MLB Standings 2015: Royals, Blue Jays, Astros & Yankees Fight for First Place in AL

By Damon Salvadore Sep 08 2015, 12:13 PM EDT

Can you believe it? There are just over 20 games remaining in the 2015 Major League Baseball regular season.

By now fans have a pretty good perspective on just where each team is standing. As we all know, there will be three division winners coming out of each league, and another two wild card teams will join them in the postseason. Making the playoffs is great, but grabbing the No. 1 seed is even better. Securing the No. 1 seed means home field advantage, and it also means you get to face a wild card team in the second round.

Right now, there are four teams eyeing the top spot in the AL. Those four teams are the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, Houston Astros and New York Yankees.

The Royals are in first place at the moment with an 82-55 record. Although the Royals are in first place, they are currently on a four-game losing streak, and Johnny Cueto is 2-5 as a starter since being acquired at the trade deadline. The Royals are the defending AL Champions, having made it to the World Series last season, so they're not going to surprise anybody this year.

The Royals have an 11-game lead in the American League Central, but if they want to hold on to the top spot, they will have to break out of this slump.

Just four wins behind the Royals are the Toronto Blue Jays. The Blue Jays have been the best team in all of baseball since the All-Star break. Their trade deadline acquisitions of David Price and Troy Tulowitzki have paid off. Josh Donaldson has clearly overtaken Mike Trout in the AL MVP race with his 37 home runs.

The Blue Jays haven't made a single postseason appearance since they won the World Series back in 1993. As it stands now, the Blue Jays not only lead the American League East, but they have a chance at the No. 1 seed in the AL. The Blue Jays offense leads the league in runs scored, home runs hit, and team slugging percentage. If the Blue Jays can just have average pitching in the playoffs, they will be extremely dangerous.

Speaking of the AL East, the New York Yankees aren't out of this just yet. The Bronx Bombers are pretty much a lock to make the playoffs this year, but are currently a wild card team alongside the Texas Rangers. The Yankees have won five of their last six games and are now five games behind the Royals for the No. 1 seed in the AL.

The Yankees are ranked second in offense in the league, despite Mark Teixeira being on the disabled list at the moment. Alex Rodriguez could very well win Comeback Player of the Year this season. Pitching has been inconsistent, but Dominican pitcher Luis Severino has a very impressive 2.04 ERA in his five starts this season. More than likely, he'll get re-signed to a contract extension this offseason.

The fourth team in contention to earn the No. 1 spot is the Houston Astros. The Astros have the CY Young favorite in Dallas Keuchel. At 75-63, the Astros are in first place in the American League West. They are in the middle of a long road trip, and their bats need to come alive if they want that top spot. Puerto Rican infielder Carlos Correa is the favorite to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award.