The Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers had a battle for the ages at Dodger Stadium last Monday night, which resulted in the Phillies officially clinching their second consecutive National League (NL) East title. The Phillies became the second team this season to clinch a postseason berth, after the Milwaukee Brewers, and the first to clinch their division, leading the Mets (77-73) by 12.5 games.
After their 6-5 win over the Dodgers in extra innings, the Phillies now trail Milwaukee (91-59) by one and a half games for the National League’s number one seed. The Dodgers (84-66) lead San Diego (82-68) by two games in the NL West, and hold the number three seed.
The Atlanta Braves beat Washington, 11-3, with home runs from Matt Olson, Ronald Acuna Jr. and rookie Drake Baldwin. Spencer Strider pitched seven innings of one-run ball, and earned his sixth win. After the win, Atlanta moved to 67-83, 10 games back of the final wild card spot.
The Chicago Cubs (86-64) shut out the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-0, and now lead San Diego by four games for the top NL wild card spot, while they trail Milwaukee by five games for the NL Central division lead. Chicago was helped by Pete Crow-Armstrong, who hit his 29th home run of the season and Jameson Taillon, who fired six strong innings of two-hit ball, earning his 10th win.
The Cincinnati Reds (75-75) beat the St. Louis Cardinals (73-78), 11-6, to move two games back of the Mets for the final NL wild card spot. The Cardinals now trail by four and a half games. Tyler Stephenson led the Reds, and went 2-4 at the plate, added a walk, three RBIs and a run scored .
The Arizona Diamondbacks (76-75) pulled ahead of the San Francisco Giants (75-75) with an 8-1 victory. Arizona was aided to victory by James McCann, who hit a two-run home run and Geraldo Perdomo who added to his career high RBI total with two more. Zac Gallen, went six innings and allowed only one run, earning his 12th win. Arizona now trails the Mets by only one and a half games, while San Francisco now trails by two.
The New York Yankees (83-67) were shut out by the Minnesota Twins, 7-0, to fall behind the American League (AL) East leading Blue Jays (88-62) by five games, while still leading Boston (82-68) by one game for the top AL wild card. New York recorded two hits in nine innings from Goldschmidt and Caballero. Pitcher Carlos Rodon allowed two runs over six innings, but picked up his ninth loss. New York could not handle Simeon Woods-Richardson, who struck out 11 over six innings of outstanding work, collecting his seventh win. Also, for Minnesota, Brooks Lee collected two hits, including his 15th home run of the season.
The Toronto Blue Jays outlasted the Tampa Bay Rays, 2-1, in extras. George Springer gave Toronto the lead in the 11th with an RBI single, as Toronto maintained possession of the number one seed in the AL. Trey Yesavage made his highly anticipated Major League debut, striking out nine over five innings of one-run ball. Braydon Fisher threw two scoreless innings for his seventh win. Joe Boyle of Tampa Bay earned a no-decision, firing six scoreless innings.
The Baltimore Orioles (70-80) defeated the Chicago White Sox, 4-1, but still trail the Astros (82-69) by 11.5 games in the wild card race. Colton Cowser made the difference with a three-run home run and Kyle Bradish went five innings, allowed one run, and earned his first win since June 14, 2024.
The Astros defended their home turf in the battle of the Lone Star State, defeating the Texas Rangers (79-72), 6-3. Zach Cole hit his second career home run, which gave Houston a permanent lead in Monday’s game. Steven Okert retired four batters out of the bullpen, earning his third win, and Bryan Abreu tossed a scoreless ninth, in replacement of injured closer Josh Hader, earning the save.
With just under two weeks left in the season, much can still change in the playoff standings. Here’s a look at the current playoff picture:
AMERICAN LEAGUE
DIVISION WINNERS
1) Toronto – 88-62
2) Detroit – 85-65
3) Seattle – 82-68
WILD CARD
1) NY Yankees – 83-67
2) Boston – 82-68
3) Houston – 82-69
NATIONAL LEAGUE
DIVISION WINNERS
1) Milwaukee – 91-59
2) Philadelphia – 90-61
3) LA Dodgers – 84-66
WILD CARD
1) CHI Cubs – 86-64
2) San Diego – 82-68
3) NY Mets – 77-73
