Safely entrenched into the top spot in the National League, the Chicago Cubs are merely playing out the season as they wait to find out who their first round playoff opponent will be when the postseason begins next week.

That opponent will be whichever team wins the National League wild card game, and the race to be involved in that contest has boiled down to three teams: the New York Mets, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the San Francisco Giants.

With that in mind, we will be keeping tabs on the race throughout the final week of the regular season as the three teams vie for two spots and an opportunity to play the top-seeded Cubs at Wrigley Field beginning on Oct. 7.

Where Things Stand:

If the regular season were to end today, the New York Mets hold the top spot in the wild card race, with an 83-74 record on the regular season. The San Francisco Giants are just a half-game back, with one fewer win and an identical amount of losses to the Mets.

Meanwhile, the St. Louis Cardinals are a game and a half behind the Mets for the top spot and are one game behind the Giants for the second spot in the race.

On Monday, the Giants were off, but they still gained a half game on both the Mets, who lost 7-3 to the Miami Marlins in a somber affair at Marlins Park, and the Cardinals, who were blown out 15-2 by the Cincinnati Reds.

What’s Next:

The Mets will continue their series against the Marlins on Tuesday night, with ace pitcher Noah Syndergaard taking the hill against Tom Koehler on South Beach.

The start will be Syndergaard’s second-to-last scheduled start this season, as he’s also in line to start the season finale against the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday. If the Mets clinch a berth in the wild card game, it is possible that the team would save Syndergaard for that contest, which would take place next Wednesday and would leave Syndergaard unable to pitch until at least Game 3 of the NLDS.

The Mets are also dealing with another injury concern, as Steven Matz is likely going to be shut down for the remainder of the season as he continues to deal with arm troubles. That loss hurts a Mets rotation that has already lost Jacob deGrom and Matt Harvey to injuries, putting their chances at advancing in serious jeopardy.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals will look to bounce back after a rough game against the Reds when they send Adam Wainwright up against Robert Stephenson. The Cardinals have had a difficult time getting consistent production out of their offense in recent weeks, and although their bullpen is likely good enough to make them a postseason threat, they’ll have other issues to sort out first.

Finally, the Giants will kick off their second-to-last series of the regular season on Tuesday night when they welcome the Colorado Rockies to AT&T Park. Matt Moore will get the ball for Bruce Bochy’s team as they attempt to get back into the postseason.

Other National League Notes

One division series matchup has already been decided, as the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals will square off. The Nationals currently hold a tenuous lead in the race for home-field advantage between the two teams, but they got some awful news on Tuesday as catcher Wilson Ramos has been ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL against the Arizona Diamondbacks Monday.

His injury, coupled with ongoing injury concerns for Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, and Daniel Murphy, likely give a boost to the Dodgers’ quest in that area, but Los Angeles also faces a bit of a hurdle toward home-field advantage: a weekend series against a Giants team that will likely still be scratching and clawing in a fight for a playoff berth.