NL Wild Card standings update: Giants hold slim lead for final spot

Aug 31, 2023, 8:34 AM

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 28: Joc Pederson #23 of the San Francisco Giants celebrating wit...

(Photo by Suzanna Mitchell/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images)

Sacramento Kings Beat Writer

September baseball is upon us.

As we turn the calendar from August, the San Francisco Giants have jumped back into the third and final National League Wild Card spot after taking two of three games against the Cincinnati Reds at Oracle Park.

The Giants (69-64) hold the NL Wild Card spot by a slim margin, with the Arizona Diamondbacks sitting just a half-game back with 29 games remaining in the 2023 season.

All 1️⃣1️⃣ of Kyle Harrison's K's 🔽 pic.twitter.com/fblXd0YEx7

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 29, 2023

While it’s encouraging that San Francisco regained possession of a postseason spot after briefly falling behind Arizona, the hard work is about to begin for the Giants.

San Francisco’s next two series are against teams in the mix for an NL Wild Card spot: San Diego and Chicago.

Although the Padres are all but out of the race (7.5 games back entering Thursday’s slate of games), the Giants can’t let their guard down for the rest of the season, especially this weekend when they play a four-game set in San Diego.

The Padres’ season is on the line, and you can expect the Giants’ NL West counterpart to go down swinging rather than concede their season.

Here’s the breakdown of how many games the Giants have against teams around them in the NL Wild Card race as we prepare to enter the final month of the season:

7 vs. San Diego (4 at home, 3 on road)
3 @ Chicago
2 @ Arizona

What is the current state of the NL Wild Card standings?

The Philadelphia Phillies are beginning to pull away as the Cubs, Giants, D-Backs, Reds, and Marlins duke it out for the final two spots.

Of the teams remaining in the NL Wild Card mix, San Francisco (20th) holds the second-easiest remaining strength of schedule, with only Cincinnati (19th) possessing a more manageable schedule.

Miami (5th) has the toughest road ahead as they still have to face powerhouses like the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers during the final stretch of the regular season.

This is where the fun–or torture–begins.

The Giants’ road to the 2023 postseason won’t be easy, but they control their destiny. If they continue to win series, they will be where they want to be when we turn the calendar from September to October.