Post Season Picture coming into focus

[Frayed Knot]

Braves win today, with he help of a HR plus 3 RBIs by Mike Yastrzemski, and, with it, clinch the NL East. They'll almost certainly be the 3rd best division winner meaning no early BYE round for them. Instead they'll get the worst WC team in the  best-of-three first round series with all games in Atlanta.  The last time a title was clinched with clutch September hitting by someone named Yastrzemski Lyndon Johnson was still in the White House. 

With the Cubs, Phils, and Padres all winning today, it's looking like those will be the three WC teams so the worst of them plays the Braves while the other two play each other. The DBacks are winning vs the Yanx right now but, at best, they'll go into the final week four full games behind the Phils and five each in back of SDP and CHC.

 

The Rays won this afternoon so if the Yanx lose (down 8 - 4 in the 8th) that'll put TBR six up with seven to play. Now four of those seven are head-to-head [at NYY Tuesday (x2), Wed, Thu] so the Yanx essentially have to run the table while the Rays do the opposite.

 

Meanwhile BOTH HOU & TEX lost on Sunday leaving TEX with a one game lead. TEX has NYM x3 than @ MIN x3. HOU finishes up @ SEA and @ ATH (3x each) 

CLE (+1 in the Central when the day started) won today while the ChiSox are just in the 3rd inning of a lengthy rain delayed tilt vs DET. Wins by both would make it more likely the AK Central loser would snag the 3rd WC slot over the non-winner in the West although it's still possible that Toronto gets hot and snags the 3rd WC slot making it four AL East teams in the tourney.

[Gwreck]

Perhaps the outcomes this year will help spur changes to the currently-dumb playoff bracket system.

#1 overall seed Tampa is going to get a bye to the division series, but instead of getting the privilege of playing the lowest ranked team, they’ll play the winner of BOS @ NYY, also known as the the second and third-best teams in their league.  (Positive news for Tampa:  they probably won’t be playing those games at 1 PM on a weekday).

The Brewers have a 1.5 game lead over the Dodgers (plus the tiebreaker) for the #1 seed in the NL.  There, #1 is actually desirable since that seed would avoid the Braves* in the DS round.

*Assuming the Braves defeat whichever wild card team they face.