By Ron Kaplan, contributor

No home runs last night. In fact, Jewish batters went just 4-for-21.

Alex Bregman had been relatively unscathed this year, but that ended when he injured his hamstring running out a triple (#2) in his only at bat as the Houston Astros (67-33) shut out the host Philadelphia Phillies, 5-0. That came as the Astros’ first hit of the game in the top of the third. Bregman came around to score on a sacrifice fly but did not return to the field for the bottom of the third. According to Astros’ manager A.J. Hinch, “He got back to the dugout and complained a little bit of some tightness…. Nowadays that’s an immediate removal the way the situation is and our depth. He’s day to day.”

Joc Pederson had a double (#15) and a walk in four plate appearances for the LA Dodgers (70-31) in their 6-2 win over the visiting Minnesota Twins. Pederson scored two runs and drove in the game-tying run so he accounted for half of the team’s production. He was also a hand in the field, too.

Ryan Braun was 1-for-5 as the Milwaukee Brewers  (54-48) shut out the Washington Nationals, 8-0. He also scored and had an RBI.

Danny Valencia was 1-for-5 with three strikeouts as the Seattle Mariners (51-51) scored two in the bottom of the 13th to beat the visiting Boston Red Sox, 6-5. He came out of the game for a pinch-runner in the 10th.

Kevin Pillar was 0-for-4 for the Toronto Blue Jays (46-54) in their 4-1 win over the visiting Oakland A’s.

Ian Kinsler was 0-for-3 with a walk as the Detroit Tigers (45-54) lost to the visiting KC Royals, 3-1. This is what gets me this time of year: the sports pundits keep harping about the trade deadline. They started even earlier this year, trying to generate excitement. Not really interested in all the rumors, tho I can see where some find it fun. But don’t tell me so-and-so tried to make a deal. They didn’t complete it. case closed.

Richard Bleier did not appear for the Baltimore Orioles (48-52) in their 5-4 loss to the host Tampa Bay Rays.

Brad Goldberg did not appear for the Chicago White Sox in their 7-2 loss to the host and cross-town rivals, the Cubs.

No word on the status of Craig Breslow, who was designated for assignment earlier in the week by the Twins. With the trading deadline coming up, I’m sure he’ll end up somewhere, despite his recent struggles.

Scott Feldman remains on the disabled list for the Cincinnati Reds (41-59), who lost to the host NY Yankees, 4-2. When you allow a run to score on a triple play, you almost deserve to lose.

Harrison Bader, whose father is Jewish but whose own religious identity is unknown to Jewish Baseball News, was the hero in his MLB debut last night with the St. Louis Cardinals. The outfielder doubled in the 9th inning and then scored the winning run on a shallow sacrifice fly to right field.