We’re approaching another Game 162 that could be filled with complete and utter chaos in the American League. The Royals have already clinched the AL Central, while the Blue Jays and Rangers have healthy leads of 3 and 3.5 games respectively in their divisions. Similarly, the Yankees also have a 4.5 game lead for the first Wild Card, putting their playoff berth in good hands as well.
And then, there’s a mess looming for the second Wild Card. The Astros are currently leading the crop with an 80-73 record, 1.5 games clear of both the Angels and Twins. The Orioles are hovering, 3.5 games back of Houston, and Cleveland is also in the race too, four games behind the Astros. Normally, this might not seem like all that big of a deal, but the Astros have a daunting schedule the rest of the way – they play the Rangers three times over the weekend, and close out their season with a six game road trip to Seattle and Arizona. Considering the team’s recent struggles, penciling them in for a 4-5 finish to the season might be a little aggressive.
So, what happens if there is a logjam for the second AL Wild Card to close out the season? Don’t worry – ESPN’s Jayson Stark broke down who will play where in the event that a tiebreaker is necessary.
Astros/Twins tie: Played in Minnesota. Well, probably. The Twins currently hold the second tiebreaker (record vs division) with a 35-30 mark against the AL Central, but the Astros (34-36) could still conceivably best their 35-30 record. If the two teams tie in that tiebreaker, the next one up is record vs league, and the Twins have a 70-61 record vs the AL compared to a 66-70 record for the Astros.
Astros/Angels tie: Played in Houston. This one is easy. The Astros won the season series against the Angels, 10-9.
Angels/Twins tie: Played in Anaheim. The Angels won the season series 5-2.
Astros/Twins/Angels tie: Played (probably) in Minnesota and then either Minnesota or Houston. Oh god, the chaos. The initial advantage would go to the Angels by virtue of their 14-12 record against the Astros and Twins this season. They’d get to choose whether to play one tiebreaker game on the road (likely) or two at home (doubtful). Then, the Astros/Twins tiebreaker would be implemented, leading to the first game being played in Minnesota. If the Twins won, the game against the Angels would be at Target Field. If the Astros won, the Angels game would be in Houston.
Confused yet? Good! It’s about to get worse.
Rangers/Astros/Twins tie: Played in Arlington and then Minnesota. Three teams for two playoff berths? Awesome. Totally awesome. The Rangers and Astros would play a tiebreaker for the AL West at Globe Life Park because of the Rangers’ advantage in the season series, no matter what ends up happening. The winner would claim the AL West crown, and the loser would then travel to Minnesota to take on the Twins for the second AL Wild Card…because of that aforementioned interdivisional record tiebreaker.
Rangers/Astros/Angels tie: Played in Anaheim or Arlington and then Arlington or Houston or maybe Anaheim too? The chaos is really taking effect here. Three teams tied for the AL West and *maybe* the second AL Wild Card too? I have a headache already. Before Friday’s games begin, the Angels have the best record within the trio compared to the other two teams. This would result in the Rangers and Astros playing a tiebreaker in Arlington, and then the winner of that game hosting the Angels. Whatever happens with the Rangers and Angels, one thing is for sure – the Astros are the team that’s going to wind up with the short end of the stick.
Rangers/Astros/Angels/Twins tie: Played (again, probably) in Anaheim and Arlington. With four teams tied for two playoff spots, we’d use the record among the four teams as the tiebreaker, and that goes Angels – Rangers – Astros – Twins. Each team gets to choose where they’d play in this scenario, so it’s highly assumed the Angels and Rangers would be hosting games. A victory for the Twins would give them the Wild Card, and would give the winner of the AL West-centric matchup the division, and that would be that. But if the Twins lost, the two winning AL West teams would play a one-game tiebreaker, with the winner of that game taking the division and the loser taking the second AL Wild Card.
And if somehow, some way, the Indians or Orioles force their way into the mess, they not in good shape. Progressive Field would host games against the Astros and Angels, but a Twins/Indians tie would result in the tiebreaker at Target Field. As for the Orioles, they’d go on the road to Houston, Anaheim, or Minnesota in the event of a tie.
In the unlikely event of a four-way tie for the AL’s second Wild Card, there would be two games on Monday and one on Tuesday. we think. And if we get to that point, MLB should just decide on a two-man sack race on consecutive Sunday until a champion is crowned.
[ESPN]
