No more Game 163? How every MLB playoff race's tiebreaker scenarios would play out

Without tiebreaker games, ties are now determined mathematically, starting with head-to-head record Sep 22, 2026 at 10:06 am ET • 6 min read We are in the final week of MLB's regular season, and with several postseason spots still up for grabs across the league, it's worth recalling how the league breaks ties in the standings and what it means for the current field of contenders. Alas and alack, there are no tiebreaker games anymore. All ties are settled mathematically. We must now resort to other means to decide who prevails when there's a tie in standings. Nowadays, ties are resolved in the following manner when it comes to deciding postseason berths and seeding: Head-to-head record.Intradivision record (i.e., record within the same division).Interdivision record (i.e., record against teams outside the division).Record in the last 81 intraleague games (i.e., record against teams in the same league).Record in the last 82 intraleague games, plus one until the tie is broken.Almost always, the head-to-head record does the trick. One way to think about this is that the team that clinches the season series against a fellow contender is, in essence, one game better off than the standings tell you. That's because all they need to do is tie the team over which they hold the tiebreaker in order to best them, whether it's for the division crown, wild-card spot, or seeding.For instance, if a team trails another by two games but has clinched the head-to-head season series, then all they need to do is make up those two games for a tie in the standings rather than establish an outright lead. You get the idea. Now, let's go race by race to see where the tiebreakers stand for the 2026 season thus far, as we get primed for the final six days of the season. AL EastRays: 96-60Yankees: 89-66 (6 GB)The Rays have a comfortable six-game lead over the Yankees with seven games to play, though the two teams will play four games in New York over the next three days, so this race has a tiny little bit of intrigue remaining. Tampa leads the season series 6-4 and will clinch the division with one win in the four games. The Yankees need to sweep these four games to get the tiebreaker, but, even then, their AL East hopes are remote. New York would still need to sweep the Orioles this weekend and hope the Rays lose at least two games to the Phillies, or beat the Orioles twice and hope the Phillies sweep the Rays. Like I said, remote. AL CentralGuardians: 81-75White Sox: 80-76 (1 GB)This race could come down to Game 162, and, if it does, the White Sox have the upper hand thanks to the tiebreaker. They won the season series 7-6. Cleveland must finish ahead of the ChiSox to win the AL Central. The White Sox merely need to pull even with the Guardians in the standings.AL WestRangers: 78-78Astros: 77-79 (1 GB)The rules say a team must win the AL West and the Rangers are currently in the driver's seat with their .500 record. The Astros have the tiebreaker, though. They won the season series convincingly (9-4 with a +23 run differential) and can play for the draw here. A tie goes to Houston. The Rangers must finish ahead of the Astros to win the division. The Mariners, while mathematically alive, need to go 6-0 this week while the Rangers go 0-6 and the Astros go no better than 1-5 to win the AL West. AL Wild CardYankees: 89-66 (+9 ½ GB)Red Sox: 84-72 (+4 GB)White Sox: 80-76----------------------------------Astros: 77-79 (3 GB)Blue Jays: 77-80 (3 ½ GB)The Yankees will clinch the top wild-card spot with their next win or the next Red Sox loss. The Red Sox will clinch the second wild-card spot with two wins or two White Sox losses, or one win and one White Sox loss. The more relevant tiebreakers involve that third wild-card spot. The White Sox won the season series over the Blue Jays, so that 3 ½-game lead is effectively a 4 ½-game lead. They lost the season series to the Astros, though, so Houston only needs to pull even. The Guardians would be in tiebreaker trouble if they fall out of first place in the AL Central. They lost the season series to both Houston and Toronto.NL Wild CardCubs: 87-69 (+1 GB)Padres: 87-69 (+1 GB)Phillies: 86-70----------------------------------Diamondbacks: 82-74 (4 GB)The three National League divisions have already been clinched (Braves, Brewers, Dodgers), so we only need to focus on the wild card. The Padres badly lost the season series to both the Cubs (1-5) and Phillies (0-6), so, if those three teams manage to finish with the same record, San Diego would be at the bottom. The Cubs have the tiebreaker over the Phillies, if needed. Arizona lost the season series to the Cubs, so Chicago has the tiebreaker.The D-backs vs. Phillies and D-backs vs. Padres tiebreakers are more interesting. Well, maybe I shouldn't call the D-backs vs. Phillies tiebreaker interesting, because there's math involved. They finished the season series tied 3-3, which kicks the tiebreaker down to each team's intradivision record, or the record within their division. The D-backs are 28-18 (.609) against the NL West this year. The Phillies are 28-24 (.538) against the NL West. Arizona has six games remaining, all against NL West teams, and if they go 0-6 in those six games to match Philadelphia's 28-24 intradivision record, none of this matters because the D-backs won't make the postseason. The D-backs have effectively clinched this tiebreaker already. The D-backs vs. Padres tiebreaker is the fun one. The season series is tied 5-5 and they'll finish the regular season with three games in San Diego. That series will be our best hope for a season-ending "win this series or go home" series in some time. The Padres are five games up on the D-backs, so they can clinch a spot and eliminate Arizona before then. But, if the D-backs manage to shave the deficit down to three games (or fewer) going into the opener Friday, then it's on. The series winner gets the third wild-card spot and the loser watches the playoffs from the couch.AL Wild Card Series byeGuardians: 81-75White Sox: 80-76 (1 GB)Rangers: 78-78 (3 GB)Astros: 77-79 (4 GB)The AL East winner will get the AL's No. 1 seed and the first Wild Card Series bye regardless of whether the Rays or Yankees win the division. That has already been clinched. The No. 2 seed comes down to AL Central winner vs. AL West winner, and the AL Central currently has a slim lead. If needed, Cleveland loses the tiebreaker to both the Rangers and Astros. The White Sox have the tiebreaker over Texas but not the Astros.NL Wild Card Series byeBrewers: 98-58Dodgers: 96-60 (2 GB)Braves: 92-64 (6 GB)The Brewers took care of business against the Dodgers and won the season series, and hold the tiebreaker. The Brewers and Braves tied the season series 3-3. The next tiebreaker is intradivision record, and guess what? That's tied too. Both teams are 32-17 within their division with three games in the division remaining. The next tiebreaker is interdivision record, which is record against teams outside your division. This will only be needed if the Braves sweep the Marlins and the Brewers get swept by the Cardinals this week. Any other scenario clinches a better overall record for Milwaukee and gives them a bye. The Braves hold the tiebreaker against the Dodgers, which could come in handy. MLB's No. 1 seedBrewers: 98-58Dodgers: 96-60 (2 GB)Rays: 96-60 (2 GB)The best record in baseball comes with home field advantage throughout the postseason and the Brewers are in control here. They won the season series against both the Dodgers and Rays, and hold both tiebreakers, if needed. Milwaukee handled their business are in excellent shape to finish with baseball's best record again.