Life in the American League ain’t that bad.
Sure, there are the top dogs. The Rays, Yankees, and Red Sox. But after that? It’s anyone’s game. Especially when looking at the third wild card.
Entering Saturday, the Rangers hold the third wild card at 64-65. Behind them are six teams within three games that are also below the .500 mark.
It’s unprecedented. Unheard of. No team in major league history has ever made the playoffs with a below .500 record, but in the AL, it looks like history may be made. Of course there’s still time for a team to reign in and go on a winning streak. But with interleague play and around 33 games left to go, anything can happen.
1. Dodgers
There’s nothing sweet than a “get right” series against a division rival. Which the Dodgers used to their advantage last week against the Rockies.
They went to Colorado to sweep the last place team in the National League West, getting big performances from their MVP candidate Shohei Ohtani. The superstar recorded a two-homer game August 17, then followed up with another homer the next day in a 7-6 win.
After a sweep of the Rockies, the Dodgers extended their winning strak Friday by winning a thriller over the Pirates. Tommy Edman bailed out the bullpen with a long single down the left field line.
2. Rays
Beware of orange birds.
Last week saw the Rays finish 2-6, which knocked the club to 4-6 in their last 10 games. Four of the six losses came at the hands of the Orioles, who went t0 Tampa and swept the first-place club, then knocked them off again in Baltimore on Friday 4-3.
The club still looks like the team to beat in the AL, but this rough stretch shaved their once comfortable lead of the Yankees for first in the division. There’s just three games separating the two rivals with 40 games left. Buckle up.
3. Braves
The Braves are another top team in the league who struggled last week.
Atlanta went 2-5 and lost series to the wild card hopeful D-backs, the clinging on to dear life Twins, and the first place White Sox. They then went to Milwaukee, where they took a 2-1 facing NL Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski.
Still, the Braves are on their way toward another NL East title. The rotation continues to shove post deadline, and the bats around Matt Olson are waking up.
4. Cubs
The Cubs are great. They’re undeniably the defacto team to take out the Dodgers in the playoffs. But let’s focus on Pete Crow–Armstrong.
The 24-year-old absolutely dominated the league last week. He clubbed five homers in the seven games, including a win against the White Sox where he led off the game with a homer and then walked it off with a dinger. He’s a stud.
PCA should be the NL MVP this year. He’s slashing .279/.378/.554 with 32 homers and 31 stolen bases. The lefty also leads the league in bWAR, slugging, and total bases. The case is starting to close on this race.
5. Brewers
The Crew keeps on rolling.
They’re the first team to 80 wins this season, and they reached the plateau last week by taking series against the Dodgers and Mariners.
Misiorowski and Kyle Harrison continue to be one of the strongest 1-2 punches in the league. But Logan Henderson also deserves his flowers. The 24-year-old holds a 2.70 ERA and 10.7 K/9 in 12 starts this season, giving the Brewers a reliable No. 3 for October.
6. Yankees
Are the Yankees back?
The Bombers carried a five game win streak into Saturday, all coming against division rivals in the Blue Jays and Orioles.
The offense has also come alive during this streak, as the club has scored at least three runs in every single game. Three doesn’t sound like a lot, but the way the team was playing, it appears unrelenting.
The club did just receive bad news regarding Giancarlo Stanton. The slugger injured his other calf while rehabbing, and will likely miss the remainder of the season. It’s a big blow, but the team is 73-55 and hasn’t featured a lineup with Stanton since April 24.
7. Padres
Last week saw Fernando Tatis Jr. have one of the greatest games of his life.
Against the Mets at Citi Field, Tatis clubbed two homers off rookie Zac Thornton, which included a dinger on the first pitch of the game, and robbed Francisco Lindor of a grand slam. Pure stardom.
It salvaged a game from a series loss, and kept the Padres in the win column as they battle for the third wild card. Entering Saturday, they’re 69-60 and one game ahead of the D-backs. Their additions to the rotation in Robbie Ray and Casey Mize have been essential, and may be the edge they needed to get into October. Time will tell.
8. Phillies
The Phillies saw themselves drop outside the power rankings last week and took it personally.
The club went 7-0 last week, and carries a seven game winning streak into Saturday. It improved their record to 71-58, and shortened the Braves lead in NL East to just four games.
Alec Bohm has heated up in the second half, and is a pivotal piece of this winning streak for the Phils. The third baseman is slashing .452/.469/.774 in his last seven games with 11 RBIs in 31 at-bats. He’s also slugging .509 in his last 30 games with three homers.
9. Red Sox
Boston looked shaky a couple weeks ago when they lost five in a row. Last week they corrected their course by going 4-2.
They took care of business in interleague play, winning series against the Pirates, D-backs, and then taking Friday’s game against the Giants. They entered Saturday with a 69-59 record and could be on the verge of improving.
R0man Anthony is close to returning from his rehab assignment, which would give the Sox a potent bat back in the lineup. Garrett Crochet is also planing to return sometime in September, which would give the Red Sox a dominant arm out of the ‘pen for the playoffs. Yep, you read that right. If he returns this season, the Red Sox plan to use him as a reliever.
10. White Sox
Friday night was an insane comeback win for the White Sox.
Down 4-0 to the Mets in the sixth, Miguel Vargas, Randal Grichuk, and Colson Montgomery hit back-to-back-to-back homers off Sean Manaea to tie the game. Then for good measure, Jake Rogers launched one off Jefry Yan in the ninth to walk off the game.
The win kept some distance from the Twins in the standings, improving the White Sox to 67-61 and four and half games ahead of the Twins and Guardians. The AL Central is weak, so the White Sox don’t have anyone breathing down their neck. But the club isn’t necessarily threatening either, so they’ll have to be careful of stumbling and giving up ground down the stretch.
Rest of the Field
11. Diamondbacks
12. Tigers
13. Astros
14. Cardinals
15. Marlins
16. Pirates
17. Guardians
18. Rangers
19. Blue Jays
20. Mets
21. Twins
22. Orioles
23. Nationals
24. Reds
25. Mariners
26. Angels
27. Giants
28. Royals
29. Rockies
30. Athletics
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