AL West teams vie for final wild-card spot, NL race heats up as MLB season enters final week

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Some argue that 162 games is way too long for a season. That can continue to be a debate, but one thing is for certain: all 162 matter.

As the MLB season enters its final week, three teams in the same division are fighting for two (possibly three) postseason spots in the American League, including the division title, while the final two spots in the National League will also come down to the wire.

Here's a look at the postseason races for the final week of the regular season (you may need to follow closely):

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Framber Valdez of the Houston Astros is restrained by Julio Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners and Hector Neris after both benches cleared when Jose Caballero was hit by a pitch at Minute Maid Park on August 19, 2023, in Houston. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)

Entering Friday, the Houston Astros, Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners were all within 0.5 games of one another. The latter two faced off in a three-game series in Arlington, and the Rangers swept it. Meanwhile, the Astros were swept at home by the lowly Kansas City Royals.

Now, the Rangers are up 2.5 games in the division and face the Angels in Los Angeles for the next three days. They've won 11 of their last 15, and it's now their division to lose.

The Astros' cold stretch is now two weeks old when they should have run away with the division. Heading into Sept. 11, they were 2.5 games up in the AL West with nine of their next 12 games against the Royals and Oakland Athletics. Well, they lost two of three to the A's, Royals and Baltimore Orioles each before getting swept by Kansas City this weekend.

Leody Taveras of the Texas