The Toronto Maple Leafs ended the expansion season of the Ottawa Fat Cats on Sunday afternoon, and took a big step towards another Intercounty Baseball League pennant at the same time.

Kern Watts had three hits, including a solo home run, scored three runs and drove in another as the Leafs downed the Fat Cats 10-3 at Dominico Field at Christie Pits, taking a half-game lead atop the IBL standings while knocking Ottawa out of the playoffs.

Toronto (23-12) leads Brantford (22-12) by a half game, with the teams facing off in a crucial game Monday night in Brantford. If the Leafs win, they’ll clinch the pennant but if Brantford wins, they can grab first place by beating Barrie in their regular season finale Wednesday night.

“We’ve played some good baseball down the stretch and we’ve been getting some good pitching and defence and that’s what wins ball games,” Toronto manager Tim Harkness said. “We always knew we had the offence but getting the kind of pitching we’ve had has put us in a position to finish near the top and have a good playoff run if everything goes well.”

Jordan Castaldo also had three hits and drove in a run for the Leafs, while Rob Gillis also homered and had two hits. Kyle Degrace contributed two hits and an RBI while Raul Borjas and Damon Topolie each drove in two runs for the winners.

Jon Lockwood picked up the win, going five innings. He allowed two runs on six hits with three strikeouts and one walk before Drew Taylor and Mark Sikorski finished up.

Ottawa (11-25) finishes last in its inaugural season with the loss. Matt McGovern was the loser, allowing five runs – three earned – on six hits over five innings, striking out three and walking two.

Kyle Barclay had two hits and drove in two runs for the Fat Cats, while Mark Charrette had two hits and an RBI. Jonathan Dale, Eitan Maoz and Tony Farago all also added two hits for Ottawa.

Leafs broke open a 2-2 tie with three runs in the fifth inning and added a single run in the sixth and four more in the seventh to ensure Ottawa wouldn’t see any post-season action. The Hamilton Thunderbirds clinched the final playoff spot in the IBL by splitting a doubleheader with Brantford.