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Dilip Vishwanat/Getty ImagesWe've arrived at the final week of the 2018 MLB regular season Jose Cruz Jr. Jersey , and there's still a lot to be decided.On the American League side of things, the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros have all punched their ticket to October, and the next win by the Oakland Athletics or loss by the Tampa Bay Rays will seal the fifth spot for the A's.The National League picture is much cloudier.The Atlanta Braves have wrapped up the NL East title, but they are the only team that has clinched to this point. The Chicago Cubs (100 percent chance), Milwaukee Brewers (99 percent), Los Angeles Dodgers (94.2 percent) and St. Louis Cardinals (79.5 percent) are the heavy favorites to fill the remaining four spots, according to the latest odds from FanGraphs, but the Colorado Rockies (27.4 percent) are still alive as well.At any rate, our weekly power rankings remain a fluid process. Teams will rise and fall based on where they were ranked the previous week. If a team keeps winning, it will keep climbing鈥攊t's as simple as that.Here's where all 30 teams stand:Updated Rankings1 Boston Red Sox (105-51)2 Houston Astros (98-57)3 Oakland Athletics (94-62)4 Milwaukee Brewers (89-67)5 Chicago Cubs (91-64)6 New York Yankees (95-60)7 Los Angeles Dodgers (87-69)18 Tampa Bay Rays (87-68)19 Cleveland Indians (87-68)110 St. Louis Cardinals (87-69)111 Atlanta Braves (88-68)212 Colorado Rockies (85-70)13 Seattle Mariners (85-70)14 Pittsburgh Pirates (78-76)315 Washington Nationals (78-78)116 Arizona Diamondbacks (79-77)117 Philadelphia Phillies (78-77)118 New York Mets (73-83)119 Toronto Blue Jays (71-85)220 Los Angeles Angels (75-81)221 Minnesota Twins (72-83)122 San Francisco Giants (72-84)223 Texas Rangers (66-89)224 Detroit Tigers (63-93)25 Miami Marlins (62-93)326 Cincinnati Reds (66-91)327 San Diego Padres (62-94)128 Kansas City Royals (54-102)129 Chicago White Sox (61-94)30 Baltimore Orioles (45-110) Teams That ImpressedHyun-Jin RyuJayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty ImagesTheLos Angeles Dodgersentered last week trailing the Colorado Rockies by a half-game in the NL West standings. In seven days, they turned that into a 1.5-game lead, thanks in large part to a three-game sweep of the Rockies at Dodger Stadium.With that, the Dodgers are 9-2 in their last 11 games, and they now appear likely to earn asixth straight NL West title.Hyun-Jin Ryu continued his strong second half with a pair of scoreless starts, and he's gone 3-3 with a 1.93 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 50 strikeouts in 46.2 innings since the All-Star break. That should be enough to earn him a spot in the playoff rotation.TheSt. Louis Cardinalsalso improved their playoff odds with a series win over the Atlanta Braves and a sweep of the San Francisco Giants.A 22-6 month of August catapulted them into the NL wild-card picture, and they'll look to cement their place in the postseason with series against the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs to close out the season.Overall, it was a strong week for contenders, as more and more teams out of the race turn their focus to assessing young talent and trying to spread around playing time.TheOakland Athletics(4-2), Brewers(4-2), Cubs (4-2),New York Yankees(4-2) http://www.astrosfanproshop.com/authentic-nolan-ryan-jersey ,Tampa Bay Rays(5-2) andCleveland Indians(4-2) were the other teams to come away with two series wins last week. Aside from the Rays, each appears to be headed for the postseason.Teams That DisappointedChris Coduto/Getty ImagesWhile the majority of contending teams were on cruise control last week, theColorado Rockiessaw their playoff chances take a major hit when they were swept by the Dodgers.They did rebound to sweep the Arizona Diamondbacks over the weekend, but the damage was already done. With the NL West lagging behind the NL Central in win total, the Rockies had a far better chance of winning the division than they did chasing down a wild-card spot.Colorado had a 58.3 percent chance of making the playoffs heading into the series with Los Angeles, and that fell to 25.3 percentfollowing the sweep.TheSeattle Mariners(3-3),Arizona Diamondbacks(1-5) andPhiladelphiaPhillies(2-5) were all officially eliminated from the playoff picture last week after looking like contenders for much of the year.It's a particularly disappointing result for the Mariners, as they'll maintain the longest postseason drought in the sport, stretching back to 2001.TheBoston Red Sox(2-4) were the only contenders to lose both series last week, but they've already wrapped up the division title, and home-field advantage is in the bag. TheCincinnati Reds(2-5),San Diego Padres(2-4),Chicago White Sox(2-4) andBaltimore Orioles(2-4) also lost both of their series last week.MVPs of the WeekHitter:Christian Yelich, Milwaukee BrewersStats:12-for-22, 4 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 7 R, 2 SBThe case for Christian Yelich to win NL MVP honors this season is a compelling one.In his first season with the Brewers, the 26-year-old is hitting .322/.391/.577 with 33 doubles, 32 home runs, 96 RBI, 108 runs scored and 21 steals.He has a seven-point lead over Scooter Gennett in the race for the NL batting title.With Milwaukee all but locked into a postseason spot http://www.astrosfanproshop.com/authentic-yuli-gurriel-jersey , he also has the added appeal of putting up those numbers for a contender.John Fisher of CBSSports.com wrote:"Yelich leads the NL in batting average, slugging percentage and OPS, as well as OPS+, wOBA and wRC+, and he's in the top 11 in on-base percentage, times on base and home runs. The only players in the past 35 years to lead the National League in batting and slugging in the same season are Barry Bonds (twice),Derrek Lee, Todd Helton and Larry Walker."He padded his impressive stat line with another big week, which included hitting for his second cycle of the season.Aaron Hill is the last player to accomplish the feat twice in the same season, with his both coming in the same month while he was playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2012. Pitcher:Blake Snell, Tampa Bay RaysStats:2 GS, 2-0, 11.2 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 16 KBlake Snell took another big step toward AL Cy Young honors last week."I think he's pretty much cemented his case that he belongs not just in the conversation, but right at the top of the list," Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters.After allowing just one hit over five scoreless innings against the Texas Rangers on Tuesday, Snell threw another gem Sunday when he struck out 11 in 6.2 shutout innings against the Toronto Blue Jays.In the process, he picked up his franchise-record 21st win of the season, and he's now won nine straight starts.All told, the 25-year-old is 21-5 with an AL-leading 1.90 ERA and 211 strikeouts in 175.2 innings. His .178 opponents' batting average is the best in baseball among qualified starters.Justin Verlander and Corey Kluber have both had excellent seasons once again, and Oakland closer Blake Treinen has been tremendously important to that team's success. Snell would have to be the pick if the season ended today http://www.astrosfanproshop.com/authentic-jake-marisnick-jersey , though.Video Highlights of the WeekLongest Home Run: Randal Grichuk, Toronto Blue Jays (464 feet)Randal Grichuk is quietly having a nice second half for the Blue Jays.He's hitting .275/.319/.550 with 19 doubles and 13 home runs since the All-Star break, and that includes this mammoth shot off left-hander Jalen Beeks.Grichuk also hit a 471-footer earlier this season off Houston reliever Will Harris.The 27-year-old still has his shortcomings鈥攏amely a .296 on-base percentage that stems from a 5.7 percent walk rate鈥攂ut he's been a nice buy-low pickup for a Blue Jays team that can afford to give him playing time in hopes his approach improves.For now, he's at least a threat to hit a mistake a long way. Best Defensive Play:Jake Marisnick, Houston AstrosJake Marisnick has always been an excellent defensive outfielder, and this season is no exception."He makes it look easy," teammate Charlie Morton told reporters earlier this season, "but what he does is extraordinary out there."He's racked up 11 DRS with a 10.2 UZR/150 in just 549.2 innings of work in center field, and that outstanding glove work has earned him a part-time role, despite middling offensive numbers.The 27-year-old enjoyed a breakout season at the plate last year, posting a 120 OPS+ with 16 home runs in 259 plate appearances, but he's hit just .202/.259/.369 in 222 trips to the plate this year.Still, as long as he keeps making catches like the pair of grabs he made here to help preserve a one-run lead in the eighth inning, he'll see his name on the lineup card on a semi-regular basis. Must-See Upcoming MatchupMilwaukee Brewers vs. St. Louis Cardinals (Monday-Wednesday)Jack FlahertyDaniel Shirey/Getty ImagesWhen the Brewers and Cardinals square off for a three-game series at Busch Stadium this week, there's a good chance we'll be getting an early preview of the NL Wild Card Game.According to the latest playoff odds from FanGraphs, Milwaukee (91.7 percent chance) and St. Louis (79.3 percent chance) are the overwhelming favorites to claim the two wild-card spots.The Brewers enter the week 2.5 games behind the Cubs in the NL Central standings, while the Cardinals are 4.5 games back. Meanwhile, St. Louis has a 1.5-game cushion over the Rockies in the wild-card standings.There's still plenty of time for things to change, but right now, this is the likely matchup.The two teams have split the season series thus far at 8-8, with the Cardinals holding a plus-13 advantage in run differential.Jack Flaherty, Austin Gomber and John Gant are the scheduled starters for St. Louis, and Flaherty could be the one who gets the ball for the winner-take-all game. The 22-year-old has been excellent in three starts against the Brewers this season, going 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA Michael Saunders Jersey , 0.89 WHIP and 29 strikeouts in 18 innings.Milwaukee will counter with the veteran trio of Chase Anderson, Gio Gonzalez and Jhoulys Chacin.Chacin has been the team's most reliable option this season with a 3.61 ERA in 182 innings of work, but left-hander Wade Miley has a 2.31 ERA in 12 starts since the All-Star break, so any prediction of who the Brewers might turn to for a Wild Card Game start would be a total guess.Regardless, these three games are tremendously important for both the NL Central race and the wild-card race, and the NL playoff picture could be much clearer once this series wraps.All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted. ST. LOUIS (AP) — Fortunately for the Milwaukee Brewers, they didn’t slip up.The Brewers clinched their first playoff spot since 2011 by ensuring at least a spot in the NL wild-card game, helped Wednesday night when a rookie St. Louis pinch-runner suddenly fell on his way to the plate in a 2-1 win over the contending Cardinals.“I saw him go down and luckily we were able to put a tag on him and get him out,” Brewers reliever Josh Hader said. “I’ve never seen that before but it was definitely good on our side.”The Brewers (92-67) remained a half-game behind the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs. Milwaukee’s win also sealed a postseason berth for the Cubs.Milwaukee began the day 3 ½ games ahead of Colorado for the top wild-card slot. St. Louis (87-71) entered a half-game behind the Rockies for the final wild-card berth.The Cardinals missed a big chance to tie it in the eighth inning. Matt Carpenter drew a two-out walk and was lifted for pinch-runner Adolis Garcia. Jose Martinez then hit a slow roller to third baseman Mike Moustakas, who threw wildly to first.Garcia was waved home, but slipped rounding third base and fell halfway to the plate. He got to his feet and had no chance, easily tagged out after second baseman Hernan Perez made a strong throw.“The kid’s giving you everything he’s got, it’s just unfortunate he fell,” Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said. “It’s one of those things that happened. Clearly, it would’ve tied the game but it wasn’t for lack of effort. Things happen and he was giving everything he had.”Milwaukee turned that break into a three-game sweep at Busch Stadium. And while the Brewers enjoyed an enthusiastic celebration in their clubhouse, the prospect of catching the Cubs still hung in the air.“We like our chances, but obviously winning the division would be huge,” outfielder Ryan Braun said. “The wild-card game, no matter how good you are, it is always somewhat of a coin flip. So we have to take care of business. We have to continue to win games and continue to play the way we’ve played to this point and hopefully find a way to win the division.”Milwaukee advanced to the NL Championship Series in 2011 before being eliminated in six games by the eventual World Series champion Cardinals.Jhoulys Chacin pitched five strong innings and Travis Shaw hit a pair of RBI singles for Milwaukee.“When you’ve got games left still and you’ve got something to play for there’s stuff ahead of us, but you do this to enjoy what you’ve accomplished,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “We know that we’ve made the playoffs, we have a chance to play in the playoffs and we have three big games left.”Chacin (15-8), who had lost his last three decisions http://www.royalsfanproshop.com/authentic-ryan-goins-jersey , gave up one run on just one hit over five innings. He needed a season-low 60 pitches and faced three batters over the minimum.“We definitely caught a break there, it was a strange play,” Counsell said of the Garcia fall. “We pitched really well tonight. Chacin was brilliant. It was just a really well played game.”Xavier Cedeno, Corbin Burnes, Hader and Jeremy Jeffress combined for four shutout innings as the Brewers held the Cardinals to a season-low two hits. Jeffress earned his 13th save in 18 chances.Milwaukee now returns to Miller Park to take on the lowly Detroit Tigers in the three-game series starting Friday to end the regular season. The Cardinals travel to face the Cubs for the three-game set.Shaw’s single scored Christian Yelich, who walked all five times he came to the plate, and gave the Brewers a 1-0 lead in the third.Shaw broke a 1-all time with an RBI single off Dakota Hudson in the fifth, again scoring Yelich, to make it 2-1.“It’s cool,” Shaw said. “I mean anytime you do that it’s cool but especially on a clinching night, it feels pretty good.”Yelich, who reached on a walk by Chasen Shreve (3-4), became the ninth inherited runner out of 18 that Hudson has allowed to score.“Hopefully this is the first of many celebrations and rightfully so to celebrate this moment,” Yelich said. “But we’ve got a big weekend ahead so we’re going to enjoy it tonight and get back to work.”Cardinals starter John Gant stranded runners in each of his first four innings before being lifted with one out in the fifth. It is the fourth time in his last five starts that Gant failed to go more than 4 1/3 innings.Jedd Gyorko’s sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth made it 1-all.Cardinals infielder Paul DeJong hung back to watch the Brewers’ on-field celebration.“They earned it,” DeJong said. “It’s something that I want. It’s something that I’ve done in the minor leagues. I really wanted to be out there doing it with us but we’re going to have to keep pushing and try to pull something out.”TRAINER’S ROOMBrewers: Jeffress, who missed the series opener because of neck spasms, pitched for the first time since Friday went 1 1/3 innings.UP NEXTBrewers: RHP Zach Davies (2-7, 4.65 ERA) begins the three-game series at home Friday night against Detroit and RHP Jordan Zimmermann (7-8, 4.31 ERA). Davies, who is making his first career start against the Tigers, gave up two runs in four innings in a loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates last Saturday.Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (2-3, 4.08 ERA) gets the start in the opener of a three-game series at Chicago and RHP Kyle Hendricks (13-11, 3.49 ERA) on Friday afternoon. Wainwright leads all active pitchers with 15 wins against the Cubs and his 11 career wins at Wrigley Field is third all-time in franchise history behind Bob Gibson (15) and Harry Brecheen (13).