Francisco Lindor hit a grand slam in the sixth inning, his latest clutch swing in an extraordinary season full of them, and the New York Mets reached the National League Championship Series with a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday.
Edwin Díaz struck out Kyle Schwarber with two runners aboard to end it as New York finished off the rival Phillies in Game 4 of their best-of-five Division Series, winning 3-1 to wrap up a postseason series at home for the first time in 24 years.
Immediately to follow in a raucous clubhouse, the Mets’ first champagne-soaked clinching celebration in Citi Field’s 16-season history.
After three days of rest, New York will open the best-of-seven NLCS on Sunday at the San Diego Padres or Los Angeles Dodgers. San Diego held a 2-1 lead in their NLDS heading into Game 4 on Wednesday night.
For the NL East champion Phillies, who won 95 games and finished six ahead of the wild-card Mets during the regular season, it was a bitter exit early in the playoffs and a disappointing step backward after they advanced to the 2022 World Series and then lost Games 6 and 7 of the 2023 NLCS at home to Arizona.
After falling short again in October, Bryce Harper and the Phillies are still looking for the franchise’s third championship.
DODGERS 8, PADRES 0
Mookie Betts homered for the second straight night, Shohei Ohtani hit an RBI single and Los Angeles beat Dylan Cease and San Diego to force a deciding Game 5 in their tense NL Division Series.
Will Smith and Gavin Lux each hit a two-run homer for the Dodgers, who snapped a two-game losing streak and now return home for the next matchup between the NL West rivals on Friday night.
The Padres won 10-2 at Dodger Stadium in Game 2 on Sunday night, when tempers flared on the field and in the stands.
The winner will have home-field advantage in the National League Championship Series against the New York Mets, who eliminated the Philadelphia Phillies in their NLDS.
The Dodgers got a superb effort by opener Ryan Brasier and seven fellow relievers in a bullpen game, holding the Padres to seven hits and extending their scoreless streak to 15 innings. Evan Phillips, who got the win, retired Jurickson Profar, Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill on five pitches in the sixth.
YANKEES 3, ROYALS 2
Giancarlo Stanton hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning amid a battle of the bullpens, and New York beat Kansas City in Game 3 of their AL Division Series at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.
Stanton finished with three hits, drove in two runs and stole a base for the first time in four years for the Yankees, who will turn to six-time All-Star pitcher Gerrit Cole on Thursday night with a chance to reach the American League Championship Series.
The Royals used four relievers before Kris Bubic took over for the eighth. The left-hander struck out Austin Wells before Stanton hit his 3-1 pitch nearly 420 feet to left to give New York the lead.
The Royals tried to answer off Luke Weaver in the bottom half, getting Bobby Witt Jr.’s first hit of the series and a two-out single by franchise stalwart Salvador Perez. Weaver recovered to get Yuli Gurriel to fly out to end the threat, and he also handled the ninth to earn the save and cap 4 1/3 scoreless innings by the New York bullpen.
The Yankees won despite another frustrating night in the postseason for MVP front-runner Aaron Judge. He went 0 for 4 with a walk, and is now 1 for 11 with only an infield single through three games against the Royals.
It helped that the powerful Yankees drew nine walks Wednesday night, giving them 22 for the series.
TIGERS 3, GUARDIANS 0
Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson each drove in a run, and six pitchers combined to lift Detroit to a win over Cleveland and a 2-1 lead in their AL Division Series.
The Tigers, baseball’s hottest team the past two months, will have their first chance to advance in the playoffs since 2013 on Thursday night in Game 4 at Comerica Park in Detroit.
Cleveland has gone 20 straight innings without scoring since opening the series with a five-run first and a two-run sixth in its 7-0 win.
After AL Cy Young Award favorite Tarik Skubal helped Detroit shut out Cleveland in Game 2, manager A.J. Hinch put a stream of pitchers on the mound and kept the Guardians quiet at the plate.
Detroit reliever Will Vest entered with two on and two outs in the seventh and got David Fry to line out to Matt Vierling at third.
Fans were fired up all day, chanting “Let’s go Tigers!” before the first playoff pitch in Detroit since 2014, and 44,885 were in the stands for the largest crowd in Comerica Park’s 25-year history.
Right-hander Keider Montero retired the side in order in the first, and the previously slumping Greene hit a two-out RBI single in the home half.
Brant Hurter gave up five hits in 3 1/3 innings. Beau Brieske pitched two innings, and Sean Guenther got one out. Vest threw 1 1/3 innings before Tyler Holton handled the ninth.
