The Seattle Mariners still have a chance.
Yep, that sounds crazy, but it’s technically true. The Mariners have not yet been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.
They can be knocked out very soon, so this could all be short lived.
But if you’re a glass half full kind of person, then it’s worth considering this: If everything breaks just right, the Mariners can still get in the postseason.
Of course, it’s highly unlikely at this point. Much more likely is that Seattle misses out entirely just a year after going to Game 7 of the ALCS, where they were less than two innings worth of outs away from making it to their first-ever World Series.
The Mariners entered this season with a ton of hype and lived up to essentially none of it.
There’ve been disappointments up and down the roster, but that’s not the point right now.
The point is that the math says the Mariners still have a chance.
Are the Mariners Eliminated?
No, the Seattle Mariners have not yet been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.
They cannot get a Wild Card spot in the American League anymore, but the current dismal state of the AL West Division means that they still have a slim chance at the division crown.
It would require mighty collapses by both the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, but it’s not impossible.
How Mariners Can Still Make Playoffs
First, it’s important to note the records: The Rangers are 78-78, the Astros are 77-79 and the Mariners are 73-83 entering action on Sept. 22. All have six games left to play.
The best record the Mariners can end up with is 79-83, and that’s if they sweep their season-ending series against the Astros (two games) and Angels (four games).
The Mariners own the tiebreaker against the Astros and can’t lose it in this series, but the Rangers hold the tiebreaker over Seattle.
That means that to beat out the Rangers, the Mariners need to win all six games. If they get to 78 wins, and even if the Rangers don’t win again and still have 78, Texas would be ahead of Seattle.
So it starts with a Mariners 6-0 stretch to end the regular season.
If that happens, they then need the Rangers to go 0-6 to close the regular season. Texas hosts the Mets for three games and then visits the Twins for three games.
And even if you get that 6-0 and that 0-6, the Astros can still ruin it. They would have to win three out of their four games in Sacramento against the Athletics — in the scenario where they’ve already been swept in two games by Seattle to keep the Mariners alive — and then Houston at 80-82 would still win the division.
So the full scenario is this:
- Mariners finish 6-0.
- Rangers finish 0-6.
- Astros go at best 2-2 against Athletics in final four-game series.
A chance, yes, but man it’s slim.
Are the Mariners Eliminated? How Seattle Can Still Make Playoffs in AL West Division