The Giants haven’t been mathematically eliminated from postseason contention, but with their number at four games, it’s time to start thinking about who to root for down the stretch. Each division except the NL Central is more or less locked up with the Twins taking two of three from Cleveland this weekend, but the Wild Card in both leagues is still up in the air.

In the American League, the Rays, A’s, and Cleveland are each vying for two spots and they’re only separated by three games. In the National League, the margin is even slimmer. The Cubs, Nationals, and Brewers are only separated by 2.5 games while the Phillies, Diamondbacks, and Mets all remain within striking distance.

The best way to figure out who to root for is to look at which former Giants are employed by each team and determine who would make you happiest to see succeed.

We’ll start with the American League because it’s pretty cut and dried.

Cleveland

Former Giants: Dan Otero, Christian Arroyo

As someone who has a hard time remembering who the Giants played last week, my memories of Otero in a Giants uniform are fuzzy at best. For instance, I could have sworn he played a small part in the 2010 team, but no, he made his debut in 2012. I simply got that year confused with another championship season. Silly me.

Even so, Otero only threw 12 1/3 innings as a Giant and they were mostly bad. He forms no competition against the other guys in the American League race.

While it would be fun to cheer on Arroyo, he’s currently on the 60-day IL and probably wouldn’t make Cleveland’s postseason roster anyway.

Rays

Former Giants: Matt Duffy

If you don’t want to see Matt Duffy slappin’ singles and roping doubles through a postseason run then you have no heart. It’s not his fault the Giants wound up with the wrong Matt. Duffy has struggled to stay on the field since leaving the Giants, and his brief 2019 has been rather rough. There’s no guarantee that Duffy will see significant playing time if he even makes the postseason roster, but he can still make an impact in a diminished role.

A’s

Former Giants: Yusmeiro Petit

I would argue that Yusmeiro Petit is the most underappreciated reliever in baseball. Over the last three seasons, he has a 2.87 ERA in 260 2/3 innings and yet he’s never discussed as being among the game’s best let alone as just a solid pitcher. People forget that he was one out away from a perfect game and that he threw six shutout innings in NLDS Game 2. He needs another chance to take the big stage and remind people of just how good he is.

Clearly, the best possible outcome for the AL Wild Card is for the Rays and A’s to win the two spots and for Cleveland to stay home. Having to choose between Duffy and Petit is tough. Petit will likely have more impact for his team, but his team is the A’s. I personally don’t care about the “rivalry” between the Giants and A’s, but it’s an easy enough tiebreaker to say the Rays should win the Wild Card game.

Onto the National League where things get a little dicier.

Diamondbacks

Former Giants: Mike Leake

The Diamondbacks are 5.5 games out of the second Wild Card and have no non-Mike Leake former Giants in their system now that Kelby Tomlinson is with the Mariners. I’m not even sure why I included them.

Cardinals

Former Giants: No one

The Cardinals currently have a hold on the NL Central, but the Brewers and Cubs are each within three games. It’d be a tough sell to say root for the Cardinals regardless of who is playing for them, but since there are no old friends on the roster they’re an easy team to root against.

Cubs

Former Giants: Derek Holland

Holland has a somewhat complicated legacy with the Giants. Last year, he anchored the rotation and did what needed to be asked of him. This year, he openly criticized the decision making and pitched poorly. All the while, his Michael Scott brand of humor rubbed folks the wrong way. There are worse options to root for, but there are also much better.

Brewers

Former Giants: Drew Pomeranz, Ray Black

I don’t know if there’s any Giants fans that are really pulling for Drew Pomeranz, but everyone can get behind Ray Black. He’s had to endure multiple surgeries to get to where he’s at. The Giants never seemed to have a spot for him, but he’s getting a chance with the Brewers. If they make it to the postseason, he’ll throw big innings for Milwaukee. Tell me you don’t want to see Black sitting the Dodgers down in the NLDS.

Nationals

Former Giants: Gerardo Parra, Hunter Strickland

Dan Otero is to relievers as Gerardo Parra is to corner outfielders. In a few years, I’ll remember that Parra was on the Giants, but I won’t remember when or to what purpose.

Giants fans aren’t quick to boo their own. If the crowd is booing someone in orange and black, you know they really screwed up. When Strickland left the mound for the last time as a Giant, thunderous boos rained down upon him. I don’t think I need to rehash the Bryce Harper fight or the Lewis Brinson door. Let’s just say there are other players I’d rather see in the spotlight before him.

Phillies

Former Giants: Andrew McCutchen, Nick Vincent

Though he only a partial season with the Giants, it’s hard not to root for Andrew McCutchen. He’s just a good dude and a delight to watch on the baseball field. The problem is that McCutchen won’t actually play in the postseason as he tore his ACL earlier in the year. While a Phillies championship would mean that McCutchen would finally get a ring, we wouldn’t actually get to watch him play.

Mets

Former Giants: Joe Panik, Zack Wheeler, Rajai Davis

This one is a slam dunk. Who doesn’t want to see #ForeverGiant and World Series Game 7 hero Rajai Davis in the postseason again?

I can’t tell if my desire to see Panik thrive with his new team is driven by a genuine fondness for the cinnamon roll of a second baseman or if it’s a flagellant masochism that makes me want him to repeat 2014. Maybe it’s just a desire for a pattern. Panik’s Giants career was bookended by Dan Ugglas. Maybe the Giants choosing this other formerly great second baseman who hit like he had both of his feet stuck in a bucket for a few weeks is exactly what Panik needed to get his career back on track.

If we’re going full Sophie’s Choice, the NL Wild Card game will end with Ray Black on the mound and Joe Panik in the batter’s box. As for what happens after that, well, I can’t choose. I can’t choose! Don’t make me choose! I can’t!

Take Ray Black! #LGM