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With roughly 40 games remaining in the 2026 MLB regular season, the postseason picture is beginning to take shape—but there’s still plenty of time for everything to change.
The Boston Red Sox have come roaring back into the American League race after a remarkable stretch of winning baseball. Would you rather be a Red Sox fan right now—or a Dodgers fan? Los Angeles has suddenly hit a rough patch, but is this really cause for concern, or is a veteran championship team simply waiting for October?
We look around baseball at the contenders, pretenders and teams hanging onto the edges of the playoff race. The Rays continue to prove us wrong, the Yankees are waiting for reinforcements, and with only about a quarter of the season remaining, one terrible week could effectively end a team's postseason hopes.
We also discuss Yankees prospect George Lombard Jr. and the pressure that comes with playing shortstop in New York; the remarkable extra-inning Red Sox-White Sox game that produced scoring in five consecutive innings; and why games like that make a pretty good argument for MLB's regular-season extra-inning rule.
Then there's Tommy John. With news about John's health prompting renewed discussion of his Hall of Fame candidacy, we debate a fascinating question: Is his 288-win, 26-year pitching career worthy of Cooperstown on its own—or are people inevitably giving him extra credit because the revolutionary surgery bears his name?
Plus, Jacob Wilson sets a Major League record for consecutive errorless games by a shortstop, Matt Olson reaches 900 consecutive games played, and we consider whether Cal Ripken Jr.'s 2,632-game streak may be the most unbreakable record in baseball.
Finally, there's actually a reason for optimism about MLB's looming labor confrontation. Every owner lockout in MLB history has ended before costing baseball a regular-season game. Could history—and the enormous amount of money now at stake—make a 2027 work stoppage less likely than many fans fear?
We finish with Craig Kimbrel joining his 12th MLB franchise and a Chicago Cubs defense that isn't merely good—it has a chance to rank among the best defensive teams we've ever seen.
It's another week of baseball history colliding with the game we're watching right now on Almost Cooperstown.
Almost Cooperstown is a weekly baseball podcast featuring thoughtful conversations about the Baseball Hall of Fame, baseball history, current MLB topics, player comparisons, statistics and the stories that connect today's game with its rich history.
Thanks again to Mercury Maid for the Intro & Outro music.
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