The Milwaukee Brewers may have lost Sunday’s game to the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 in St. Louis, but they won an even bigger prize: the National League Central.
Milwaukee clinched its third straight division title after the second-place Chicago Cubs lost 1-0 to the Cincinnati Reds. The Brewers’ divisional triumph came despite them being unable to do much against the Cardinals. Joey Ortiz had two hits, including a triple, while Jackson Chourio drove in Milwaukee’s only run of the game with a sacrifice fly.
Robert Gasser (0-1) served as the Brewers’ opener, allowing two runs on two walks and a hit over three innings. Erick Fedde struggled versus his former team, giving up three runs off three walks and a hit during his four frames.
Jose Fermin led the charge for the Cardinals with three RBIs, while Ivan Herrera hit a two-run homer to help St. Louis take two of three games from Milwaukee. Matthew Liberatore (8-12) excelled over five innings of work, giving up just one run on five hits.
Blue Jays 8, Royals 5
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Andres Gimenez each had two RBIs, four relievers held Kansas City to one run and Toronto clinched its fourth postseason berth in six seasons with a road victory.
Guerrero and Gimenez joined George Springer and Ernie Clement with two hits apiece for the Blue Jays, who broke out to snap a four-game skid in which they totaled three runs. Brendon Little, Seranthony Dominguez (4-4), Eric Lauer and Jeff Hoffman (32nd save) helped keep the Royals from sweeping this three-game set.
Salvador Perez recorded career RBI No. 1,012 to match Hal McRae for second on the all-time list for Kansas City, which finished 43-38 at home. Michael Wacha (9-13) allowed a trio of runs in both the second and fifth innings, allowing six earned runs on eight hits over five innings.
Reds 1, Cubs 0
Gavin Lux hit an RBI double in the third inning and four Cincinnati pitchers combined on a six-hitter as the host Reds swept Chicago and moved into a tie for the final NL wild-card spot.
Cincinnati won its fifth straight and is tied with the New York Mets, five games behind San Diego for the No. 2 wild card. for the NL’s third and final wild-card spot. Andrew Abbott threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing five hits while striking out two and walking one. Nick Martinez (11-13) threw 2 1/3 perfect frames in relief.
Jameson Taillon (10-7) pitched seven quality innings for the Cubs, allowing a run on five hits while striking out four and walking none. Chicago has dropped four straight since clinching a postseason berth on Wednesday.
Twins 6, Guardians 2
Brooks Lee blasted a go-ahead two-run homer in the sixth inning and Royce Lewis added a pinch-hit three-run homer in the seventh to help Minnesota end Cleveland’s 10-game winning streak with a win in Minneapolis.
Kody Clemens contributed two hits, an RBI and run scored for the Twins, who ended a five-game skid. Minnesota starter Simeon Woods Richardson allowed two runs and three hits over five innings, striking out three and walking two.
Steven Kwan swatted a leadoff homer for the Guardians, but they collected just three singles the rest of the way, missing an opportunity to move into a tie for first in the American League Central after trailing the Detroit Tigers by 15 1/2 games in early July.
Yankees 7, Orioles 1 (10)
Ben Rice hit a grand slam before an out was recorded in the 10th inning as New York pulled out a victory against host Baltimore.
The Yankees had five hits and scored six runs in the 10th, most notably Rice’s 24th homer of the season. He went 4-for-5 with five RBIs, accounting for nearly half of the team’s 10 hits. New York won three of four games in the series as it stayed in the AL East race, two games behind the first-place Toronto Blue Jays.
Samuel Basallo homered for the Orioles, whose offense let down starter Kyle Bradish. He worked six innings, allowing one run on two hits. Kade Strowd (0-1), who began the 10th on the mound, took the loss. David Bednar (6-5) was the winning pitcher after throwing a scoreless ninth, improving to 4-0 since joining the Yankees this summer.
Pirates 11, Athletics 0
Joey Bart hit a three-run home run and Jared Triolo added a two-run shot as each finished with four hits in host Pittsburgh’s blowout win in its home finale.
Carmen Mlodzinski (5-8) pitched three innings for the win after Mike Burrows opened the game by giving up five hits with three strikeouts over four innings. The Pirates recorded their MLB-best 19th shutout of the season and their second straight following a five-game losing streak.
Brent Rooker had two hits for the Athletics, who were held scoreless in the final 22 innings of the series. Starter Mitch Spence (3-6) seven runs (six earned) on nine hits over 3 1/3 innings to take the loss.
Padres 3, White Sox 2
Michael King pitched five-plus scoreless innings and San Diego held on to win in Chicago as the Padres reduced their magic number to two to clinch a playoff berth.
San Diego took two of three from the White Sox, who have lost eight of their last nine and played their final home game of the season.
Padres reliever Mason Miller inherited bases loaded with one in the seventh and walked in a pair of runs. But he got Lenyn Sosa to ground out to end the inning. King (5-3) allowed four hits, walked four and struck out four.
Braves 6, Tigers 2
Ha-Seong Kim homered and drove in two runs and streaking Atlanta handed host Detroit its sixth straight loss.
Ronald Acuna Jr. and Drake Baldwin each had two hits, a run scored and an RBI for the Braves in their eighth consecutive win. Spencer Strider (7-13) tossed five scoreless innings.
The Tigers didn’t get on the scoreboard until the ninth inning, squandering numerous prime scoring chances in the opening frames. Detroit stranded 13 runners on base, handing Casey Mize (14-6) the loss after he gave up three runs and five hits in 5 2/3 innings.
Nationals 3, Mets 2
Jacob Young made two incredible catches in center field and Nasim Nunez hit a two-run homer to cap a three-run second inning as visiting Washington complicated New York’s playoff chase.
Young took away extra bases from Brett Baty in the fifth inning and stole a game-tying homer from Francisco Alvarez in the ninth. Jake Irvin (9-13) earned his first win since July 27 after allowing just two runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings.
The Mets now sit in a tie with the Cincinnati Reds for the final NL wild-card spot after suffering their 15th loss in 23 games. Sean Manaea (2-4) took the loss after allowing three runs on four hits in three-plus innings. Francisco Lindor hit a solo homer for New York in the sixth.
Rockies 3, Angels 1
Blaine Crim homered, Kyle Freeland pitched six strong innings, and Colorado beat Los Angeles in Denver to wrap up its home schedule.
The Rockies (43-113) passed the 1962 New York Mets, whose 42 wins are the fewest in the National League in the modern era. Colorado finished the season 25-56 at Coors Field, its worst home record in franchise history. Freeland (5-16) allowed one run on five hits and one walk with seven strikeouts.
Mike Trout doubled, one of seven hits for Los Angeles. Rookie right-hander Cade Dana (0-3) allowed two runs on three hits, struck out five and walked three in a season-high six innings.
Giants 3, Dodgers 1
Patrick Bailey started a three-run rally in the eighth inning with an RBI double, rookie Trevor McDonald gave up one run over six-plus innings of his first career start and San Francisco avoided a four-game sweep with a victory over host Los Angeles.
Willy Adames had a bases-loaded walk in the eighth and Matt Chapman added an RBI groundout. McDonald gave up one run on six hits with one walk and three strikeouts. Spencer Bivens (4-3) did not give up a run over one inning for the Giants and right-hander Ryan Walker recorded the last two outs for his 16th save.
Right-hander Emmet Sheehan tied a career high with 10 strikeouts for the Dodgers, while Michael Conforto had an RBI single. Sheehan gave up just one hit with no walks over seven innings in the team’s regular-season home finale. Right-hander Blake Treinen (1-7) allowed three runs on three hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning.
Diamondbacks 9, Phillies 2
Corbin Carroll became the first Arizona player to achieve a 30-home run, 30-stolen base season and Eduardo Rodriguez pitched six scoreless innings as the D-backs moved closer to a playoff berth with a victory over Philadelphia in Phoenix.
Carroll stole his 30th base of the campaign in the sixth inning and hit a three-run shot, his 31st of the year, in the second frame. Jorge Barrosa notched his first career home run, Ketel Marte recorded two RBIs and Eduardo Rodriguez (9-8) pitched six scoreless innings to pull Arizona within one game of both the New York Mets and the Cincinnati Reds for the last NL wild-card spot.
Nick Castellanos singled in a run to open the scoring for the Phillies in the eighth inning, while Weston Wilson drove in another with a two-out, bases-loaded walk. Ranger Suarez (12-7) made his shortest appearance since his season debut May 4, pitching just four innings and giving up six runs on eight hits.
Marlins 4, Rangers 2
Otto Lopez had three hits and an RBI as Miami used a balanced offensive attack and shutdown relief to beat reeling Texas in the finale of a three-game interleague series in Arlington, Texas.
The victory was the sixth straight and the 10th in 11 games for the Marlins and finalized their second consecutive series sweep. Miami outhit the Rangers 11-5, with Graham Pauley adding a triple and a single and eight players producing hits. The Marlins did not draw a walk.
Lake Bachar (8-2) earned the win with two innings in relief of starter Eury Perez, who threw four shutout innings. Texas starter Merrill Kelly (12-9) took the loss as the Rangers fell for the seventh straight game.
Mariners 7, Astros 3
J.P. Crawford hit a grand slam and Cal Raleigh smashed his major league-leading 58th homer to help Seattle inch closer to a postseason berth with a win in Houston.
Logan Gilbert (6-6) supported the Mariners’ offense from the mound with six innings of one-run ball. Seattle is now three games up on the Astros for the AL West crown after sweeping the three-contest series and winning 14 of its last 15 games.
Houston starter Jason Alexander (4-2) failed to make it out of the second inning after surrendering seven runs on seven hits and a walk. Zach Cole hit his third home run of the season in place of Jeremy Pena, who was a late scratch due to oblique soreness. Jose Altuve also chipped in for the Astros with a double and an RBI single.
Rays 7, Red Sox 3
Christopher Morel drove in four runs, Brandon Lowe clubbed his 30th homer of the campaign and Tampa Bay drubbed Boston in the Rays’ home finale.
Morel went 2-for-4 and knocked in the first two runs with a double and two more with an eighth-inning single as Tampa Bay broke an eight-game losing streak against the Red Sox. Rays leadoff batter Chandler Simpson went 2-for-4 with a run and recorded his 43rd stolen base, while Junior Caminero had two hits, two runs and a walk. Garrett Cleavinger (2-6) tossed a perfect sixth.
Boston’s Alex Bregman and Romy Gonzalez each had two hits, an RBI and two walks. Masataka Yoshida added two hits. Starting pitcher Connelly Early (1-1), who made his major league debut on Sept. 9, suffered his first career loss by yielding three runs (two earned) on three hits in four innings. The lefty fanned four and walked two.
