By Ron Kaplan, contributor

It had to happen sooner or later: Craig Breslow had a bad outing. Although looking at the highlights of the game, it seems the Minnesota Twins’ (26-21) defense let him down. They scored seven runs in the fifth against Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros to take a 7-2 lead. But the ‘Stros showed why they’re the best in baseball this year (36-16) by roaring back for 11 tallies in the eighth (and three more in the ninth) for a 16-8 win. Breslow came on in that fateful eighth and allowed three runs on three hits, retiring just one batter as he took his first loss of the season, His ERA almost doubled, from 1.47 to 2.89. Bregman was 2-for-5 with his fourth homer of the year, a two-run job which did not come against his landsman.

The Toronto Blue Jays (24-27) demolished the visiting Cincinnati Reds, 17-2. They cracked 23 hits, but none came off the bat of Kevin Pillar, who at 0-for-6 was the only starter not to reach base. He did contribute this nice play, however:

Scott Feldman did not appear for the Reds (24-26).

Danny Valencia had two singles and his seventh double in five at-bats as the Seattle Mariners (23-29) held off the host Colorado Rockies, 6-5. Valencia drove in his 17th run, which proved to be the game-winner.

Richard Bleier did not appear for the Baltimore Orioles (26-23), who broke their seven-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the visiting NY Yankees.

Ian Kinsler (hamstring), Ryan Braun (calf), and Joc Pederson remain on the disabled list. Pederson is still having concussion symptoms and may not come off the DL when eligible.

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.

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