Everything you need to know about the MLB Playoffs

Author: Spencer Reyes

Editor: Brian Symons

As of today, 14 teams are in the playoffs bracket, and the last four NL teams fought it out (STL, MIL, SF, and PHI) for the last two spots, 2nd place in the NL Central and the last Wild Card spot. Austin Gomber got the start for the Cardinals against NL Central rival, the Brewers, who went with Brett Anderson. Both teams hoped to come out today on top and clinch the 2nd place in the division. The San Francisco Giants pinned veteran southpaw, Drew Smyly against the hitting machine known as the San Diego Padres. Last, but not least, the Phillies went with their ace, Aaron Nola against the top AL seed, the Tampa Bay Rays. These four teams looked to make an impression and make the final push to the playoffs.

The result: the Cardinals and Brewers came up on top, and both clinched playoff berths today, while the Giants and Phillies will have to wait until next season.

Now that you know about the all the teams, let’s talk stats. To start, throw out everything you know about the traditional MLB Postseason. Instead of the usual 10 teams, 16 teams will be playing October baseball. 8 teams per league will make it, which consists of the 1st and 2nd place winners of each division and the 2 “WC” teams from each league that we are used to. The 1st round of the playoffs will be called the Wild Card Series, and it will be a best 2 out of 3 series. No teams will have any byes this postseason. The 1st and 2nd place teams of each division will be numbered 1-6, and the two Wild Card teams will be 7 and 8 in order of their winning percentage. Then it will become a traditional 16-team bracket with 1 vs. 8, 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6, and 4 vs. 5 for each league. Each Wild Card Series game will take place at the home park of the team that holds the higher ranking. The next round is where it gets a little tricky. The Division Series will be best 3 out of 5, and this is where the MLB Postseason Bubble comes into effect. Only 4 locations will be used for the Division Series. The upper bracket of the NLDS will take place at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas, home of the Texas Rangers. The lower bracket of the NLDS will take place in Minute Maid park in Houston, Texas, home of the Houston Astros. The upper bracket of the ALDS will be at Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres, and the lower bracket will be at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim. After this series wraps up, the ALCS will stay in San Diego and the NLCS will be in Arlington, Texas. The World Series will take place in Arlington. Both the League Championship Series and the World Series will be best 4 out of 7. This should be an exciting Postseason to see as it is the first time in MLB history that 16 teams get a shot to win the title of the best baseball team in the world for a season.

The postseason goes as follows:

AL:

· Tampa Bay Rays clinched the 1st seed in the AL and won the AL East

· The Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Houston Astros, Cleveland Indians, and Toronto Blue Jays clinched playoff berths

· Oakland Athletics won the AL West division

NL:

· Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the 1st seed in the NL and won the NL West

· Atlanta Braves won the NL East

· Chicago Cubs won the NL Central

· The San Diego Padres, Miami Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, and Milwaukee Brewers have clinched playoff berths.

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE