It took until the final day of the regular season, but the 2021 MLB postseason field is set with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees clinching American League Wild Card spots late in their season finales and the playoff quests of the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners falling just short. The San Francisco Giants also wrapped up the NL West crown a victory on Sunday, meaning the Los Angeles Dodgers will play in the NL Wild Card Game.
With the full 10-team field set, here’s who is in and what’s next.
Key links: Full MLB standings| Wild-card standings
What are this October’s MLB playoff matchups?
American League
Wild Card: Yankees vs. Red Sox
ALDS: Yankees/Red Sox vs. Rays and White Sox vs. Astros
National League
Wild Card: Cardinals vs. Dodgers
NLDS: Cardinals/Dodgers vs. Giants and Braves vs. Brewers
Who clinched a playoff spot?
The Boston Red Sox clinched the final spot in the 2021 field with a come-from-behind victory over the Nationals. Boston will host the rival New York Yankees in the American League Wild Card Game on Tuesday at Fenway Park (8 p.m. ET on ESPN).
The New York Yankees clinched a wild-card berth by defeating the Tampa Bay Rays on Oct. 3 and will face Boston in Tuesday’s game.
It took until the final day of the season, but the San Francisco Giants clinched the NL West with their 107th win of 2021, edging the Dodgers for the division crown. Los Angeles is headed to the NL Wild Card Game, where it will host St. Louis with an NLDS date with San Francisco on the line.
The Milwaukee Brewers clinched at least a wild-card spot with a 6-4 win over the Cubs on Sept. 18. They then locked down the NL Central title with an 8-4 win over the Mets on Sept. 26.
The Tampa Bay Rays clinched their third straight playoff spot with a 7-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Sept. 22. Tampa Bay later clinched the AL East crown with a 7-3 win over the Marlins on Sept. 25 and holds the AL’s best record.
The Chicago White Sox clinched the AL Central — becoming the first team to win a division title in 2021 — with a 7-2 win in Cleveland in the opening game of a Sept. 23 doubleheader.
St. Louis’ 17th straight win — a 6-2 victory against Milwaukee on Sept. 28 — secured the team’s third straight playoff appearance. The Cardinals’ winning streak — which was finally snapped Wednesday night in a 4-0 loss to the Brewers — was the longest by a National League team since the 1935 Cubs won 21 straight.
The Atlanta Braves clinched their fourth straight NL East title with a 5-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Sept. 30. They spent 126 days without a winning record, the fourth-most by a division winner since 1969, and the most since the 1989 Blue Jays.
The Houston Astros clinched the AL West to extend their franchise record of five consecutive playoff appearances with a 3-2 win over the Rays on Sept. 30.
If the season ended today …
Here’s what the playoff field would look like if the season ended today (tiebreakers excluded):
American League
East champ: Tampa Bay Rays x
Central champ: Chicago White Sox x
West champ: Houston Astros x
First wild card: New York Yankees
Second wild card: Boston Red Sox
National League
East champ: Atlanta Braves
Central champ: Milwaukee Brewers x
West champ: San Francisco Giants z
First wild card: Los Angeles Dodgers z
Second wild card: St. Louis Cardinals y
x – clinched division title
y – clinched wild card
z – clinched playoff berth
Playoff schedule
Wild-card round (single-game elimination)
AL: Tuesday
NL: Wednesday
Division series (best of five)
ALDS A & B
Game 1: Thursday
Game 2: Friday
Game 3: Sunday, Oct. 10
Game 4: Monday, Oct. 11*
Game 5: Wednesday, Oct. 13*
NLDS A & B
Game 1: Friday
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 9
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 11
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 12*
Game 5: Thursday, Oct. 14*
Championship series (best of seven)
ALCS
Game 1: Friday, Oct. 15
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 16
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 18
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 19
Game 5: Wednesday, Oct. 20*
Game 6: Friday, Oct. 22*
Game 7: Saturday, Oct. 23*
NLCS
Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 16
Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 17
Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 19
Game 4: Wednesday, Oct. 20
Game 5: Thursday, Oct. 21*
Game 6: Saturday, Oct. 23*
Game 7: Sunday, Oct. 24*
World Series (best of seven)
Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 26
Game 2: Wednesday, Oct. 27
Game 3: Friday, Oct. 29
Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 30
Game 5: Sunday, Oct. 31*
Game 6: Tuesday, Nov. 2*
Game 7: Wednesday, Nov. 3*
* If necessary