The Playoffs Are Upon Us!

        Today the first games of the postseason start. Thus, I will carry on with my yearly tradition of postseason predictions. 

    It was an interesting final day of the regular season this year, with two pairs of AL teams fighting for the division and a pair of NL teams fighting for the last playoff spot in their division. All in all, the bracket ends up looking like this:

     Adding the extra playoff teams makes the postseason longer and lets teams have a shot at making the world series while just barely over .500, but since I can't change that, I don't really care that much.

    There are a few wildcard series that look exciting (I'm especially eyeing the Yankees and Red Sox).

    

    Without further ado, I'll jump right into my predictions. I don't want this post to take five years to read.

WILDCARD SERIES

3. Guardians vs. 6. Tigers

    A couple months into the season I genuinely felt that the Tigers would be the American League team to go to the world series. However, towards the end of the year the club really cooled down, dropping pretty much every Tarik Skubal gem for the last month of the season.

    As of two or three weeks ago I didn't think the Guardians had a shot to make the postseason, but they performed exactly the opposite of the Tigers and went off to ultimately win the division. They may be hot, but I still question their offensive output.

    Perhaps I may be a little bit biased, but I think the Tigers are going to come out on top in this series 

2-1. I think that might be a bad prediction, but the Tigers are more fun in my opinion.

4. Yankees vs. 5. Red Sox

    The Yankees have the offense to go to the World Series. I don't think many would deny that. They have five players with 25+ home runs in the regular season, including that Aaron Judge fellow everybody's talking about. Their pitching staff could use a little bit of work, but the offense could very well make up for that.
    I didn't realize that the Red Sox were headed into the postseason until Sunday, but it's a pleasant revelation. They have a good lineup, one of the best pitchers heading their rotation (taking nothing away from Max Fried), and a closer who gave us a heart attack when pitching for the Rangers in the playoffs, but had a 1.17 ERA in the regular season.

    I was thinking about giving the Yankees the sweep here, but I really think Garrett Crochet is going to win his start. Thus, I give the Yanks the series in three games.

    Now moving on to the National League:

3. Dodgers vs. 6. Reds

    The Dodgers won the World Series last season, and spent more money than most people will ever have on stacking their team even more for the 2025 season. But somehow they didn't look quite so good, due to guys like Roki Sasaki not performing up to expectation, and off years from Mookie Betts and Tommy Edman. Of course they still have a good shot to win it all, but I'm less confident than I was last season. 

    The Reds are a fun team to watch. They have a few exciting superstars in Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Greene, and pitchers Andrew Abbott and Emilio Pagan have really stepped up when the team needed them to. However, I'm not really sure they'll be able to handle the mighty Dodgers.

    I think Los Angeles is probably going to sweep this one.

4. Cubs vs. 5. Padres

    Of all the NL postseason teams, these are the two I'd be rooting for, so it's a shame that one needs to be eliminated in the first round. 

    I really like the team the Cubs have put together this year. They're extremely strong defensively, and have good bats across their lineup. I think the team's weakest component is their streaky starting staff. With the exception of soon-to-be Rookie of the Year Cade Horton, the starters have been a bit inconsistent. Sometimes they're on, and sometimes....not so much.

    The Padres only hit 152 home runs as a team this season, which seems a little bit uncharacteristic for them. They had some offensive struggles, but star Jackson Merrill has been heating up the last month or so of the season, and could be a force in the postseason. Their pitching staff is quite good too, with a 3.64 season ERA,

    This should be a fun series, but I have the Cubs squeaking out a three game series win.

    I'll move on briefly to the Division and Championship series.

DIVISION SERIES

1. Blue Jays vs. 4 Yankees

    The Blue Jays really surprised me this year, with a good record, mostly supplied by their offense. Kevin Gausman had a great season, but the team as a whole pitched to a 4.19 ERA. I'm not sure that pitching staff will be able to contain the Yankees.

    I have the Yankees winning this one in 4 games.

2. Mariners vs. 6. Tigers
    The Mariners are the hottest team in baseball right now, with an uncharacteristic and surprising good offense to complement a solid pitching staff. MVP contender Cal Raleigh heads an offense which hit 238 home runs, and he will be very fun to watch in the playoffs.

    I believe that the Mariners will take this series in 5 games.

1. Brewers vs, 4. Cubs
    The Brewers had another good season, winning 97 games, good for best in the MLB. They have a great pitching staff and a speedy lineup capable of both limiting runs and scoring them. 

    Even though the Brewers have quite a good team this year, I'm going a little bit risky with my predictions and guessing the Cubs taking this one in 5 games.

2. Phillies vs. 3. Dodgers

    The Phillies were one game behind the Brewers, with 96 wins on the season. They have an impressive pitching staff and good offense all throughout the lineup. Obviously, not having Zack Wheeler available hurts, but a rotation featuring Christopher Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo, Ranger Suarez, and Aaron Nola (though he had an off-season) is still mighty impressive.

    I think the Phils are going to take the series in 5 games and eliminate the Dodgers.

CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

2. Mariners vs. 4. Yankees

    I think the Mariners are going to continue their hot streak into the playoffs, and I believe they're going to make their first World Series appearance in franchise history, taking the Yankees in the full 7 games.

2. Phillies vs. 4. Cubs
    I love the Cubs and am rooting for them to win the World Series, but I don't think they'll be able to take down the Phillies. Philadelphia has a combination of great pitching and batting, and will defeat the Cubs in 6 games.

WORLD SERIES

    Thus, I predict a Phillies vs. Mariners World Series. I think that the Phillies will end up defeating the Mariners in 6 games and win their third championship.

    

    

    What predictions do y'all hold for the postseason this year, and who are you rooting to win it all? Hopefully we have an exciting month of baseball to come.

    This post was kinda long and had no baseball cards, which is kinda like, the point of the blog, Don't worry, I have some cards I traded for with some siblings (including some PC needs) that will be featured on my next post. Until then, good luck to your teams, have a great week, and happy collecting!