Right around Labor Day, it looked like Major League Baseball’s playoff race would be a big snooze fest.
September had other ideas.
The standings in both the American League and National League have tightened in a hurry, and a lot of the action over the final week of the season .
Here’s a look at some things to watch as MLB’s regular season comes to an end and October baseball arrives:
What are the biggest storylines?
What is the MLB playoff format?
There are 12 teams that qualify for MLB’s postseason, including six teams from both the AL and NL. The three division winners in each league get seeds No. 1 through No. 3, ranked by win-loss record. Then the three wild-card teams get seeds No. 4 through No. 6, also ranked by win-loss record.
The top two teams with the best record in both the AL and NL automatically advance to the Division Series. The other eight teams play in the Wild Card Series, which is a best-of-three format beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 30. In both the AL and NL, the No. 6 seed will travel to face the No. 3 seed while the No. 5 seed goes to No. 4. The higher seed hosts all three games.
The winners then advance to the best-of-five Division Series, followed by the best-of-seven League Championship Series and a best-of-seven World Series between the winners of the AL and NL.
What is the MLB postseason schedule?
Wild Card Round: Sept. 30-Oct. 2 (ESPN)
Division Series: Oct. 4-11 (NL on TBS, AL on FOX/FS1)
Championship Series: Oct. 12-21 (NL on TBS, AL on FOX/FS1)
World Series: Oct. 24-Nov. 1 (FOX)
Who has already a clinched a spot?
In the National League, the Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs have already qualified for the postseason. The San Diego Padres are very close to grabbing the fifth spot.
In the American League, only the Toronto Blue Jays know they will play October baseball. The New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners are in excellent position to clinch a spot in the next few days.
Who are the favorites to win the World Series?
The Phillies (+425) are the favorite to win the World Series, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. After that, it’s the Dodgers (+500), Mariners (+600), Brewers (+725), Blue Jays (+800) and Yankees (+800).
The Blue Jays opened the season at +6000 odds.
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