It's crunch time for the dozens of MLB teams that remain within playoff contention as the calendar flips to September, the final month of the 2026 regular season.

This season brings us a muddled mess of the standings, more a reflection of the teams' mediocrity than a flurry of success. As of today, only the Angels, Athletics, Nationals, Mets, Giants and Rockies seem truly out of the postseason race. What's left? The Dodgers have a firm hold on the NL West, and the Brewers are growing their lead over the Cubs in the NL Central. The Rays have held on to the AL East as the Yankees try to overcome a litany of injuries, and the Braves are (so far) holding off the Phillies in the NL East.

The wild-card races are even more of a mess as dozens of teams jockey for a shot at October baseball.

Now, let's get you caught up on the bracket, standings and more. All division and postseason projections referenced in the standings come from SportsLine.

2026 MLB playoff picture, bracket

American League
Byes: No. 1 Rays, No. 2 White Sox
Wild Card Series: No. 3 Astros vs. No. 6 Guardians, No. 4 Yankees vs. No. 5 Red Sox

National League
Byes: No. 1 Brewers, No. 2 Dodgers
Wild Card Series: No. 3 Braves vs. No. 6 Padres, No. 4 Cubs vs. No. 5 Phillies

American League standings

AL EastWLGBDivPost
Tampa Bay Rays8255—83.8%100%
New York Yankees78604.514.8%100%
Boston Red Sox75637.51.2%98.6%
Baltimore Orioles696913.50%26.0%
Toronto Blue Jays687014.50%17.6%
AL CentralWLGBDivPost
Chicago White Sox7265—82.1%92.2%
Cleveland Guardians69683.016.8%48.4%
Minnesota Twins66726.50%3.7%
Detroit Tigers
63749.00%1.9%
Kansas City Royals627610.50%<1.0%
AL WestWLGBDivPost
Houston Astros7068—70.6%73.5%
Texas Rangers68702.023.8%31.5%
Seattle Mariners64746.05.1%5.7%
Athletics538517.00%0%
Los Angeles Angels538517.00%0%

National League standings

NL EastWLGBDivPost
Atlanta Braves8256—86.6%100%
Philadelphia Phillies78604.013.4%98.3%
Miami Marlins696913.00%2.6%
Washington Nationals667417.00%<1%
New York Mets627620.00%0%
NL CentralWLGBDivPost
Milwaukee Brewers8353—96.4%100%
Chicago Cubs78607.03.7%99.6%
St. Louis Cardinals687017.00%<1%
Pittsburgh Pirates677118.00%1.4%
Cincinnati Reds657320.00%<1%
NL WestWLGBDivPost
Los Angeles Dodgers8255—99.9%100%
Arizona Diamondbacks73659.50%57.6%
San Diego Padres 736610.00%39.8%
San Francisco Giants578125.50%0%
Colorado Rockies528630.50%0%

Clinched division - x
Clinched wild-card - y
Clinched playoff berth - z
Eliminated - e

MLB wild-card standings

AL wild cardWLWCGB
New York Yankees7860+8.5
Boston Red Sox7563+5.5
Cleveland Guardians6968---
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Baltimore Orioles69690.5
Toronto Blue Jays68701.5
Texas Rangers68701.5
Minnesota Twins66723.5
Seattle Mariners64745.5
Detroit Tigers63746.0
Kansas City Royals62767.5
Athletics538516.5
Los Angeles Angels538516.5
NL wild cardWLWCGB
Chicago Cubs7860+5.0
Philadelphia Phillies7860+5.0
San Diego Padres7365---
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Arizona Diamondbacks73660.5
Miami Marlins69694.0
St. Louis Cardinals68705.0
Pittsburgh Pirates67716.0
Washington Nationals66748.0
Cincinnati Reds65738.0
New York Mets627611.0
San Francisco Giants578116.0
Colorado Rockies528621.0

2026 World Series odds

Via Caesars as of Sept. 1

  • Dodgers: +170
  • Brewers: +750
  • Yankees: +800
  • Rays: +1000
  • Braves: +1100
  • Red Sox: +1300
  • Phillies: +1300
  • Cubs: +1400
  • Astros: +1500
  • White Sox: +2000
  • Blue Jays: +3500
  • Guardians: +3500
  • Rangers: +4000
  • Padres: +4000
  • Mariners: +5000
  • Orioles: +7500
  • Diamondbacks: +8000
  • Twins: +15000
  • Tigers: +20000
  • Pirates: +20000
  • Marlins: +20000
  • Mets: +40000
  • Reds: +40000
  • Cardinals: +40000
  • Nationals: +40000
  • Royals: +50000
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