Marlins, Rangers, Jays, D-backs clinch; Astros next?
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Somehow, there are only two days left in the regular season (maybe). Six months of non-stop, regular-season baseball will transition into the high-stakes postseason tournament that will begin on Tuesday with the four Wild Card Series.
Eleven of the 12 playoff spots have already been guaranteed, and the final team could be known by the end of the day today. The potential tiebreaker scenarios make these games even more important.
The Marlins, Rangers, Blue Jays and D-backs each clinched postseason berths, and the Astros could join them by the end of the night.
Astros at D-backs, LIVE
This is unfamiliar territory for an Astros team that has usually clinched a playoff berth weeks before the regular season ends. After making the playoffs every season from 2017-22 -- including World Series titles in '17 and '22 -- Houston is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016. It's been a bizarre finish for the Astros, who are partially in this position due to losing multiple series against the A's and Royals in recent weeks.
Taking the series against Seattle earlier this week and the opener against the D-backs on Friday, however, has put Houston in a good spot to clinch a playoff berth. The Astros can clinch a playoff spot with a win on Saturday.
How Astros can clinch an AL Wild Card spot on Saturday: Win against the D-backs