As we enter the final week of the 2025 regular season, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on:
1. AL contenders prepare for a hectic week:
No teams in the American League have games scheduled for today, giving everyone in the league a breather ahead of a wild final week of the regular season. Only the Blue Jays have clinched a postseason spot among the AL’s teams, and even they haven’t clinched a division title. The Yankees and Mariners appear all but guaranteed a playoff spot at this point, but the Red Sox and Tigers are still facing realistic scenarios where they’re on the outside looking in come October. The Astros and MLB’s hottest club, the resurgent Guardians, are vying for that final spot in the playoffs. With series coming up between Cleveland and Detroit, Boston and Toronto, and Detroit and Boston before the regular season comes to a close, there are plenty of big games to watch throughout the week that will impact the AL playoff picture in a big way.
2. Series Preview: Brewers @ Padres
Over in the NL, one big series between playoff contenders is set to commence today when the Brewers head to San Diego. Milwaukee has already clinched the NL Central but will still need to fend of the Phillies to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Padres, meanwhile, have not yet clinched a playoff berth (although they’re very close to doing so), and they also sit just three games back of the Dodgers in the NL West.
San Diego would love a late hot streak to pry the NL West away from the Dodgers, but Brewers ace Freddy Peralta (2.65 ERA) stands in the way of that today. The Friars will counter with Nick Pivetta (2.81 ERA) opposite Peralta. Randy Vasquez (3.94 ERA) will take on an as-of-yet unannounced Brewers starter for Game 2. The series wraps with Milwaukee’s Quinn Priester (3.25 ERA) on the mound, while the Padres’ starter for that final game is still TBD. The set is scheduled to kick off at 6:40pm local time in San Diego this evening.
3. Star lefties face off in the NL East:
Neither the Braves nor the Nationals are a factor in the postseason race, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t intrigue to be found in their game this evening. One of the top up-and-coming lefties in the game, Nationals southpaw MacKenzie Gore, is set to take on reigning Cy Young winner Chris Sale in Atlanta. First pitch will be 7:15pm local time.
It’s been an up-and-down year for Gore, who looked like a Cy Young contender early on but started to slip during the summer months and wound up taking a trip to the injured list. He’s posted a 1.74 ERA in two starts since returning and will look to finish the season on a strong note. Sale had a chance to repeat as the NL’s Cy Young winner until a ribcage injury sidelined him over the summer. He’s been elite when healthy, posting a 2.35 ERA with a 32.3% strikeout rate, but he’s been limited to 115 innings and 19 starts this season.
The last week of the season seems like an odd time for realignment…
See glaring error -> scroll to author line -> “Nick Deeds” every time
We do not tolerate hate to any author on this site unless his name is angel hernandez
Meow – Like I’ve been saying for three years now, he’s a rookie …. cut him some slack ;O)
Typo prone writer > whiny commenter
I think we knew what he meant.
This. It’s always not that difficult to work out. The complaining is weird.
fopp – I think it’s always with good intentions. They want him to be more conscientious. Presentation is important, if somebody new or important checks this place out and sees lots of glaring errors, it doesn’t leave a good first or last impression.
Let’s not lower the bar, let’s try to raise it.
Nah. It’s a free site. They pump out volume for our reading pleasure. People make mistakes. It’s part of our charm.
A polite correction…..no problem. Calling out folks…..being an arse. That’s how I see it anyway.
Toronto and Detroit entering these last 6 games with business to take care of still is the worst case scenario for Boston. I suppose even if the Sox don’t make the playoffs these last two series will have a “playoff feel”?
On the other hand, both teams have struggled to varying degrees lately and may still feel pressure, Detroit especially. In Toronto’s case, they’ve got a spot locked up and although they should keep pushing for the division and league, they may mistakenly let off the gas.
If a team that Max Scherzer is on even tries to let off the gas at any point I assume he goes and tapes a brick to the gas pedal 😂
But here’s hoping… 🤞
True, but Max himself laid a pretty ugly egg last time out, so who knows.
Canuck – Max isn’t far off from Morton. I expect the Sox to feast on him.
Fever I’m just saying if the Sox fall out of their playoff spot I’m blaming you for being so blithe on here about how Boston blowing their lead would be impossible 😛
Meow – Being confident and positive is what pleases the people here! Considering how great the pitching has been most of the season, and how bad the rest of the league has been, it’s hard not to feel confident!
Wish I shared your confidence, Fever. I have not been able to shake the feeling that this is 2011 all over again.
Dirty – Different circumstances in 2011.
The manager had major personal issues.
It was a veteran team without much motivation, having won it all just 4 years earlier.
And both the division and league were a lot stronger. Three AL teams had won at least 95 games, this year only Toronto can win 95 …. and they’d have to go at least 5-1 to do it.
Other than Chapman and Bregman and Lowe, who has won a championship already?
Pitching and youthful hunger will get it done!
Different circumstances, yes, no doubt. But the hapless September collapse has come all the same. Not quite as drastically as a 9 game lead this time, but still.
I am hopeful they will rediscover “tremendously locked in”, I want this wild card series for the young players as much as I want it for me as a fan. They’ve been really impressive for most of the year, I’d hate to see it come crashing down. At the same time, Toronto is going to be formidable I think. I feel better about the Detroit series over the weekend since they have been hapless all month as well. Cheering for them to sweep Cleveland so they they won’t have to bring their A game to Fenway.
Dirty – I honestly don’t think it’s a September collapse. They are 9-9 in September, it’s not that bad. You want to talk collapse, look at the Tigers. LOL
Fact is the team was good only in July and August. They had a losing record from March thru June.
I think it will be a memorable week.
Good poll question for the final week since tight race and a wild guess.
Which AL team do you believe will miss the playoffs?
Astros, Guardians, Tigers, Red Sox
I don’t know about who’s going to miss the PO. I just hope Boston gets in.
avenger – Red Sox in the postseason is a sure thing! They have a 2 game lead on both Houston and Cleveland.
This won’t be a popular response, but my gut says Boston, because I actually expect Toronto to right the ship this week. My dark horse is Detroit, just because Cleveland is unconscious right now.
With a career ERA of 4.14 (4.00 this year) and an embarrassing WHIP (1.39 career, 1.32 this year), I have a hard time seeing Gore as a “star”. He’s a solid #3 SP on most teams.
Keep preaching Brew. Been saying this since the trade and even adding that based on his projection of being a #1, his being a 3/4 is a real let down (while generally being a 3/4 is a good thing of course).
He still may find something or get with the right coach and run up the charts. For now / post trade, he isn’t what people seem to think he is.
Hey LT I’m rooting for Gore for sure to make the turn to stardom. But until his performance actually warrants it, beyond his potential, then I can’t accept such a narrative just yet. If Gore is a star then so are about 50-60 other SPs (Chris Bassitt, Jeffrey Springs, etc…) with ERAs of 4?
I have seen glimpses of Gore really dishing it out though. In those glimpses he was very Ace-like. But just hasn’t been able to maintain those brief glimpses and turn them into sustainable output. I am certainly wishing him the best on that.
Oh my comment about Gore was not to take anything away from Vasquez or to compare them in any way, sorry.
If you look at where Gore was in his second year and compare to Vasquez this year ( his second year) there really is no comparison. Vasquez is the best of the two this year and he’s the Padres #5/6 SP
I think the thing with Gore is, the dude has the stuff. His strikeouts per 9 innings is about double of that of Vasquez. Gore also has the pedigree of a top prospect status. Vazquez I don’t think has ever been projected to be much more than a #4 or #5 starter at best. Yeah so far in their careers I see similar numbers, but if I was building a team I would want Gore in my rotation for sure, and would bet on him having the better career going forward.
For those that watched the Mariners’ game last night:
What the f*** was Logan Gilbert doing?!?!?! “Oh we’re up by 7 in the second inning? Time for me to work on a pitch that is going bounce every 3rd pitch I throw.” If I was Cal I’d be pissed!
At the same time though, we were up by 7
Logan did his job he didn’t give up many runs
As a Pads fan who’s also an occasional closet Mariners fan, any news on Woo?
Would be nice to finally get a SD / Seattle WS! What would the east coast writers do?
Or Milwaukee v Seattle would be fun too
If not SD I’d be good there.
Milwaukee vs Seattle would have history with the Seattle pilots but Seattle vs San Diego would make the vedder cup return…
Either scenario sounds awesome because the east coast writers would be spewing anger that it isn’t dodgers and Yankees
Or Philly or Mets or Cubs even.
I would answer this dude’s question on Gilbert but he muted me.
Need to reward teams for having wins and being the better team. This should be the current seeding:
#1. Toronto
#2. New York Yankees
#3. Seattle
#4. Boston
#5. Detroit
#6. Cleveland
#1. Milwaukee
#2. Philadelphia
#3. Chicago Cubs
#4. Los Angeles Dodgers
#5. San Diego
#6. Cincinnati
@Hitsthemhighandfar
So you’re saying the best teams shouldn’t be rewarded because MLB hasn’t perfectly balanced the schedule? That’s backwards. The point of a season is wins. If a team has more of them, they’ve earned the higher seed — period. Otherwise, you’re giving participation ribbons to teams just because of their zip code.
@OY: Your Yanks also haven’t been under .500 since early ’90s b/c of their zip code. The rules don’t need to change to help deep pocket teams even more to get a bye or easier opponent when they don’t win its division.
If that was truly the case, then KC & WDC wouldn’t have won chips in the last 10 years, and both Chicago teams would be perennial contenders. Money buys a playoff spot, not a title.
Money can’t buy certain teams a place in the postseason. On Thursday, 6/12, NYM had a 5.5 game lead in the NL East with the best record in the major leagues. As of Monday, 9/22, NYM has given up the division and is outside the wild card places. All because NYM splurged on one outfielder at the expense of a healthy pitching staff.
Missing the 2025 postseason after spending over $700 million would be the ultimate in LOLmets.
The Nats had the 5th highest payroll in MLB in 2019 ($181,400,409). 15 of the last 16 WS winners have had payrolls in the top 8. Spending doesn’t guarantee a WS, but it’s almost impossible to win one without being a top payroll team (KC the only recent exception)
After 150 years, baseball still refuses to have a perfect schedule. So tragic!
Nor the perfect balance in ballpark fence dimensions and climate controls. I say a bit of quirky is good for the game
The amusing part for me is being old enough to remember when the only “playoff” was the World Series, and the teams that got there had to win more games than the nine other teams in their league. So unfair (thought nobody at the time).
The game is what it is. I say, love it for that reason, or watch another sport. Just stop trying to freaking change this one all the time.
And the amount of air travel the West Coast teams have to do, especially Seattle, grinds players down all on its own. It’s the major reason, along with the extremely pitcher friendly ballpark, that free agent hitters are hard to entice to Sea.
Old York, why are you messing with the seeding now when there are six more games left to play? Your little chart will look completely different COB Sunday.
Was a little surprised to see that Sale is up to 57 bWAR for his career. He’s starting to get into HOF territory. He doesn’t have big counting stats, though. Only 143 wins. So I doubt that he’ll make it to Cooperstown. Still, a few more reasonably healthy and productive years and he might get lucky.
@CaseyAbell
I’m hopeful that as we progress in the decades that voters start looking at the actual data that matters when evaluating pitchers and not whether their ERA was good or they had 300 wins. There are a few things that pitchers can control and that is what they should be evaluated on.
I agree, but he has pitched in parts of 15 MLB seasons and has over 2000 IP. Over that large of a sample size, ERA will tell you if he was good or not. Plus, bWAR is based on RA9, which is like ERA with unearned runs included, so if you have a low ERA over a large sample size like Sale, you’re going to have a good WAR.
As a general rule 50 bWAR is the magic number. Most guys who get above that get in the Hall. Mauer had 55.6, McGriff had 52.6, David Ortiz had 55. Jack Morris got in with 43.5.
Sale will likely end up with 60+ bWAR, and already has a Cy Young award, an ERA title, a gold glove, a pitching triple crown, 9 All-Stars, and was part of a World Series winner.
He’s not starting to get into Hall territory. He’s basically already in the Hall itself.
When he took scissors to those god awful Chisox uniforms before he was traded to Boston, he was put in my HOF!
He’s already in Drake LaRoche’s HOF
The Tigers were the least talked about team all year long, and if they fail to make it in this year, the negative stories will have no end. Still they control their own destiny right now. Win the next three games in Cleveland, and rest up until the playoffs. The team has surpassed the expectations the fans had to start the season so its been a very good season for the team. They are young, and whats more important they did not sell the farm on the trading deadline.
Next year they’ll be better just by experience wise they’ll be better. They have some exciting players on the farm, and they have no real long term costs to date. As a fan they’ve been more than meeting my expectations the last two years. The 2013 had so many high value talents, and they blew up in Boston. The 2012 team blew up in Detroit. The young guys of today have no reason to hang their heads over the last few months of play, as no one expected them to have done so well to start the year.
They still have this week. They still have a great chance to make the playoffs no matter the last week. This is exciting for the team, backs against the wall, and all eyes on them. That type of pressure experience is invaluable no matter the outcome. GO TIGERS !
Between the Tigers, the Lions and even the Pistons, there’s a lot to be excited about in Motown sports right now.
Tigers and Mets are gonna flame out this week. Guardians and Reds will get in.
Isn’t it September that the Red Sox have to do the Yankees a favor by beating up on the Blue Jays so the Yankees can poach the AL East on the final weekend.
@ChuckyNJ: Of course there’s nothing more enjoyable for a Red Sox fan than helping out the Yankees
For a better pitching duel tonight, look no further than Peralta vs. Pivetta, who are top 5 in NL in ERA this season
Hard to argue that Peralta and Pivetta are not 2/3 (whichever order) of CY currently.
Skenes doesn’t have it locked over these 2 but I think as of today has the lead.
And Pivetta’s year cost you $4m. Amazing.
There have been a recent string of Nick Martinez, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Pivetta types.
Yes, a few that went the other way but the thing about AJ is he is going to take some shots and no way they can all hit.
Even Kolek who was a Rule 5 draftee could be in the conversation.
Some fan bases complain because their GM doesn’t do anything – SD doesn’t have that problem!
$4m for a FA giving you that type of year is very very special. I can’t recall better. Especially when considering the financial bind you Padre folks don’t like to acknowledge. Ha ha.
Build the man a statue.
Profar in 2024 – only 1 mil.
That one is a bit tainted, but yeah, he can sniff out a bargain.
Did you happen to catch Kolek’s last start against the Mariners?? Holy Moses, like 7 1/3 innings, one or two hits allowed. I was dumbfounded.
@LT. Sanchez and maybe Yamamoto are in there too. Skenes will likely win though with that ERA. Peralta and Pivetta have been as valuable (MVPs of pitchers) as any SPs in getting their teams into playoffs.
How about Adrian Morejon
13-5; .88 Whip; 2.01 ERA
He just missed a 14th win recently.
Skenes then the other 4 in some order. Hard to differentiate between them based on their stats.
This is going to be a fun week of baseball.. it already feels like October!
“Meanwhile” has to START the sentence. Not come in the middle between commas.