NEW YORK — Masahiro Tanaka pitched a two-hitter with 10 strikeouts for his fourth major league shutout, and the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-0 on Monday night to increase their slim lead in the AL East.

DJ LeMahieu hit a two-run homer off Yonny Chirinos, and Cameron Maybin homered in his third consecutive game. That was all a dominant Tanaka (5-5) needed while throwing 76 of 111 pitches for strikes in his seventh complete game since coming over from Japan.

Edwin Encarnación received an enthusiastic ovation from fans in his Yankees debut after being acquired from Seattle in a trade late Saturday night. Batting fifth as the designated hitter, the veteran slugger went 0 for 4 with a strikeout his first time up.

No matter. New York won the opener of a three-game series and moved 1½ games ahead of the second-place Rays.

Maybin, his days in pinstripes perhaps numbered, finished 3 for 3 with two singles. He homered leading off the fifth inning and scored on LeMahieu’s two-out shot in the third.

Tanaka retired his first nine batters before Austin Meadows singled sharply off the right field wall to start the fourth. A two-out single in the fifth by Willy Adames was Tampa Bay’s only other hit.

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Lemahieu, shifted over from third base, made a diving stop up the middle to begin a slick force play that drew an appreciative bow from a clapping Tanaka.

The right-hander walked only one and set down the final 10 Rays batters, striking out six.

Chirinos (7-3) gave up five hits in six innings. He struck out six and walked one.

ANGELS 10, BLUE JAYS 5: Justin Upton homered on the first pitch he saw in his return from the injured list, Mike Trout had a solo homer among his four hits and Los Angeles used a seven-run second inning to win in Toronto.

Shohei Ohtani and Kole Calhoun also connected in the second for the Angels, who have won all four meetings with Toronto this season.

Toronto rookie Cavan Biggio hit two home runs, a solo shot in the first and a two-run drive in the eighth, the second multihomer game of his brief career. Randal Grichuk hit a two-run homer in the seventh, but the Blue Jays lost for the eighth time in 11 games.

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Trout finished a triple shy of the cycle. He flied out in the first, doubled in the second, singled in the fourth, homered in the sixth, and singled again in the eighth.

Upton went on the injured list in late March because of turf toe on his left foot. He missed 71 games before returning.

Upton started the seven-run rally with a first-pitch blast off right-hander Edwin Jackson (1-5). Later in the 11-batter frame, he chased Jackson with a single.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

BRAVES 12, METS 3: Mike Soroka won his eighth straight decision, Ozzie Albies homered and drove in four runs, and surging Atlanta Braves won at home.

Nick Markakis hit a tiebreaking, two-run single in the fifth inning as the NL East-leading Braves improved to 13-3 in June, best in the majors this month. Atlanta, which scored 15 runs a day earlier against Philadelphia, has plated 90 runs in winning 10 of its last 11.

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New York continued to struggle on the road, losing for the 12th time in 16 games away from Citi Field and dropping 8½ games behind the Braves.

Soroka’s winning streak is the longest in the majors by a pitcher under 22 since Dontrelle Willis won the same number for the 2003 Florida Marlins.

Soroka (8-1) gave up three runs, six hits and allowed just his third homer in 12 starts this year, a solo shot by Robinson Canó in the sixth. He walked one and struck out two in six innings.

Atlanta went up 5-2 in the fifth on Markakis’ opposite-field bloop single to left and Albies’ RBI single.

INTERLEAGUE

REDS 3, ASTROS 2: Nick Senzel returned from an eye injury and drove in a pair of runs Monday night, Luis Castillo pitched two-hit ball into the seventh inning, and host Cincinnati held on for a victory over Houston.

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The Reds got the better of a reunion of once-familiar foes that rarely play each other anymore.

Houston’s 845 all-time games against Cincinnati are by far its most against any opponent. The Astros are visiting Cincinnati for the first time since 2012. They’re 40-36 all-time at Great American Ball Park.

The game was delayed 52 minutes in the bottom of the third inning because of a storm, and a double rainbow formed as the skies cleared. Both starters returned and struggled with their control. Castillo (7-1) did the better job escaping trouble.

NOTES

REDS: Second baseman Scooter Gennett began a rehab assignment, the final step in returning from a severe groin sprain in spring training that has sidelined him all season.

Gennett will play five days with Class A Daytona, then move up to Triple-A Louisville to continue the rehab.

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METS: Manager Mickey Callaway said right-hander Noah Syndergaard has a low-grade hamstring strain and will miss at least one start.

Syndergaard underwent an MRI on Sunday and was placed on the 10-day injured list. Callaway hopes Syndergaard misses just one start but said it’s too early to tell if he’ll need more time to recover.

RANGERS: Texas placed outfielder Hunter Pence on the 10-day injured list with a right groin strain.

He joined outfielder Joey Gallo on the injured list.

PADRES: Manny Machado was suspended one game and fined for making contact with an umpire who ejected him over the weekend for arguing called strikes.

Machado is appealing the penalty and can continue to play until there’s a final ruling.

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