MLB Pennant Race 2021: Brewers Close in on NL Central

Three weeks remain in the 2021 MLB season, and the postseason races continue to heat up. Some teams rise, others continue to fall, as is the case every September. Here are the main stories that are taking center stage during this home stretch of the season.

There's an amazing aura hovering over the state of Wisconsin. The Milwaukee Bucks won the NBA Championship, and the Milwaukee Brewers are drawing closer and closer to the NL Central crown. The Brewers have been doing it with their pitching, they are running away with the lead in shutouts. One of their shutouts took place this past week, as Corbin Burnes and Josh Hader worked together to no-hit the Cleveland Indians--the team's second no-no in franchise history. The Brewers have won five straight and have a whopping lead in the NL Central, as well as the smallest magic number in baseball: five.

What's Next: The Brewers' miniscule magic number means that they can clinch the NL Central in the next week, maybe in a few short days. The Brewers have a two game interleague set with the Detroit Tigers, and they will return home for a weekend three-game set against the Chicago Cubs.

The other Central Division seems to be wrapped up as well, as the Chicago White Sox have been owning the American League Central for, pretty much, the whole season. Some White Sox fans could argue that their amazing season has come in spite of their manager Tony La Russa, but in any regard, the White Sox have been showing out this entire season. The team leads by 12 games entering the final stretch, and they have a magic number of nine, meaning that they could clinch the AL Central in just over a week.

What's Next: The White Sox will remain at home for their upcoming three game set against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and they will go on the road for a weekend series against the Rangers. They'll face division foes Detroit and Cleveland a week after that, but they shouldn't need those games to wrap up the AL Central.

The American League Wild Card race has taken a pair of turns: a good one for the Toronto Blue Jays, but a horrendous one for the New York Yankees. The Yankees have played 15 games after their 13-game winning streak. How many did they win? Three. The centerpiece of that skid is a seven game losing streak, and the streak's centerpiece was an embarrassing home series against the Blue Jays. Not only did the Jays sweep the Yankees, but the Jays led or tied the entire series--never trailed. As a result of all of this, the Jays moved all the way up to the #1 Wild Card position, as they have won nine of 10. The Boston Red Sox are the #2 Wild Card, and the Yankees--who have heavy expectations every year--are behind the playoff line.

What's Next: The Yankees will host a makeup game with the Twins before heading to Baltimore to face an Orioles team who--despite having the AL's worst record--seems to have the Yankees' number this year. The Yankees will return home for a weekend series against the Indians, and as for the Red Sox, they head to Seattle for three, followed by an off day and a home series against the O's. The Blue Jays will be at home for the entire following week: three games against the Rays, followed by three more against the Twins. They will play those same two teams later on the road.

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