With a 9-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds Wednesday night, the Milwaukee Brewers clinched the final playoff spot available in the National League.
That narrows down the Washington Nationals’ list of possible playoff scenarios, with the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets now out of the running.
The only thing left undecided is the NL Central division champion. With four days left in the regular season, the St. Louis Cardinals (90-69) lead Milwaukee (88-70) by 1.5 games. The Cardinals have three games left to play while the Brewers have four games remaining.
Whichever team doesn’t win the Central will face the Nationals in the NL Wild Card Game next Tuesday. The team with the better regular season will host the game — meaning if the season ended today, the Nationals (89-69) would have the edge over the Brewers.
But it’s not all good news for the Nationals. They lose head-to-head tiebreakers against both the Brewers and Cardinals based on their regular season records against those teams. So if Washington ends up in a tie for the wild card lead with either team, they’ll have to travel to Milwaukee or St. Louis for the do-or-die playoff contest.
In the event that St. Louis and Milwaukee finish with identical records, they would play a 163rd game Monday to determine the division champion.
The Nationals have four games remaining, all at home. On Thursday they go for the rare five-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies. Then they’ll host the Cleveland Indians for three games to wrap up the regular season.
NL Central (morning of Sept. 26):
1. St. Louis: 90-69
2. Milwaukee: 88-70
NL Wild Card (morning of Sept. 26):
1. Washington: 89-69
2. Milwaukee: 88-70
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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