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Happy Labor Day, everyone. Baseball is celebrating with a full 15-game slate of action, including eight of the daytime variety.

Final scores

Reds 5, Brewers 4 (box score)
Mets 11, Phillies 7 (box score)
Royals 7, Tigers 6 (box score)
Yankees 7, Orioles 4 (box score)
Indians 5, White Sox 3 (box score)
Rockies 4, Giants 3 (box score)
Angels 11, Athletics 9, in 11 innings (box score)
Pirates 12, Cubs 0 (box score)
Cardinals 2, Padres 0 (box score)
Astros 6, Mariners 2 (box score)
Rays 11, Twins 4 (box score)
Nationals 7, Marlins 2 (box score)
Blue Jays 10, Red Sox 4 (box score)
Rangers 8, Braves 2 (box score)
Diamondbacks 13, Dodgers 0 (box score)

Martinez homers four times as D-Backs rock Dodgers

While the Diamondbacks don't have the longest current win streak (the Indians won their 12th in a row on Monday), they have won an impressive 11 straight. No. 11 was especially striking, as they dominated the Dodgers in L.A. Central to those efforts was slugger J.D. Martinez, who tied a single-game MLB record with four home runs on the night. Have a look:

Click here to read all about Martinez's historic night. 

Also, the dominant performance of Robbie Ray, who carried a perfect game bid into the sixth, deserves mention ... 

player headshot
Robbie Ray
SF • SP • #38
vs. LAD, 9/4
IP7 2/3
H3
R0
SO14
BB0
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The surging Snakes have little hope of catching the Dodgers in the NL West, but they're building a firm grip on that top NL wild-card spot.

Rockies walk it off in much-needed win

The Rockies entered their Monday game against the Giants having lost four in a row and five of six overall. As well, they had won at a .444 clip in the second half after playing .571 ball before the break. In related matters, the Rockies had seen their lead in the race for the second NL wild-card spot whittled down to a half-game over the Brewers. 

Then, however, the Brewers lost on Monday while the Rockies prevailed. In terms of notable highlights, please regard the self-preserving instincts of Greg Holland on this 105.8-mph grounder off Pablo Sandoval's bat:

Yeesh. With that, Sandoval is now 0 for his last 33 at the plate. Anyhow, the Rockies on a walk-off walk, courtesy of Carlos Gonzalez:

Gonzalez and the Rockies needed that one. The veteran right fielder is now batting .241/.316/.363, which is really poor production for a corner defender who plays his home games at a mile above sea level. Throw in CarGo's declining range in the field, and he has been one of MLB's worst regulars this season. Speaking of which ... 

Summary: If Gonzalez had been merely bad this season instead of awful, then the Rockies would be on much firmer playoff footing. That said, this was indeed a welcome and necessary victory for Colorado. 

Giancarlo did it again

Did Marlins cloutsman Giancarlo Stanton homer on Monday? Yes, he did ... 

That wasn't the most authoritative home run we've seen from Stanton (a wee 357 feet), but points for going oppo. Also, that's No. 53 on the season. Coincidentally, on this very day in 1961, Roger Maris hit his 53rd of the season. Of course, the most striking thing about Stanton's bestowals this year is the extent to which he's dominating all comers in the HR category. Dig it: 

The Year of Giancarlo, people.

The Angels got a very September win

As you see above, the Angels, who are very much in the mix for an AL wild-card spot, prevailed over the A's in extras. Given that this is September -- the time for expanded rosters -- you can bet that pitching changes were in abundance. Well ... 

PITCHERSIPHRERBBSOHRERAWHIPFPTS
P. Bridwell3.07661514.001.27-2.5
J. Chavez1.00000104.851.353.5
E. Paredes0.02110003.451.15-3.0
J. Gurka0.01000000.004.50-1.0
N. Ramirez1.00001102.350.652.5
C. Bedrosian (H, 8)1.02001103.501.280.5
Y. Petit (H, 13)2.01000002.280.955.0
B. Parker1.02220112.360.85-0.5
F. Salas (W, 2-2)1.00000105.591.7010.5
T. Scribner (H, 1)0.11000104.221.08-0.5
J. Alvarez0.00001003.831.28-1.0
K. Middleton (S, 3)0.20000004.691.427.0
Total11.016994112---


Yep, the Angels in Monday's game used 12 different pitchers. And that brings us to this: 

So ... good job? Good job, I guess. In any event, the Halos are now 26-20 since the break, so whatever works. 

Bell makes NL history

So Pirates rookie first baseman Josh Bell did this during the course of Monday's 12-0 throttling of the Cubs ... 

So that's Bell's 24th homer of the season, which brings us to this bit of history ... 

Yep, rookie record among NL switch-hitters. Yes, Chipper's mark came in a season shortened by labor troubles, but Bell has played in four fewer games that Jones did back in '95. On the year, the 25-year-old Bell is batting .264/.343/.495.

SportsLine playoff projections

Another week, another look at the playoff forecast via our buddies over at SportsLine (@SportsLine on Twitter). Executive summary? Things are looking up for the Indians (they won their 12th straight on Monday) and Brewers. Click here to check out the projected playoff field and more. 

Arrieta leaves with leg injury

Jake Arrieta entered Monday's start against the Pirates having allowed one run or fewer in four consecutive outings. That streak was snapped when the Pirates jumped on him for three runs. More concerning, however, is that Arrieta had to leave the game in the third due to an injury to his right leg:

Arrieta suffered the injury on a pitch to Josh Bell. He tried stretching it out and remaining in the game, but had to be removed in favor of Justin Grimm. Here's a postgame update: 

So far it doesn't seem to be serious, but -- as implied by the possibility of an MRI -- it's a situation worth monitoring. 

Bailey, Hamilton down Brewers

The Brewers entered Monday's game against the Reds with a 3½-game deficit in the National League Central. A series against one of the worst teams in the NL seemed like just the thing to help Milwaukee pull closer to the division lead. Alas, things fall apart all the time. The Reds downed the Brewers by a 5-4 final thanks to a pair of unlikely performances.

Homer Bailey carried a 7.51 ERA through his first 13 starts this season into Monday's game. He hadn't recorded a quality start since Aug. 1. That changed Monday. Bailey managed to throw six innings of three-run ball against the Brewers, striking out four while issuing no walks. He did allow six hits, though he was nonetheless able to lower his seasonal ERA to 7.24 thanks to his fourth quality start of the year.

Bailey didn't get the win, but the Reds did thanks to another odd sight: Billy Hamilton hitting a walk-off home run. Hamilton had previously homered three times this season, and came into the game with a .249/.300/.330 slash line. It's worth noting that one of Milwaukee's best prospects, lefty Josh Hader, was the one who served up the dinger.

The Cubs lost 12-0 in Pittsburgh, so Milwaukee remains 3½ games back with 24 to go.

Quick hits