Season isn’t over just yet
The playoff-bound Colorado Rockies are headed to Los Angeles for a tiebreaking game to decide the NL West title after routing the Washington Nationals, 12-0, yesterday in Denver behind Charlie Blackmon’s cycle.
Tied atop the division with the Dodgers entering the last day, the Rockies won for the ninth time in 10 games, while Los Angeles routed San Francisco to send the season to Game 163.
The one-game tiebreaker will be today at Dodger Stadium, and the loser goes to the Chicago Cubs or Milwaukee for tomorrow’s wild card game.
Nolan Arenado hit two of the Rockies’ five homers and took over the National League lead with 37, one more than teammate Trevor Story — who also went deep. Colorado (9171), is trying for its first division title.
Blackmon finished off his first career cycle and the ninth in Rockies history with a double in the eighth.
Dodgers 15, Giants 0 — Justin Turner and freeswinging Los Angeles headed for a one-game showdown against Colorado, jumping on host San Francisco from the start in a win for a weekend sweep.
Walker Buehler was set to start for the Dodgers (91-71) as the defending NL champions try for a sixth straight West title.
Cubs 10, Cardinals 5 — Anthony Rizzo had four hits and scored three times, and host Chicago set up a tiebreaker game for the NL Central title.
Jorge De La Rosa worked a hitless ninth inning to move the Cubs back into a tie with the Brewers at 95-67. Chicago hosts Milwaukee this afternoon, and the winner gets a spot in the division series and home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. The loser plays again tomorrow night, hosting the runnerup in the NL West in the wild card game.
Brewers 11, Tigers 0 — Triple Crown contender Christian Yelich and host Milwaukee advanced to an NL Central tiebreaker against Chicago with its seventh straight win.
Yelich is hitting .323 in his first season with Milwaukee, locking up the first batting title in Brewers’ history.
Yelich has 109 RBI, tied with Colorado’s Nolan Arenado and two behind leader Javier Baez of the Cubs. Yelich’s 36 home runs are tied with Colorado’s Trevor Story and St. Louis’ Matt Carpenter, one behind Arenado.
The tiebreakers are considered game No. 163 of the regular season, meaning Yelich’s stats — and those of Arenado and Baez — from today’s game will count in the totals. The last NL player to win the Triple Crown was Joe Medwick in 1937 for the Cardinals.
American League
Indians 2, Royals 1— Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer combined for a five-hitter, Francisco Lindor homered and scored twice, and Cleveland won in Kansas City.
Carrasco (17-10) was working with a limited pitch count in a tuneup before an anticipated start in Game 2 of the American League Division Series against Houston on Saturday. Manager Terry Francona confirmed Corey Kluber will start Game 1.
The Royals announced a one-year extenstion for manager Ned Yost.
Angels 5, Athletics 4 — Taylor Ward hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the ninth to help Los Angeles rally past Oakland in Mike Scioscia’s finale after 19 seasons as Angles manager.
The A’s (97-65) will face the Yankees in New York in the AL wild card game on Wednesday.