The New York Mets and Atlanta Braves secured the last two spots in the MLB playoffs when they split a doubleheader against one another on Monday, the final day of the regular season.
New York got a ninth-inning home run from Francisco Lindor in the dramatic opener to rally for an 8-7 victory, and Atlanta took care of business in a must-win Game 2 with a 3-0 win.
Monday’s results eliminated the idle Arizona Diamondbacks, the reigning National League champions, from play-off contention. If either New York (89-73) or Atlanta (89-73) had swept the doubleheader, Arizona (89-73) would have been the final NL wild-card team.
The Braves and Mets will begin their wild-card series on Tuesday night, with New York headed to Milwaukee to face the Brewers, and Atlanta travelling to San Diego to play the Padres.
Game 1
The opener to Monday’s doubleheader was a memorable back-and-forth affair, especially late.
Atlanta’s Ozzie Albies opened the scoring with a two-run homer off Tylor Megill in the second inning, and Ramon Laureano added a solo shot in the sixth.
The Mets trailed 3-0 through seven innings but claimed the lead with a six-run eighth that included RBIs by Francisco Lindor, Jose Iglesias, Mark Vientos, Francisco Alvarez and a two-run homer by Brandon Nimmo.
The Braves reclaimed the lead by scoring four in the bottom of the eighth, powered by Albies’ three-run double off the left field wall that sent the Atlanta crowd into a frenzy. Albies delivered the blow against Edwin Diaz, whose earlier defensive lapse came back to bite him.
The Mets’ Sterling Marte singled in the top of the ninth, representing the tying run, then Lindor hit the first pitch he saw from Pierce Johnson over the fence in right-centre to take the lead yet again.
Diaz returned to the mound for the ninth despite struggling with command issues. He let the tying run reach second base before closing the door on a 40-pitch outing.
Game 2
Atlanta had scheduled Chris Sale to start a do-or-die Game 2, but the lefty was scratched due to back spasms, sending Grant Holmes to the mound.
The rookie right-hander responded with four shutout innings to start the nightcap, allowing one hit and one walk with seven strikeouts.
Gio Urshela's single in the second plated Jorge Soler and gave the Braves a 1-0 lead.
Atlanta clung to that narrow lead until Marcell Ozuna’s two-run single in the seventh.
Six Braves pitchers combined for the three-hit shutout, even after Atlanta used many of their top bullpen options in the matinée.
Atlanta will play in the post-season for the seventh straight year and will be looking to rebound from Divisional-round exits at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies in each of the last two play-offs.
The Mets atoned for last year’s 75-win season and hope to win their first post-season series since 2015.
MLB: Alonso's go-ahead, 3-run homer in 9th sends Mets to NLDS
Pete Alonso delivered a clutch, three-run homer off closer Devin Williams in the ninth inning and the New York Mets rallied for a wild 4-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday night to win their NL Wild Card Series.
The Mets' comeback victory in the decisive Game 3 gave them their first playoff series win since claiming the NL pennant in 2015. They advance to a Division Series beginning Saturday at rival Philadelphia against the NL East champion Phillies.
The Brewers, making their sixth playoff appearance in the last seven years, still haven't won a postseason series since reaching Game 7 of the NL Championship Series in 2018.
Milwaukee appeared to have the victory in hand after Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick broke a scoreless tie by opening the seventh inning with back-to-back homers off José Buttó. Tobias Myers and three relievers had combined on a two-hit shutout through the first eight innings.
Twelve straight Mets had been retired when they opened the ninth against Williams, a two-time NL reliever of the year who had earned the save Wednesday in Milwaukee’s Game 2 victory.
But Francisco Lindor opened the ninth by walking on a 3-2 pitch. After Mark Vientos struck out, Brandon Nimmo singled to put runners at the corners.
That brought up Alonso, who has 226 career homers in six seasons but hadn’t gone deep since Sept. 19.
After getting ahead 3-1 in the count, Alonso sent a 3-1 changeup over the wall in right field to give the Mets the lead.
Edwin Díaz pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief to earn the win and David Peterson, making his first relief appearance of the season, worked the ninth for his first major league save.
Tigers, Royals, Padres finish sweeps and Brewers even series
Andy Ibáñez hit a tiebreaking three-run double in Detroit's four-run eighth inning, and the Tigers finished a sweep of the Houston Astros with a 5-2 victory in Game 2 of their AL Wild Card Series on Wednesday.
Parker Meadows homered as Detroit ended Houston's run of seven consecutive appearances in the AL Championship Series. It was a sweet moment for Tigers manager A.J. Hinch, who led Houston to a championship in 2017 and was fired in the aftermath of the Astros' sign-stealing scandal.
Next up for the wild-card Tigers is a trip to Cleveland to take on the AL Central champions in a best-of-five AL Division Series. Game 1 is on Saturday.
Kerry Carpenter sparked Detroit's eighth-inning rally with a one-out single off Ryan Pressly, who converted his first 14 postseason save opportunities. Carpenter advanced to third on a single by Matt Vierling and scored on a wild pitch, tying it at 2.
Pressly departed after Colt Keith reached on a two-out walk, and closer Josh Hader walked Spencer Torkelson to load the bases.
Hinch then sent Ibáñez up to hit for Zach McKinstry, and Ibáñez lined a 1-2 sinker into the corner in left for a 5-2 lead.
Hader, who signed a $95 million, five-year contract with Houston in January, allowed three hits and walked two in 1 1/3 innings.
Detroit used seven different pitchers a day after ace Tarik Skubal won the series opener. Sean Guenther pitched 1 2/3 innings for the win in Game 2, and Will Vest handled the ninth for the save.
Just making it to the playoffs seemed improbable before Detroit went 31-13 down the stretch in the regular season.
Padres finish off Braves
Kyle Higashioka ignited a five-run second inning with a solo home run and the San Diego Padres held on for a 5-4 victory over the Atlanta Braves to complete a sweep of their NL Wild Card Series.
Manny Machado added a two-run double with the bases loaded, and Jackson Merrill followed with a two-run triple as the sellout crowd of 47,705 - the largest in Petco Park history - roared.
The Padres head up Interstate 5 to face Shohei Ohtani and the NL West rival and top-seeded Los Angeles Dodgers in a National League Division Series starting Saturday night. San Diego eliminated the 111-win Dodgers in a 2022 NLDS.
Jorge Soler hit a solo homer in the fifth and Michael Harris II had a two-run shot in the eighth, but Robert Suarez pitched a perfect ninth to seal the one-run victory.
Both starting pitchers exited early.
Atlanta left-hander Max Fried was done after two innings after he was hit on his left hip by a comebacker from Fernando Tatis Jr. two batters into the game. He stayed in and got out of a bases-loaded jam. He then allowed five runs on six straight hits with two outs in the second.
Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove departed in the fourth with right elbow tightness. He had two stints on the injured list this season with right elbow inflammation.
Royals complete sweep of punchless Orioles
Bobby Witt Jr. beat out an infield single to drive in the go-ahead run and send the Kansas City Royals into an AL Division Series with a 2-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles for a two-game sweep of their Wild Card Series.
With two outs and runners at the corners in the sixth inning, Witt hit a grounder to the edge of the dirt behind second base, where Jordan Westburg made a diving stop and threw to first. Witt was already there after zooming 90 feet in 4.14 seconds, allowing Kyle Isbel to score from third.
It was the second consecutive game in which the AL batting champion provided the decisive hit. Witt's RBI single Tuesday in Game 1 plated the only run in a 1-0 victory.
Kansas City, which endured two seven-game losing streaks over the final month of the season, advances to face the AL East champion New York Yankees. Game 1 is Saturday in the Bronx.
Baltimore got its only run of the series on Cedric Mullins’ fifth-inning home run off starter Seth Lugo.
Five Kansas City relievers allowed one hit over 5 2/3 scoreless innings, with Lucas Erceg working a perfect ninth for his second save of the series.
The Orioles went 1 for 13 with runners in scoring position in the series and struck out 22 times.
They have lost 10 straight postseason games for the longest active streak in baseball. Only three teams in MLB history have lost more postseason games in a row than the 2014-2024 Orioles.
Brewers rally to force Game 3
Jackson Chourio tied it in the eighth with his second homer of the night and Garrett Mitchell delivered a two-run shot later in the inning to give the Milwaukee Brewers a 5-3 victory over the New York Mets that evened their NL Wild Card Series.
The teams will play a decisive Game 3 on Thursday night. The Brewers will attempt to become the first team to rally to win a best-of-three Wild Card Series after losing the opener since MLB went to this expanded playoff format in 2022.
Milwaukee trailed 3-2 when Chourio led off the eighth by homering off Phil Maton, making his fourth appearance on the mound in five days. The 20-year-old rookie also opened the bottom of the first with a drive to right, becoming the youngest player to hit a leadoff homer in the postseason.
After Blake Perkins singled and William Contreras hit into a double play, Willy Adames kept the eighth inning alive with a single. Mitchell then sent a first-pitch curveball just over the wall in right-center to send the American Family Field crowd into a frenzy.
Joe Ross pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win and Devin Williams retired the side in order in the ninth to earn the save.
MLB: Tigers, Royals, Mets, Padres win playoff openers
Michael King matched a season high with 12 strikeouts over seven innings and Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a two-run homer on his first playoff swing in four years as the San Diego Padres defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-0 in an NL Wild Card Series opener on Tuesday night.
King was stellar in becoming the first pitcher to have 12 strikeouts with no runs and no walks allowed in his first career postseason start. He joined Kevin Brown and Sterling Hitchcock as the only Padres pitchers with double-digit strikeout games in playoff history. He allowed five hits and walked none.
Jason Adam struck out the side in the eighth and Robert Suarez pitched the ninth.
Tatis' 415-foot shot landed in the second deck in left field at Petco Park and sent the towel-waving, sellout crowd of 47,647 into a frenzy. The 25-year-old star, who missed just more than 2 1/2 months this season with a stress reaction in his right thighbone, watched the ball fly away, tossed his bat aside, gestured toward the home dugout and did his signature stutter-step around third base.
Game 2 in the best-of-three playoff is Wednesday night. If the Padres win the series, they'll face their biggest rivals, the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers, in the National League Division Series. The Padres eliminated the 111-win Dodgers in a 2022 NLDS.
Kyle Higashioka homered in the eighth and had a sacrifice fly in the second. He is 3 for 30 against Atlanta, with three homers.
The Braves clinched a playoff berth by winning the second game of a makeup doubleheader against the New York Mets on Monday in Atlanta. They are without NL Cy Young Award favourite Chris Sale for this series. The left-hander was scratched from the late game Monday with spasms.
Skubal pitches Tigers past Astros for 1-0 series lead
Tarik Skubal tossed six shutout innings in his postseason debut, and the Detroit Tigers held on to beat the Houston Astros 3-1 in Game 1 of their best-of-three AL wild-card series.
The win was the Tigers’ first in the playoffs since 2013.
Skubal, a heavy favourite to win the AL Cy Young Award, struck out six, allowing four hits and a walk in his first taste of the MLB playoffs.
Detroit scored all their runs with two outs in the second inning, with Jake Rogers, Trey Sweeney and Matt Vierling each hitting RBI singles off Houston starter Framber Valdez.
Valdez was saddled with the loss after allowing three runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings.
The Astros’ bats were held quiet for most of the afternoon until a ninth-inning rally that ultimately came up short.
Yordan Alvarez led off the ninth with a double before being subbed out for pinch runner Zach Denzenzo, who scored on a Yainer Diaz single off Jason Foley.
Beau Brieske entered with one out and walked the bases loaded before forcing Jason Heyward to line out to end the game.
Witt delivers as Royals blank Orioles
Bobby Witt Jr.’s RBI single off Corbin Burnes broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning, Cole Ragans pitched six strong innings, and the Kansas City Royals edged the Baltimore Orioles 1-0 in a wild-card Game 1.
The defeat extended Baltimore’s postseason losing streak to nine games, dating back to the 2014 ALCS against Kansas City.
Witt slapped a single into left field with two outs in the sixth inning, driving in Maikel Garcia for the game’s only run.
Witt spoiled an otherwise sterling performance from Burnes, who gave up five hits – all singles – over eight innings.
Ragans allowed four hits over six innings while striking out eight, throwing 60 of his 80 pitches for strikes.
Sam Long, Kris Bubic and Lucas Erceg allowed just one hit out of the bullpen over the game’s last three innings.
Cedric Mullins and Ramon Urias hit doubles for the Orioles, who managed just five hits.
Mets ride momentum to opening win
Mark Vientos highlighted a five-run fifth inning with a two-run single to lead the indefatigable New York Mets to an 8-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in an NL Wild Card Series opener.
The Mets didn’t earn a playoff berth until they rallied late from a three-run deficit to win the opening game of a makeup doubleheader in Atlanta on Monday, one day after the regular season was supposed to end.
Now they’re a win from heading to Philadelphia for an NL Division Series.
Since Major League Baseball went to the current postseason format in 2022 that features four best-of-three Wild Card Series, the Game 1 winner has gone on to advance in each of the eight series. Only one of those eight series even made it to a winner-take-all third game.
Milwaukee has lost 10 of its last 11 playoff games, a stretch that began with its Game 7 home defeat against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2018 NL Championship Series.
Jesse Winker and pinch-hitter J.D. Martinez each drove in two runs for the Mets. Winker, who batted .199 with a .567 OPS for the Brewers last year before bouncing back this season, drew a chorus of boos each time he batted and appeared to exchange words with Milwaukee shortstop Willy Adames after hitting a two-run triple in the second.
Luis Severino allowed four runs and eight hits over six innings and Jose Butto and Ryne Stanek combined to pitch three hitless innings with four strikeouts in relief.
Brice Turang had three hits and William Contreras had two hits and two RBIs for the Brewers.
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