The Cardinals captured a third consecutive NL Central title Wednesday while the Blue Jays claimed the AL East for the first time in 22 years.
Jon Jay, Jhonny Peralta and Jason Heyward combined to go 7 for 12, with seven RBIs and eight runs scored as the Redbirds notched their 100th win of the season, an 11-1 rout of the rival Pirates in Pittsburgh. They became the final division winner in the National League, joining the Mets (East) and Dodgers (West).
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Even though the Cards have been hit hard by injuries in recent weeks, they've earned home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. They're 55-26 at Busch Stadium this year. St. Louis is eyeing a fifth consecutive trip to the NLCS.
The Blue Jays also used a rout to clinch their division, topping the Orioles 15-2 in the first game of a doubleheader in Baltimore.
Ryan Goins' career-high five hits, combined with home runs from Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Justin Smoak, helped give the Jays an AL East title for the first time since 1993 — the year they repeated as World Series champions .
Led by a daunting lineup, the Jays are in position to clinch home-field advantage in the AL. Since the All-Star break, Toronto leads the majors in runs scored, home runs, RBIs and OPS. The trio of Josh Donaldson, Encarnacion and Bautista all have 30 or more homers, 100-plus RBIs and 90-plus runs scored.
Star performers
American League
Mike Trout went 3 for 3 with a home run, two walks and a stolen base in LA's 8-7 loss to the A's. The Halos' bullpen melted down in the seventh inning and allowed Oakland to take the lead for good. The loss , paired with the Astros' 7-6 win in Seattle, put LA a half-game back of Houston for the second wild card.
National League
Austin Jackson went 3 for 5 with five RBIs as the Cubs fed off a record-setting start by Jon Lester. The Cubs southpaw fired eight innings of one-run ball while striking out nine. With his strikeout of Ivan De Jesus Jr. in the fifth, Lester set the Cubs' franchise record for strikeouts in a season by a left-hander with 207.
Plays of the Day
MLB's Statcast tracked the exit velocity, launch angle and projected distance of home runs by the Rangers' Adrian Beltre and Mike Napoli against the Tigers.
Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright struck out the Pirates' Francisco Cervelli in his one-inning return from the disabled list. Wainwright had been out since April 25 after suffering a torn Achilles. The three-time All-Star will pitch exclusively out of the bullpen in the playoffs.
Key injuries
Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedes left Wednesday's game against the Phillies after being struck in the left hand by a pitch. The Mets announced that Cespedes had no broken bones, only contusions on his middle and ring fingers.
Royals outfielder Lorenzo Cain exited against the White Sox after fouling a pitch off his right knee. He is day to day.
Padres outfielder Justin Upton went head first into the side wall in left field at Petco Park while attempting to field a triple by the Brewers' Logan Schafer. Upton left the game, walking off with the help of a trainer.
A look ahead
Thursday's key games (all times Eastern):
Angels (83-75) at Rangers (86-72), 8:05 p.m.: The Angels' season will come down to a four-game series road against the AL West leaders. Trailing by three games in the division and a half-game for the final wild-card spot, the Angels will send 24-year-old lefty Andrew Heaney (6-3, 3.29 ERA) to the hill for Game 1. The Rangers will rely on left-hander Derek Holland (3-3, 4.99 ERA) as the club looks to lower its magic number in the West to 1.
Twins (82-76) at Indians (78-79), 7:10 p.m.: The Twins can move a half-game closer to idle Houston with a win over the Indians. Tyler Duffey (5-1, 3.14 ERA) will take the mound for the Twins, while Trevor Bauer (11-12, 4.69 ERA) will look to spoil the Twins' run to the postseason.