AL East standings: Orioles take advantage of Yankees loss, close gap in division race

The AL East is one of the few divisions in MLB that looks like it's going to come down to the wire. After Saturday night's games, the Orioles find themselves two games back of the Yankees despite having struggled through the entire month of September.

With 10 of their final 13 games scheduled against teams still fighting for playoff spots, the Orioles have their work cut out for them. Thankfully they were able to take advantage of a Yankees loss on Saturday, as well as a stellar outing from ace Corbin Burnes, to close the gap between them and New York with just two weeks left to play.

As of this morning, the Yankees sit atop the division with an 86-63 record. Their 742 runs scored are second most in the league, behind only the Diamondbacks, and they have looked like the best team in the division for at least the last month.

Can the Orioles chase down the Yankees and claim their second straight AL East title?

The Orioles got out to a raucous start but have played .500 ball for the entire second half. They had the opportunity to run the Yankees out of town at the All Star break but have failed to do so, instead falling back into the pack and even now find themselves fighting to hang onto the top Wild Card spot.

For now, the Orioles have a two-game advantage on the Royals for the first AL Wild Card slot. However, with two tough weeks left to play, anything can happen, up to and including the Orioles chasing down the Yankees and capturing their second straight division title.

As for the rest of the AL East, the Red Sox sit at 75-74 and are all but dead in terms of their playoff chances. They're 4 games back in the Wild Card race and trail both the Tigers and Mariners in that regard. They do have 10 of their final 13 games against AL East opponents though, plus a three-game set against the playoff-hopeful Twins, so if they somehow catch fire they can directly improve their chances of catching the teams ahead of them.

For all intents and purposes, both the Rays and Blue Jays are toast. While neither is technically eliminated yet, they're 6 and 8 games back of a Wild Card spot respectively and neither have played well enough to inspire confidence that they can chase down the teams ahead of them.

For now, it's a two team race between the Yankees and Orioles, though that could change before we reach the end of September. The Yankees' schedule is considerably easier than the Orioles', and a strong week of play could all but end the O's chances. With any luck, that won't happen and we'll get to see a tight race until the very end.