Playoff Picture: Tigers bolster lead over Royals in AL Central
Denny Medley / USA TODAY Sports
Every night we take a look around the league and recap pennant and wild card races in baseball.
Here's a look at how Saturday's slate affected the playoff picture in the majors:
American League
- The Orioles previously clinched the AL East.
| AL Central | Record | GB | Games Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tigers | 86-68 | - | 8 |
| Royals | 83-70 | 2.5 | 9 |
- Max Scherzer picked up his 17th win as the Tigers edged the Royals 3-2 to expand their lead to 2 1/2 games in the division. Rick Porcello squares off with Jeremy Guthrie in the final contest of the three-game set Sunday.
- The Angels previously clinched the AL West.
| AL Wild Card | Record | GB | Games Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics | 84-70 | 0.5 | 8 |
| Royals | 83-70 | - | 9 |
| Mariners | 83-71 | 0.5 | 8 |
| Indians | 80-74 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Yankees | 79-75 | 4.5 | 8 |
- Only the Indians were victorious among the teams in wild-card contention Saturday. The Mariners had a glorious opportunity to seize a playoff spot after the Royals and Athletics fell earlier in the day, but were routed 10-1 by the Astros.
If the playoffs started today...
Wild Card: Royals at Athletics
Division Series: Wild Card at Angels, Tigers at Orioles
National League
- The Nationals previously clinched the NL East but received a scare when right-hander Jordan Zimmermann took a comebacker off his throwing shoulder.
| NL Central | Record | GB | Games Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 87-68 | - | 7 |
| Pirates | 83-71 | 3.5 | 8 |
| Brewers | 80-75 | 7 | 7 |
- The Cardinals beat the Reds 8-4 to clinch at least a tie for a postseason wild-card spot.
| NL West | Record | GB | Games Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dodgers | 88-67 | - | 7 |
| Giants | 84-70 | 3.5 | 8 |
- The Dodgers blew a 7-2 lead to the Chicago Cubs to open the door for the Giants to gain ground later in the day. But San Francisco couldn't complete a late ninth-inning rally and fell 3-2 to the lowly Padres.
| NL Wild Card | Record | GB | Games Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giants | 84-70 | 1 | 8 |
| Pirates | 83-71 | - | 8 |
| Brewers | 80-75 | 3.5 | 7 |
- The Brewers grabbed a critical road win over the Pirates to keep their playoff hopes alive. Logan Schafer delivered the lone run of the game via sacrifice fly in the ninth inning and Brewers starter Matt Garza was ejected for hitting Andrew McCutchen with a pitch for a second time.
If the playoffs started today...
Wild Card: Pirates at Giants
Division Series: Wild Card at Nationals, Cardinals at Dodgers