Magic number at 20 as long homestand beckons

The Indians’ magic number is down to 20 as the Indians face the Minnesota Twins on Aug. 28 in the opener of a nine-game homestand at Progressive Field.

Any combination of wins by the American League Central Division-leading Indians (74-56) and losses by the second-place Twins (61-69) adding up to 20 means the Indians clinch a third straight AL Central title and a playoff berth.

Barring an unexpected and cataclysmic meltdown in the regular season’s final five weeks, the Indians are postseason-bound with 32 games remaining and a 13-game lead over the Twins.

In the AL East, the Boston Red Sox were a major league-best 90-42 on Aug. 27 and 6 1/2 and games clear of the second-place New York Yankees (82-47).

Boston was a more comfortable 10 1/2 games ahead of the Yankees on Aug. 18. That race has tightened, however, with the Red Sox dropping six of their last eight games while the Yankees were winning six of their last seven games.

The AL West is a dogfight between the defending World Series champion Houston Astros and the surprising Oakland A’s.

Houston (80-50) had a 1 1/2-game lead over the A’s (79-52) going into the opener of a three-game series between the teams on

Aug. 27 in Houston.

For fans of the Indians, that series and the race to the finish in the AL West bears watching because the Indians are on course to face the AL West winner in a best-of-five American League Division Series beginning on Oct. 4.

The balance of the regular-season schedule is in the Indians’ favor. They’ll play 18 of the remaining 32 games at Progressive Field, where they have a 39-24 record.

On this homestand, after three games against the Twins, they’ll play three against the Tampa Bay Rays (70-61) and three against the Kansas City Royals (40-91).

At their current pace, the Indians appear to be tracking to clinch the AL Central title during a nine-game homestand that begins on Sept. 14 against the Detroit Tigers.