Yankees’ Anthony Rizzo reacts to the crowd at Wrigley Field on his return to Chicago
Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo greets fans during his introduction following a video tribute at Wrigley Field on Friday, Sept. 6. It was Rizzo’s first appearance as a visitor at Wrigley since joining from the Cubs in 2021.
The MLB postseason is upon us and the teams that will compete for this year’s World Series are slowly coming into view. However, many teams have not yet secured their spot. Among them are the New York Yankees.
Despite having the best record in the American League, the Yankees could still be eliminated from the postseason. With 13 games left in the regular season, this is unlikely but still mathematically possible.
Their path to an AL East title is also longer and more difficult, but still quite possible toward the end of the season.
is the Yankees’ magic number for the postseason and the division on September 17th.
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What is the Yankees’ magic number to reach the 2024 MLB postseason?
- Yankees reach MLB postseason: 3
- Yankees win AL East: 10 (could be 9 if NYY beats BAL in the last series)
With the Yankees currently three games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East, with 12 games remaining for both teams, the Yankees would need to have at least a nine-game Orioles win/loss record to finish the regular season with the same record as Baltimore. However, in this scenario, it is very likely that Baltimore would hold the tiebreaker.
The Orioles and Yankees have one final three-game series scheduled for September 24-26. If the Orioles win just one of those games, they would have the tiebreaker over the Yankees, meaning the Orioles will be AL East champions if both teams finish the regular season with the same score. Therefore, the safe magic number for the Yankees to win the AL East is ten.
Current MLB tables
American League:
AL East:
- New York Yankees: 87-63
- Baltimore Orioles: 84-66
- Boston Red Sox: 75-75
- Tampa Bay Rays: 73-77
- Toronto Blue Jays: 72-78
AL Central:
- Cleveland Guardians: 87-64
- Kansas City Royals: 82-69
- Minnesota Twins: 79-71
- Detroit Tigers: 78-73
- Chicago White Sox: 36-115
AL West:
- Houston Astros: 81-69
- Seattle Mariners: 77-73
- Texas Rangers: 71-79
- Oakland Athletics: 65-86
- Los Angeles Angels: 60-90
Bundesliga:
NL East:
- Philadelphia Phillies: 90-60
- New York Mets: 82-68
- Atlanta Braves: 81-69
- Washington Nationals: 68-82
- Miami Marlins: 55-95
NL Central:
- Milwaukee Brewers: 87-63
- Chicago Cubs: 77-73
- St. Louis Cardinals: 75-75
- Cincinnati Reds: 73-78
- Pittsburgh Pirates: 71-79
NL West:
- Los Angeles Dodgers: 86-61
- San Diego Padres: 86-65
- Arizona Diamondbacks: 83-67
- San Francisco Giants: 73-78
- Colorado Rockies: 58-93
When does the MLB postseason start?
Although the MLB regular season ends on Sunday, September 29, there is one day between the end of the regular season and the start of the postseason. The postseason begins with the Wild Card Series on Tuesday, October 1.
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