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How the Minnesota Twins can clinch the AL Central

It's possible the Twins could clinch the division Thursday without throwing a single pitch.

MINNEAPOLIS — The leaves are changing colors and (sometimes) there's a chill in the air.

That means the MLB postseason is right around the corner.

And if the Minnesota Twins want to be a part of October baseball, just a few things need to happen... or at least, just one thing.

As of Thursday, the magic number for the Twins to clinch the American League Central is just one.

So here's what that means for our playoff hopes:

First, if the Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers lose their games tonight, the Twins clinch. Those games start at 6:15 and 8:30 p.m., respectively.

But if the Guardians or Tigers win, the magic number stays at one and the Twins can clinch if they come out on top Friday night against the Los Angeles Angels.

The Wild Card Series gets underway on Tuesday, Oct. 3. But if the postseason started tomorrow, the Twins would face the Texas Rangers in a best-of-three series, and the winner would play the reigning World Series Champion Houston Astros.

So far, the Atlanta Braves have clinched the National League East, the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the NL West, and the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays have secured American League playoff spots.

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