The Minnesota Twins are staring at a steep climb, but the path isn’t completely sealed shut yet.
After Friday’s loss to the Chicago White Sox, Minnesota dropped to 4 1/2 games behind the Cleveland Guardians for the final American League Wild Card spot. FanGraphs had the Twins at just 3.8% to reach the postseason entering Saturday, which is the kind of number that usually tells you the race is basically over.
And yet, there’s at least one reason the door is still cracked open: the schedule.
The Twins’ remaining opponents have a combined winning percentage of .499, which gives Minnesota the easiest remaining slate of the four teams chasing the Guardians in the Wild Card picture - the Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles. Cleveland’s schedule is even lighter at .496, but Minnesota’s path is still favorable enough to keep the conversation alive a little longer.
Here’s what the rest of the month looks like for the Twins:
(Sept. 5-6) 2 Games @ Chicago White Sox
(Sept. 7-9) 3 Games @ Detroit Tigers
(Sept. 11-13) 3 Games vs. Cleveland Guardians
(Sept. 14-16) 3 Games vs. New York Yankees
(Sept. 17-20) 4 Games @ Los Angeles Angels
(Sept. 21-23) 3 Games @ San Francisco Giants
(Sept. 25-27) 3 Games vs. Texas Rangers
That upcoming three-game set against the Guardians next weekend is the obvious swing point. If the Twins are going to make this thing interesting, that series matters.
Still, even with the softer schedule, this is a big hill to climb. Minnesota would have to make up 4 1/2 games in just 21 games, and that’s no small ask no matter how the matchups line up.
So the realistic answer is probably no. But it’s not ridiculous to keep one eye on the standings.
For Twins fans, that also means there’s still something to watch beyond the playoff math: the development of young players like Walker Jenkins and Kaelen Culpepper.
Before any of that, though, Minnesota has to get through the White Sox. Game 2 of the three-game series is set for 6:10 p.m.
CDT Saturday at Rate Field in Chicago. Right-hander Taj Bradley (10-6, 3.85 ERA, 178 SO) is scheduled to start for the Twins, while left-hander Anthony Kay (9-7, 4.28 ERA, 113 SO) goes for the White Sox.
Fans can watch on Twins.TV.
The series finale is scheduled for 5:20 p.m. CDT Sunday, with that game set to air on Peacock.
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