MLB Playoff Picture: 3 things to know from Saturday

Every night we look around the league and identify three things you need to know about the playoff races. Here's what happened Saturday:

Astros snap 5-game slide

Houston was in danger of dropping its sixth straight game until Evan Gattis came to the rescue with a go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning to lift the Astros over the Oakland Athletics. Houston failed to gain any ground on the Texas Rangers, who routed the Seattle Mariners 10-1, in the American League West standings, but did increase its lead to 1 1/2 games over the surging Los Angeles Angels (see below) for the final AL playoff spot.

Cardinals clinch playoff berth

It's becoming hard to imagine a postseason without the St. Louis Cardinals, who punched their ticket to the playoffs for a fifth consecutive season with the San Francisco Giants' 6-0 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Cardinals still have plenty of work to do, however, in order to wrap up the National League Central. St. Louis holds a hearty 4 1/2-game advantage over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the division, but the Chicago Cubs are coming on like gangbusters after collecting their fifth straight win, and suddenly only sit five back.

Angels climb back into contention

Mike Scioscia's squad is making a late playoff push after taking both contests of a twin bill with the Minnesota Twins. The pair of victories vaulted the Angels over the Twins in the wild-card standings, and now Mike Trout and Co. have a clear path to the Astros in their pursuit of the final AL playoff spot. The Angels will attempt to sweep the Twins on Sunday, and will then travel to Minute Maid Park to battle Houston for three crucial games.

If the playoffs started today:

X-clinched playoff spot

The race to clinch the division: