Reds catch Mets for final NL wild card as D-backs bow out

Cincinnati edged Milwaukee 3–1 connected Friday portion Miami bushed New York 6–2, leaving the Reds and Mets level for the National League’s last wild-card berth. The Reds clasp the head-to-head tiebreaker, a important borderline with 2 games left. Arizona’s 7–4 nonaccomplishment to San Diego removed the Diamondbacks from contention and sharpened the absorption connected a two-team sprint. The opposition successful trajectories is striking: New York opened 45–24 connected June 12 and has gone 37–54 since, portion Cincinnati has seldom been much than 7 games implicit .500 yet keeps hanging around. “Obviously, I deliberation we tin commencement to consciousness it a small bit, but astatine the aforesaid time, we’ve got to instrumentality attraction of business,” near fielder Gavin Lux said. “We’re not determination yet still. We’ve conscionable got to support trying to triumph each transportation and instrumentality it crippled by game.”

Veteran guidance, existent nerves

The Reds person not won a postseason crippled since 2012 oregon a bid since 1995, nevertheless they present thin connected voices accustomed to precocious stakes, specified arsenic two-time World Series champion Lux and manager Terry Francona, who led Boston to the 2004 rubric and took Cleveland to Game 7 successful 2016. Francona, backmost successful a dugout this twelvemonth aft clip distant for wellness reasons, did not fell the tension. “This is arsenic breathtaking arsenic it gets,” helium said. “To not admit that you’re nervous, I deliberation that would beryllium wrong. I’m tense arsenic hell.” On the different side, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza summed up the urgency: “We’ve got to triumph the adjacent 2 and spot what happens.”

The Brewers hurdle that inactive looms

Cincinnati’s contiguous task remains acquainted and unforgiving: the Brewers. The Reds person dropped 13 consecutive bid against Milwaukee, a tally that has shadowed their playoff pushes. Reliever Tony Santillan embraced the moment. “It’d beryllium benignant of the cleanable clip to bash it,” helium said. “Season connected the line, bushed them, triumph against them and beforehand to the postseason by beating them.”