AL Wild Card gets even more interesting heading into Wednesday night

The AL Wild Card race is becoming more and more interesting by the day. We’ve only got five more days left in the MLB regular season and could see a multitude of scenarios pan out. There’s the possibility that we see a five-way tie for the wild card, which would create utter chaos. Anyway, let’s take a look at the updated picture and where each team stands heading into the middle of the week.

AL Wild Card standings

New York Yankees 90-67 — +2.0
Boston Red Sox 88-69 —
Seattle Mariners 88-70 — 0.5 GB
Toronto Blue Jays 87-70 — 1.0 GB
Oakland Athletics 85-73 — 3.5 GB

As you can see, there are five teams in the running with the A’s more toward the outside of the picture. Oakland has lost six straight games to the Mariners over the past few weeks. Yet, they A’s are still mathematically still in it heading into Wednesday, where they’d need a win to stay alive.

At the top, the Yankees took down the Jays in their series opener thanks to, you guessed it, Giancarlo Stanton, who belted another homer in last night’s 7-2 victory. Aaron Judge also chipped in a homer while the Yanks bullpen surprisingly shut down Toronto. Now, the Yankees have ace Gerrit Cole on the mound for a crucial Game 2 on Wednesday night. Jose Berrios will pitch in a big spot for the Jays.

The big surprise came from the Red Sox, who lost to the last-place Orioles to drop to 2.0 games back of the Yanks. Boston needs to take care of business or else become in danger of dropping out of the second wild card altogether. The way Seattle is playing right now, you’ve got to think this is the most crucial spot. If the Mariners can get a win and the Red Sox falter, BOOM, the M’s are in playoff position.