Both the Blue Jays and Orioles were warned in the sixth inning on Monday after Marcus Stroman threw a pitch near the head of Baltimore catcher Caleb Joseph in apparent retaliation for Joseph blocking the plate on Jose Reyes’ headfirst slide an inning earlier.

The Washington Nationals are within one well-placed victory of a division title. Their triumph in this matter is, by all that is logical, a question of when, not if. The real question about the Nats’ short-term future would seem to be whether they can finish with the National League’s best record, thus qualifying for home-field advantage in two rounds of the postseason.

After appearing on the brink of activation for about a week, Giants first baseman Brandon Belt finally was reinstated from the disabled list Monday.

Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton, who hasn’t played since Sept. 4 with an injured right AC joint (shoulder area) and trapezius muscle, had what manager Mike Scioscia thinks could be a “breakthrough” day Monday and could return as early as Wednesday.

Dodgers left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu will not make his next scheduled start despite Monday’s MRI revealing no structural damage in his sore left shoulder.

Major League Baseball will meet soon with the MLB Players Association to discuss the formulation of a policy to deal with domestic violence.

Given the marathon nature of Major League Baseball, one could see this coming, since the 2014 schedule was released more than a year ago. One way or another, either as a postseason contender or playing spoiler, the Brewers’ 10-day, nine-game swing through St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati would be packed with meaningful games.

Facing the likelihood of their second dark October in as many years, these are desperate times for the Yankees, and so the bullpen phone rang demanding the services of David Robertson. The gamble — having Robertson on the mound for a third straight game — did not pay off, resulting in a blown save and a 3-2 Orioles victory on Sunday at Camden Yards.

Kelly Johnson, who also has played this season with the Yankees and Red Sox, drove a walk-off hit into the gap in right-center in the bottom of the ninth, sending Steve Pearce home for a 3-2 win over the Yanks on Sunday night, cutting the O’s magic number to three.

The Baltimore Orioles are the closest to clinching. The Oakland A’s looked like they might be in serious postseason trouble after Friday’s series-opening loss to the Mariners, but two wins in a row in Seattle have them back in good shape. The Detroit Tigers have to be feeling good about their recent play, too.

The A’s added Jon Lester at the July 31 Trade Deadline because he is a proven big-game pitcher, something that Oakland was missing. And he provided a perfect example of what he brings to the table in Sunday’s 4-0 win in Seattle.

The Giants are assured of a rematch with the Dodgers, which is scheduled for Sept. 22-24. But because of their less-than-ideal performance in this weekend’s showdown, which concluded Sunday with Los Angeles’ 4-2 triumph, the Giants don’t know what significance their return engagement will bear.

The Angels’ offense simply overheated. After bashing their way to a season-high 10-game winning streak, the Angels came crashing down to earth during Sunday’s 6-1 loss to Houston, mustering just three hits as the temperature hovered in the mid-90s.

If balloting for National League MVP should come down to Clayton Kershaw and Buster Posey, the Dodgers’ ace got a leg-kick up on the Giants’ big bopper Sunday.

The Orioles paid tribute to Derek Jeter’s career in a pregame ceremony on Sunday evening at Camden Yards, and Jeter reflected on competing against the O’s and his time playing for Buck Showalter in New York.

Lefty Jon Lester navigated his way through consistent turbulence with ace-like savvy, and the A’s gave him solo home runs from Sam Fuld and Brandon Moss to help put away the Mariners, 4-0, on Sunday and claim this pivotal three-game set at Safeco Field.

Astros left-hander Dallas Keuchel, working in 96-degree heat at Angel Stadium against the team with the best record in baseball, stopped the Angels cold Sunday afternoon. Keuchel, who took a no-hitter into the seventh, allowed three hits in seven-plus innings for a 6-1 victory that ended the Angels’ 10-game winning streak.