AL Wild Card standings: Twins pushed to the brink after crushing loss to Guardians

A month ago it looked like the Minnesota Twins might make a run for the AL Central title, but with ten games left they're fighting for their playoff lives.

The way things have gone recently, there's a fair argument to be made that the Twins don't even deserve the final Wild Card spot they're desperately clinging to. It's a question fans might not have to worry about for long, though, as the events of this week have pushed the team to the brink.

Minnesota's bullpen once again caved in when it matter most on Wednesday in a 5-4 loss to the Cleveland Guardians.

It was a product of Rocco Baldelli being forced to manage with the pieces he's been given. Ownership's cowardly and pathetic refusal to invest in the roster this past winter is coming back to bite the team at the worst possible time, as Baldelli needed to put a combination of Ronny Henriquez and Michael Tonkin on the mound in the tenth inning to try and close out a must-win game.

It didn't work, and now the Twins are just a half game away from being on the outside of the playoff picture looking in.

Updated AL Wild Card standings after Twins lose 5-4 to Guardians

The Detroit Tigers continued their amazing -- and objectively fun -- surge up the standings by finishing off a sweep of the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday. The win not only keeps the good vibes rolling in Detroit, but brings the Tigers within just a half game of the Twins for the final Wild Card spot.

Minnesota has a chance to get some breathing room on Thursday, as they finish off their series against the Guardians while the Tigers have an off-day. The Twins will be playing to preserve their safety net tomorrow, and will be playing for their season from there on out depending on how things go.

The Twins own the tiebreaker over Detroit after winning the season series, but a loss to Cleveland effectively erases that safety net since the Tigers would officially be tied for third place.

Here's how things stand:

The Twins finishing off their series against Cleveland with a win is a flat out necessity. Minnesota can't afford to head into a weekend series against Boston with both the Tigers on the verge of passing them and the horrid vibes of riding a losing streak.

While things are absolutely dire, and fans are justified in their rage, the season isn't over yet. There are ten games left and the Twins can still bounce back and punch a playoff ticket. While Minnesota has a weekend series in Boston, the Tigers have a tough series against an Orioles team that is fighting to keep pace with the Yankees in the AL East race.

That's something that could work in Minnesota's favor, although we were all banking on Kansas City providing that relief this week. The Twins control their own destiny, which means if they end up on the wrong side of the playoff picture they'll have only themselves to blame.

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