AL Wild Card Race: Win or lose, the Tigers can claim victory tonight

DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers’ magic number is down to one, meaning they can clinch their first playoff berth in 10 years on Friday night regardless of whether they win or lose.

The Tigers (85-74) defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in three games on Thursday afternoon, while the Minnesota Twins (82-77) lost a heartbreaking 13-inning win to the Miami Marlins late Thursday night.

For the Twins to reclaim a postseason spot, they must finish the season 3-0 while the Tigers come away with a 0-3 mark. All it takes is a win in Detroit or a loss in Minnesota to secure the Tigers’ playoff spot.

WILD CARD STANDING

(The complete ranking can be found here)

The Seattle Mariners (82-77) were officially eliminated from the wild card hunt on Thursday. Even though the Mariners have the same record as the Twins, they would lose any tiebreaker. Even if Seattle went 3-0 and the Tigers or Royals went 0-3, the Mariners still wouldn’t qualify for the playoffs.

The Orioles (88-71) have already secured a wild-card spot and could secure the No. 1 wild-card seed with a win or loss in Detroit on Friday.

If the season ended today, this is how the playoffs would play out.

• Bye: Division champion No. 1 New York Yankees and division champion No. 2 Cleveland Guardians.
• Wild Card Series
  • Tigers (third wildcard) at Houston Astros (third division winner)
  • Royals (second wild card) at Orioles (first wild card)

The Royals are above the Tigers in the direct tiebreak, which is why they are currently seeded higher.

Because the race is so close, the Tigers may not know whether they travel to Houston or Baltimore until shortly after Sunday’s regular-season finale.

It’s not entirely clear whether the Tigers would do that prefer to play against the Astros or Orioles, but the seeding could also impact Division Series matchups.

The winner of the series in Houston would face the Guardians, while the winner of the series in Baltimore would face the Yankees in the next round.

REMAINING SCHEDULE

The Tigers appear to have the easiest schedule remaining, despite the White Sox coming off a surprising three-game win. The Royals might have the toughest task as the Braves are still desperately fighting for a playoff spot.

Orioles: in Minnesota (3 games)

Royals: in Atlanta (3 games)

tiger: Chicago White Sox (3 games)

Gemini: Baltimore (3 games)