Last week of the MLB regular season looms

What to watch for over the final eight days of the major league season.

September 22, 2019 at 6:26AM
Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve throws out Los Angeles Angels' Brian Goodwin during the fifth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)
Jose Altuve and the Astros failed to clinch the AL West title on Saturday; they will try again Sunday. (Ken Chia — AP/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

MLB is entering the last week of the regular season. An update on the races:

American League

Central: Twins lead the Indians by four games. Magic number is 4.

East: Yankees have clinched.

West: Astros have clinched a playoff berth and lead Athletics by seven games. Magic number is 1.

First wild card: Athletics lead by two games.

Second wild card: Rays moved one game ahead of Indians on Saturday.

Best record: Astros (101-54) are a half-game ahead of the Yankees (101-55); Houston also has the tiebreaker.

National League

Central: Cardinals lead the Brewers by three games and Cubs by six. Magic number is 6.

East: Braves have clinched.

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West: Dodgers have clinched.

First wild card: Nationals have a one-game lead.

Second wild card: Brewers have a three-game lead over the Cubs. Mets, Phillies, Diamondbacks are fading.

Best record: The Dodgers (98-56) lead by three games over the Braves (96-60).

Twins-centric

In the Twins' final seven games:

5 Victories needed to reach 100 in a season for the first time since the 1965 Twins won a team-record 102.

5-1 Road trip record needed to crack MLB's top five for best road winning percentage in a season since the Expansion Era began in 1961 (the Twins are 50-25).

1 Home runs needed by Nelson Cruz to reach 400 for his career and to join Harmon Killebrew (10 times) and Brian Dozier (once) as the only Twins to hit 40 in a season.

6 Home runs needed to reach 300 for the season.

6 Runs needed to reach 900 for the season. They have already set a team record.

7 Stolen bases needed to keep from setting a Twins record for fewest in a season. They have 26.

2 Saves needed by Taylor Rogers to reach 30 for the season.

1 Complete games needed to keep from going without one in 2019. The team record for fewest in a season is one in 2006.

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Charlie Riedel/The Associated Press

Bailey Ober used to babysit Drake Maye at their brothers' sporting events in North Carolina.

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