Max Scherzer earned his 200th career win by tossing six perfect innings on Monday as the visiting New York Mets clinched a playoff spot by beating the Milwaukee Brewers 7-2.
Pete Alonso hit a monstrous three-run homer in the fourth inning to spark the fifth straight win for the Mets, who remained a game ahead of the second-place Atlanta Braves in the National League East. The Brewers fell 2 1/2 games behind the idle Philadelphia Phillies in the race for the third and final NL wild-card spot.
Scherzer (10-4), who missed the previous 15 days with a left oblique injury, struck out nine while throwing only 68 pitches. He is the 120th pitcher to record 200 wins but just the third active pitcher to reach the milestone, joining former teammate Justin Verlander (243 wins) as well as Zack Greinke (223 wins).
Brewers starter Corbin Burnes (10-8) allowed five runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out four over 5 2/3 innings.
Astros 4, Rays 0
Jose Altuve hit his major-league-leading 11th leadoff homer, Luis Garcia fired five shutout innings and Houston clinched a second consecutive American League West title by beating Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Fla.
In his 86-pitch start, Garcia (13-8) used his quirky, rocking windup to hold the Rays to just two hits. Alex Bregman finished 2-for-4 with a two-RBI double as the Astros breezed to their eighth win in the past nine games.
Harold Ramirez went 3-for-4, but the Rays mustered just five hits. Over six innings, Rays starter Drew Rasmussen (10-6) allowed four runs on six hits.
Dodgers 5, Diamondbacks 2
Joey Gallo and Chris Taylor homered as Los Angeles clinched a bye into the National League Division Series with a victory over visiting Arizona.
Gavin Lux had three hits and Clayton Kershaw (9-3) gave up one run and struck out 10 in six innings as the Dodgers won for the eighth time in nine games. Los Angeles improved to 12-3 over Arizona this season while taking the opener of a five-game series.
Carson Kelly and Christian Walker each had two hits as the Diamondbacks dropped their fourth consecutive game. Merrill Kelly (12-7) gave up five runs on eight hits over six innings and dropped to 0-9 with a 5.97 ERA lifetime against Los Angeles in 12 starts.
Braves 5, Nationals 2
Kyle Wright earned his major-league-leading 19th victory and Atlanta topped Washington for its ninth straight home win.
The Braves improved to 11-3 against the Nationals this year. The home winning streak is the team’s longest of the season and the longest since the club’s modern-era record of 13 in 2019.
Wright (19-5) pitched six innings and allowed two runs on eight hits. Travis d’Arnaud and Eddie Rosario each had two hits and an RBI. Nationals starter Cory Abbott (0-3) yielded four runs on six hits in four innings.
Guardians 11, Twins 4
Josh Naylor and Amed Rosario each hit three-run home runs, Luke Maile also went deep and Cleveland rolled to a victory over visiting Minnesota. The Guardians won four of five in the crucial series.
Steven Kwan went 2-for-4 with a triple, an RBI and a run, while Myles Straw tripled and scored three runs for the Guardians, who extended their American League Central lead to four games over the idle Chicago White Sox and seven games over the slumping Twins.
Rosario, Naylor, Jose Ramirez and Andres Gimenez also had two hits for the Guardians, who open a three-game series with the White Sox on Tuesday at Chicago. Nick Gordon hit a homer and an RBI single for the Twins.
Mariners 9, Angels 1
Carlos Santana hit two home runs, including a grand slam, Ty France had a three-run homer and Logan Gilbert struck out a career-high 11 batters to lift Seattle to a win over Los Angeles in Anaheim, Calif., avoiding a sweep.
Gilbert (13-6) went six innings, allowing one run on four hits. Angels starter Jose Suarez (6-8) and Gilbert were locked up in a 1-0 game through four innings, with the only run coming on France’s RBI double in the first. Santana then broke the game open in the fifth with his grand slam.
Suarez wound up charged with five runs on seven hits in five innings. Shohei Ohtani and Matt Duffy each had two hits for the Angels.
Tigers 11, Orioles 0
Tyler Alexander no-hit the Orioles through six innings as visiting Detroit put a huge dent in Baltimore’s playoff hopes with a shutout victory.
Alexander (4-10) gave up two hits in the seventh before exiting after the inning. He struck out four and walked two. The Tigers won for just the second time in Alexander’s past 14 outings and just the second time in eight games overall.
The Orioles, who have lost nine of their last 14 games, used outfielder Ryan McKenna on the mound in the ninth inning. He gave up two runs. Baltimore starter Tyler Wells (7-7) yielded five runs on four hits in three-plus innings.
Marlins 10, Cubs 3
Bryan De La Cruz hit the go-ahead grand slam in the third inning, leading host Miami to a win over Chicago.
De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with four RBIs, and Jon Berti and Charles Leblanc also homered for the Marlins. Berti went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two stolen bases, and he leads the majors with 36 steals. Christopher Morel homered for the Cubs.
Edward Cabrera (6-3) earned the win, allowing three hits and three runs in five innings. On his 79th and final pitch, he grabbed his left side in discomfort.
Giants 10, Rockies 7 (10 innings)
Thairo Estrada socked a three-run homer in the 10th inning, his third hit of the night, and San Francisco rallied to beat host Colorado in Denver.
Mike Yastrzemski homered among his two hits, Wilmer Flores had three hits and David Villar had two hits for the Giants, who had lost four of their previous five games. Camilo Doval (6-6) pitched a scoreless ninth inning, and Scott Alexander earned his second save with a 1-2-3 10th.
Rockies starter Chad Kuhl allowed five runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings. Michael Toglia, Charlie Blackmon and C.J. Cron had three hits each and Ryan McMahon and Alan Trejo had two hits apiece.
–Field Level Media
