Five Major League Baseball playoff spots remain open with three days left in the MLB regular season. Friday features another slate of crucial games, including the second game of a four-game series between the Rangers and Mariners that will go a long way in determining the AL West and AL wild-card races. Seven teams have already punched their ticket to the postseason and three more could join them Friday.
The Orioles clinched the AL East title Thursday and will be the top seed in the AL. They have a Wild Card Series bye and home-field advantage through at least the ALCS. In other AL action, the Astros and Blue Jays control their own destiny and Toronto can clinch a postseason berth as soon as Friday. The third wild-card spot is currently a battle between the Astros and Mariners and Seattle, who made an incredible comeback Thursday, is not going down without a fight.
In the National League, the top four seeds are set with the Braves, Dodgers, Brewers and Phillies locked into place. Atlanta clinched the best record in baseball and home-field advantage throughout the postseason Thursday. The Diamondbacks are in control of the No. 5 seed and can clinch a playoff spot Friday. Further down the NL wild-card standings, the Marlins and Cubs enter the day separated by half-a-game in the standings, with Miami's suspended game against the Mets creating a little chaos.
Trying to keep up with everything? We're here to help with a handy guide to what's at stake on Friday.
Friday's key games
- Marlins at Pirates (TBA vs. TBA) -- 6:35 p.m. ET
- Rays at Blue Jays (Aaron Civale vs. Yusei Kikuchi, TOR -145) -- 7:07 p.m. ET
- Cubs at Brewers (Kyle Hendricks vs. Colin Rea, MIL -110) -- 8:10 p.m. ET
- Reds at Cardinals (Brandon Williamson vs. Jake Woodford, CIN -120) -- 8:15 p.m. ET
- Astros at Diamondbacks (J.P. France vs. Zac Gallen, ARI -130) -- 9:40 p.m. ET
- Rangers at Mariners (TBA vs. TBA, SEA -125) -- 10:10 p.m. ET
Who can clinch on Friday?
- The Rangers clinch a playoff berth with a win.
- The Rangers clinch the AL West with a win and an Astros loss.
- The Diamondbacks clinch a playoff berth with a win or a Cubs loss.
- The Blue Jays clinch a playoff berth with a win and a Mariners loss.
Magic numbers
- Rangers' magic number to clinch playoff berth: 1
- Diamondbacks' magic number to clinch playoff berth: 1
- Rangers' magic number to clinch AL West: 2
- Blue Jays' magic number to clinch playoff berth: 2
- Marlins' magic number to clinch playoff berth: 3
- Astros' magic number to clinch playoff berth: 3
With the new playoff format, MLB has done away with Game 163 tiebreakers. All ties in the standings will be determined by tiebreaker rules, which begin with the head-to-head record.
