The Nationals secured home-field advantage throughout the postseason by beating the Phillies 5-1 yesterday in Philadelphia for their major league-high 98th victory.
Nationals manager Davey Johnson missed the end of the game after feeling numbness in his left leg, leaving the dugout to get X-rays and treatment from a team doctor. Johnson — at 69, the oldest skipper in the majors — said he does not expect to have any trouble traveling or managing in the playoffs.
* Giants catcher Buster Posey won the NL batting title with a .336 average after going 0-for-2 in a 5-1 loss to the Dodgers. Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen finished second at .327.
The previous catcher to win the NL title was Ernie Lombardi of the Boston Braves, who hit .330 in 1942. The last catcher to win in the AL was Minnesota’s Joe Maurer in 2009.
Clayton Kershaw (14-9) got the win against the Giants and finished with a major league-leading 2.53 ERA.
* Terry Francona, the former Red Sox manager, will interview tomorrow for the Indians’ managerial job. Sandy Alomar Jr., who became interim manager when Manny Acta was fired last week, will have his formal interview today.
The Cubs, who finished at 61-101, fired third base coach Pat Listach after yesterday’s 5-4 victory over the Astros.
Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. said first base coach Sam Perlozzo has been fired — and indicated more changes could come today.
* For the first time, the Teddy Roosevelt mascot won the Presidents Race in the middle of the fourth inning in Washington. Mr. Rough Rider had never before won, losing more than 500 times since 2006, when the Nationals began having races among 10-foot-tall foam renderings of Roosevelt, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Abe Lincoln.