The MLB playoffs are both fantastic and a bit unfair.
Doesn’t it seem wrong for a team to play 162 regular-season games and then have to play its best baseball to survive and advance in these short playoff series? That’s the way it is, but how about the Braves and Dodgers and perhaps the Yankees having to get their winter vacations started early?
On the flip side, the wild card Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres had up-and-down seasons while posting fewer than 90 wins each, but got hot at the right time, respectively dominating the world champion Braves and outplaying the Dodgers who combined to win 212 games before the playoffs to earn first-round byes.
The Phillies hit and pitched better than the NL Central champion Cardinals, winning two straight in St. Louis in the wild card best-of-three-series. In the Divisional best-of-five, they split two in Atlanta and did not let the series go back there by outscoring the Braves 17-4 in the two games in Philadelphia.
The Padres won two of three over the home-field New York Mets in their wild card round and then were relentless against the slumping Dodgers, splitting two in LA and then winning two in San Diego to not allow a Game 5 back at Dodger Stadium.
The Seattle Mariners were the early story in the American League wild card series, winning two straight in Toronto over the heavily favored Blue Jays, rallying from an 8-1 deficit in the second game.
And the Cleveland Guardians, formerly Indians, who won the AL Central, swept the spiraling Tampa Bay Rays in two wild card games to advance to the divisional round against the Yankees, who won the AL East with 99 wins and earned a bye.
The top-seeded division champs with the other first-round bye, Houston Astros, held up their end of the deal but not easily against Seattle. The Mariners were ahead in the first two games before losing on late dramatic home runs by the Astros, and the teams went 18 innings in Game 3 before Houston completed that sweep.
So far, the Yankees have staved off elimination through Game 4 of their series with Cleveland that will be decided tonight in Yankee Stadium after they split their first four games. Aaron Judge, who set the American League regular season record with 62 home runs, has hit one dinger in the playoffs but has otherwise been quiet.
The pressure is clearly on him and the Bombers to advance to the AL Championship Series against Houston.
Featured image via Associated Press/Ashley Landis
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