outdone, the Mariners also climbed into a share of first place in the AL West thanks to a tight 1-0 win over the Orioles. George Kirby was the story, delivering seven scoreless innings with three hits allowed and seven strikeouts. Josh Naylor continued to deliver value since being acquired from Arizona, driving in the lone run with a first-inning single. His surge since the trade has him at a .286/.355/.554 line with four homers, eight RBIs and 11 stolen bases in 16 games.
Seattle’s win, paired with the Astros’ loss to the Red Sox (14-1), left both teams tied for first in the division, each with 42 games remaining on the schedule. It’s a striking reminder that, even mid-August, the race is far from settled and the momentum can swing quickly.
Dodgers versus Angels: a night of late drama
The Dodgers, for all their effort, couldn’t close out a win against the Angels, in a night charged with big moments. Shohei Ohtani provided a centerpiece moment by turning a double into a high-profile highlight: a triple play? Well, a heads-up sequence featuring Ohtani and teammates showed exactly why he remains the game’s marquee two-way star, with Zach Neto starring in a standout defensive moment as well.
Ohtani then followed with a landmark blast, his 43rd homer of the season, placing him in a tie for fifth on the Dodgers’ single-season home run list and giving him the sole lead in the National League in homers. It was also his fourth straight game with a homer. The late-inning drama continued as Jo Adell came up with two on and the game tied in the ninth, producing a ball that bounced high off the dirt and cleared the left side of the infield—an unforgettable moment in a night filled with back-and-forth action. The Angels, meanwhile, improved their head-to-head record against Los Angeles to 5-0 in 2025 after splitting the season series in 2024.
Alonso makes Mets history, then history repeats
In New York, Pete Alonso etched his name in Mets lore by becoming the franchise’s all-time leader in home runs with No. 253, just ahead of Darryl Strawberry. He didn’t stop there, adding No. 254 in the sixth inning as New York rolled to a 13-5 win over the Braves. It was a big offensive night for the Mets, who bombed multiple long balls in a game that kept them within shouting distance of the division title and pushed them to five games back in the NL East while clinging to a wild-card spot.
Not a triple play, but a gnat-impressive defensive moment
Even when the night wasn’t dominated by offense, the Mets showcased crisp defense, turning a sequence that nabbed two Braves runners and underscoring how even the best offenses still rely on defense in close games.
Bo and Vlad deliver on defense
Toronto’s Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. teamed on a dazzling fourth-inning play, with Bichette making a running, off-balance throw to first after a hurried rough start, and Guerrero stretching to complete the play. It was a vivid reminder that elite defense can be as momentum-changing as a big hit.
Guardians keep pace in tight race
The Guardians weren’t looking at a postseason berth yet, but they kept themselves in the race with a pair of long balls from Jose Ramírez. Ramirez launched a solo shot in the first inning to stake Cleveland to a 1-0 lead over Miami, then added another in the eighth to push the score to 3-3 before the Guardians ultimately took the lead. Ramírez’s 24th homer of the season came in the first, and his second, a late solo shot, gave Cleveland the edge in what became a 4-3 win. Ramirez is now five homers shy of a 30-30 season, and Cleveland sits 8-2 in August and 22-8 over their last 30 games, proving they’re making a late push for a postseason berth.
Looking ahead
With the trade deadline still fresh and playoff races tightening across both leagues, teams will be looking for consistency from their top performers and continued strength from midseason acquisitions. The Padres’ sharp August start signals a push for the standings, while the Mariners’ sustained run and the Mets’ offense show that the landscape remains open with a month and a half to play.
Summary
The night delivered a mix of clutch pitching, milestone slugs, and dramatic late-inning drama. The Padres and Mariners grabbed pivotal first-place ties, the Dodgers faced a tough night against the Angels, Alonso cemented a Mets milestone while Ramirez kept Cleveland in the wild-card hunt, and a slate of memorable defensive plays reminded fans that defense remains a crucial factor as the stretch run approaches. As the schedule tightens and injuries accumulate, Septembers of opportunity await, and the pace of the pennant chase is only likely to intensify.