Astros get some help to win AL West title
The Houston Astros rallied to clinch their third straight AL West title, beating the host Arizona Diamondbacks 8-1 on Sunday behind Christian Javier's six strong innings and Alex Bregman's two-run, first-inning homer.
Needing a win and a Texas loss to win the division, the Astros did their part by jumping on Kyle Nelson (7-4) from the first pitch. Houston had a 5-0 lead after two innings and Javier (105) held an Arizona lineup mostly devoid of everyday players to three hits.
José Abreu added a two-run homer as Houston clinched its sixth AL West title in seven years after the Rangers lost to Seattle.
Houston and Texas both finished with 9072 records, but the Astros claimed the division crown by winning the season series 9-4.
MARINERS 1, RANGERS 0 >> George Kirby allowed three hits in six innings, and Seattle blanked visiting Texas.
A day after clinching the ninth postseason berth in franchise history, Texas only needed a win over the Mariners to wrap up the AL West.
Kirby (13-10) struck out seven and needed just 75 pitches to get through six innings.
PIRATES 3, MARLINS 0 >> Miguel Andujar hit a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning and host Pittsburgh beat playoff-bound Miami.
The Marlins needed to win to assure themselves of gaining the second NL wild card and the fifth seed in the playoffs over Arizona. But the Diamondbacks' loss gave Miami the fifth seed and a matchup at Philadelphia.
NATIONALS 10, BRAVES 9 >> Marcell Ozuna went deep twice and Atlanta tied the major league season record of 307 home runs but lost its regular-season finale to visiting Washington.
The Braves matched the record set by the 2019 Minnesota Twins.
FORMER PITCHER WAKEFIELD DIES >> Tim Wakefield, the knuckleballing workhorse of the Red Sox pitching staff who helped Boston win its curse-busting World Series title in 2004, has died. He was 57.
The Red Sox announced his death in a statement Sunday that detailed not only his baseball statistics but a career full of charitable endeavors. Wakefield had brain cancer, according to ex-teammate Curt Schilling, who outed the illness on a podcast last week.
Wakefield won 200 major league games, including 186 with the Red Sox — behind only Cy Young and Roger Clemens in franchise history.
SHOWALTER OUT AS METS MANAGER >> The New York Mets fired manaher Buck Showalter after a disappointing season in which baseball's highest-spending team tumbled from contention by midsummer.
New York finished 74-87 and 291/2 games behind NL East champion Atlanta.
Showalter, 67, took over in December 2021 and led the Mets to a 101-61 record last season, when he was voted NL Manager of the Year.