Remember the days of the National League 'Comedy Central?'
For a refresher, the 1997 Pirates finished at 79-83, but they were in the division race until the final week of the season. The 84-win Astros backed into the title before being swept by the Braves in the National League Division Series.
The Central is anything but comedic this year, although every look at the standings is a 'Daily Show' in itself, if only to marvel at how the NL's best three teams reside in the same division. As of Wednesday, the Cardinals, Pirates and Cubs were all at least 80 percent likely to make the playoffs, no matter whether we turn to Baseball Prospectus or FanGraphs for the odds. With about six weeks to go in the regular season, that's both rare and remarkable.
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