What is the Mariners’ magic number to clinch playoff spot?

9/23 Update: The Mariners are sitting in second place of the AL West but currently hold the third AL Wild Card spot. Seattle’s magic number to clinch a playoff berth is set at 10 games heading into Friday’s game.

Hey, did you know the Seattle Mariners haven’t been to the postseason since 2001? If you’re any kind of baseball fan, you’ve probably heard about it since it’s a storyline that has been beaten into the ground during the season’s second half. But that playoff drought — the longest active streak by any major men’s North American pro sports team — will continue to be a topic until the Mariners end it. And it looks like they will end it this year. Here is the team’s magic number to make the playoffs, as of Tuesday, Sept. 20.

Mariners magic number

Playoffs: 10

Seattle still has some work to do, but FanGraphs likes its chances; the site has the Mariners’ odds to make the playoffs at 99.4 percent as of Tuesday. The reasons for that high level of confidence are two-fold.

For starters, the Mariners, currently the American League’s No. 6 seed in the playoffs, sit five games in front of the Orioles for the AL’s final postseason spot. Secondly, Seattle has baseball’s easiest remaining schedule. All 16 of their remaining games will come against sub-.500 teams, including six matchups against the Athletics, who have the worst record in the AL. Seattle will also face the Tigers, Royals and Rangers down the stretch. Those teams have a combined .385 win percentage this season.