Three times five is not a valid division.
But as of Labor Day 2024, that is the current state of the National League wild-card chase.
With a three-game advantage, the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks are tied for the first of three wild-card playoff positions, followed by the suddenly hot Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, and New York Mets.
The Cubs have closed to within five games of the postseason picture, while Atlanta, one game ahead of the Mets, occupies the third and final wild-card place.
Instead of chasing the Philadelphia Phillies and going for their seventh consecutive divisional crown, which would have been the longest streak in major league history, the Braves dropped three of four games over the course of a low-scoring weekend series at Citizens Bank Park.
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