CINCINNATI: The New York Mets clinched the National League East title and their first playoff berth since 2006 by beating Cincinnati 10-2 on Saturday, with Lucas Duda hitting his first career grand slam.

The Mets moved 8-1/2 games ahead of Washington, which has only eight games to play, and became the fourth team to secure a spot in the NL playoffs.

In the American League, Toronto also booked a place in the postseason and defeated Tampa Bay. The Blue Jays are assured of at least a wild-card berth and remained four games clear of the New York Yankees atop the AL East with eight to play.

Elsewhere, Pittsburgh beat the Chicago Cubs to open a 5-1/2 game gap between the two teams that seemed destined to face off in the wild-card game. The Pirates remain three games behind NL Central leader St. Louis, which defeated Milwaukee.

Houston beat Texas to trim the gap between the AL West's top teams to 3-1/2 games and boost the likelihood that the ultimate loser of that race will at least have the consolation of a wild-card berth.

The Mets quickly got on top at Cincinnati, with Duda hitting his four-run shot in the first inning off left-hander John Lamb (1-4).

New York starter Matt Harvey (13-7) ensured that early advantage was not threatened. It was fitting that he was the pitcher in the win that clinched the sixth division title in Mets history. He was the NL's starter for the 2013 All-Star game, but missed all of last season with injury.

Toronto's Jose Bautista hit two home runs as the Blue Jays beat Tampa Bay 10-8, celebrating an end to a 22-year absence from the playoffs.

Just a few hours after learning the Blue Jays ended their postseason drought thanks to their main competitors' overlapping schedules, Bautista hit a three-run homer and Russell Martin added a two-run drive in a five-run first inning.

Toronto starter David Price (18-5) won for ninth time in 11 starts. Despite giving up five runs in five innings, he maintained his AL ERA lead at 2.45.

Pittsburgh's Francisco Liriano pitched 7-2/3 scoreless innings to guide the Pirates to a 4-0 win against the Chicago Cubs and their eighth straight victory.

Liriano (12-7) struck out nine for Pittsburgh, which now leads Chicago by 5-1/2 games for the top wild card with a chance to complete a weekend sweep on Sunday.

The Pirates then open a three-game series Monday against St. Louis, the team they trail by 3 games in the NL Central.

St. Louis maintained that buffer with a 5-1 victory over Milwaukee, with Jaime Garcia pitching eight dominant innings with the aid of a big early runs cushion.

Matt Holliday had a pair of RBI doubles, and Kolten Wong's two-run single capped a four-run first inning.

Garcia (10-5) allowed one run, retiring 10 in a row at one point. He struck out eight with no walks and reached double figures in victories for the first time since 2011.

Houston set a season high with six home runs in a vital 9-7 win against Texas.

Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve hit two homers apiece while Chris Carter and Colby Rasmus also cleared the fences as the Astros ended a run of eight-straight defeats at the hand of their state rival.

The result cut the gap between the two teams to 3 1/2 games while the Astros stayed 1-1/2 games ahead of Minnesota for the second wild-card spot.

Cleveland stayed in that wild-card race with a 9-5 win at Kansas City, with Carlos Santana driving in three runs.

Yan Gomes homered for the Indians, who moved above a .500 winning percentage for the first time since April 9.

The Indians may have left their run too late, as they stayed three games behind Houston.

The New York Yankees beat the Chicago White Sox 2-1 to keep up their playoff ambitions.

Chase Headley and Alex Rodriguez hit consecutive run-scoring doubles in the sixth inning for the Yankees, who stayed within four games of Toronto in the AL East and 4-1/2 games ahead of Houston for the home-field wild-card.

Adam Warren (7-7) won for the first time in two months and combined with his bullpen to limit the White Sox to three hits.

Los Angeles' David Freese led off the ninth inning with a homer to lift the Angels to a 3-2 win against Seattle, keeping pace in the AL wild-card race.

Freese connected off Danny Farquhar (1-5) as the Angels stayed half a game behind Houston for the second wild-card spot.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Dodgers missed another chance to close on the NL West title as they lost 8-6 at Colorado when Carlos Gonzalez hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Dodgers are seven games ahead of San Francisco with eight to play.

Minnesota kept pace in the tight AL wild-card race with a 6-2 win at Detroit, as Eduardo Escobar homered and drove in three runs.

Boston further dented Baltimore's slim playoff hopes by beating the Orioles 8-0, with long-time reliever but first-time starter Craig Breslow combining with six relievers on the shutout.

San Diego's Robbie Erlin pitched seven scoreless innings to steer the Padres past Arizona 3-0.

San Francisco rookie Jarrett Parker became the first Giants player with at least three homers and seven RBIs in a game since Willie Mays in 1961, helping secure a 14-10 win against Bay rival Oakland.

Washington was mathematically eliminated from playoff contention despite winning 2-1 against Philadelphia on Bryce Harper's 12th inning double.

Miami's Justin Bour hit a two-run homer in a 6-2 win as the Marlins beat Atlanta for the sixth straight time.