Where it stands entering Thursday’s games: Chicago (81-77) lost Wednesday and still trails Cleveland by one game in the AL Central, but owns the tiebreaker. The White Sox clinch a playoff berth today with a win at Kansas City plus a loss by either Texas or Houston, and a win also eliminates Baltimore. Today’s game: White Sox at Royals, 2:10 p.m. ET, live score and final. Every contender’s scenarios are on the MLB clinch scenarios page.
American League Central
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | L10 | Strk | Home | Road | Magic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Guardians | 82 | 76 | .519 | — | 7-3 | L1 | 41-40 | 41-36 | 4 |
| Chicago White Sox | 81 | 77 | .513 | 1 | 5-5 | L1 | 46-32 | 35-45 | 6 |
| Minnesota Twins e | 75 | 84 | .472 | 7.5 | 5-5 | W2 | 40-38 | 35-46 | 12 |
| Detroit Tigers e | 74 | 85 | .465 | 8.5 | 4-6 | L2 | 40-38 | 34-47 | 13 |
| Kansas City Royals e | 68 | 90 | .430 | 14 | 2-8 | W1 | 40-37 | 28-53 | 19 |
Standings from BALLDONTLIE. Updated September 24, 4:28 pm ET.
AL Wild Card Race
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | L10 | Strk | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees y | 91 | 67 | .576 | 5 | 6-4 | W1 | 44-33 | 47-34 |
| Boston Red Sox y | 85 | 73 | .538 | 11 | 5-5 | W1 | 39-38 | 46-35 |
| Chicago White Sox | 81 | 77 | .513 | 1 | 5-5 | L1 | 46-32 | 35-45 |
| Houston Astros | 78 | 80 | .494 | — | 3-7 | L1 | 39-42 | 39-38 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 78 | 81 | .491 | 18.5 | 6-4 | W3 | 39-42 | 39-39 |
| Toronto Blue Jays e | 77 | 82 | .484 | 19.5 | 3-7 | L3 | 40-38 | 37-44 |
| Minnesota Twins e | 75 | 84 | .472 | 7.5 | 5-5 | W2 | 40-38 | 35-46 |
| Seattle Mariners | 74 | 84 | .468 | 4 | 5-5 | W1 | 41-36 | 33-48 |
| Detroit Tigers e | 74 | 85 | .465 | 8.5 | 4-6 | L2 | 40-38 | 34-47 |
| Kansas City Royals e | 68 | 90 | .430 | 14 | 2-8 | W1 | 40-37 | 28-53 |
| Athletics e | 63 | 95 | .399 | 15 | 3-7 | W2 | 31-46 | 32-49 |
| Los Angeles Angels e | 60 | 98 | .380 | 18 | 4-6 | L3 | 34-47 | 26-51 |
Division leaders are excluded. The top three clubs here hold the wild card places.
Standings from BALLDONTLIE. Updated September 24, 4:28 pm ET.
How the Magic Number Works
A magic number is the combined total of wins by the leader and losses by the closest chaser needed to make a race mathematically over. Every White Sox win drops it by one, and so does every loss by the team chasing them. When a tiebreaker is involved, the team that holds it needs one fewer. The tables above update on their own as games finish.
Related
Clinch scenarios · Playoff picture · AL wild card standings · Guardians magic number · Tiebreaker rules · Playoff schedule