By Vanderbiltreport Team · Saturday, September 26, 2026 · Scores and standings verified against official MLB data as of Saturday morning ET.
MLB’s final weekend opens with three playoff races still unsettled and a piece of history already locked in. After Friday night’s results, the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers are tied atop the American League West at 79-81, which means the division champion can finish no better than 81-81. That guarantees the first division winner without a winning record in a full 162-game season. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Guardians lead the Chicago White Sox by one game in the AL Central, and the Arizona Diamondbacks have pulled within one game of the Philadelphia Phillies for the last National League Wild Card.
Here is what happened Friday, what each team needs over the last two days, and what it means for the Wild Card Series that begins Tuesday.
MLB Final Weekend at a Glance
| Race | Leader | Chaser | Tiebreaker | Leader’s magic number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL West | Astros 79-81 | Rangers 79-81 (tied) | Astros (won season series 9-4) | 2 |
| AL Central | Guardians 84-76 | White Sox 83-77 (1 GB) | White Sox (won season series 7-6) | 2 |
| NL Wild Card No. 3 | Phillies 87-73 | Diamondbacks 86-74 (1 GB) | Diamondbacks | 2 |
Records via MLB’s official Stats API after Friday, Sept. 25. “Magic number” = any combination of leader wins and chaser losses that clinches. MLB no longer plays tiebreaker games; ties are settled by formula, beginning with head-to-head record.
AL West: A Historic Low, Decided in Two Days
Both AL West contenders lost on Friday, so the tie held.
- Twins 10, Rangers 2. Jacob deGrom allowed eight runs on eight hits in four innings as Minnesota scored six times in the second inning. Luke Keaschall went 4-for-5 with three RBIs and Kody Clemens hit his 27th home run. DeGrom did reach 201 strikeouts, his first 200-strikeout season since 2019 (AP via The Ticket).
- Athletics 6, Astros 5. Houston missed a chance to move a game ahead and remains 79-81 (MLB Stats API).
What each team needs
- Astros: Houston owns the tiebreaker after going 9-4 against Texas, so it only needs to match the Rangers over the final two games. An Astros win plus a Rangers loss on Saturday clinches the division (MLB.com).
- Rangers: Texas must finish with a better record than Houston. It needs to win more games than the Astros this weekend.
- Loser goes home. The AL’s three Wild Card spots are already clinched, so the AL West runner-up is eliminated.
Why this is historic
Before this season, the fewest wins by a division champion in a full 162-game season was 82: the 1973 New York Mets (82-79) and the 2005 San Diego Padres (82-80). This year’s AL West winner will finish 81-81 at best (theScore). Teams with losing records have reached the postseason only in unusual seasons: the 1981 Kansas City Royals (50-53) in the strike-split season, and the 2020 Astros and Brewers (both 29-31) in the 60-game pandemic season (AP via myMotherLode). In 1994 the Rangers were in first place at 10 games under .500 when the strike ended the season, but MLB did not award a division title that year.
AL Central: Guardians Hold a One-Game Edge
Cleveland outlasted Kansas City 12-9 and Chicago beat Colorado 6-1, so the gap stayed at one game. Both clubs clinched postseason berths on Thursday. The race now decides seeding: the division winner becomes the AL’s No. 2 seed and skips the Wild Card Series, while the runner-up opens on the road as the No. 6 seed (MLB.com).
- Guardians: Because the White Sox own the tiebreaker (7-6 in the season series), Cleveland must finish with a better record. Any combination of two Guardians wins or White Sox losses clinches the division.
- White Sox: Chicago needs to gain one game. A tie goes to the White Sox.
NL Wild Card: Diamondbacks Close to Within One
Arizona won its sixth straight game, routing San Diego 11-4. Lars Nootbaar homered on the first pitch of the game and Brandon Pfaadt pitched 7⅔ innings. In Philadelphia, the Phillies were shut out 2-0 by Tampa Bay, their third straight loss (MLB.com).
- Phillies (87-73): Any combination of two Phillies wins or Diamondbacks losses sends Philadelphia to the postseason.
- Diamondbacks (86-74): Arizona holds the tiebreaker, so it only has to finish even with Philadelphia. But it does not control its own fate: it must gain one game, for example by winning twice while the Phillies lose once, or by splitting while the Phillies lose twice.
Already Settled
Ten of the 12 postseason spots are clinched (MLB.com clinch tracker):
| League | Division champions | Wild Card clinches |
|---|---|---|
| AL | Rays (East, 97-63) | Yankees (93-68), Red Sox (87-74), Guardians and White Sox (one will win the Central) |
| NL | Brewers (Central, 101-59), Dodgers (West, 98-62), Braves (East, 93-67) | Padres (89-71), Cubs (88-73) |
Boston locked up the AL’s No. 5 seed by sweeping a Friday doubleheader from the Cubs, 4-3 and 2-0, which sets up a Red Sox–Yankees Wild Card Series (Yahoo Sports).
Why It Matters to Fans
- The AL West champ gets home games. As the No. 3 seed, the AL West winner will host the AL Central runner-up in a best-of-three Wild Card Series. Whichever team finishes second in the Central will have won more games than the team it visits.
- Byes are valuable. The top two seeds in each league skip straight to the Division Series. That makes the Guardians–White Sox finish about seeding and rest, not just a banner.
- Every pitch counts in Philadelphia. The Phillies have lost three straight, while Arizona has won six in a row.
What Comes Next: Weekend Schedule
Saturday’s key games (Eastern Time; start times from MLB’s official schedule):
- Rangers at Twins, 4:10 p.m.
- Guardians at Royals, 7:10 p.m. (Tanner Bibee vs. Michael Wacha, listed probables)
- Rockies at White Sox, 7:10 p.m.
- Rays at Phillies, 7:15 p.m.
- Diamondbacks at Padres, 8:40 p.m. (Corbin Burnes listed for Arizona)
- Astros at Athletics, 9:40 p.m.
All of Sunday’s games start in the afternoon, roughly 3:05–3:20 p.m. ET, so the last races could be decided at the same time. The regular season ends Sunday, Sept. 27. The Wild Card Series begins Tuesday, Sept. 29 (MLB.com).
Developing: Pitching probables that were still unannounced Saturday morning may change, and seeding scenarios will shift with each result. We will update our coverage as races are decided.
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Sources
- MLB Stats API: Sept. 25, 2026 final scores and records (official)
- MLB.com: Teams to clinch spots in 2026 MLB playoffs
- MLB.com: AL playoff picture in final week
- MLB.com: Diamondbacks gain on Phillies
- NBC Sports Philadelphia: Phillies playoff tracker
- FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth: Rangers, Astros enter final weekend
- theScore: AL West will have first division champ without winning record
This article reports verified scores, standings, and published schedules. It contains no predictions or betting advice.
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