The 2023 MLB regular season is ending with just four days left. Five spots remain (three in the American League and two in the National League). The American League West and East are the only divisions not to be clinched, and then the rest are Wild Card spots, so where do things stand, and what remains for the final four days of the season?
American League Playoff Picture
- 1.) Baltimore Orioles
- 2.) Texas Rangers
- 3.) Minnesota Twins
- WC1) Tampa Bay Rays
- WC2) Toronto Blue Jays
- WC3) Houston Astros
In The Hunt
- Seattle Mariners
The Orioles, Rays, and Twins are the only teams to have clinched a playoff spot. The Twins are the only team that has clinched their division. The Orioles lead the Rays by 2.5 games in the American League East with the Orioles starting a four-game series tonight against the Boston Red Sox while the Rays have three games left against the Blue Jays that will start tomorrow; the Orioles hold the tiebreaker, beating the Rays eight times so all Baltimore needs to do is beat the Red Sox tonight. The Blue Jays can’t win the division, but they currently are two games up on the Mariners entering that series against Tampa Bay; they also have a game tonight against the Yankees. Toronto must win two of the last four and have Seattle lose two.
The American League West is the most complicated, with three teams fighting for spots. The division race is still wide open, with the Rangers currently holding a 2.5-game lead over the Astros and a four-game lead over the Mariners, entering a four-game series with them that starts tonight. The Astros wrap up their season with a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks that begins tomorrow night. The Astros hold the tiebreaker over the Rangers, beating them nine times, but they lose the tiebreaker to the Mariners, dropping their season series 9-4. Despite having four games left against the Mariners, the Rangers have clinched the tiebreaker, winning eight of the nine games already played. That division is a mess with only four days left. There is a lot to figure out, but the one thing for sure is if the Rangers win any game in this four-game series, they will clinch a playoff spot.
National League Playoff Picture
- 1.) Atlanta Braves
- 2.) Los Angeles Dodgers
- 3.) Milwaukee Brewers
- WC1) Philadelphia Phillies
- WC2) Arizona Diamondbacks
- WC3) Miami Marlins
In The Hunt
- Chicago Cubs
- Cincinnati Reds
- San Diego Padres
The Atlanta Braves have clinched the one seed and hold home-field advantage up to the NLCS, assuming they make it that far. The Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched the two seed, winning the National League West, and the Milwaukee Brewers have clinched the three seed with their second National League Central division win in the last three years. The Wild Card is where things get a little tricky; the defending National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies are locked into the fourth seed. Then there are five teams in the mix for two spots, with the Arizona Diamondbacks currently holding the fifth seed and the Miami Marlins currently holding the sixth seed; the Marlins and Cubs are now tied, but the Marlins have the tiebreaker beating the Cubs four times in six games. The Marlins end the season with a game against the New York Mets today and three games against the Pittsburgh Pirates, while the Cubs end with a game today against the Atlanta Braves and then three games against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cincinnati Reds are currently 1.5 games back with a three-game series left against the St. Louis Cardinals; if both the Marlins and Cubs lose today, the Reds are only one game back and could make for some chaos entering this weekend.
The absolute chaos that could ensue is that the San Diego Padres are still alive, sitting 3.5 games back of the Cubs and Marlins. They’d have to win out and hope all the teams above them lose out for a chance to get in, but it’s happened before; think of the 2007 Colorado Rockies, who won 14 of their last 15 to make the playoffs and then won seven straight in the playoffs to make the World Series before being swept by the Red Sox so that it could happen for the Padres. The Diamondbacks, although not having clinched a playoff spot, sit the prettiest in the standings right now with a two-game lead over the Cubs and Marlins with four games left, having to play the Chicago White Sox today and then a tough three-game series against the Houston Astros, the Diamondbacks however are 2-4 against the Marlins, 6-1 against the Cubs, and 3-4 against the Reds so with that tough series against the Astros and Houston still fighting for a playoff spot as well as a division title that could make things a little more interesting for the final two places in the National League Wild Card.
Wrap Up
There is a lot to follow looking at how this could work out for teams to get in over the next few days, which is why they say the last week of the season or even the last month is the start of a postseason run; who can get hot and sneak in or who can get cold and play themselves right out. The Phillies last season got hot at the right time and snuck in going to the World Series this season; they’re doing it again, having won seven straight entering play today, and in the American League, the Orioles and Twins are on little winning streaks while teams like the Cubs, Astros, Reds, and Mariners are 4-6 in their last ten and could play themselves out of the playoffs. This is the first season since 1993 that the MLB postseason won’t feature the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, or New York Yankees. October is a great time, and this season will not disappoint; you can expect an entertainment-filled MLB Postseason.
