The MLB regular season is coming to a close rapidly as teams are in the final month of the regular season. With October baseball approaching, many fringe teams have not secured their spot in the playoffs. This year also entails a new playoff format with three wild card teams instead of the usual two. This allows more franchises to compete in the postseason and inserts an element of a Cinderella story for that last wild card team.
The first big spot in making a playoff push will be in the American League as there are six potential teams within striking distance of three places. Two of those six teams, the Baltimore Orioles and the Kansas City Royals, are also competing to win their division. Both teams are within striking distance of their respective division leaders, the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Guardians. With around 20 games left to play for each team, their divisional games will be of the utmost importance as teams look to jump above the next highest team in their division. One of teams on the bubble to keep an eye on down the stretch to make a push is the Boston Red Sox, who have slumped of late but seem to be turning the ship as they look to make a late push. Another team to keep an eye on in the AL is the Detroit Tigers, who are in a stacked AL central with four teams in postseason contention right now. Detroit will need to play smart and win divisional games to have a shot at playing in October this year.
Moving onto the National League, the wild card is also heavily contested, although by fewer teams in comparison to the AL. Four teams have a realistic chance of making the wild card with the new expansion of the playoffs in 2024. All four teams, the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Mets and Atlanta Braves, are all within two games of each other. It will be interesting as both teams in the same divisions (Padres and Diamondbacks in the NL West and Mets and Braves in the NL EAST) will each have a series against one another before the regular season ends. The NL is by far the more competitive league standings-wise as the three division leaders have records of 87-58, 86-58 and 82-61compared to the AL’s 83-62, 82-62 and 77-66. The bettor’s odds have the champion coming out of the NL as either the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Philadelphia Phillies. If Philadelphia hoists the trophy, it would be huge for a fan base that has longed for great pride in their baseball team that has struggled over the past decade.
This time is exciting for all baseball fans because all games mean something to every team, even if they are not in playoff contention. Draft order matters also, meaning if you are the worst team in baseball, like the Chicago White Sox, they will not automatically have the right to the first pick due to the new draft lottery. Playoff baseball is upon us, so grab a drink and a hot dog and go watch some baseball as the best time of year approaches for sports fans “October.”
My Pick to Win It All: Kansas City Royals