Hard as it is to believe, we’re just days away from the conclusion of the 2023 MLB regular season. The playoff picture is taking shape, with most spots sewn up around the league — except for the AL West, that is, where things remain absolutely wide open in the season’s final week. The Rangers, Astros and Mariners have been trading the division lead — not to mention multiple Wild Card spots — like a hot potato in recent weeks, and there’s no telling who will be left standing and who will be sent home for October when the music stops. Things change by the day, so here are your up-to-the-minute AL West standings on Wednesday, September 27.
MLB playoff picture: AL West standings
The Rangers, who looked to be taking on water earlier this month, grabbed the reins of this division with an impressive sweep of the Mariners last weekend — while the Astros were busy getting swept themselves by the lowly Royals. That stretch gave Texas a bit of breathing room, which they’ve maintained as Houston and Seattle have split the first two games of their huge three-game set at T-Mobile Park. Texas’ magic number is down to three, meaning they could clinch as early as Thursday (although that would take a whole lot breaking in their favor).
The Astros and Mariners are a combined 7-13 over their last 20 games, and at this point it looks like there’ll be room for only one of them in the postseason; the Blue Jays have a 1.5-game edge in the race for the second Wild Card spot and a considerably easier closing schedule, meaning there’s only one Wild Card spot left. Houston leads that race by a half-game over Seattle, but that could change if the Mariners top Framber Valdez and the ‘Stros tonight. The Mariners will then welcome Texas to town for a four-game set to end the season, while the Astros will be off on Thursday before taking on a Diamondbacks team that has its own Wild Card spot to play for.
