The opener: Freeman, Twins, Diamondbacks

Ahead of the final weekend of the 2024 regular season, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on throughout the baseball world today:

1. Freeman nursing injury:

While the mood surrounding the Dodgers last night was largely celebratory after the club captured its 11th NL West title in 12 seasons, there was one possible cause for concern: the first baseman Freddie Freemanwho left last night in the seventh inning against the Padres with an ankle injury. As MLB.com’s Juan Toribio noted, Freeman was wearing walking boots and crutches after last night’s game, but seemed optimistic after telling reporters that X-rays came back negative and revealed a sprain.

Freeman noted that although his ankle is swollen, club officials are “optimistic” that he will be ready in time for the playoffs when the NLDS begins next Saturday. Freeman joins in Miguel Rojas as the second member of Los Angeles’ everyday starting lineup who will not participate in the club’s finals series against Colorado in hopes of getting healthy enough to compete in the upcoming playoffs. It’s likely the Dodgers will move Max Muncy While Freeman is out, he goes to first base, opening the hot corner for Enrique Hernandez.

2. Gemini before elimination:

The Twins are facing elimination after losing four of their last five games against the Marlins and Red Sox. That leaves them with a disastrous 9-15 record, which has allowed the Tigers to overtake them in the AL Wild Card race. Minnesota is just a season away from breaking its long playoff series winless streak and now heads into the season’s final series with an 82-77 record. Both the Tigers and Royals have identical 85-74 records, so at this point the Twins will need a miracle to return to the postseason.

They are ahead of their two rivals in the tiebreaker, but the club would not only have to beat the Orioles in their final series of the season, but also benefit from defeating either Detroit or Kansas City in their final series of the year to make it make it to the playoffs. Of those two possibilities, it seems more likely that the Royals will be defeated by the Braves than that the Tigers will be defeated by the White Sox, although Chicago has plenty of incentive to do everything in its power to sweep, considering they would avoid taking sole ownership of the White Sox, their all-time losing record in the modern era will be achieved if they can extend their current winning streak from three games to six. Minnesota’s final fight begins tonight at 7:10 p.m. local time Pablo Lopez (4.11 ERA) takes on the rookie from Baltimore and former Twins prospect Cade Povich (5.59 ERA in 15 starts).

3. D-Backs aim for victory:

The Padres have already secured an NL Wild Card berth, but their final series of the regular season will still have major playoff implications as they travel to the desert to face the Diamondbacks in a three-game set. Arizona currently holds an NL Wild Card spot with an 88-71 record, essentially tied with the Mets (87-70) and one game ahead of the Braves (86-71). Still, their playoff hopes aren’t quite as solid as they might seem at first glance after the final two games of this week’s series between Atlanta and New York were postponed until Monday. That means the Snakes need a win this weekend to punch their ticket to the postseason without having to wait for the results of Monday’s doubleheader, as both the Mets and Braves have the tiebreaker over them.

If Arizona manages to defeat the Padres, they would finish with a record of 91-71. Either the Braves or the Mets could reach that win total, but at least one club is guaranteed to come up short, as the Braves would need to win all five of their remaining games to achieve that, while the Mets would need to go at least 4-4. 1. Anything short of a win, however, leaves Arizona’s fate to a doubleheader that will take place after the conclusion of their regular season, a frustrating circumstance for the Diamondbacks that would leave them in limbo ahead of a possible NL Wild Card series on Tuesday. They will begin their bid for victory with veteran righty tonight at 6:40 p.m. local time Merrill Kelly (3.71 ERA) on the mound opposite the Padres veteran Yu Darvish (3.18 ERA in 15 starts).