MLB Playoff Wrap: Wild Card Insanity

The MLB playoff races are beginning to reach a boiling point, and with under three weeks until the end of the regular reason, each game will feel like a must win for teams on the bubble.

Anyone else getting the feeling that insanity is about to erupt in both the AL and NL wild card races? The Blue Jays are 4-10 in their last 14, and are now tied with the Baltimore Orioles for the top wild card spot. Both teams are just two games ahead of the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees. The surging Seattle Mariners, winners of seven straight, now find themselves 2.5 back of a wild card spot.

Both the Yankees and Mariners are 8-2 over their last ten, while the Orioles (6-4), Blue Jays (3-7) and Tigers (4-6) ahead of them have been unable to match that pace. The M’s have an interesting schedule remaining, with one game left against the Angels before an off-day on Thursday and a three game series at home against the Astros, who keep finding ways to lose to first place Texas (more on that below).

Following that weekend series, Seattle will welcome the Jays for three, then travel for a weekend series with Minnesota before heading to Houston for three. That all leads to the final four games of their season at home against Oakland.

With six against the Astros, who they are 5-8 against this season, the Mariners could separate themselves from the pack a bit, or let the Astros (4.5 back) back into the race. A series win against Toronto followed by three games against the Twins could also solidify their positioning.

The Yankees, meanwhile, will be playing a back-and-forth game the rest of the way with the rest of their games all within the division, outside of Wednesday’s finale against the Dodgers at home. From there they will go on the road for eleven games in twelve days against the Red Sox, Rays and Jays.

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As we discussed earlier in the week, the Tigers could be looking at a .500 record the rest of the way if seasonal trends hold, but this is the time of the year when one team separating from the pack with a slew of wins (like the Mariners are currently doing) is what will vault teams to the playoffs. A .500 record the rest of the way likely won’t cut it.

Over in the National League, the Giants return to winning ways in the desert appears to have just been a mirage, as the Giants dropped their fifth straight against San Diego. This one came in particularly heartbreaking fashion, as San Francisco entered the ninth with a 4-1 lead, and going with their new closer by committee, Bruce Bochy inserted Hunter Strickland for the final three outs.

Strickland’s outing involved a bases loaded walk to make it 4-2, and a ground out to the pitcher that brought home another run. He was replaced by Steven Okert, who subsequently gave up a three-run homer to Ryan Schimpf, who has belted 19 homers in just 74 games.

The Giant loss, coupled with wins by the Mets and Cardinals have the three teams separated by just half a game with San Francisco and St. Louis set to square off over four games this weekend at AT&T Park.

Notes:

–Taijuan Walker of the Mariners no-hit the Angels for the first six innings of Tuesday’s game before Kole Calhoun led off the seventh with a single. Walker earned the third complete game of his career, allowing just three hits, no runs, and striking out eleven.

-The Astros have lost six of seven while facing Cleveland, Chicago (NL) and Texas. Tuesday saw Houston with a 2-1 lead in the ninth, and a resurgent Ken Giles on the mound to close things out. Giles should have retired the side, but in one of his two strikeouts, Rougned Odor reached on a wild pitch and was subsequently brought home on an Elvis Andrus triple to tie the game. Jurickson Profar gave the Rangers the lead (and win) with a single to left. Giles tossed two innings (26 pitches) in Monday’s extra inning affair, but that didn’t seem to have an affect on him. He got the first three outs, but the wild pitch is what did him in.

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–Alex Reyes got the win for St. Louis in relief of Jaime Garcia on Tuesday night, allowing just one hit while walking six in his 4 1/3 innings.

-The Mets beat the Nats in extras, with Jerry Blevins earning his first save since September of 2012 with Oakland. That A’s team won the division on the last day of the season by defeating Texas, but without Blevins’ heroics on that September night in Anaheim, they would have been relegated to the wild card game. Blevins came on in relief of Grant Balfour with the bases loaded, nobody out, and worked his way out of the jam unscathed. For A’s fans, it was a special moment in a special season, regardless of the ultimate ending.

–Clayton Kershaw will start for the Dodgers in New York today.

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