Jayson Werth’s walk-off home run off Lance Lynn leading off the bottom of the 9th sends Washington to a 2 – 1 win over St. Louis in the other NLDS. The Nats score once in 7 innings against starter Kyle Lohse, on a 2nd-inning homer by Adam LaRoche, while his opponent Ross Detwiler limits the Cards to an unearned run in 6 innings. Three relievers then follow with a scoreless inning each for Washington, with Drew Storen ending up the winner.

For the first time since the divisional playoffs began in 1995, all four series will go the distance to a Game 5 when both the Nationals and Orioles knot their respective series against the Cardinals and Yankees. Washington and Baltimore join the A’s and Giants, who also forced a decisive game with victories over the Tigers and Reds in yesterday’s LDS games.

The Giants complete a tremendous comeback by defeating the Reds, 6 – 4, in Game 5 of the NLDS, completing a three-game sweep in Cincinnati after losing the first two games at home. A 5th-inning grand slam by Buster Posey off Mat Latos is the key blow, capping a six-run outburst.

Pinch-hitting for a struggling Alex Rodriguez in the bottom of the 9th, Raul Ibanez homers off Orioles closer Jim Johnson to tie the score. Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s bold move pays off twice, as Ibanez homers again against Brian Matusz in the 12th inning to give New York a 3 – 2 walk-off victory in Game 3 of the other ALDS. Baltimore had taken a 2 – 1 lead on homers by rookies Ryan Flaherty and Manny Machado off Hiroki Kuroda, until Ibanez turns the game’s tide.

St. Louis takes a 2 games to 1 lead in the NLDS with an 8 – 0 shutout of Washington. Chris Carpenter, who has only pitched 17 innings this season after sustaining an injury in spring training, pitches 5 2/3 innings for the win. Matt Holliday has three hits and Pete Kozma hits a three-run homer off Edwin Jackson to lead the Cards’ offense.

The Giants force a fifth game in the other NLDS with an 8 – 3 win over Cincinnati. Having collected only 12 hits over the first three games of the Series, they bang out 11 today, including 8 for extra bases as they pound the Reds into submission. Tim Lincecum is the winner in relief of an ineffective Barry Zito, besting Mike Leake, who is activated before the game to replace injured ace Johnny Cueto. Angel Pagan, Gregor Blanco and Pablo Sandoval all homer for San Francisco.

The Reds can’t shake off the Giants in Game 3 of the NLDS, allowing a pair of runs on a sacrifice fly in the 3rd and a passed ball and error in the 10th inning to lose, 2 – 1. The loss negates a great effort by P Homer Bailey, who allows one hit over 7 innings and strikes out 10. San Francisco gets only three hits all night. Ryan Vogelsong gives up a 1st-inning run for the Giants, but then settles down, and the bullpen is airtight as well, allowing San Francisco to hold on until they win the game in extra frames.

The Athletics avoid elimination with a 2 – 0 win over the Tigers in Game 3 of the ALDS. Brett Anderson pitches 6 shutout innings in returning to the mound after a twenty-day injury layoff, setting the tone for Oakland. Coco Crisp scores a run in the 1st and DH Seth Smith homers off Anibal Sanchez in the 5th for the only runs of the game.

Taiwanese rookie Wei-Yin Chen pitches into the 7th inning against veteran Andy Pettitte to lead the Orioles to a 3 – 2 win in Game 2 of the ALDS, evening the series. Chris Davis drives in two runs with a two-out, bases-loaded single in the 3rd, then Mark Reynolds provides the winning margin with an RBI in the 6th.