The Seattle Mariners have been waiting to get some outside help in the American League West race race. It finally happened Sunday.
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Now the club has a chance to stand alone atop the division and further distance itself from the Texas Rangers.
For the first time since Sept. 2, both the Rangers and Houston Astros lost on the same day. The Astros fell 8-3 to the Atlanta Braves, while the Rangers went down 5-2 against the New York Mets.
As a result, the Mariners can take over sole possession of first place in the AL West for the first time since June 2 with a win over the Angels on Sunday, as well as move three games in front of Texas. The Mariners also hold the season tiebreaker against the Rangers.
Seattle entered Sunday tied with Houston for first in the division for the third straight day. The M’s, Astros and Boston Red Sox were also tied for the second and third wild card berths entering Sunday. Boston plays Sunday night against the New York Yankees, who hold the top wild card spot.
According to FanGraphs’ playoff odds, the Mariners have a 63.4% chance of winning the division after Houston’s loss. Their odds of making the playoffs are up to 94.8%.
The M’s will have a chance to gain some ground on either the Astros or Rangers starting Monday as Seattle’s two AL West rivals begin a three-game series in Houston. Seattle will start a three-game series at Kansas City on Tuesday, then play a three-game series in Houston beginning Friday. The winner of that series will clinch the season tiebreaker between the two teams.
The Mariners last won the division in 2001.
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