With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Cincinnati Reds are four back in the loss column behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the final National League wild-card spot.
Not only do the Reds need to start sweeping series with 12 games remaining, but they'll need help from the Cardinals' opponents. The Cardinals entered Monday with 14 games left: seven against the Milwaukee Brewers and seven against the Chicago Cubs. St. Louis has won eight consecutive games.
If the Cardinals finish 7-7 in their final 14 games, the Reds need to close the season with a 9-3 record in their last 12 games just to force a Game 163 tiebreaker.