The Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason has finally arrived. After 162 games for each team, the final twelve has stepped ahead and into the gauntlet of October.
Today kicks off the Wild Card Series. Starting in 2022, the new format has given the top two division winners byes to the League Division Series (LDS). The third division winner and three wild cards from each league then face off in the aforementioned Wild Card Series. The series is a best-of-3, the first to two wins. All three games are played at the higher seeds home ballpark starting today and going through Thursday.
In the American League (AL), the Detroit Tigers, led by Cy Young Award front runner pitcher Tarik Skubal, are in the postseason for the first time in ten years. In the Wild Card Series, they will take on the mighty Houston Astros, the AL West Champions. The Astros have made it to the American League Championship Series (ALCS) seven consecutive seasons, taking home the World Series twice in that span.
Jaden: Tigers in 2
Santino: Astros in 3
The other AL Wild Card Series features two of baseball’s youngest stars. Bobby Witt Jr. has lead the Royals back to the postseason for the first time since 2015 with an Most Valuable Player caliber season. On the other side is Gunnar Henderson and Baltimore Orioles, back in the postseason for the second straight year. The Orioles were the top seed in the AL a year ago, but fell short to the eventual World Series Champion Texas Rangers.
Jaden: Orioles in 3
Santino: Orioles in 2
The first National League (NL) matchup features two teams with underdog stories. The New York Mets were in the dirt back in June and unlikely to make the postseason. Then their second baseman Jose Iglesias released a song called “OMG”. And it has become a rally cry for the Mets this season with their miraculous push to the postseason in the second half of the season. They take on the Milwaukee Brewers, a team going into the season that no one thought would win their division for the second consecutive season. But they won and won easily at that with them clinching their division way before anyone did in the MLB.
Jaden: Mets in 3
Santino: Mets in 3
The other matchup in the NL features two powerhouses throughout the past couple of years. With NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr doing down with a season ending ACL tear in May and star pitcher Spencer Strider going down with a season ending elbow injury in April, the Braves were quickly falling out of contention. But a strong August and September led by center fielder Michael Harris II and first baseman Matt Olson have snuck into the postseason for the seventh consecutive season. The Padres have been dominate in the second half of the season. Led by batting champion infielder Luis Arraez and third baseman Manny Machado, they are back in the postseason for the first time since 2022, when they lost to the Phillies in the NLCS.
Jaden: Padres in 2
Santino: Padres in 3
