By Ron Kaplan, contributor

Co-mazels of the day: Kevin Pillar doubled (#12) and homered (#6) in five at-bats, but the Toronto Blue Jays (17-23) lost to the visiting Atlanta Braves, 9-5. According to a flattering profile by SportsNet, Pillar “lives the way he plays: spontaneously, without fear and confident in what he can do.”

Richard Bleier pitched the last 1.2 innings for the Baltimore Orioles (23-15) to pick up his first win of the year, beating the host Detroit Tigers (18-19), 13-11, in 13 innings. Bleier allowed one hit, issued an intentional walk, and struck out one. On the other side of the diamond, Ian Kinsler had two singles — one of them against Bleier — and a double (#5) in eight at-bats, scoring twice and driving in one for the Tigers.

Alex Bregman grounded out as a pinch-hitter in the eighth and remained in the game at second base as the Houston Astros (28-12) beat up on the host Miami Marlins, 12-2. Click here to read about Bregman’s hero — and how he hit a grand slam in front of him.

Craig Breslow struck out one in 1.2 innings of scoreless relief but his Minnesota Twins (19-16) lost to the visiting Colorado Rockies, 7-3.

Danny Valencia was 2-for-3 with a walk and was caught stealing in the Seattle Mariners’ (18-22) 9-6 loss to the visiting Oakland As.

Joc Pederson was 0-for-4 as the LA Dodgers (22-18) were eked out by the host San Francisco Giants, 2-1.

Ryan Braun remains on the disabled list as the Milwaukee Brewers (22-18) beat the host San Diego Padres, 6-2.

Scott Feldman has had back-to-back good starts. Can he make it three tonight when the Cincinnati Reds take on the Cubs in Chicago?

Ron Kaplan (@RonKaplanNJ) hosts Kaplan’s Korner, a blog about Jews and sports. He is the author of three books, including The Jewish Olympics: The History of the Maccabiah Games and the forthcoming Hank Greenberg in 1938: Hatred and Home Runs in the Shadow of War.

# # #

Get your Jewish Baseball News updates via e-mail