The Major League Baseball playoffs are fast approaching, and a World Series showdown between Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge is looking like an attractive possibility.
While fan sentiment varies widely, there’s no doubt that MLB executives and broadcasters are salivating at the prospect of seeing the two best power hitters of their generation go head-to-head. Ohtani recently became the first member of the 50-homer, 50-stolen-base club in the same season, while Judge has 56 homers to his name in his third 50-homer season and second in three years.
Add to that the fact that Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Judge (New York Yankees) play in the two largest markets in the United States and for two of the most storied franchises in baseball.
Of course, there will be 10 other teams trying to stop them from making it to the finals. Last season, the Texas Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks in five games to win their first World Series.
Here’s a sneak peek at what’s coming.
Who qualifies? Who is still fighting for their place?
In the American League, the Yankees, Cleveland Guardians, Houston Astros and Baltimore Orioles occupy four of the six playoff spots. The Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers occupied the last two spots of drafted teams before Wednesday’s games, but the Seattle Mariners and Minnesota Twins are chasing them.
In the National League, the Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres have secured their berths in the fall tournament. The New York Mets, Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves are battling for the last two spots available.
How does the first round work?
The best-of-three first round has been played the same way for three seasons now. The format was changed in 2022. The single playoff game, which had been in place since 2012 — with the exception of the 2020 season — was abandoned in favor of this format.
Six teams in each league will qualify for the playoffs, including the three section champions, seeded Nos. 1-3. The next three teams with the best records in each league will be the drafted teams, seeded Nos. 4-6.
Among the section champions, the two teams with the best record will skip this first round. Currently, they would be the Yankees, Guardians, Phillies and Dodgers. This means that the No. 6 seeds will visit the third section champion; the other two teams will face each other.
A significant advantage is that all three matches are played in the same city, with the higher-ranked team acting as the home team for all three games, if applicable.
How to break ties?
If teams are still tied after the 162 games of the season, tiebreakers will be used instead of playing a 163e match.
The first is the record against each other. If that is not enough, the team with the best record in matches against teams from its section will be ranked higher. If that still does not separate the clubs, other scenarios are considered, until the tie can be resolved.
Both leagues are likely to resort to tiebreakers. The Diamondbacks, Mets and Braves are in a tight race, while the Tigers, Twins and Royals are also battling for two spots.
Changes to the rules
Several of the recent rule changes are still in effect during the playoffs, including the shot clock between pitches, the ban on adapted defenses and the limit on the number of times pitchers can attempt to wrong-foot runners.
However, the use of the runner at the start of the extra innings was not retained. This extension will be played like the first nine innings, without a runner at second to start the inning.
The first round will be launched on the 1ster October. If the World Series were to last seven games, it would end on November 2.
In Quebec, RDS will broadcast games involving the American teams and the World Series, while TVA Sports will handle the National League games.