Mariners' Updated Magic Number After Snapping 10-Game Winning Streak

Due for a bad day, and they had one...

Sep 17, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford (3) hits a solo home run against the Seattle Mariners during the eighth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Not every day can be a win, even for a team as hot as the Seattle Mariners were.

Entering Wednesday night's game with the Kansas City Royals, the Mariners had won 10 games in a row, boosting their playoff odds well over 90%. But the Royals had some fight in store, taking a 7-5 win to even the three-game series with a four-run eighth inning.

The Mariners also got no help around the league, as virtually every team they would have wanted to lose picked up a win on Wednesday.

Mariners' magic number to clinch playoffs remains at eight

Aug 31, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; The Seattle Mariners celebrate a win over the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians have emerged as the biggest threat among teams not currently in the American League playoff picture. If the Mariners, Houston Astros, or Boston Red Sox misses the postseason, they'll be kicking themselves wondering how they let the Guardians catch them.

The Guardians defeated the first-place Detroit Tigers 4-0 on Wednesday to climb to 80-71. They've won 11 of their last 12. That puts them 2 1/2 games back of the Mariners (83-69), who own the tiebreaker in this scenario. So Seattle's magic number to clinch a playoff berth is eight with 10 games to play.

Meanwhile, the Astros (84-69) swept the Texas Rangers, who looked like the primary threat to usurp the Mariners for a playoff spot as recently as this weekend. Texas has now lost four in a row, but the Astros have won five of six and regained first place in the American League West by half a game.

Intensity is continuing to build for the grudge match between the Mariners and Astros at Daikin Park in Houston this weekend, with the winners of the series putting themselves in the driver's seat for a division crown.

In other notable results, the Red Sox (83-69) defeated the Athletics 5-4 on an extra-innings walk-off, putting Boston in a tie with Seattle for the second wild card spot. Because the Red Sox and Mariners split their season series, the tiebreaker between the two, which is not yet fully decided, will come down to intradivisional record.

Seattle finishes up its three-game series with Kansas City on Thursday before traveling to Houston.

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