The MLB playoffs are upon us. How ready are you for all the postseason action?
After a sprint to the finish that saw the final American League wild-card spot decided on the final day of the regular season, the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card Game on Tuesday. That leaves nine teams still chasing World Series glory this October, led by the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays, who are all coming off 100-plus win campaigns.
Are those the three teams to beat or will someone else get hot and rule the postseason?
MLB experts Bradford Doolittle, Jeff Passan and David Schoenfield go deep on everything from the matchups and names you need to know to keys and very bold predictions for every team. Doolittle also has calculated the odds for every team’s shot at winning it all, as well as every potential matchup in each round against any possible opponent.
2021 MLB playoffs: Bracket, full schedule
Play: ESPN Playoff Baseball Classic
Jump to each postseason team:
NL: SF | MIL | ATL | LAD | STL
AL: TB | HOU | CHW | BOS
National League
San Francisco Giants
107-55 | NL West champs | 20.4% World Series odds
Odds by round
NLDS: 48.5% vs. LAD | 65.6% vs. STL
NLCS: 62.4% vs. MIL | 65.8% vs. ATL
WS: 56.5% vs. TB | 58.1% vs. HOU | 60.7% vs. CHW | 70.1% vs. BOS
Why they could go far: Every team in baseball had a losing record this season in games in which their opponents scored the first run. The Giants were no exception and their record in those games was typical among the playoff teams. On the other hand, San Francisco lapped the field when it came to winning the games in which it drew first blood. How? Well, it didn’t hurt that the Giants’ bullpen led the majors in ERA and WHIP. And that’s really the crux of it: If the Giants can establish an early lead, Gabe Kapler’s bullpen is probably going to get the job done. — Doolittle
What could send them home early: Regardless of what we thought going into the season, there’s nothing on the…
Source : espn
