Even without Cal Raleigh, the Mariners have used power and pitching to move in front in the AL West

The AL West may have missed its chance to leave the Seattle Mariners behind.

Seattle has been under .500 for most of the season, but now the Mariners (31-29) lead the division after six straight victories. They've made this run without slugger Cal Raleigh, who was hitting .161 when he went on the injured list over two weeks ago.

It doesn't take much to shake up the standings in the AL West. The Mariners' streak included a three-game sweep this past week over the Athletics. The A's were in first place, but have lost seven of their last nine. Houston has won eight of its last 12 to pull back into contention, just 4 1/2 games out of first place. The whole division is separated by 8 games, the top three teams by 2 1/2.

Despite Raleigh's absence, the Mariners are fourth in the American League in home runs, but pitching is what has driven this recent run. Seattle has held opponents to two runs or fewer in five of its last six games.

The same five starters have made 57 of Seattle's 60 starts. Bryan Woo (3.44), Logan Gilbert (3.69), George Kirby (3.77) and Emerson Hancock (2.78) all have ERAs among the top 25 in the AL. Luis Castillo (5.53) lags behind the other four starters, but lately Seattle has been using him in sort of a tag team with Bryce Miller, with one starting and the other coming out of the bullpen.

In a 9-2 win over the Athletics, Castillo pitched four scoreless innings and then Miller threw the last five. On Sunday against Arizona, Miller started and went five innings, then Castillo worked the last five and Seattle won 3-2 in 10.

The New York Yankees scored 13 runs in the third inning Sunday in their 13-8 victory over the Athletics. The Yankees actually went hitless in the other eight innings.

Anthony Volpe became the third player in the last 50 years to have two hits, two runs and two steals in an inning. Who were the other two?

Bonus question: Volpe nearly got to bat three times in the inning, but he was on deck when the third out came. Who was the last player with three plate appearances in an inning.

Jacob Misiorowski struck out 12 in seven two-hit innings — throwing 57 pitches of at least 100 mph — as the Milwaukee Brewers beat St. Louis 5-1 last Monday. Milwaukee went on to sweep three straight from the Cardinals, and the Brewers now lead the NL Central by 4 1/2 games over St. Louis.

The Orioles trailed by four with one out and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth Saturday. Toronto never got another out, with Jeff Hoffman allowing the next six hitters to reach base before Connor Seabold issued a bases-loaded walk to Adley Rutschman that tied the game. Pete Alonso followed with a single to give Baltimore a 6-5 win.

Toronto's win probability was 99.3%, according to Baseball Savant, before Hoffman hit a batter and allowed a triple, a single, a double and two walks.

The Orioles went 7-3 on their homestand against Detroit, Tampa Bay and Toronto. That included a walk-off win over each of those teams and a three-game sweep of the AL East-leading Rays.

Detroit's Alan Trammell had two hits, two runs and two steals in the bottom of the first on Sept. 20, 1983, against Baltimore. Seattle's Mike Cameron pulled it off in the top of the seventh on May 16, 2002, against Toronto.

Bonus answer: Boston's Johnny Damon had three plate appearances in the bottom of the first on June 27, 2003, against Florida. He had a single, a double and a triple as the Red Sox scored 14 runs in the first.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Luis Castillo pumps his fist while walking off the field during the 10th inning of a baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Seattle Mariners' J.P. Crawford, left, douses Victor Robles, second from right, after a baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Sunday, May 31, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

PARIS (AP) — The French Navy, with support from the United Kingdom, has intercepted an oil tanker under international sanctions that was traveling from Russia, the most recent effort by nations that support Ukraine to target Russian oil exports helping to finance President Vladimir Putin’s war.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced the interception in a post Monday on X, saying the Tagor was boarded on Sunday in the Atlantic. The post included a video showing a person rappelling from a helicopter onto a ship. It is the latest in a series of French naval interceptions of tankers suspected of links to Russia.

“It is unacceptable that boats skirt international sanctions, violate the law of the sea and finance the war that Russia has been waging for more than 4 years against Ukraine,” Macron wrote. “These ships, that don’t respect the most elementary rules of maritime navigation, are also a threat to the environment and everyone’s security.”

Oil revenue is a key part of Russia’s economy, allowing Putin to pour money into the war effort against Ukraine without worsening inflation for everyday people and avoiding a currency collapse.

Russia is believed to be using a fleet of hundreds of ships to evade international sanctions imposed over the war. France and other countries have vowed to crack down on the sanction-busting so-called “shadow fleet.”

Responding to the latest French interception, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that Russia “considers such actions illegal.”

“They border on piracy,” he said Monday. “We absolutely disagree that they are being carried out in full compliance with international law.”

French maritime authorities said the tanker was intercepted more than 400 nautical miles west of France, in international waters in the Atlantic. It was traveling from the northwestern Russian port of Murmansk, according to the authorities’ statement.

It said the tanker is suspected of operating under a false flag and that the French navy is now escorting it to an anchorage for more checks.

Tankers previously intercepted by France include the Deyna, boarded in the Mediterranean Sea in March. Another tanker, the Grinch, intercepted in the Mediterranean in January, was released in February after paying a multimillion-euro penalty.

Associated Press writer Elise Morton in London contributed.

In this handout photo provided by the French Army, French soldiers use a rope from a NH90 helicopter intercepts an oil tanker that was traveling from Russia under international sanctions, on the Atlantic Sea, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (French Army via AP)

In this handout photo provided by the French Army, an NH90 helicopter intercepts an oil tanker that was traveling from Russia under international sanctions, on the Atlantic Sea, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (French Army via AP)