MLB Standings: Playoff, Wild-Card Races Plus Matchups If Season Ended Today
At first glance, the 2017 Major League Baseball season would appear to be lacking in drama as the final days tick away. Entering play on Sept. 8, four of the six division leaders had advantages of at least 10 games and none of the division races are even as close as three games.
Yet ask the 1951 Dodgers, the '64 Phillies, the '69 Cubs, the '78 Red Sox, the '95 Angels or many of the other teams who saw seemingly insurmountable leads slip away how quickly things can change. And even if those comfortably ahead now—the Nationals (NL East), Dodgers (NL West), Indians (AL Central) and Astros (AL West)—cruise to a title, there are still compelling races for the wild cards in both leagues as well as for homefield advantage, which could wind up having a big impact on how things play out once the postseason finally arrives.
For the remainder of the season we will be tracking the daily changes in the playoff standings, including each team's record, winning percentage, elimination number and chances of reaching the postseason (as calculated by Baseball Prospectus). Check back each day to see how what's happening in September will impact what the field will look like in October.
(NOTE: All records are through the previous day's results.)
Finalized postseason matchups:
• The Yankees host the Twins in the AL wild-card game
• The Diamondbacks host the Rockies in the NL wild-card game
• The Indians host the winner of the AL wild-card game in a best-of-five Division Series
• The Astros host the Red Sox in the other AL Division Series
• The Dodgers host the winner of the NL wild-card game in a best-of-five Division Series
• The Nationals host the Cubs in the other NL Division Series
