This article was written for the October issue of The Hoof Print, the Alamo Heights High School newspaper. I wrote this article before the Playoffs began, so keep that in mind.
With leaves rustling all around and the air slowly cooling down, fall has finally arrived. The turn of the calendar to October signals the beginning of the Major League Baseball playoffs and the exciting chase toward the World Series.
After a grinding 162 game season, the MLB playoffs are a race to 11 wins for a championship, or 12 wins for a Wild Card team. The playoff format has undergone some changes in the last few years that have impacted how October shapes up. As always, three division winners from both the American League and National League automatically qualify for the Division Series, which is a best of five series. Before 2012, the best second place team from each league would make the playoffs and play the team with the best record, but that is no longer the case.
In 2012, MLB added a second Wild Card spot in each league. This added an extra playoff team, but the twist is that the two Wild Card teams have to play a one game winner-take-all game in order to advance to the Division Series. Adding another Wild Card team has brought playoff excitement to fan bases around the country whose teams might have been out of it by September. Not only is the one game playoff thrilling as one play can decide a team’s fate but also several teams have made deep runs through the playoffs after being the Wild Card. In 2014, the World Series match up featured the Kansas City Royals and the San Francisco Giants, both of whom were Wild Card winners. Sometimes gaining momentum in a must win game catapults teams through October.
This year’s Wild Card races have been extremely tight all year, with eight teams fighting for the American League spots and four teams battling in the National League. It’s come down to the wire, but the Minnesota Twins hung on to the final spot in the American League to play the Yankees in New York, and the Arizona Diamondbacks earned the right to host the Colorado Rockies in the desert. Of these teams, the Diamondbacks have the best chance to make a deep run in the playoffs with a stacked lineup full of power hitters in a ballpark where the ball flies.
Looking at the American League division winners, there’s truly not a weak team anywhere. The Houston Astros, driven by their crop of young talent including MVP Frontrunner Jose Altuve, have had one of their best years in franchise history. They won the American League West for the first time ever, and it’s their first division crown in 16 years. Not only did the Astros hold the league’s best record for most of the season but also they made a last minute addition that might put them over the top. At midnight on Aug. 31–the last day that players could be traded–the Astros acquired Ace Pitcher Justin Verlander. Adding Verlander to a rotation that already had former Cy Young (best pitcher) Winner Dallas Keuchel and All-Star Lance McCullers gives the Astros a three-headed monster that they’ll need to beat the other star-studded teams.
Perhaps the hottest team going into the playoffs is the Cleveland Indians. Fresh off a record breaking 22 game win streak, the Indians steamrolled the American League to capture the best record and clinch home field advantage throughout the playoffs. With an explosive lineup, dominant starters led by Cy Young Candidate Corey Kluber and a shutdown bullpen, the Indians are the most well rounded team with no glaring weakness. After coming up short last year in Game 7 of the World Series, this might be the year the Indians break their 69 year championship drought.
Dealing with the closest division race all year, the Boston Red Sox fought off the Yankees to win the American League East for the third time in the last five years. It’s been an odd year for the Red Sox, who normally slug their way to wins on the back of Designated Hitter David Ortiz. However, in their first year without “Big Papi”, the Red Sox have struggled to hit for power. Instead, they’re finding other ways to win such as being 5th in stolen bases and hitting extremely well with runners in scoring position. Their biggest weapon is Cy Young Candidate Chris Sale, who has been incredible all year. It will be tough to beat the Astros or Indians, but if they get hot at the right time, the Red Sox have the capability of running the table.
Switching over to the National League finds another group of powerhouse teams. After running away with the East, the Washington Nationals are looking to finally win a playoff series for the first time in franchise history. A big question is if Superstar Outfielder Bryce Harper will be fully healthy. He’s been sidelined since early August with a bone bruise in his left knee, but he’s back for October. With two Cy Young candidates leading the rotation in Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg along with a cast of all-stars in the lineup, the nation’s capital has high hopes for its first baseball championship since 1924, when the Senators won it all.
Down in sunny California, the Los Angeles Dodgers tore through the league all summer and looked to be unstoppable. They were on pace for 115 wins at one point, but all of a sudden they got caught in a downward spiral that no one saw coming. Luckily for them, they built a huge lead and earned home field advantage through the World Series. Although they ended on a rough note, the Dodgers are anchored by starting Pitcher Clayton Kershaw and Rookie of the Year favorite Cody Bellinger and are still the team to beat in the National League.
Throughout their chase to break their 108 years championship drought, the Chicago Cubs were the darlings of baseball. Everyone wanted the “lovable losers” to finally win. After their exhilarating game seven win in the World Series last season, the curse was finally over. Going into this season, the Cubs seemed to be runaway favorites once again in the National League, but they ran into plenty of unforeseen issues. The Milwaukee Brewers, predicted by nobody to even compete, battled all year for the top spot in the Central. The Brewers fought till the end, but the Cubs prevailed. Although they struggled to make the postseason, the Cubs have the experience in high pressure situations that could help them overcome their season long inconsistency when it counts in October.
My favorites to reach the World Series are the Indians and Dodgers, but once it’s October, anything can happen.