Aaron Nola carried a perfect game into the seventh inning and Kyle Schwarber produced his eighth multi-homer game of the season as the visiting Philadelphia Phillies clinched their first postseason berth since 2011 with a 3-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Monday.
The Phillies secured the third and final National League wild-card spot with their win, coincidentally in the same ballpark where they last clinched a postseason bid on Sept. 14, 2011.
After retiring the first two batters of the seventh, Nola (11-13) lost his perfect-game bid when Yordan Alvarez dumped a first-pitch fastball into right field. David Hensley followed with a single that chased Nola, who struck out nine over 6 2/3 innings. Zach Eflin threw a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his first career save.
Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. (4-2) surrendered the lone run of his six-inning outing on the first pitch of the game, when Schwarber homered. Bryson Stott and Schwarber homered in the eighth.
Blue Jays 5, Orioles 1 (8 innings)
Jose Berrios pitched six strong innings and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered as Toronto claimed the top American League wild-card spot hours after winning at Baltimore in a rain-shortened game.
The Blue Jays reduced the magic number on Seattle for the top wild-card spot to one game with their victory, then sealed the No. 1 slot when the Mariners lost later Monday night to the Detroit Tigers.
Whit Merrifield went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a run to lead the Toronto offense. He was set to come to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the eighth inning when the game was halted. Play never resumed, as the contest was called after a 55-minute delay.
Yankees 3, Rangers 1
Luis Severino threw seven no-hit innings and faced the minimum of 21 batters as New York rolled to a win in Arlington, Texas.
Severino (7-3) was pulled after 94 pitches. A quest for a combined no-hitter was thwarted in the eighth inning when Miguel Castro allowed one-out singles to Josh Jung and Jonah Heim and then a run on a groundout. Scott Effross tossed a perfect ninth inning for his fourth save.
Aaron Judge, looking for his American League-record 62nd homer, went 1-for-4 with a single as the Yankees took the series opener with three games remaining. Marwin Gonzalez and Giancarlo Stanton homered for New York.
Red Sox 4, Rays 3
Rafael Devers went 3-for-3 with a double, a run and the game-winning RBI in the seventh inning as host Boston came from behind to edge Tampa Bay.
The Red Sox totaled nine hits despite being held scoreless until a three-run sixth inning. Christian Arroyo’s two-run double opened the scoring. Enrique Hernandez went 2-for-4 and had the game-tying RBI double in the same frame. Rich Hill allowed three runs (one earned) on three hits across six innings.
Wander Franco (3-for-4) and Manuel Margot (two RBIs) homered in Tampa Bay’s third straight loss. The Rays have dropped five of their past six.
Brewers 6, Diamondbacks 5 (10 innings)
Hunter Renfroe delivered a walk-off single in the 10th inning to give Milwaukee a dramatic comeback victory over visiting Arizona, but it wasn’t enough to keep the Brewers’ playoff hopes alive.
The Brewers, who managed just one run in 6 1/3 innings off Arizona starter Tommy Henry, rallied to tie it 4-4 with three runs in the ninth.
Milwaukee starter Brandon Woodruff allowed two runs on two hits in six innings, striking out seven and walking one. Henry fanned five, walked one and yielded three hits.
Marlins 4, Braves 0
Jesus Luzardo pitched six scoreless innings and matched his career high with 12 strikeouts to lead host Miami over Atlanta, preventing the visitors from clinching the National League East title.
Luzardo (4-7) allowed four hits and one walk. The offense was largely provided by Bryan De La Cruz. The center fielder went 3-for-4 with an RBI double and a two-run homer.
Atlanta starter Bryce Elder (2-4) surrendered four runs on six hits in five innings.
Reds 3, Cubs 1
Hunter Greene finished his rookie year with eight strikeouts over six shutout innings to lead Cincinnati past visiting Chicago.
Greene (5-13) was in complete control for most of the night, allowing just two hits, walking one and hitting a batter as the Reds snapped a six-game losing streak. Derek Law and Buck Farmer each pitched a scoreless inning before Alexis Diaz finished out the game for his 10th save.
Zach McKinstry and Yan Gomes recorded the only hits for the Cubs, who had their seven-game winning streak snapped.
Royals 5, Guardians 2 (10 innings)
Drew Waters hit a three-run homer in the 10th inning as visiting Kansas City beat Cleveland in the fourth game of a six-game series.
Waters’ decisive blow, to left field, came against Kirk McCarty (4-3). Waters had two hits and four RBIs for Kansas City. Scott Barlow (7-4) pitched a scoreless ninth inning before Taylor Clarke retired the Guardians in order in the 10th for his third save.
Cleveland starter Triston McKenzie gave up one run on four hits over five innings.
Cardinals 3, Pirates 2
Oneil Cruz drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Pittsburgh a win over visiting St. Louis.
Ke’Bryan Hayes drew a four-pitch walk to lead off the ninth against St. Louis’ Giovanny Gallegos (3-6) and stole second. Miguel Andujar and Rodolfo Castro also walked, loading the bases. Gallegos was replaced by JoJo Romero, who walked Cruz on four pitches to force in the winning run.
Jack Suwinski homered and Bryan Reynolds had an RBI double for the Pirates. Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hit his 703rd career homer and 24th of the season.
White Sox 3, Twins 2
Carlos Perez grounded a go-ahead single in the seventh inning and Johnny Cueto dominated across seven strong frames to lift host Chicago to a victory against Minnesota.
Chicago’s AJ Pollock had two hits and scored twice, including the go-ahead run. Josh Harrison belted a game-tying, two-run home run in the second against Minnesota starter Bailey Ober. The White Sox rallied against Twins reliever Griffin Jax (7-4), who yielded a run on two hits in the seventh.
Cueto (8-10) spaced two runs and six hits with four strikeouts and zero walks. Carlos Correa had three hits for the Twins, who have lost three straight and four of five.
Tigers 4, Mariners 3
Javier Baez hit a two-run homer and Bryan Garcia, recalled from the minor leagues earlier in the day, put together a quality start as Detroit defeated host Seattle, ending the Mariners’ bid to host a wild-card playoff series.
Garcia (2-0) allowed three runs on five hits in 6 2/3 innings. Andrew Chafin pitched the ninth for his third save. Mariners rookie George Kirby (8-5) gave up four runs on six hits in four innings.
Javier Baez hit a two-run homer for Detroit. Julio Rodriguez had three hits, including an RBI double, for Seattle.
Padres 7, Giants 4
Brandon Dixon triggered a seven-run eighth inning by breaking up a scoreless tie with an RBI double as San Diego defeated visiting San Francisco.
The Giants scored four runs in the ninth and had the bases loaded before Padres closer Josh Hader retired J.D. Davis on a deep fly to right to seal his 36th save. The Padres remained one game ahead of Philadelphia in the race for the No. 2 National League wild-card berth.
Padres starter Joe Musgrove held the Giants scoreless on two hits over six innings. Adrian Morejon (5-1) tossed two scoreless innings for the win, and Shelby Miller (0-1) took the loss.
Rockies 2, Dodgers 1
Michael Toglia dunked a go-ahead single into left field in the ninth inning, giving visiting Colorado a victory over Los Angeles.
Sean Bouchard had three hits for Colorado, including two doubles for the second straight game, and scored the go-ahead run in the ninth. Trayce Thompson hit a home run for the Dodgers, who were unable to become just the second National League team all time to reach 111 wins.
Tony Gonsolin, who had been out since late August because of a right forearm strain, gave up one run on three hits in two innings. Seven Dodgers relievers combined to pitch six scoreless innings before Brusdar Graterol (2-4) gave up a run in the ninth.
A’s 5, Angels 4 (10 innings)
Seth Brown kept Oakland alive with a two-out, two-run single in the ninth inning and pinch hitter Tony Kemp stroked a walk-off single with one out in the 10th, rallying the Athletics to a victory over visiting Los Angeles.
Kemp’s hit came after Cristian Pache sacrificed automatic runner Jonah Bride to third to start the 10th. The hard-hit single kicked off the glove of drawn-in Angels first baseman Matt Theiss, allowing Bride to coast home with Oakland’s second straight win.
Domingo Acevedo (4-4) worked a scoreless top of the 10th to pick up the win. Zack Weiss (0-1), who came on for the bottom of the inning, took the loss for the Angels, who saw a seven-game winning streak come to an end.
–Field Level Media
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