Our hometown favorites have nabbed a Wild Card spot for the 2019 MLB Post Season. After 162 hard fought games, it all comes down to nine innings to decide if they can slide into the playoffs. If they do make it, there are very high hurdles ahead. For those in the hunt, there are four "100 win" teams to contend with, a powerhouse Dodgers team, a currently hobbled Cardinals team that won't stay down for long, and upstart Braves organization that just might surprise everyone this year. Here we lay out our best guesses for the upcoming MLB Post Season.
The 2019 MLB regular season has come to a close. The Houston
Astros finish the season with 107 wins, tops in either league. Three other teams
won 100 or more games: The Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, and the stunning
surprise of the season, the Minnesota Twins. Speaking of those Twins, they were
indeed the surprise of 2019. They won 56 games on the road and set the Major
League record for home runs in the season by one team. So how about the
postseason?
National League Wild Card Game: Nationals vs. Brewers- The
Brewers picked the wrong time to lay an egg. The Cubs handed them a gift the
final weekend of the season, and the Brewers just couldn’t keep the wins going.
Milwaukee heads to D.C. to face Max Scherzer for a one game Wild Card battle.
American League Wild Card Game: Athletics vs. Rays- Two
small market teams with unique approaches to the game will face off in this
one. Expect both teams to use a lot of pitchers.
National League Postseason
Divisional Round
Dodgers vs. Nationals- The Dodgers cruised through the
entire season without much of a test. They will get one here by facing
Strasburg twice, and Scherzer once. At the end of the day, this should be a
well-pitched series across the board, and the Dodgers should pull it out at the
end.
Braves vs. Cardinals- Two weeks ago fans were ready to pick
the hard-charging Cardinals to win the World Series. This last week has shown
cracks in that consesus. The Cardinals are going in reverse at the wrong time.
The Braves have a lot of talented young arms. Braves could pull this off in
four games.
Championship Series
Dodgers vs. Braves- This one comes down to those young arms
for Atlanta. Can they handle the bright lights of the National League
Championship Series? If they can, it’s going to be an amazing series. That is a
big “if” though. If not, then the Dodgers cruise back into the World Series. The
final result will fall somewhere in the middle. The Dodgers could take this in
six games.
American League Postseason
Divisional Round
Astros vs. Rays - This one isn’t going to be much of a
contest. The Astros are an awful match up for the Rays. Houston most likely advances
in a sweep.
Yankees vs. Twins- The Twins could make this postseason very
interesting if they keep up the pace and “ding dongs”. With their ability to
win road games and that strong offense, they can take anyone down anywhere, on
any day. One missing piece of their “armor” is that they got the voodoo in
their head when they go to New York these days. Yankees will
probably take the series in five games.
Championship Series
Astros vs. Yankees- The series we’ve been waiting for all
season. Two powerhouse teams going head to head in a titanic grudge match. The
difference in this series is going to be those two battle-tested hurlers at the
top of the Astros rotation, Zach Grienke and Justin Verlander. We pick the Astros
to advance in seven games.
World Series
Astros vs. Dodgers- Here Will this be the rematch of perhaps
the best World Series of the last 25 years? Fans have to take into account that
the Astros went from being baseball’s great experiment, to being baseball’s
great prophecy. Can they do it again? These two teams match well. This one is a
push that could go either way. Our resident sports “Guru” T.J. Bryce picks the Astros,
in seven amazing games.