Yankees held scoreless, Fister strikes out nine Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:43am EDT (Reuters) - The New York Yankees were held scoreless for just the sixth time this season on Thursday, losing 6-0 to Toronto to see their precarious American League East lead cut to just one game. The Yankees could have gained a two-game advantage over Baltimore with just six games remaining in the regular season but instead suffered their third loss in the last five. There was better news for New York fans when leading wildcard chasers the Los Angeles Angels fell 9-4 to Seattle to move the Yankees a step closer to securing a post-season berth. "We know what's at stake right now and we've just got to go out there and keep picking up wins," Yankee Nick Swisher told reporters. We've got a little six-game playoff race. Detroit pitcher Doug Fister earlier set an American League record by striking out nine consecutive batters as the Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals 5-4 to boost their playoff hopes. The win moved Detroit two games ahead of the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central division after the White Sox fell 3-2 to Tampa Bay. Another Hall of Famer, Tom Seaver, holds the Major League record of 10, set in 1970. "Really it was a simple thing of one pitch at a time," Fister said. There was no focus on what happened, where guys were playing or anything else. It was just a matter of, 'Hey let's make this pitch here and make it happen. Tampa Bay's win moved the Rays to just two games out of a wildcard slot behind Oakland, who lost 9-7 in the American League West to the division-leading Texas Rangers. The Rangers, whose win was highlighted by pitcher Matt Harrison's 18th victory, now hold a four-game lead over the Athletics with six games to play. In the National League, the playoff-bound San Francisco Giants have decided not to use suspended slugger Melky Cabrera if he becomes eligible in the postseason. Cabrera, serving a 50-game ban for a positive test for testosterone, would be available to play if the Giants' postseason went beyond five games. The Giants, the 2010 World Series champions, clinched the National League West pennant last week and beat Arizona 7-3 on Thursday. In the other key National League games, St Louis fell 2-0 to lowly Houston to breathe a little life into the wildcard hopes of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers survived a late rally to defeat San Diego 8-4 and move to three games behind the Cardinals in the wildcard race, still a tough mountain to climb with just six games left. Reporting by Ben Everill in Los Angeles, California and Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina, editing by Nick Mulvenney