ATLANTA (AP) — Marcell Ozuna homered twice as the Atlanta Braves tied the major league season record of 307 but lost their regular-season finale 10-9 to the Washington Nationals on Sunday as Jacob Young drove in two runs with a go-ahead single in the ninth.
Ozuna reached 40 with a ninth-inning drive off Kyle Finnegan in the ninth. Atlanta matched the season record set by the 2019 Minnesota Twins’ record. The Braves set a major league record with a .501 slugging percentage,
Atlanta finished a major league-best 104-58 and opens the Division Series on Oct. 7 against Philadelphia or Miami and has scheduled intrasquad games from Tuesday through Thursday. The Braves also topped 100 wins last year, going 101-61 and losing to the Phillies in the Division Series.
Washington was last in the NL East for the fourth straight season, improving to 71-91 from 55-107.
Michael Tonkin (7-3) blew an 8-7 lead in the ninth, issuing a bases-loaded walk to Drew Milas that tied the score. Young followed with the two-run single.
Orlando Arcia’s run-scoring single off Hunter Harvey (4-4) in the eighth gave Atlanta a one-run lead.
Finnegan also gave up a double to Michael Harris II but finished the ninth for his 28th save in 36 chances.
ROCKIES 3, TWINS 2, 11 INNINGS
DENVER (AP) — Brenton Doyle scored from second base on a wild pitch in the 11th inning by outfielder-turned-pitcher Jordan Luplow, and Colorado rallied to beat playoff-bound Minnesota in the regular-season finale.
With Doyle starting the inning on second, Luplow (0-1) went from outfielder to emergency reliever and delivered a 63-mph slider to Brendan Rodgers that got through the pads of Ryan Jeffers. A hustling Doyle slid head first into home.
The AL Central champion Twins open the postseason against Toronto on Tuesday at Target Field.
Sean Bouchard tied the game in the eighth with a two-out solo homer. Bouchard’s blast was the first pinch-hit homer by the Rockies this season. It came on a 3-2 delivery from Jorge Alcala, who was just reinstated from the 60-day injured list.
Gavin Hollowell (2-0) earned the win by escaping a bases-loaded jam in the 11th inning. He was one of eight pitchers the Rockies used on the afternoon.
PADRES 2, WHITE SOX 1, 11 INNINGS
CHICAGO (AP) — Jurickson Profar had two hits and drove in the go-ahead run in the 11th, leading San Diego past Chicago to complete the season with a sweep after missing the playoffs.
Profar singled off Declan Cronin (0-1) to score automatic runner José Azocar to put the Padres ahead in the 11th.
Rich Hill (8-14) allowed an unearned run and two hits in two innings for the Padres (82-80), who were eliminated from playoff contention Friday after reaching the NLCS and going 89-73 last year.
Zach Remillard had three hits for the White Sox (61-101), who reached 100 losses Saturday for the fifth time and first since 2018 after going 81-81 last season.
Remillard singled off Hill to drive in automatic runner Elvis Andrus to tie it in the 10th. Gavin Sheets hit a single to shallow left before Yasmani Grandal grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Ha-Seong Kim gave the Padres the lead in the 10th on a sac fly off Deivi García after Brett Sullivan grounded out to first to advance automatic runner Eguy Rosario to third.
ASTROS 8, DIAMONDBACKS 1
PHOENIX (AP) — Houston rallied to clinch its third straight AL West title, beating Arizona behind Christian Javier’s six strong innings and Alex Bregman’s two-run homer.
Needing a win and a Texas loss to win the division, the Astros did their part by jumping on Kyle Nelson (7-4) from the first pitch. Houston had a 5-0 lead after two innings and Javier (10-5) held an Arizona lineup mostly devoid of everyday players to three hits.
Kyle Tucker had a sacrifice fly to finish with 112 RBIs, most in the AL and third in the majors. José Abreu added a two-run homer in the seventh to clinch Houston’s sixth AL West title in seven years after the Rangers lost 1-0 to Seattle.
The Astros have a first-round bye in the AL playoffs while Arizona will play at Milwaukee in a best-of-three NL wild card series that starts Tuesday.
MARINERS 1, RANGERS 0
SEATTLE (AP) — George Kirby allowed only three hits in six innings, and Seattle beat Texas.
A day after clinching the ninth postseason berth in franchise history, Texas only needed a win over the Mariners to wrap up the AL West. But the loss created the chance for Houston to draw even on the final day and grab the division title — the Astros accomplished that with an 8-1 win at Arizona.
Texas will begin the postseason as a wild card team.
The Rangers couldn’t solve Kirby, who closed the regular season with 12 scoreless innings over his final two starts against Houston and Texas. Evan Carter’s two-out double in the third inning was the first hit for the Rangers, but he was the only runner to reach second base. Adolis García and Jonah Heim both singled, but that was all the offense the Rangers could manage.
Kirby (13-10) struck out seven and needed just 75 pitches to get through six innings.
Prelander Berroa and Trent Thornton worked the seventh and eighth innings, and Isaiah Campbell earned his first big league save in the ninth as Seattle pitched its its MLB-best 18th shutout to close the season in just 2 hours, 1 minute.
Dane Dunning (12-7) started on three days’ rest for Texas and worked 3 2/3 innings.
RED SOX 6, ORIOLES 1
BALTIMORE (AP) — Tanner Houck threw six innings of one-hit ball and last-place Boston earned a split in the four-game series against AL East champion Baltimore in the regular-season finale.
The Orioles have home-field advantage throughout the American League playoffs and will host a Division Series opener starting Oct. 7.
Houck (6-10) did not allow a hit until Anthony Santander singled up the middle with two outs in the sixth. Houck had six strikeouts and three walks on 87 pitches.
Boston finished 78-84, the same record as last year.
Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde wanted to keep his team healthy and rested for the playoffs and used eight pitchers in the game.
The Red Sox took advantage of a couple of miscues for a 2-0 lead in the third off Danny Coulombe (5-3). Third baseman Jordan Westburg could not handle a throw by James McCann on a double steal that allowed Enmanuel Valdez to score. Shortstop Gunnar Henderson then bobbled a sharp grounder by Rafael Devers that gave Boston its second run. Devers was credited with his 100th RBI of the season.
Henderson’s second error on a soft grounder by Reese McGuire allowed two more runs to score off Cionel Pérez in the seventh. Trevor Story and Wilyer Abreu followed with RBI singles that boosted the lead to 6-0.
CARDINALS 4, REDS 3
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright made one final appearance in his 18-year big league career, striking out as a pinch hitter in St. Louis’ season-ending win over Cincinnati.
Joey Votto, playing perhaps his final game with the Reds, struck out in the first inning, then was ejected before the top of the second by plate umpire Shane Livensparger.
Wainwright, a 42-year-old right-hander, went 200-128 with a 3.53 ERA in 18 major league seasons, all with the Cardinals. He got his 200th win in his final pitching appearance against Milwaukee on Sept. 18. He grounded out as a pinch hitter on Saturday night in his first plate appearance in two years, then was honored during a pregame ceremony on Sunday before a crowd of 44,614.
Fans chanted Wainwright’s name in the eighth inning and the career .192 batter hit for Jose Fermin with one out. Alan Busenitz struck out Wainwright on five pitches with two foul balls. Wainwright received a huge ovation on his way back to the dugout for the last time.
St. Louis finished 71-91, down from 93-69 last year en route to winning the NL Central title and the Cardinals’ worst record since going 70-92 in 1990.
Nick Martini homered for the Reds, who were mathematically eliminated from postseason contention on Saturday. Cincinnati finished 82-80, a 20-win improvement from last year.
BREWERS 4, CUBS 0
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Tyrone Taylor homered and Adrian Houser pitched five sharp innings as NL Central champion Milwaukee beat Chicago.
After wrapping up their third division title in six years last week, the Brewers will host the Arizona Diamondbacks in a best-of-three postseason series beginning Tuesday.
Chicago heads home for the winter after falling short down the stretch in a crowded NL wild-card race. Cody Bellinger and the Cubs were eliminated from contention Saturday night.
Mark Canha blooped an RBI single to right field in the first inning and Milwaukee scored two more runs on Josh Donaldson’s bases-loaded walk and Garrett Mitchell’s sacrifice fly off starter Drew Smyly (11-11).
William Contreras had an infield single to extend his hitting streak to a career-high 18 games.
Taylor belted a 397-foot solo homer to left with two outs in the sixth.
Houser (8-5), who could figure into the Brewers’ postseason pitching plans at some point, limited the Cubs to three hits while throwing 47 of 72 pitches for strikes. He walked two and struck out five. Andrew Chafin and Janson Junk finished the five-hitter.
PHILLIES 9, METS 1
NEW YORK (AP) — Alec Bohm hit a tiebreaking homer in the sixth inning, and playoff-bound Philadelphia won in Buck Showalter’s final game as New York Mets manager.
Bryce Harper and the Phillies will head home to face the Miami Marlins in a best-of-three National League wild-card series starting Tuesday.
Showalter ended his pregame news conference by saying the Mets — who plan to announce the hiring of David Stearns as president of baseball operations on Monday — told him they were “going to go in a different direction with the manager next year.” Showalter’s exit after two seasons — the shortest of his five big league stints — clears the way for Stearns to pick the next manager.
Brandon Marsh homered and finished with four RBIs for the Phillies (90-72), who won four more games than a season ago, when they qualified as the final wild card in the NL before reaching the World Series. Bryson Stott, Johan Rojas and Garrett Stubbs each had RBI hits, and Bohm also had a sacrifice fly.
Matt Strahm tossed a perfect first inning as an opener before Nick Nelson (1-0) won his season debut with 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball.
José Butto (1-4) gave up two runs and struck out four in six innings.
DODGERS 5, GIANTS 2
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Brandon Crawford came off the injured list to play what might have been his final game after 13 seasons with the Giants, and Kiké Hernández spoiled the veteran shortstop’s likely farewell by hitting a three-run homer to lead NL West champion Los Angeles past San Francisco.
Dodgers slugger Freddie Freeman fell one double short of becoming the first player with 60 or more doubles since Charlie Gehringer (60) and Joe Medwick (64) in 1936. Freeman was hit by a pitch in the first — two straight hit batsmen by rookie left-hander Kyle Harrison — and followed with three flyouts and a strikeout.
Crawford went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts and batted leadoff to give him more chances to be celebrated, ultimately walking off the field to huge cheers in the top of the ninth as rookie prospect Marco Luciano replaced him.
Los Angeles (100-62) won the season series 7-6 to reach 100 victories for a third straight year and fourth time in a row during a full season dating to 2019 — excluding the virus-shortened 2020 campaign.
The Dodgers didn’t get a hit until Will Smith greeted reliever John Brebbia (3-5) with a sharp single past a diving Crawford to start the sixth. Max Muncy walked one out later and Taylor Rogers relieved. He struck out Kolten Wong before Amed Rosario’s RBI single broke up a scoreless game. James Outman then singled in a run before Hernández connected.
PIRATES 3, MARLINS 0
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Miguel Andujar hit a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning and Pittsburgh defeated playoff-bound Miami.
The Marlins got the second NL wild card seed and fifth overall seed when Arizona lost to Houston. They will open a best-of-three wild-card series Tuesday at Philadelphia.
Connor Joe doubled with one out in the eighth off Bryan Hoeing (2-3). After Jared Triolo walked Andujar, got his go-ahead hit and Jack Suwinski followed with a two-run double.
David Bednar pitched a perfect ninth for his 39th save in 42 chances to finish a three-hitter. Dauri Moreta (5-2), the fourth of five pitchers, got the win.
The Marlins are headed to the postseason for the first time since qualifying for the expanded playoffs during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Miami hasn’t appeared in the postseason during a full season since 2003 when they upset the New York Yankees to win the World Series.
RAYS 12, BLUE JAYS 8
TORONTO (AP) — Jonathan Aranda hit his first career grand slam and drove in six runs, and Tampa Bay homered three times to set a single-season team record.
Toronto’s loss and Houston’s win at Arizona means the Rays will host Texas while the Blue Jays visit Minnesota in the AL wild card series beginning Tuesday.
Junior Caminero hit his first career home run and Manuel Margot also connected as the Rays set a team record for homers in a season with 230.
Tampa Bay’s Yandy Díaz won the AL batting title by sitting out the final day of the season. Díaz returned Friday after missing two games because of a sore right hamstring. Díaz began the day in a tight race with Texas shortstop Corey Seager, with Seager ahead .3298 to .3295. Seager went 0 for 4 in a 1-0 loss at Seattle, dropping his average to .327.
Aranda connected in a seven-run second inning, his second home run. Aranda came into Game 162 with seven RBIs and went 3 for 5 with six RBIs in the regular season finale.
Margot’s two-out blast in the fourth inning was Tampa Bay’s 229th home run, breaking the mark set in 2017. Margot connected for the fourth time.
TIGERS 5, GUARDIANS 2
DETROIT (AP) — Miguel Cabrera made a backhanded stop, stepped on first base and smiled in the eighth inning on the final play of his career, and Detroit beat Cleveland.
The game also marked the end of Terry Francona’s career, as Cleveland’s manager, who led Boston to a pair of World Series titles, is set to retire this week.
Cabrera, the only player to win the Triple Crown in more than a half-century, went 0 for 3 with a walk in his last plate appearance. He made his season debut at first base, where he was the only player on the field for a couple minutes as players from both teams showed deference to one of the game’s all-time greats.
Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan hit a sharp grounder that Cabrera stopped without needing to move too far to make an unassisted out, setting off another roar from the crowd and triggering a wave of emotions for him. Cabrera covered his heart with his cap and looked up at a blue sky.
Cleveland cut the deficit to 3-1 in the fourth on Brayan Rocchi’s groundout and pulled within two runs on Tyler Freeman’s solo shot to left in the fifth. In the home half, Matt Vierling restored Detroit’s three-run lead with a two-run homer.
ANGELS 7, ATHLETICS 3
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Brandon Drury homered twice, doubled and drove in three runs, and Los Angeles wrapped up its eighth consecutive losing season with a win over major league-worst Oakland.
Shohei Ohtani was in the Angels’ dugout again, cheering on his teammates for the final two games of what could be the two-way superstar’s final weekend with the club. Ohtani can become a free agent after the World Series, and the Halos haven’t made the playoffs or finished higher than third in the AL West in his six years in Anaheim.
Randal Grichuk also homered for the Angels, and Eduardo Escobar had two hits. After Escobar’s RBI single in the fifth, the Angels saved the ball for the 34-year-old infielder, whose playing future is uncertain.
The Angels finished their latest hugely disappointing season at 73-89, matching their 2022 record to close out their ninth straight non-playoff campaign. They’ve got the majors’ longest active streak of losing records, and their playoff drought is matched by Detroit for the majors’ longest.
Brent Rooker hit his career-best 30th homer and also doubled and singled for the A’s. Esteury Ruiz stole his 67th base of the season in the third inning, breaking the AL single-season record for a rookie set by Kenny Lofton in 1992.
Oakland finished its funereal season at 50-112, posting the franchise’s worst record since the 1916 Philadelphia A’s after going 60-102 last season.
ROYALS 5, YANKEES 2
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Zack Greinke threw four-hit ball into the sixth inning for his 225th win and, backed by a trio of home runs, helped Kansas City beat New York to end the season and quite possibly his own 20-year big league career.
Greinke (2-15) had just allowed a leadoff walk when Matt Quatraro walked to the mound. The six-time All-Star tried to give his manager the ball but Quatraro gave it right back, and the 39-year-old Greinke stuck it in his pocket as he walked off the mound to a standing ovation — one that required the famously reserved Greinke to come out for a curtain call.
Greinke can become free agent after this season, and while he has yet to announce whether he will retire, the 2009 Cy Young Award winner has had a challenging year. Greinke’s only other win this season came May 3 against the Baltimore Orioles.
Michael King (4-8) had a forgettable finale to an otherwise excellent end of the year for New York. He’d allowed one earned run or fewer in his previous seven starts before serving up a trio of homers among eight hits that led to four runs Sunday.
Late-season revelation James McArthur got the final six outs for Kansas City for his fourth save.
The Royals went 56-106, matching the franchise record for losses in a season. The Yankees finished 82-80.
