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Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros became the latest teams to win division titles, as the MLB regular season enters its final weekend. The Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies and the Astros beat the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday to clinch the crowns.
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Braves starting pitcher Ian Anderson allowed just three hits and two runs over six innings in a 5-3 win in Atlanta. The win gave the Braves (86-72) their fourth-consecutive National League East division title.
"Four in a row is hard," Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman told reporters. "I can't imagine those 1990s teams and how they did all that.
"This is a great feeling. ... This year had so many ups and downs and so many things could have derailed the season."
The Astros (93-66) edged the Rays 3-2 on Thursday in Houston. Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. allowed three hits and two runs over six innings to improve to 13-5 in 2021. Carlos Correa hit a three-run homer in the fourth to lead the Astros to the victory.
"He just is never out of big hits or big moments on this team," McCullers told reporters, when asked about Correa.
"We're going to rely on [Correa], we're going to rely on a lot of these guys, but especially him to get us through October."
The Astros finished second in the American League Central last season. They've won the division in four of the past five seasons.
The Astros face the Chicago White Sox in Game 1 of an American League Division Series next week in Houston or Chicago. The Astros can earn home field advantage in the series with one win or a White Sox loss in the final three games.
The Astros are the fifth different team manager Dusty Baker has led to a division title.
"It's very special, especially when I was called back out of retirement and got a great group of guys and a great team," Baker told reporters. "These guys are so together. That's what I like more than anything."
The Rays will finish the season with the most wins in the American League and earned the top seed throughout the playoffs.
They host the winner of the one-game American League Wild Card matchup. The New York Yankees sit in the top spot in the American League Wild Card chase. The Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays are tied for the second spot entering the weekend.
The Toronto Blue Jays are a game behind of the final American League playoff slot.
The Braves face the Milwaukee Brewers next week in a National League Division Series. The Brewers, who won the National League Central, own home-field advantage in that series.
The San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers are in a battle for the National League West title. One of those teams will earn the top Wild Card slot in the National League. The other will earn the No. 1 seed in the National League and host the winner of the Wild Card Game in the NLDS.
The two NLDS winners advance to the National League Championship Series. The winners of the ALDS advance to the American League Championship Series.
The winners of those respective series meet in the World Series, which starts Oct. 26.
The Braves host the New York Mets in their final series of the regular season. First pitch is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. EDT Friday in Atlanta. The Astros host the Oakland Athletics in their final series. First pitch is at 8:10 p.m. EDT Friday in Houston.
