MLB standings 2026: Updated playoff bracket, magic numbers through Sept. 20

MLB standings 2026: Updated playoff bracket, magic numbers through Sept. 20 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It will still take some time for the leaves to change colors, but the chase for October is upon us.

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The MLB postseason, which actually begins in late September, will be framed as a battle between David and Goliath, with 11 Davids and one Goliath: the Los Angeles Dodgers.

While the Dodgers haven’t looked unbeatable in the regular season, they have positioned themselves as the villains after following back-to-back championships with the trade deadline acquisition of Tarik Skubal.

Everyone else, whether in a big market or a small market, will enter the postseason as some degree of an underdog. After the Blue Jays nearly dethroned the Dodgers last fall, could 2026 be the year a different team climbs to the top?

Here’s an updated look at the MLB standings, including who’s in and who’s out for October.

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MLB standings 2026

American League playoff bracket

Standings updated through games on Sept. 21.

American League wild-card standings

• WC1: Yankees*, 89-66 (.574), +9.5

• WC2: Red Sox, 84-72 (.538), +4.0

• WC3: White Sox, 80-76 (.513)

• Astros, 77-79 (.494), 3.0 GB

• Blue Jays, 77-80 (.490), 3.5 GB

* Indicates clinched postseason berth
** Indicates clinched division title
*** Indicates clinched first-round bye

National League playoff bracket

Standings updated through games on Sept. 21.

National League wild-card standings

• WC1: Cubs 87-69 (.558)

• WC2: Padres, 87-69 (.558)

• WC3: Phillies, 86-70 (.551)

* Indicates clinched postseason berth
** Indicates clinched division title
*** Indicates clinched first-round bye

MLB magic numbers for 2026

Some teams have spent most of 2026 knowing that reaching the postseason was a near certainty, but officially clinching a bid is still a massive moment of relief for both the organization and the fans.

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12 teams will clinch a postseason berth by the end of the day on Sept. 27, and the last handful of spots could come down to the final weekend. Magic numbers are one way to tell how close each team is to clinching.

The math behind magic numbers is as follows: Add one team’s wins and the losses of the trailing team, then subtract it from 163. If a team leading the division has 90 wins and the second-place team has 63 losses, their magic number would sit at 10. Because tiebreaker games no longer occur, though, the magic number can be one number higher or lower based on which team owns the head-to-head tiebreaker.

The first number below is the magic number for teams leading the division or wild-card races to clinch that race. The second number is the elimination number for teams trailing the division or wild-card races, and how far they are from division or playoff elimination. Two x’s means a team has been eliminated from that race or has won it.

Updated through games on Sept. 20.

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AL East

2. Yankees, x/2

3. Red Sox, x/x

4. Blue Jays, x/x

5. Orioles, x/x

AL Central

1. Guardians, 6/x

2. White Sox, x/6

3. Tigers, x/x

4. Twins, x/1

5. Royals, x/x

AL West

1. Rangers, 6/x

2. Astros, x/6

4. Athletics, x/x

5. Angels, x/x

AL Wild Card

1. Yankees, x/x (clinched postseason berth)

2. Red Sox, x/x (clinched postseason berth)

3. White Sox, 4/x

4. Astros, x/4

5. Blue Jays, x/2

6. Orioles, x/2

7. Tigers, x/x

8. Mariners, x/x

9. Twins, x/x

10. Royals, x/x

11. Athletics, x/x

12. Angels, x/x

NL East

1. Braves, x/x (clinched NL East)

2. Phillies, x/x

3. Marlins, x/x

5. Nationals, x/x

NL Central

1. Brewers, x/x (clinched NL Central)

3. Pirates, x/x

NL West

1. Dodgers, x/x (clinched NL West)

2. Padres, x/x

3. Diamondbacks, x/x

4. Giants, x/x

NL Wild Card

2. Padres, 2/x

3. Phillies, 3/x

4. Diamondbacks, x/3

5. Marlins, x/x

6. Pirates, x/x

7. Cardinals, x/x

8. Nationals, x/x

11. Giants, x/x

12. Rockies, x/x

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