Wow, what a baseball weekend! There were two perfect game bids over the weekend, with Corbin Burnes getting a no hitter and Max Scherzer being denied extra history in the 8^th inning by Eric Hosmer. Ironically enough, Eric Hosmer was the 3000^th strikeout victim by Max so it was only fitting that he’d be the one to break up the perfecto. We saw the Blue Jays drop 22 on the Orioles and Francisco Lindor light up the New York sky with three homers against the Yankees.

Both Wild Card races are getting even more crowded and intense, and CK is breaking down the NL Wild Card race for us tomorrow. His piece on the AL Wild Card race from Saturday is available to read here. The Nationals are in the midst of a generational tank, so it’s understandable if you’re trying to find something different to watch some nights, which is why we’re here to provide you with this handy preview guide to assist.

Three Series to Watch

Rays (89-54, 1st AL East) at Blue Jays (80-63, 3rd AL East)

Monday, 7:07 (MLB Network): TBD vs Alek Manoah

Tuesday, 7:07: Drew Rasmussen vs Jose Berrios

Wednesday, 3:07: Michael Wacha vs Robbie Ray

The Blue Jays easily could’ve dropped three of four to Baltimore this weekend, but they rallied twice on Saturday in the final inning of each game in their doubleheader against the Orioles. And on Sunday, they went off with 22 runs to catapult themselves into the second Wild Card spot by themselves. They hold a one game lead over the Yankees and a 3-game lead over the Athletics and Mariners. The Rays dropped two of three to Detroit over the weekend but hold a safe 9-game lead in the division.

Alek Manoah and Jose Berrios will look to build on the solid outings they had in New York last week, while AL Cy Young candidate Robbie Ray will look to rebound after giving up 3 earned runs on 8 hits in 4.1 innings against the Orioles in the loss Friday night. Michael Wacha pitching on Wednesday for the Rays could be a bullpen game, though that was the plan in his last start against the Tigers before he ended up going five innings and giving up just one run on 3 hits.

The first game of this three-game set will be on MLB Network on Monday night.

Padres (74-68, 3^rd NL West) at Giants (93-50, 1st NL West)

Monday, 9:45: Yu Darvish vs Dominic Leone

Tuesday, 9:45: Jake Arrieta vs Anthony DeSclafani

Wednesday, 9:45: Joe Musgrove vs TBD

Thursday, 3:45 (MLB Network): Chris Paddack vs Kevin Gausman

This is a tough stretch for the Padres. After getting swept by the Dodgers, they get to head to San Francisco and face the only team in baseball with a better record than the Dodgers. The Giants swept the Cubs and have won 7 in a row. They hold a 2.5 game lead over the Dodgers and they don’t want to see that lead slide away. It’s growing increasingly likely that a 100-win team will be playing in the NL Wild Card game.

Yu Darvish will get to face the Giants bullpen on Monday night, and it’s possible we could see the Giants go bullpen again on Wednesday against Joe Musgrove. With the expanded 28-man roster for September, the Giants have been going with bullpen games quite a bit. It’ll be interesting how that affects them come October. Former Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta will make his third start for the Padres.

The finale of this four-game series will be broadcast on MLB Network on Thursday afternoon at 3:45.

Red Sox (81-64, 2nd AL East) at Mariners (77-66, Tied 2nd AL West)

Monday, 10:10: Eduardo Rodriguez vs Logan Gilbert

Tuesday, 10:10, (MLB Network): Nathan Eovaldi vs Tyler Anderson

Wednesday, 4:10 (MLB Network): TBD vs Marco Gonzales

The Red Sox dropped two of three in a very close series on the road against the White Sox in which all three games were decided by one run. Chris Sale is on the COVID IL but others are returning and the Sox are hoping that momentum will help them maintain a Wild Card spot in the American League. They are currently just one game over the Yankees and three games over the Mariners and Athletics.

The Mariners are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001 but dropping two of three to the awful Diamondbacks is not going to get the job done. They’ll have to prove they deserve it by making a statement against a team that currently sits in a playoff spot. Two of the three games in this series will be nationally broadcast on MLB Network. This is the Mariner’s chance to make a statement and gain some ground.

The Rest

Marlins at Nationals

The Nats lost 2 of 3 in Pittsburgh this past weekend. This is a battle to see who gets to finish at the bottom of the NL East and Miami currently sits in 4^th over the Nats by just one game.

Twins at Yankees (1 game make-up on Monday)

Last week, the Yankees were swept in a 4-game series to the Blue Jays and then lost 2/3 in Flushing to the rival Mets. They are in complete free fall mode, but the Yankees are 107-38 against the Twins since 2002, including playoffs. They’ll hope for a quick win to get back on track and then it’s onto Baltimore. If you’re looking for day baseball on Monday, this is your ticket, as the game is expected to start at 2:05 on MLB Network.

Cardinals at Mets

The Cardinals have clawed their way back into the NL Wild Card picture following a series win of the Cincinnati Reds this weekend, and now just sit one game back of those Reds and the San Diego Padres. The Mets got back to .500 with a series win over the struggling Yankees and sit 3 games back in the Wild Card race.

Astros at Rangers

The Astros will look to extend their lead in the AL West by beating up on the Rangers in this four-game series in Texas.

Diamondbacks at Dodgers

Max Scherzer got his 3000^th strikeout over the weekend and the Dodgers swept the Padres to keep pace with the streaking Giants in the NL West. They remain 2.5 games back, but a series against the abysmal Diamondbacks could help them gain ground. This matchup will be nationally televised on ESPN Wednesday night at 10:10.

Athletics at Royals (Starts on Tuesday)

The A’s squandered a golden opportunity to gain ground in the AL Wild Card race over the weekend, but instead dropped two of three to the basement dwellers in Arlington, Texas. They’ll get another opportunity against a bad team in Kansas City. The A’s are just 3 games back of the Blue Jays for the second Wild Card.

Indians at Twins (Starts on Tuesday)

The Indians and Twins meet in a four-game series, with a doubleheader on Tuesday which for some reason will have both games nationally televised on MLB Network. Both teams are seemingly out of the playoff picture, though the early game is the only afternoon game Tuesday, so there’s that.

Reds at Pirates (Starts on Tuesday)

With the Padres getting swept over the weekend, the Reds had an opportunity to reclaim the second Wild Card spot. Instead, they dropped two of three to St. Louis and are currently tied for the second Wild Card. They’ll hope the Padres struggle again this week, and that they don’t trip up against the lowly Pirates.

Brewers at Tigers (Starts on Tuesday)

The Brewers continue to prepare for the playoffs and Corbin Burnes threw a no hitter over the weekend. They’ll face the Tigers in a two-game interleague series before hosting the Cubs this weekend. The second game of this matchup on Wednesday will be televised on MLB Network at 1:10.

Cubs at Phillies (Starts on Tuesday)

The Phillies just feel like a .500 team yet again. They struggled versus the Rockies this past weekend and currently sit 72-71, 4.5 games back in the NL East but just 2.5 games back in the NL Wild Card. The good news is that they’ll likely see Cy Young candidate Zack Wheeler pitch on Thursday.

Yankees at Orioles (Starts on Tuesday)

The Yankees head to Baltimore hoping to find their way back into a playoff spot. Just over a week ago, they dropped two of three to this same Orioles team in the Bronx. They do get Gerrit Cole back from his minor hamstring issue on Tuesday, so they should at least win that game.

Rockies at Braves (Starts on Tuesday)

The atrocious road Rockies actually took three of four in Philly to improve their road record to 21-51. They’ll face the NL East leading Braves for three games in Atlanta. The Braves currently sit 4.5 games ahead for the division over the Phillies. The finale of this three-game series will be on MLB Network Thursday afternoon at 12:20.

Angels at White Sox (Starts on Tuesday)

The Angels are effectively out of playoff contention yet again, and the White Sox have a 12-game lead for the AL Central. But hey, maybe we’ll get to see Ohtani pitch in this series?