What Guardians, Tigers still have to play for in AL Central Division in Game 162

Billy Heyen

What Guardians, Tigers still have to play for in AL Central Division in Game 162 image

The Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers both clinched playoff berths on Saturday.

The Guardians did it in especially goofy fashion, with a walk-off hit by pitch.

But on Sunday, there's still more to play for.

One of these teams will win the AL Central Division.

The other will be the American League's third and final Wild Card team.

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What matters for Guardians, Tigers in Game 162

The Guardians and Tigers can both still win the AL Central.

With that comes the No. 3 seed in the AL compared to No. 6.

And with that comes home-field advantage in the Wild Card round, which means all three games of the best-of-three happen in their home ballpark.

 

If both teams win, the Guardians host the Red Sox.

If both teams lose, the Guardians host the Tigers.

If the Guardians win and Tigers lose, Cleveland hosts Detroit.

And if Cleveland loses and Detroit wins, the Tigers host Cleveland.

Who holds the Guardians-Tigers tiebreaker?

The Guardians hold the tiebreaker over the Tigers due to head-to-head record.

So if both teams win or both lose on Sunday, Cleveland will be the division champ and home for the Wild Card series.

The Tigers can only win the division with a Sunday win and a Guardians loss.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle