Category: Sports News

For the record, this essay is emphatically not a prediction.

Nor is it an exercise in pointing out the obvious flaws of a team that ultimately went on to win a World Series, forcing me to cook duck and creating the ability to cause generational drama in the Bronx by simply uttering the phrase “Fifth inning.”

There’s bean footage, and then there is bean footage. For the record, you can see the original title I gave that infamous 2024 prediction essay before Eric Stephen threw me under the figurative bus.

There’s a funny side effect from being present at the last game of the 2025 season, which was generally hailed as one of the best baseball games ever played: I find myself blissfully calm at the upcoming proceedings. Having the ability to cue the Rojas homer or the final outs on command from my phone does wonders for both my mental health and self-esteem.

Just one more time for the road, I promise.

That footage is better than some vitamins, I say. Will the Dodgers repeat for a second year over the month? I have no earthly idea. It’d be nice.

To paraphrase one of my favorite ad campaigns from the early 2000s: that’s bliss, baby. Now, I suddenly want bad tea.

I can see how the Dodgers would prevail next month — just do 2025 but better. I’m looking at you, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernandez, Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy, Andy Pages, and Tommy Edman. If Kyle Tucker is the answer, then my God, what is the question?

Conversely, I can see how the team would fall flat on their face. You did too; it was called the Summer Swoon. What if everyone I just mentioned plus Shohei Ohtani couldn’t hit water from a boat? That failure, especially with runners in scoring position, would likely do it.

Jacob Macofsky wrote a lovely essay worth your time on the happier side of things as a palate cleanser.

But if I give the upcoming tournament much thought, and you were inclined not to join me in my state of relative bliss, there are only two situations that would probably annoy me, much less anger me.

Scenario One: The Padres win it all

That’s it. Any other National League winner elicits no reaction from me apart from “Oh. Neat.” Maybe the Cubs; I did just gag a little.

Don’t get me wrong. I was quite annoyed when I had to live in a universe where the San Francisco Giants won a World Series. Then they did it again…and again…and have been irrelevant ever since, so it got better. My annoyance at a hypothetical Padres title does not rise to the level of agita I just described.

It’s just that the Padres have beclowned themselves at just about every opportunity when they have had actual expectations placed on them.

Expectations that the Padres would make a deep playoff run after finally besting the Dodgers in 2022? Nope, as apparently the job was done and the Dodgers’ failure was made worse when Philadelphia romped to the Fall Classic with modest effort.

Expectations that the Padres were going to win the NL West in 2023? Nope, as the team evacuated its figurative baseball bowels promptly, thoroughly, and repeatedly.

Expectations that the Padres would win the 2024 NLDS, likely costing Dave Roberts his job? Nope, as the Padres’ offense decided to go on holiday, not scoring for 23 innings to conclude the proceedings.

At this point, that team is practically daring me and others to pick it for a deep playoff run, potentially setting up a Dodgers-Padres NLCS.

I’m not falling for this bit again. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on both of us. Fool me four times, get a new hobby.

Honestly, it’s not animus towards the city of San Diego or its ballpark. It’s nice, on both counts.

It’s this current group of players who are as unlikeable and obnoxious as any bunch I can recall. The funny thing is that if they had actually done anything to justify the attitude, I would accept it as the winner’s prerogative.

Since they haven’t won anything, it’s just obnoxious.

Yes, they have been playing well in September, and their bullpen is formidable. I wanted the Dodgers to trade for Mason Miller last year. I even went to Sutter Health Park on his bobblehead day to get both the bobblehead and art for the subsequent Guide entry. Oh well.

The Padres have to get past the Cubs, which is an oddly compelling matchup that could easily fill a five-game or even seven-game series. Alas, it’s only three games as an amuse-bouche.

We don’t need extra playoffs; we need to savor what we have.

Seeing the Padres send the Cubs packing would likely be quite satisfying. In some respects, I am honestly rooting for every game to go to extra innings, and if a wayward meteor or an errant probe looking for whales happened by, who is to complain?

The just reward of that hypothetical Padres’ victory is that the Brewers are waiting, looming, if not salivating, for the winner. Most likely, the Padres’ dreams are smashed in Cream City, but not until giving the Brewers all that they can handle.

Scenario Two: Summer Swoon Coda

The Dodgers’ pitching core should be elite. Yes, the bullpen has seen better days, but this time of year is when the usual characters of Blake Treinen are out, and Justin Wrobleski and Roki Sasaki are in.

If we’re being honest, and the Dodgers themselves were being honest, they would probably admit they are either going to win it all again or flop out right quick.

The problem with a best-of-five series is that all the benefits of depth are essentially negated. In a long enough series, the Dodgers should eventually beat just about anyone in the field. In a five-game series, the margin for error shrinks that much quicker.

I’ve been to Atlanta and Philadelphia. Those venues will be rocking if there is any sense of blood in the water, if the veneer of Dodger invincibility is scraped away.

Speaking of someone who has looked quite mortal since mid-August, Shohei Ohtani was eventually put on the injured list this September. Since his return, apart from one game, he hasn’t looked quite like himself.

He’s looked and hit better than Freddie Freeman, who didn’t sit for ten days in a gambit that has all but backfired at this point, but that observation really isn’t saying much.

• Freeman (20 games): .184/.259/.224. 14 for 76, 6 R, HR, 7 RBI, 6 BB, 23 K, 4 GIDP
• Ohtani (5 games): .238/.273/.286. 5 for 21, 2B, RBI, 1 BB, 8 K

Now, however unlikely, if the Dodgers reenact either 2022 (flopping after one victory) or 2023 (getting swept meekly), I would be modestly disappointed.

Reenacting 2021 (sputtering out in the LCS) wouldn’t raise my hackles, because sometimes a team either just sputters out or runs into a better team.

The Brewers are better and healthier than they were last year. Maybe it’s finally their year? Who’s to say? I swear that Pat Murphy’s faux-meek act is long past its expiration date, but specific analysis of the Brewers is a topic for a later day.

But it better not be the Padres’ year, unless they flop to the Tampa Bay Rays or, God forbid, some other AL team. I specifically think of a team that backed into the postseason with a non-winning record and somehow has a cakewalk path to the ALCS if Cleveland and Chicago play to expectations.

A Padres/Astros World Series would be 2002 Redux, and sequels and remakes are generally worse than the original. But doomsday scenarios aside, the above is how I learned to love the upcoming tournament.

11 victories from Los Angeles seal immortality. Let the games begin!

Both the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves have announced their rosters for the Wild Card round.

Phillies:

None of the Phillies trade deadline acquisitions made the roster. Some of that is due to unfortunate injuries. Caleb Kilian strained his oblique and Luis Arraez sprained his ankle. Brooks Raley has no such excuses. The 38-year-old left-hander had a 7.94 ERA in 16 games with the Phillies and became a non-option for the playoffs.

They’re also carrying 3 catchers because they have nothing else. It’s sort of fitting regardless of how the series turns out.

The Braves roster features 11 pitchers and 15 position players. It is surprising to see Ha-Seong Kim make it, let alone starting at shortstop. In 147 plate appearances, Kim hit just .116 with a .359 OPS. He is probably cooked.

Hello, Luke Williams!

The Wild Card round begins today, and while the Royals didn’t even sniff the postseason, some former Royals will get a chance at playoff glory.

Here are some old friends you can watch chase a ring this postseason.

Phillies vs. Braves

Jonathan Bowlan, Phillies

Bowlan was the big beefy pitcher the Royals took out of college in the draft class of 2018. He tossed a no-hitter in the minors, and showed some promise in in 34 games last year with the Royals, mostly as a reliever. But they wanted a more reliable veteran arm in the pen, and shipped Bowlan to Philadelphia for All-Star lefty Matt Strahm. Unfortunately, Strahm imploded, possibly due to a knee injury, while Bowlan thrived in Philly. He appeared in 59 games and struck out 73 in 56.1 innings with a solid 3.36 ERA.

Brewer Hicklen, Braves

Hicklen put up some great numbers in the minors as a guy that could hit home runs and steal bases. He kept grinding away, reaching the big leagues in 2022 with the Royals at age 26. They sold him to the Phillies in 2023, and he bounced around the league for a bit. He played in a career-high 20 games with the Braves this year, often as a pinch runner.

Mike Yastrzemski, Braves

Yaz was a big boost to the Royals offense when they acquired him at the trade deadline last year. There was some interest in bringing him back, but he instead signed a two-year, $23 million deal with the Braves. His numbers did decline in his age-35 season, but he still hit .224/.309/.380 with 12 home runs in 139 games. He will start at designated hitter for the Braves this afternoon

White Sox vs. Astros

Andrew Benintendi, White Sox

Benintendi played for the Royals in 2021-22, earning his only All-Star nod in his final year with the Royals, just before they traded him to the Yankees. He signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the White Sox in 2023, the largest contract in club history. But it has not gone well so far, and he is hitting .244/.307/.396, worth just 0.5 rWAR total in four seasons.

Randal Grichuk, White Sox

The Royals picked Grichuk up as a lefty-masher last year, and he appeared in 43 games. He started this year with the Yankees, but was let go in May. The White Sox picked him up and he thrived, hitting .299/.328/.598 with 15 home runs in 101 games.

Tommy Pham, White Sox

Pham played 23 games with the Royals down the stretch in 2024, and was even on their postseason roster that fall, hitting .455 against the Yankees in the ALDS. The White Sox picked up the 38-year-old veteran late in the year, perhaps for veteran presence, since he is just 3-for-30 (.100) in 17 MLB games this year.

David Sandlin, White Sox

Sandlin was a promising Royals pitching prospect sent to the Red Sox in the John Schreiber deal before the 2024 season. The Red Sox sent him to the White Sox before this year, and he made his MLB debut this year. The 25-year-old right-hander had a 5.58 ERA in 40.1 innings, and will pitch out of the White Sox bullpen.

Red Sox vs. Yankees

Aroldis Chapman, Red Sox

The Aroldis Chapman era in Kansas City was fairly forgettable in 2023, but he did net us Cole Ragans in a deal that worked out great for the Royals and the Rangers, who won the World Series that year. The ageless Chapman has been fantastic in Boston, with a 1.51 ERA and 67 saves over the past two seasons, earning All-Star honors each season.

Nate Eaton, Red Sox

Eaton was a late round pick by the Royals in 2018 out of the Virginia Military Institute. He was a jack-of-all-trades who could play everywhere, run, and hit for some power. He looked good in 44 games with the team in 2022, but went 4-for-53 (.075) in limited action the next year. Now 29, he appeared in 24 games for Boston this year, hitting .160 and filling in mostly as a bench player.

John Schreiber, Yankees

Schreieber did not give up a run in five postseason appearances for the Royals in 2024, and he led the team with 74 relief appearances in 2025. In 188 games over the past three seasons, he posted a 3.71 ERA. He was placed on waivers late this year to save money on his salary, and he was fantastic down the stretch for the Yankees with a 1.68 ERA in 11 games.

Ryan Yarbrough, Yankees

The Royals brought Yarbrough in for the 2023 season as a rubber-armed crafty lefty that could fill any role they needed for their pitching-starved roster. He was solid for them with a 4.24 ERA in 51 innings before they traded him to the Dodgers for Derlin Figueroa and Devin Mann. He is in his second year with the Yankees, and has a 3.69 ERA in 63.1 innings this year.

Cubs vs. Padres

The official Cubs and Padres postseason rosters won’t be announced until later today, but here are the former Royals we could see.

Jason Adam, Padres

The Kansas City native was drafted by the Royals, but traded to the Twins to get Royals postseason hero Josh Willingham. He returned to the Royals where he made his MLB debut in 2018, but his career didn’t take off until 2022 when he became an elite reliever with the Rays. He was an All-Star last year with the Padres and had a 2.62 ERA this year, although injuries limited him to 38 games.

Freddy Fermin, Padres

Fermin was a popular backup catcher with the Royals and Gold Glove finalist, but he was traded to the Padres last summer for pitchers Stephen Kolek and Ryan Bergert. His bat has declined in San Diego – he hit just .203/.274/.315 in 96 games. But he has been very good behind the plate, ranking well in pitch framing, pitch-blocking, and throwing metrics.

Samad Taylor, Padres

Taylor was acquired by the Royals in the Whit Merrifield trade, and he had a memorable MLB debut with a walk-off single in 2023. He joined the Padres this year at age 27, and had a nice year as a bench player, hitting .316/.390/.408 with 13 steals in 47 games, playing mostly in the outfield.

In the next round, we could also see former Royals pitcher Foster Griffin for the Guardians and Kris Bubic with the Dodgers.

Who are you rooting for in the postseason?

Postseason baseball is back, and unfortunately the Detroit Tigers aren’t part of it. For some, that really kills the interest level, and I get it. On the other hand, sports are amplified by the bright lights of the playoffs and World Series, and there is little better than postseason baseball in my opinion. So, pick a team or just see whose bandwagon you feel like jumping on along the way. Even without the Tigers, it’s going to be a really fun month of baseball, and potentially instructive towards the challenges before the Tigers to get back.

All four Wild Card series will begin on Tuesday, September 29th. Each one is a best-of-three, with the two top teams in each league waiting for their divisional round opponents. The home team stays the home team for the whole series, and there are no off days to try and get to the full rounds without putting the top teams on the shelf for more than a few days.

Here are the times for both Game 1 and Game 2 of each series. If necessary, Game 3 schedules will be announced as required to take advantage of prime time.

2:00 p.m. ET Philadelphia Phillies at Atlanta Braves

5:00 p.m. ET Chicago White Sox at Houston Astros

8:00 p.m. ET Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees

10:00 p.m. ET Chicago Cubs at San Diego Padres

Another year, another October without Mets baseball. A long offseason of speculation, trade rumors, roster projections, and bittersweet retrospectives awaits, but first, there’s a championship to be won.

While it might be disheartening that the 2026 season didn’t work out in the Mets’ favor, that doesn’t mean it’s worth protesting the postseason entirely. In fact, this year’s field features teams with some of the more compelling storylines and players with some of the most impressive single-season achievements in recent memory. Starting tonight, a dozen clubs are competing to win the 2026 World Series (see bracket here), and it’s never too late to hop on a bandwagon or simply follow along.

If you want a look at the former Mets in the postseason, check out this article. But if you want a crash course on the 2026 contenders, including how they got here, players to watch, stats to know, and reasons why a Mets fan might root for each of them, then you’ve come to the right place. 

So without further ado, here is your guide to the 2026 postseason.

TAMPA BAY RAYS(AL 1, 98-64)

Last World Series win / appearance: None / 2020

Last playoff appearance: 2023 (lost in ALWC to Rangers)

The catch-up: How does Tampa Bay do it? After two years of missing the playoffs — just when it seemed like their chaotic dynasty was coming to an end — the Rays rose from the ashes to win 98 games and handily take the American League’s No. 1 seed. This iteration of their roster shares some similarities with the pennant-winning 2020 squad, with a healthy amount of mixing and matching on the position-player side and a corps of high-end starting pitchers (featuring Drew Rasmussen, Shane McClanahan, and Nick Martinez), but the team’s strategy itself is something new. The ’20 Rays struck out more than any team in baseball; the ’26 Rays had the fewest strikeouts in the league. The ’20 Rays ranked 21st in batting average; the ’26 Rays were tied for first. 

The 2026 AL East title is the latest achievement for a franchise that consistently proves it can make a 26-man roster greater than the sum of its parts. But if the Rays want to return to the World Series or simply win their first playoff series since 2020, they’ll need to flap their way past a tough division rival (Yankees or Red Sox) in the ALDS.

Player to watch: This space could have been used to praise Junior Caminero, a likely MVP finalist who at 23 years old finished with 40+ homers for a second straight season. But if there’s one player on the Rays who offers a skillset like no other in the league, it’s 25-year-old Chandler Simpson. The sophomore is yet to homer in 260 big league games (in fact, he is yet to homer in 526 games at any professional level), but he led the American League with 46 steals and ranked second with a .306 batting average. He’s one of the swiftest foots in the postseason, as former Met Luisangel Acuña is the only player with a faster sprint speed on an AL playoff team. In an ALDS against a team with high-end pitching like the Yankees or Red Sox, Simpson’s ability to transform from a baserunner into a run scored will be all the more game-changing.

Stat to know: Just how well-rounded are the Rays? They’re the first team to have players reach 40 homers (Caminero), 40 steals (Simpson), and 40 saves (Bryan Baker) in the same season since the 2011 Yankees (Curtis Granderson, Brett Gardner, and Mariano Rivera).

Why a Mets fan might root for them: If you like any combination of small ball, small-market success, or middle-reliever Steven Matz, the Rays might be the team for you. Plus, they’re one of three franchises in this year’s postseason field without a World Series title.

CLEVELAND GUARDIANS(AL 2, 85-77)

Last World Series win / appearance: 1948 / 2016

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in ALWC to Tigers)

The catch-up: The Guardians are the pranksters of the AL Central. They go unnoticed in preseason predictions. They get off to relatively unassuming starts, lingering a few games back in the standings for some months. And then, suddenly, there they are, pulling the rug out from under an unassuming opponent. They did it to the Tigers in 2025. They did it to the White Sox in 2026. This year, they’re hoping that story has a happier ending come October.

The Guardians’ 77-year World Series drought is now the longest in the majors after the Cubs snapped theirs by beating Cleveland in 2016. Over these past ten years, the Guardians have made the playoffs seven times, but have been eliminated at every level (once in the World Series, once in the ALCS, thrice in the ALDS, and twice in the ALWC). Why could this year be different? The Guardians have a unique combination of reliable starting pitching, a low-swing-and-miss offense (powered by another fine year from the scrappy Steven Kwan), and a dynamic rookie duo in Chase DeLauter and Travis Bazzana. Plus, they earned the benefit of a bye and an ALDS matchup with the easier side of the bracket despite winning just 85 games, affording them the opportunity to set their rotation and rest up before the dance begins. “Guards Ball” has helped win them the AL Central race year after year. Can it take them further than that?

Player to watch: On April 6, José Ramírez became the Guardians’ franchise leader in games played. This is a franchise that was around for 27 seasons before sliced bread. Yet in the bigger picture of JRam’s phenomenal and criminally overlooked career, that accomplishment will likely get lost in the mix. The switch-hitting third baseman has been a Top 5 finalist in MVP voting six times. He has put up three 30/30 seasons. With three more home runs, he will become just the ninth member of baseball’s 300 HR / 300 SB club. Why do I list off these accolades? Because Ramírez is the heart and soul of Cleveland, and even in effectively the worst season of his career (a 2.6 bWAR, which isn’t all that bad), it’s hard to imagine the Guardians going far without him at the center of it all.

Stat to know: Pitching is the backbone of this Guardians team. Cleveland had four different members of their rotation make 30 starts this season (Parker Messick, Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, and Joey Cantillo). No other playoff team had three such starters, and only three other playoff teams had two 30-game starters: the Padres (Walker Buehler and Michael King), the Phillies (Cristopher Sánchez and Aaron Nola), and the Rays (Drew Rasmussen and Nick Martinez).

Why a Mets fan might root for them: If you enjoyed watching the Mets’ rookie class this season, then the Guardians just might be the team for you. Only two teams in 2026 racked up 5+ fWAR from rookie hitters and 5+ fWAR from rookie pitchers: the Mets and Guardians. Cleveland’s rookie class is headlined by left-handed starter Messick, breakout bat DeLauter, and former No. 1 overall pick Bazzana.

HOUSTON ASTROS(AL 3, 81-81)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2022 / 2022

Last playoff appearance: 2024 (lost in ALWC to Tigers)

The catch-up: Let’s get it out of the way: The 2026 Astros have the worst record (81-81) of any playoff team in MLB history, excluding the shortened 2020 season. But Mets fans should know better than to count them out for that reason alone. After all, the 1973 Mets (82-79) came within one game of winning a World Series, and the 2006 Cardinals (83-78) crushed the Amazins’ hopes en route to a title. In fact, the 2026 Astros share something else in common with those 1973 Mets: they won the World Series just four years earlier.

A championship pedigree could carry Houston, especially against a first-round opponent as inexperienced as the White Sox. The Astros’ organization certainly has familiarity with high-pressure October baseball, as Houston made the ALCS seven years in a row from 2017-23. The team also clubbed the most homers in baseball this season, though that was largely due to the efforts of one man in particular…

Player to watch: It takes some big offensive numbers for a designated hitter to win MVP, but Yordan Alvarez cleared that bar pretty handily in 2026. He led the majors in all three components of the slash line(.316/.432/.601), and would have earned the AL Triple Crown on account of his career-high 42 homers and 106 RBI if not for the problem of Pete Alonso. The 29-year-old had put up stellar seasons before, particularly from 2022-24, but after a lost season in 2025, he kicked things into another stratosphere to help carry the Astros to a low-hanging AL West title. Alvarez also has an abundance of playoff experience, with 12 homers in 60 career postseason games.

Stat to know: Alvarez is the first left-handed hitter to record 40+ homers, 100+ RBI, and a .315+ batting average in a season since Barry Bonds in 2004.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: As I see it, there are really three options here: 1) You want the chaos of watching the baseball world collapse in on itself as an 81-81 team wins the World Series; 2) You want to watch Yordan Alvarez launch four balls a game into orbit; 3) You want Yankees fans to suffer the ultimate pain of knowing that, even when the Astros are .500, the Bombers still can’t beat them in a playoff series.

NEW YORK YANKEES (AL 4, 93-68)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2009 / 2024

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in ALDS to Blue Jays)

The catch-up: Where comes the Judge? That is the question looming over the Yankees’ playoff hopes in 2026, as they enter their 9th postseason since the Judgian era commenced. In many ways, this roster construction is something of a curveball for the Yankees’ usual formula. Their calling card isn’t the offense, but rather an electric starting rotation. If the three-time MVP was at full power, perhaps this would be the year the Yankees appear best suited to capture their elusive 28th championship. But their captain is a question mark for the Wild Card Series (and possibly beyond) after missing over three months of the season due to injury.

The lineup has other sluggers to carry the load — Ben Rice blasted 41 homers, Cody Bellinger finished the season strong, and Paul Goldschmidt crushed lefties — but there is only one Aaron Judge, as evidenced by the fact that he finished tied for the third-most homers on the team (18) despite only playing for about 40% of the season. With an elite rotation and a relatively weak AL field, anything is possible…but if the Yankees are 0-for-8 in the postseason with Judge, can they really win it all without him?

Player to watch: If there was any year for the Yankees to compete in the playoffs without Judge, it’s certainly 2026 — a year when their elite top end of the rotation has been led by the presumptive AL Cy Young Award winner Cam Schlittler. Since making his big-league debut last July, the 25-year-old right-hander has emerged as one of the game’s premier starting pitchers. This season, he posted a 1.95 ERA while striking out 239 batters over 193.2 innings. He also has experience dominating his childhood favorite team in the playoffs, as he tossed eight scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts to eliminate the Red Sox in Game 3 of the Wild Card Series last season. Schlittler will be the Yankees’ No. 1 starter this time around as the Bronx Bombers gear up to face Boston in the three-game series once again.

Stat to know: The Yankees’ 3.24 team ERA leads the majors, and it isn’t particularly close. The gap between them and the next-best team (the Brewers at 3.51) is greater than the gap between second place and eighth on that list.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: The only explanation I can envision is this: You’re a die-hard Mets and Knicks fan whose daily life in New York was illuminated this June by the festivities and optimism caused by a championship run, and you simply want your city to feel some semblance of that same joy once again before winter arrives. You wish it was another orange and blue team causing the euphoria…but with a heavy heart, you’ll still pop a bottle for a second New York title should it occur.

BOSTON RED SOX (AL 5, 87-75)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2018 / 2018

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in ALWC to Yankees)

The catch-up: The Red Sox could have just turned to 2027. They let go of longtime manager Alex Cora when they were 10-17 in late April. By June 24 under interim manager Chad Tracy, they were 32-46 with a 12.7% chance of making the playoffs. But somehow, when the trade deadline arrived just over a month later, they were the best story in baseball and in the midst of an unfathomable 32-5 run.

The franchise has had a few fine moments since winning the 2018 World Series, including an ALCS appearance in 2021 and an AL Wild Card berth in 2025, but the summer of ’26 seems to have rekindled a sort of passion not seen in Boston since the days of Mookie Betts. The Sox will first match up with the Yankees for a three-game set in the Bronx, which is exactly where their season ended last year; but this time around, they have a pitching staff that sparkled to the tune of a 3.54 ERA, a resilient clubhouse that knows what it takes to flip the script while battling adversity, and a new skipper who last week managed to shed the “interim” label from his title.

Player to watch: He won’t win AL Rookie of the Year, but it’s hard to imagine a rookie stealing the heart of Boston’s fiery fanbase more than 23-year-old Payton Tolle. The mustachioed southpaw hit the ground running with an 11-strikeout performance in his season debut against the Yankees, and he didn’t slow down from there. On August 7, he racked up 14 strikeouts at Fenway Park against the Athletics. On September 13, he fired an immaculate inning, shooting a grin at the dugout before notching the final strike. The numbers speak for themselves — a 3.03 ERA and 171 strikeouts in 148.2 innings — but you really have to hear him speak and watch him pitch to understand his status as a rising fan-favorite, whether he’s talking about eating five donuts during a flight delay or telling the moving story of the “you’re so pretty” slogan inscribed on his glove as a tribute to his late mother.

Stat to know: From July 3 to July 22, the Red Sox tied a 1946 franchise record by winning 15 straight games.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. The Red Sox winning it all means the Yankees lose to their rivals in the first round at home, and it doesn’t get any sweeter for a petty Mets fan than that. Additionally, this is a young, fun, spirited Boston bunch that most counted out in the middle of the season. Sure, the Sox have won four championships this decade (more than any other franchise), but consider that zero players overlap between their most recent World Series-winning team and this one. As far as rooting for the Red Sox goes, this is about as homegrown and underdog-ish as it gets.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX (AL 6, 84-78)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2005 / 2005

Last playoff appearance: 2021 (lost in ALDS to Astros)

The catch-up: If a baseball writer were asked in February what it would take for the 2026 White Sox — coming off three consecutive 100-loss seasons — to make the playoffs, they probably would have said divine intervention. That’s practically what happened. 

With a combination of rehabbing reliever Mike Vasil’s wand-based magic and the Pope’s support, the White Sox seemed to recruit the heavens to their side en route to a postseason berth. So much went right, from 26-year-old Miguel Vargas breaking out with 33 homers to offseason signing Munetaka Murakami’s seemingly seamless transition to the majors. Not many teams get the luxury of drafting at No. 1 overall in the midst of a playoff run, but that’s what happens when you go from worst-to-first (or, more accurately, worst-to-sixth-seed). At this point, the South Siders are playing with house money. They’d love to go far, or at least win their first postseason series since 2005, but there’s no doubt that this season has already qualified as a resounding success for the once-rebuilding White Sox.

Player to watch: In a season packed with a plethora of outstanding performances from rookies, Munetaka Murakami stands apart — not just because he was an NPB and World Baseball Classic star already, but because he seemed to single-handedly imbue the 2026 White Sox with a sense of purpose from the jump. Over his first 55 games, Murakami hit 20 home runs. He later missed over a month due to injury and came back strong, eventually reaching 35 homers. Though he tapered off a bit down the stretch (like Chicago’s offense as a whole), the 26-year-old first baseman is still the team’s biggest bat, not to mention their biggest hygiene advocate. And in case you need an emphatic reminder: he is Japanese.

Stat to know: Prior to the 2026 White Sox, no team in MLB history had made the playoffs after multiple straight 100-loss seasons.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: If the Red Sox are a sort of dark-horse underdog given their mid-season turnaround and young roster, the White Sox are a true, classic, indisputable underdog. There has literally never been a playoff team coming off seasons as bad as theirs. It would be the ultimate cinderella, rags-to-riches story. Plus, the White Sox are the historically less successful of two teams in a major market, so from a certain point of view, they’re practically the Mets of Chicago.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS (NL 1, 103-59)

Last World Series win / appearance: None / 1982

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in NLCS to Dodgers)

The catch-up: If it’s ever going to happen, it sure feels like this is the year. One of baseball’s four franchises without a World Series title, the Brewers have been putting up admirable bid after admirable bid over the past nine years. Consistently underestimated by preseason rankings, the Brewers once again cracked the code to the regular season and made a reverberant statement by earning the NL’s No. 1 seed for a second consecutive year. But to truly prove the foolish doubters wrong, they need to demonstrate that their brand of offense — one built on contact, walks, and speed — can play in October. No matter how strong they look for 162 games, they seem year after year to fall flat on the biggest stage, whether watching Shohei Ohtani put together the best game in major league history to eliminate them in 2025 or coming a Polar Bear’s blast away from advancing in 2024.

But this year, the Brewers reached new heights with a franchise-best 103 wins. Their lineup looked like a finely-tuned machine designed to break down opposing pitchers and expose defensive miscues, scoring the second-most runs in baseball. Their pitching staff, headlined by the hardest-throwing starting pitcher in the history of the sport (see below), blew opponents away with the second-most strikeouts and second-lowest ERA in baseball. If you began following MLB in 2026 but had zero awareness of the years prior — no knowledge of the Brewers’ failed postseason runs or the Dodgers’ back-to-back championships — you would probably say the Brewers are far and away the team to beat this fall.

Player to watch: “The Miz,” more formally known as Jacob Misiorowksi, is a one-of-a-kind talent who has spent the past six months shattering virtually every velocity record for starting pitchers in the pitch-tracking era. After receiving a perhaps premature All-Star nod as a rookie in 2025, the flamethrowing right-hander made good on the hype by posting a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts in 2026, positioning himself to take home a Cy Young Award at just 24 years old. His crowning achievement was a one-hit, 15-strikeout “Maddux” performance against the Phillies — one of Milwaukee’s possible opponents in an NLCS —  on June 12. Misiorwoski also has playoff experience, having allowed just two earned runs in 12 innings over three appearances with the Brewers last postseason.

Stat to know: The Brewers had the majors’ best record despite hitting the fewest homers (154) of any NL team. Only four NL teams have won the pennant while hitting the fewest homers in their league. One of those teams was the 1982 Cardinals, who beat none other than…the Milwaukee Brewers.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: This is, in many ways, still David Stearns’ team. From that perspective, a win for the Brewers bodes well for the future of the Mets organization. On another note, the Brewers have zero championships, plenty of spirit, and just named Christian Yelich their first captain in franchise history (for those who want to support an old-school “captain” designation).

LOS ANGELES DODGERS (NL 2, 100-62)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2025 / 2025

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (won World Series)

The catch-up: How do you enhance a team that won back-to-back championships? You sign the best reliever in baseball, sign the biggest free agent position player on the market, and trade for a back-to-back Cy Young Award winner at the deadline. Simple enough! Well, sort of…two of those three (Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker) have dramatically underperformed, but even those stumbles haven’t put too big of a dent in the Dodgers’ plans.

The Dodgers’ regular-season record reflects their status as a true superteam, filled with star players and guided by competent management. If you need a reminder, here are just a few of the A-list names on their roster: Four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani, MVP Mookie Betts, MVP Freddie Freeman, World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, and two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. One could argue that their core is beginning to show some cracks when it comes to durability — but the Dodgers have a history of timing players’ injury recoveries just right to have them ready for October. There’s no reason they shouldn’t be considered the heavy favorites entering the postseason, and if they do pull off a three-peat, they would be the first NL team in MLB history to accomplish the feat.

Player to watch: Here is Shohei Ohtani, through a translator, reflecting on his 2026 season: “Disappointing…I want to make sure that when I look back this season that I used this as an experience, a learning experience, and make sure that I use that as something to improve upon for next season.” What did this down year look like? 30 homers, 81 RBI, 11 stolen bases, an .889 OPS, and oh yeah, a 1.79 ERA in 85.2 innings pitched. On the surface, it’s still one of the most impressive seasons in baseball history. But the concerning part for Ohtani and for Dodgers fans was the dip in productivity (and versatility) as the season progressed, with injuries forcing the two-way player to shut down as a pitcher for the remainder of the season and focus on offense, where he batted just .202 with a .666 OPS over his last 30 games. If the Dodgers want to three-peat, they’ll have to do it with an ever-so-slightly-less-powerful unicorn leading the way.

Stat to know: The Dodgers put up the second-highest OPS in the majors (.762), marking the fifth straight season that they’ve finished with the highest or second-highest team OPS.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: There should be no shame in rooting for the Dodgers simply because they’re a lot of fun to watch. Plus, while some might view a three-peat as monotonous, the baseball history fans could counter that an NL three-peat would quite literally be unprecedented. There’s also the eternal Brooklyn rooting angle for the portion of Mets fans who used to (or whose relatives used to) support Dem Bums before the Dodgers and Giants fled to the West Coast in 1958.

ATLANTA BRAVES (NL 3, 94-68)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2021 / 2021

Last playoff appearance: 2024 (lost in NLWC to Padres)

The catch-up: After a string of seven straight seasons in which they made the playoffs, Atlanta finally missed out with a disappointing 76-win finish in 2025. But just when the baseball world began to count them out, the Braves came back with a vengeance, capturing the NL East with a 94-win season despite a myriad of pitching injuries. 

In a more balanced year, that record might have earned the Braves a first-round bye. Instead, they’ll face the Phillies, and that’s a movie they’ve seen before. In 2022, the 101-win Braves lost in four games to the 87-win Phillies. In 2023, the 104-win Braves lost in four games to the 90-win Phillies. Why should the 94-win Braves now feel confident they can get past the 88-win Phillies in a three-game set? Perhaps the answer is as simple as ace Chris Sale, who put together an age-37 season for the ages (2.16 ERA, exactly 200 strikeouts). Or perhaps the better answer is: they couldn’t possibly let it happen again, right?

Player to know: The Braves’ regular cast of characters is back together, with Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, and Austin Riley all fixtures in their lineup once again, but it’s 25-year-old Michael Harris II who was actually Atlanta’s most valuable position player this season. After winning the 2022 NL Rookie of the Year Award, the center-fielder Harris struggled to replicate his offensive success before breaking out in 2026 with a career-high 26 homers, 36 doubles, and 87 RBI. He also put up a phenomenal season defensively (even by his standards), with his 13 outs above average ranking third among outfielders (behind the Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong and Boston’s Ceddanne Rafaela). He’s a dynamic five-tool player, and even among an elite Braves core, he’s the player to watch this postseason.

Stat to know: The Braves’ .597 winning percentage against teams above .500 was the second-best in baseball this season behind the Brewers (.600).

Why a Mets fan might root for them: You are the world’s No. 1 Dom Smith believer. You will stand by Dom Smith until the day you die. You walk around telling everyone you know about how if 2020 were a full season, Dom Smith would have had the confidence to become a perennial All-Star. You post a tweet each and every day calling for David Stearns to bring back Dom Smith, and also Wilmer Flores, and maybe Luis Guillorme, too.

SAN DIEGO PADRES (NL 4, 91-71)

Last World Series win / appearance: None / 1998

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in NLWC to Cubs)

The catch-up: The Slam Diego dream is still alive. Ever since the Padres rebranded in 2020 — both in a literal sense with the reintroduction of brown and gold and in a spiritual sense with the emergence of Fernando Tatis Jr. — the fervor for the franchise to secure their first World Series championship has continued reaching new heights. They’ve made the playoffs four times this decade, but despite some electric moments (beating the 111-win Dodgers at home in 2022 headlines that list), they’re still yet to taste the Fall Classic.

2026 looked for a moment as if it might represent the closing of that championship window. After arguably their most crushing playoff loss to date in the 2025 Wild Card Series at Wrigley Field, the Padres got off to a sluggish start, sitting at exactly .500 (48-48) by the All-Star break. Most notably, their patented offense was struggling to score runs. The Friars fell as far as 50-53, but then the switch finally flipped. The bats got hot to back up an elite bullpen as San Diego soared all the way to the top Wild Card spot, giving them yet another Wild Card Series date with the Cubs — only this time, it’s at Petco Park. The hunger is at an all-time high. The Padres’ core can’t afford to miss any more chances. Is this the year they finally keep the show going until the end?

Player to watch: The Padres’ roster is packed with star position players, from Tatis Jr. to Manny Machado to Jackson Merrill, but it’s the Friars’ fire-balling closer Mason Miller who stole the spotlight in 2026. It wasn’t just the fact that he saved 38 games with a 1.67 ERA — it’s how he did it. 129 strikeouts in 70 innings, good for a 16.59 K/9 rate (the highest mark by a pitcher with 50+ IP in a season since Edwin Díaz in 2022). 384 pitches at 101+ mph, good for the third-most in a season in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) behind Jacob Misiorowksi in ’26 (743) and Aroldis Chapman in ’16 (424). Zero extra-base hits allowed through the first half. It was a display of unparalleled dominance, and one that will surely frighten the Padres’ prospective opponents throughout the playoffs if San Diego brings a lead into the late innings.

Stat to know: In the second half, the Padres had baseball’s second-best record (43-23, trailing Brewers), second-best OBP (.343, trailing Brewers), second-best SLG (.438, trailing Cubs), and the player with the second-highest OPS (Fernando Tatis Jr. with .995, trailing only Alex Bregman). You might notice that the Cubs and Brewers are the only teams they trail in each of those categories. Those are also the two teams which San Diego will have to go through in order to make the NLCS.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: So long as you’re not still hung up on the 2022 Wild Card Series, the Padres actually check a lot of potential boxes: they’ve never won a World Series, they feature exciting star players, they play with attitude, and their fanbase is wildly passionate. If you want a West Coast team to root for but have sworn off the Dodgers, why not the Friars?

CHICAGO CUBS (NL 5, 89-73)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2016 / 2016

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in NLDS to Brewers)

The catch-up: The decade since the Cubs broke the Curse of the Billy Goat and snapped their 108-year championship drought hasn’t exactly gone as planned. The core of Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, and Javier Báez made the playoffs three more times but never made another World Series, and eventually was broken up at the trade deadline in 2021. Five years later, led by the key prospect in one of those deals, the Cubs are back to being a powerhouse — albeit a historically odd one.

The Cubs have a lethal lineup and, as Gary Cohen would put it, a pulchritudinous defense all around the diamond. The problem rests with their struggling pitching staff, creating a wildly unbalanced roster which MLB.com’s Mike Petriello analyzed in detail earlier this month. That lack of balance didn’t just define the 2026 Cubs’ roster, but their record as well, as Chicago went on two separate 10-game winning streaks and a 10-game losing streak all within the season’s first two months. Talk about a roller coaster. 

Player to watch: 24-year-old phenom Pete Crow-Armstrong is in line for a unanimous National League MVP Award, but his season wasn’t just the best in the NL this year — it was arguably the best in decades. His 10.6 fWAR marks the first 10-WAR season (either bWAR or fWAR) by an NL player since Barry Bonds in 2004. On all sides of the ball, PCA put on a clinic. His 45 home runs were tied for the most in the majors. His 41 stolen bases were tied for fourth. And his 25 Outs Above Average were tied for first, over 1.5x that of the next-best outfielder. Of the seven players in major league history to put up 40-40 seasons, Crow-Armstrong will be just the second to also win a Gold Glove Award that same year (along with Bonds in 1996).

Stat to know: The Cubs recorded a fielding run value of 73 from infielders and outfielders (excluding catchers). That total was the most in the majors by a mile, almost twice as many as the second-place Cardinals (39).

Why a Mets fan might root for them: It is a thing of beauty to watch these Cubs play defense. Whether it’s Dansby Swanson and Nico Hoerner turning double plays up the middle, Alex Bregman holding down the hot corner, or Ian Happ, PCA, and Seiya Suzuki patrolling the outfield, there is simply nowhere safe for an opposing batter to hit the ball. Of those six players I just mentioned, there are a combined 10 Gold Glove Awards to go around (with a few more likely on the way this offseason). Alternatively, you can root for the Cubs this October if you want to know what it would have felt like to have Pete Crow-Armstrong on your side.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES(NL 6, 88-74)

Last World Series win / appearance: 2008 / 2022

Last playoff appearance: 2025 (lost in NLDS to Dodgers)

The catch-up: In 2022, bearing a 22-29 record and coming off 10 straight seasons with no playoff baseball, the Phillies promoted Rob Thomson from bench coach to interim manager. That October, they made a magical run to the World Series as the No. 6 seed, eventually falling in Game 6 to the Astros. Three seasons and three crushing playoff losses later, the organization faced another dilemma: a 9-19 record and their hopes of winning it all with an aging core slipping away. Once again, a managerial change turned the ship around — only this time, Thomson was on the short end.

Under Don Mattingly, the Phillies surged throughout a summer of fanfare which also saw their city host MLB’s All-Star festivities. After sitting 10.5 games back of first place in the NL East on May 22, the Phillies crawled all the way to 2.0 games back of the Braves by July 7. They stayed within striking distance until mid-September, when the rails came off in a moving tribute to the ’07 Mets (and ’08 Mets and ’25 Mets). But despite four straight losses during the season’s final week, the Phillies barely hung on to a playoff spot with a win in Game 162. It wasn’t as smooth a ride as their division-winning campaigns in ’24 and ’25, but if recent history is any indicator, a mid-season managerial change and No. 6 seeding might just be the key to the Phillies’ pennant chances.

Player to watch: Last offseason, conversation stirred surrounding whether 33-year-old Bryce Harper could ever be a truly “elite” player again. While he didn’t make a compelling case for a third career MVP Award, “The Chosen One” continued to rake as he always does, posting 29 homers behind an .865 OPS and playing in all 162 games. There are bigger power threats on Philadelphia’s roster (see: Kyle Schwarber’s fourth 45-homer season in the past five years). There are better contact hitters (see: trade deadline acquisition Luis Arraez, one of seven qualified hitters to finish above .300) and speed demons (see: Trea Turner and Bryson Stott each with 20+ stolen bases), too. But there is only one Harper, the phenom and face of the franchise who sent the Phillies to the World Series with one clutch swing in 2022. He is a nine-time All-Star, a four-time Silver Slugger, a Home Run Derby champ, and a Rookie of the Year, but he is still yet to win a Fall Classic. That lacking accolade should be motivation enough for Harper to make this October count.

Stat to know: The Phillies struck out 1,577 batters this season, 33 more than any other team in the majors.

Why a Mets fan might root for them: A long postseason run surely means a 2027 hangover effect, right?

The MLB postseason kicks off today! Four Wild Card Series will be played over the next three days, in which time the Brewers will learn whether they’ll face the Cubs or the Padres in their Division Series matchup. You can check out our Wild Card Series Preview here, but here’s a quick rundown of this week’s action, and where you can find it:

Philadelphia Phillies @ Atlanta Braves (1:00 p.m. CT each day, NBC & Peacock)

The Phillies are back in the postseason for the fifth straight season and the third time as an NL Wild Card. Both of those Wild Card appearances have boded well for them, as they made the World Series in 2022 and the NLCS in 2023, taking out the Braves in the NLDS both times. This year, they backed into the final playoff spot on the last day of the regular season after spoiling multiple chances throughout the week to clinch, but nonetheless, they’re here. The Braves, who had a disappointing 2025 after making the playoffs each of the seven seasons prior, are back as the champs of the NL East for the first time since 2023. They’re led by the resurgence of a late-career Chris Sale, who once again put his name into contention for the NL Cy Young with a strong season. The offense has been good, albeit inconsistent, led by Matt Olson, Michael Harris Jr, and Drake Baldwin.

Chicago White Sox @ Houston Astros (4:00 p.m. CT each day, Peacock & NBC Sports Network)

What most would likely expect to be the most boring Wild Card Series, this set features the two worst teams in the postseason, at least by record. The Astros became the first division winner in MLB history to finish without a winning record, ending the year at 81-81, but I promise you they don’t care. They’re back in the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 10 years after missing the postseason last year. Even at .500, they led the league in homers this year, finishing in the top 10 in OPS, though their pitching staff ranked in the bottom-third of the league. The White Sox, who lost 100-plus games each of the last three seasons, are back in the postseason for the first time since 2021, when they lost in the ALDS to the Astros. They’re also an offense-first team, ranking in the top 10 in OPS, homers, and runs scored behind Munetaka Murakami, Miguel Vargas, and Colson Montgomery, while their pitching staff sits right in the middle of the pack.

Boston Red Sox @ New York Yankees (7:00 p.m. CT each day, NBC & Peacock)

One of two Wild Card rematches from a year ago, the Red Sox will once again travel to New York to face the rival Yankees in this best-of-three series. Last year, the Red Sox claimed Game 1 but dropped the last two games in three low-scoring games, as the two teams scored just 15 total runs in the series. I’d expect more scoring this time around, but who knows — these are two of the best pitching staffs in baseball, as the Yankees lead the league in ERA and the Red Sox rank third. Offensively, neither team is great, though the Red Sox had a solid second half and the Yankees can still mash homers, especially at Yankee Stadium. This should be a fun rivalry series in the Bronx.

Chicago Cubs @ San Diego Padres (9:00 p.m. CT each day, Peacock & NBC Sports Network)

Brewers fans will have to stay up late this week if they want to watch their two potential opponents in the NLDS face off, as the Padres will host the Cubs for their best-of-three series in San Diego. Chicago, who led the NL Central early in the season and looked like the top Wild Card team for most of the year, laid off the gas late in the year, allowing the surging Padres to take over that top seed in the final week. San Diego, which had one of the league’s worst offenses in the first half, has really turned things on since the All-Star break, led by Fernando Tatis Jr., who finished the season with 25 homers despite not hitting his first until May 30. The Padres also have one of the best bullpens in baseball, while the Cubs are an inconsistent offense-heavy team, as they have 35 wins of five-plus runs but they were also shut out 14 times this season. We’ll see how this one pans out as the Brewers await their opponent.