In this week’s NL Playoffs Watch: Will the series between the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers give us the NL’s number one seed? Have the Milwaukee Brewers separated themselves from the rest of the league? Can the San Francisco Giants hold on to their playoff spot? Or will the rest of the NL overtake them in the Wild Card race?
NL Playoffs Weekly Watch: Milwaukee Brews a Lead, Braves vs Dodgers, Giants Holding On
NL East: Dead in the Water
Another week has passed, and the Braves have won another six games. As Atlanta broke the franchise record for home runs with a month left in the season, breaking the single-season record seems, once again, achievable. With a 14-game lead over the division, few teams provide a real challenge. And today, one of those teams just lost to them on their own turf. After winning the first away game against the Dodgers, another opportunity shows up. Win the LA series, and the one seed is all but yours. They’ll even have a day off to celebrate before they clobber the St Louis Cardinals. Lose the next three games, and the race for the one seed gets interesting. You’re on Atlanta. Prove that you are the team to beat.
GRAND SLAM FOR RONNIE'S THIRTIETH HOME RUN OF THE SEASON!#ForTheA pic.twitter.com/4naw5y8Xiw
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) September 1, 2023
Meanwhile, in the NL Wild Card race, one team is heating up, and one is drawing dead.
The Philadelphia Phillies are feeling great about themselves. They had a good 5-1 week. Bryce Harper hit home run number 300, and Trea Turner is back to his World Series form. Kyle Schwarber is about to make MLB history. And with series against Milwaukee and the San Diego Padres, they are ready to test their new-found fire against some solid opponents.
Bryce Harper had Philly rocking after his 300th career homer! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/xicnYsFWJv
— MLB (@MLB) August 30, 2023
The Miami Marlins, however, can’t seem to get back to their July shape. Another abysmal 1-5 week. 3-7 in their last 10 and 13-28 since the All-Star break. They have the Dodgers and the Washington Nationals next, so it won’t get better any time soon. A monumental collapse, even with the hitting acquisitions at the trade deadline. Sitting three games back of the playoffs, they are lucky the Los Angeles Angels exist. Or they would risk being the laughingstock of the whole league.
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NL West: Giant Resilience
This week, a test is unveiled to the Dodgers. As their fellow juggernauts, the Braves, have come to town, and already took a game away from them. Sure, a 5-2 week, is still admirable, but this series is the ultimate benchmark. Can you win it, or can you at least make it competitive? It doesn’t matter that they are matched up with the doormat that is the Marlins after this. For Los Angeles, it is World Series or bust. If they want to be there, they must find out if they can get through the Braves to do so. You have Freddie Freeman, and Mookie Betts is playing like the best player of all time right now. Get it done, LA.
How about a little Mookie Magic?! pic.twitter.com/7dZmgoMGVg
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) September 1, 2023
While that is going on, 13.5 games down the standings, the duel for the Wild Card is still going. The Giants had a solid 4-3 week and managed to keep the last playoff spot. For that, they must thank the Dodgers, as their 3-game sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks was the main cause for a 2-4 week for the Snakes. And while Arizona gets a powerhouse in the Baltimore Orioles to go with their easy series against the Colorado Rockies, San Francisco gets a quality team in the Chicago Cubs, and a team with quality players in the Padres. This following week will show which team, if any, is better suited for the playoffs.
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NL Central: Brewing a Lead
As the Brewers had another solid 4-2 week, they now sit with a comfortable three-game lead over the second-placed Cubs. But they have missed an opportunity. Losing the final two games of the series against Chicago allowed them to come back from a five-game deficit, and kept them in the race for the division title. And with a week featuring the hot Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Brewers faithful hope that these two close losses were a mere bump in their hot streak. And not a sign of its end.
And as the NL Wild Card race keeps going, the Cubs and the Cincinnati Reds have shifted their hope dramatically. For Chicago, a 5-2 week, with 2 wins over the Brewers, got them back in the division title race, while maintaining a decent position in the Wild Card. For the Reds, a 2-4 week placed them six games back of the Brewers, and 1.5 games back of the playoffs. And while Chicago has to face the suspect Giants, the Reds get a look at the surging Seattle Mariners. But the most important series for both of these teams is against each other. As it defines whether the Reds miss the playoffs, while the Cubs fight Milwaukee for the division, or if both engage in a fight to the death for a Wild Card spot.
That's how you solidify your first big league 4-hit game 💣 pic.twitter.com/iSSZtAXsFI
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) August 30, 2023
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Playoff Picture
Since the Dodgers and Braves have their divisions all but secured, and Milwaukee has gained a respectable lead over the NL Central, the focus is on the NL Wild Card race.
Sitting 4th in the standings, still sporting a comfortable 4.5-game lead, the Phillies are heating up for the post-season. 5th come the Cubs, as they are trying to distance themselves from the pack, with a 1.5-game lead. And in 6th, the Giants are still holding on as the Wild Card race enters its final month. The Diamondbacks and Reds are still hot on their heels, within one and 1.5 games of San Francisco. Three games back, the Marlins are desperately trying to regain some form. And 8.5 games back, the 250 million dollar Padres stand ashamed. With a +50 run differential, and 10 games under .500.
Main photo credits:
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
