Just when the Texas Rangers were beginning a push for a postseason spot, one of their stars went down for an unusual reason.
Shortstop Corey Seager had an appendectomy Thursday, a procedure that isn't exactly career-threatening but was a jolt in a sport more used to arm and leg problems. It's not clear how long Seager will be out. His season could be over
, or he might be able to return in a couple of weeks.The Rangers have won five straight games to pull within 2 1/2 games of division rival Seattle
for the last wild card in the American League. Texas now has the third-best run differential in the AL, thanks in part to a 20-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels this week in the team's last game before Seager's operation.
Everyone knows how dangerous Bruce Bochy's team could be if the four-time World Series-winning manager can get the Rangers in the postseason, but as well as they're playing right now, they're also losing key players at an alarming rate. In addition to Seager, second baseman Marcus Semien went on the injured list recently after fouling a ball of his foot. Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi, who is 11-3 with a 1.73 ERA this year, went on the IL because of a strained rotator cuff.
Texas, which has the best ERA in baseball, is one of a small number of teams on the postsesaon bubble at the moment. According to FanGraphs, 10 teams have a probability of reaching the playoffs of at least 90%, and 16 are below 10%. The four in between are all in the AL — Houston (88.5%), Seattle (87.1%), Texas (14.3%) and Kansas City (10.9%). That group includes three teams vying for the AL West title, and all four are in the mix for a wild card.
The baseball postseason has expanded to the point where quite a few teams enter the final month almost assured of a spot. They are essentially playing for seeding.
Last year, only two teams that were in postseason position at the end of August ended up missing out. Who were they, and which teams replaced them?
The Yankees and Mets both slumped badly enough in early August to put their postseason hopes in some doubt, but now their outlook is better. The Yankees won seven straight, and although that streak was snapped Sunday, they're now in the first wild-card spot — and just three games behind Toronto atop the AL East.
The Mets, meanwhile, swept a three-game series against Philadelphia, and although they then dropped three of four to Miami, they lead Cincinnati by four games for the final wild card. Rookies Nolan McLean and Jonah Tong have given the rotation a much-needed boost.
Kyle Schwarber became the third player this season — and 21st all-time — to hit four home runs in a game as Philadelphia clobbered Atlanta 19-4 on Thursday night. He also drove in nine runs.
Schwarber had a chance to hit a fifth home run but popped out in the eighth with infielder Vidal Bruján pitching.
Down 4-0, Kansas City scored two runs in the eighth and three in the top of the ninth to beat the Chicago White Sox 5-4 on Tuesday night. Maikel Garcia and Michael Massey each hit two-run singles during the comeback. The White Sox had a win probability of 98.1% in the eighth, according to Baseball Savant.
The Minnesota Twins and Arizona Diamondbacks fell out, and the Detroit Tigers and New York Mets made it in instead.
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