MLB Playoff Picture: 3 things to know from Saturday
Every night, we look around Major League Baseball and identify three things you need to know about the playoff races. Here's what happened Saturday:
Nationals celebrate good times
The Washington Nationals won the National League East division crown on Saturday by virtue of defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 and the New York Mets losing 10-8 to the Philadelphia Phillies. It's the third division title for the Nationals in five seasons, and comes one year after a dramatic end to their 2015 campaign which featured a dugout brawl between Bryce Harper and Jonathan Papelbon and ended with the dismissal of manager Matt Williams. The Dusty Baker-led Nationals secured their 90th win on Saturday, which is already seven more than a season prior.
Orioles take back WC after Tigers collapse
The back-and-forth in the American League for the second wild-card spot continued on Saturday after the Baltimore Orioles past the Detroit Tigers for the highly sought-after position. The Orioles received a near complete-game shutout from left-hander Wade Miley against the Arizona Diamondbacks, while Tigers closer Francisco Rodriguez coughed up a two-run lead, allowing a five-run ninth to the Kansas City Royals in a costly Detroit loss. K-Rod was clearly embarrassed he let his team down, judging by his postgame comments. "Painful. Disgusting. Shame. Everything. This one's on me, big time," the veteran told reporters. Detroit fell a half-game back of Baltimore with the loss.
Division on ice
Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers did their parts on Saturday, decimating the Colorado Rockies in a one-sided 14-1 contest thanks to an explosive offense and seven shutout innings from their ace. Unfortunately, just when it looked like the San Francisco Giants were going to blow a lead to the San Diego Padres, extra-inning heroics from Kelby Tomlinson and Denard Span spoiled their rivals' dream of taking home the NL West crown. With the Dodgers' magic number now sitting at one, they could take home the pennant with a win over the Rockies or a Giants loss on Sunday.
If the playoffs started today:
SERIES | AWAY | HOME |
---|---|---|
AL WC | Orioles | Blue Jays |
NL WC | Giants | Mets |
ALDS | BAL or TOR | y-Rangers |
ALDS | Indians | x-Red Sox |
NLDS | SF or NYM | z-Cubs |
NLDS | Dodgers | y-Nationals |
x - clinched playoff berth
y - clinched division
z - clinched division and best record in league
Race to clinch the division:
Division | TEAM | MAGIC # |
---|---|---|
AL EAST | Red Sox | 3 |
AL CENTRAL | Indians | 2 |
AL WEST | Rangers | Clinched |
NL EAST | Nationals | Clinched |
NL CENTRAL | Cubs | Clinched |
NL WEST | Dodgers | 1 |