Thursday’s MLB slate was small with a total of just six games, but the Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners won important games in their respective playoff races.

In addition to Arizona and Seattle winning important games, the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Miami Marlins to build on their NL West lead and the Atlanta Braves got back in the win column as they work to wrap up the NL East.

Arizona Diamondbacks re-enter playoff picture

The Diamondbacks started Thursday outside of the final Wild Card spot. However, a 6-2 win over the Chicago Cubs and a 10-0 loss by the Miami Marlins to the Los Angeles Dodgers has moved Arizona back into the playoff positions. 

The Diamondbacks are 4-6 in their last 10 contests, but have now won back-to-back games after Thursday night. 

As of right now, the Diamondbacks are just 0.5 games ahead of both the Miami Marlins and the Cincinnati Reds. 

The Diamondbacks have 21 games left and they will need to be at their best to hold off both of these teams, especially the Marlins who have won seven of their last 10 games.

With their ongoing series against the Cubs, the Diamondbacks will also have a great opportunity to gain some ground on them as well. 

Being the second Wild-Card team as opposed to the third is huge in terms of who will be the opponent in the first round.

The Diamondbacks are listed at odds of +5000 to win the World Series, +2500 to win the National League, and +205 to make the playoffs.  

Seattle on Houston’s heels

One of the divisions that has gone back and forth all season is the American League West. 

The Texas Rangers were in control for a long stretch, before the Seattle Mariners got red hot and took the lead. 

Recently the Mariners have slipped some and the Houston Astros reasserted their dominance. But the Mariners are right there and will not go away. 

Entering Thursday, the Mariners trailed the Astros by 1.0 game in the division. 

The Astros had an off-day on Thursday, while the Mariners played the Tampa Bay Rays, another playoff team. 

The Mariners won this game against the Rays by a score of 1-0, which was their second in a row and leaves them just 0.5 games behind the Astros. 

Even if the Mariners are not able to catch the Astros, they are in a great position to make the playoffs as the second Wild Card. 

They are 2.0 games ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays, who occupy the third Wild-Card spot.

The Seattle Mariners are listed at odds of +1300 to win the World Series, +600 to win the American League, +230 to win the American League West, and odds of -500 to make the playoffs. 

Atlanta back in the win column

Just when it looked like the Atlanta Braves might be hitting a slump, they proceeded to crush the St. Louis Cardinals by a score of 8-5 on Thursday night. 

The score looked much closer than it actually was as the Braves opened up an 8-3 lead before the Cardinals managed to make it more respectable. 

Ronald Acuna Jr. continued to make his case for the National League MVP with another two home runs, taking his total to 34 on the season. The 25-year-old is -5000 to score the most runs in the regular season and +110 for the most hits.

Matt Olson also went deep in this game, striking his 47th home run of the season, which leads the league. 

Even with three losses in their last four games, the Braves are 7-3 in their last 10 and lead the National League East division by 14 games over the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Braves’ offense continues to score runs at an astronomical rate. They are averaging 5.82 runs per game, the most in the MLB.

With how their offense has been playing, look for the Braves to continue to be a force down the stretch and into the playoffs. 

The Braves are listed at odds of +240 to win the World Series and odds of +115 to win the National League.