We are less than two weeks away from the start of the 2016 MLB playoffs, with the AL Wild Card Game set to be played on Oct. 4 and the NL Wild Card Game slated for Oct. 5.

Anything can happen in October—as we've seen time and again—and trying to predict how the postseason will shake out is often an exercise in futility.

That being said, it's still fun to try to guess the results before the postseason festivities begin, and that's exactly what we've done here.

Pitching is almost universally central to success in a playoff race. So news of San Francisco Giants starter Johnny Cueto’s groin strain gave reason to question whether his team would have enough firepower to win one of the NL’s two wild-card spots.

While Cueto may still be able to pitch in his next scheduled start, other playoff teams suffered injury setbacks.

Which of baseball’s training rooms were busiest this week?

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The Texas Rangers' dominance of the American League West continued in 2016, with the franchise clinching its second straight division title Friday with a 3-0 win over the Oakland Athletics.

The Rangers provided video of the final play to clinch the franchise's seventh division title:

It was easy to like the Toronto Blue Jays last September. They made the deals of the summer. For the final two months of the regular season, all they did was win.

They had David Price, they had a lineup that didn’t stop, they had a boost from Marcus Stroman’s return and they had whatever momentum you get from going 21-6 in August and 18-9 in September.

The Washington Nationals are on the verge of a playoff appearance, but a lingering injury to All-Star second baseman Daniel Murphy's buttocks could cause panic. 

Continue for updates.  

The Seattle Mariners announced they have suspended catcher Steve Clevenger without pay for the remainder of the regular season after he sent a series of offensive tweets on Thursday night. 

There is still an exciting month of playoff baseball separating us from what promises to be another busy offseason around the league, but it's never too early to start looking ahead at how free agency might play out.

This year's free-agent class is headlined by a number of notable bats.

There's a saying in baseball: "A team never wants to lead the league in meetings."

The implication being that when a club holds a meeting, it's almost universally to discuss what is going wrong and how to repair it. But teams rarely find themselves where the Chicago Cubs stand, having already clinched the NL Central and preparing for the playoffs.

The marathon MLB season has been reduced to a sprint. For the clubs still in the hunt, every game matters—a lot.

For Bleacher Report's MLB Team of the Week, on the other hand, all that matters is the recent past.

Here are 10 players—one per position, including a pitcher and designated hitter—who've busted box scores over the past seven days.

To qualify, a player needs to have made at least two starts at the position in question, or one start in the case of pitchers.

If the season ended Thursday, the Detroit Tigers would own the American League's second wild-card slot.

And they'd be one dangerous wild card.