CHICAGO (AP) — Paul Goldschmidt hit a tiebreaking double in the ninth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals clinched a playoff spot by rallying past the Chicago Cubs 3-2 on Sunday for their first four-game sweep at Wrigley Field in almost a century.

NL Central-leading St. Louis qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2015 and stayed three games ahead of Milwaukee. It was the fifth consecutive win for the Cardinals, who came back for a 9-8 victory Saturday on consecutive homers by Yadier Molina and Paul DeJong against Craig Kimbrel in the ninth.

The time, Chicago manager Joe Maddon sent a dominant Yu Darvish (6-8) back to the mound for the ninth to go for his first complete game since 2014. But the result was the same in the Cubs’ fifth consecutive one-run loss. Pinch hitter José Martínez sparked the winning rally with a leadoff triple that glanced off the glove of diving center fielder Albert Almora Jr. Dexter Fowler followed with a sacrifice fly, tying it at 2.

After rookie Tommy Edman singled and stole second, Goldschmidt hit a grounder down the third-base line to put the Cardinals in front for good in the Cubs’ rainy home finale. Miles Mikolas pitched 7 2/3 innings of two-run ball and Tyler Webb (2-1) got the last out of the eighth for the win. Andrew Miller worked the ninth for his sixth save.

Nicholas Castellanos hit his career-high 27th homer for Chicago (82-74), which dropped four games back of the Brewers for the second NL wild card. The Cubs finished with a 51-30 home record after losing their losing their last six games of the year at Wrigley.

It was the first four-game series sweep for St. Louis (89-67) at Chicago’s famed ballpark since May 1921.
Castellanos also scored the first run of the game when he scampered home on Yadier Molina’s passed ball in the first. But DeJong tied it with his 29th homer, a massive drive to Waveland Avenue in the third.
It was still tied when Castellanos led off the sixth with a drive to center for his 16th homer in 49 games since he was acquired in a July 31 trade with Detroit.

The Cubs were without Kris Bryant for most of the day after the slugger sprained his right ankle trying to beat out a double play in the third. X-rays taken at the ballpark were negative. The announced attendance was 38,606, bringing the season total at Wrigley to 3,094,865. The Cubs’ attendance last year was 3,181,089, but that included a crowd of 38,450 for the Cubs’ NL Central tiebreaker loss to the Brewers.

UP NEXT
Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (13-9, 3.83 ERA) starts the opener of a three-game series at Arizona on Monday night. Wainwright is 4-0 in September, allowing one earned run in 27 innings. LHP Alex Young (7-4, 3.27 ERA) pitches for the Diamondbacks.
Cubs: Following an off day, Chicago begins a three-game set at Pittsburgh on Tuesday night. The team hasn’t announced its starting pitchers for the series. RHP Mitch Keller (1-5, 7.74 ERA) pitches for the Pirates in the opener.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs won a showdown between two of the NFL’s top offenses. The Ravens made them work for it until the very end. Mahomes threw for 374 yards and three touchdowns in another dazzling performance, Kansas City held quarterback Lamar Jackson in check most of the rain-soaked afternoon, and the Chiefs held on for a 33-28 victory over Baltimore on Sunday. LeSean McCoy and Darrel Williams combined for 116 yards rushing and a score in place of the injured Damien Williams, while the Chiefs (3-0) stopped the Ravens three times on 2-point attempts.

The last came after Jackson scrambled for a touchdown with 2:01 to go. The conversion would have gotten the Ravens (2-1) within a field goal, but Jackson was shoved out of bounds short of the pylon. Baltimore tried to get the ball back with a rare dropkick, but the Chiefs calmly called for a fair catch. Then they converted on third down moments later to run out the clock.
Mark Ingram was the Ravens’ biggest bright spot, running for 103 yards and a trio of touchdowns while catching four passes for 32 yards. Jackson finished with 267 yards passing and 46 rushing, most of that when he was trying to rally the Ravens from a big halftime hole.

The Chiefs scored four times in the second quarter for the second consecutive week, this time getting three touchdowns and Harrison Butker’s 42-yard field goal to take a 23-6 lead. They scored four TDs in the second quarter last week in Oakland. The Ravens actually scored first on Ingram’s touchdown plunge, then they took points off the board when a penalty gave them a shorter try at the conversion. Jackson was stuffed at the goal line in what would become a recurring theme for Baltimore all afternoon.

McCoy, hobbled by a sore ankle all week, gave Kansas City the lead with a touchdown run early in the second quarter. Then, after the Ravens’ turnover on downs, Mahomes lofted a pass to the corner of the end zone that Robinson caught with an incredible one-handed stab. That highlight was joined by another on the Chiefs’ next possession, when the Ravens blew the coverage and Mecole Hardman was open downfield. The rookie hauled in the heave from Mahomes, then used his 4.3-second 40-yard-dash speed to sprint 83 yards to the end zone.

Ingram sandwiched two more touchdown runs around Mahomes’ third touchdown toss in the second half, and the second one got Baltimore within 30-19 with 12:22 to go. But the Ravens again tried for the 2-point conversion and again came up empty, leaving them in an 11-point hole. That could have loomed large when Justin Tucker added a field goal. Instead, Williams ripped off a 41-yard run, the Chiefs picked up a couple more first downs, and Butker hit a 36-yard field goal that ultimately put the game out of reach.
INJURIES
Ravens: CB Jimmy Smith (knee) and S Brynden Trawick (elbow) were inactive.
Chiefs: McCoy aggravated his sore ankle on his touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. WR Tyreek Hill (collarbone), RB Damien Williams (knee) and LT Eric Fisher (groin) were inactive.
UP NEXT
Baltimore: returns home to face Cleveland next Sunday.
Kansas City: on the road for the third time in four weeks Sunday at Detroit.