It’s that time of the season again. The joy that came with the All-Star weekend festivities is long gone, and teams are digging in for the final few weeks of the regular season. At this point, no team is statistically eliminated, but we have a pretty clear picture of who is in contention for the ten available playoff spots.

AL EAST (C=Contender, NC=Non-Contender)
Toronto Blue Jays (C): With a record of 75-57, the Blue Jays lead the AL East and hold a one and a half game lead over the second place team, the New York Yankees. After a lackluster 45-46 record at the All-Star break, a midseason trade to acquire shortstop Troy Tulowitzki from the Rockies bolstered their already strong batting lineup. Unlike most teams, who win games in dull fashion, retiring batter after batter with a strong pitching unit, the Jays are quite the opposite. With big-name batters such as Troy Tulowitzki, Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion leading the pack, the Blue Jays annihilate their opponents by assaulting them with a slew of runs that hushes opposing crowds and makes Toronto fans erupt with glee. The Blue Jays have 30 games left on their schedule. 14 of the teams they play are under .500 (lost more games than they won); seven of them are above .500 and six are at .500. They play 13 of their remaining games at home and 17 away. They play seven pivotal games against the Yankees. Losing even one of those games can cost them a division that won’t be locked up until the last out of the season.

New York Yankees (C): With a record of 73-58, the Yankees are currently second in the AL East and control one of the two AL Wild Card spots. The Yankees are a high powered offense, averaging almost five runs per game. Carlos Beltran, Mark Teixeria, Jacoby Elsbury and Alex Rodriguez lead their batting lineup while Nathan Evoladi, CC Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka captain the pitching unit. The Yankees have 31 games left on their schedule. Of those 31 games, 15 of the teams they play are under .500, ten of them are over .500 and six of them are at it. The Yankees have a solid lead for the Wild Card and unless they have a major collapse, they will most likely make the playoffs.

Tampa Bay Rays (NC): This just isn’t the Rays season. After the failed David Price project last year, they haven’t found a replacement, leaving a gaping hole in their bullpen.

Baltimore Orioles (NC): As Ben Kenobi was quoted to have said, “These are not the Orioles you are looking for.” These Orioles aren’t last season’s Orioles in the slightest. They are way too inconsistent and their pitching was underwhelming this season. Let’s hope the only thing Chris Davis will be crushing is his bat.

Boston Red Sox (NC): The only seven letters Sox fans will know for the next couple seasons in no particular order are: R, E, B, U, I, L and D.

AL CENTRAL
Kansas City Royals (C): The AL Central is probably the only division that is locked up, and the Royals family has the key. Prying it away is almost impossible. The Royals hold a twelve game lead over the division, having it in a stranglehold. They have been powered by Lorenzo Cain, Salvador Perez, Eric Hosmer, Omar Infante and Mike Moustakas offensively. Though they are impressive on that side of the ball, they have a bullpen that can handle any set of batters thrown at them. They have two aces in Edison Volquez and Johnny Cueto, who they received in a mid-season trade with the Reds. The Royals are the best all-around team this season, and they are in the playoffs without a doubt and once again in the World Series conversation.

Minnesota Twins (NC): It is going to be a cold winter for Twins fans without baseball, but with this division already locked up and the Yankees and Rangers in almost full control of the Wild Card, it would take a miracle for the Twins to clinch the playoffs.

Cleveland Indians (NC): At least Indians fans can look forward to the NBA season.

Chicago White Sox (NC): Good thing Chicago has two baseball teams.

Detroit Tigers (NC): A disappointing season for a usually dominant team. Miguel Cabrera missed his first games in his 13-year career. That was about as fluky as their season.

AL WEST
Houston Astros (C): It’s been a long time, but everything seems to have come together for Houston this season in the form of a 73-61 record. They have had stellar production from Jose Altuve. He has set new career highs in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. Solid seasons from Evan Gattis and Luis Valbuena contributed to a strong batting lineup. Strong pitching from Dallas Keuchel, Collin McHugh and acquiring Scott Kazmir mid-season has helped make Houston one of the best all-around teams in the MLB. The Astros have 28 games left on their schedule, 12 of which are at home and 16 of which are away. Though they have more away games than home games, 21 of their 28 remaining games are against opponents under .500, which will give them a cushion if they fall on some bad nights. They have a two game lead over the Texas Rangers for the division, but they play them seven more times this season, and those games will most likely decide who wins the division in the end.

Texas Rangers (C): Since the All-Star break, the Rangers front office has made moves that signal they are going for a World Series or nothing season. So far, those moves have panned out pretty well. They traded for 1B Mike Napoli, LHP Cole Hamels and LF Josh Hamilton. They have an extremely strong batting lineup consisting of Prince Fielder, Elvis Andrus, Adrian Beltre, Shin-Soo Choo, Mitch Moreland, Josh Hamilton and Joey Gallo. They have received nice pitching performances from Colby Lewis, Yovani Gallardo and Cole Hamels, with Hamels and Gallardo both having an ERA (earned run average) fewer than 4.00, showing consistency among the bullpen. They have one of the easiest remaining schedules. They play 17 of their remaining 30 games at home and 23 of the 30 teams they play are under .500, which should allow them to catch up to Houston. If they fall short, they are currently four games behind the Yankees for the AL Wild Card, but they do hold the AL Wild Card 2 spot, so they are currently in playoff contention.

Los Angeles Angels (NC): Mike Trout has reeled in a potential MVP season, but even with strong outings from Albert Pujols, the Angels fishing line isn’t strong enough to pull a playoff spot out of the crowded sea.

Seattle Mariners (NC): King Felix was anything but regal this season with an ERA of 3.66, 1.52 points higher than last season.

Oakland Athletics (NC): At least Oakland fans can celebrate the Warriors championship. Steph Curry banged home more from deep than the A’s anyway.

NL EAST
New York Mets (C): “This is a story all about how the MLB got flip-turned upside down and I’d like to take a minute you just sit and read while I tell you how the Mets are in the lead”. The Mets are the Fresh Prince of the MLB, having their world flip-turned upside down in just one season. They were the bottom-dwellers of the MLB, but now they are on top of the food chain. Whatever prompted this transformation is unknown, but it probably has to do something with their dominant pitching. Jacob deGrom has thrown so many strikeouts he gives each batter an IRA on their way back to the dugout. Matt Harvey has also had a great season, posting a 2.60 ERA. The most interesting thing about the Mets bullpen is the excellence of Bartolo Colon. The 42 year-old has been in the MLB for almost two decades and even at his advanced age, he hasn’t fallen off his game. But to win games, you need some points on the board. That can be contributed to the solid performances of Curtis Granderson, Wilmer Flores and a season-changing trade for Yoenis Cespedes. The Mets hold a five game lead over the Nationals with 27 games left on their schedule. They play 16 teams under .500 and 11 over with 12 home games left and 15 away games. As long as the Mets continue to play like they are right now, they should make the playoffs.

Washington Nationals (C): The Nationals have been uncharacteristically streaky this season. They have had lengthy winning streaks and equally long losing streaks. Luckily for them, it hasn’t kept them out of playoff contention as they are right in the middle of it all. They trail the Mets by five games and trail the Cubs for the NL Wild Card 2 by seven and a half games. Bryce Harper has been playing his tune and would be in contention for the MVP if it weren’t for his injuries, and he still may be in the conversation. A usually strong pitching unit has struggled with consistency this season. The Nats have posted a 70-65 record with 27 games to go. They have a very soft schedule, playing 24 games against teams under .500 and playing 15 games at home. If the Nats can take advantage of this easy schedule and remain consistent, they have a good chance of making the playoffs.
Miami Marlins (NC): Another injury plagued season for Giancarlo Stanton. He started off dominant, but injuries kept him off the field and the team couldn’t make up for his absence.

Atlanta Braves (NC): Just another bad season for the Braves. What else is new?

Philadelphia Phillies (NC): Fallen from their glory days at the end of the most recent decade, the Phillies are now in full rebuild, trading Chase Utley, Gustavo Pierre, Cole Hamels and Jonathan Papelbon.

NL CENTRAL
Saint Louis Cardinals (C): Even in the toughest division in the MLB the Cardinals still seem to make fools out of everyone else. They are a great all-around team, having a talented bullpen accompanied by strong hitters. Jhonny Peralta, Jason Heyward, Kolten Wong, Yadier Molina, Matt Carpenter, Jason Heyward and Matt Holiday have given the Cardinals a very talented offense and John Lackey and Michael Waka have been solid pitchers this year. At 86-48, the Cardinals have a five and a half game lead over the surging Pirates. They are currently in the middle of a series against the Pirates, the most important series of the season for them. They play 28 more games, 16 of which are teams below .500 and 12 which are above it. They play 12 more games at home and 16 away, which is a pretty rough schedule. They are a talented team, but they have a tough schedule ahead and will need to be on top of things if they want to retain the lead over the division.

Pittsburgh Pirates (C): The past two seasons, the Pirates have made the Wild Card. Two years ago they moved on but last year they were snuffed. Both the Pirates and the Cubs are viable division winners and can both cause serious damage in the playoffs. When you have an MVP in your batting lineup, he instantly bolsters it. Andrew McCutchen is that MVP and he is having another fabulous season, already tallying 85 RBI. On the pitching side, Gerrit Cole and A.J. Burnett have had solid seasons. The Pirates are 80-53 with 29 games left on their schedule. They play 15 teams under .500 and 14 over, with 15 of those teams playing in Pittsburgh and the Pirates sailing their ships to the other 14. Their schedule isn’t much easier than the Cardinals, so capitalizing on home games is going to be critical if they want to win the division. However, if they fail in that effort, they have a four game lead over the Cubs for the top Wild Card spot and even if they were to secede that lead, they would still be in the playoffs as they would be in the NL Wild Card 2 spot. The Pirates will be making the playoffs this year.

Chicago Cubs (C): When a Cubs fan tries to talk trash to the Reds (my team), my favorite joke is: “Hey, the last time you guys won the World Series the Ottoman Empire was still in existence (way back in 1908)”. Now however, this is a different Cubs team. They not only have the ability to make the playoffs this year, but they have the ability to make the playoffs and do serious damage for years to come. This comes from their abundance of youth on their roster. They have 22 players 30 and younger and 10 of those players are under 26. They have one of the most ecstatic offenses in the MLB, led by youngsters Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo. They also have a developing bullpen, led by veteran Jon Lester, who is supported by Jake Arrieta, Jason Hammel and Kyle Hendricks. The Cubs are four games behind the Pirates with a record of 76-57. They also have 29 games left on their schedule. They play 15 teams with a record below .500 and 14 with a record above .500. They play 12 games at home and 17 games away. They have the toughest schedule out of the contenders in this division. They are currently in the NL Wild Card 2 spot with a seven and a half game lead over the Nationals. Unless they have a major collapse, the Cubs will be making the playoffs for the first time in a while.

Milwaukee Brewers (NC): The return of Ryan Braun…didn’t mean much. He batted just under his average at .282, but he didn’t get much support from his team.

Cincinnati Reds (NC): The Reds are in desperate need of a decent bullpen. They have great hitters in Joey Votto, Jay Bruce and Brandon Phillips, but scoring doesn’t help when you are still being outscored. They have one of the best closers in the league in Aroldis Chapman, but they have traded away Johnny Cueto and Marlon Byrd to add depth to their pitching unit.

NL WEST
Los Angeles Dodgers (C): The Dodgers have had another strong season despite the injury bug and some interesting trades. Cuban star Yasiel Puig has been plagued with injuries this season, limiting his effectiveness. The Dodgers traded away Matt Kemp to the Padres for three players. Even without Kemp, the Dodgers have posted a division-leading 77-58 record. They have a strong batting lineup, consisting of Joc Pederson, Andre Ethier, Howie Kendrick, Adeian Gonzalez and an oft-injured yet still productive Yasiel Puig. They have one of the strongest bullpens in the MLB, led by top-flight pitchers Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke, who are both having fantastic seasons. The Dodgers have 27 games left on their schedule. They have a pretty soft schedule, playing 17 of those 27 games against teams under .500 and just under half of their remaining games at home. With a seven and a half game lead over the Giants, they control their own destiny.

San Francisco Giants (C): This is a surprisingly down year for the reigning champions and a team that has won three of the last five World Series. For a team that in its core is almost identical to last season (outside of Pablo Sandoval), this is a shocking twist. Just not as shocking as how the injury bug has torn this roster to pieces. Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Joe Panik amd Hunter Pence have all been affected by injuries. Luckily, they still have Buster Posey, Angel Pagan, Nori Aoki and Gregor Blanco to help fill the void. The Giants have posted a 70-66 record with 26 games left to go. The Giants have one of the softest schedules left, playing a four game series against the Dodgers, the only team they play with a record over .500. They also play 16 of their remaining games at home. The Giants trail the Dodgers by seven and a half games and are eight games out of the NL Wild Card 2 spot. If the Giants can capitalize on their weak schedule, Madison Bumgarner may get the chance to save their season like he did last year.

Arizona Diamondbacks (NC): The Diamondbacks are another team suffering from the never ending search for a solid bullpen. They are developing a batting lineup though, with Paul Goldschmidt, A.J. Pollock and David Peralta all having solid seasons.

San Diego Padres (NC): The Padres are definitely a team that will be on the upswing in the next few years. The addition of Matt Kemp gives them a huge boost offensively. They also are building a solid bullpen led by James Shields and Craig Kimbrel. They may not make the playoffs this year, but be wary of the Padres next year; their mediocrity is coming to an end.

Colorado Rockies (NC): The Rockies are going into their rebuilding stage after trading away Troy Tulowitzki. The next few years don’t look so smooth for the Rockies.