The 2023 MLB playoffs kicked off this week with the start of the Wild Card Series. Now in the second year of baseball’s new postseason format, eight teams participated in four best-of-three series, with winners moving on to the Division Series.
In the American League, it was the No. 3-seed Minnesota Twins taking care of business at home against the No. 6-seed Toronto Blue Jays. The Twins took Game 1 by a score of 3-1 and won Game 2 2-0 to advance to the American League Division Series. It was Minnesota’s first playoff series victory since 2002.
Also in the AL, the No. 5-seed Texas Rangers went into Tampa Bay and upset the No. 4-seed Rays. The Rangers took Game 1 4-0 and Game 2 7-1 to advance to their first Division Series since 2016.
The ALDS kicks off on Saturday. Minnesota will visit the No. 2-seed Houston Astros. Houston is looking to defend its 2022 World Series title, as well as advance to the American League Championship Series for the seventh consecutive season.
Texas, meanwhile, will head to Baltimore to face the top-seed Orioles, who shocked the baseball world this season by rising from relative obscurity to finish with the American League’s best record. Saturday will mark the first postseason game played in Baltimore since 2014.
Meanwhile, on the National League side of the bracket, the No. 6-seed Arizona Diamondbacks did not particularly care that they finished the regular season with 84 wins, tied for the fewest of any playoff team. All they did was go into Milwaukee and knock off the No. 3-seed Brewers on consecutive days, by final scores of 6-3 and 5-2. Arizona advances to its first National League Division Series since 2017.
The other 84-win team to make the postseason did not fare nearly as well, however. The No. 5-seed Miami Marlins traveled up to Philadelphia and fell to the No. 4-seed Phillies. Philadelphia took Game 1 4-1, before delivering a 7-1 rout in Game 2 to move on. Philadelphia is back in the NLDS for the second consecutive season, following last year’s run to the World Series, where they came up short against the Astros.
The NLDS will also begin on Saturday, with both matchups being intra-division affairs. Arizona will travel to Los Angeles to take on the No. 2-seed Dodgers. After last season’s NLDS disappointment against the San Diego Padres, Los Angeles will be looking to make amends and make it back to the National League Championship Series for the sixth time in eight years. The Diamondbacks, on the other hand, will look to avenge a three-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers in their last postseason appearance back in 2017.
On the other coast, the Phillies will head to Atlanta to take on the No. 1-seed Braves. Atlanta rolled through the regular season, finishing with baseball’s best record at 104-58. While the Braves’ ultimate goal is to win it all, first they must exact revenge on a Philadelphia team that bounced them in the NLDS last season.
This Division Series will feature a unique blend of familiar faces and new blood. The Astros, Braves, and Dodgers all have Division Series streaks of seven seasons or longer, while the Orioles, Rangers, and Diamondbacks are all making their first appearance in the round since at least 2016.
The drama starts Saturday. Buckle up.