After six months of baseball, everything comes down to one frantic Sunday, with two playoff spots still undecided and a few individual honors hanging in the balance. All 30 teams will start Game 162 at 3 p.m. ET, setting up a league-wide sprint to the finish with no room for scoreboard-watching or gamesmanship.
The wildest situation is out in the AL West, where the Rangers and Astros are both sitting at 80-81 and somehow still alive for a division crown. Texas kept the race alive with a win at Minnesota on Saturday, while Houston stayed level by pounding the Athletics 13-2.
It leaves the two clubs tied heading into the finale, though the Astros hold the edge because they won the season series and have the tiebreaker. That means Houston can wrap up the division and claim the No. 3 seed with a win in West Sacramento.
Texas will put MacKenzie Gore on the mound against the Twins at Target Field. Houston hasn’t named a starter, but manager Joe Espada said every pitcher except Saturday’s starter, Hayden Wesneski, will be available for the season finale. The winner of the division will host the sixth-seeded Chicago White Sox in the wild-card series, even though Chicago owns the better record.
The National League’s final playoff spot has turned into another high-pressure mess, with the Phillies and Diamondbacks still battling for the No. 6 seed. Philadelphia once led the wild-card race by 6.5 games and looked set for a comfortable October berth, but now the Phillies are hanging on after blowing another chance to put Arizona away. They were blasted 12-1 by the Rays on Saturday, while the Diamondbacks did their part by losing in San Diego.
The setup is simple for Philadelphia: beat the Rays and the Phillies are in. If they lose and Arizona wins, the Diamondbacks will steal the spot and send Philadelphia into a collapse that would sit right alongside the infamous "Phold of '64." Arizona owns the tiebreaker thanks to the better intradivision record, after the teams split their season series 3-3.
Zack Wheeler gets the ball for Philadelphia in a game that could save the season. The tradeoff is obvious: if the Phillies do advance, Wheeler may not be available for the wild-card series. Philadelphia will also have Jesús Luzardo back, with the left-hander coming off the injured list Sunday and available out of the bullpen.
Arizona will counter with Michael Soroka against the Padres, who have nothing left to play for except maybe the chance to wreck a division rival’s October plans.
Beyond the playoff races, there are still a few individual storylines worth keeping an eye on. Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez remains alive in the Triple Crown chase, though he has work to do. Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno can also make history, as he has a shot to become just the fifth catcher ever to win a batting title.
And Sunday could also bring some final curtain calls. Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer is set to pitch on short rest in what may be the last start of his future Hall of Fame career. Another Toronto veteran, George Springer, has talked about retirement and could be taking his final swings in the Blue Jays’ season finale.
In Other News...
Astros Just Created A Bullpen Decision Worth Watching
Jason Alexanders stay in the majors has hit a familiar September snag, with the Astros designating him for assignment and then getting him through waivers and onto the Triple-A roster. It keeps him in the organization for now, but it also puts him in a spot plenty of veterans know well this time of year: close enough to help, but not quite on the playoff track unless circumstances open the door.
The real question is what comes next. Alexander can turn down the outright assignment and test free agency, or stay put as a depth piece while Houston sorts through its bullpen options for October. If he remains in the system, he would still be on track for minor league free agency after the postseason, leaving the Astros with a short window to see whether he fits into their plans. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Draw The Playoff Test Fans Were Hoping To Avoid
The playoff bracket finally gave Houston a familiar kind of October test, and it starts with a White Sox club that has already shown it can handle the Astros over the course of a regular season. Chicago locked up a postseason berth and now heads into a best-of-three Wild Card series beginning Sept. 29, with Houston taking the series as division champs and holding home-field advantage.
For the Astros, that setup adds a little extra edge to a matchup that already carries plenty of interest. The White Sox won the regular-season series between the two teams, so Houston gets the benefit of staying at home, but not the comfort of facing an opponent it has already handled this year. In a short series, history only matters so much, and both sides will spend the next few days shaping their plans for a matchup that could turn quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Enter Wild Card Opener With One Huge Pitching Problem
The Astros head into the wild-card opener carrying the kind of October problem that can change a series before it really starts. After sneaking into the postseason at 81-81, Houston is trying to extend a remarkable run of division success, but the pitching plan has already become the central issue. Manager Joe Espada said the club will turn to a bullpen game against the Chicago White Sox, a clear sign that the rotation is not in its usual shape at the moment.
Houstons depth will be tested immediately because several arms are either unavailable or limited after recent appearances and injuries, including Cristian Javier, who is out with a groin strain. For a team that has spent years leaning on starter stability in the postseason, this is a very different setup, and it leaves the Astros trying to navigate Game 1 with far less certainty than they would prefer. The bigger question now is how long they can keep the White Sox from turning that shortage into an early advantage. [Read more 🡒]