Cubs win 98th

Jake Arrieta almost certainly won’t win a second consecutive NL Cy Young Award. He likely won’t be the No. 1 or 2 postseason pitcher for the loaded Chicago Cubs, either, but he showed Friday he can still dominate. Arrieta struck out 10 in seven innings and the Cubs beat the sloppy St. Louis Cardinals 5-0 for their 98th victory, the most since they last played in the World Series in 1945.

NATIONAL LEAGUE CUBS 5, CARDINALS 0

CHICAGO — Jake Arrieta struck out 10 in seven innings Friday, and the Cubs beat the sloppy St. Louis Cardinals 5-0 for their 98th victory, the most since they last played in the World Series in 1945.

“A lot of the time more effort creates some inconsistencies in my delivery,” Arrieta said. “Trying to do more than I have to. I had several outs today where I took my foot off the gas and I was at 60-70 percent and got nice, easy groundballs to second base or shortstop.”

Manager Joe Maddon said Arrieta looked “familiar” when he struck out the side on 11 pitches in the first inning, a reference to his 22-win 2015 season that included a 1.77 ERA. Arrieta said “competitiveness and stubbornness” have been the reasons his walks, hits and runs are up from a year ago.

“We’ve been hyper-critical of him all year based on what he did last year,” Maddon said. “But to his credit, I think he’s handled that very well.”

With veteran Miguel Montero back catching him, Arrieta (18-7) allowed five hits and walked one. Anthony Rizzo had three hits and Ben Zobrist drove in two runs as the Cubs tied a team record with their 56th home win. BLUE JAYS 9, YANKEES 0 Francisco Liriano and three relievers combined on a three-hitter, Troy Tulowitzki had four RBIs and the Toronto routed New York to maintain a one-game lead in the AL wild-card standings.

METS 10, PHILLIES 5 Michael Conforto hit a three-run homer that capped a six-run rally in Friday’s games NATIONAL LEAGUE Chicago Cubs 5, St. Louis 0 Pittsburgh 6, Washington 5, 11 innings Atlanta 3, Miami 2

NY Mets 10, Philadelphia 5 Milwaukee 5, Cincinnati 4 Colorado at LA Dodgers, (n)

San Francisco at San Diego, (n) AMERICAN LEAGUE Toronto 9, NY Yankees 0 Boston 2, Tampa Bay 1 Cleveland 10, Chicago White Sox 4 Detroit 8, Kansas City 3

LA Angels 10, Houston 6 Seattle 10, Minnesota 1

Texas 3, Oakland 0 INTERLEAGUE Baltimore 3, Arizona 2, 12 innings

the fifth inning, Hansel Robles gave a big boost from the bullpen and the New York Mets beat Philadelphia to stay atop the NL wild-card race.

BREWERS 5, REDS 4 Chris Carter homered, Ryan Braun delivered a late clutch hit and the Milwaukee Brewers turned their second triple play of the season in a victory over the Cincinnati Reds. PIRATES 6, NATIONALS 5, 11 INNINGS

Rookie Jacob Stallings’ pinch-hit single in the 11th inning lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates over Washington, preventing the Nationals from clinching a postseason berth. AMERICAN LEAGUE

RED SOX 2, RAYS 1 David Ortiz hit a tworun homer in the first inning to set the RBIs record for a player in his final season, and the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox beat the Tampa Bay Rays for their ninth straight victory.

INDIANS 10, WHITE SOX 4 Jose Ramirez hit a two-run homer and drove in four runs, and Cleveland beat Chicago to move a step closer to the AL Central title. BRAVES 3, MARLINS 2 Adonis Garcia hit a tiebreaking single in the ninth inning, and Atlanta beat Miami for its season-high seventh straight win.

ANGELS 10, ASTROS 6 Yunel Escobar hit a two-run homer and pinch-hitter Rafael Ortega had three RBIs during a six-run ninth inning, lifting the Los Angeles Angels over the Houston Astros.

MARINERS 10, TWINS 1 Robinson Cano had four hits and two RBIs, and Nelson Cruz added a towering two-run homer among his four RBIs as the struggling Seattle Mariners’ offense got back on track in a victory over the Minnesota Twins to stay on pace in the American League wild card race. RANGERS 3, ATHLETICS 0 Adrian Beltre hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning and the Texas Rangers secured their second straight AL West title, becoming the first American League team to clinch a playoff spot with a win over the Oakland Athletics.

INTERLEAGUE ORIOLES 3, DIAMONDBACKS 2, 12 INNINGS Mark Trumbo led off the 12th inning with his major league-leading 44th home run, and the Baltimore Orioles rallied from a late tworun deficit to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks.