The Nationals lost to the Phillies on Monday night, but they still clinched the National League East title.
The nation's capital will enjoy playoff baseball for the first time in 79 years. The Nationals celebrated the division title hardily on the field after the loss.
"This is incredible. The excitement. The joy. The fans. Smiles on everyone's faces, the excitement that's going on," Gio Gonzalez said. "Everyone here just witnessed history. Hopefully we can try to continue that journey."
Washington, in first place since May 22, leads Atlanta by three games with two to play. The Braves lost in the top of the ninth inning of the Nationals-Phillies game. The Nationals congratulated each other in their dugout with hugs, high-fives and spiked gloves.
"The way it happened tonight doesn't really matter," Ryan Zimmerman said. "We put ourselves in that position to have the luxury of having the other team have to play perfect baseball. We played a great 159, 160 games to get to that point, and we should be commended for that."