Welcome to our newly redesigned Just Baseball newsletter! If you’re a previous subscriber, please take 30 seconds to fill out this audience survey so we can continue to bring you tailored coverage of all things baseball and keep you posted on our latest content, giveaways, events, and more.

And now to the main event: The 2024 MLB Playoffs are less than a month away and we are getting ready for the most exciting time of the year as baseball fans.

Our editorial staff recently put together our Final Power Rankings of 2024 as we look towards the playoff picture now with just a few weeks to play and the top World Series contenders becoming clear.

While only a few teams outside the playoff picture still have a real shot to sneak in, a ton that can change in terms of seeding and playoff matchups in the final weeks of the regular season.

American League Playoff Picture

The American League is tightly contested with the six current playoff teams all within six games of each other. While the field seems like it’s nearly set with these teams, plenty could still change with rosters still shifting.

One divisional race in the AL East has been tightly contested all season and could come down to a series during the final week of the season between the Yankees and Orioles.

The other two divisional leaders have pulled ahead recently as have the other two teams in the final Wild Card spots. Let’s take a look at where each team stands with three weeks left in the regular season.

New York Yankees

The Yankees are led by two historically excellent offensive seasons from MVP favorite Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. Beyond that, there are still questions about the depth throughout the roster as there have been the past number of years come postseason. There is some bullpen reshuffling right now too as they attempt to find stability. New York has a massive offseason ahead with Juan Soto hitting the open market for the first time in his career and a playoff run would greatly benefit the battle to keep him on that side of town.

Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles have the offensive firepower to make a serious run led by a historic season from Gunnar Henderson, but can their pitching get it done in October? They have a plethora of arms on the shelf and they may regret not swinging more pitchers at the deadline. However, they have plenty of young talent capable of taking them to the next level needed to win the AL East. How the last battle between New York and Baltimore goes could determine the division.

Cleveland Guardians

Since losing three of four to the Royals towards the end of August, the Guardians have settled back in at the top of the AL Central but the young Royals are still in the hunt as they’ve remained just a few games back of Cleveland. They control their own destiny within the division and for the top overall seed in the American League. Meanwhile, perennially-underrated star Jose Ramirez has a shot to join the 40/40 club for the fist time and Emmanuel Clase may be the best closer in team history.

Houston Astros

The most consistent contender over the past decade started the season 7-19 and it seemed like their run at the top may be nearing an end. That’s all in the past as the Astros are on their way to another AL West title with a real chance to reach their fifth World Series in the past eight years. Yordan Alvarez remains a special talent while Kyle Tucker returns from injury and their pitching is healthier and strong than it has been all season.

Kansas City Royals

The surprise team of the year has been excellent in the second half in part thanks to some key additions but couldn’t capitalize on a chance to push the Guardians for the division when they tied it up at the end of August. They also have to find out how to minimize the loss of a key hitter in their lineup. Kansas City will try to ride superstar Bobby Witt and a strong rotation to another underdog run in October.

Minnesota Twins

It’s been an up-and-down year in Minnesota, but the Twins are set up to try and make a run in October if they can remain healthy and find their rhythm. Then X-factor early in the year for Minnesota was Royce Lewis and they’ll need much more from him than what he has been doing in the past month. Pablo Lopez has found his groove which could prove to be pivotal as the pitching staff needs him to lead the way. The Twins need to turn it up soon as a number of teams are quietly remaining in the hunt for the final Wild Card spot.

National League Playoff Picture

The National League features a more complicated Wild Card race with a two pairs of divisional rivals in a tough four-team battle for the three playoff spots.

The divisional races aren’t quite locked up either as the Dodgers and Phillies have maintained the lead in their respective divisions but yet to fully pull away from their rivals.

It appears to be down to seven teams for six spots, but the Cubs and Cardinals are sticking around in the hunt. For now though, let’s look at the seven teams in the picture and see where they’re at right now.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The team expected to dominate Major League Baseball this season is starting to do just that recently and look like the favorite to claim the NL’s top seed. The Dodgers finally have their lineup healthy and it’s an incredibly deep one. Some deadline additions have made an impact in helping them get on track. They’re still working to scrap together an injury-riddled pitching rotation, but Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s return this week could prove to be huge for them.

Philadelphia Phillies

After a stretch of looking like the best team in baseball in the middle of the season, the Phillies have cooled off a bit but are still a force to be reckoned with come October. Zack Wheeler is turning in another stellar year as he’s likely to be the Cy Young Runner-Up and Philly’s lineup remains one of the deepest in baseball. They’re still fully in the hunt for the top NL seed, but have some tough games coming up including two series against the Mets.

Milwaukee Brewers

The trio of Willy Adames, William Contreras, and rookie Jackson Chourio has been the driving force for Milwaukee in the second half. Fortunately for Milwaukee, they’re the one team in the NL that has practically locked up a playoff spot, but they’d rather get a bye in the first round than have to be a strong Wild Card team. Frankie Montas and Aaron Civale have been huge under-the-radar pick ups for the pitching staff.

San Diego Padres

A red-hot second half has the Padres in position to stake claim to the top Wild Card spot, but the other two playoff teams in their division are keeping pace. Led by Rookie of the Year favorite Jackson Merrill, the energy could not be better lately in San Diego. Fernando Tatis is back from injury as are Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish as this team looks ready to make a run in October. They’re neck-and-neck to host the Wild Card round with Arizona though.

Arizona Diamondbacks

The best team in MLB since the start of July is none other than the reigning NL Champions who took the league by storm in October last year. That version of the Diamondbacks is back and here to stay with Corbin Carroll returning to elite form after a tough first half and Zac Gallen anchoring a sneaky good rotation. They’re battling with San Diego for the top Wild Card spot but will be a scary team to face for anyone in the playoffs.

New York Mets

At one point earlier in the season, it felt like the Mets were trending towards planning for 2025 and beyond. That’s far from the case as they’re in a heated battle with divisional rival from Atlanta for the final NL Wild Card spot. The Mets are coming off a recent nine-game winning streak led by MVP candidate Francisco Lindor and a surprisingly strong rotation that starts with Sean Manaea. They’ll need to stay hot to reach October, but they look capable of making the postseason in a year few expected them to do so.

Atlanta Braves

This season has not gone as Braves fan and the baseball world expected it to go, but Atlanta could still be an incredibly hard team to face if they make the playoffs. This team missing out seemed impossible but they’ve been beaten up by injuries and offensive underperformance all year with the Mets in close contention with them for the final playoff spot. A rotation led by Cy Young favorite and Triple Crown candidate Chris Sale will need to lead the way.

The Call Up: Top 100 Prospect Update

Our Updated Top 100 MLB Prospects dropped recently which includes prospects from the 2024 MLB Draft Class. The most comprehensive Top 100 in the game from Aram Leighton provides in-depth scouting on every player.

We broke down the Top 100 across multiple episodes of The Call Up including this episode where Aram and Jack discuss the newcomers to this list.

Watch the video below or subscribe to the podcast feed for the to stay plugged in on the top prospects around Minor League Baseball.

Headlines Around MLB

Aside from the playoff race, this week brought a contract extension, September call ups, our Players of the Month accolades for August, and more.

Here are some of our top stories from the week:

Matt Chapman agreed to a six-year, $151 million deal to remain with the Giants for the foreseeable future. He would likely have opted out of his final two contract years but earns a huge deal that takes that possibility away. Full article on the contract extension.

August was a month in which stars shined bright and a few players took a huge step forward in their development en route to making it into our Players of Month. In the American League, three of the game’s best hitters were on another level than the rest and a pitcher in Canada took the league by storm. In the National League, one hitter continued his career-best year while another reclaimed a spot among the league’s best hitters. Three veterans aces continued to thrive on the mound.

The NL MVP race has gotten rather interesting and could be much closer than initially anticipated. Shohei Ohtani is the favorite, but does Francisco Lindor deserve it more?

The AL Rookie of the Year race has become a two-way race between key pieces of the teams battling for AL East. Colton Cowser is the favorite but Austin Wells has made this award race competitive.

Something happened in Chicago for the first time in over 50 years! Shota Imanaga led the way to a Cubs combined no-hitter which was the first no-hitter at Wrigely Field since 1972.

Not Gambling Advice: Football is Back

Peter Appel is back and ready for ready for the NFL Season!

He has already published a variety of season long NFL props and will be firing off weekly picks throughout the NFL season and the MLB playoffs. Peter will be releasing NFL picks and analysis every Thursday, Sunday, and Monday throughout the NFL season on YouTube.

Subscribe to Just Gridiron Fans on YouTube

Just Baseball Merch

Our newest line of merchandise features team-specific shirt designs that give you the opportunity to support your team and Just Baseball!

We have also restocked on all your favorites including hats, hoodies, and more.

Use code JB15 for 15% off your merch order until September 17th!

Check out the full collection of Just Baseball swag here!