Dodgers top Brewers with three-run fifth
LOS ANGELES — Clayton Kershaw struck out 13 while delivering eight innings of three-hit ball, Mookie Betts hit a two-run double in the fifth and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Brewers 3-0 to sweep their NL wild- card series on Thursday night.
The eight-time West champion Dodgers advanced to the NL Division Series in Arlington and will play either the St. Louis Cardinals or San Diego Padres, who meet in a deciding Game 3 on Friday.
Kershaw’s strikeouts were a playoff career high and the most by a Dodgers pitcher in the postseason since his mentor Sandy Koufax had 15 in Game 1 of the 1963 World Series against the Yankees. Kershaw issued his lone walk to Luis Urias in the eighth and promptly picked him off when a diving Urias couldn’t get back to the bag. The Brewers lost their challenge of the call.
Austin Barnes singled with two outs to set up Mookie Betts, who doubled sharply down the third-base line. The ball rolled into the left-field corner and three runs scored to chase Woodruff.
Woodruff allowed three runs and five hits in 42⁄
3 innings. The righthander struck out nine against no walks. As he was leaving the game, Woodruff shouted expletives and gestured angrily in the direction of plate umpire Quinn Wolcott, who tossed him.
Brusdar Graterol pitched the ninth to earn the save for the Dodgers, with veteran closer Kenley Jansen watching from the bullpen.
Slugger Ryan Braun sat out the game with a strained oblique that he originally injured last weekend and re-aggravated crashing into the right field wall in a 4-2 loss in Game 1 on Wednesday.
PADRES 11, CARDINALS 9
Fernando Tatis Jr. and Wil Myers each hit two home runs and Manny Machado also connected for host San Diego, which rallied to beat St. Louis to force a deciding Game 3 in their NL wild- card series.
The Padres are the first team in postseason history with five home runs from the sixth inning onward in a game.
After striking out with the bases loaded in the fourth, Tatis homered in consecutive innings and drove in five runs.
Myers hit a go-ahead leadoff shot in the seventh off losing pitcher Daniel Ponce de Leon and a tworun homer in the eighth.
Game 3 will be Friday, and both staffs figure to be strapped after the clubs combined to use 17 pitchers.
Tatis hit a three-run homer with two outs in the sixth and Machado followed with a tying shot.
Genesis Cabrera opened the sixth by walking Nola and rookie Jake Cronenworth before striking out Trent Grisham and making way for Giovanny Gallegos. Tatis lined a 2-2 pitch into the left-field seats to pull the Padres to 6-5. Machado followed by lining a 3-2 pitch to leftcenter to tie it.
Emilio Pagan got the win and former Cardinals pitcher Trevor Rosenthal pitched the ninth for the save.
Kolten Wong homered and drove in four runs for the Cardinals, who led 6-2 in the sixth.
Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright allowed two runs and six hits before being chased after 31⁄
3 innings. He struck out three and walked two.
Yadier Molina, appearing in his NL-record 100th postseason game, hit an RBI single in the first and added his 100th career postseason hit in the ninth before being lifted for a pinch-runner.
Paul Goldschmidt homered in the ninth, his second this series.
BRAVES 5, REDS 0
Ian Anderson dazzled in another shutout performance for host Atlanta, and the Braves won a playoff series for the first time in almost two decades by sweeping lighthitting Cincinnati.
Ronald Acuna Jr. had three hits for the NL East champions, including a run-scoring double in the fifth. After winning Wednesday’s series opener 1-0 in 13 innings, Atlanta broke open Game 2 on two-run homers by Ozuna and Duvall off Raisel Iglesias in the eighth.
Anderson struck out nine in six innings as the Braves snapped their record-tying string of losses in 10 consecutive postseason rounds since their last playoff series win in 2001.
Atlanta will face Miami or the Chicago Cubs in the NL Division Series in Houston.