A pair of National League East division rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves, kick off the 2026 MLB postseason with an afternoon opener at Truist Park.

The Philliesjust squeaked into the playoffs thanks to Zack Wheeler's gem in their regular-season finale, taking the final NL wild card spot over the hard-charging Arizona Diamondbacks. But their faltering finish means nothing now that everyone starts from scratch.

Meanwhile, the Braves cruised into the postseason, winning the NL East by six games over the Phils. They were able to set their playoff rotation so that ace Chris Sale (14-9, 2.16 ERA) will be on the mound for Game 1 of the best-of-three series. He'll be opposed by left-hander Jesus Luzardo (14-5, 2.86 ERA), who was Philadelphia's best pitcher during the second half of the season, but who just returned from the injured list on Sunday after dealing with shoulder inflammation.

Follow along for live updates, highlights and analysis from the Phillies-Braves NL wild-card matchup:

The MLB Postseason officially begins today, with all of the Wild Card series playing Game 1 of their best of three format. The Phillies made it close, but they eventually ensured that they too will be a part of the field, and they will actually be the first game of the day when they take on the Braves at 2:00 pm.

Here’s the rest of the postseason bracket:

There are many intriguing storylines as we begin the tournament, with two divisional rivalries right out of the gate in Phillies-Braves and Yankees-Red Sox. That’s before even diving into the surprising White Sox or the division winning, .500 record Astros. Beyond the Wild Card, there’s the ever-persistent question of can the Brewers or Rays convert regular season success into postseason wins, can Cleveland snap their 78-year championship drought, and can the new evil empire in the Dodgers pull of a three-peat?

The road to those answers and more begins in earnest today. So, what are your predictions for the 2026 MLB postseason? Who will be the last two teams standing? Who takes home the World Series trophy? How far will the Phillies go? What team could make a surprise run in the vein of the Blue Jays last year?

Meet the Mets

David Stearns addressed the media following a disappointing Mets’ season. Overall, he saw “extremely encouraging signs” as he looks ahead to 2027.

When asked about whether he would do anything differently with Pete Alonso given what happened in 2026, David Stearns replied bluntly, “I don’t get mulligans”.

Speaking on other topics of interest, Stearns talked about retiring the phrase ‘run prevention’, what it meant to see Freddy Peralta succeed in Tampa Bay, how he’d evaluated his free agent signings, Kodai Senga’s future with the Mets, the need to add starting pitching, and the decisions that created an “uncapped downside scenario”.

The Mets are planning to look ‘externally’ to fill their first base void.

Laura Albanese wrote about Stearns owning his failures and how he will get another chance to prove he’s not a failure.

John Harper graded Mets players, the front office, and Andy Green after their last-place finish.

While the Mets missed the playoffs in 2026, their 2027 blueprint is already taking shape, explains Chelsea Janes.

Juan Soto and Nolan McLean were nominated for the 2026 All-MLB Team. Now it’s up to the fans to cast their votes.

Around the National League East

Jesús Luzardo will start Game 1 for the Phillies, with Cristopher Sánchez taking the ball in Game 2 and Aaron Nola standing at the ready if a Game 3 is necessary.

Mark Bowman detailed three things the Braves learned from their final week of the regular season.

After an uneven 2026 season, the Marlins believe they are right there and are hungry to take the next step.

Around Major League Baseball

Will Leitch at MLB.com shared the Power Rankings at the start of the postseason.

With the postseason beginning today, Alden Gonzalez wondered if the Dodgers could be more vulnerable than we think.

The staff at The Athletic made their Wild Card round predictions.

In Ken Rosenthal’s view, even if the Brewers or the Rays win the World Series, the competitive balance argument will endure heading into the uncertain MLB offseason.

The Astros will run a bullpen game in Game One.

Newsday’s David Lennon made his picks for the end-of-season MLB awards.

Max Ralph provided the latest update on whether Aaron Judge will suit up for the Yankees in the Wild Card round.

Mike Elias vowed to get the Orioles back on track after a rough 2026 campaign that saw Baltimore miss the postseason yet again.

The Twins fired pitching coach Peter Maki and assistant pitching coach Luis Ramirez.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Thank you for joining us at Amazin’ Avenue during what was, by all accounts, a rough season for our Mets.

Lukas Vlahos looked at what the team’s 40-man roster would look like heading into the free agency period.

Linus Lawrence provided us with a much-needed Monday Stat Party.

This Date in Mets History

Casey Stengel was brought in to manage the expansion New York Metropolitans on this date in 1961.

The MLB wild card round gets underway on Tuesday, Sept. 29, featuring a packed slate of games to kick off the action. Among them is an NL wild card series rematch, as the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs face off for the second straight year.

Last season, the Cubs edged out the Padres in a close 2-1 wild card series at Wrigley Field in Chicago. This year, the stage shifts to San Diego, giving the Padres home field advantage at Petco Park for the best-of-three set. The winner will earn the right to face the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers in a best-of-five Division Series.

"Should be a great series," Padres manager Craig Stammen said. "They’re a great team, they’ve got a lot of great players, a good coaching staff. It’ll be tightly contested. They’re the ones that knocked us out of the postseason last year. So we’re going to have to bring our ‘A’ game."

In Game 1, Cubs left-hander Matthew Boyd will take the mound, while the Padres will start right-hander Michael King, in a duel to set the tone for the series.

More: MLB playoffs extra-innings rules: Is there a ghost runner?

Playoff baseball is finally here. Chris Sale will man the mound for the Braves while Jesus Luzardo will start for the Phillies. Sale is ready for the moment, but many in Braves country know it is going to be just as important that the offense is ready to go as well. It does seem that the Braves are ready to make the most of the opportunity, especially in front of the home crowd at Truist.

Braves News

Nine Braves players were nominated for ALL-MLB team awards.

An in-depth preview of what to expect in the Wild Card round.

The end of season Top 30 prospects from Battery Power.

MLB News

The Mariners are going through a coaching staff overhaul, including the departure of former Braves hitting coach Kevin Seitzer.

Another major development in the Wild Card round is the Phillies will not have second baseman Luis Arraez on the roster.

Another year another Red Sox vs Yankees Wild Card round at Yankee Stadium.

I think it’s safe to say we’d all like something different but if that’s not possible, for the Red Sox to win this year. They almost pulled it off in 2025 but with the offense and pitching (minus Garret Crochet) both depleted it was just too much to overcome. This year, while Crochet is at most a bullpen arm, the Sox acquired veterans Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez to bolster a playoff rotation. And watched Payton Tolle surge to the top anyway and become the obvious choice for Game 1.

Game 1

Tolle made his brief MLB debut and playoff debut (1 out) last year but is still very much a rookie. This year he’s been fantastic while putting up an ERA right about 3.00 and striking out 171 in 148.2 innings of work. It’s wild to think that he didn’t make the team out of Spring Training. But they wanted a little more development out of Tolle and when he returned in late April he looked MLB-ready starting from 6.0-inning, 11 strikeout tour de force against these same Yankees. Tolle made a second start against the Yankees in June during The Turnaround Homestand where he struck out 7, allowed 1 hit, and 0 runs.

Cam Schlittler is the Game 1 starter for New York.

Compared to Tolle’s 16 MLB innings in 2025, Schlittler threw 73.0 in the regular season. He bumped that to 193.3 in 2026 on his way to, unfortunately, probably a Cy Young award. Not bad for a guy drafted in the 7th round. The Red Sox selected Caleb Bolden with the pick immediately preceding him. Win some, lose some. He faced the Sox four times this season with the Yankees winning three of the four. That’s just bad luck. April he was dominant: 8.0 inning, 4 hits, 2 runs. Early June he lasted just 5.2 innings, 4 hits, 1 run. Honestly most of the time the Sox might win this one but it featured that 5-run eighth inning bullpen collapse. In Boston during late June was another 5.0 inning effort with 4 runs (0 earned) on 5 hits. Sox win this game. Then back in NYC in August 5.2 innings, 2 hits and 0 runs. Hopefully the coaches have been working on this. Third time through the order and he’s a .691 OPS allowed pitcher vs. ~.500 which is huge. The Blue Jays also faced him in four games and put up a total OPS of .686 against Schlittler to the Sox .560 mark. So, it can get better.

Game 2

Game 2 features Sonny Gray, the elder statesman of the rotation. Gray faced the Yankees twice this season, the Sox won both matchups. In early June he went 6.1 innings while allowing 3 runs on 8 hits. During The Weekend he was even better: 7.1 innings, 1 hit, 0 runs. The Sox did have to wait until the 10th inning to walkoff the game but it was a masterpiece against (probably still) Aaron Judge-less Yankees.

Max Fried was rumored to be starting Game 1 for a bit over the weekend, although that seemed kinda nuts to everyone. Is it good or bad he tossed only 112.2 innings this year? Is he fresh or rusty? Fried was originally drafted by the Padres in 2012 and traded with a package for Justin Upton. Did you forget the Justin Upton era (1 year) in San Diego? (I sure did). Despite this limited workload, Fried faced the Sox twice. One was 8.0 innings of 3 hit, 0 run ball. The second was a 3.2 inning return from the IL during the August doubleheader in the Bronx. Three hits, 1 run. That one run? A Nick Sogard homer. Just about 12 innings and 1 run. Maybe they should have opened with this guy?

Game 3

Hopefully there is no Game 3 because the Sox go 2-0. But if they can only win one of the first two games then Ranger Suarez will start the third matchup of the Wild Card series. The Sox signed him in part because he’s been excellent in October. Well, he had a pretty good September. He’s allowed just 3 runs all month putting up a 1.09 ERA in that span. Batters hit just .182/.250/.284 during the last month of the regular season. In his introduction to the rivalry in April, Suarez lost 4-1, hit hard through 4.2 innings of work including a crushing homer. Then in early June he held the Yankees to 1 run in 6.1 innings but the bullpen couldn’t hold them back. Sox lost 6-1. Then he allowed 6 runs as part of the 16-1 drubbing in August. He might not be the guy you want starting in this series but then again, he’s in a groove now and has recovered from various IL stints so he might just be in a better place pitching-wise than August.

Gerrit Cole used to be the ace. Now he’s the number three. Cole missed all of 2025 with injury but came back for 127 innings this year. Despite no longer having Rafael Devers, Cole was hit hard by Boston: 5.1 innings, 7 hits, 2 homers, 4 runs. Masa and Anthony Seigler hit the bombs, and, clearly neither will e playing this fall. So someone else will need to emerge as the hero.

Aaron Judge is probably out but he’s trying to play anyway.

Giancarlo Stanton is possibly out but he’s been on the IL since April. If he’s healthy is that even the way to return? We might find out!

Trent Grisham is also a possibility.

Ben Rice ended up with 41 homers but didn’t even lead the American League. Thanks, Pete! Alonso also robbed Yordan Alvarez of a chance at the Triple Crown by winning RBI as well. Just doing service all over the league.

Probable Pitching Matchups

Tuesday, September 29: Payton Tolle (3.03 ERA / 3.04 FIP) vs. Cam Schlittler (1.95 ERA / 2.56 FIP)

Wednesday, September 30: Sonny Gray (2.72 ERA / 3.47 FIP) vs. Max Fried (2.80 ERA / 2.65 FIP)

Thursday, October 1: Ranger Suarez (3.22 ERA / 3.16 FIP) vs. Gerrit Cole (3.41 ERA / 3.93 FIP) (If needed)

When/Where to Watch

Tuesday, September 29: 8:00 PM ET on NBC / Peacock

Wednesday, September 30: 8:00 PM ET on NBC / Peacock

Thursday, October 1, 8:00 PM ET on NBC / Peacock (If needed)

Jaylon Thompson wrote about the now-wrapped season.

The Royals have a long way to go.

Their 2026 campaign was an utter disappointment. The Royals entered the year with high expectations but fell short of their intended goals. A slow start and a slew of injuries sent them tumbling down the American League Central standings.

KC suffered through a rough spring. As the calendar flipped to June, the Royals were 22-37, well behind the Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians in the division race.

This week, both of those competitor teams made the playoffs. The Royals had to watch from their own dugout as their AL Central rivals clinched postseason berths at Kauffman Stadium.

Jackson Stone at MLB mothership turned an eye toward 2027.

The Royals have been here before. A large part of this team was here when they turned 106 losses in 2023 into a postseason run in 2024. There will most likely be a few changes to the coaching staff and free-agent signings to bolster the bullpen and rotation — but the core is here to stay, including starters Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo.

It’s up to that group to get back to the winning baseball of years prior.

“From my end, I feel like we have the pieces to be able to do it and we didn’t do it this year,” Pasquantino said. “Like I said, that’s a failure. That doesn’t mean I have any less confidence going into next year. … I’m walking into next season expecting us to be in a playoff push the whole year. Those are just words; they don’t mean anything right now, but those are my expectations. We just gotta go do it.”

David Lesky pointed toward the last game in August as the last gasp of a team falling apart.

I sort of think September, and this weekend on a smaller scale, was just a team that ran out of gas. Specifically, it was about a pitching staff that ran out of gas. That’s an issue, of course, but it’s a bigger issue when they weren’t good enough on a full tank. I will never stop believing that when they got the band back together in mid-August and went on that run, they saw that Sunday loss against Cleveland that dropped them to 7.5 back with 24 to play and realized the longshot dream was dead. They went 7-17 from there. I have a hard time thinking they could have continued the run they were on with this pitching staff, but none of them are stupid. They knew that they almost had to win that last game of August. And when they didn’t, it completely fell apart.

Former Royals broadcaster Buddy Blattner (1969-1975 for the Royals) is on the ballot for the 2027 Ford C. Frick award.

Brian Burrows at Kings of Kauffman took a look at departing free agents.

The case for each team to win the World Series.

Luis Arraez will not be on the Phillies Wild Card roster due to injury.

The Mariners are cleaning out some coaching staff, which includes firing former Royal Kevin Seitzer from his post as hitting coach.

The Twins fired their pitching coach and assistant pitching coach.

The Rays returning to the Trop juiced 2026 MLB attendance numbers.

Barry Petchesky wrote about the other former Tiger who might also be ending his career – psycho Max Scherzer.

Sporting KC has filed a countersuit against former coach Zoran Savic in the dispute about youth soccer in Kansas City.

The Chiefs are a totally different team this September compared to last September.

The New York Giants gave up an actual draft pick (2027 5th) to acquire J.J. McCarthy from the Vikings.

Miami Dolphins star RB (and fantasy top pick) De’Von Achane suffered a torn ACL in the game against the Chiefs and is out for the season. Football is brutal.

USMNT manager Mauricio Pochettino is mad about Manchester City’s financial chicanery, of which they’ve apparently been found guilty.

Atlanta’s NWSL expansion club starting in 2028 has been revealed to be Atlanta City FC.

The Senate passed a bill containing regulations over college sports by a 77-22 vote yesterday.

Your song of the day is Audioslave with Yesterday to Tomorrow.

Good morning, baseball fans!

The 2026 MLB Playoffs begin today and it will be jam-packed with four games. Here’s everything you need to know to keep up with the action.

National League

The Atlanta Braves welcome the Philadelphia Phillies to town for Game 1 of their Wild Card series which begins at 11:00 a.m. this morning and will air on NBC/Peacock, with national radio coverage on ESPN Radio.

After that, the San Diego Padres will welcome the Chicago Cubs to Petco Park to begin their series at 7:00 p.m. PT tonight. This series will have the same broadcast coverage on NBC/Peacock and ESPN Radio. I would expect that to be delayed for this one due to the overlap with the second AL game.

American League

The Houston Astros will welcome the Chicago White Sox to town to begin their series this afternoon at 2:00 p.m. PT, with coverage on Peacock/NBC Sports Network and radio coverage on ESPN Radio.

After that, the New York Yankees will host the Boston Red Sox for Game 1 tonight at 5:00 p.m. PT. This will somehow also be on NBC/Peacock with national radio coverage on ESPN Radio.

Who are you rooting for today?

Good morning, Purple Row!

While much of MLB looks to the postseason with games starting today, the Colorado Rockies are turning to their rebuild, a point Paul DePodesta stressed in a recent conversation (linked below) with MLB.com’s Thomas Harding.

“After living through this for a year, we have a very good direction on what it is we feel we need,” DePodesta said. “So we’ll certainly be ready to act early this offseason if need be.”

For teams not playing in the postseason, this week will make debriefing sessions with media and the beginning of personnel changes. DePodesta is expected to speak with media within the week, so stay tuned for that.

In the meantime, here’s what’s happening with the Rockies and in baseball today.

Rockies news & links

• DePodesta, Rockies ready to ‘act early’ after 4th straight 100-plus-loss season | MLB.com — In his conversation with Thomas Harding, Paul DePodesta points to some highlights of the 2026 season and says the Rockies are ready to begin their postseason work.
• Grading TJ Rumfield’s rookie season with Colorado Rockies | si.com — Dominic Minchella provides some analysis of Rumfield’s 2026 season, including a look at his splits — and don’t forget he won back-to-back “NL Rookie of the Month” awards in May and June.
• Close losses defined this 100-loss season for Rockies | Denver Gazette ($) — As Kevin Henry writes, “ avoid 100 losses in 2026, the Rockies needed to win five more games than they did. Considering the team was 17-25 in one-run games and 12-24 in two-run games this season, there are plenty of contests where one or two moments made the difference between a win and a loss.” He then identifies five games that the Rockies should have won, including a heartbreaker at Coors Field on August 31 with Colton Cowser made a stunning bottom-of-the-ninth catch that led the Baltimore Orioles to a 2-1 win.
• Colorado Rockies remain record-setting terrible, but there is always next year (maybe) | Colorado Sun — Columnist Mario Nicolais noted the Rockies improvements and rebuilding efforts while admitting he’s given up his season tickets at Coors Field to follow the Denver Summit.

Around MLB

• Wild Card Series predictions: Yankees or Red Sox? Can the Phillies find a spark? | The Athletic ($ — gift link) — In the spirit of the day, here are predictions from The Athletic staff with a handy gift link.
• Will Judge play in Wild Card Series? Here’s the latest | MLB.com — Judge is doing everything in his power to make sure he does.
• Tom Verducci’s 10 Big Takeaways That Define the 2026 MLB Season — si.com — For Verducci, there was a lot going on, including expanded pitch menus, a youth movement, and a return to “small ball.”
• The Pope to thank for White Sox playoff berth? Pope Leo XIV answers | FoxSports.com — This has been one of my favorite storylines of the 2026 season. As Pope Leo said when asked this question, “”No comment,” adding, “Great things happen in Chicago.”
• Scouting in the age of machines | FanGraphs — Here Brendan Gawlowski, himself a former scout with the Pittsburgh Pirates for four years, explains what scouts bring to baseball teams.

This week on the internet

In case you missed it, with their win last Saturday, the Rockies helped not only themselves but also the Cleveland Guardians, which led Guardians fan @GuardsJoey to post this:

The Guardians reached out to the Rockies for Goodman’s charity of choice, and he went with Clothes to Kids. As of Monday morning, the organization had received more than $7,000 in donations.

Thanks, Hunter, and thanks, Cleveland.

#ClevelandRox

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

For the fifth time in six years, the Minnesota Twins clocked out at the end of September—eschewing October overtime. On many occasions I was in the trenches with them, attending 27 contests (most at home, some away). My personal 11-16 record wasn’t exactly sterling—but neither was the club’s. You know the old mantra: “a bad day of fishing is better than a good day of work”? Swap amateur angling for stadium spectating and a lot of fun was still had at the ballpark(s) this particular 162 slate.

The beginning of the season brought cold, cold, and—you guessed it—a little more cold. I wasn’t done lugging the parka from the parking ramp until late-May. But I bundled up and even convinced some family to shiver along with me. On April 14 we saw two Buck Truck bombs and an Abel/Rogers/Sands shutout of the BoSox!

As April showers (and cold) turned into May flowers—the dogs ate them. I kid, I kid…just trying to scare gintzer more about Bark at the Park Night (when Bailey Ober inexplicably twirled a complete game shutout against the Miami Marlins!). To be fair, I also consumed my share of cased-meat dogs.

June 12 brought me a wild 9-8 win over the St. Louis Cardinals where Buxton doubled twice, homered—and the Twins still needed long balls from Royce Lewis & Brooks Lee in B8 to take a lead!

A few weeks later, I attended the big Joe Ryan versus Shohei Ohtani pitching matchup in front of a sold-out Target Field crowd. The Twins lost and were swept by True Blue—but years from now someone will be impressed at me seeing Ohtani pull double duty (even if that someone is me!).

When the calendar flipped to July, I saw Alan Roden walk off the Cleveland Guardians—then paused to enjoy the All-Star festivities with my unaccustomed-to-billed-headware niece.

Alas, July brought some epic frustrations—like being 2-hit shutout by the Unaffiliated Athletics & 5-hit shutout by Randy Dobnak and the Kansas City Royals.

Fortunately, I was able to pull off two more baseball stadium trips: Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. and Chase Field in Arizona. Great times—like a Buxton salami—in both locales!

As the non-canine and non-sausage dog days of August commenced, I saw the first MLB game and knock from Walker Jenkins.

For the first time, I was also at Target Field without a baseball game—instead, the Tim McGraw concert! My sister and I had a great time and it’s a tribute to Son-of-Tug that his music can bridge a 13-year sibling gap.

A 15-2 victory (featuring a 10-run inning!) over the Tigers was somewhat of a September salve for another late-season collapse. My final night under the North Loop skies was another high-scoring fun affair!

At least there was no Curse of Kyle Lohse (seeing him at the Dome when I pined for Santana, Radke, or even Silva)—my SP distribution was remarkably even…

• Joe Ryan: 7 starts
• Zebby Matthews & Taj Bradley: 4 starts
• Bailey Ober & Connor Prielipp: 3 starts
• Simeon Woods-Richardson & Mike Paredes: 2 starts
• Mick Abel & Dean Kremer: 1 start

Sometimes I complain about the traffic—or the ushers—or the folks oblivious to the water fountain button in the bottom right corner. Sometimes my baseball glove gets stolen out from under my seat. But I still enjoy getting out to the ballgame. There’s a song about it, after all.

Today’s Reflections

Sunday’s game didn’t matter. The playoff positions had been solidified. It was a good day to rest your players as the team heads to the playoffs.

It wasn’t an off day for Alex Bregman. After his miraculous return on Friday, Bregman does what he does best — viewed videos of his hitting. After he saw something that he could correct, he didn’t just go to the batting cage to work it out. Nah. He texted Craig Counsell and said “LFG.” That meant he wanted in the game to see if his hitting correction worked.

A two-run home run. A solo home run. A single. An RBI-double.

4-for-4, three runs scored and four RBI. That is a man determined, a man that is a leader. That’s why he’s on the Cubs team.

There were several substitutions during the game. After Pete Crow-Armstrong knocked his first-inning single to right field, Tyrone Taylor entered the game and went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Michael Conforto was 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI. Pedro Ramirez and Miguel Amaya both went 2-for-4. Amaya doubled and scored a run.

It was a bullpen day after a Shōta Imanaga first-inning appearance. We got our first look at Braxton Garrett. He started out rough in the second inning, with a pair of singles, a HBP and a run-scoring fielder’s choice, tying the game with the Red Sox at 2-2. But after that, Garrett went four innings of scoreless ball, but allowed two hits and three walks while striking out two. The last three innings pitched were perfect, one by Jacob Webb, the last two by Colin Rea.

Off to San Diego!

I appreciate your reading.

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Sunday’s Game Stories:

• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com): Fresh off facial fractures,, “Bregman mashes 2 homers in 2nd game back. “Even without any postseason implications on the line on Sunday, Alex Bregman told Cubs manager Craig Counsell that he wanted to be in the starting lineup.”

• Vinnie Duber (Chicago Sun-Times): Alex Bregman homers twice in season-finale win, Cubs head to playoffs aiming to ‘make some noise in October’. “Bregman had a monster day at the plate just a week after taking a foul ball to the face, continuing to marvel teammates on the eve of the postseason.”

• Tony Marchese (OnTapSportsNet): Bregman Homers Twice as Cubs Close Season With 6-2 Win at Tropicana. “Alex Bregman went 4-for-4 with two homers and four RBI as the Cubs beat the Red Sox 6-2 at Tropicana Field to finish 89-73 and reach the Wild Card.”

Playoff Pitching Stories:

• Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Cubs may have to consider Clay Holmes role change that once seemed impossible to believe. “They may have no other option.”
• Jake Misenser (Cubbies Crib): Cubs need to lock in on one specific Michael King pitch in Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Round. “It’s time for Pete Crow-Armstrong and the Chicago offense to dial in at the plate.”
• Jordan Bastian (MLB.com): Counsell playing Cubs’ postseason rotation close to the vest. “Cubs manager Craig Counsell likes to have as much information in hand as possible before announcing any plans for his pitching staff.”
• Vinnie Duber (Chicago Sun-Times): Cubs’ Kevin Gausman, with nagging shoulder, unsure if he’d be ready for possible Game 1 start vs. Padres. “Gausman’s left shoulder is still affecting him after he banged it on a tag play last week, making it a mystery whether he’ll be available to pitch in the Cubs’ best-of-three playoff series against the Padres.”
• Meghan Montemurro (Chicago Sun-Times): Chicago Cubs’ wild-card rotation plans in flux as they monitor Kevin Gausman’s left shoulder injury. “The Chicago Cubs’ pitching plans for the opening round are expected to come together Sunday.”

Playoff Hitting Stories:

• Mike Petriello (MLB.com): The best defender in baseball? (Almost) the best offensive player? It’s the same guy! “Here’s another way Pete Crow-Armstrong’s season was an extreme outlier.”
• Matt Snyder (CBSSports): Ranking the offenses of all 12 MLB playoff teams: Can anyone out-power the Cubs? “Home runs play in the postseason, but slugging isn’t everything when it comes to October success.”
• Paul Sullivan (Chicago Tribune {$}): Column: Can Alex Bregman be the difference for the Chicago Cubs in another wild-card showdown with San Diego? “The Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres meet again in the wild-card series, which moves this year from Wrigley Field to Petco Park.”

Assorted Stories:

• Tyler Courtney (LastWordOnSports): Who Needs to Step Up for the 2026 Cubs Playoff Run. “Postseason baseball is always different, and Chicago will have to put the past behind. If they wish to move on to face the Brewers, a few players need to step up.”
• Curt Bishop (Fastball On SI): Ranking the NL Wild Card Series Teams from Worst to Best. “The National League had a very packed wild card race this year, and the final spot came down to the last day of the regular season.”
• Michael Canter (Cubs Insider): The Rundown: Postseason Road Games Could Help Cubs, Bregman Swinging Hot Bat, PCA’s Historic Season, Playoff Predictions. “All things considered, going to San Diego to play a Wild Card series against the Padres is not as bad as it seems.”
• David Adler (MLB.com): Cubs-Padres position-by-position breakdown. “It’s a rematch — the Cubs vs. the Padres in the National League Wild Card Series for a second straight year.”
• Thomas Domol (North Side Baseball): Cubs Week In Review: A Wild Card Test In San Diego Awaits After Limping To Finish Line. “Pete Crow-Armstrong and his Chicago Cubs are on their way to San Diego, California for their best-of-three Wild Card Series with the Padres. Can they survive a tough test in the first round of the playoffs?”
• Jake Misener (Cubbies Crib): Boog Sciambi has a new job, but it doesn’t mean he’s leaving Cubs broadcasts. “The TV voice of the Cubs has a new gig heading into the offseason.”

Food For Thought:

Deitra Farr (born August 1, 1957) is an American blues, soul and gospel singer-songwriter. Farr was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and began singing in the mid-1970s with various soul bands. She converted to Catholicism as a child and sang in the gospel choir at Holy Angels Catholic Church on the South Side. She graduated from Kenwood High School (Academy) in Chicago. She studied vocal music there with Lena McLin and was a member of the Kenwood Choir. At the age of 18, she recorded the lead vocals on “You Won’t Support Me” with the Chicago group Mill Street Depo. That song made the Top 100 R&B list with Cashbox magazine in 1976.

She began singing the blues in the early 1980s. From 1993 to 1996, she was the lead singer for Mississippi Heat and recorded two albums with them, Learned the Hard Way and Thunder in my Heart. In 1997, she released her first solo album titled The Search is Over. In 2005, Farr released her second JSP album, Let It Go. The blues guitarist, Billy Flynn, played on Let It Go.

Since 1990, she has toured internationally, so far performing in over 40 countries. Farr is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago, with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She has a regular column called “Artist to Artist” in Living Blues magazine.

Please be reminded that Cub Tracks and Bleed Cubbie Blue do not necessarily endorse the content of articles, podcasts, or videos that are linked to in this series.

Since being drafted in 2021, Creed Willems has steadily worked his way up through the minor leagues. An eighth-round draft pick out of high school, Willems hung around on the Orioles’ prospect lists in the mid-levels, but never did enough to really cause a stir (if you don’t count his kickass mullet).

Willems spent all of 2025 with the Double-A Baysox, where he hit ..253/.338/.441 in 105 games. Just as he had done throughout his time in professional baseball, Willems hit righties pretty well but was lousy against lefties. After the season he was eligible for the Rule 5 draft. The Orioles did not protect him, and no team selected him. That’s good for the Orioles, who got to keep him in the system without putting him on the 40-man roster, but maybe a bummer for Willems that no team wanted him badly enough to give him a shot.

Willems started the 2026 season with the Norfolk Tides and stayed there for the rest of the year (except for two rehab games with Frederick). At age 23, Willems was about three years younger than the league average. The C/1B/DH came out of the gate hot, cooled a bit, then had a scorching month of May. On May 31st, Willems had an .846 OPS through 47 games and people were starting to notice. When will Creed get a chance, we wondered.

The hot hitting cooled off, but Willems was still going well enough overall that it seemed like he might actually get to the majors that year. On June 30th, Willems was OPS’ing .798. On July 1st, the Tides were on the road at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and Willems suffered a freak injury. He slipped on a mat in the dugout and pulled a hamstring, landing him on the IL for about two weeks.

If you remember July in Baltimore, the situation got pretty ugly, catcher-wise. Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo were both injured around the middle of the month. Then, of course, Rutschman was traded to the Red Sox while Basallo was on the injured list. That’s how the Orioles spent a month with catchers like Chadwick Tromp, Sam Huff, Yohel Pozo, Jake Rogers, and eventually Carlos Narváez making starts. It was an ugly scene. And yet, Creed Willems was not recalled.

There are a couple ways to look at that. One is that Willems was on the IL from 7/2-7/20 and missed his opportunity to make the big leagues due to poor timing. Rutschman went on the IL on 7/20 and Basallo went on the IL on 7/22.

So yeah, timing could have been it. Or it could have been that Mike Elias had no intention of adding Willems to the 40-man roster and bringing him up. In fact, Elias went out of his way to acquire new catchers rather than turn to Willems. He selected Pozo off waivers from the Cardinals on July 23rd. He traded for Jake Rogers on July 30th. He brought Tromp into the organization in early July. And of course, Narváez came back in the Rutschman trade and spent the rest of the season being terrible.

We’ll never know if Willems would have gotten his chance if he hadn’t been injured. It was probably for the best that they didn’t add him to the team right after his injury because he was terrible at the plate for the rest of July and all of August. His overall numbers plummeted, though he rebounded nicely in September to make his overall numbers look more respectable.

Willems finished 2026 with 113 games played and a hitting line of .260/.351/.434. He hit 21 home runs but just five doubles. One interesting thing about his batting line is that, for the first time in his career, he did not have a large platoon split. In fact, he hit lefties and righties almost evenly, with just a bit higher OBP against righties.

Due to the impending owners’ lockout, we will not need to worry about Willems being subject to the Rule 5 draft. In all likelihood, there will not be one.

The problem for Willems is that he doesn’t hit well enough to be a starting catcher, but he doesn’t play defense well enough to be the backup catcher. He is also a first baseman and designated hitter, but the Orioles are pretty full up on players to fill those roles.

FanGraphs is a Creed fan, however, ranking him as the Orioles #15 prospect back in May. He has surely been pushed down that list with the influx in talent from the trade deadline deals, but that is still a pretty good ranking for Willems. Eric Longenhagen likes Willems’ bat and predicted in May that Willems should have been ready to debut in the summer. As for his defense, Longenhagen says:

Willems isn’t great behind the plate. He isn’t an especially smooth receiver or blocker, and it takes him awhile to get out of his crouch and release the ball on stolen base attempts. You can play him there occasionally, but it’s hard to see a team starting him there every day even if he hits his offensive ceiling. Willems thus projects as a hybrid sort of bench bat, a Mitch Garver type who catches once per week while playing a little first base and DH and pinch-hitting when he’s not in the bucket. 

Willems did join the Orioles on the taxi squad at the end of the year, but he was never activated and will have to wait to make his MLB debut. Steve Melewski caught up with Willems during that time and posted a nice interview with him on his website.

If Willems is not shipped off via trade this off-season, I expect he’ll be back at Triple-A Norfolk to start the 2027 season. Basallo is committed to the Orioles long-term, Willems isn’t strong defensively behind the plate, and the Orioles are awash in 1B/DH types. That doesn’t bode well for him. But I hope he will force his way up when given the chance.

The MLB playoffs are here.

Starting on Tuesday, September 29, 12 teams remain alive in the chase for the World Series. But by the middle of October, only two teams will be left standing.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are chasing an elusive three-peat, as only four teams — and two organizations — have pulled off that accomplishment. The New York Yankees have done this three times (1936-1939, 1949-1953, and 1998-2000), while the Athletics pulled off a three-peat from 1972 through 1974.

If the Dodgers join this exclusive club, they would be the only National League team to pull off a three-peat.

Here is the MLB Playoff Bracket, as well as the times for every game leading up to the ALCS and NLCS.

MLB Playoff Bracket

Here is the playoff bracket for the 2026 MLB Playoffs. You will see that the Tampa Bay Rays secured the top seed in the American League and have a bye, as do the Cleveland Guardians as the No. 2 seed. Tampa Bay will face the winner of the Wild Card Series between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, while the Guardians will take on the winner of the series between the Houston Astros and the Chicago White Sox.

In the National League the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers are the top seeds, and will wait on the wild card winners. The Brewers will face the winner of the series between the Chicago Cubs and the San Diego Padres, while the Dodgers will take on the winner of the series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves.

Bracket courtesy of MLB.com:

National League schedule and scores

Here is the schedule for the National League playoffs. All times listed are Eastern.

Scores will be updated as games go final.

Wild Card: Phillies vs. Braves

Game 1: Braves 5, Phillies 3 (Braves lead series 1-0)
Game 2: Phillies 4, Braves 3 (F10) (Series tied 1-1)
Game 3: Phillies at Braves, Thursday, October 1, 2:00 p.m., NBC

Wild Card: Cubs vs. Padres

Game 1: Padres 8, Cubs 0 (Padres lead series 1-0)
Game 2: Padres 4, Cubs 1 (Padres win series 2-0)

NLDS: Padres vs. Brewers

Game 1: Padres at Brewers, Saturday, October 3, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 2: Padres at Brewers, Sunday, October 4, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 3: Brewers at Padres, Tuesday, October 6, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 4: Brewers at Padres, Wednesday, October 7, TBD, FOX or FS1*
Game 5: Padres at Brewers, Friday, October 9, TBD, FOX or FS1*

NLDS: Phillies/Braves vs. Dodgers

Game 1: Phillies/Braves at Dodgers, Saturday, October 3, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 2: Phillies/Braves at Dodgers, Sunday, October 4, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 3: Dodgers at Phillies/Braves, Tuesday, October 6, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 4: Dodgers at Phillies/Braves, Wednesday, October 7, TBD, FOX or FS1*
Game 5: Phillies/Braves at Dodgers, Friday, October 9, TBD, FOX or FS1*

NLCS

Game 1: NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed, Sunday, October 11, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 2: NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed, Monday, October 12, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 3: NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed, Wednesday, October 14, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 4: NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed, Thursday, October 15, TBD, FOX or FS1
Game 5: NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed, Friday, October 16, TBD, FOX or FS1*
Game 6: NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed, Sunday, October 18, TBD, FOX or FS1*
Game 7: NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed, Monday, October 19, TBD, FOX or FS1*

* If necessary

American League schedule and scores

Here is the schedule for the playoffs on the American League side of things. All times listed are Eastern.

Wild Card: White Sox vs. Astros

Game 1: White Sox 6, Astros 3 (White Sox lead series 1-0)
Game 2: White Sox 7, Astros 3 (White Sox win series 2-0)

Wild Card: Red Sox vs. Yankees

Game 1: Yankees 9, Red Sox 0 (Yankees lead series 1-0)
Game 2: Yankees 9, Red Sox 2 (Yankees win series 2-0)

ALDS: Yankees vs. Rays

Game 1: Yankees at Rays, Saturday, October 3, TBD, TBS
Game 2: Yankees at Rays, Monday, October 5, TBD, TBS
Game 3: Rays at Yankees, Wednesday, October 7, TBD, TBS
Game 4: Rays at Yankees, Thursday, October 8, TBD, TBS*
Game 5: Yankees at Rays, Saturday, October 10, TBD, TBS*

ALDS: White Sox vs. Guardians

Game 1: White Sox at Guardians, Saturday, October 3, TBD, TBS
Game 2: White Sox at Guardians, Monday, October 5, TBD, TBS
Game 3: Guardians at White Sox, Wednesday, October 7, TBD, TBS
Game 4: Guardians at White Sox, Thursday, October 8, TBD, TBS*
Game 5: White Sox at Guardians, Saturday, October 10, TBD, TBS*

ALCS

Game 1: AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed, Monday, October 12, TBD, TBS
Game 2: AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed, Tuesday, October 13, TBD, TBS
Game 3: AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed, Thursday, October 15, TBD, TBS
Game 4: AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed, Friday, October 16, TBD, TBS
Game 5: AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed, Saturday, October 17, TBD, TBS*
Game 6: AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed, Monday, October 19, TBD, TBS*
Game 7: AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed, Tuesday, October 20, TBD, TBS*

World Series schedule

Here is the schedule for the World Series:

Game 1: Lower Seed at Higher Seed, Friday, October 23, TBD, FOX
Game 2: Lower Seed at Higher Seed, Saturday, October 24, TBD, FOX
Game 3: Higher Seed at Lower Seed, Monday, October 26, TBD, FOX
Game 4: Higher Seed at Lower Seed, Tuesday, October 27, TBD, FOX
Game 5: Higher Seed at Lower Seed, Wednesday, October 28, TBD, FOX*
Game 6: Lower Seed at Higher Seed, Friday, October 30, TBD, FOX*
Game 7: Lower Seed at Higher Seed, Saturday, October 31, TBD, FOX*

The Dodgers are in their bye period, getting everyone healthy and their pitching lined up how they want it for the NLDS that will start this Saturday at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers will play the winners of the Braves/Phillies Wild Card Series.

Fans of other teams often accuse the Dodgers of buying their championships, and does one player who joined the Dodgers this off season need to have a great October to wipe out his dismal regular season? Kyle Tucker signed a four-year, $240 million contract in the offseason. He proceeded to have the worst offensive season of his life, with a slash line of .233/.330/.385 and OPS of .715.

Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register talked to Tucker, Dave Roberts, and Andrew Freidman about Tucker’s season:

“Oh, for sure,” Friedman said. “Like if you said, Player X can have a down regular season as compared to his previous performance but a really good October – I couldn’t pick it across the board because then we wouldn’t get a bye. But with one-offs, I would absolutely take that.”

Katie Woo of The Athletic ponders the Dodgers NLDS roster decisions, and predicts Josue De Paula should make the team as a pinch-hitter over Daulton Rushing who is just coming back from the IL. The club optioned him with the exact number of days needed to be added to the postseason roster last week:

“He’s done everything he can to put himself in a position to be in the conversation for us as we’re making our postseason roster,” Dodgers president Andrew Friedman said at the time.

De Paula added a lot of pop and swagger to a team that at the time was coasting to the finish line of the regular season. His youthful exuberance could buoy the oldest team in the playoffs.

The Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies open the 2026 Major League Baseball postseason on Tuesday, Sept. 29 with Game 1 of the National League wild card series at Truist Park in Georgia.

Atlanta won the NL East while Philadelphia got into the postseason as a wild card team, nearly coughing up a fifth consecutive playoff trip struggling down the stretch. But everyone's slate is now wiped clean with the best-of-three series running through Thursday, if a Game 3 is necessary.

"Guys played a lot of postseason games and know anything can happen this time of year," Phillies shortstop Trea Turner told reporters. "It looked ugly, but that's behind us, and I think we feel good. We feel like we can beat anybody."

It's the third postseason meeting between the rivals in five years, with the Phillies upsetting the Braves in the 2022 and 2023 NL Division series. Philadelphia had won the division each of the previous two seasons, snapping Atlanta's six-year streak from 2018-2023.

Where to watch Phillies vs Braves today

• Game time: 2 p.m. ET
• TV channel: NBC
• Live stream: Peacock

Watch MLB playoffs on Peacock

What time is Braves vs Phillies today?

First pitch in Game 1 of the NL wild card series is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.

Phillies vs Braves schedule

Wild card series at Truist Park in Atlanta. Game 3 time subject to change.

• Game 1, Tuesday: Phillies at Braves – buy tickets – 2 p.m. ET, NBC & Peacock
• Game 2, Wednesday: Phillies at Braves – buy tickets – 2 p.m. ET, NBC & Peacock
• Game 3*, Thursday: Phillies at Braves – buy tickets – 2 p.m. ET, NBC & Peacock