AL wild-card race shaping up to be one of the best
This is what Major League Baseball wanted when it added a second wild-card spot heading into the 2012 season.
With eight weeks to go in the regular season, nine teams are within 6 1/2 games of the top wild-card spot, and seven teams are within four games of the second wild-card position.
AL WILD-CARD STANDINGS
| TEAM | W-L | PCT | WCGB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yankees | 61-54 | .530 | +2.5 |
| Angels | 60-58 | .508 | -- |
| Twins | 58-57 | .504 | 0.5 |
| Mariners | 59-59 | .500 | 1.0 |
| Rays | 59-59 | .500 | 1.0 |
| Royals | 58-58 | .500 | 1.0 |
| Orioles | 58-59 | .496 | 1.5 |
| Rangers | 56-59 | .487 | 2.5 |
| Blue Jays | 55-61 | .474 | 4.0 |
Since the second wild card was introduced, there hasn't been this many teams within four games of a playoff spot in mid-August as there are this season.
According to Fangraphs' playoff probabilities Sunday, the wild-card game will be held in the Bronx between the New York Yankees and Mike Trout's Los Angeles Angels.
FANGRAPHS' PLAYOFF PROBABILITY
| TEAM | WC% |
|---|---|
| Yankees | 59.4% |
| Angels | 27.1% |
| Rays | 23.7% |
| Royals | 19.4% |
| Twins | 16.2% |
| Mariners | 15.5% |
| Orioles | 10.2% |
| Rangers | 9.5% |
| Blue Jays | 4.6% |
The Yankees lost in the 2015 wild-card game to the Astros, while the Angels haven't reached the postseason since 2014, and haven't won a playoff game since Trout broke into the league in 2011.