Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Trevor Megill is congratulated by catcher William Contreras after the Brewers defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates in a baseball game, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jacob Misiorowski struck out seven in five shutout innings and the Milwaukee Brewers won their their fourth straight National League Central title with a 5-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.

Milwaukee trimmed its magic number to claim the division to one. The Brewers could wrap up it up later Tuesday if the Chicago Cubs lose to Atlanta.

The flamethrowing Misiorowski (15-5) dropped his ERA to major league-best 1.89 and boosted his season strikeout total to 243. Nine of the towering right-hander’s first 10 pitches topped 100 mph and he worked around five hits — all singles — to win his fourth straight decision.

Joey Ortiz and Luis Lara drove in two runs each for the Brewers, who have become postseason fixtures for the last decade but are still seeking the franchise’s first World Series appearance since 1982. Swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers last season’s NL Championship Series, Milwaukee has qualified for the postseason for the eighth time in nine years.

The Brewers took the lead early against opener Lake Bachar (1-4) in a sequence that symbolizes the approach that’s helped them carry the major leagues’ best record for much of the season. Jake Bauers led off with a single, moved to second on a groundout, advanced on a wild pitch and scored on Lara’s sacrifice fly.

That was enough for Misiorowski, who exited after throwing 82 pitches — 43 at 100 mph or more — to strengthen his grasp on his first Cy Young Award.

DODGERS 4, REDS 0

CINCINNATI (AP) — Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed one hit through seven innings as Los Angeles beat Cincinnati to edge closer to an NL West division title.

The Dodgers reduced the magic number to clinch their 13th division title in the past 14 seasons to two. Los Angeles wrapped up a playoff spot on Monday and still is vying for the top seed in the NL.

Cincinnati is assured of a non-winning season after its 81st loss.

Yamamoto (14-8) made his team-high 27th start and allowed only a third-inning double to Elly De La Cruz, after which he retired 10 straight. He walked two and struck out seven. It was the second straight game a Dodgers starter went seven scoreless after Tarik Skubal on Monday.

Dodgers pitching recorded its 12th shutout of the season. The Reds were blanked for the 17th time.

Freddie Freeman returned to the Dodgers lineup after missing three of the past five games with right knee soreness and had three singles in five at-bats. Freeman was 3 for 30 coming into Tuesday.

Josue De Paula batted leadoff for the first time in just his fifth career game for the Dodgers and went 0 for 5 with a strikeout. He’s 2 for 14 since his callup.

NATIONALS 6, PHILLIES 3

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pinch-hitter Daylen Lile hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in the seventh inning, and Washington defeated Philadelphia.

Andrés Chaparro also homered for Washington, which won its fourth in a row for the first time since June 13-16.

Kyle Schwarber hit his majors-leading 45th homer for Philadelphia, which has dropped four of five but continues to hold an NL wild-card spot.

With the game tied at 3-all, Phillies starter Cristopher Sánchez (17-6) surrendered consecutive singles to open the seventh before Nasim Nuñez bunted both runners over. Philadelphia interim manager Don Mattingly summoned Jonathan Bowlan, and Lile hammered his first pitch to center for his first career pinch homer.

Sánchez allowed five runs and struck out five. He is 1-2 with a 6.87 ERA in three September starts, and his season ERA has risen from 2.52 to 2.93 since the start of the month.

Richard Lovelady (3-4) got the last out of the seventh and two in the eighth for Washington. Erik Tolman pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save.

RAYS 2, ATHLETICS 1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Junior Caminero hit his second game-ending homer in four games, an opposite-field liner leading off the ninth inning that gave Tampa Bay a victory over the Athletics.

Caminero hit the third pitch from Elvis Alvarado (5-4) just inside the foul pole in right. It was the AL-leading 41st homer this season for 23-year-old, who hit his first career walk-off homer to beat Houston on Friday.

Bryan Baker (3-2) pitched a perfect ninth for the Rays, who’ve won four in a row and are an MLB-best 35-17 since July 20.

Chandler Simpson, who began the night five points behind leader AL batting leader Yordan Alvarez of Houston, had half of the Rays’ six hits. Continuing his pursuit of a batting crown, Simpson went 3 for 3, raising his average to .308, and scored after reaching on a second-inning double.

The left fielder also made a sliding catch to rob Shea Langeliers in the ninth.

Simpson leads the AL in singles (143), triples (six) and stolen bases (41). He looks to join Maury Wills (1962), Snuffy Stirnweiss (1944), George Sisler (1922) and Ty Cobb (1911 and 1917) as the only players since 1900 to lead a league in all three categories.

GUARDIANS 7, WHITE SOX 6

CLEVELAND (AP) — Brayan Rocchio came through again, hitting a two-run double with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a comeback win over Chicago that tightened the AL Central race.

With runners at second and third, Rocchio, who has seven career walk-off plate appearances, hit a fly toward the left-field corner off Grant Taylor (7-3) that just eluded a diving try by outfielder Sam Antonacci.

When the ball hit the turf, Rocchio flung his helmet in the air and Cleveland’s dugout emptied onto the field to celebrate. Rocchio has developed a knack for late-season heroics with four of his walk-off hits coming in September.

The Guardians’ rally moved them within a half game of the first-place White Sox. The teams will play the series finale on Wednesday. The White Sox, who lost at least 100 games in each of the past three seasons, have held at least a share of first since July 4.

Rookie Travis Bazzana hit a pair of homers for Cleveland. Closer Cade Smith (6-1) got five outs — on just 16 pitches — and should be available Wednesday.

Jo Adell and Bazzana hit back-to-back homers in the first inning for the Guardians, who couldn’t capitalize on their early 3-0 lead and fell behind before coming up with a victory that kept their division title hopes alive.

Down 4-2, the White Sox scored four in the sixth with Miguel Vargas delivering his two-out single.

TIGERS 10, BLUE JAYS 1

TORONTO (AP) — Spencer Torkelson hit a three-run homer, Drew Anderson pitched five shutout innings and Detroit won its sixth straight game by thumping Toronto.

The Blue Jays have lost six of nine. Toronto fell two games behind Cleveland in the race for the final American League wild card after the Guardians rallied in the ninth to beat the Chicago White Sox 7-6.

The Tigers are 4 1/2 games behind Cleveland, with three teams in between.

Anderson (5-6) allowed two hits, both singles. He struck out four and walked three for his first win since beating Kansas City in relief on July 23.

Torkelson went 2 for 4 with a walk and three RBIs. He stole a base and scored three runs.

Torkelson’s 24th homer was a 379-foot drive off Michael Lorenzen (3-13) in the fourth. Lorenzen permitted five runs and four hits in two innings.

Max Clark had two hits and two RBIs, and Kevin McGonigle drew three of Detroit’s eight walks.

Tigers infielder Hao-Yu Lee hit a solo homer, his ninth, off Joe Mantiply in the ninth.

YANKEES 8, TWINS 1

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Max Fried earned his first victory since April 27, backed by home runs from Cody Bellinger and Spencer Jones that helped New York keep pace in the AL East race with a win over Minnesota.

Fried (5-4) allowed one run over seven smooth innings and 88 pitches, logging his longest start in almost five months to ensure the Yankees (88-63) stayed 3 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay (91-59) for the division lead. The Yankees, who clinched at least a wild card spot on Monday, will need Fried to keep this up in the postseason.

Fried, who spent 71 games on the injured list over two stints for a bone bruise in his elbow, has a 1.83 ERA with 50 strikeouts over 44 1/3 innings in nine starts after the All-Star break.

Bellinger, who had three hits and a walk, quickly got the Yankees going with his 16th homer, a two-run drive after Ben Rice began the game with a single off Bailey Ober (7-6). Bellinger is batting .377 (26 for 69) in his last 17 games.

Jones hit his 10th home run with two outs in the sixth, a three-run shot against Taylor Rogers. A fielding error by rookie shortstop Kaelen Culpepper made all four runs in the inning unearned.

New York has 11 players with 10 or more homers this season.

ASTROS 4, ROYALS 2

HOUSTON (AP) — Jeremy Peña homered in his first two at-bats and Yordan Alvarez slugged his 39th home run to lead Houston to a win over Kansas City.

The Astros, who entered the day leading the AL West by one game over the Texas Rangers, got back on track after a three-game sweep by Tampa Bay over the weekend.

Peña hit Michael Wacha’s first pitch over the wall in left-center field for his first homer since Aug. 30.

There was one out in the third when he connected off Wacha (9-9) again, a shot to the seats in left to make it 2-0 and give him a fifth career multi-homer game.

The Astros led by one when Peña singled with two outs in the fifth. Alvarez followed with his soaring longball to right field. His 39 homers are a career best and trail the Rays’ Junior Caminero by two for the AL lead.

AJ Blubaugh and Bryan Abreu each threw a scoreless inning before Josh Hader allowed one hit in a scoreless ninth to close it out and collect his 26th save.

Houston starter Hunter Brown (6-3) allowed two hits and a run while tying a season high with 10 strikeouts in five innings.

GIANTS 10, CARDINALS 3

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Bryce Eldridge hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, lifting San Franciso to a victory over St. Louis.

Eldridge is hitting .343 (36 for 105) with 28 RBI in his last 28 games.

Christian Kross and rookie Turner Hill each added two hits and drove in two runs, helping the Giants snap a four-game losing streak. Hill hit his first career home run in the ninth.

Alex Burleson hit a two-out homer, his 23rd of the season, in the first inning. He has driven in league-leading 111 runs.

Blade Tidwell (1-2) allowed two runs on three hits over 6 2/3 innings. Since his Aug. 4 recall, the Giants are 2-6 in his eight starts, with both wins coming against the Cardinals.

Andre Pallante (12-7) lasted five innings, allowing eight hits and eight runs, six earned. He had allowed just one run or less in four of his last five starts.

BRAVES 6, CUBS 3

CHICAGO (AP) — Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies and Drake Baldwin hit late-inning, two-run homers, and Atlanta rallied to beat Chicago.

Chicago’s loss clinched Milwaukee’s fourth straight NL Central title. The Cubs (84-68) maintained a half-game lead over Philadelphia (83-68) for the top NL wild card.

NL East-leading Atlanta (89-63) opened a 5 1/2-game NL East lead over the second-place Phillies.

Given a 3-0 lead, Cubs starter Kevin Gausman retired 16 of his first 18 batters.

Acuña homered off Gausman in the sixth to pull the Braves within a run. Albies went deep in the seventh off Jacob Webb (6-5), his eighth home run in 23 games at Wrigley Field, and Baldwin connected in the ninth against Edward Cabrera.

Martín Pérez (9-9) allowed three runs — two earned — five hits and four walks in six innings. Raisel Iglesias pitched a perfect ninth for his 33rd save in 36 chances.

ORIOLES 7, METS 5, 11 INNINGS

NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso launched his 300th career home run Tuesday night, a tying shot in the ninth inning against his former team, and Coby Mayo’s inside-the-park homer in the 11th sent Baltimore to a victory over New York.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Jeremiah Jackson also went deep for the Orioles (74-78), who stayed three games behind Cleveland for the last American League playoff spot.

Mayo snapped a 4-all tie with a three-run homer in the 11th. He connected on an 0-2 pitch from Jonathan Pintaro with two outs and sent a long drive to center field that glanced off rookie A.J. Ewing’s glove as he crashed into the fence.

The ball rolled away from Ewing as he fell to the ground, allowing Mayo to circle the bases and score standing up.

RANGERS 4, RED SOX 2

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out eight in five innings, Corey Seager had a two-run single and Texas beat Boston in a series opener between playoff contenders.

All-Star closer Jacob Latz, the fourth Texas reliever, got the five outs for his 30th save in 33 chances after deGrom (11-9) needed 92 pitches while giving up two runs. Latz struck out pinch-hitter Andruw Monasterio with the bases loaded to end the eighth.

Texas (75-76) stayed within one game of AL West-leading Houston (76-75) after the Astros also won Tuesday. The Rangers moved ahead of Toronto (75-77), which lost to Detroit, to stay within 1 1/2 games of Cleveland (77-75) for the third and final wild card.

Boston (82-69) is second in the wild-card race, 5 1/2 games ahead of the Guardians.

Red Sox starter Patrick Sandoval (1-6) struck out his first four batters but was done after allowing four runs in 2 2/3 innings. The left-hander struck out five and walked two.

Elias Díaz hit a two-run double into the left-field corner with two outs in the second to put Texas ahead. Sandoval walked the next two batters and Seager’s high popup tipped off the extended glove of shortstop Trevor Story in short left as the Rangers extended the lead to 4-0.

ROCKIES 9, PADRES 3

DENVER (AP) — Cole Carrigg homered twice on a 4-for-5 night, Troy Johnston had three hits and two RBIs, and Colorado defeated San Diego to end an eight-game losing streak.

It was the first career multi-homer game for Carrigg, the 24-year-old rookie who finished a triple shy of the cycle and whose three-run shot to right field capped a five-run sixth inning that gave Colorado a four-run lead.

The loss snapped an eight-game win streak for the Padres, who entered 2 1/2 games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final National League wild-card spot.

After relieving Rockies starter Kyle Freeland in the top of the fifth, Ryan Feltner (6-10) gave up just five hits and struck out five batters in five scoreless innings.

TJ Rumfield had two hits for Colorado to extend his on-base streak to 20 games.

ANGELS 2, MARINERS 1

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Johnson pitched six strong innings, Josh Lowe hit a tiebreaking home run and Los Angeles beat Seattle.

Vaughn Grissom had an RBI double and Johnson (5-8) gave up one run on six hits with seven strikeouts and no walks. He won consecutive starts for the first time in his career.

Julio Rodríguez had an RBI double for the Mariners and Logan Gilbert allowed two runs on six hits over six innings. Gilbert (12-10) fanned seven in his first outing since becoming the first Seattle pitcher with double-digit strikeouts in consecutive starts since 2018.

The Mariners (70-82) dropped their third straight game, clinching their first losing record in a full season since 2019. They also had a losing mark during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

MARLINS 4, DIAMONDBACKS 2, 11 INNINGS

PHOENIX (AP) — Esteury Ruiz hit a three-run double in the 11th inning to lift Miami over Arizona, dealing a major blow to its playoff hopes.

The D-backs could have gained a game in the National League wild-card race after the San Diego Padres lost to Colorado, but instead remained 2 1/2 games back for the final playoff spot with 10 remaining.

With two outs in the 11th, Ruiz ripped a sinker from reliever Taylor Clarke (2-4) deep into the left-center gap, scoring Otto Lopez, Jared Serna and Kyle Stowers. It was just the Marlins’ fifth hit of the night.

The D-backs nearly won the game in the 10th inning, but Geraldo Perdomo was thrown out at home by Serna on a grounder to second base by Ryan Waldschmidt.

Arizona left 15 runners on base.

Miami’s Josh Ekness (2-3) pitched two innings to earn the win. Arizona’s Ketel Marte had an RBI double with two outs in the 11th to cut the deficit to 4-2, but Gabriel Moreno grounded out to end the game.

D-backs right-hander Michael Soroka gave up one run over five innings, striking out six, including five in a row during the second and third innings.

News from © The Associated Press, 2026