Playoff Lines Drawn as Divisions Tied Up

The Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers and Arizona Diamondbacks advanced to the playoffs on Friday by securing the final three divisional titles.

They join the New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies in the post season.

Rookie Paul Goldschmidt drove in two runs with his first Major League triple to lift the Diamondbacks to the National League West division title with a 3-1 win over the defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants.

We bring a guy from Double-A up here that gets the big hit to clinch it, Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said. That's significant because that's how important it is to have an organization on the same page.

Ryan Braun's three-run home run and spectacular defense carried Milwaukee to a 4-1 win over the Florida Marlins, and with the aid of the Chicago Cubs' 5-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, the Brewers clinched the National League Central division.

It's not my night -- it's our night, Braun said. It feels amazing. It's something we've all done together. You just recognize it, embrace it and realize how hard it is to get to this position.

With the score tied at 1-1 in the fifth inning Braun made a diving catch to steal a hit from Omar Infante and quickly got up and fired a strike to first base before Emilio Bonifacio could get back to the base for an inning ending double play.

Then in the eighth, Braun provided the fireworks with his bat, launching his 32nd home run to drive in the decisive runs.

The Texas Rangers repeated as the American League West division champions with a 5-3 win over the Seattle Mariners, helped by a 3-1 win by the Oakland A's over the Los Angeles Angels.

Texas hit three home runs, including Craig Gentry's first Major League homer -- a two run in-the-park shot that put the Rangers ahead 5-0 and put them out of reach.

He hit one in the perfect spot, Rangers manager Ron Washington said. He split the outfielders and did the rest with his legs. I think he slowed down a little bit so he wouldn't pass (Nelson) Cruz.

In the American League wildcard chase the pace setting Boston Red Sox tightened their grip on the final playoff spot despite being rained out against the Yankees.

The Tampa Bay Rays were beaten 5-1 by the Toronto Blue Jays to fall 2.5 games off the lead and the Angels' loss sends them 3.5 games back.

In the National League the Atlanta Braves beat the Washington Nationals 7-4 to extend their lead in the wildcard race to three games over the Cardinals and five over the Giants.