Matchups

With Hurricane Arthur set to be long gone, the Baltimore Orioles and host Boston Red Sox will finally get their three-game series underway Saturday with a day-night doubleheader. Inclement weather associated with the storm forced a postponement of Friday's scheduled series opener, with both teams pushing their starters into Saturday's matinee. The postponement gave Boston another day to lick its wounds after a humiliating three-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs to begin the week.

Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez owns a Cy Young Award and a perfect game, and could be on his way to adding postseason experience to his resume. The right-hander tries to continue his best career start to a season - and keep Seattle on track toward an American League playoff berth - when the Mariners visit the Chicago White Sox on Saturday. Hernandez is coming off his most dominant outing of 2014 when he allowed one hit and struck out nine against Cleveland.

The New York Yankees scored a total of 13 runs during a five-game losing streak, but they have matched that production in the first two contests of an 11-game road trip. It helps that the Yankees opened the trek against the skidding Minnesota Twins, who have lost seven straight meetings with New York at Target Field following Friday's 6-5 defeat. The Yankees have won 16 of their last 19 in Minnesota and look to continue their dominance Saturday in the third game of the series.

Matt Carpenter has found his rhythm at the plate and the St. Louis Cardinals are inching closer to the penthouse in the National League Central as a result. Both Carpenter and the Cardinals look to continue their respective hot stretches on Saturday against the visiting Miami Marlins. Carpenter extended his hitting streak to nine games and scored on a wild pitch as St. Louis won its third in a row on Friday to move within four games of first-place Milwaukee.

The Chicago Cubs continue to show signs of improvement, but they will go through the rest of the season without two of their top starting pitchers after the trade of Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel. The Cubs look for their fifth straight victory when they visit the Washington Nationals on Saturday with a chance to triumph in their fourth consecutive road series. Hammel, who beat the Nationals Friday, and Saturday’s scheduled starter Samardzija were dealt to Oakland for prospects.

Andrew McCutchen and the Pittsburgh Pirates have mirrored the weather by heating up in the summer. The reigning National League Most Valuable Player looks to continue his torrid streak and lift the Pirates to their fifth straight series victory and 11th win in 14 outings overall when they face the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday. Philadelphia has dropped 11 of 14 to plummet to the basement of the National League East.

The Tampa Bay Rays finally found a way to generate offense against the host Detroit Tigers and will go for their seventh win in eight games in Saturday afternoon's third contest of the four-game set. The Rays evened the series with a 6-3 victory on Friday, marking the first time in 20 games they scored more than four runs against the Tigers - a span that dated to June 2011. Ben Zobrist is 13-for-41 with a homer, two triples and six doubles in his last 10 games.

B.J. Upton’s batting average remains far below what the Atlanta Braves expected when signing the center fielder to a five-year contract, but he is starting to get on base more frequently of late. The Braves host the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday and Upton brings a 10-game hitting streak into the contest, raising his average from .202 to .211. While Atlanta pounded out 12 hits in winning Friday’s series opener 5-2, Arizona has plated three or fewer runs in seven of its past eight contests.

The Cincinnati Reds have encountered their fair share of obstacles in 2014, but the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers haven’t been one of them. The Reds attempt to make up more ground in their division at home Saturday when they eye their sixth win in eight tries this season against the Brewers. Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, Devin Mesoraco and Aroldis Chapman have all spent significant time on the disabled list, contributing to Cincinnati’s lackluster 35-37 start.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are hitting their stride as they visit Colorado on Saturday in the third contest of a four-game series, and the struggling Rockies do not seem capable of slowing them down. Los Angeles defeated Colorado for the sixth straight time on Friday behind Clayton Kershaw, who extended his scoreless innings streak to 36 innings as the Dodgers increased their lead in the National League West to 1 1/2 games over San Francisco with their 15th victory in 21 outings.

The inconsistent Kansas City Royals appear to be back on the upswing as they attempt to hunt down the first-place Detroit Tigers in the American League Central. The Royals have won four of their last five as they visit the Cleveland Indians on Saturday with a chance to clinch their fifth consecutive road series after a 7-1 victory in the opener. Kansas City, which is among the AL leaders in ERA, gave up one run in the last two contests to move within four games of the Tigers.

With Hurricane Arthur set to be long gone, the Baltimore Orioles and host Boston Red Sox will finally get their three-game series underway Saturday with a day-night doubleheader. Inclement weather associated with the storm forced a postponement of Friday's scheduled series opener, with both teams pushing their starters into Saturday's matinee. The postponement gave Boston another day to lick its wounds after a humiliating three-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs to begin the week.

The New York Mets look to continue taking advantage of a team struggling on the road when they host the Texas Rangers for the middle contest of their three-game interleague series Saturday. Back home following their own troubles on the road, the Mets outlasted the Rangers in Friday's opener as Travis d'Arnaud delivered a tiebreaking two-run double in the eighth inning.

The San Diego Padres bring a season-high five-game winning streak into Saturday’s contest against the visiting San Francisco Giants, whose swoon continued with Friday’s series opener. The Giants, who were shut out for the third time in their last five games in the 2-0 loss, have dropped 18 of their past 23 games to fall 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West.

The Oakland Athletics created fireworks with a blockbuster trade Friday, but their closest rivals in the American League West race aren't likely to be intimidated. The Los Angeles Angels have won 19 of their last 22 to move a season-high 13 games over .500 heading into Saturday’s contest against the visiting Houston Astros, who have lost five in a row. Angels center fielder Mike Trout belted a walk-off homer Friday to lead the Angels to their eighth straight home victory.

With the Oakland Athletics owning the best record in the majors, management showed it is all in by pulling off a reported blockbuster trade late Friday night, acquiring starting pitchers Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel from the Chicago Cubs. The deal bolsters an already-strong starting staff for the Athletics, who play the third contest of a four-game series against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. Oakland's pitching has limited the Blue Jays to one run over the first two games.