Where do the Chukars stand in the PBL playoff race?

IDAHO FALLS — The Idaho Falls Chukars have a little more work to do before they officially secure a PBL playoff spot.

If and when they earn their spot in the postseason, there will still be a question of where they will open their playoff run, and which team they will face.

Here is a complete rundown of the race the Chukars (52-39, 25-19) are currently battling.

First off: four teams qualify for the Pioneer Baseball League playoffs. Two of those spots go to the teams with the two best records in the first half, and the other two go to the two teams with the best records in the second half.

In an instance when one or both teams finish both halves with the league’s top record(s), the third and fourth playoff spots go to the next two teams based on overall standings.

Entering play Wednesday, this season is in line to be one of those cases.

The Oakland Ballers finished the first half with the league’s best record (37-11), and have already locked down the top record in the second half (33-10).

The Missoula PaddleHeads, who finished the first half with the second-best record (33-15), hold a 3.5-game lead over the Billings Mustangs (25-18) for the No. 2 spot in the second half as well.

That’s where the Chukars’ race gets started.

With any combination of four PaddleHead wins and Mustang losses, Missoula would earn the second-place spot in the second half.

In that case, the Chukars would secure the third seed — by virtue of having the third-best overall record (behind Oakland and Missoula) — with any combination of three wins and Ogden Raptor losses.

Idaho Falls could also grab the three-seed if they were to overtake Missoula in second-half standings. Doing that would require the Chukars win their remaining games and the PaddleHeads lose out.

Earning the three-seed would have the Chukars open the PBL playoffs in Missoula, where they split a six-game set with the PaddleHeads two weeks ago.

If they were to fall to the fourth seed, the Chukars would instead open their playoff run in Oakland, against a Ballers club that would open as massive favorites after dominating the league all season.

There are two ways the Chukars could drop to fourth.

One: If they were to get passed by the Raptors. Or two: if the Mustangs overtake the PaddleHeads in the second-half standings.

Obviously, if the Mustangs pass the PaddleHeads and the Raptors pass the Chukars, Idaho Falls would be eliminated form the postseason altogether.

The Chukars finish their regular season with four home games against the Glacier Range Riders (38-54, 21-23), having split the first two games of the series.

Ogden, after beating the Boise Hawks (46-45, 16-27) at in Utah Tuesday, finishes its season with five more games against the same Hawks.

The PaddleHeads will play their last five games at the Yuba-Sutter High Wheelers (47-43, 18-24). The Mustangs are at home this week, hosting the last-place Colorado Springs Sky Sox (21-68, 12-30).

So Chukars fans hoping for their team to make the playoffs and play in Montana, rather than Oakland, know which teams to root for and against this week.