Opening Day doesn't seem that long ago but here we are with 1.5 weeks left in the season with most of the playoff picture fairly set.

Here are the current AL Standings:

For the most part the only divisional race to watch here is the AL West. While it is technically possible for the Yankees to catch the Blue Jays or the Guardians to catch the Tigers it seems highly unlikely. The Blue Jays have the tiebreaker over the Yankees so the 4 game lead is effectively a 5 game lead. If the Blue Jays went 5-5 in the last 10 games the Yankees would have to go 10-0. So outside of the Yankees or Guardians going undefeated the rest of the way or the Blue Jays or Tigers having a really bad stretch those divisions are likely decided. Barring an epic collapse it looks like the Blue Jays will get the first seed and bye. The Tigers currently hold the second seed and other bye but are only 1.5 games ahead of Houston and 2 games ahead of Seattle which are the two teams battling it out for the AL West crown. Full credit to Houston for hanging around despite all their injuries this year. Meanwhile the Mariners might be the streakiest team in baseball. After the trade deadline it looked like they may never lose again but then proceeded to lose 15 out of the next 20 games and it looked like they might not even hold a wild card spot but the hot Mariners returned and they have won 10 of the last 11. It should be an exciting final ten games to see how this tightly contested division shakes out and if whichever team wins it can catch the Tigers for the second bye.

Here are the current NL Standings:

Again the West looks like the only division in question here. The Phillies and Brewers are cruising to the two top seeds and first round byes, although with only 2 games separating them the first overall seed is still up for grabs. Cubs have also already locked up a playoff spot but it is highly unlikely they would be able to catch the Brewers for the division so they likely end up as the first wild card seed. In the West it seemed like the Padres were going to surge and pass the Dodgers to win the division but the Dodgers despite not looking like the Dodgers for large portions of this season seem to be doing just enough to hold them off. The Padres do have an easier schedule with 3 against the White Sox this weekend and then 3 against a Brewers team that will likely have locked up the division and potentially the top seed by the last series of the year and not have much to play for. The Dodgers hold the tiebreaker over the Padres so the Padres effectively need to flip 3 games in the standings over the last 10 (doable, but not easy) to win the division. Let's see how it plays out.

Here are the current Wild Card Standings for both leagues:

In the AL the Yankees look pretty comfortable in the first wild card position with a 2 game league over the Red Sox and Mariners and a 4.5 games lead over the Guardians. The Yankees have the easiest schedule of any playoff team over the final 10 games so they should be able to hold on to this spot fairly easily. The Mariners have higher hopes of winning the West but currently they are locked in a battle with the Red Sox for the 2nd and 3rd wildcard spots and trying to hold off the Guardians. Both those spots put their holders on the road for the wildcard series but determines whether you play the AL west winner or the Yankees. As for the Guardians they have made quite a push to get back in this race. It seems unlikely they will be able to finish the job as both teams ahead of them are much better than them but stranger things have happened.

In the NL the Cubs have absolutely run away with the first wild card position and that matters because they will likely be playing the Padres or Dodgers (if Padres can pass them in the West) which are two very good teams you would probably much rather play at home. Padres are pretty much locked into the second wild card spot, again unless they can pass the Dodgers in the West. And finally the Mets are doing everything they can to lose the final wildcard spot going 2-8 in their last 10. Fortunately for them the 3 teams in striking distance the Diamondbacks, Reds and Giants haven't been playing that great either over the last 10 games. None of those teams have a winning record over the last 10 so we will see how they all fare over the remaining 10. Can the Mets right the ship in time to hold on to their playoff spot? Remains to be seen.

Hope everyone enjoys the final week and a half of the season. I am looking forward to the playoffs. We will do another playoff points challenge this year.

Sats for all, GR