Records through Sunday, August 30, 2026. Updated daily.
Six teams make the playoffs in each league: three division winners and three wild cards. The wild card races are where almost all the September drama lives, and right now both leagues have a spot separated by a single game or less.
Arizona took the National League’s third spot from San Diego on Sunday after weeks of a virtual tie. In the American League, Cleveland holds the last place by one game over Baltimore.
American League Wild Card
| Pos | Team | W-L | GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| WC1 | New York Yankees | 78-59 | — |
| WC2 | Boston Red Sox | 74-63 | — |
| WC3 | Cleveland Guardians | 69-68 | — |
| 4th | Baltimore Orioles | 68-69 | 1.0 |
| 5th | Toronto Blue Jays | 68-70 | 1.5 |
| 6th | Texas Rangers | 67-70 | 2.0 |
| 7th | Minnesota Twins | 65-72 | 4.0 |
| 8th | Seattle Mariners | 64-73 | 5.0 |
| 9th | Detroit Tigers | 63-73 | 5.5 |
| 10th | Kansas City Royals | 62-76 | 7.5 |
Green rows hold a wild card spot. Amber rows are within striking distance. Division leaders Tampa Bay, Chicago and Houston are excluded — they qualify automatically if they hold on.
National League Wild Card
| Pos | Team | W-L | GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| WC1 | Chicago Cubs | 77-60 | — |
| WC2 | Philadelphia Phillies | 77-60 | — |
| WC3 | Arizona Diamondbacks | 73-65 | — |
| 4th | San Diego Padres | 72-65 | 0.5 |
| 5th | Miami Marlins | 69-68 | 3.5 |
| 6th | St. Louis Cardinals | 68-70 | 5.0 |
| 7th | Pittsburgh Pirates | 67-71 | 6.0 |
| 8th | Cincinnati Reds | 65-72 | 7.5 |
| 9th | Washington Nationals | 65-74 | 8.5 |
| 10th | New York Mets | 61-76 | 11.5 |
Division leaders Milwaukee, Atlanta and Los Angeles are excluded from this table.
The Full Playoff Seeding
Six teams per league. The top two seeds get a bye through the wild card round; seeds 3 through 6 play best-of-three series, all three games at the higher seed’s ballpark.
| Seed | American League | National League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (bye) | Rays 82-54 | Brewers 85-52 |
| 2 (bye) | White Sox 72-64 | Braves 82-55 |
| 3 | Astros 69-68 | Dodgers 82-55 |
| 4 | Yankees 78-59 | Cubs 77-60 |
| 5 | Red Sox 74-63 | Phillies 77-60 |
| 6 | Guardians 69-68 | Diamondbacks 73-65 |
The Yankees Problem
Look closely at the American League seeding and you’ll find the format’s sharpest edge. New York is 78-59, the second-best record in the league. Houston is 69-68, nine games worse. Houston would be the third seed and host a wild card series; the Yankees would be the fourth seed and travel.
That is how it works — division winners are seeded ahead of every wild card regardless of record. The White Sox at 72-64 would take a first-round bye while a team six games better than them plays a best-of-three on the road. It is the strongest argument against the current structure, and the Yankees are living it.
The fix available to New York is simple and difficult: catch Tampa Bay. They are 4.5 back with 25 to play.
What Each Race Needs
American League. Cleveland holds the last spot at 69-68 with Baltimore one back, Toronto 1.5 and Texas two. Four teams for one place, and all four are within two games. The Guardians are also 3.5 out of the AL Central, so they are chasing two things at once.
National League. Arizona took the third spot from San Diego on Sunday and leads by half a game. The Diamondbacks have 24 games left and the Padres 25, so San Diego holds one extra opportunity. Miami is the only other club with a real pulse at 3.5 back.
Milwaukee, Atlanta and Los Angeles are separated by three games for the National League’s two byes — a race that matters more than any division title in the league. For division-by-division detail see our MLB standings page, and for how the bracket works, our postseason seeding explainer.
The Bottom Line
The Yankees, Red Sox and Guardians hold the American League wild cards, with Baltimore, Toronto and Texas all within two games of Cleveland. The Cubs, Phillies and Diamondbacks hold the National League spots, with San Diego half a game behind Arizona. New York at 78-59 would be seeded fourth behind a 69-68 Houston team — the clearest illustration of what winning a division is actually worth.