Sep 27, 2017; St. Louis, MO, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo (44) third baseman Kris Bryant (17) after the Cubs defeated the St. Louis Cardinals and clinched the NL Central Division at Busch Stadium. Photo Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
ST. LOUIS — One big inning put the Chicago Cubs back in the postseason.
Chicago, scoring five runs in the top of the seventh inning, knocked off the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 on Wednesday night to wrap up its second consecutive National League Central title.
Addison Russell wiped out a 1-0 deficit with one swing, cracking a three-run homer down the left field line to spoil a good game from Cardinals pitcher Michael Wacha. Jason Heyward and pinch hitter Tommy La Stella each added RBI doubles as seven straight Cubs reached base to start the inning.
John Lackey (12-11) stifled St. Louis on two hits and a run over six innings, walking two and striking out three. Five relievers finished up for the Cubs, who will play the Nationals in an NL Division Series starting on Oct. 6 in Washington.
Rockies 15, Marlins 9
DENVER — Trevor Story had a pair of two-run hits after Miami intentionally walked Nolan Arenado, helping Colorado win the rubber match of their series.
The victory helped the Rockies move closer to a postseason berth for the first time since 2009.
After driving in three runs Tuesday, Story had four RBIs, raising his season total to 80. He had a two-run single in the six-run second inning and a two-run double in Colorado’s three-run fourth. Story has hit safely in six straight games and 16 of his past 18.
Red Sox 10, Blue Jays 7
BOSTON — Xander Bogaerts hit a three-run homer and finished with four RBIs as Boston inched closer to winning the American League East title with a victory over Toronto.
The Red Sox maintained their three-game lead over New York with four to play. Hanley Ramirez and Mitch Moreland each added solo home runs, and Rick Porcello (11-17) tossed 5 2/3 innings of five-run ball for the Red Sox. Jackie Bradley Jr., Dustin Pedroia and Rajai Davis drove in a run apiece for Boston.
Jose Bautista and Teoscar Hernandez each cranked two-run homers, and Darwin Barney slugged a solo shot for the Blue Jays.
Yankees 6, Rays 1
NEW YORK — Luis Severino pitched six effective innings, and New York blasted three homers in the sixth inning to defeat Tampa Bay.
Severino (14-6) allowed one run on four hits in his final start before a likely start in Tuesday’s wild-card game, which the Yankees would host should they not win the AL East title. He struck out nine, tying teammate CC Sabathia for the third-most strikeouts in a season in team history with 230.
Starlin Castro and Greg Bird hit solo homers while Aaron Hicks slugged a two-run shot during a four-run sixth for New York.
Indians 4, Twins 2
CLEVELAND — Yan Gomes homered, and Carlos Santana had three hits as Cleveland snapped Minnesota’s five-game winning streak.
The Indians maintained their one-game lead over Houston for the AL’s best record. Mike Clevinger (12-5) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief to get the win.
Cleveland starter Danny Salazar was overpowering, pitching 4 2/3 scoreless innings and allowing one hit with nine strikeouts and one walk. Salazar, who is coming back from an injury, struck out eight of the first 12 batters he faced.
Astros 12, Rangers 2
ARLINGTON, Texas — George Springer drilled a grand slam as Houston completed a sweep of Texas.
The Astros improved to a season-best 38 games above .500 with their 11th win in the last 13 contests. The Astros scored at least 11 in all three games, a first in franchise history, and outscored the Rangers 37-7.
Texas suffered its sixth straight loss and is assured of only its second losing season since 2009.
Diamondbacks 4, Giants 3
PHOENIX — J.D. Martinez tied the National League record for homers in September, and Arizona scored three runs in the ninth inning for a walk-off victory over San Francisco.
Martinez led off the ninth inning with a solo homer, his 16th blast of September, to close the deficit to 3-2 and tie Ralph Kiner for the league record for homers in the month.
Jake Lamb and A.J. Pollock followed Martinez’s homer with singles off Sam Dyson (3-3), and a walk loaded the bases. John Ryan Murphy’s fielder’s choice scored the tying run, and Dyson then walked in the winning run.
Athletics 6, Mariners 5
OAKLAND, Calif. — Mark Canha hit a solo walk-off home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning as Oakland snapped a franchise-record eight-game losing streak versus Seattle.
Canha lined reliever Shae Simmons’ 1-0 pitch over the left field fence for his fifth home run of the season and second career walk-off homer, both this season. Simmons (0-1) took the loss.
Athletics reliever Blake Treinen (3-4) got the win after pitching a scoreless ninth.
Pirates 5, Orioles 3
PITTSBURGH — Josh Bell hit his 25th homer, and Gregory Polanco added a solo shot as Pittsburgh defeated Baltimore.
Bell was 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Pirates starter Chad Kuhl (8-11) pitched five-plus innings, allowing three runs and eight hits with five strikeouts and one walk. He has given up fewer than four earned runs in nine of his past 11 appearances.
The Orioles have has lost 16 of 20 going into its final series at Tampa Bay. Anthony Santander had three hits, and Pedro Alvarez and Trey Mancini had two apiece for Baltimore.
Mets 7, Braves 1
NEW YORK — Robert Gsellman tossed six strong innings, and Travis d’Arnaud collected three RBIs as New York defeated Atlanta.
Gsellman (8-7) allowed one run on six hits and one walk while striking out four. D’Arnaud tied the game with a run-scoring fielder’s choice in the fourth before giving the Mets a lead with a two-run single in the fifth.
New York scored four unearned runs in the seventh, when Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman’s two-out error opened the door for Dominic Smith to hit a three-run, pinch-hit homer and for Jose Reyes to lace an RBI double.
