ST. LOUIS -- Kyle Hendricks took a no-hitter into the ninth inning before giving up Jeremy Hazelbaker's leadoff home run, and the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-1 Monday night to close in on the NL Central crown.
Hazelbaker drove an 0-2 pitch into the right-field stands for his 12th homer this season. Hendricks, the major league ERA leader, was relieved by Aroldis Chapman.
"Just left that one up right there. What are you going to do?" Hendricks said.
Ben Zobrist and Dexter Fowler homered for the Cubs, who lowered their magic number to three for clinching the division crown. They lead the second-place Cardinals by 17 games.
Soon after Hazelbaker's shot cleared the fence, teammates went to the mound to talk to Hendricks -- leading to an argument between Cubs manager Joe Maddon and plate umpire Joe West.
Maddon was ejected, and Chapman came in (see full recap).
Latos leaves with injury as Nats pound Mets
WASHINGTON -- Starting pitcher Mat Latos hit a solo home run and Antony Rendon added a three-run shot as the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-1 on Monday.
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Latos had a solid first start with the Nationals, but left the game with one out in the fifth inning when he appeared to injure his right leg.
The 28-year-old signed a minor league deal with Washington in June after the Chicago White Sox released him.
In his first big league start since June 7, Latos allowed three hits and one run with three walks and four strikeouts as the Nationals earned their fourth straight win. Reynaldo Lopez (3-3) was among three relievers to combine for 4 2/3 scoreless innings.
The Nationals increased their lead over the Mets to 10 games in the Nationals League East - matching their largest cushion of the season - and reduced their magic number to nine to clinch their third division title in five years (see full recap).
Tempers flare in Blue Jays' win over Rays
TORONTO -- The Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto cleared the benches and bullpens after the Blue Jays wrapped up a 3-2 win Monday night, ending the skirmish without throwing any punches.
Steven Souza Jr. hit a flyball for the final out, and appeared to be upset at the way closer Roberto Osuna celebrated the victory. Souza spoke with Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin before leaving the field.
Ezequiel Carrera connected for a tiebreaking, pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning. Jose Bautista added a two-run homer as the Blue Jays improved to 3-7 in September. They began the day tied with Baltimore in the AL wild-card race.
Jason Grilli (5-3) pitched one inning and Osuna got his 32nd save.
Carrera replaced Darwin Barney to face incoming reliever Brad Boxberger (3-1). Carrera homered on the right-hander's first pitch (see full recap).
