The Major League Baseball regular season is nearing its conclusion. With the second week of September already here, just over three weeks remain until MLB‘s postseason.
Playoff races are continuing to heat up in both the American and National Leagues. Over in the AL, all three divisions are separated by less than five games. The New York Yankees have a half-game lead over the Baltimore Orioles; the Cleveland Guardians have a 2.5-game lead over the Kansas City Royals; and the Houston Astros have a 4.5-game lead over the Seattle Mariners.
In the NL, the division races appear all but locked up — but the Wild Card race is as close as ever.
The San Diego Padres have a half-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for the top spot and a two-game lead over the Atlanta Braves in the third. The Braves are hanging onto a playoff spot for dear life, as they have an identical record to the New York Mets.
More news: Mets, Red Sox Execute Rare September MLB Trade
As an exciting last few weeks of the regular season get underway, here’s where things stand with another edition of the Newsweek Sports MLB Power Rankings — with two teams separating themselves from the rest of the pack.
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (86-57)
2. Philadelphia Phillies (85-58)
3. Milwaukee Brewers (82-61)
4. New York Yankees (82-61)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 06: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees reacts after striking out during the eighth inning of a game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on September 06, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. The Yankees defeated the Cubs 3-0. Judge and the Yankees continue to fall.
Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images
5. Baltimore Orioles (82-62)
6. Cleveland Guardians (81-62)
7. Arizona Diamondbacks (80-64)
8. Kansas City Royals (79-65)
9. San Diego Padres (81-64)
10. Houston Astros (77-66)
11. Atlanta Braves (78-65)
12. New York Mets (78-65)
13. Minnesota Twins (76-67)
14. Chicago Cubs (73-70)
15. Seattle Mariners (73-71)
16. Detroit Tigers (73-71)
17. Boston Red Sox (72-71)
18. San Francisco Giants (71-73)
19. St. Louis Cardinals (72-71)
20. Tampa Bay Rays (71-72)
21. Texas Rangers (70-74)
22. Cincinnati Reds (69-75)
23. Toronto Blue Jays (68-76)
24. Pittsburgh Pirates (67-76)
25. Washington Nationals (64-79)
26. Oakland Athletics (62-82)
27. Los Angeles Angels (59-84)
28. Miami Marlins (54-89)
29. Colorado Rockies (54-90)
30. Chicago White Sox (33-111)
Biggest Fallers
New York Yankees (-2)
The Yankees have lost seven of their last 11 games, but are fortunate that the Orioles are struggling, too, having lost six of their last 11 games. Still, the Yankees know they need to play better if they want any shot of ending their World Series drought, which has led to them calling up their top prospect, outfielder Jasson Dominguez. He should provide a much-needed boost to a team that scored a total of six runs in their latest three-game series against the Cubs.
Read more: Yankees Finally Call Up Top Prospect Jasson Dominguez
Boston Red Sox (-2)
On Aug. 22, the Red Sox were 67-60 and appeared to be a serious threat to earn a surprise Wild Card berth. Since then, they’ve gone 5-11, and have endured two different five-game losing streaks. The Red Sox are now four games out of the third and final Wild Card spot in the AL and may have run out of luck in their 2024 season.
