LOS ANGELES — Things are coming down to the wire all over baseball, and while Seattle and the Dodgers are pretty much playing out the string, resting guys, and polishing up regular season stats, the rest of baseball is engaged in a Battle Royale for the final positions in the Dance. Here’s what happened on Saturday to get you up to date:
Reds 7, Brewers 4 (Milwaukee)
Cincinnati landed the haymaker in a six-run third, turning a scoreless game into a 6–0 lead. Miguel Andújar jump-started it with a ringing double, Sal Stewart followed with an RBI single, Ke’Bryan Hayes beat out a dribbler for another run, and T.J. Friedl capped the frame with a two-RBI single that turned into three runs when the ball skipped away in left. Rookie lefty Andrew Abbott (5.1 IP, 3 ER) wasn’t spotless, but he pounded the zone and let his defense work. Milwaukee clawed back on Jackson Chourio’s solo blast and late RBI from Jake Bauers and Brice Turang, but the Reds’ pen (Nick Martinez for two zeroes, Emilio Pagán’s 32nd save) steadied it. Stewart’s 6th-inning solo shot re-established breathing room and loomed large when the Brewers pushed in the 6th. Bottom line: the Reds handled a first-place club on the road, kept the WC edge over the Mets, and forced both teams into a Game-7 mentality on Sunday.
Mets 5, Marlins 0 (Miami)
New York played grown-up October baseball: jump early, pitch fearlessly, suffocate late. Francisco Lindor drew a walk and scored on Pete Alonso’s 114.5 mph laser double in the first; two innings later Alonso ambushed a mistake for his 38th homer. Jeff McNeil’s two-out RBI double in the sixth (after another Alonso knock) pushed it to 3–0, and the Mets tacked on insurance in the ninth to remove all doubt. The star behind the curtain: Cody Holmes (6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R), who mixed speed changes and kept the ball on the ground (11 groundouts) while Miami finished 0-for-3 with RISP. The bridge—Brooks Raley, Tyler Rogers, Edwin Díaz—was airtight (3 IP, 0 H, 0 R). It’s exactly the kind of low-stress road win that keeps pressure on Cincinnati and ensures both clubs will empty the tank on getaway day.
Twins 5, Phillies 0 (Philadelphia)
An upset with bracket implications. Byron Buxton opened with a leadoff homer, James Outman crushed a 436-foot solo shot in the fifth, and Ryan Fitzgerald added a seventh-inning solo to pace Minnesota’s three-homer shutout. Mick Abel (6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 9 K) looked every bit the top prospect, attacking the zone and dodging the few threats the Phillies mustered (Philly finished 0-for-3 with RISP and struck out 13 times). Ranger Suárez was nicked for nine hits and three runs in 4.1, and the Twins kept piling quality at-bats—11 hits, five different RBI men—while the visitors’ bullpen (Ohl, Funderburk) closed it down. The loss effectively ends the Phillies’ long-shot chase for MLB’s best record; Milwaukee now controls home field throughout.
What it means for the Dodgers
- Wild Card unchanged: Reds still hold the edge over the Mets, so both will treat Sunday like a Game 7. That should leave whichever team flies to L.A. on Tuesday with a thinner pitching deck—useful in a best-of-three.
- Top seed tilt: With Philly losing, Milwaukee sits atop MLB and has the inside lane to home-field throughout. If the Dodgers advance, a Phillies/Dodgers NLDS opening in Philadelphia on Saturday night grows more likely.
- Game 1 tea leaves: No official Dodgers starter yet, but Shohei Ohtani threw a bullpen today—strong sign he’s being lined up for Tuesday’s opener.
- AL chaos watch: Yankees and Blue Jays are tied in the East (Toronto holds the tiebreaker). Guardians and Tigers are tied in the Central (Guardians hold the tiebreaker). Plenty still to settle on Sunday.
First things first: win Tuesday. Let the Reds and Mets spend bullets tomorrow, and meet whoever walks into Chavez Ravine with fresh arms and a clear plan.
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