NL Playoff Picture 2018: Updated Wild Card Standings and Division Records

A murky MLB National League playoff picture gained some measure of clarity on Wednesday as the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers clinched postseason berths.

The Atlanta Braves have already sewn up the NL East, so two playoff spots remain.

The NL West winner (either the Los Angeles Dodgers or Colorado Rockies) will take one, while the St. Louis Cardinals or the NL West runner-up will grab the other.

Here's a look at the latest NL standings and playoff picture, with a deeper look at the best-case scenarios for the six teams still alive.

All tiebreaker and standings information was obtained via MLB.com. Baseball-Reference is the source for all season-series figures.

National League Wild-Card Standings

Milwaukee Brewers: 92-67

Los Angeles Dodgers: 88-71

St. Louis Cardinals: 87-72

National League East Standings

Atlanta Braves: 89-69

Washington Nationals: 81-78

Philadelphia Phillies: 78-80

New York Mets: 74-84

Miami Marlins: 62-96

National League Central Standings

Chicago Cubs: 92-66

Milwaukee Brewers: 92-67

St. Louis Cardinals: 87-72

Pittsburgh Pirates: 80-77

Cincinnati Reds: 66-93

National League West Standings

Colorado Rockies: 88-70

Los Angeles Dodgers: 88-71

Arizona Diamondbacks: 81-78

San Francisco Giants: 73-86

San Diego Padres: 64-95

Best Case-Scenarios

Chicago Cubs (92-66): No. 1 Seed

The Chicago Cubs have the simplest path to the No. 1 seed: If they win out, they get it. The Cubs have one fewer loss than the next-best team (the Milwaukee Brewers) and control their own destiny.

Other scenarios exist, however, including going 2-2 (which would bump the Braves out of the No. 1 seed conversation) and simultaneously finishing ahead of Milwaukee in the standings—the Brewers would need to go no better than 1-2 in that scenario.

Chicago hosts the Pittsburgh Pirates once and St. Louis three times before the playoffs begin. The highlight of that four-game stretch is a potential pitcher's duel between the Cubs' Cole Hamels and the St. Louis Cardinals' Miles Mikolas on Saturday.

Milwaukee Brewers (92-67): No. 1 Seed

If the Brewers finish with a better record than the Cubs, then they will be the No. 1 seed and have home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. Milwaukee has the season-series tiebreaker over the Braves, so one more win guarantees the Brewers placement over them in the NL bracket if they win the division.

Of note, if the Cubs and Brewers tie for the division crown, Chicago would host a one-game playoff at Wrigley Field Monday to determine the champion (and more-than-likely No. 1 seed). The Cubs would get that reward by virtue of their 11-8 season-series edge over Milwaukee.

Milwaukee has the easiest road left out of any NL team, as it faces the 64-94 Detroit Tigers at home to close the year. The Brewers, who have won four straight, are 48-30 in Miller Park this year, while Detroit is 26-51 away from Comerica Park.

Atlanta Braves (89-69): No. 1 Seed

The Atlanta Braves can still finish with the No. 1 seed, but it won't be easy.

The simplest scenario is if the Braves win out and the Cubs and Brewers lose out, giving Atlanta a 93-69 record alone atop the NL.

A more complicated scenario involves the Cubs winning the NL Central and simultaneously finishing with the NL's best record alongside the Braves (at 92-70 or 93-69). In that case, Atlanta gets the edge thanks to the second tiebreaker (intra-division record). The teams split their season series, so the first tiebreaker would not work here. Atlanta already has that edge (48-24 vs. the Cubs' 38-34).

Atlanta has a road tilt with the New York Mets before three more away games vs. the Philadelphia Phillies. The Braves' toughest test may be Friday when Phils ace and Cy Young candidate Aaron Nola takes the hill.

Colorado Rockies (88-70): No. 1 Seed

The Colorado Rockies, who have won six straight, now control their own destiny for the NL West crown. If they win out, the Brewers and Cubs lose out and Atlanta loses at least one game, then the Rockies would be the No. 1 seed only if Chicago beats Milwaukee in the one-game NL Central division playoff.

The Rockies have a 5-2 season-series edge over Atlanta in a tiebreaker scenario. Colorado has the tiebreaker over Chicago (the two tied the season series at three, but the Rockies would have the better intradivision record in this case). But Milwaukee beat the Rockies five times in seven tries, so the Brew Crew would stay ahead of them.

The Rockies finish their season with a home game against the Phillies and a three-game set versus the Washington Nationals. They avoid Nola, but it's unclear whether they would face Nats ace Max Scherzer on the other side. Scherzer could hypothetically pitch Sunday against the Rockies on regular rest, but no starter has been announced.

Los Angeles Dodgers (88-71): No. 2 Seed

With their loss to old friend Zach Greinke and the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers mathematically fell out of the No. 1 seed running. They can still get the No. 2 seed if they (a) win the National League West and (b) finish with the same (or better) record than the Atlanta Braves. L.A. beat Atlanta 5-2 in the season series, giving the Dodgers the tiebreaker there.

The Dodgers don't have an easy road, however, as they travel to San Francisco and face the rival Giants to close the season. L.A. will have ace Clayton Kershaw on the bump Saturday, but the Giants have No. 1 starter Madison Bumgarner going Friday.

St. Louis Cardinals (87-72): Second Wild Card

The St. Louis Cardinals, who are in the midst of a 3-7 slide, do not control their own destiny as they sit one game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the final wild-card spot.

If the Redbirds pass the Dodgers (or Rockies) in the standings, they will head to Chicago or Milwaukee for the NL Wild Card Game.

If the Cards tie either L.A. or Colorado, they will host a one-game playoff against the NL West runner-up, with the winner heading to the NL Wild Card Game as the road team versus the NL Central's second-place finisher. St. Louis would have the home edge thanks to season-series wins vs. both NL West teams.

St. Louis finishes its season with a three-game road series against the Cubs. Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas and Jack Flaherty will go against Kyle Hendricks, Cole Hamels and Mike Montgomery, respectively.