Righty Lance Lynn struck out nine in six innings and was aided by homers from David Freese and Matt Holliday as the Cardinals clinched the National League Central title with a 7-0 win over the Cubs on Friday night.

Homer Bailey struggled and the Reds were stymied by A.J. Burnett in Friday’s 4-1 loss to the Bucs that dropped Cincinnati two back in the battle for home field in the NL Wild Card Game.

A five-run first keyed a 12-3 slugfest victory over the Orioles on Friday night, and Boston’s magic number is one for the American League’s top seed.

The Cardinals built their 2013 club with every intention to contend and every expectation that they’d be spraying champagne in September. The thrill of the latter was experienced on Friday night after St. Louis clinched the National League Central with its 7-0 win over the Cubs at Busch Stadium.

Gates Brown, who was a key member of the Tigers’ 1968 World Series championship team and a Major League legend as a pinch-hitter who was a Detroit icon long after his playing days were done, passed away on Friday at age 74.

With one year remaining on Robin Ventura’s three-year contract, general manager Rick Hahn left little doubt Friday that Ventura would be back managing the White Sox in 2014.

After managing the Mariners to a 212-271 record over three seasons, Eric Wedge told the club on Friday he will not be returning next year.

The Marlins on Friday afternoon announced that they were relieving president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest of his duties, effective immediately.

It figures to be nearly impossible for Mariano Rivera to top the emotional farewell he experienced on Thursday at Yankee Stadium, which creates an interesting dilemma for the Yankees as they visit the Astros for this weekend’s season-ending series.

After X-rays and a re-evaluation on Thursday, the Cardinals are listing Allen Craig as doubtful for the National League Division Series, should the club clinch the NL Central title this weekend.

The Rangers’ path to a potential American League Wild Card berth was thrown a curveball on Friday when it was announced that Texas’ game on Saturday against the AL West rival Angels would start earlier than any game in Rangers Ballpark’s history.

Kings of Leon, Alicia Keys, Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello and John Mayer are set to rock the Great Lawn of New York’s Central Park for Global Citizen Festival 2013 on Saturday, from 4-9:30 p.m. ET with a live stream on Fuse.TV and Fuse’s YouTube channel being powered by Major League Baseball Advanced Media.

Closer Jim Johnson, one of several arbitration-eligible Orioles who will be getting a big raise in this winter, will be offered a contract for 2014, executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette said Friday.

With two games separating the Rays, Indians and Rangers for the two American League Wild Card spots, Major League Baseball on Friday announced the procedure it would use if the clubs are tied at the end of the season.

An ominous forecast for the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex led the Rangers to push up the start time of Saturday’s crucial home game against the Angels from 7:05 p.m. CT to 11:05 a.m.

With only one weekend left and only one race playing out under October-or-bust implications, the final innings of the 2013 regular season approach. As always, there’s a good dose of suspense with the 2,430-game marathon drawing to a close and an opportunity for a World Series title up for grabs as the Pulse of the Postseason ticks toward October.

With the four starting infielders back in the lineup Thursday night, the Dodgers scored half as many runs as they did the night before without them, so go figure. A 3-2 loss to the Giants means the Dodgers most likely will open the playoffs on the road regardless of the opponent.