Separation is hard to come by in certain parts of the Major League Baseball standings.

The three-way race in the American Central will come under more focus this week as the Kansas City Royals face both the Cleveland Guardians and Minnesota Twins.

The American League East and National League wild-card races are also tight going into Sunday night.

The red-hot teams on the outside of the NL wild-card bubble need the teams in front of them to lose, but that has not happened on a consistent basis to switch spots in the standings.

Current MLB Playoff Outlook

American League

1. New York Yankees (first-round bye)

2. Cleveland (first-round bye)

No. 6. Kansas City vs. No. 3 Houston

No. 5 Minnesota vs. No. 4 Baltimore

National League

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (first-round bye)

2. Philadelphia (first-round bye)

No. 6 Atlanta vs. No. 3 Milwaukee

No. 5 San Diego vs. No. 4 Arizona

American League

East

1.. New York Yankees (79-58)

2. Baltimore (79-59)

3. Boston (70-67)

4. Tampa Bay (67-69)

5. Toronto (67-72)

Central

1. Cleveland (78-59)

2. Minnesota (74-62)

3. Kansas City (75-63)

4. Detroit (70-68)

5. Chicago White Sox (31-107)

West

1. Houston (75-62)

2. Seattle (69-68)

3. Texas (65-72)

4. Oakland (59-78)

5. Los Angeles Angels (57-80)

AL Wild Card Race

1. Baltimore (79-59)

2. Minnesota (74-62)

3. Kansas City (75-63)

4. Boston - 4.5 games behind

5. Detroit - 5 GB

6. Seattle - 5.5 GB

Houston's weekend sweep of Kansas City was not a good sign for the Royals' playoff prospects.

Kansas City would face the Astros in the postseason if the season ended today in the No. 3-versus-No. 6 seed first-round matchup.

The Royals head into a vital week against Cleveland and Minnesota with a five-game losing streak.

Boston, Detroit and Seattle are lurking behind Kansas City if the Royals continue to struggle, but if the Royals play better in the next week, they can feel secure about their wild-card position and also prove they can play in a playoff-like contest against their two biggest AL Central foes.

Cleveland's three-game set in Kansas City begins a huge road trip in which the Guardians play the Dodgers next weekend.

Minnesota is also on the road, but in its three-game set against Tampa Bay, it has a chance to make up some ground in the AL Central on the Guardians.

In the AL East, Baltimore has a chance to leapfrog the Yankees since it plays three games against the Chicago White Sox this week. The six-game home swing against the White Sox and Rays could help the O's open up a lead on the Yankees, who hit the road to face the Rangers and red-hot Cubs.

National League

East

1. Philadelphia (81-56)

2. Atlanta (74-63)

3. New York Mets (73-64)

4. Washington (61-76)

5. Miami (51-86)

Central

1. Milwaukee (80-57)

2. Chicago Cubs (71-66)

3. St. Louis (69-68)

4. Cincinnati (65-73)

5. Pittsburgh (63-73)

West

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (82-55)

2. Arizona (77-60)

3. San Diego (78-61)

3. Arizona (77-60)

4. San Francisco (68-69)

5. Colorado (51-87)

NL Wild Card Race

1. Arizona (77-60)

2. San Diego (78-61)

3. Atlanta (74-63)

4. New York Mets - 1 GB

5. Chicago Cubs - 3 GB

6. St. Louis - 5 GB

7. San Francisco - 6.5 GB

The Mets and Cubs are relentless in their pursuit of the last wild-card spot.

The Mets shut out the White Sox on Sunday, while the Cubs' bats once again unleashed a fury of runs on the Nationals.

New York plays host to Boston to start the week, while the Cubs welcome Pittsburgh to Wrigley Field.

Series victories for both teams will keep the pressure on Atlanta, who is now just one game ahead of the Mets after its Sunday night loss to Philadelphia.

The Braves get some relief in their schedule in the coming week, as they host Colorado and Toronto from Tuesday-Sunday.

Arizona and San Diego's battle for the top two wild-card spots and the hosting priority that comes with the No. 4 seed could come down to the season-ending series between the NL West sides.

San Diego has the easier week in front of it at home against Detroit and San Francisco. The DBacks have to go to San Francisco and Houston.