The Los Angeles Dodgers are the only Wild Card team to sweep their series, as the New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, and Cleveland Guardians all forced a Game 3!
Dodgers 8-4 Reds
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched a gem after he settled down from a two-run first inning that gave the Cincinnati Reds an early 2-0 lead.
After loading the bases in the top of the sixth with no outs, Yamamoto recorded three straight outs to maintain his team's 3-2 lead.
He finished the game with nine strikeouts in 6.2 innings and allowing two walks, all while setting a career high with 113 pitches.
The Dodgers' bats caught fire in the bottom of the sixth inning to give Yamamoto some comfort room.
Relief pitcher Alex Vesia was also able to get out of a bases-loaded jam as the Reds failed to execute yet again in the top of the eighth inning.
LA's Japanese rookie star Roki Sasaki closed things out with a 1-2-3 top of the ninth as the Dodgers advanced to the National League Division Round, where the Philadelphia Phillies await them.
Mookie Betts led the Dodgers in hitting, going 4-for-5 with one run, three RBI, three doubles, and one single. Teoscar Hernandez recorded two RBI on a 1-for-5 night, while Shohei Ohtani and Miguel Rojas both had one.
Sal Stewart led the Reds in batting after going 2-for-4 with two singles and three RBI. Cinci as a whole went 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position, and the Dodgers 6-for-18.
Yankees 4-3 Red Sox
After the Yankees took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning thanks to a Ben Rice home run, Boston's Trevor Story launched his first postseason home run since 2017 to tie it all up 2-2 in the top of the third.
Aaron Judge would give the Yankees a 3-2 lead with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth. But, yet again, Story homers to tie the game up 3-3.
It wasn't until the bottom of the eighth inning that the Yankees' Austin Wells lined one down the first baseline to score the speedster Jazz Chisholm Jr. all the way from first base to take the lead en route to a Game 2 win.
Chisholm also had a diving infield stop that prevented the Red Sox from scoring what would've been their fourth run of the game.
He couldn't get the runner out at first, but the team managed to get the red-hot Story, who sent one 400 feet to centerfield, out with the bases loaded.
Boston went with six bullpen arms after starting pitcher Brayan Bello went just 2.1 innings, giving up two earned runs on four hits with no strikeouts.
Yankees starter Carlos Rodon went six innings, giving up three earned runs on four hits, walking three and striking out six.
Closer David Bednar, who the Yankees acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates at the trade deadline, recorded the save.
New York finished the game 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position, while the Red Sox went 1-for-7.
Padres 3-0 Cubs
The Cubs were held to just three hits as the Padres' pitching staff pitched a combined shutout.
Starting pitcher Dylan Cease went 3.2 innings, giving up the Cubs' only hits of the game while striking out five and walking one.
Relief pitcher Mason Miller came in and dominated after he recorded six straight strikeouts dating back to Game 1. He left after 1.2 innings with no hits and five strikeouts.
Miller's 104.5 miles per hour fastball was the fastest in postseason pitch track history (since 2008).
After a Jackson Merrill sacrifice fly in the top of the first inning to go up 1-0, third baseman Manny Machado added some insurance with a two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning.
Machado went hitless in Game 1 and came back this time around to keep his team alive in the playoffs as Game 3 will be played tomorrow on October 2nd.
Guardians 6-1 Tigers
In a battle of pitching, the Guardians came out victorious thanks to a pair of solo home runs from George Valera in the bottom of the first inning and Brayan Rocchio in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Daniel Schneemann added some insurance with an RBI double in an inning where the bats came to life after doing almost nothing in the postseason up to that point.
Then, Bo Naylor, who had been hitless, launched a three-run home run to open up the floodgates in Cleveland.
It left the Guardians going a simple 2-for-3 with runners in scoring position while the Tigers went a brutal 1-for-15.
The Tigers initially went up 2-1 in the top of the fourth inning.
But after a bang-bang play at third base that was originally called safe, the Guardians reviewed the play and the official ruling was reversed.
Tigers baserunner Zach McKinstry was ruled out before the second runner crossed home plate to end the inning - leaving it at 1-1.
Guardians starting pitcher Tanner Bibee finished the game, going 4.2 innings, giving up one run on five hits, paired with six strikeouts and three walks.
Detroit took out starter Casey Mize after just three innings of work, with his only hit given up being the homer to Valera in the first. But reliever Troy Melton couldn't make it out of the eighth inning after Cleveland teed off on him.
Guardians No. 2 prospect Chase DeLauter was called up for the game and finished 0-for-2 with a walk.