What’s going on in the MLB? The Republic takes a look at baseball’s storylines
From Randy Arozarena’s big hitting performance against the Texas Rangers to the race for the postseason, here are some of the best stories from MLB just before the playoffs.
The 2024 MLB postseason is upon us, with less than 10 days until the end of the regular season. The byes and division races seem largely decided, but there is still a race for the seedings and a battle for the last wild card spot in the American League and National League.
The way the MLB playoffs work has changed throughout the sport’s history, especially recently. For 65 years (1903-1968), there was just a World Series between the pennant winners of the American League and the National League, then a best-of-five and finally a best-of-seven championship series was added before the World Series.
In 1994, a wild card spot was introduced in each league, with a five-game divisional series preceding the league championship series. In 2012, a second wild card team was added to each league, along with a playoff game between the two wild card teams before the divisional round. Due to the pandemic, eight teams from each league temporarily participated in the playoffs in 2020. The current format went into effect before the 2022 MLB postseason.
Here’s everything you need to know about this year’s MLB playoffs, including how the postseason format works, the number of teams that qualify, and which teams are still in the race for the postseason:
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How many teams are in the 2024 MLB postseason?
A total of 12 teams – six from the American League and six from the National League – take part in the MLB playoffs.
The division winners of the AL East, AL Central and AL West, as well as the NL East, NL Central and NL West, are the top three seeds in the playoffs of their respective leagues. They are seeded in order of their results in the regular season. The three non-division winners with the next best results in the American League and National League qualify as wild card teams for the MLB postseason.
Who is in the 2024 MLB playoffs?
The New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians had clinched American League playoff spots before games on Friday, September 20, and lead the AL East and AL Central, respectively. The Los Angeles Dodgers had also clinched a National League playoff spot, and lead the NL West. The Milwaukee Brewers have clinched the NL Central Division title and will be one of the National League’s top three seeds in the MLB postseason.
If the 2024 MLB playoffs were to begin before games begin on Friday, September 20, the Houston Astros would be the AL Central Division winners and the Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers would be the three American League wild-card teams. The Philadelphia Phillies would be the NL East winners and the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Mets would be NL wild-card teams.
How do the MLB playoffs work?
Beginning with the 2022 postseason, the MLB playoffs will expand to six teams in both the American League and National League, eliminating the controversial single-elimination wild-card game and instead adopting a format that features an additional round before the Division Series and a bye for the top teams in the regular season.
The division winners in the American League and National League are the top three seeds and are seeded in order of their regular season results. The top two teams in each respective league receive a first-round bye and advance to an AL or NL division series.
The other division winner in both the American League and National League (3rd place) will face the third wild card team, 6th place, in a wild card series. The other two wild card teams in each league – 4th place and 5th place – will also face each other in a wild card series.
The winner of each American League and National League wild card series gets to play in a division series against one of the top two seeds in their respective league. The winner of each division series gets to advance to the American League or National League championship series. The winners of the ALCS and NLCS play in the World Series.
What is the MLB playoff format for each postseason round?
The Wildcard Series is a best-of-three game format, with the first team to win two games advancing to the Division Series. All Wildcard Series games will be played at the home stadium of the higher seeded team and on consecutive days if possible.
The division series will still be played in a best-of-five format, with the first team to win three games advancing to the American League or National League Championship Series. The higher-seeded teams will host the first two games of the division series, the lower-seeded teams will host Game 3 and Game 4 (if necessary), and the higher-seeded teams will host a potential Game 5.
The ALCS and NLCS are both best-of-seven series, with the first team to win four games advancing to the World Series, which is also a best-of-seven series. The League Championship Series and World Series both have a 2-3-2 format: the higher seeds host the first two games, the lower seeds host Games 3, 4, and 5 (if necessary), and the higher seeds host Games 6 and 7 if necessary.
2024 MLB postseason schedule:
Wild Card Series (Best of Three):
October 1:
- AL Wild Card Game 1
- NL Wild Card Game 1
October 2
- AL Wild Card Game 2
- NL Wild Card Game 2
October 3
- AL Wild Card Game 3 (if necessary)
- NL Wild Card Game 3 (if required)
Division Series (Best of Five):
October 5
October 6
October 7
October 8
October 9
- ALDS Game 3
- NLDS Game 4 (if necessary)
October 10
- ALDS Game 4 (if necessary)
11 October
- NLDS Game 5 (if necessary)
October 12
- ALDS Game 5 (if necessary)
League Championship Series (Best-of-Seven):
13 October
October 14
15 October
16 October
17 October
18 October
- ALCS Game 4
- NLCS Game 5 (if necessary)
19 October
- ALCS Game 5 (if necessary)
20 October
- NLCS Game 6 (if necessary)
21 October
- ALCS Game 6 (if necessary)
- NLCS Game 7 (if necessary)
October 22
- ALCS Game 7 (if necessary)
World Series (Best of Seven):
- October 25: World Series, Game 1
- October 26: World Series, Game 2
- October 28: World Series, Game 3
- October 29: World Series, Game 4
- October 30: World Series Game 5 (if necessary)
- November 1: World Series Game 6 (if necessary)
- 2 November: World Series Game 7 (if necessary)
