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The Biggest Week of the MLB Season (Maybe!) Starts Tonight

Five series that begin tonight could have a significant impact on the MLB playoff picture.

It's probably an overstatement to call Monday the BIGGEST DAY OF THE REGULAR SEASON IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL, because it is an overstatement. Please. It's not even September yet, for cry eye.

BUT: If you look at the MLB schedule for today, it does mark the beginning of (at least) five series that, as of now, would have a significant impact on the playoff races in the American and National leagues. And seeing as the NFL does not yet have a death grip on the North American sports psyche, it might be a good idea to check in with these series to see what might be at stake.

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Florida Marlins at New York Mets (Monday-Thursday)

The Washington Nationals have a comfortable lead (for now, anyway) in the NL East, but the Mets and Marlins are separated by one measly game in the standings, with New York trailing St. Louis for the second Wild Card sport by 2 1/2. The Pittsburgh Pirates actually are closer, just a half-game behind the Cardinals, but with right-hander Gerrit Cole's season in question because of a sore elbow, whoever gets hot among the Fish and Mets might be the strongest non-San Francisco Giants Wild Card challenger. Sound convoluted? Well, that's just how Bud Selig wanted it!

The Marlins come to Citi Field at an inconvenient time for the Mets, who are skipping right-hander Jacob deGrom, possibly for the entire series, so he can get himself together mentally and mechanically. Left-hander Steven Matz is penciled in to pitch the finale Thursday, but with his sore shoulder, it's not yet a sure thing. Sluggers Yoenis Cespedes and Neil Walker also have been in and out of the lineup with minor injuries.

The Marlins have the pitching edge in game one, with Cy Young contender Jose Fernandez dueling Rafael Montero, who was demoted to Double-A (and pitched well there) after sporting a 7.20 ERA for Triple-A Las Vegas. Tough league for pitchers, the Pacific Coast League.

Miami's Tom Koehler goes against Seth Lugo in the second game, and Lugo has been revelatory in two spot starts so far. David Phelps takes on Bartolo Colon on Wednesday. Sounds like an edge for the Mets, though Phelps was Miami's hottest pitcher until coming back to Earth in his previous start.

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The probable pitchers haven't been announced for Thursday, but it's Justin Nicolino's turn for the Marlins. If the Mets can win two of these games without pitching deGrom and Noah Syndergaard (who is being saved for the Nationals series starting Friday), they should consider themselves fortunate.

Toronto Blue Jays at Baltimore Orioles (Monday-Wednesday)

If it seems like Toronto has been trending upward and the Orioles downward, your trendspotting is spot-on. The Jays are 21 games over .500 since May 1, and the Orioles are on the verge of posting consecutive months with a sub-.500 record. The Jays lead the AL East by two games and the Orioles, who were in first place as of a few weeks ago, still lead the AL Wild Card by two. The Jays have won seven of 13 from the Orioles this season.

O's right-hander Marco Estrada has the edge on lefty Wade Miley in game one, and Jays lefty JA Happ has it on Ubaldo Jimenez in game two. The Jays have their ace-in-the-hole, Aaron Sanchez, set to return in the series finale after being deactivated in order to sync up with his innings limit. Yovani Gallardo is set to pitch for Baltimore which, good grief, how was this team in first place for so long? The answer is offense, and the wily nature of manager Buck Showalter—so, if Mark Trumbo, Manny Machado, Adam Jones, and Jonathan Schoop can go to town, they have a chance to take two of three.

The Blue Jays like to go to town too, though. Josh Donaldson, in position for another run at AL MVP, hit so many home runs Sunday that fans in the stands threw all of their hats at him.

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Pirates at Chicago Cubs (Monday-Wednesday)

The Pirates should be dead, having posted mediocre team numbers at bat and on the mound. And yet, they've won four straight—all at Milwaukee, usually a deathtrap for them—and they find themselves a half-game back in the Wild Card race. If they can avoid getting swept at Wrigley Field, the schedule gets easier, with home opponents including the Brewers, Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds, plus road games at Philadelphia, Cincy and Milwaukee. Even with Cole's future in doubt, they can make a lot of hay.

The Cubs are 14 (!) games ahead in the NL Central, so they continue to play for vagaries such as home-field advantage and fighting boredrom until the playoffs start in October.

Steven Brault starts Monday against Jake Arrieta, so you figure the Cubs will take game one. Chad Kuhl against Cy Young dark horse Kyle Hendricks (2.19 ERA don't lie) is a fun hump game, and Ryan Vogelsong hopes to continue inspiring underdog-types against Mike Montgomery in the finale.

New York Yankees at Kansas City Royals (Monday-Wednesday)

Anything that invokes a rematch of the 1976-1978 and 1980 ALCS is OK by us. And while it's better to think of this series being played by the likes of Chris Chambliss and Freddie Patek, that would disrespect the likes of Gary Sanchez and Cheslor Cuthbert. Sanchez, a very good defensive prospect and pretty good hitter in the minors, has turned into a living Yankees legend, clubbing 11 home runs in 22 games, which has given him an .893 slugging percentage. It's likely there's more than one reason the Yankees have been winning games lately, but Sanchez's amazing hot streak is the most obvious. Sanchez's offensive explosion also has prompted the Internet to make references to Gary, Spongebob's pet snail, for some reason. As such, his presence has been doubly good.

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The Royals, of course, were 52-58 before adopting a mantis they found in a dugout trash can at Kauffman Stadium on Aug. 6, and they are 68-62 now. You figure the rest out.

The Yankees send right-hander Michael Pineda against right-hander Dillon Gee in game one. Many runs might be scored, but all the Royals need is a lead by the seventh inning and they're in great shape. Masahiro Tanaka vs. Edinson Volquez is the matchup in game two, and Luis Cessa vs. Ian Patrick Kennedy is the finale. Key for the Yankees: Avoiding Danny Duffy (not to mention Dennis Leonard and Larry Gura).

But it probably will come down to a snail vs. a bug.

Seattle Mariners at Texas Rangers (Monday-Wednesday)

The Rangers seem safe in the AL West, thanks to an 8 1/2 game lead on the Houston Astros and Mariners. But Seattle is also fighting for a rare playoff berth for the franchise; the M's haven't reached the postseason since 2001. Thanks to a recent surge, they're three games back in the Wild Card. That's great for the Mariners, but it also needs to be disclosed that no fewer than five teams are within 3 1/2 games of a Wild Card spot—and that doesn't count the Boston Red Sox and Orioles, who would make the playoffs if the season ended today. The playoff race is a mess. Chaos. A madhouse, as Charlton Heston would put it.

Game one has a distinct Japanese (and Iranian) flair, with Hisashi Iwakuma facing Yu Darvish. Game two is all-Anglo, with James Paxton facing Cole Hamels. Game three is a nice blend of Venezuelan spices, with Felix Hernandez facing Martin Perez.

OK, that's a lot of important baseball for a Monday in late August. Please enjoy it responsibly.