Phillies sweep Marlins to earn NL Division Series rematch with MLB-best Braves
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bryson Stott crushed the second grand slam in Philadelphia Phillies postseason history and Aaron Nola tossed seven shutout innings in a performance worthy of a postseason ace that led to a 7-1 win and a two-game sweep over the Miami Marlins in their NL Wild Card Series. The Phillies advanced to an NL Division Series rematch against Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson and the Braves. Game 1 in the best-of-five set is Saturday in Atlanta. J.T. Realmuto also homered for the Phillies.
Diamondbacks erase early deficit again and beat Brewers 5-2 to sweep NL Wild Card Series
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Zac Gallen settled down after a shaky start and Arizona’s bullpen stepped up at the very end, helping the Diamondbacks sweep their NL Wild Card Series against the Milwaukee Brewers with a 5-2 victory in Game 2. Just two years after suffering through a 110-loss season, Arizona moved into the franchise’s first NL Division Series since 2017. The Diamondbacks will take on the NL West champion Dodgers in the opener of their best-of-five series on Saturday in Los Angeles. The NL Central champion Brewers have dropped nine of their last 10 playoff games, a stretch that started with their Game 7 home loss to the Dodgers in the 2018 NL Championship Series.
Twins advance for 1st time in 21 years with 2-0 win to sweep Blue Jays behind Gray, Correa
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Twins swept the Toronto Blue Jays in their AL Wild Card Series with a 2-0 win in Game 2. Sonny Gray pitched five effective innings and Carlos Correa contributed an RBI single and a quick-twitch tag off a pickoff throw from Gray that ended the fifth. The Twins advanced for the first time in 21 years. They will play the defending World Series champion Astros. Game 1 of the best-of-five AL Division Series is in Houston on Saturday. Twins relievers logged 7 1/3 scoreless innings in the series. The Blue Jays left nine runners on base each game.
Rangers beat Rays 7-1 for Wild Card Series sweep behind Garcia and Carter home runs
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Adolis García and Evan Carter homered to back Nathan Eovaldi, and the Texas Rangers beat the punchless Tampa Bay Rays 7-1 to finish a two-game AL Wild Card Series sweep. Garcia and Carter, a 20-year-old rookie who became the second-youngest postseason player in franchise history, homered off 16-game winner Zach Eflin, who was unable to save Tampa Bay’s season. Texas advanced to a Division Series at AL East champion Baltimore starting Saturday. The Rays’ scoreless streak reached 33 innings, one shy of the postseason record held by the 1966-74 Los Angeles Dodgers, before Curtis Mead’s RBI single in the seventh.
