Jayson Werth is met by his Washington Nationals teammates as he jumps on home plate after his game-winning solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning Thursday against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 4 of the National League Division Series at Nationals Park.
(CNN) -- The baseball playoffs were in full gear Thursday, with four potentially pivotal games to get teams one step closer to the World Series.
Two teams moved on and two others stayed alive.
The San Francisco Giants and the Detroit Tigers advanced to their respective league championship series while the Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals forced winner-take-all showdowns Friday.
Here's a look at what happened around Major League Baseball on Thursday:
Detroit 6, Oakland 0
Justin Verlander pitched a complete game, allowing only four hits as the Tigers beat the A's in the deciding game of an American League Division Series.
The Tigers scored four times in the top of the seventh to break open a close game. Prince Fielder and Austin Jackson had RBI singles and Detroit scored twice more to take a 6-0 lead.
Verlander, 17-8 during the regular season, threw 122 pitches in going all nine innings.
The Tigers will play the winner of the Baltimore-New York series.
Baltimore 2, New York 1
J.J. Hardy's RBI double in the top of the 13th sent the Orioles and the Yankees to Game 5 of their series.
Manny Machado doubled to lead off the inning and Hardy followed two batters later with a long fly over Yankees outfielder Ichiro Suzuki that made the score 2-1.
Baltimore had jumped to a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning, thanks to a Nate McLouth home run.
But the Yankees tied it up the next frame, when Derek Jeter scored on a ground out by Robinson Cano.
The Orioles' win sets up Friday's showdown. New York manager Joe Girardi has promised that he'll be in the dugout then, as he has been all week, despite the death of his father on Saturday.
Pedro Strop, the Orioles' seventh pitcher of the night, pitched two scoreless innings to earn the win. David Phelps took the loss.
One night after giving up a game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth, Jim Johnson earned a save.
San Francisco 6, Cincinnati 4
Buster Posey hit a grand slam to lead the San Francisco Giants to a 6-4 National League Division Series-clinching victory Thursday over the Cincinnati Reds.
Brandon Crawford and Angel Pagan also drove in runs as the West champion Giants defeated the Reds three games to two.
The Giants became the first NL team to trail 0-2 in a division series before winning three consecutive games. Under Major League Baseball's new playoff format, San Francisco had to win three road games to do so.
Giants pitcher Matt Cain gave up three runs in 5 2/3 innings to earn the victory. Mat Latos took the loss.
San Francisco next will play the winner of the St. Louis Cardinals-Washington Nationals series.
SI: How did the Giants win three in a row?
Washington 2, St. Louis 1
Washington's Jayson Werth hit a home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth, keeping the Nationals alive in their National League Division Series with a victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The two teams will play the deciding contest of the five-game series Friday night.
The Nationals used four pitchers who gave up just three hits while striking out 10 batters. Washington's Drew Storen was the winning pitcher, while St. Louis' Lance Lynn was the loser.
Adam LaRoche homered for the Nationals in the second inning, while Carlos Beltran hit a sacrifice fly in the third for the Cardinals' only run.
SI: Werth quiets critics with epic at-bat
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The Nationals' Jayson Werth celebrates as he rounds first base after hitting a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning Thursday against the Cardinals to even their series at two games apiece.
Cardinals Manager Mike Matheny talks with starting pitcher Kyle Lohse and other players on the mound during Thursday's Game 4 of the National League Division Series in Washington.
Pitcher Tyler Clippard of the Washington Nationals exults after striking out the side in the eighth inning Thursday at Nationals Park.
Allen Craig of the St. Louis Cardinals slides safely into second base as Danny Espinosa of the Washington Nationals throws to first to retire the Cards' Yadier Molina in the top of the sixth inning in Washington.
Pete Kozma of the St. Louis Cardinals is congratulated by hitting coach Mark McGwire in the dugout after Kozma scored on a sacrifice fly in the top of the third inning against the Washington Nationals.
Manager Dusty Baker watches his Cincinnati Reds take on the San Francisco Giants in Game 5 of the National League Division Series on Thursday at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. The Giants defeated the Reds 6-4 to win the series.
Aroldis Chapman of the Cincinnati Reds pitches against the San Francisco Giants in Game Five of the National League Division Series on Thursday in Cincinnati.
Cincinnati Reds fans cheer in the ninth inning as San Francisco's Sergio Romo waits to pitch. Cincinnati scored a run in the ninth but it wasn't enough as the Giants won the game and the series.
San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey hits a grand slam home run in the fifth inning Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds. The Giants scored all six of their runs in that inning and won the game 6-4.
Teammates Marco Scutaro, Pablo Sandoval and Angel Pagan wait for Buster Posey at home plate after the Giants catcher hit a grand slam in the fifth inning off Cincinnati's Mat Latos.
The San Francisco Giants celebrate their 6-4 win Thursday over the Cincinnati Reds. The Giants won the National League Division Series three games to two.
New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi talks to journalists before the game about his father, Jerry Girardi, who died last weekend in Illinois.
Baltimore Orioles outfielder Nate McLouth smashes a solo home run during the fifth inning of Thursday night's American League Division Series game against the Yankees in New York.
Yankees catcher Russell Martin tags Baltimore's Manny Machado out at the plate on a fielder's choice in the third inning Thursday.
New York Yankees designated hitter Derek Jeter grimaces after striking out in the third inning Thursday against Baltimore.
Yoenis Cespedes of the Oakland Athletics beats a tag by Omar Infante of the Detroit Tigers for a double in the first inning in Game Five of the American League Division Series Thursday at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, California.
Detroit's Andy Dirks steals second base as Oakland's Stephen Drew is unable to apply the tag in the second inning Thursday night in Oakland.
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