MLB Standings 2018: Yankees Increase Wild-Card Lead, Dodgers Among 4 NL Teams Fighting For Playoffs

With less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, the 2018 MLB playoff picture is still very much up in the air. Half of the 10 current postseason teams have less than a four-game lead, and the wild-card races in both the American League and National League are especially close.

Every AL division has essentially been decided. The Tampa Bay Rays (84-66) are still fighting to stay alive for the league’s final playoff berth, but the wild-card race will come down to the New York Yankees (92-58) and Oakland Athletics (90-61). New York is 2.5 games ahead of Oakland in the standings, and they are looking to hold onto their lead so they can host the one-game playoff before the ALDS for a second straight year.

New York got a key win over the Boston Red Sox (103-48) Tuesday night, and Oakland suffered a loss to the Los Angeles Angels a few hours later. The Yankees hold the tiebreaker over Oakland because they have the better division record. The two teams split their six head-to-head meetings.

Oakland trails the Houston Astros (95-56) by fives games in the AL West. Boston is 10.5 games up on New York in the AL East, and they can clinch the division title by winning one of their next two games at Yankee Stadium. The Cleveland Indians (84-66) have nothing to play for with the AL Central crown in hand and no chance to move out of the No.3 seed.

The NL wild-card race is a little more complicated with four teams technically in contention, that is if you don’t include the Philadelphia Phillies (77-73) and Arizona Diamondbacks (78-74), who are both six games back. The Milwaukee Brewers (86-66) own the first wild-card berth with a two-game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals (84-68). The Colorado Rockies (82-69) are a game behind St. Louis in the loss column.

The Los Angeles Dodgers (84-68) are involved in the race, even though they sit atop the NL West. L.A. is just 1.5 games ahead of Colorado with the exact same record as St. Louis. A bad week could put the Dodgers back in the wild-card hunt or knock them out of the playoffs altogether.

Los Angeles has taken two straight from Colorado, and the division rivals have one more pivotal head-to-head meeting on the schedule. The Brewers will visit the Cardinals for three games next week in a series that could determine which team hosts the NL Wild-Card Game.

The Chicago Cubs (89-62) are holding off Milwaukee with a 3.5-game lead in the NL Central. The Atlanta Braves (83-68) have a comfortable 5.5-game lead in the NL East.