O’s designate Cameron Weston for assignment

The Royals jumped all over Pérez for a five-run first inning in this rough start. It started poorly when Carter Jensen hit a lead-off home run and then Pérez allowed another home run and two doubles on the way to that crooked number. Things didn’t get much better after that as he struggled to command each of his fastball and sinker while his slider was inconsistent. Also, his velocity was down by about one mile per hour across the board, which is always scary this time of year. He’s scheduled for a two-start week against the Mets and Dodgers coming up.

There’s just something about Jensen in September. August was a rough month for him with a .165 batting average, but now he’s gone 4-for-8 through two September contests with two home runs and a double. Going back to last season, he debuted in early September and lit the league on fire with a .941 OPS that month. Jensen simply loves hitting in September and could get hot enough to be a key contributor for our fantasy teams this month.

Cameron had a decent start here, but lost his command in certain spots and had no answers for Kyle Stowers. His single in the first inning brought home the Marlins second run of the game before Cameron had recorded an out. It felt like that inning could’ve turned into a true disaster after Cameron hit the first batter of the game then gave up a triple before Stowers drove in the second run. Then, Stowers homered again in the third. Otherwise, it was mostly smooth sailing for Cameron who had his swing-and-miss stuff working forcing 16 total whiffs. Nine of those came from his slider and changeup and all six of his pitches earned at least one. He’s a different pitcher from the one we saw struggle throughout the first half and is set for a crucial two-start week coming up against the Diamondbacks and Red Sox.

Luke Murphy nearly escaped a bases-loaded jam for a scoreless 10th, but Wells’ foul popup behind the plate with the bases loaded barely got out of play. Wells then hit a groundball single to give the Yankees the lead, and the floodgates opened from there. With his two-homer game Sunday, Wells now has nine RBI in his last five games. He totaled 19 RBI in his first 100 games.

This was quite the delight for those who like pitchers’ duels. Both Schlittler and Reid Detmers allowed one run tonight, though Schlitter went one more inning. Both threw 99 pitches, with Schlittler’s producing 71 strikes and Detmers getting 76. Combined, they had a 17/0 K/BB. Schlittler allowed eight hard-hit balls, but only Vaughn Grissom’s homer in the seventh did any damage. His ERA is back down to 2.04 after a five-start run in which he’s allowed a total of four runs. He’ll have a good chance to keep it going at home against the Rockies next week.

Bednar likely would have gone back out for the 10th, but he was lifted after the Yankees scored five times in the inning. The win is Bednar’s 11th in 13 months with the Yankees. He totaled 13 in 298 appearances during his 4 1/2 years with the Pirates.

The Yankees were very aggressive tonight, swinging at 60 percent of Detmers’ pitches, but they didn’t make a lot of quality contact in producing five singles and one double. It’s the fifth straight start in which Detmers has allowed one or no runs, but like three of the previous four, he didn’t factor into the decision. He’s won one time in 2 1/2 months, and he had to pitch eight scoreless innings in a 1-0 game to pull off that one. He’ll face the Red Sox next.

After homering Monday and Tuesday, Jones got the nod over Trent Grisham against lefty Reid Detmers tonight, but he ended up with his first golden sombrero as a major leaguer. He’s up to 76 strikeouts in 210 plate appearances as a major leaguer, but if anything, that 36 percent rate is probably a little better than expected; he finished at 37 percent in Double-A in 2024 and 35 percent between Double- and Triple-A last year. And he’s hitting a respectable .239/.314/.441 anyway.

Velázquez flew out against Sean Newcomb after hitting for Taylor Trammell in the sixth. He got another chance versus the lefty in the eighth and roped a 107-mph liner. Velázquez also homered in his last start Monday. He’s just 2-for-17 during his time with the Astros, but he’s managed five RBI. He’ll probably be back on the bench Thursday with the White Sox starting a righty.

The longest scoreless outing of Wesneski’s career didn’t get him a win, since the Astros didn’t take the lead until the bottom of the eighth. Still, he is 4-1 in seven starts since returning from elbow surgery, and his ERA is sitting at 3.18 right now. He’s slated to make his next start Tuesday in Philadelphia.