The Orioles come into this game at 71-80. They are officially out of the playoff race, but with no expectations on this roster, they still want to end the season as well as possible and not fall back too far under .500. The White Sox have had a very poor season so far, with a record of 57-95. They have been eliminated from contention for a while and have used the remaining games to see what they have in younger players and give playing time to players they will build around in the future.

Pitching for Baltimore will be Tyler Wells. In his limited appearances, Wells has gone 1–0 with a 2.31 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 11.2 innings. He has walked just one batter and held opponents to a .146 average on the season. Pérez will pitch for Chicago. The veteran has put up a 1-5 record with a 3.27 ERA, which is a respectable ERA, but the lack of run support he has received and some inconsistency have led to an ugly record for Pérez despite holding opponents to a .188 average.

If Wells can keep the White Sox lineup in check during the early innings, Baltimore has the advantage. The Orioles have the offensive depth to put up runs with a few hits and can score quickly, with a young core led by Gunnar Henderson and Jackson Holliday able to lead rallies. Baltimore’s bullpen is not one of the best, but if Wells struggles or doesn’t go deep enough into the game, they might be able to limit the damage.

Baltimore has the advantage and should be able to control most of the game, taking advantage of mistakes by the White Sox.

Jim's Play: 915. Orioles 

An intradivisional matchup of two clubs with drastically different goals, as the Cubs are one game away from clinching a playoff WildCard spot and the Pirates are completely out of playoff contention. 

The Cubs have an 87-64 record and while the Brewers are out of their reach in the division race, they hold a tight grip on the 1st Wild Card spot. The Pirates are sitting at 65-87 and have been completely out of playoff contention since before the All-Star break; their motivation will likely be finishing the season with respectability and tuning up for the post-season. 

Pitching for the Cubs will be Matthew Boyd, who is 13-8 with a 3.05 ERA and 171.2 innings pitched. He has a 146 to 39 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and his opponent’s batting average is .233. Boyd has recorded 17 quality starts for the Cubs this season. On average, he has pitched to a total of just under six innings per start. Boyd started against the Rays last game, and it did not go well, as he lasted just five innings, allowing four earned runs, four hits, and three walks while striking out eight. Boyd will look to bounce back, and be back to his consistency in this one.

For the Pirates, the Cubs will see Johan Oviedo on the mound. He is 2-0 with a 2.81 ERA and 25.2 innings pitched. He has a 31 to three strikeout-to-walk ratio, and his opponent’s batting average is .176. He has not had a quality start yet this season, however, as it takes six innings with an ERA lower than three to qualify as a quality start for a starting pitcher. He has yet to pitch to a total of six innings in a game. Oviedo has been very impressive, however, in his limited work. He is showing the ability to miss bats at a solid rate (K/9 in the nine-to-ten range), and he has been able to limit hard contact in his limited starts. He is unproven and more of a wild card for this one, but as long as the Cubs’ offense doesn’t jump on him early he should have a chance.

The Pirates have a great shot here today as a nice priced dog. WIth Oviedo on the hill he will keep them in the game and that's all you can ask of a dog. Let's take a shot with the Pirates here on Wednesday. 

Jim's Play: 902. Pirates 

Tonight’s game has big Wild Card implications, as the Padres and Mets battle it out in the race for the last spots in the playoffs. Both teams know that this is an important series to establish momentum, as the Giants, Reds, and Diamondbacks are lurking just a few games behind. However, with both teams splitting the season series and little room for error for both clubs, this is a critical matchup for both sides. In addition, the Padres are contending for the NL West title, trailing the Dodgers by just two games. 

Starting for the Padres is right-hander Michael King, who has posted a 4-2 record and 2.87 ERA for San Diego this season. King has given the Padres quality innings down the stretch and will look to be aggressive and efficient on the road. On the mound for the Mets is righty Clay Holmes, who has an 11-8 record and a 3.75 ERA. Holmes has shown flashes of effectiveness this season, but the Mets have to hope he minimizes hard contact and avoids having San Diego’s powerful lineup beat around the park. Offensively, this is a battle of two clubs trying to play more to their potential. The Padres have been led by their stars, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Manny Machado, while the Mets will need timely hitting and improved execution with runners in scoring position, something that has eluded them throughout the season. This game has to be won, for the Mets to keep the pressure on in the NL Wild Card race, otherwise their season will be in jeopardy with how close the race is right now. Finally, the mental state of the Mets is another factor, as this has been a disappointing year for the Mets and a loss in this series could tighten the race and diminish the Mets chances of catching the playoff hopefuls.

As much as I would like to see the Mets win this series, this sets up as a tight, competitive game in which the Padres have the momentum and the advantage with King on the mound. It’s hard to predict by much, but the edge goes to San Diego in this one as I’ll take the Padres in a win.

Jim's Play: 909. Padres 

The Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals both enter this matchup still in contention for one of the last two NL Wild Card spots. Cincinnati is at 75-76, three games back of the Mets for the final Wild Card spot and in the thick of the battle with the Giants and Diamondbacks. St. Louis checks in at 74-78, roughly 4.5 games back of New York. Each team will approach these final games of the season with every game having a taste of postseason do-or-die. Add in that this is a divisional matchup, and both teams will enter the game with the intent to either flip the momentum of this series in their favor or to keep it.

Cincinnati has elected to turn to Brady Singer, who has been one of the more dependable pieces in their rotation this year. Singer is 13-10 with a 3.94 ERA in 155 innings, punching out 149 while limiting opponents to a .235 average. He had a good last start, tossing six innings and allowing just two earned runs. St. Louis will have Andre Pallante on the mound, who has had a tough year with a 6-14 record, a 5.34 ERA, and a 1.43 WHIP. Pallante has had trouble with consistency, giving up quality starts less than 50% of the time. He is prone to working himself into trouble by falling behind in counts.

Cincinnati’s strategy is simple: get another quality start from Singer and rely on the bullpen to hold late if they can. The offense for Cincinnati features the star power of Elly De La Cruz and a speedy lineup that can get on base and work the gaps. That will be their approach with Pallante, to work him around early and go after him if he continues to give up free passes. For the Cardinals, veteran bats like Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras must continue to produce, especially if Pallante does not give them length. The Cardinals have batted with plenty of fight in the lineup all season but continue to leave way too many men on base.

This is a game for Cincinnati to keep their playoff chances alive. They have the edge in starting pitching and their Wild Card situation has a little more urgency than St. Louis. I'll be on the Reds here today. 

Jim's Play: 903. Reds (NL Central Game of the Week)