Reds: Where they stand in playoff race with 9 games left

Reds are off Thursday and play the White Sox at home on Friday

Major League Baseball’s regular season ends in 11 days. Here’s where the Cincinnati Reds, who are seeking their first postseason berth in seven years, stand in the playoff picture:

Last game: The Reds (25-26) beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 1-0 on Wednesday, completing a four-game sweep at Great American Ball Park and extending their season-best winning streak to five games in a row. The Reds are one game under .500 for the first time since they were 8-9 on Aug. 11. They have not had a .500 record since they were 1-1.

Division race: The Reds (25-26) moved into a tie with the St. Louis Cardinals (22-23) for second place in the National League Central, though the Reds (.490) have a slight edge over the Cardinals (.489) in winning percentage.

The top two teams in each division make the playoffs. The Chicago Cubs (29-20) lead the Reds and Cardinals by five games.

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Wild-card race: The top two teams in each league with the next best records, outside the top two teams in each division, also make the expanded 16-team playoffs. The Reds trail the Philadelphia Phillies (24-24) and San Francisco Giants (24-24) by a half game.

If the season ended today: According to MLB.com’s postseason standings, the Reds would be the No. 6 seed. That would match them up with the No. 3 seed Atlanta Braves (29-21), who would host the best-of-three wild-card series starting Sept. 30.

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The odds: According to FanGraphs.com, the Reds have a 51.7 percent chance of making the playoffs. They have a 0.1 percent chance of winning the division, a 21.4 percent chance of finishing second and a 30.2 percent chance of winning a wild card.

Road ahead: The Reds are off Thursday. They start a three-game series at home against the Chicago White Sox on Friday and close the season next week with three home games against the Milwaukee Brewers (23-26), who trail the Reds and Cardinals by one game, and three road games against the Minnesota Twins.

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