Brewers lose 4-1 to Cardinals, but get a little help from Braves to clinch NL Central
MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers clinched the National League Central title for the third time in six seasons despite a 4-1 loss to the last-place St. Louis, with the help of a come-from-behind win by the Atlanta Braves.
The Brewers clinched the division crown when the Chicago Cubs dropped a 7-6 decision to the Braves, eliminating the wild-card contending Cubs from the division race.
St. Louis starter Miles Mikolas (8-13) allowed one run and five hits in seven innings. He struck out five batters and walked two, throwing 101 pitches. Ryan Helsley struck out all three batters in the ninth inning for his 13th save.
Milwaukee took a 1-0 lead in the third inning when Christian Yelich scored on a double by Carlos Santana.
The Cardinals took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning on a double by Richie Palacios. They extended their lead to 4-1 in the fifth following a two-base error by second baseman Brice Turang.
PHILLIES 3, PIRATES 2
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Johan Rojas hit an RBI single in the 10th inning that sent Philadelphia to a win over Pittsburgh that clinched a National League wild-card berth.
Rojas’ single off Pirates reliever David Bednar (3-3) scored pinch-runner Christian Pache and sent the crowd of more than 30,000 fans into a frenzy while the Phillies mobbed each other in celebration.
Brandon Marsh homered for the Phillies and Bryce Harper tacked on a sacrifice fly in the sixth for a 2-0 lead.
Jeff Hoffman (5-2) tossed a scoreless 10th for the win.
The Phillies celebrated their first clinch of a postseason spot at Citizens Bank Park since Sept. 18, 2011.
BRAVES 7, CUBS 6
ATLANTA, (AP) — Sean Murphy reached on a two-run fielding error by right fielder Seiya Suzuki in the eighth inning and Atlanta Braves overcame a six-run deficit to beat Chicago.
Suzuki ran to his right and called off center fielder Cody Bellinger, but apparently lost the fly ball in the lights and dropped it. Drew Smyly (11-10) aided the comeback by throwing two wild pitches in the eighth, letting Matt Olson advance to third and setting the stage for pinch-runner Forrest Wall to steal second.
Both runners easily scored on Suzuki’s error. Brad Hand (5-2) worked a scoreless eighth to win it. Raisel Iglesias got his 31st save in the ninth after facing four batters.
The Braves cut it to 6-3 in the sixth on Kevin Pillar’s homer, Olson’s RBI single and Marcell Ozuna’s RBI double. Ronald Acuña Jr. hit his 41st homer, a two-run shot to right in the seventh, to make it 6-5.
The Cubs led 2-0 with two outs in the second on Yan Gomes’ RBI infield single and Miles Mastrobuoni’s RBI single. Suzuki made it 4-0 in the second when he tripled into the gap in right-center, and Bellinger’s RBI single padded the lead to 5-0 in the fourth.
DIAMONDBACKS 15, WHITE SOX
CHICAGO (AP) — Christian Walker homered twice and drove in six runs and Arizona helped its wild-card chances with a victory over Chicago.
Walker hit a solo shot in the second inning and a two-run drive in the sixth. He also lined a tiebreaking, three-run triple into the gap in right-center in the fifth.
Ryne Nelson (8-8) got the win, tossing 4 2/3 scoreless innings in relief.
Arizona moved one game ahead of the Chicago Cubs for the second of three NL wild cards. The Cubs blew a six-run lead in a 7-6 loss at Atlanta.
Eloy Jiménez hit a three-run homer and an RBI single for the White Sox, who hurt themselves with two big errors. José Ureña (0-7) surrendered seven runs — four earned — and four hits in four-plus innings.
ORIOLES 1, NATIONALS 0
BALTIMORE (AP) — Rookie Gunnar Henderson homered, Kyle Bradish had another dominant start and Baltimore beat Washington hours after the team announced that Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson had died.
Bradish (12-7) allowed three hits, struck out four batters and had a pair of walks over a season-high eight innings. Yennier Canó picked up his eighth save for the Orioles, who have won seven of their last 10 games.
Henderson led off the first with a homer on a seven-pitch at-bat off Josiah Gray. Gray (8-13) did not allow another run through six innings. He gave up five hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.
The Orioles held a moment of silence for Robinson, who died Tuesday at the age of 86. Robinson played his entire 23-year career in Baltimore beginning in 1955. He was named to 18 All-Star games and was a member of the 1966 and 1970 World Series championship teams.
YANKEES 2, BLUE JAYS 0
Austin Wells hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning and New York beat Toronto.
Michael King and two relievers combined on a three-hitter as the Yankees improved to a major league-best 18-9 since Aug. 28.
Facing Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano (5-7), Gleyber Torres singled to begin the ninth. Wells followed with a first-pitch drive into the left-field bullpen.
