Baseball's final week should be even wilder than expected. You can thank the state of Ohio for that

From the shore of Lake Erie to the Kentucky border, baseball's regular season is set for a dramatic final week in the state of Ohio.

The Cleveland Guardians have a chance to complete the biggest comeback in the history of divisional play. They now trail Detroit by one game in the AL Central after once being 15 1/2 back. At the southern end of the state, Cincinnati pulled into a tie Sunday for the final wild card in the National League with the New York Mets — and the Reds have the head-to-head tiebreaker between the two.

No team has ever won a division after being more than 14 games behind, and Cleveland's 15 1/2-game deficit in early July doesn't even do this comeback justice. As recently as Sept. 11, Detroit led the division by 9 1/2 over Cleveland. Since then, the Tigers (85-71) have been trapped in a Motown Meltdown, losing nine of 10 while the Guardians (84-72) went on a 10-game winning streak that was finally snapped Sunday. Cleveland cut the lead from 9 1/2 games to one in a span of only 10 days.

For the Reds, the situation has looked bleak at various points. They were six games out of a playoff spot on Sept. 6 — and also trailed San Francisco and Arizona — before a New York skid helped the Reds pull within 1 1/2 games less than a week later. The Cincinnati fell three games behind, but a four-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs now has the Reds and Mets even, with the Diamondbacks only a game back of them.

Other races that are coming down to the wire:

— The AL East, where Toronto (90-66) leads the New York Yankees (88-68) by two games. Those teams have the top two records in the American League, so a first-round bye is at stake here.

— The AL West, where Seattle (87-69) leads Houston (84-72) by three — and the Mariners have the tiebreaker. The Astros have not missed the postseason since 2016, but they're in danger now with the Red Sox (85-71) in play for a wild card along with the AL East and AL Central runners-up.

— San Diego is three games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers atop the NL West, but the Dodgers have the tiebreaker and the teams don't play each other this week.

Detroit will have no choice but to snap out of its funk if it wants to save its season. The Tigers go to Cleveland for three games before finishing the regular season with a series at Boston.

Dominic Canzone went 5 for 5 with three homers and four RBIs to help Seattle to a 12-5 win over Kansas City on Tuesday night. That game capped a 10-game winning streak for the Mariners, who have now won 14 of 15 to turn a 3 1/2-game deficit in the division into a three-game lead.

Philadelphia rallied from a four-run deficit in the sixth inning to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-6 on Tuesday night. That was after Shohei Ohtani no-hit the Phillies for five innings. He also homered in the game.

Brandon Marsh and Max Kepler both homered during a six-run sixth for Philadelphia, and after the Dodgers tied it at 6, Rafael Marchán hit a three-run homer in the top of the ninth to provide the winning margin. Los Angeles had a 94.1% win probability in the sixth, according to Baseball Savant.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) and outfielder Noelvi Marte (16) bump shoulders after defeating the Chicago Cubs, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Michael Swensen)

Cleveland Guardians' Steven Kwan celebrates after his leadoff home run against the Minnesota Twins in the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

PARIS (AP) — A Paris court is to rule on Monday in a case involving 10 people accused of cyberbullying French first lady Brigitte Macron by spreading false online claims about her gender and sexuality, allegations her daughter said damaged her health and family life.

The defendants, eight men and two women aged 41 to 60, are accused of posting “numerous malicious comments” falsely claiming that President Emmanuel Macron ’s wife was born a man and linking the 24-year age gap with her husband to pedophilia. Some of the posts were viewed tens of thousands of times.

Brigitte Macron did not attend the two-day trial in October.

Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she described as the “deterioration” of her mother’s life since the online harassment intensified. “She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,” Auzière told the court. She said the impact has extended to the entire family, including Macron’s grandchildren.

Defendant Delphine Jegousse, 51, who is known as Amandine Roy and describes herself as a medium and an author, is considered as having played a major role in spreading the rumor after she released a four-hour video on her YouTube channel in 2021.

The X account of Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, known as Zoé Sagan on social media, was suspended in 2024 after his name was cited in several judicial investigations.

Other defendants include an elected official, a teacher and a computer scientist. Several told the court their comments were intended as humor or satire and said they did not understand why they were being prosecuted. They face up to two years in prison if convicted.

The case follows years of conspiracy theories falsely alleging that Brigitte Macron was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, which is actually the name of her brother. The Macrons have also filed a defamation suit in the United States against conservative influencer Candace Owens.

The Macrons, who have been married since 2007, first met at the high school where he was a student and she was a teacher. Brigitte Macron, 24 years her husband’s senior, was then called Brigitte Auzière, a married mother of three.

Emmanuel Macron, 48, has been France’s president since 2017.

FILE - French President's wife Brigitte Macron arrives ahead of the ceremony outside "La Belle Equipe" bar, Thursday Nov. 13, 2025 in Paris as part of ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of terrorist attacks. (Ludovic Marin, Pool photo via AP, File)