The first Tuesday of September features a full 16-game slate thanks to the Rays-Orioles doubleheader.

Some storylines worth knowing from the night that was include James Paxton and Gary Sanchez having big games for the Yankees; George Springer leaving on a cart after making an outstanding catch for the Astros; and Jorge Soler making Royals history.

For more on those stories and more, check out our full nightly recap below.

Select games can be streamed regionally via fuboTV (Try for free). For more on what channel each game is on, click here.

Baseball schedule/scores for Tuesday, Sept. 3

Nationals stun Mets with ninth-inning rally

The Mets entered Tuesday night's game against the Nationals more than seven games behind them in the NL East standings. For a while, it seemed like New York would shave a game off the gap. Alas, things are seldom so straightforward or simple when the Mets are involved.

Let's set the scene for the ninth inning. The Mets led by a 5-4 score entering the frame, then unloaded on Washington's bullpen. Brandon Nimmo homered to make it 6-4; then Jeff McNeil plated a pair with a single; and finally Pete Alonso homered to push the lead to 10-4. The game appeared in the bag heading into the bottom of the ninth.

About that.

The Mets used three pitchers in the ninth -- Paul Sewald, Luis Avilan for a batter, and then Edwin Diaz -- and it didn't make any difference. Let's just go to the play-by-play log:

  • Victor Robles notched an infield single.

  • Howie Kendrick flied out to right (one out).

  • Trea Turner doubled; Robles scored (10-5).

  • Asdrubal Cabrera singed; Turner reached third.

  • Anthony Rendon singled; Turner scored (10-6).

  • Juan Soto singled.

  • Ryan Zimmerman doubled; Cabrera and Rendon scored (10-8).

  • Kurt Suzuki homered to win the game (11-10).

For those keeping track at home, Diaz threw 10 pitches and permitted five Nationals to cross the plate. That's one heck of a quick turnaround.

The Mets are now 8 ½ games behind the Nationals and 4 ½ back in the wild card race. Thankfully for them, Tuesday's loss counts for only one -- even if it feels like it counts for more.

Paxton, Sanchez lead Yankees over Rangers

The Yankees authored an easy victory over the Rangers on Tuesday night -- their 91st of the season -- and two players in particular deserve credit: the starting battery of James Paxton and Gary Sanchez.

Paxton permitted one hit over seven shutout innings, fanning 12 and issuing one walk. Tuesday's outing represents his fifth double-digit strikeout start of the season and his second since the All-Star Game. It's also just the second time all year he's tossed at least seven innings, and the first time since April 16.

While Paxton was doing something unusual for him, Sanchez was doing his norm: hitting home runs. With two dingers on Tuesday, he set a franchise record for the most home runs hit by a catcher in a single season. Amusingly, the old record also belonged to Sanchez. You can read more about that whole deal by clicking here.

Springer carted off field after catch

The Astros are at the point in the year where all they want is to remain healthy ahead of the postseason. Unfortunately, outfielder George Springer was carted off the field on Tuesday after seemingly hitting his head against the wall on a catch. You can watch the play by clicking here.

Springer entered the night hitting .296/.388/.573 (150 OPS+) with 30 home runs. Here's hoping, for his sake, that he's back in the lineup sooner rather than later.

Soler makes Royals history

Royals fans haven't had much to feel good about this season. But Jorge Soler gave the fan base some reason for joy on Tuesday, as he hit his 39th home run of the year. Why is that number significant? Because it makes Soler the franchise's single-season home-run record holder, eclipsing the mark previously set by Mike Moustakas back in 2017:

Soler is just the fourth Royals hitter to ever top 35 homers in a year, joining Moustakas as well as Steve Balboni and Gary Gaetti. Only two other Royals -- Jermaine Dye (in 2000) and Kendrys Morales (in 2016) -- have topped 30 home runs since the 2000 season started.

The Royals originally acquired Soler from the Cubs in exchange for Wade Davis.

Highlight of the day: DeJong's wild hit

Sometimes the words just get in the way. For evidence of that, take a look at Paul DeJong's unusual infield single from Tuesday's game against the Giants by clicking here.

Stat of the day: Soto continues to climb leaderboards

Nationals outfielder Juan Soto is one precious slugger. On Tuesday, he hit his 32nd home run of the season, tying him for the fourth-most in an age-20 season or younger:

The leader in this category is Mel Ott, who homered 42 times in 1929. Soto may not get that far, but he has a chance to move into third place (Alex Rodriguez, 36) and perhaps threaten second (Frank Robinson, 38) if all goes well the rest of the month.

No matter where Soto ends up, he's a darn good hitter -- and one likely to be around for a long, long time.

Quick hits