MLB Wild Card Race contenders
American League Wild Card
Averaged Standings (with win range for each team in parenthesis):
- 90-72 Boston Red Sox (87 to 92 wins)
- 84-78 Minnesota Twins (81 to 87 wins)
- 84-78 Los Angeles Angels (80 to 88 wins)
- 81-81 Toronto Blue Jays (78 to 85 wins)
- 81-81 Seattle Mariners (75 to 83 wins)
- 80-82 Texas Rangers (77 to 87 wins)
- 77-85 Tampa Bay Rays (71 to 84 wins)
With the caveat that there are plenty of roster moves still to be made, the AL is looking like four titans claiming four playoff spots and a half-dozen lesser teams scrambling for the fifth. The Red Sox project to be the top wild card team, leaving the Twins, Angels, Blue Jays, Mariners, Rangers and long shot Rays fighting it out for the second MLB wild card.
With a low projection of 81 MLB wins, the Twins have the highest floor among these teams. If they can win as many games as they did last year, they’ll be in the mix. The Angels have the highest ceiling, thanks to their 88-win projection from Bleacher Report. The other four teams could end up with a win total in the 70s or 80s. Good health, some luck, perhaps a roster move or two, and any of these teams could jump up to the Twins and Angels tier.
National League Wild Card
Averaged Standings (with win range for each team in parenthesis):
- 86-76 St. Louis Cardinals (84 to 88 wins)
- 86-76 Arizona Diamondbacks (84 to 89 wins)
- 85-77 Colorado Rockies (78 to 91 wins)
- 85-77 Milwaukee Brewers (78 to 91 wins)
- 82-80 San Francisco Giants (80 to 84 wins)
- 80-82 New York Mets (75 to 82 wins)
This looks like a dogfight, with four teams within one game of each other and another just a few games back. The Cardinals and Diamondbacks have a floor of 84 wins based on these projections, while the other four teams all have at least one projection in which they finish below .500. On the other hand, the Rockies and Brewers both have at least one prediction in which they win 91 games.
Next: Five under .500 teams from 2017 most likely to make postseason
The Giants look to be much improved from last year’s 64-98 team thanks to a full season from Madison Bumgarner, some offseason free agent acquisitions and improved play by the returning roster members. The Mets are projected to win 10 more games than they won in 2017, but even that wouldn’t be enough to get one of the wild card spots.