And then there were two. We're down to just two weeks left in the 2025 regular season, the point at which each day and each game brings the playoff picture further into focus — and can either make or break a team's postseason dreams.
Already, two teams — the Brewers and Phillies — have punched their ticket to the dance. But there's still much left to be decided. So where do things stand? Let's get you caught up on the bracket, standings and more entering play on Sept. 15.
(As a refresher: MLB's playoff format now features 12 playoff spots, six in each league. The top two division winners in each league by overall record are rewarded with first-round byes, which means they won't have to play in the best-of-three Wild Card series which get underway on Tuesday, Sept. 30. The remaining four teams, including the third-best division winner in each league, will face off in the first round.)
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Which teams have clinched a postseason spot?
Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee has their sights set on a whole lot more than simply making it to October. But the Brew Crew did become the first team in the league to punch their ticket, securing themselves of a postseason spot thanks to the Mets' loss to the Texas Rangers on Saturday. Next up for Pat Murphy's club: Locking down the No. 1 seed in the National League bracket, which they currently lead by two games over the only other team currently in this section.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies missed out on their chance to wrap up the NL East with a loss on Sunday, but there was still at least some cause for celebration at Citizens Bank Park: With the San Francisco Giants' loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers that afternoon, Philly officially locked down a playoff spot. This team is among the hottest in baseball right now, and they still have an outside shot at catching Milwaukee for the top overall seed.
Projected American League postseason bracket as of Sept. 15
For the first time in a long time, there's some shakeup in the AL playoff picture: Thanks to an active nine-game winning streak, the Seattle Mariners have overtaken the Houston Astros atop the AL West. Houston now drops all the way down to the No. 6 seed.
- Toronto Blue Jays (87-62, AL East champs)
- Detroit Tigers (85-65, AL Central champs)
- Seattle Mariners (82-68, AL West champs)
- New York Yankees (83-66, No. 1 AL Wild Card)
- Boston Red Sox (82-68, No. 2 AL Wild Card)
- Houston Astros (81-69, No. 3 AL Wild Card)
And at this point, it's fair to wonder whether this team will even make the playoffs at all: The Astros are now just two games ahead of the Texas Rangers in the standings, just in time for Texas to come to town for a huge three-game set to start the week.
The Yankees don't seem to have enough juice to catch Toronto in the AL East (especially since the Blue Jays own the tiebreaker), but New York does have a golden opportunity to nail down the top Wild Card spot based on a friendly closing schedule that includes seven games against the Orioles, three against the Twins and three against the White Sox.
Plenty could still change between now and the end of the regular season, but here's how things would shake out in the Wild Card round right now.
- No. 5 Boston Red Sox at No. 4 New York Yankees
- No. 6: Houston Astros at No. 3 Seattle Mariners
The Yankees would love to avoid playing that best-of-three at Fenway Park, and taking two of three in Boston this weekend helped mightily in that cause (although the Red Sox still own the head-to-head tiebreaker). Now it's Houston who will have to travel to Seattle as well, which could play right into the hands of the Mariners' dynamite pitching staff.
Projected National League postseason bracket as of Sept. 15
Things are a bit more settled in the NL ... that is, unless you're a fan of the New York Mets.
- Milwaukee Brewers (91-59, NL Central champs)
- Philadelphia Phillies (89-61, NL East champs)
- Los Angeles Dodgers (84-65, NL West champs)
- Chicago Cubs (85-64, No. 1 NL Wild Card)
- San Diego Padres (82-68, No. 2 NL Wild Card)
- New York Mets (77-73, No. 3 NL Wild Card)
New York's eight-game losing streak finally came to a halt on Sunday thanks to a walk-off homer from Pete Alonso. But the race for the final NL Wild Card spot is still very much alive: San Francisco is just a game back in the loss column of New York, while the Reds and Diamondbacks are both two games back in the loss column.
From there, though, we're starting to see the cream rise to the top. Milwaukee and Philly are engaged in a battle for the top overall seed, but both have a first-round bye more or less nailed down. The Dodgers have stabilized after a nightmarish string of bullpen blowups and now lead the NL West by two games (plus the head-to-head tiebreaker over San Diego). The other five spots should remain essentially unchangd, setting up a blockbuster Wild Card round:
- No. 5 San Diego Padres at No. 4 Chicago Cubs
- No. 6: New York Mets at No. 3 Los Angeles Dodgers
Right now, it's hard to imagine this Mets team going on a deep run in October like last year's version. But the talent is still there, and it's not like the Dodgers have been without fault over the last few weeks either. No matter what, the anxiety in that best-of-three would be through the roof.
The situation would be similar in the other matchup, given just how all-in both San Diego and Chicago are this year. The former risked everything at the trade deadline, while the Cubs only have one guaranteed year with Kyle Tucker in tow. We're just two weeks away from the pressure cooker that is October, and we can't wait.