ST. LOUIS — Michael Morse circled the bases for a grand slam after taking an imaginary swing, and the Washington Nationals cut their magic number for winning the NL East to one Saturday night, beating St. Louis 6-4 on Kurt
ST. LOUIS — Michael Morse circled the bases for a grand slam after taking an imaginary swing, and the Washington Nationals cut their magic number for winning the NL East to one Saturday night, beating St. Louis 6-4 on Kurt Suzuki’s two-run double in the 10th inning.
The Nationals were forced to wait at least another day when second-place Atlanta won.
St. Louis’ magic number for clinching the second NL wild-card spot remained at three.
The Nationals opened the game with a blast, and a bit of comedy.
Morse’s drive with the bases loaded cleared the wall but caromed back onto the field, sending runners and fielders scurrying. The umpires reviewed the ball on replay and confirmed it was indeed a grand slam.
The umps ordered all runners to retrace their steps and Morse back to the plate. He mimicked his swing minus a bat, then made his trip around the bases.
DODGERS 3, ROCKIES 0
LOS ANGELES — Matt Kemp homered twice, Joe Blanton pitched shutout ball into the seventh inning, and the Dodgers climbed within two games of the second NL wild-card spot with a victory over the Rockies.
The Dodgers’ fourth straight victory, coupled with St. Louis’ 10-inning loss to Washington, kept the Dodgers clinging to their postseason hopes with four games left.
After this weekend, Los Angeles finishes up with a three-game series against NL West champion San Francisco. The defending World Series champion Cardinals close out the regular season with a three-game set at home against Central champion Cincinnati.
BREWERS 9, ASTROS 5
MILWAUKEE — Marco Estrada struck out 11 in eight shutout innings, Corey Hart homered twice, and the Brewers beat the Astros.
The Brewers began the day barely in the playoff race, a year after they reached the NL championship series. Any Milwaukee loss or St. Louis win would mean elimination.
Hart drove in four runs to back Estrada (5-7), who won for the third time in four starts. The right-hander allowed only four singles and a walk after giving up six earned runs in just four innings against Washington in his last outing.
Houston hit three home runs in the ninth to score five times off reliever Livan Hernandez. Fernando Martinez and Brian Bogusevic hit two-run homers and Tyler Greene added a solo shot.
BRAVES 2, METS 0
ATLANTA — Mike Minor pitched 6 1/3 sharp innings to win his fifth straight decision, Martin Prado and Jason Heyward each had an RBI, and the Braves beat the Mets.
Chipper Jones, who played his next-to-last regular-season game at Turner Field, was hitless in four at-bats.
Craig Kimbrel earned his 41st save of in 44 chances with a scoreless but shaky ninth.
The Braves began the night four games behind Washington in the National League East. If they don’t win the division, the Braves will host a wild-card playoff game next Friday.
PIRATES 2, REDS 1
PITTSBURGH — Andrew McCutchen hit a solo home run off Jonathan Broxton with one out in the ninth inning, lifting the Pirates over the Reds.
A day after getting no-hit by Cincinnati’s Homer Bailey, the Pirates won with eight hits.
McCutchen’s 31st homer helped Pittsburgh keep a record 20th consecutive losing season at bay for at least a day. The All-Star hit a 2-2 fastball from Broxton (4-4) a couple rows deep in right-center before getting mobbed at home plate by his teammates.
PHILLIES 9, MARLINS 5
MIAMI — Roy Halladay survived a shaky opening inning, Jimmy Rollins had three hits and scored three times, and the Phillies beat the Marlins.
Chase Utley drove in three runs and Carlos Ruiz added a two-run double for the Phillies, who evened their record at 79-79 with four games left.
Halladay (11-8) allowed six hits and four runs, striking out seven and walking three in five innings.
DIAMODNBACKS 8, CUBS 2
PHOENIX — Trevor Cahill threw a four-hitter in his third career complete game, Justin Upton drove in three runs, and the Diamondbacks added to Chicago’s futility in the NL West with a victory over the Cubs.
Cahill (13-12), 4-1 in his final five starts of the season, struck out a season-high nine and walked three. He was two outs shy of his third career shutout when Alfonso Soriano hit his 32nd home run of the season in the ninth.
PADRES 7, GIANTS 3
SAN DIEGO — Chase Headley hit his 30th home run and had three RBIs to tie Ryan Braun for the NL lead with 112, and the Padres beat Buster Posey and the NL West champion Giants.
