Breaking down the Mariners' suddenly very real shot at a 1st-round playoff bye

Leave it to the Seattle Mariners to pull off one of the greatest 10-game stretches the team has ever had when they needed it most.

With 10 straight wins, the Mariners have jumped the Houston Astros and taken the lead in the AL West. Not only have they jumped from the No. 6 seed to the No. 3 seed in the process, but they suddenly have an opportunity to steal the No. 2 seed and claim a first-round bye.

Assessing the Mariners' road to the No. 2 seed in the AL playoffs

The idea that the Mariners might have a first-round bye would have sounded absurd a week-and-a-half ago when they were busy being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays and clinging onto a playoff spot for dear life.

But their recent streak has propelled them into a position where anything is possible. It helps that the Detroit Tigers have gone 4-6 during the same 10-game stretch.

The Mariners now trail the Tigers by just two games for the No. 2 seed in the American League. It's a deficit Seattle can easily erase if they can extend the brand of baseball they've been playing in their final 11 games.

It won't be easy for the Mariners. Their schedule includes three games against the Astros and three against the Dodgers to close the season. Sandwiched in between is a three-game series against the Rockies.

For the Mariners to pull off a first-round bye, they'll probably need to sweep their ongoing series in Kansas City and then do the same to the Rockies, and otherwise go no worse than 3-3 against the Astros and Dodgers. That would add eight more wins to their season total, and they would finish the season at 91-71.

Detroit, at 85-66, would have to go 5-6 over its final 11 games. It's certainly possible considering their own difficult schedule. The Tigers still have five games left against the red-hot Guardians and three against the Red Sox. The Guardians have won nine of their last 10 games and suddenly find themselves back in the playoff mix, only trailing the Red Sox by 2.5 games. The Red Sox are still fighting to secure a Wild Card spot as well. Neither of those teams will be easy for the Tigers, who themselves have been struggling for the past two weeks.

It's still probably unlikely, but anything is possible. And if the Mariners keep winning at the rate they have been, a first-round bye could happen.