With only two weeks left in the regular season, it is now the season of Clinchmas and we already have four teams ready to celebrate the season.

<h2>New York Yankees</h2>
The first AL team to secure a playoff spot was the New York Yankees. This was a foregone conclusion. They&#8217;re one of the best teams in the league, battling with the Orioles for the top spot in the AL Beast all season and finally clinching a position in October. With the recent slump from the O&#8217;s, the Yankees were able to take advantage and finally gain some ground on the Birds.
While Baltimore has gone 3-7 in their last 10, the Yankees have a flipped script, going 7-3 in their last 10, thanks to some clutch performances from their pitchers. Eight Yankees pitchers have a sub-2.00 ERA in those 10 games, including Tommy Kahnle, Tim Hill, Luke Weaver, and Ian Hamilton, who all hold an even 0.00 ERA and two starters, Nestor Cortes and Luis Gil, who boast a 0.82 ERA and 1.80 ERA respectively.
Offensively, it&#8217;s been the usual suspects. Since the Trade Deadline, the Yanks have two of the top four home run hitters in Aaron Judge (14) and Juan Soto (13). Deadline acquisition Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been thriving as a Yankee, Giancarlo Stanton has had spurts of his old self, and Austin Wells has been cashing in runs; the Yankees are firing on all cylinders.
New York has an interesting end to their season. This weekend, they head to Oakland for their final visit to the Coliseum and wrap up the year with a home series against the Pirates. However, between the two series is a three-game set with the Baltimore Orioles. While the Yankees have clinched a playoff spot, they haven&#8217;t clinched the division yet. If Baltimore can steal one or two against the hottest team in baseball, the Detroit Tigers and the Yankees falter a little in Oakland, their final series could be quite intriguing to wrap up September.
<h2>Cleveland Guardians</h2>
The Cleveland Guardians clinch the Postseason in one of the strangest divisions in baseball. The Guardians lead the Kansas City Royals, who hold a Wild Card spot, by 6.5 games, and lead the Detroit Tigers and the Minnesota Twins, who are both tied for the final Wild Card spot, by 8.5 games.
While José Ramirez has led the way for the Guardians all year, it has been Canadian Josh Naylor who has totally busted out this season. With 31 homers and 105 RBIs, the Mississauga Masher has been the second-most-productive hitter for CLE and the most productive since the Trade Deadline. Speaking of the Deadline, new acquisition Lane Thomas has been effective with his time in The Land, smacking five home runs and cashing in 18. Scoring runs have been no issue for the Guardians.
On the pitching side, their bullpen has been fantastic. Five Guardian relievers have an ERA below 2.00, including St. Albert, Alberta native, Erik Sabrowski, who has had a fantastic start to his MLB career. Sabrowski has yet to give up a run in 7.2 innings with 11 strikeouts and only two walks. One of the best closers in the league, Emmanuel Clase, has the most saves in the MLB this year and recently tied the single-season franchise record with 46.
Cleveland is wrapping up the season on a bit of a hot streak, winning seven of their last ten and having a relatively easy end to the season. Cleveland heads into St. Louis this weekend, who sit 8.0 games behind the final Wild Card spot, then heads off to Cincinnati to face the fourth-best team in the NL Central. If Cleveland can keep their current form they should be able to take at least four of the next six. The Guardians will finish off their season with the Houston Astros, who have a magic number of five as the Mariners continue to stick around in the AL West. That series could be very important for the Astros, basically playing playoff-level baseball before October, giving us a quick preview of the Cleveland Guardians form heading into the Postseason.
Cleveland could be a fun team to watch in October.
<h2>Milwaukee Brewers</h2>
The only team to not only clinch a playoff spot but also their division. The Milwaukee Brewers have been in revenge mode ever since Craig Counsell decided to leave to division rival the Chicago Cubs, and that grudge has paid off. Milwaukee has sent the Cubs into this awkward zone between rebuilding and retooling, and sitting on the outside looking in for the playoff race.
This team has seen some tremendous output from some of the faces of their franchise. Willy Adames, who faced trade rumours since the Winter Meetings, has hit the second-most long balls in all of baseball since July 1st, second to only that one guy in Los Angeles, with 15 and tied for the fourth most RBIs with 38. William Contreras leads the team in OBP and walks in that same time frame while also producing 30+ RBIs. Youngster Jackson Chourio has come as advertised: 21 homers and 77 RBIs in his rookie campaign, and he leads the team in batting average. Chourio has been everything the Brewers have needed, especially in the absence of Christian Yelich&#8230; Yeah, the Brewers have been doing it without Christian Yelich.
While the pitching stats don&#8217;t pop as some of the other teams have already clinched, the Brewers&#8217; pitching staff sits seventh in the MLB in pitching WAR since the Trade Deadline and fifth in ERA. The long ball has been the issue for Milwaukee pitchers, though, sitting 14th in HR/9, eighth in hard-hit%, and the highest launch angle in the league.
Also, unlike the other teams that have already clinched, the Brew Crew has a tough schedule to end their season. This weekend, they host the Arizona Diamondbacks, who they handled pretty well in AZ with a 2-1 win in the opener, a 15-8 crushing victory on Saturday, and an 11-10 slugfest loss in the finale. But, the D-backs will be hungry. They are currently tied with the Mets for the second Wild Card spot but only sit 2.0 games ahead of the Atlanta Braves. The Brewers then reach a buffer with the Pirates, but to end their season, they face off against those very Mets who are tied with the D-backs. Two out of their final three opponents are battling each other for the final postseason spot.
While Milwaukee has already clinched their division, you do not want to head into October limping, and if the D-backs and Mets find another gear, the Brewers could have a quick visit in the Playoffs.
<h2>Los Angeles Dodgers</h2>
Now, the Dodgers clinching a playoff berth for the 12th consecutive year has been severely overshadowed by Shohei&#8217;s amazing 50/50 accomplishment on the same day as their clinching. This is fair, Shohei Ohtani posted not only one of the single greatest regular season performances in MLB history but the single greatest season in history.
In the clinching game, Shohei not only joined the 50/50 club but became the first player to hit 51 homers and 51 steals in the same season. He also<a href="https://x.com/OptaSTATS/status/1836920815578927157"> became the first player in MLB history</a> to finish a game with 10+ RBIs, six-plus hits, five-plus extra-base hits, three-plus home runs, and two-plus stolen bases. That&#8217;s f*****g insane.
But enough about Ohtani. This is about PLAYOFFS, and the Dodgers finished the inevitable and clinched their 12th Postseason berth in the last 12 years. But it wasn&#8217;t as easy as everyone thought; The Blue Crew have endured numerous injuries all year. Max Muncy, Mookie Betts, Tyler Glasnow, Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto have all spent some time on the IL at different times this year, plus the demise of former No. 2 prospect Bobby Miller hasn&#8217;t exactly been an MLB-level pitcher this season.
Luckily for the Dodgers, two guys who have consistently stayed in the lineup this season were Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernandez. Teo has had a fantastic season, becoming one of the Dodgers&#8217; more consistent hitters all year and the second-best power-hitter on the team. But, along with Ohtani and Teoscar, rookie Andy Pages has made a home for himself in the Majors while forcing the demotion of James Outman&#8230; again, Alex Vesia has found a new gear in his fifth MLB season, and Gavin Lux has turned up his game in the second half of the season; plus new additions Michael Kopech, Jack Flaherty, and Tommy Edman have been lights out since their Dodger debuts.
The Dodgers head down the stretch into October tied for the best record in baseball, and despite their injuries, they are still one of the most feared teams in the MLB.

With only two weeks left in the regular season, it is now the season of Clinchmas and we already have four teams ready to celebrate the season.


<h2>New York Yankees</h2>
The first AL team to secure a playoff spot was the New York Yankees. This was a foregone conclusion. They're one of the best teams in the league, battling with the Orioles for the top spot in the AL Beast all season and finally clinching a position in October. With the recent slump from the O's, the Yankees were able to take advantage and finally gain some ground on the Birds.

While Baltimore has gone 3-7 in their last 10, the Yankees have a flipped script, going 7-3 in their last 10, thanks to some clutch performances from their pitchers. Eight Yankees pitchers have a sub-2.00 ERA in those 10 games, including Tommy Kahnle, Tim Hill, Luke Weaver, and Ian Hamilton, who all hold an even 0.00 ERA and two starters, Nestor Cortes and Luis Gil, who boast a 0.82 ERA and 1.80 ERA respectively.

Offensively, it's been the usual suspects. Since the Trade Deadline, the Yanks have two of the top four home run hitters in Aaron Judge (14) and Juan Soto (13). Deadline acquisition Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been thriving as a Yankee, Giancarlo Stanton has had spurts of his old self, and Austin Wells has been cashing in runs; the Yankees are firing on all cylinders.

New York has an interesting end to their season. This weekend, they head to Oakland for their final visit to the Coliseum and wrap up the year with a home series against the Pirates. However, between the two series is a three-game set with the Baltimore Orioles. While the Yankees have clinched a playoff spot, they haven't clinched the division yet. If Baltimore can steal one or two against the hottest team in baseball, the Detroit Tigers and the Yankees falter a little in Oakland, their final series could be quite intriguing to wrap up September.
<h2>Cleveland Guardians</h2>
The Cleveland Guardians clinch the Postseason in one of the strangest divisions in baseball. The Guardians lead the Kansas City Royals, who hold a Wild Card spot, by 6.5 games, and lead the Detroit Tigers and the Minnesota Twins, who are both tied for the final Wild Card spot, by 8.5 games.

While José Ramirez has led the way for the Guardians all year, it has been Canadian Josh Naylor who has totally busted out this season. With 31 homers and 105 RBIs, the Mississauga Masher has been the second-most-productive hitter for CLE and the most productive since the Trade Deadline. Speaking of the Deadline, new acquisition Lane Thomas has been effective with his time in The Land, smacking five home runs and cashing in 18. Scoring runs have been no issue for the Guardians.

On the pitching side, their bullpen has been fantastic. Five Guardian relievers have an ERA below 2.00, including St. Albert, Alberta native, Erik Sabrowski, who has had a fantastic start to his MLB career. Sabrowski has yet to give up a run in 7.2 innings with 11 strikeouts and only two walks. One of the best closers in the league, Emmanuel Clase, has the most saves in the MLB this year and recently tied the single-season franchise record with 46.

Cleveland is wrapping up the season on a bit of a hot streak, winning seven of their last ten and having a relatively easy end to the season. Cleveland heads into St. Louis this weekend, who sit 8.0 games behind the final Wild Card spot, then heads off to Cincinnati to face the fourth-best team in the NL Central. If Cleveland can keep their current form they should be able to take at least four of the next six. The Guardians will finish off their season with the Houston Astros, who have a magic number of five as the Mariners continue to stick around in the AL West. That series could be very important for the Astros, basically playing playoff-level baseball before October, giving us a quick preview of the Cleveland Guardians form heading into the Postseason.

Cleveland could be a fun team to watch in October.
<h2>Milwaukee Brewers</h2>
The only team to not only clinch a playoff spot but also their division. The Milwaukee Brewers have been in revenge mode ever since Craig Counsell decided to leave to division rival the Chicago Cubs, and that grudge has paid off. Milwaukee has sent the Cubs into this awkward zone between rebuilding and retooling, and sitting on the outside looking in for the playoff race.

This team has seen some tremendous output from some of the faces of their franchise. Willy Adames, who faced trade rumours since the Winter Meetings, has hit the second-most long balls in all of baseball since July 1st, second to only that one guy in Los Angeles, with 15 and tied for the fourth most RBIs with 38. William Contreras leads the team in OBP and walks in that same time frame while also producing 30+ RBIs. Youngster Jackson Chourio has come as advertised: 21 homers and 77 RBIs in his rookie campaign, and he leads the team in batting average. Chourio has been everything the Brewers have needed, especially in the absence of Christian Yelich... Yeah, the Brewers have been doing it without Christian Yelich.

While the pitching stats don't pop as some of the other teams have already clinched, the Brewers' pitching staff sits seventh in the MLB in pitching WAR since the Trade Deadline and fifth in ERA. The long ball has been the issue for Milwaukee pitchers, though, sitting 14th in HR/9, eighth in hard-hit%, and the highest launch angle in the league.

Also, unlike the other teams that have already clinched, the Brew Crew has a tough schedule to end their season. This weekend, they host the Arizona Diamondbacks, who they handled pretty well in AZ with a 2-1 win in the opener, a 15-8 crushing victory on Saturday, and an 11-10 slugfest loss in the finale. But, the D-backs will be hungry. They are currently tied with the Mets for the second Wild Card spot but only sit 2.0 games ahead of the Atlanta Braves. The Brewers then reach a buffer with the Pirates, but to end their season, they face off against those very Mets who are tied with the D-backs. Two out of their final three opponents are battling each other for the final postseason spot.

While Milwaukee has already clinched their division, you do not want to head into October limping, and if the D-backs and Mets find another gear, the Brewers could have a quick visit in the Playoffs.
<h2>Los Angeles Dodgers</h2>
Now, the Dodgers clinching a playoff berth for the 12th consecutive year has been severely overshadowed by Shohei's amazing 50/50 accomplishment on the same day as their clinching. This is fair, Shohei Ohtani posted not only one of the single greatest regular season performances in MLB history but the single greatest season in history.

In the clinching game, Shohei not only joined the 50/50 club but became the first player to hit 51 homers and 51 steals in the same season. He also<a href="https://x.com/OptaSTATS/status/1836920815578927157"> became the first player in MLB history</a> to finish a game with 10+ RBIs, six-plus hits, five-plus extra-base hits, three-plus home runs, and two-plus stolen bases. That's f*****g insane.

But enough about Ohtani. This is about PLAYOFFS, and the Dodgers finished the inevitable and clinched their 12th Postseason berth in the last 12 years. But it wasn't as easy as everyone thought; The Blue Crew have endured numerous injuries all year. Max Muncy, Mookie Betts, Tyler Glasnow, Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto have all spent some time on the IL at different times this year, plus the demise of former No. 2 prospect Bobby Miller hasn't exactly been an MLB-level pitcher this season.

Luckily for the Dodgers, two guys who have consistently stayed in the lineup this season were Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernandez. Teo has had a fantastic season, becoming one of the Dodgers' more consistent hitters all year and the second-best power-hitter on the team. But, along with Ohtani and Teoscar, rookie Andy Pages has made a home for himself in the Majors while forcing the demotion of James Outman... again, Alex Vesia has found a new gear in his fifth MLB season, and Gavin Lux has turned up his game in the second half of the season; plus new additions Michael Kopech, Jack Flaherty, and Tommy Edman have been lights out since their Dodger debuts.

The Dodgers head down the stretch into October tied for the best record in baseball, and despite their injuries, they are still one of the most feared teams in the MLB.

MLB Notebook: It’s Clinchmas Season

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