AL wild-card roundup: Blue Jays blow opportunity to catch Guardians

The door was open for the Toronto Blue Jays to move up into a playoff spot but they couldn't find a way through it.

The Blue Jays lost 6-5 Monday to remain one game back of the Cleveland Guardians for the final wild-card spot. The Guardians also lost, 7-3, to the Chicago White Sox, to squander a chance to overtake Chicago for the AL Central Division lead.

With the losses, both the idle Texas Rangers and the Baltimore Orioles, winners over the New York Mets, were able to tighten the gap.

Here is where the American League playoff race stands after Monday's action.

Cleveland: vs. Chicago White Sox, 6:40 p.m., Sportsnet+ Toronto: vs. Detroit, 7:07 p.m., Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ Baltimore: vs. NY Mets, 7:10 p.m. Minnesota: vs. NY Yankees, 7:40 p.m. Texas: vs. Boston, 8:05 p.m., Sportsnet ONE and Sportsnet+

TORONTO - Zach McKinstry scored on Louis Varland's fielding error in the ninth inning as the Detroit Tigers slipped past the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5 on Monday.

Tigers shortstop Kevin McGonigle grounded to Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., with Varland running from the mound to cover the base. Varland missed Guerrero's throw and as Toronto's closer chased it down McKinstry raced home.

Brett Callahan's single up the left-field line tied it 5-5 in the eighth to help Detroit (71-79) win its fifth straight. Max Clark had a two-run double in the seventh and Spencer Torkelson drove him in with another double. Dillon Dingler had an RBI single earlier in the inning.

Troy Melton gave up two runs on five hits and four walks, only lasting 2 2/3 innings and striking out three. Relievers Beau Brieske, Tyler Holton, Kyle Finnegan, Tyler Kinley (7-5) and Kenley Jansen followed him to the mound.

Kazuma Okamoto's three-run homer in the seventh restored Toronto's (75-76) lead it had given up in the top of the inning. Alejandro Kirk had an RBI single and George Springer scored on a wild pitch for an early 2-0 lead in the first.

Jose Soriano was superb for the first six innings of the game, but his no-hit bid went sour in the seventh when he gave up four runs with one out. He struck out five and allowed five hits over 6 1/3 innings.

Paul Sewald, Joe Mantiply and Varland (5-6) came out of the Blue Jays' bullpen.

CLEVELAND — Tristan Peters fouled off 12 pitches in an 18-pitch plate appearance that keyed Chicago's six-run outburst in the sixth inning and the White Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-3 on Monday night to stay atop the AL Central.

Kyle Teel hit a two-run double and Miguel Vargas connected for a two-run homer following Peters' lengthy plate appearance — the longest in MLB this season, and tied for the third longest since 2000.