Records through Sunday, August 30, 2026. Updated daily.
Twelve teams reach the postseason, six per league. The top two seeds in each league skip the wild card round entirely; seeds three through six play best-of-three series with all three games at the higher seed’s ballpark.
Here is the bracket as it stands, and the races still deciding it.
American League Seeding
| Seed | Team | W-L | How | Round 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tampa Bay Rays | 82-54 | AL East | Bye |
| 2 | Chicago White Sox | 72-64 | AL Central | Bye |
| 3 | Houston Astros | 69-68 | AL West | Hosts No. 6 |
| 4 | New York Yankees | 78-59 | Wild card 1 | Hosts No. 5 |
| 5 | Boston Red Sox | 74-63 | Wild card 2 | at No. 4 |
| 6 | Cleveland Guardians | 69-68 | Wild card 3 | at No. 3 |
National League Seeding
| Seed | Team | W-L | How | Round 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Milwaukee Brewers | 85-52 | NL Central | Bye |
| 2 | Atlanta Braves | 82-55 | NL East | Bye |
| 3 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 82-55 | NL West | Hosts No. 6 |
| 4 | Chicago Cubs | 77-60 | Wild card 1 | Hosts No. 5 |
| 5 | Philadelphia Phillies | 77-60 | Wild card 2 | at No. 4 |
| 6 | Arizona Diamondbacks | 73-65 | Wild card 3 | at No. 3 |
The Bye Is the Prize
Four teams avoid the wild card round entirely, and the difference is enormous: a bye means skipping a best-of-three where anything can happen, and arriving in the division series rested with a set rotation.
In the National League, three teams are fighting for two byes. Milwaukee at 85-52 is close to locking the first. Atlanta and Los Angeles are tied at 82-55 for the second, meaning one of the three best teams in the league will end up playing a coin-flip series.
The American League is the reverse situation. Tampa Bay has the first bye all but secured, and the second currently belongs to a 72-64 White Sox team — six games worse than the Yankees, who would have to travel for a best-of-three instead.
Magic Numbers
| Division leader | Magic number |
|---|---|
| Dodgers (NL West) | 16 |
| Brewers (NL Central) | 18 |
| Braves (NL East) | 21 |
| Rays (AL East) | 22 |
| White Sox (AL Central) | 23 |
| Astros (AL West) | 24 |
Still to Be Decided
The AL West. Houston leads at 69-68 with Texas two back and Seattle five. A division title here comes with the third seed and a home series — an outsized reward for a team barely above .500.
The AL third wild card. Cleveland holds it at 69-68 with Baltimore one back, Toronto 1.5 and Texas two. Four teams, none above .500. Detail on our AL wild card page.
The NL third wild card. Arizona took it from San Diego on Sunday and leads by half a game with one fewer game remaining. Detail on our NL wild card page.
The NL bye. Atlanta and Los Angeles tied at 82-55, three behind Milwaukee. Division-by-division records are on our MLB standings page.
The Bottom Line
Tampa Bay and the White Sox hold the American League byes; Milwaukee and Atlanta hold the National League’s, with the Dodgers tied for the second. The Yankees at 78-59 would be seeded fourth behind a 69-68 Houston team, and one of Milwaukee, Atlanta or Los Angeles will play a wild card series despite owning a top-three record in the league.