NL Wild Card Race: Predicting Teams That Will Earn Playoff Berths

Barring an unexpected charge from a National League team that currently has a record below .500, there are four teams battling for two playoffs spots. The extra postseason berth added prior to this season has made for a more intriguing race.

As it stands now, the Atlanta Braves lead the race with the St. Louis Cardinals in the second position. The Pittsburgh Pirates and Los Angeles Dodgers are both within two games of the Cardinals. Let's examine the two teams that will end up in the playoffs.

No. 1 Wild Card: Atlanta Braves

One year after watching a double-digit wild-card lead evaporate, the Braves and their fans must feel like no lead is safe. That's especially true because the team hit a rough patch recently—around the same time last season's collapse began.

History isn't going to repeat itself. After today's victory over the Colorado Rockies, the Braves are ahead of the Pirates and Dodgers by five games. With Chipper Jones putting the offense on his back in his final season, the outlook is more promising.

The biggest reason the Braves should be viewed as the wild-card favorites is the pitching staff. First and foremost, the bullpen has been dominant yet again, basically making any lead after six innings an automatic victory.

The starters have been more reliable as well. Kris Medlen has been virtually unhittable since he was reinserted in the rotation and Paul Maholm has turned out to be a great deadline addition. All five guys give the Braves a good chance to win when they start.

As long as the Braves can get the offense rolling again in the next couple weeks—with the talent they have on the roster, there's no reason the production shouldn't pick back up—they will make the postseason as the top-seeded wild card.

No. 2 Wild Card: Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers made it clear at the trade deadline that anything short of a trip to the playoffs would be a disappointment. They added Hanley Ramirez and Shane Victorino to boost the offense as well as Brandon League and Randy Choate to improved the bullpen.

Progress remained slow, so the front office pulled off another blockbuster. Los Angeles acquired Josh Beckett and Adrian Gonzalez from the struggling Boston Red Sox. Carl Crawford was also in the deal, but he's out for the season.

It's taking some time for all of these new piece to gel together, but luckily for the Dodgers, the other contenders haven't pulled away in the mean time. They are 4-6 over the past 10 games, the same as Pittsburgh and St. Louis.

With about one month to go, things should eventually fall into place for the Dodgers, allowing them to take over the second wild-card spot. There are too many good players on the roster for them to keep struggling for much longer.

Los Angeles will narrowly edge out the Cardinals for a chance to face the Braves. The Pirates should be applauded for continued progress toward a return to the playoffs after so many years of struggling, but are still another season away.