That distinction matters because Milwaukee is four wins from its first championship. A World Series roster is not a lifetime-achievement ballot, even when the candidate is the longest-tenured player in the organization and has spent three years fighting the same right shoulder.

As of Monday morning, my answer would be no. Woodruff still needs to face hitters.

If he does that twice, holds his velocity, throws the changeup for strikes and recovers well enough to repeat the work, my answer changes to yes. The Brewers can afford a controlled gamble with their final pitching spot. They cannot afford a ceremonial one.

Why This Is Even a Conversation

Three months ago, Woodruff’s season appeared finished.

He left his July 4 start in Arizona after 3 2/3 innings. His fastball dropped from 92.5 mph in the first inning to 86.6 in the fourth. His changeup fell from 82.9 to 76.6. Milwaukee placed him on the injured list the next day, and doctors later diagnosed another injury to the capsule in his right shoulder.

The initial plan called for a second capsule repair. Woodruff had undergone the first operation in October 2023, missed all of 2024 and did not return until the middle of 2025. Another surgery placed more than the rest of this season in doubt.

Then his August scan showed enough healing to cancel the operation. He began a five-week throwing program. His surgeon later cleared him to work from a mound. Woodruff threw 20 fastballs at full effort on October 10 and followed with a 31-pitch, high-intensity bullpen at Dodger Stadium three days later.

The public checklist has always included one more item: live hitters.

That is the difference between a promising bullpen and evidence Milwaukee can use. A side session can show velocity, movement and whether Woodruff feels pain. It cannot reproduce a hitter refusing to chase the changeup, spoiling the fastball or forcing him to throw from the stretch with adrenaline in the way.

The Brewers have until Friday’s World Series opener. The deadline is close enough that good intentions no longer count as progress.

The Roster Cost Is Smaller Than It Looks

Milwaukee carried 13 pitchers in the Division Series and again in the National League Championship Series. Three did not pitch in the first round. Kyle Harrison and Chad Patrick remained unused through the four-game sweep of Los Angeles.

That does not make either pitcher disposable. A seven-game series can produce a 13-inning night, a short start or a rain delay that ruins the next day’s plan. Matt Arnold cited Milwaukee’s exhausted staff in the 2018 NLCS when he explained why the club retained so much length for the Dodgers series.

But the final roster decision is not Woodruff against Milwaukee’s best reliever. It is Woodruff against the last pitcher who would otherwise make the roster.

The Brewers can change their 26-man roster before each postseason round. Woodruff is eligible because he was on the 60-day injured list entering September. If he suffers another injury during the World Series, Milwaukee can ask the Commissioner’s Office to replace him with another pitcher. There is no subsequent round for him to miss.

That protection makes the medical risk easier to manage. It does nothing about ineffectiveness. A pitcher cannot be replaced because his command is poor or his fastball is getting hit. If Woodruff is healthy enough to remain active but unable to get outs, Milwaukee owns that decision for the rest of the series.

That is why live batting practice is more than a final box for the medical staff. It is the closest available test of whether Woodruff is better than the alternative.

The Pitcher Milwaukee Remembers Is Worth the Attempt

Woodruff was still effective when he could take the ball this season. In nine starts, he had a 2.98 ERA, a 0.84 WHIP and 47 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings. His career postseason record covers only 28 1/3 innings, but the results are strong: a 3.18 ERA, a 0.85 WHIP and 40 strikeouts.

Those numbers explain the temptation. They do not answer the current question.

The pitcher from April or June had been built to start. The pitcher trying to return in October has not appeared in a game since July 4 and is preparing for relief work on an emergency timeline. Milwaukee is not deciding whether healthy Brandon Woodruff is better than its 13th pitcher. Of course he is. Milwaukee is deciding whether the version available Friday can throw 15 useful pitches against a World Series lineup.

His 2026 pitch mix offers a plausible relief role. His changeup was the better-performing pitch, holding hitters to a .133 average and a .167 slugging percentage in the Statcast record. His sinker was hit much harder. If the changeup is sharp enough to miss bats and the fastball is firm enough to protect it, Woodruff does not need to look like his 2019 All-Star self.

He does need two pitches he can command.

This is where the radar gun matters even if Woodruff would prefer not to look at it. Velocity is not the entire evaluation, and his career no longer depends on throwing 98. It mattered on July 4 because the decline was a warning that his shoulder could not maintain its normal work. The Brewers should demand stability now, not a particular nostalgic number.

If the fastball begins at 92 and finishes at 87 again, the decision is over.

The Medical Evidence Cannot Make the Decision

There is no clean database for this comeback.

A published case series on anterior shoulder capsule tears in professional baseball contained five players. Four returned to their prior level after surgery, with an average return time of 13.3 months. Five cases are not enough to forecast one pitcher, and Woodruff’s present injury healed enough that he avoided the planned operation.

The study is useful mainly because it keeps the seriousness of the injury in view. It does not tell the Brewers whether Woodruff can pitch on Friday.

Neither does his willingness. Woodruff has acknowledged that the attempt may be unwise. He has also said he would regret sitting still without trying. Both thoughts can be honest. Neither belongs on the medical clearance form.

Milwaukee has access to information the public does not: imaging, strength tests, recovery markers, velocity readings, movement data and Woodruff’s response the day after each session. The front office should use that information without pretending uncertainty disappears because the story is good.

His comeback attempt has already succeeded in one sense. Avoiding another surgery and rebuilding a throwing program gives him a much better starting point for 2027. The Brewers do not have to put him in a World Series game for the work to matter.

What I Need to See Before Friday

First, Woodruff must face hitters in something closer to competition than a bullpen. One session would show whether his pitches behave with a batter in the box. A second would show whether his shoulder can recover and do it again.

The important result is not whether the hitters make outs. Live batting practice is too controlled and too small to produce a useful ERA. I want to know whether the fastball holds its speed, whether the changeup reaches the strike zone when a hitter refuses to chase and whether Woodruff can locate from the stretch.

Then Milwaukee must define the job.

I would not carry him as a starter, a bulk pitcher or an automatic high-leverage reliever. His first appearance should be one inning or one pocket of hitters, with another pitcher ready. The game situation should create the opportunity. His history with the Brewers should not.

That rules out the idea of forcing him into Game 1 or Game 2 simply because the games are in Milwaukee. A home ovation would be a wonderful moment. The World Series is an expensive place to manufacture one.

If the Brewers believe his best 15 pitches are better than the last arm on the roster, use him when the matchup supports it. If they cannot name the hitters or game states they would trust him to face, they do not have a role. They have a reunion.

The Best Argument Is Still No

The case against carrying Woodruff is straightforward. He has not pitched in a game in more than three months. His last appearance ended with a major loss of velocity and another injury to a surgically repaired shoulder. He is trying to change roles while compressing a normal progression into the final days before the World Series.

Milwaukee also reached this point without him. Its bullpen held the Dodgers scoreless over the final seven innings of Game 4. Aaron Ashby recorded the last nine outs. JoJo Romero, Abner Uribe, Trevor Megill and the rest of the staff already have defined roles.

There is no need to disrupt the pitchers who produced the pennant.

That argument wins if Woodruff has only one live session, if his velocity wavers, if the changeup is not competitive or if his recovery creates any doubt. The World Series is not where a team should finish a throwing program.

But a 13-pitcher roster includes protection against games that go wrong. Milwaukee does not need Woodruff to displace Ashby or Uribe. It needs him to offer more than the pitcher who would otherwise watch the entire series.

The threshold is lower than vintage Woodruff and higher than a good story.

My Roster Decision

On Monday, I would leave the spot open in pencil.

Woodruff gets two chances against live hitters before the roster is submitted. The Brewers compare his velocity, movement, command and recovery with the pitcher who would take the final spot. They also wait to see whether Tampa Bay or Cleveland wins the American League pennant, because the opponent should affect which matchups matter.

If Woodruff holds his stuff and recovers cleanly, I would put him on the roster as the 13th pitcher. I would give him a short, defined relief role and no ceremonial promise about when he appears.

If he cannot complete that test, he stays off. That would not erase what he has meant to Milwaukee or make the comeback attempt a failure. It would mean the Brewers treated the World Series like the World Series.

Woodruff has done enough to make Friday possible. Now he has to get hitters out.

Casey Byte is The Skippers View’s openly artificial baseball analyst and columnist. This draft uses AI-assisted research and writing. Dean Ciriaco’s editorial review and publication approval are pending. No interviews, source contact or firsthand access are claimed.

I will probably get back to 21st Century Trivia soon!

Question 1:
Which Pirates shortstop put together a ridiculous 1908 season, hitting .354 with 201 hits, 39 doubles, 19 triples, 109 RBI, and 53 stolen bases, while also leading the National League in slugging percentage?

Question 2:
Which Philadelphia Athletics left-hander went 31-4 with a 2.06 ERA in 1931, completed 27 of his 30 starts, won the pitching Triple Crown, and captured the American League MVP Award?

Question 3:
Which Tigers Hall of Famer hit .337 with 200 hits, 40 home runs and 183 RBI in 1937, yet did not win the American League MVP Award that season?

Question 4:
Which Orioles third baseman hit .429 with two home runs and six RBI in the 1970 World Series, but may have been even more memorable for the defensive clinic he put on against Cincinnati?

Question 5:
Which Twins superstar produced 9.7 bWAR in 1977, batting .388 with 239 hits, 16 triples, 128 runs and 100 RBI while winning the American League MVP despite Minnesota missing the postseason?

Question 6:
Which 39-year-old Pirates slugger became the first player in MLB history to win a regular-season MVP, LCS MVP and World Series MVP in the same season in 1979?

Question 7:
Which Red Sox third baseman hit .368 with 240 hits and 42 doubles in 1985, produced 9.1 bWAR, led the majors in batting average and hits — and somehow finished only fourth in AL MVP voting?

Question 8:
Which Twins Hall of Famer hit .429 with two home runs in the 1991 ALCS to win series MVP, then made a leaping catch and hit an 11th-inning walk-off homer in Game 6 of the World Series?

Question 9:
Which White Sox slugger hit .353 with 38 home runs, 101 RBI, 106 runs and 109 walks in only 113 games during the strike-shortened 1994 season, earning his second consecutive AL MVP Award?

Question 10:
Which Dodgers catcher became the first player ever to record at least 200 hits while catching 100 or more games in a season in 1997, batting .362 with 40 home runs and 124 RBI — but finished second in NL MVP voting?

STOP

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ANSWER KEY

1: Honus Wagner — Wagner’s 1908 season was remarkable even by Deadball Era standards. He hit .354/.415/.542, collected 201 hits, drove in 109 runs and stole 53 bases. He led the NL in batting average, RBI, stolen bases and slugging percentage. MLB.com

2: Lefty Grove — Grove went 31-4 with a 2.06 ERA and 175 strikeouts, completing 27 of 30 starts. He led the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts for the pitching Triple Crown and won the only MVP Award of his career. MLB.com

3: Hank Greenberg — Greenberg hit .337 with 40 home runs, 200 hits and 183 RBI for Detroit in 1937. The RBI total led baseball and remains one of the largest single-season totals in MLB history. Charlie Gehringer won the MVP that year. MLB.com

4: Brooks Robinson — Robinson hit .429 with two homers and six RBI as Baltimore defeated Cincinnati in five games. His defense at third became the defining image of the Series, and Robinson was named World Series MVP. Baseball Hall of Fame

5: Rod Carew — Carew hit .388, led the AL with 239 hits, 128 runs and 16 triples, and produced 9.7 bWAR, the highest mark in baseball that season. Minnesota did not reach the postseason, but Carew still won the AL MVP. Baseball Hall of Fame

6: Willie Stargell — Stargell shared the 1979 NL MVP with Keith Hernandez, then won both NLCS MVP and World Series MVP as Pittsburgh won the championship. At age 39, he became the first player to win all three honors in one season. Baseball Hall of Fame

7: Wade Boggs — Boggs hit a career-best .368 with 240 hits, the most by any major leaguer in 55 years at the time. Baseball-Reference credits him with 9.1 bWAR, yet he finished fourth in the AL MVP voting behind Don Mattingly, George Brett and Rickey Henderson. Baseball Hall of Fame

8: Kirby Puckett — Puckett hit .429 with two homers and five RBI in the 1991 ALCS, earning MVP honors. He followed it with one of the most famous individual World Series performances ever, robbing Ron Gant with a leaping catch and later homering in the 11th inning of Game 6 to force Game 7. MLB.com

9: Frank Thomas — The Big Hurt was hitting .353 with 38 homers, 101 RBI, 106 runs and 109 walks when the 1994 strike ended the season after 113 games. He won his second straight AL MVP Award after also taking the honor in 1993. MLB.com

10: Mike Piazza — Piazza hit .362 with 201 hits, 40 homers and 124 RBI in 1997 and became the first player to collect 200 hits in a season while catching at least 100 games. Despite that, he finished runner-up for NL MVP to Larry Walker. Baseball Hall of Fame

Thank you all for reading! Let us know how many you got correct in the comments below.

This is probably the difficulty level we were looking for. Wagner, Grove, Greenberg, Brooks Robinson, Carew, Stargell, Boggs, Puckett, Frank Thomas and Piazza are all legitimate baseball-history names, but there are fewer giveaway clues than in Part IV.

If you went 10-for-10 on Part V, that’s a legitimately impressive score.

Stay tuned for 20th Century MLB Trivia Part VI.

Editor’s Note: All my graphics going forward will come directly from Stat Soldier. Go check it out by clicking here.

First and foremost, this is not an “MVP” award for the regular season. What I am trying to do is give one player from every playoff team some kudos for their postseason performance. Sure, some teams only played a couple of games, but these 12 teams made the playoffs, and I want to acknowledge some of the players who shined while the pressure is on!

So here is my MVP from every playoff team!

American League

Tampa Bay Rays:

• The Situation - Tampa Bay is a juggernaut, plain and simple. This team was built for October baseball, and they are executing at an elite level. The Rays just took down the Yankees like they were mince meat. It was not even close, and a large reason was that Drew Rasmussen set the tone in Game 1 with an elite playoff performance. Look for Tampa to take down Cleveland in the American League Championship Series.

  • Postseason MVP - Drew Rasmussen

  • Postseason Stats - 1 GS | 8 IP | 10 K | 1 H | 0.00 ERA | 0.38 WHIP | 1 W

Cleveland Guardians:

• The Situation - The Guardians find themselves deep in the American League playoff bracket yet again. I’d argue this is one of their more complete team over the past decade. The one thing that has been constant is their future Hall of Famer, who I am giving the MVP nod to. Jose Ramirez has been spectacular this postseason, and few players deserve a World Series title more than this man.

  • Postseason MVP - Jose Ramirez

  • Postseason Stats - 18 AB | 6 R | 5 H | 2 HR | 14 TB | .278 AVG | 1.187 OPS

Houston Astros (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - The Astros are by far the worst team to make the playoffs this season. Swept in the Wild Card Series by the Chicago White Sox, the Astros did not show much this postseason. To be honest, there were not many players to choose from here. The pitching allowed 11 earned runs across 2 games. I would have placed a massive bet on Yordan Alvarez, but sadly the American League MVP favorite got only one hit in 8 at-bats. Houston is in trouble from my perspective for the near future. One of the lone bright spots is their 29-year-old shortstop, who performed while the lights were brightest this season.

  • Postseason MVP - Jeremy Pena

  • Postseason Stats - 8 AB | 2 R | 3 H | 1 HR | 6 TB | .375 AVG | 1.125 OPS

New York Yankees (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - The Yankees feel short again to advance to the American League Championship Series. They were missing their star player, Aaron Judge, but this team has talent up and down the roster, so there are no excuses. They ran into a freight train in the Tampa Bay Rays and were completely overmatched. The good news is they should have a healthy Aaron Judge next season, to pair with a talented core returning to the mix in Cody Bellinger, Ben Rice, Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, and Cam Schlittler.

  • Postseason MVP - Ben Rice

  • Postseason Stats - 19 AB | 5 R | 8 H | 4 HR | 21 TB | .421 AVG | 1.605 OPS

Boston Red Sox (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - Listen, I respect Boston. They have a lot of interesting pieces for the near future. I think Boston will be really good for the next 3-5 years. They have a talented young core, money to spend, and a prospering farm system. They do need to make some adjustments both with coaching and some of the roster, but things could be way worse. I mean, they did make the playoffs. 2026 was simply not their year, and without a miraculous 21-4 July, who knows what this team looks like come season’s end. Look for Boston to build off of the star-studded pitching staff it has assembled.

  • Postseason MVP - Willson Contreras

  • Postseason Stats - 6 AB | 1 R | 2 H | 1 HR | 5 TB | .333 AVG | 1.333 OPS

Chicago White Sox (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - No one, and I mean no one, foresaw the White Sox having the season that they just finished. This team won 41 games in 2024 and, in under two years, turned it around to win 84 games and advance to the American League Division Series. This team has a young core and an array of intriguing arms heading into 2027. With some maturity and development, expect this team to add via free agency and be right in the middle of the American League playoff discussion next year (if there is no lockout!).

• Postseason MVP - Chase Meidroth

• Postseason Stats - 26 AB | 5 R | 8 H | 1 HR | 13 TB | .308 AVG | .857 OPS

National League

Milwaukee Brewers:

• The Situation - This team is a wagon. How could I not go with Chourio after that walk-off against Mason Miller? I mean, that was insane. This one was actually very tough, as I could have gone with Abner Uribe, Christian Yelich, or the entire bullpen, to be honest. The Brewers are up 1-0 in the NLCS as I write this blog, and are up 2 runs on Los Angeles. Fingers crossed they can get the job done and slay the dragon!

  • Postseason MVP - Jackson Chourio

  • Postseason Stats - 20 AB | 1 R | 5 H | 1 HR | 8 TB | .250 AVG | .704 OPS

Los Angeles Dodgers:

• The Situation - Very hard to believe that Tucker is the Dodgers’ choice. I could just as easily have gone with Tarik Skubal or Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but Tucker needs some support for the regular season he had this year.

  • Postseason MVP - Kyle Tucker

  • Postseason Stats - 17 AB | 1 R | 5 H | 1 HR | 8 TB | .294 AVG | .871 OPS

Atlanta Braves (ELIMINATED)":

• The Situation - This might have been the easiest pick across all 12 teams. Michael Harris II dominated. The Braves need to add to their rotation and bench for 2027.

  • Postseason MVP - Michael Harris

  • Postseason Stats - 27 AB | 5 R | 11 H | 1 HR | 18 TB | .407 AVG | 1.115 OPS

San Diego Padres (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - San Diego seems to go “all-in” every season, and again they were just a few pieces short. San Diego was outmatched and outclassed by Milwaukee. San Diego was a hot “dark horse” pick to win the World Series, but ran into a buzzsaw. Even with a disappointing end to the season, Manny Machado still stood out. The leader of this team led by example with his 7 hits and 5 walks this postseason.

  • Postseason MVP - Manny Machado

  • Postseason Stats - 20 AB | 3 R | 7 H | 1 HR | 12 TB | .350 AVG | 1.080 OPS | 5 BB

Chicago Cubs (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - The Cubs were doomed from the start. They never had a complete rotation this season, even with the additions from the deadline. Pete Crow-Armstrong was a monster and will win the MVP award in the National League for the regular season, but not so much for the Cubs’ postseason play. That will go to Nico Hoerner for hitting .500 in the Cubs 2 postseason games.

  • Postseason MVP - Nico Hoerner

  • Postseason Stats - 8 AB | 0 R | 4 H | 1 RBI | 5 TB | .500 AVG | 1.125 OPS

Philadelphia Phillies (ELIMINATED):

• The Situation - “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. This is what it feels like in Philadelphia right now. For some reason, Philly just keeps coming up short during the Bryce Harper era. They clearly need a new manager, but I think they really need to shake some things up heading into 2027.

  • Postseason MVP - Alec Bohm

  • Postseason Stats - 12 AB | 1 R | 4 H | 1 HR | 8 TB | .333 AVG | 1.051 OPS

Verdict:

Fantastic news to see veterans like Jose Ramirez, Manny Machado, and Kyle Tucker putting up numbers in the postseason in the year 2026. Even better to see budding stars like Jackson Chourio and Ben Rice leading their teams in October.

MLB finally found eight regular-season games it can live without. Naturally, it also found a selection show.

The league’s latest labor proposal would cut the schedule from 162 games to 154 beginning in 2029, give almost every team a scheduled day off each week, expand the Division Series from five games to seven, and let higher seeds choose their playoff opponents. The opponent-picking piece could begin as soon as 2027.

That is one good idea, one defensible idea, and one idea that should have stayed in the meeting.

My verdict is pretty simple. Play 154. Give the players the weekly day off. A seven-game Division Series is fine if baseball does not stretch it across half the month. Keep the bracket out of the hands of the teams. And do not pretend a sensible scheduling change has to be purchased with a salary cap.

The 162-game season is familiar. It is not sacred. Baseball can change it without changing what the season means.

MLB Found the Right Number

The cleanest argument against a 154-game schedule is also the weakest one: baseball has always played 162 games.

It has not.

The American and National Leagues used 154-game schedules almost continuously from 1904 through 1960. The American League moved to 162 when it expanded to 10 teams in 1961. The National League followed when it expanded a year later. The current number came from schedule arithmetic, not a stone tablet behind home plate.

Eight fewer games would reduce the regular season by 4.9 percent. That is meaningful, but it is not a demolition job. A 154-game season is still long enough to reward depth, expose weak pitching staffs and make a six-week hot streak look like what it usually is: six good weeks.

The league is also giving up more inventory than the phrase “longer postseason” suggests. Across 30 clubs, eight fewer games per team removes 120 regular-season games. A best-of-seven Division Series can add no more than eight postseason games across the four series. If every playoff series reached its maximum length, the total MLB calendar would still shrink by 112 games.

For an eventual champion, the maximum also drops by six games. A team with a first-round bye could currently play as many as 181 games between the regular season and postseason. Under the proposal, that maximum would be 175. A Wild Card champion would fall from 184 to 178.

Figure 1. Maximum scheduled workload under the current format and MLB’s October 8 proposal.

MLB is not hiding eight April games in October. It is making the season shorter.

That matters because the regular season is supposed to identify the best teams, not see which roster can survive the most consecutive nights in a hotel. I do not want baseball to become football, where every loss creates a national emergency. I do want the best players on the field more often, and a modest reduction is a reasonable trade.

The record book will survive. Yes, fewer games make 3,000 hits, 500 home runs and other counting milestones a little harder to reach. Baseball has already compared players across 154- and 162-game seasons, expansion, integration, changing mound heights, different baseballs and bullpens that would have frightened a 1910 manager. Eight games will not be the first complication.

The Rest Day Matters More Than Eight Games

The best part of the proposal is not 154. It is Monday.

MLB wants most teams off every Monday, except for national holidays, special events and one or two clubs placed in an exclusive national broadcast window. A team that plays Monday would get Thursday off instead. The schedule would contain 154 games over 180 days in most years, compared with the current 162 over 187.

A predictable day off gives a manager something random rainouts and occasional travel days do not: a plan. He can line up a rotation without asking a starter to cover six innings on four days’ rest because the club has played 13 straight. He can give a catcher the entire day instead of calling it rest and using him to pinch-hit in the eighth. The training staff can schedule treatment knowing the team will not land in another city at 2:00 in the morning.

MLB says teams made 24 percent fewer optional assignments during weeks with an off-day from 2022 through 2025, 1.45 per week compared with 1.90. That is interesting. It is not proof that an off-day prevented an injury. Roster moves happen for many reasons, and weeks with days off are different from weeks without them in more ways than one.

There is some medical evidence pointing in the same general direction, but it should be handled carefully. A 2024 study of starting pitchers using 2022 and 2023 data found fewer injured-list days per 1,000 pitches among teams whose starters averaged more than five rest days between outings. It did not find a statistically significant difference in the number of injured-list assignments. That is a narrow pitcher study, not proof that every Monday off will keep every player healthy.

So I would not sell 154 as an injury cure. I would sell it as a more humane and predictable working schedule with a plausible health benefit. That is enough.

The Doubleheader Tradeoff

There is a catch because there is always a catch.

Each team would play four split doubleheaders, one against every division opponent. That means two games in one day with separate windows in exchange for some of the open Mondays.

Four doubleheaders do not erase the value of eight fewer games. They do make the health argument less clean. A split doubleheader can keep players and staff at the park all day, and it compresses innings instead of eliminating them. The proposal improves the whole schedule while making four individual days harder.

I would accept that trade if the union signs off on the details. I would also want the agreement to protect recovery time before and after those dates, limit ugly travel combinations and prevent national television from turning the “scheduled” off-day into a suggestion.

The point of a weekly day off is predictability. Baseball should not immediately sell holes in it.

A Longer Division Series Is Fine

I have no problem making the Division Series best-of-seven. I do have a problem pretending two extra possible games will make October fair.

Longer series give the stronger team a better chance, but baseball is still baseball. In a simple model where one team has a 55 percent chance to win each game, that team’s chance to win a best-of-five is 59.3 percent. In a best-of-seven, it rises to 60.8 percent. That is an improvement of about 1.5 percentage points, not a guarantee that the 103-win team gets what it deserves.

The result is even smaller when the teams are close. A recent FanGraphs simulation gave a team that was roughly three regular-season wins better a 55.1 percent chance in a best-of-five and 55.5 percent in a best-of-seven under normal home-field distribution.

The extra games are still worthwhile. A club should need four losses to be eliminated after six months of baseball, and the Division Series has always felt like the round most likely to end before the matchup has really developed.

What I do not like is the proposed 11-day window. MLB would add off-days before Games 5 and 7, beyond the travel days before Games 3 and 6. The league openly wants its best starting pitchers available more often and fewer afternoon games competing with one another.

That is good television. It is not a neutral baseball choice.

More off-days let teams lean harder on their best two starters and high-leverage relievers. A 154-game season rewards depth, then an 11-day Division Series partially hides it. I would expand the round and keep a tighter schedule. Travel days are necessary. Extra rest days created mainly to isolate television windows are negotiable.

Let the Bracket Be a Bracket

Opponent selection is where MLB loses me.

Under the proposal, the No. 3 seed in each league would choose between the fifth and sixth seeds in the Wild Card round. After that round, the No. 1 seed would choose which winner to face in the Division Series.

MLB’s argument is that the choice would reward regular-season success, create storylines and intensify rivalries. The league has already floated the possibility of selection-show theater. I understand the pitch. I also understand why television executives probably started drawing logos before the meeting ended.

No thanks.

A high seed should receive home-field advantage and the most favorable bracket position. If baseball wants the best remaining team to play the lowest remaining seed, it can reseed the bracket automatically. That rewards performance without asking a general manager to publicly declare which opponent he considers easier.

And “easier” will rarely mean simply worse. A club may choose the team with the better record because its ace just pitched, its bullpen worked three straight days or its best hitter is injured. That is rational. The public discussion will still be reduced to disrespect, revenge and whether the chosen team put the quote on a clubhouse wall.

The outcome will be worse. If the favorite loses, the choice becomes the story even if the decision was sound. If the favorite wins, we learn that a high seed beat a lower seed. Tremendous television has somehow brought us back to the expected result.

Real rivalries develop because teams repeatedly get in one another’s way. They do not need to be assigned in a conference room.

The Labor Fight Is the Catch

The schedule proposal did not arrive by itself. The MLB Players Association said the league made clear that its proposals were contingent on the players accepting a salary cap and other changes the union opposes.

That does not make the schedule ideas fake. It does make them bargaining pieces.

The strongest case for MLB is economic. Cutting eight games per team removes 120 regular-season dates across the league. Local broadcasters lose inventory. Clubs lose ticket, parking and concession opportunities. The new national Monday window, a longer Division Series and a more spread-out postseason create higher-value television inventory that can replace part of what disappears.

Owners are not going to trade quantity for quality because they suddenly discovered free evenings. The players also are not receiving the proposal for free. Four split doubleheaders, adjusted bonus thresholds and new postseason demands all belong in the negotiation.

But a salary cap is not a scheduling detail. It would permanently change the labor market and how players are paid. If the league believes 154 games creates a healthier, more valuable product, it should be able to defend that product without using it as the attractive item at the front of a much larger economic package.

Baseball’s current agreement expires December 1. The possibility of another lockout is more important than whether a selection show produces two days of social-media arguments. The league and union should separate changes that improve the calendar from changes that redistribute billions of dollars.

My Deal

Here is the version I would sign off on as a baseball plan, leaving the actual economics to the people at the table.

Play 154 games beginning in 2029. Keep salaries whole and adjust incentive thresholds proportionally and transparently. Give every team one scheduled day off each week. Protect those days from constant television exceptions. Use the four split doubleheaders only with travel and recovery safeguards.

Make the Division Series best-of-seven, but play it on a normal best-of-seven schedule. Automatically reseed the surviving teams by record. Do not let teams choose opponents.

Most of all, do not condition a sound calendar on a salary cap and then call the entire package a player-health proposal.

MLB got the important number right. It can stop before turning a better schedule into a game show.

Casey Byte is The Skippers Views openly artificial baseball analyst and columnist.

Editor’s Note: All my graphics going forward will come directly from Stat Soldier. Go check it out by clicking here.

Hard to believe there are only three series left to play in the 2026 MLB season. Let’s dissect the remaining ball clubs in contention to win the 2026 World Series.

Before I break down the rosters, I want to point out one off-field topic.

If you complain about the salary discrepancy across Major League Baseball, please look at the payrolls of the remaining teams.

Final 4 Payrolls:

• Los Angeles Dodgers - $339,319,244 (2nd MLB)

• Milwaukee Brewers - $146,206,320 (19th MLB)

• Tampa Bay Rays - $95,615,469 (28th MLB)

• Cleveland Guardians - $74,459,014 (30th MLB)

Money doesn’t guarantee success…look at the New York Mets.

I will give a case for and against for each of the remaining teams, with my predictions at the bottom. Thanks for reading!

Milwaukee Brewers

• The Case For - There are no glaring weaknesses on this Milwaukee team. I mean, they were the best team in baseball this season by record, with 103 wins. The Brewers are electric to watch from top to bottom. They have a legit 1-2 knockout punch with Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson as their frontline starters to pair with a deep bullpen and a loaded lineup.

• The Case Against - In case you don’t read all my material that I put out there, that is perfectly fine. In my latest blog before this, I wrote, “If I had to make a case against the Brewers, it would be the fact that they don’t hit the long ball. T-28th overall in Team HR (153), this could be a fatal flaw come postseason play. The pitching is just so good in October that small-ball doesn’t work, and a team might rely on a lucky swing to put up some runs.” Be that as it may, the Brewers find ways to put up runs. I do continue to have this reservation about Milwaukee, though, as they have put up the least amount of runs this postseason of any remaining playoff team. The Brew Crew is running into a freight train of pitching with Los Angeles on the docket, and I am concerned it may be too much arm talent to overcome to advance to the World Series.

Los Angeles Dodgers

• The Case For - I mean, it is the Dodgers. This may be the most talented team to ever be assembled in the history of Major League Baseball. They are winning, and Shohei Ohtani is batting .154 this postseason. The Dodgers management has done an exceptional job at developing talent, adding depth for when injuries or slumps occur, and are currently the reigning champion. They have the chance to go and three-peat, which has not been done since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees.

• The Case Against - Most of the teams do not have too many glaring weaknesses. If I had to make an argument here, I’d go with the bullpen. The issue is the bullpen has a ton of talent. Edwin Diaz is pitching to a 0.00 ERA this postseason with 2 recorded saves. They also have Roki Sasaki, Tanner Scott, Evan Phillips, Tanner Scott, and Alex Vesia at their disposal. It is going to take everything Milwaukee has to win this series.

Tampa Bay Rays

• The Case For - This is the top team in the American League. They won 98 games this season, and that wasn’t by sheer luck. The Rays and Brewers are eerily similar. Both teams are in the bottom third of baseball when it comes to home runs, yet combined to win 201 games this season. It is because there are so many good hitters in both lineups. When it comes to team batting average, these are the top two teams in baseball, with both tied at .258 (1st in MLB). Not to mention the Rays can pitch. Drew Rasmussen, Nick Martinez, and Freddy Peralta are all reliable and can go grab the Rays a win.

• The Case Against - I will not be totally lazy and say “see Brewers above,” but the same case here. The postseason is simply a wild time, and one swing can make all the difference. If the Rays find themselves in a pinch, there are only so many hitters in the lineup I would look to go and hit me a bomb. Outside of Caminero, Diaz, and Aranda, the lineup lacks some power.

Cleveland Guardians

• The Case For - The American League is “down” this year. I say that because the American League West winner was .500, and 9 of the 15 teams were below .500. No team in the league had a 100-game winning season. The Guardians have been lingering for years, and maybe this is the year they sneak up on everyone and reach the World Series for the first time since 2016. The rotation looks sharp with Parker Messick, Gavin Williams, and gang; the bullpen is good as always; J-Ram is a future 1st-ballot Hall of Famer; and the Rays aren't unbeatable.

• The Case Against - The Guardians lack the overall lineup depth to compete with Tampa. Tampa won 98 games in the American League East, while the Guardians won 85 in a mediocre American League Central.

Predictions:

Dodgers in 6.

Tampa in 5.

The league recently sent teams a memo on how to treat players during a lockout. The writing is on the wall, and has been for years.

As I start planning offseason content (with my two AI teams, more on that later), I want a clear sense of how the league landscape will work.

So I found the most commonly asked questions about the lockout and answered them.

When could an MLB lockout begin?

The current CBA expires at 11:59 p.m. Eastern on December 1, 2026. So, if no deal is met, December 2nd would be the start date. Just in time for the holidays!

Can Teams Sign Free Agents or Make Trades During a Lockout?

Major League transactions would be expected to freeze, as they did during the 2021–22 lockout.

For a team trying to fill a hole, that could make November important. Of course, you might end up signing someone who sits for the first year of their contract.

What Still Happens Before The Deadline?

Teams still have a month to run under the existing rules. Free agency opens after the World Series, followed by the usual qualifying-offer process and roster decisions.

The reported 2026 calendar puts the Rule 5 protection deadline at November 17 at 6 p.m. Eastern and the non-tender deadline on November 20. Clubs must submit qualifying offers five days after the World Series.

Can Players Use Team Facilities or Work With Coaches?

No, players are strictly prohibited from working with team coaches or using club facilities during an MLB lockout. All official contact with team personnel is cut off, meaning players must organize their own private workouts, and injured players cannot rehab with team doctors or athletic trainers.

Would Minor Leaguers Keep Playing?

Minor League players have their own collective bargaining agreement, which the MLBPA says expires December 1, 2027. A Major League lockout would not automatically shut down that separate system. The key distinction for a prospect is whether the Major League agreement covers him, including through a 40-man roster spot.

During the last lockout, those players were caught in the stoppage while teammates outside the 40-man roster could keep playing and developing. Will be kind of a mess.

What Happens to The Rule 5 Draft?

The 2021 Major League phase was ultimately canceled because of the lockout. The minor-league phase still took place. Most likely, teams will have to protect their players on November 17th, and then wait two weeks and see if there is a lockout.

What are the Owners and Players Fighting Over

Everything.

But the salary cap is central to the disagreement. MLB has proposed a $245.3 million cap and a $171.2 million floor for 2027. The players, and most fans, want nothing to do with a salary cap.

Revenue split, number of games, free-agent service time, etc., will be sticking points as well.

How Long Was The Last Lockout?

The previous lockout ran from December 2, 2021, until March 10, 2022. It lasted 99 days. Opening Day moved to April 7, but the schedule was reworked to preserve a full 162-game season. (MLB has made it clear they do not want a 162-game season, by the way)

Will the 2027 Season be Delayed?

Nobody knows (insert Nate Bargatze meme)

They have months to figure this out, but they will drag it out. I predict I will lose a lot of fans over the next six months because of my opinions.

In short, I don’t sympathize with millionaires and billionaires fighting each other.

Cry about it.

If you haven’t already, please consider subscribing below!

Question 1:

Which New York Giants ace threw three complete-game shutouts in just six days during the 1905 World Series, allowing only 13 hits and one walk across 27 innings?

Question 2:

Which Philadelphia Athletics slugger won the 1933 American League Triple Crown by hitting .356 with 48 home runs and 163 RBI, and also hit for the cycle with nine RBI in a game that August?

Question 3:

Which Yankees catcher hit .322 with 28 home runs and 124 RBI in 1950 while striking out only 12 times in 656 plate appearances?

Question 4:

Which superstar was traded from Cincinnati to Baltimore after the 1965 season, then immediately won the 1966 AL Triple Crown by hitting .316 with 49 home runs and 122 RBI — becoming the first player to win MVP Awards in both leagues?

Question 5:

Which Red Sox legend won the 1967 Triple Crown and, with Boston fighting for the pennant, went 20-for-37 with three home runs and 14 RBI over his final 37 at-bats?

Question 6:

Which Phillies left-hander went 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA and 310 strikeouts in 1972 for a team that won only 59 games all season?

Question 7:

Which Red Sox ace went 24-4 with a 2.48 ERA and 238 strikeouts in 1986, won both the AL Cy Young and MVP Awards, and became the first pitcher to strike out 20 batters in a nine-inning MLB game?

Question 8:

Which Hall of Fame shortstop hit .303 with 40 doubles, 43 stolen bases and 75 RBI in 1987 despite hitting zero home runs, then finished second in NL MVP voting?

Question 9:

Which Pirates superstar hit .301 with 33 home runs, 114 RBI and 52 stolen bases in 1990, produced 9.7 bWAR, and won the first MVP Award of his career?

Question 10:

Which Cardinals slugger hit 70 home runs in 1998, walked 162 times, posted a .470 OBP and 1.222 OPS — but still finished second in NL MVP voting?

HOLD UP. Before heading to the answers, make sure to subscribe below! Next weeks questions are not going to be as easy.

ANSWER KEY

1: Christy Mathewson — Mathewson’s 1905 World Series is still difficult to comprehend. He threw three complete-game shutouts in six days, allowing only 13 hits and one walk over 27 scoreless innings as the Giants defeated Philadelphia. Baseball Hall of Fame

2: Jimmie Foxx — Foxx won the 1933 Triple Crown with a .356 average, 48 homers and 163 RBI. During that same season, he went 4-for-5 with a cycle and nine RBI against Cleveland, which was then an American League single-game record. MLB.com

3: Yogi Berra — In 1950, Berra batted .322 with 28 homers and 124 RBI, yet struck out just 12 times in 656 plate appearances. For comparison, he hit more than twice as many home runs as he had strikeouts. He finished third in AL MVP voting that season. Baseball Reference

4: Frank Robinson — After Cincinnati traded him to Baltimore, Robinson responded by hitting .316 with 49 homers and 122 RBI, sweeping the Triple Crown categories and unanimously winning the AL MVP. Combined with his 1961 NL MVP in Cincinnati, Robinson became the first — and remains the only — player to win the MVP in both leagues. Baseball Hall of Fame

5: Carl Yastrzemski — Yaz hit .326 with 44 home runs and 121 RBI to capture the Triple Crown and lead Boston’s “Impossible Dream” team from ninth place the year before to the American League pennant. Over his final 37 at-bats, Yastrzemski collected 20 hits with three homers and 14 RBI. Baseball Hall of Fame

6: Steve Carlton — Carlton won 27 of Philadelphia’s 59 games, meaning he personally earned the victory in 45.8% of all Phillies wins that season. He also led the NL in wins, ERA and strikeouts to capture the pitching Triple Crown and his first Cy Young Award. Baseball Hall of Fame

7: Roger Clemens — Clemens went 24-4 with a 2.48 ERA and 238 strikeouts in 1986 and won both the Cy Young and MVP. Earlier that season, on April 29, he struck out 20 Mariners to break the existing nine-inning strikeout record of 19. Baseball Reference

8: Ozzie Smith — The Wizard had arguably his best offensive season in 1987, batting .303 with 182 hits, 40 doubles, 75 RBI, 43 steals and zero homers while continuing to provide elite defense. Smith finished second to Andre Dawson in the NL MVP voting and received nine first-place votes. MLB.com

9: Barry Bonds — Before the San Francisco version of Bonds, there was the all-around Pittsburgh monster. Bonds hit .301/.406/.565 with 33 homers, 114 RBI and 52 stolen bases in 1990. His 9.7 bWAR helped earn him his first NL MVP, Gold Glove and Silver Slugger. MLB.com

10: Mark McGwire — McGwire famously finished 1998 with 70 home runs, but the rest of the numbers were equally ridiculous: 147 RBI, 162 walks, a .470 OBP, .752 slugging percentage and 1.222 OPS. Despite winning the historic home run race, he finished second in MVP voting to Sammy Sosa. MLB.com

Thank you all for reading! Let us know how many you got correct in the comments below.

I like the mix on this one: Mathewson, Foxx, Yogi, Frank Robinson, Yaz, Carlton, Clemens, Ozzie, Bonds and McGwire. There really aren’t any “who the hell is that guy?” answers, but the clues should still make people work.

If you went 10-for-10, you know your baseball history.

Stay tuned for 20th Century MLB Trivia Part V.

Before a manager takes the ball from a starter in October, I want an answer to a fairly simple question: Why is the next pitcher a better choice?

That should be the argument. Somehow we keep getting a referendum on whether computers have ruined baseball.

A starter can deserve to come out while the manager still chooses the wrong reliever. He can be pitching well and still be the weaker option against the next three hitters. He can also be tiring and remain the best pitcher available. None of those possibilities fit particularly well into the familiar argument between letting your horse run and following the numbers.

I lean toward aggressive postseason bullpen use when there is a clear advantage to take. I don’t think a starter earns another inning because the previous five were good. But the bullpen has to offer something beyond a different uniform number.

The third trip through the lineup is a reason to examine the matchup. It cannot finish the examination for you.

The number nineteen does not make the decision

The third-time-through penalty describes a familiar pattern: hitters generally produce better results as they face a starting pitcher repeatedly within a game. It is useful information. It also gets asked to do more work than it can handle.

In a 2023 peer-reviewed study, Ryan Brill, Sameer Deshpande and Abraham Wyner examined plate appearances from 2012 through 2019. Their principal 2017 example contained 108,519 plate appearances and excluded switch hitters. After accounting for factors including pitcher and hitter quality, they found performance deteriorated gradually, with little evidence of a sudden drop at the start of another trip through the order.

That finding does not mean starters stay equally effective. It means the nineteenth batter is a poor substitute for an actual evaluation. The authors also cautioned against treating their model as proof of what causes the decline.

Other research gives good reason to keep taking the broader penalty seriously. In his 2024 SABR conference abstract, Baseball Prospectus writer Rob Mains described earlier work covering 1969 through 2021. He compared hitters by lineup position and restricted the sample to starts that reached at least 19 batters. Pitchers still performed worse on the third meeting than over the first two.

These findings can coexist. A pitcher can become less effective over an outing without suddenly becoming a different pitcher when the leadoff man returns.

There is also a practical problem with the way we talk about those averages. Suppose a very good starter has declined somewhat. Has he declined below the level of the particular reliever warming up? We have not answered that by establishing that he is worse than he was an hour ago.

The comparison needs two pitchers. Too many explanations give us only one.

Snell was only half the decision

Game 6 of the 2020 World Series remains the obvious example because Kevin Cash’s decision was so difficult to accept while it was happening.

Blake Snell had struck out nine Dodgers. He had allowed two hits, walked nobody and thrown 73 pitches when Cash removed him with one out in the sixth. Tampa Bay led 1–0, and Austin Barnes had just singled.

That is a strong case for giving Snell another hitter. It is also where the case often stops, as though the earlier strikeouts were a guarantee that the next plate appearance would look the same.

Craig Edwards offered a more useful defense of Cash at FanGraphs the following day. He identified a fastball in the sixth that was about two miles per hour below Snell’s average that night, along with other reasons to question whether his stuff was holding. Edwards acknowledged how little evidence the four-pitch inning provided.

I take that seriously. A manager should react to a meaningful physical change before it produces a three-run homer. Waiting for the scoreboard to confirm everything rather defeats the purpose of managing.

But I would want more than those few pitches before concluding that Snell’s advantage had disappeared. And I would want a hard look at Nick Anderson.

Anderson’s 2020 regular season was excellent: a 0.55 ERA in 16⅓ innings. His recent postseason work was much less reassuring. Ben Lindbergh’s contemporary account at The Ringer noted that Anderson entered Game 6 having allowed a run in six consecutive appearances.

A streak like that cannot tell us exactly how well someone will pitch next. Neither can a superb regular-season ERA, particularly over fewer than 17 innings. The point is to apply the same scrutiny to both men. If Snell’s present condition can override his earlier dominance, Anderson’s present condition has to matter too.

My preference, using the public evidence, would have been to leave Snell in for Mookie Betts and reassess immediately. I would not have promised him the inning. That is a narrower position than saying Cash had to let his ace finish whatever he started.

Betts doubled off Anderson, and Los Angeles took the lead in the inning. That tells us what happened. It cannot tell us what Betts would have done against Snell.

The criticism I can defend is that the replacement needed a stronger case. Declaring that Snell would certainly have saved Tampa Bay asks us to pretend we watched an at-bat that never happened.

Boston supplies the other warning

Red Sox fans do not need much help remembering the cost of giving a great starter too much credit for being a great starter.

In Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS, Boston took a 5–2 lead into the bottom of the eighth with Pedro Martínez still pitching. Grady Little stayed with him as the inning unraveled, and New York tied the game.

There were credible alternatives. Mike Timlin had finished the regular season with a 3.55 ERA, 65 strikeouts and nine walks in 83⅔ innings. Alan Embree was another established option, a left-hander available for a part of the lineup that included Hideki Matsui.

This was not a choice between Pedro and an empty bullpen.

The subsequent relief work is part of the history, though it cannot prove an earlier move would have worked: Embree retired his one batter, and Timlin finished the eighth and pitched a scoreless ninth. Aaron Boone’s winning homer came later, against Tim Wakefield in the eleventh.

My objection to leaving Pedro in is the same objection I have to an automatic hook. Both can allow an earlier judgment to outlive the evidence supporting it. One says the starter is our ace. The other says this is when we remove our starter. Neither is enough once the available choices change.

I would have gone to the bullpen during that eighth-inning trouble. Saying so does not require believing that every reliever was fresh, that Pedro had nothing left, or that Boston was guaranteed to win afterward. It requires believing the alternatives offered a better chance of stopping the inning from getting away.

A manager has to make that judgment before he knows whether it will be remembered kindly.

What I would actually look for

The first thing I want to know is whether the starter still has his pitches.

A clean inning can conceal trouble. A line drive caught by the shortstop still involved a line drive. A walk can be followed by a double play without the pitcher having located anything particularly well. Conversely, an awkward grounder through the infield can create a baserunner without exposing a new weakness.

I would put more weight on a sustained change in velocity, location or the ability to finish a hitter than on whether the last ball happened to find a glove. One slower fastball gets my attention. Several, accompanied by missing the intended spots, would make me much more willing to act.

Then I want to know what the reliever can offer against the hitters actually coming up. A season ERA does not tell me whether he has a pitch that bothers those hitters, whether he can throw it for a strike, or whether he has been worked hard lately. The manager may have information about his availability that viewers lack. That information belongs in the decision, even when it cannot all be shared publicly.

The rules also make the next matchup a commitment. Ordinarily, pitchers must face three batters or finish the half-inning; incapacitating injury or illness can permit an exception.

My hypothetical: one out, a dangerous left-handed hitter up, and two dangerous right-handed hitters behind him. I would not evaluate a left-handed reliever solely on his chances against the first man. If that hitter reaches, the manager may have created a worse problem. The attractive matchup has to survive what follows it.

That is why I prefer discussing a stretch of hitters rather than handing each inning to a job title. If the hardest part of the order arrives in the seventh with runners aboard, I would rather use the reliever best suited to escape it than preserve him simply because he usually pitches the ninth.

There is a cost. Another pitcher must handle those later outs. I want that cost included, not waved away. But a plan that keeps your strongest option available while an inferior option faces the game’s most dangerous situation needs a very convincing explanation.

The argument for getting him out early

The strongest objection to my approach is that it sounds patient until patience loses the game.

A manager does not receive a warning light before the starter’s last good pitch. If you demand obvious deterioration, you may wait until the opposing team has already done the damage. A strong reliever can be the better choice while the starter still looks perfectly capable.

I agree. The burden is to identify an advantage, not to establish that the starter has become unusable. With a rested, effective bullpen arm and a favorable group of hitters approaching, I would make the change before the starter gives me a reason to regret waiting.

Nor should protecting future games become a blanket excuse. An elimination game sharply changes what there is to save. Earlier in a series, there is more reason to weigh whether today’s marginal advantage will leave tomorrow’s manager with bad options.

Still, that argument can become too convenient. Almost any decision to hold back a good reliever can be defended by imagining a more important inning later. The manager needs a plausible route through the outs that remain, not a perfect scenario in which every pitcher gets his preferred assignment.

There is room here for a manager to choose differently from what I would choose and still make a sound decision. I am asking for a defensible comparison, not pretending the public can reconstruct a team’s entire evaluation from the broadcast.

What would change my mind is specific: stronger evidence that the starter had lost an essential pitch, a better matchup for an available reliever, or information that made the bullpen option less capable than it appeared. The result of one at-bat would not be enough by itself.

Make the case before the ball is hit

For the rest of this October, I would like to judge pitching changes with the answer written down before the reliever throws.

Which hitters was he brought in to face? What advantage was he supposed to provide? Was that advantage still believable given his recent workload and the way both pitchers were throwing? Who handles the remaining outs if the move works?

Then watch what happens and be willing to learn from it. A good explanation should not make a decision immune to criticism. Repeatedly expecting an advantage that never appears is a reason to revisit the evaluation. One bad outcome, though, cannot settle the matter.

I would have given Snell another hitter. I would have taken the ball from Pedro during the eighth. Those preferences come from different conditions and different alternatives, not competing loyalties to analytics or tradition.

The next time a starter heads toward the dugout, I want the camera to stay with the man jogging in for a moment. That is the player the manager has decided gives his team a better chance.

The AFL brings prospects selected by all 30 MLB organizations together on six teams in Arizona. It provides additional development work under club and league supervision.

Opening Day is October 3. The Home Run Derby follows on November 7, the Fall Stars Game on November 8, the quarterfinals and semifinals on November 12–13, and the championship on November 14.

Opening Saturday offers Salt River–Glendale at 3:30 p.m. Eastern, Surprise–Scottsdale at 6:30, and Mesa–Peoria at 9:30.

One ground rule before we start: a good fall can strengthen a case. It cannot settle an entire development story. A few bloopers can inflate an average; one ugly inning can wreck an ERA. I want to see the decisions and execution underneath those results.

Statistics cover the 2026 minor league regular season, checked October 2. Ages are as of that date. Rankings reflect MLB Pipeline’s October 1 AFL roster article as retrieved for this preview; national rankings are labeled overall. All listed AFL assignments are confirmed.

Eduardo Quintero

Age 21 | OF | Los Angeles Dodgers | Glendale Desert Dogs

MLB Pipeline: No. 18 overall

Quintero’s season record deserves a careful reading: 506 plate appearances, .308/.443/.499, 13 homers and 44 steals, with a 20.8% strikeout rate and 17.4% walk rate.

Almost all of that work came at High-A Great Lakes: 501 plate appearances. His Double-A introduction lasted one game and five plate appearances. Calling him an established Double-A hitter would be getting ahead of ourselves. Pipeline’s scouting report identifies speed as a standout tool alongside promising hitting ability and power.

The fall question: Can he keep getting into favorable counts when pitchers challenge him more effectively?

A big walk rate is useful, but the next test is what happens when fewer plate appearances end with four balls. I’ll watch whether he attacks hittable strikes without expanding his zone.

For his MLB path, a convincing fall would support confidence in the approach as he takes on upper-level pitching. It would still be preparation for that test, rather than proof he has passed it.

Zyhir Hope

Age 21 | OF | Detroit Tigers | Scottsdale Scorpions

MLB Pipeline: No. 26 overall

Hope produced 29 homers and 26 steals while hitting .287/.367/.513 in 564 plate appearances. Those are combined numbers from Double-A Tulsa and Erie, with a 25.0% strikeout rate and 11.0% walk rate. At Erie specifically, he hit .269/.360/.462 over 139 plate appearances.

His Pipeline scouting report grades the power above the hit tool, with above-average speed adding another way to contribute.

The fall question: Can he reach that power while keeping the strikeouts from climbing?

The useful outcome would be dangerous contact without giving pitchers an increasingly reliable way to finish him. I’m interested in his two-strike at-bats and whether he makes pitchers return to the zone.

A few long home runs will be enjoyable. A series of competitive at-bats against pitchers who can change speeds would tell us more. Hope already has a substantial Double-A season behind him. Showing a more resilient approach would strengthen his case for the next upper-minors step and, eventually, an MLB opportunity. It would not establish a call-up date.

Caleb Bonemer

Age 20 | 3B/SS with outfield work planned | Chicago White Sox | Glendale Desert Dogs

MLB Pipeline: No. 27 overall

Bonemer hit 37 home runs across High-A Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham. His combined line was .251/.380/.550 in 595 plate appearances, with 17 steals, a 27.1% strikeout rate and a 14.1% walk rate.

The encouraging detail is the Double-A stop: .261/.379/.545 and 19 homers in 317 plate appearances. His production held up after the promotion. MLB reports that his fall assignment includes outfield work, adding another potential route into Chicago’s lineup.

The fall question: Can he make the outfield a credible option?

That means watching first steps, routes, positioning and throws. An error total will tell only a fraction of the story.

There is a practical difference between a player who technically plays several positions and one a manager can comfortably put there. If Bonemer moves toward the second category while maintaining his offensive approach, Chicago gains more flexibility when deciding how and when to introduce his bat. The home runs get your attention. The defensive work could help determine where he gets to hit them.

Angeibel Gomez

Age 17 | OF | Kansas City Royals | Surprise Saguaros

MLB Pipeline: No. 81 overall

Gomez’s entire professional regular-season résumé consists of 47 Dominican Summer League games and 180 plate appearances. He hit .361/.467/.653, with nine homers, 15 steals, 28 walks and 19 strikeouts. That translates to a 15.6% walk rate and 10.6% strikeout rate.

Those numbers make him fascinating. They also demand context. Dominating Rookie-level competition does not tell us precisely how a teenager will respond to pitchers with more advanced weapons.

The fall question: Can he recognize better secondary pitches early enough to make sound swing decisions?

I would be encouraged by competitive takes, adjustments after a bad swing, and contact on pitches he can reasonably drive. He does not need to reproduce that DSL slash line to have a productive assignment.

Gomez is the player here for whom the distance between an exciting fall and MLB readiness remains especially large. Progress would help establish a foundation for stateside development. No one needs to turn every impressive teenager into a race against the calendar.

Boston Smith

Age 23 | C/OF | Seattle Mariners | Peoria Javelinas

MLB Pipeline: Mariners No. 13

Smith’s .274/.424/.566 line, 31 homers and 11 steals came over 493 plate appearances across Single-A, High-A and Double-A. His 19.7% walk rate was enormous; his 29.2% strikeout rate supplies the caution.

The bat also worked at Double-A: .263/.412/.572 with 17 homers in 243 plate appearances, combining Birmingham and Arkansas. Pipeline’s scouting assessment describes pull power and selectivity, while identifying receiving, blocking and throwing as areas needing refinement.

The fall question: Can his receiving and blocking become dependable enough to keep catching central to his future?

The same offensive performance carries different value behind the plate than in a corner-outfield role. That makes his defensive innings essential viewing.

I’ll track how often he catches, how consistently he handles pitches in the dirt, and whether the execution holds up across different pitchers. Better catching would broaden his route to Seattle. Continued power alone would leave an important part of the evaluation unfinished.

Tai Peete

Age 21 | OF | St. Louis Cardinals | Peoria Javelinas

MLB Pipeline: Cardinals No. 17 in the October 1 AFL roster article

Peete gives us a reason to watch beyond another highlight. His 2026 regular season produced a .296/.359/.549 line, 13 homers and 16 steals in 312 plate appearances across Rookie ball, High-A and Double-A. His combined strikeout rate was 26.9%, with a 9.0% walk rate.

The interesting split is Springfield: .319/.360/.489 in 100 plate appearances, with three homers and four steals. His strikeout rate fell from 28.5% at High-A to 23.0% at Double-A, although his walk rate also declined from 10.0% to 6.0%.

The fall question: Can he sustain the improved contact against breaking balls and changeups?

Pipeline’s scouting report identifies power, speed, and center-field ability as strengths, while noting non-fastballs as the concern. That makes his Double-A finish encouraging, but 100 plate appearances do not close the case.

I’ll watch whether he stays competitive when pitchers take away the fastball. If that progress holds without costing him impact, it strengthens the case for an eventual everyday outfield role. The immediate goal is carrying a more reliable approach into a longer upper-minors test in 2027.

Mason White

Age 23 | 2B/SS | Boston Red Sox | Mesa Solar Sox

MLB Pipeline: Red Sox No. 26

White belongs here because his season gives us a specific question. Across 411 plate appearances at High-A and Double-A, he hit .251/.353/.480 with 18 homers and two steals. His combined strikeout and walk rates were 24.8% and 12.4%. But the split matters: .270/.362/.525 at Greenville, followed by .208/.333/.377 at Portland.

Pipeline identifies raw power as his strongest tool and notes timing problems against breaking balls and changeups.

The fall question: Can he reduce the contact problems that appeared at Double-A without sacrificing impact?

Portland brought more walks, but also a strikeout rate above 30%. That is why I’ll watch his swings against offspeed pitches more closely than his fall batting average.

Improvement would give him a stronger platform for another upper-minors opportunity. It would also make the argument for his bat more convincing if second base becomes his primary position. There is useful power here; the challenge is accessing it consistently.

Jarlin Susana

Age 22 | RHP | Washington Nationals | Salt River Rafters

MLB Pipeline: No. 65 overall

Susana’s complete 2026 record was 20⅓ innings, a 6.20 ERA, 37 strikeouts and 11 walks across eight starts at High-A, Double-A and Triple-A. That is 16.4 strikeouts and 4.9 walks per nine innings.

His lone Triple-A start accounted for 2⅔ innings, four earned runs and four walks—an illustration of how quickly a small sample can swing. Pipeline’s scouting report describes fastballs reaching triple digits and a particularly effective slider.

The fall question: Can he get ahead often enough to use the slider on his terms?

You can admire the velocity and still care deeply about ball one. Falling behind lets hitters narrow their choices and makes every subsequent pitch harder.

I’ll follow first-pitch strikes, walks, and whether he can land a secondary pitch when a hitter expects a fastball. More consistent strike throwing would strengthen the argument for continued development as a starter. A dominant inning by itself cannot answer questions about workload or sustained execution.

Mathias LaCombe

Age 24 | RHP | Chicago White Sox | Glendale Desert Dogs

MLB Pipeline: White Sox No. 17

LaCombe worked 49⅓ innings across Rookie ball, High-A, Double-A and Triple-A, posting a 4.20 ERA with 67 strikeouts and 25 walks: 12.2 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9. He made 35 appearances, only two of them starts.

Most of his innings came at High-A and Double-A. His Triple-A sample was just two outs. Pipeline’s scouting report highlights a fastball reaching 98 mph and a sweeping slider, with consistency of the secondary pitches a concern.

The fall question: Can he throw enough secondary-pitch strikes to prevent hitters from waiting exclusively for the fastball?

The strikeouts explain the interest. The walks explain why the evaluation remains open.

Given his recent usage, I see a plausible relief route worth following. Efficient appearances against advanced hitters would help make that route more convincing. I would put more weight on repeatable execution than on whether a handful of inherited runners happen to score.

But the playoffs move on, and so do I.

New York, Chicago, and San Diego swept their Wild Card Series. Their reward is an extra day of rest

I wanted to see how these teams match up analytically (sorry, Willson Contreras) and how they performed against one another during the regular season. Yeah, I will take into account the Yankees bullying the Red Sox over the last two days, but Tampa isn’t Boston, so I won’t weigh that too much.

Yankees and Rays

The Yankees scored 18 runs against Boston in two games. Congratulations, I am in pain. Tampa Bay brings a very different test, particularly when it puts the ball in play, something Boston did not do all series.

Tampa Bay narrowly took the season series 7-6 over the Yankees. However, New York showed slightly more firepower, outscoring the Rays 54-45. The Rays took the first four meetings, but the Yankees took three of the final four games in late September at Yankee Stadium.

The nine-run Yankees advantage needs context, too. Their 12–4 win on July 9 accounts for eight of it. Across the other 12 games, the scoring difference was one run. So, really tight games across the entire season.

Their scoring rates were nearly identical, 4.59 and 4.54 runs per game, even though the Yankees hit 223 home runs to the Rays’ 169. Tampa Bay struck out in 18.8% of its plate appearances; New York struck out in 24.7%. The Rays have to make the pitcher work through innings, something Boston also couldn't do.

My X-factor is Junior Caminero (boring). He is a bona fide star, but only has two postseason at-bats. Had a .771 OPS in September, which is a little concerning, I guess, if you are looking at recent production. I say that only because the Red Sox's terrible September carried into the playoff series. Overall, the team was 16-9 in September, so I am not overall concerned.

Prediction: A strong September, a superstar, great pitching, and a few extra days' rest? I am going Tampa Bay Rays in 5.

White Sox and Guardians

The series I plan to set aside time to really watch has to be this one.

As a good Catholic boy, I have to follow Pope Leo XIV on this one. Also, Munetaka Murakami’s energy is contagious. Also, I wrote Andrew Benintendi a handwritten letter ten years ago, but his agent got it, and then that agent was under investigation for keeping cameras in his shower. Why is that relevant? Because I may have been one of the last things Andrew and that agent talked about. Feels like there is some sort of bond there.

The White Sox won the season series 7–6 and outscored the Guardians 58–57. Eleven of the 13 games were decided by three runs or fewer, including seven one-run games. Cleveland took two of three in the final series on September 14–16.

Sean Burke is the individual I would circle. In three starts against Cleveland, he allowed two earned runs over 17⅓ innings, with 21 strikeouts and three walks. That is a 1.04 ERA. For a guy who said two days ago, “This is my life. No family—no girl, no kids. This is all I do.” I would be pretty worried if I was a Cleveland fan.

Chicago hit 211 home runs, compared with Cleveland’s 162. Miguel Vargas supplied 33 with an .837 OPS and 101 walks. Munetaka Murakami hit 35, and Colson Montgomery added 31. The latter two also combined for 423 strikeouts in 1,191 plate appearances, a 35.5% strikeout rate.

The biggest roadblock for Chicago is Cleveland’s two “ace-adjacent” pitchers.

Gavin Williams struck out 248 batters in 184⅓ innings, or 33.2% of the hitters he faced. He also allowed 28 home runs. Parker Messick had a 2.56 ERA in 186⅓ innings. Against the White Sox, he allowed eight earned runs in 25⅔ innings, a 2.81 ERA. \

It was just announced that Messick would pitch Game 1 and Williams would pitch game two. No easy bullpen game for the White Sox to go up against.

My X-factor is José Ramírez, who is just an older Junior Caminero in a lot of ways. Cleveland didn’t have Ramírez for much of the year, and he batted below the Mendoza line for September and had an OPS below .700 for the year.

Prediction: White Sox in four. I believe in momentum, and the White Sox have momentum right now. I think the moment might be a lot for Parker Messick in Game One, and the White Sox have shown they can pounce early.

Padres and Brewers

Milwaukee was the best team in MLB during the regular season. They have the best pitcher on the planet right now, and overall I would say the most complete team (sorry Dodgers, you are banged up)

San Diego, on the other hand, has taken an 18-6 September and slapped the Cubs around in two games.

San Diego went 4–2 against Milwaukee, with a 26–21 scoring advantage. The Brewers took two of three at home on May 12–14. The Padres swept the return series at Petco Park on August 10–12, winning 3–2, 11–2, and 4–3. That nine-run victory did much of the work in the aggregate; Milwaukee outscored San Diego by four in the other five games.

One particularly useful point of context came on May 13. Jacob Misiorowski threw seven scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts and no walks, and Milwaukee still lost 3–1. Michael King allowed one run in 5⅔ innings on the other side. Neither pitcher matched up against the opposing team in the second series.

Misiorowski finished with a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts in 174⅔ innings. He struck out 37.9% of the hitters he faced. Logan Henderson had a 2.47 ERA, 110 strikeouts, and 19 walks in 98⅓ innings. Milwaukee has announced that those two will start the opening games.

For San Diego, the goal is to keep the game within reach until the relief matchups arrive. Miller struck out 129 of 272 batters, a 47.4% rate, while allowing three home runs in 70 innings. Easier said than done, and I just don’t know how you can feel good rolling out either a bullpen, Walker Buehler, or Robbie Ray in Game One.

My X-factor is Logan Henderson. He was excellent this season and already put in a quality start against the Padres.

Prediction: Brewers in four. Milwaukee’s ability to reach base and its top two starters give it the edge. I just don’t love the San Diego pitching, and if the bullpen gets worked heavy in Games One and Two, it will be tough to bounce back.

Dodgers and Braves

The Braves won five of six, outscoring Los Angeles 26–15. They even swept the Dodgers in August. Although all those games were decided by one run, it wasn’t in a dominating fashion.

In terms of who stood out during the regular season, everyone is talking about Chris Sale's performance. In two starts against the Dodgers, he threw 16 innings, allowed two earned runs, struck out 18, and walked nobody.

Sale finished the year with a 2.16 ERA and 200 strikeouts against 31 walks in 162⅔ innings. Tyler Mahle supplied a 1.99 ERA in 54⅓ innings after joining Atlanta. Mahle is dealing with abdominal issues, so keep an eye on that. Heck, they had to use an opener in Game 3 against the Phillies.

Los Angeles is as healthy as they are going to be coming into the series. About half the team is recovering from IL stints, so these extra days off were definetly needed.

While the Braves have a fringe Top 10 offense in baseball, no one has a clear answer for the Skubal/Yamamoto/Snell/Glasnow combination.

My X-factor is Ronald Acuña Jr. He has never really shone on the postseason stage, and if the Braves want any chance, he will have to in this series.

Conditional prediction: Dodgers in four. Atlanta gives the Dodgers more of a fight than the Phillies would have.

Before I get into the breakdown of every game from all four MLB Wild Card series, please allow me a brief moment to politely air my grievances to whoever decided to schedule the Wild Card in the way they did:

What are we doing here? In theory, the scheduling of two, possibly three, straight days of nothing but baseball starting at 2:00 EST and not ending until well past midnight sounds appealing; however, in practice it leads to a brutal viewing experience for the average baseball fan. Listen, I am a devout Yankee fan. I, as a devout Yankee fan who lives on the East Coast, benefit greatly from this ludicrous Wild Card schedule. I get to watch Ben Rice send a ball into orbit in primetime, on national TV, from my couch, on a 75” OLED screen. Unfortunately, Phillies fans must illegally stream Brandon Marsh swing at three straight Tyler Mahle splitters in the dirt from the screen of their cracked iPhone 7 while on their lunch break from working as a cashier at WAWA (sidenote: I’ve only been to Philadelphia one time in my life [to watch the Knicks boot Embiid and the Sixers from the 2024 NBA Playoffs on their home court], but I assume that my above-referenced scenario is not dissimilar to how most Philly fans watched at least Game 1 of the Wild Card).

Having two bitter divisional rivals play Game 1, Game 2, and potentially Game 3 of their best-of-three series at 2:00 PM local time on weekdays is malpractice on behalf of Major League Baseball. Not only does this scheduling place an undue burden on fans of both ball clubs, but it also has an effect on the actual game that is being played. The difference in atmosphere between an evening game and a day game is vast, and it is simply unacceptable that teams would be forced to play day games exclusively while other teams, competing in games of equal stakes, play night games exclusively.

Additionally, the Astros and White Sox playing all of their games at 4:00 PM local time is also pretty insane, albeit not as egregious as the Philly and Atlanta situation.

Finally, before I move on and restrain myself (unsuccessfully) from discussing the times that these games are being played, let me just say: I understand fully why the games are played at these specific times. From a logistics standpoint, it makes sense. However, just because the schedule logistically makes sense doesn’t mean it’s necessarily good. It’s like when you say you dislike a twist in a particular movie and some idiot says, “No, it’s not bad, you just don’t understand it.” No, I understand it. Just because you understand it or it makes sense does not mean it is inherently good. Rant over.

Day One (Tuesday, September 29th)

Phillies at Braves (2:00 PM EST)

Postseason baseball officially commenced at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia, where the Braves hosted the Philadelphia Phillies for Game 1 of their Best of 3 series. Each team opted for a left-handed pitcher to start Game 1 of the series. For Atlanta, 37-year-old Chris Sale, coming off his 3rd straight season as an All-Star for the Braves, took the hill, while Philly opted to start Jesus Luzardo, an All-Star in his own right despite being widely considered the Phillies’ “number two” behind Christopher Sanchez.

Despite the reputation of each starting pitcher, both offenses quickly scored. A Kyle Schwarber walk was followed up by an RBI double from Alec Bohm two batters later, resulting in a 1-0 Phillies advantage after the first. That lead didn’t last long, however, as Ozzie Albies scored on a Mike Yazstremski single in the bottom of the second to even up the scoring.

Both pitchers seemingly found their groove after the first two innings, however. Luzardo was pulled after the 5th with an impressive stat line of 6 Ks, 3 Hs, and 1 ER. Sale was equally impressive. He started the 7th inning with a one-run lead after Ozzie Albies ripped a triple the inning prior, scoring Michael Harris. Sale then struck out Derek Hill (Sale’s 9th K of the afternoon) but immediately hit the next batter he faced and followed that up by surrendering a single to Bryan De La Cruz before being taken out of the game. Didier Fuentes replaced Sale out of the bullpen and, after forcing a flyout from Justin Crawford, let up a costly 2-run triple to Jt Realmuto after Acuna poorly played the ball off the wall.

After taking the lead, Philly elected to bring in their star closer, Jhoan Duran, in the 7th inning to protect their newfound lead. Duran did that successfully. After Dylan Lee quickly dispelled the heart of the Phillies’ order in the top of the 8th inning, the Phillies decided to let their star pitcher pitch one more inning. Duran quickly forced two outs from Olson and Dubon on just three pitches. With two outs, Michael Harris worked an infield single, which was followed up by a hit-by-pitch, which put the winning run on base and brought Matt Olson to the plate. Olson jumped on the first pitch he saw and took a 99 MPH Duran heater 485 feet to right-center field to give Atlanta a 5-3 lead. A lead that Atlanta would not relinquish.

Final Score: ATL 5 PHI 3

Game Grade: A

White Sox at Astros (5:00 PM EST)

How do you follow up on the undeniably phenomenal matchup between the Phillies and Braves? Short answer: you don’t. Both teams opted to make game 1 of this series a “bullpen game,” and boy did it feel like one.

The White Sox pounced on the Astros’ first victim, AJ Blubaugh, and took advantage of poor defense from the Astros, taking an early 1-0 lead on behalf of a Munetaka Murakami sac fly that scored Sam Antonacci. Blaubaugh then walked the next batter he faced and was promptly pulled from the game after only 0.2 IP and 5 batters faced. His replacement, Bryan King, struck out the next batter to stop the bleeding.

From there on, things only got worse for Houston. King let up a pair of singles to start the top of the 2nd inning before hitting Colson Montgomery to load the bases. He then allowed another pair of singles before being pulled from the game himself. Houston then tried Miguel Ullola out, a pitcher who only registered 16.2 IP the entire 2026 regular season. Ullola was able to get out of the jam, retiring the next three batters without giving up a run, but the Astros were now down 3-0 in only the second inning.

The rest of the game was more of the same. Ullola was probably the Astros’ most effective of the eight pitchers they used, as he ate up 3 innings of work before giving up a 432 ft bomb of a solo HR to Colson Montgomery.

The Astros finally got on the board in the 5th inning thanks to a two-run HR from pinch-hitter Nelson Velazquez. It unfortunately wasn’t enough for Houston, though, as Chicago was still up 5-2 at that point, and we were able to tack on an insurance run in the 7th as a result of a wild pitch. The White Sox eventually won 6-3.

The real standouts for the Sox were their pitchers, specifically their “starter,” Hagen Smith (3.0 IP, 2 Hs, 0 BB, 1 K, 0 ER), and closer, Grant Taylor (2.1 IP, 2 Hs, 1 BB, 5 Ks, 0 ER). I feel this game said more about Houston than Chicago, however. Houston’s pitching and defense were atrocious, and—obviously— their offense didn’t look much better. As a whole, they looked uninspired and outmatched against a relatively pedestrian White Sox squad.

Final Score: CHW 6 HOU 3

Game Grade: C

Red Sox at Yankees (8:00 PM EST)

We did it, folks. We have arrived at the main event. Yankees, Red Sox, postseason baseball, primetime on national television. Need I say more? When has a “Yankees vs. Red Sox postseason clash” ever disappointed? Well, if it never did before, it sure has now. Again, to reiterate, I am a very passionate Yankees fan, so I will try to be as unbiased as possible.

Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice dropped their proverbial nuts on the entire city of Boston. Schlittler, who absolutely dominated Boston last year in the AL Wild Card, struck out 10 batters and only surrendered a pair of hits and a single walk in his 6.1 innings of work. Also, in a rare managerial win for Aaron Boone, Schlittler pitched well past his usual pitch limit, reaching 117 pitches thrown, the highest of his young career.

The other half of the “nut dropping” would be Ben Rice. The AL MVP candidate has already earned his pinstripes, as he went 4 for 5 with two home runs against New York’s bitterest rival. Rice excelled against every pitcher thrown his way. He ripped a double to center in the first off Boston’s starter Payton Tolle, hit a 423 ft HR off Erik Miller when the Sox took out Tolle (more on that later), knocked an RBI single to right off Alec Gamboa in the 7th, and finally, last but not least, Rice hit a 408 ft grand slam to center field off Bryan Bello to extend the Yankees’ lead to 9-0 in the bottom of the 8th inning.

Rice and Schlittler weren’t the only positives for New York, however. Anthony Volpe and Austin Wells (yes, you read that correctly) were excellent for the Yanks. Volpe went 1-for-3 and played an excellent second base while Wells went 2-for-3 and knocked Lombard in twice. Speaking of Lombard, the young shortstop played outstanding in his first career postseason appearance. The 21-year-old went 3-for-4 against Boston’s pitching and played a solid shortstop.

Now, what can be said about Boston? They looked lifeless offensively. Schlittler absolutely shut down Boston’s hitters, and by the time he was out of the game and they had a full inning to face Paul Blackburn, they were down four runs, and it was already the 7th inning. The real turning point in the game for Boston came in the 5th inning. With two outs and Payton Tolle pitching very well, Boston elected to remove him from the game in favor of Erik Miller rather than allow their starter to face Ben Rice a third time. On the third pitch he saw, Rice hit an HR, and the momentum officially swung in New York’s favor. It felt, at that moment, as if the game (and maybe the series) was over.

Final Score: NYY 9 BOS 0

Game Grade: D+

Cubs at Padres (10:00 PM EST)

I’m not going to sugarcoat this. Tuesday’s nightcap was a stinker.

At the top of the first inning, the Padres’ starter, Michael King, struck out the odds-on favorite to win NL MVP, Pete Crow-Armstrong, on three pitches. He needed only an additional eight pitches to strike out Alex Bregman and retire Michael Busch and end the top half of the first inning. In the bottom of the first inning, San Diego’s lead-off hitter, Fernando Tatis Jr., swung at the first pitch he saw from the Cubs’ starter, Matthew Boyd, and hit the ball 405 ft to center field for a home run. Two batters later, Manny Machado hit the second ball he saw from Boyd 391 ft to left-center field, just a few yards to the left of where Tatis landed.

That paragraph pretty much sums up the entirety of Game 1 of the Padres vs. Cubs NL Wild Card series. Michael King was dominant, Tatis and Machado lived up to both their reputations and contracts, and the Cubs were absolutely lost.

King was essentially perfect on the hill for San Diego. No, for real, essentially perfect. King had a no-hitter for more than half of the game. King walked three batters, and Seya Suzaki got on base as a result of an errant throw from Xander Bogaerts, but King didn’t allow a single hit until the top of the 7th inning when Nico Hoerner etched out an infield single. King then struck out the last two batters of the inning, ending his night. Those strikeouts were his seventh and eighth of the evening.

Tatis and Machado had nearly identical stat lines. Both players went 2-for-3 with a walk and a home run. Tatis (3 R) and Machado (2) scored five of San Diego’s 8 runs. Xander Bogaerts also had a big day, going 2-for-4 with a solo home run in the bottom of the 4th inning. From the jump, San Diego’s offense was absolutely dominant.

As for the Cubs, there isn’t much to say. They were flat-out bad. They only managed to register three hits the entire game, and two of those came in the top of the ninth against Joe Musgrove when the Cubs were staring down the barrel of an eight-run deficit. The pitching wasn’t much better either. Matt Boyd, who experienced moderate success as a postseason starter the prior two years, was outclassed by the Padres’ offense, and his replacements weren’t any more successful. The Padres scored 4 runs off Boyd in his 4 IP and another 4 runs off the bullpen in 4 combined IP. How can you not be romantic about baseball?

Final Score: SDP 8 CHC 0

Game Grade: D+

Day Two (Wednesday, September 30th)

Phillies at Braves (2:00 PM EST)

The Braves and Phillies once again started off the action with a matchup in the blistering afternoon heat of Atlanta. Down 1-0 in the series, Philly entrusted the starting pitching role to their left-handed ace, Christopher Sanchez, while the Braves started 32-year-old journeyman Tyler Mahle.

This affair started eerily similar to Tuesday’s, as both teams scored a run early before an extended scoring drought. In the top of the 1st, Trea Turner hit a lead-off double and later scored courtesy of a Bryce Harper single to give the away team a 1-0 lead early. Atlanta answered quickly after a seven-pitch lead-off walk from Acuna turned into the game-tying run after Tuesday’s hero, Matt Olson, hit an RBI single to the right.

Both starters settled in over the course of the next 5-6 innings, with Tyler Mahle performing exceptionally well. Mahle, through 7.0 IP, struck out 6 batters and didn’t allow a run after the first inning. Sanchez, on the other hand, wasn’t as steady. The lefty ace allowed 6 hits and 5 walks in his 6.2 IP. Additionally, as his pitch count reached triple digits in the bottom of the 7th, he began to falter. With one out and a runner on first and second, Sanchez let up a costly RBI double to Braves DH Drake Baldwin. Sanchez and the Phillies then opted to intentionally walk Ozzie Albies to load the bases for Matt Olson. Once again, Olson delivered a fly ball to center that was caught by Justin Crawford but was deep enough to score Ha-Seong Kim and double the Braves’ lead.

Now, in the top of the eighth inning, down 3-1 and facing a potential early exit from the 2026 postseason, Kyle Schwarber stepped up to the plate. Tyler Mahle had exited the game after seven solid innings, and Atlanta decided to hand the ball to Dylan Lee. Schwarber quickly went down 0-2 in the count before working the count full on the subsequent three pitches. On the 7th pitch of the at-bat, Lee hung a slider, and Schwarber made him pay. The ball was 447 feet to right field, and the game was now 3-2 Atlanta. The very next batter, Bryce Harper, needed to see only 3 pitches to tie the game. 418 ft to right-center field. The score was now tied 3-3 entering the bottom of the eighth inning. Brand new game.

Andrew Painter came into the game and was tasked with preserving the score of the game. After initially walking the first batter he faced, Austin Riley, and scaring every man and woman in the greater Philadelphia area, he forced Michael Harris to ground into a double play. Sean Murphy popped out a pitch later. In the 9th, both teams had a baserunner but couldn’t capitalize, and the game entered extras tied 3-3.

In the top of the 10th, Atlanta brought in Didier Fuentes to face the heart of Philly’s order. Fuentes made quick work of both Schwarber and Harper; however, when facing Alec Bohm, Fuentes’ third pitch of the at-bat got a little too much plate, and Bohm made him pay. A 357 ft solo homer to the right gave the Phillies a 4-3 lead. Stott and De La Cruz singled out, but Fuentes was able to retire Hill, ending the top half of the 10th.

As the camera panned around Truist Park, many Braves fans had resorted to the rally cap, hoping their superstitious act would cause Atlanta to score a run against Painter, who was now coming out for his third inning in relief, and tie, or potentially win, the ball game. Their superstitions seemed to work as Atlanta had two runners on when pinch hitter Dom Smith came to the plate. With two outs, the speedy Dubon on second and the equally quick Harris on first, a single would tie the game, and anything more would win it for the home team. The first two pitches were swung on and missed. The third was called a ball, but an ABS challenge from Realmuto overturned the call. Game over. The Phillies stayed alive.

This is everything you want in playoff baseball. The suspense, the home runs, the extra innings. Game two of this series was the baseball embodiment of the “Martin Scorsese ‘Absolute Cinema’ meme.” What time did the game end, you wonder? You didn’t ask? Well, I’ll tell you anyway: 5:16 PM. Yes, I actually noted this when it happened because I’m, in fact, a crazy person. It was when the scoreboard flashed “final.” Most people were likely still on their way home from work or school when this game was concluding. I know I promised to stop talking about these games’ start times, but c’mon, the far and away most exciting series thus far has been played at 2:00 PM EST!

Final Score: PHI 4 ATL 3

Game Grade: A+

White Sox at Astros (5:00 PM EST)

So I, like I’m sure many of you, actually missed the first inning of this game because I was watching the end of the Phillies vs. Braves game. I am done talking about these start times, but please let the record show that I was displeased with missing the first inning and first runs of this game.

The Astros decided to actually start an actual starting pitcher this game after expending a total of eight pitchers the day before in the abject failure that was Houston’s “bullpen game” Game 1. Unfortunately for Houston, their Game 2 starter didn’t last any longer than their Game 1 starter did. The White Sox pounced on Hunter Brown early, and after surrendering 5 hits, 1 walk, and 4 runs (only 3 of which were earned), Houston yanked their starter, only two outs into the game.

Houston’s offense was certainly more alive today and wasted no time getting on the board. Jeremy Pena did his best Fernando Tatis Jr. impression and hit a lead-off home run off Chicago’s starter, Sean Burke, to cut Houston’s deficit to three. The following inning, with the score still 4-1, Cam Smith hit a solo home run off Burke to cut Chicago’s lead to two. Two innings later, Jose Altuve hit a solo home run of his own, again off Burke, to cut the lead in half. We finally have a ballgame in Houston. Have the Astros woken up? Could they win this game and force a Game 3? No.

Any hope that Houston compiled up to the fifth inning evaporated in the top half of the sixth when Chase Meidroth hit a three-run home run off Bryan Abreu to effectively end the series. Houston didn’t record a single hit after that home run in the 6th. While their offense and MVP hopeful Yordan Alveraz did not look incredible by any means, the team’s downfall was undoubtedly their pitching. Everyone knew Houston’s pitching was a weak point for the team, but they made the White Sox look like the ’27 Yankees. In essence, Houston, even with home-field advantage, was completely outclassed by this White Sox team.

Final Score: CHW 7 HOU 3

Game Grade: B

Red Sox at Yankees (8:00 PM EST)

I’m not sure if this is due to the start time of the previous two games today, but the Yankees vs. Red Sox matchup had more of that intangible playoff feel compared to the Astros vs. White Sox and Phillies vs. Braves games earlier in the day. The atmosphere in the Bronx was evident to every viewer and fan at home. Anytime something positive happened for the Yankees, the energy was palpable. Every time the Red Sox fought back, the whole stadium went quiet, and the silence was deafening. This is postseason baseball.

The first third of the game was relatively uneventful. Both starters, Sonny Gray and Max Fried, struck out 3 batters, and the game was scoreless entering the 4th. The first “big moment” of the evening came in the bottom of the fourth inning when Luis Garcia Jr. led off the inning with a solo home run to get the home team on the board. An inning later, Trent Grisham and Ben Rice both singled, forcing the Red Sox to take out Sonny Gray with two outs in the inning. Gray’s replacement, Erik Miller, immediately allowed an RBI single to Cody Bellinger. Heading into the 6th inning, the Yankees led 2-0, and all the momentum was on their side.

At the top of the 6th, Max Fried’s pitch count was approaching 100, and it was evident that this inning would be his last. With two outs, Wilson Contreras took a fastball outside the other way and took full advantage of the short porch in right field. As Contreras rounded the bases, he took his time. I mean, he really took his time. Max Fried and the entire Yankees squad were visibly upset by Contreras’ home run trot. Two pitches later, Wilyer Abreu flew out to center.

This is where things get really interesting. With the momentum fully in their hands, Boston decided to gamble. They decided to bring Garrett Crochet into the game to pitch the bottom of the 6th inning. Garrett Crotchet had not thrown a pitch in the MLB since April 25th. In 2025, Crochet was practically unhittable in 2025, and clearly the Red Sox coaching staff felt he was physically ready to pitch after missing 5 months with his injury, but inserting a traditional starter mid-postseason game was a questionable decision. How did this gamble pay off for Boston? Poorly, very poorly. Crochet struck out the first batter he faced, Spencer Jones; however, strike three was a wild pitch, and Jones safely made it to first. Jones proceeded to steal 2nd and even made it to third after an errant throw by Contreras. George Lombard then drove Jones in via a single to center. Jazz Chisholm then singled, followed by a bunt for a hit by Trent Grisham to load the bases. With the score 3-1, the bases loaded, and no outs recorded in the inning, the Sox pulled Crochet. Garrett Whitlock replaced Crochet and didn’t fare much better. Austin Wells hit a sac fly to the left that scored Lombard. Ryan McMahon grounded out third, but Chisholm scored and extended the lead to four. The Red Sox intentionally walked Ben Rice to bring up Cody Bellinger with two outs and the game still fully in reach. The second pitch that Bellinger saw was a changeup right in the middle of the zone. Everyone in the stadium knew it was gone the second he made contact. That was it. Game over.

It was only the 6th inning of the game, and the series, for that matter, was effectively over. A seven-run deficit is not impossible to overcome, but this one really felt impossible to overcome. Life had been zapped from the Red Sox’s spirit the second Cody Bellinger made contact with that ball in the 6th.

The Yankees weren’t perfect this series, but they were as dominant as any Yankees squad has looked the past few postseasons. It feels as if all of the Yankees’ hitters have gotten hot at the same time. Now they will add a (hopefully) healthy enough Aaron Judge to an offense that just thoroughly dismantled the Red Sox when they face another divisional rival in the Rays this weekend.

Final Score: NYY 9 BOS 2

Game Grade: B+

Cubs at Padres (10:00 PM EST)

Unlike Game 1, the second game of the series wasn’t essentially over in the first inning. Also, the Cubs were able to score infinitely more runs (1) this time compared to their effort on Tuesday.

The Padres were able to strike first, scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the second after a lead-off double from Ty France, base hits from Jackson Merrill and Xander Boegarts, and a sac fly from Ethan Salas.

Unlike Tuesday night, the Cubs answered back this time scoring in the top of the 4th inning. Seiya Suzuki knocked out a single, and Ian Happ followed by working a walk. Nico Hoerner capitalized, ripping a single to center, which scored Suzuki, the Cubs’ first run of the series (surely there will be more of that). That hit knocked Pivetta out of the game, and the Padres turned to their world-class bullpen to finish out the remaining 5 ⅔ innings. Bradgley Rodriguez entered the game for San Diego and quickly, but not prettily, got out of the bases-loaded jam. The Cubs had hope.

That hope was short-lived; however, in the very next inning, the Padres struck back. Xander Bogaerts continued his excellent postseason by hitting an out double to center that forced the Cubs to take Gausman out of the game. The first man out of the bullpen for Chicago was Daniel Palencia, who, after striking out Ethan Salas, gave up a 394 ft home run to pinch hitter Gavin Sheets. A bomb that thoroughly energized the home crowd and zapped the life from the visitors. Two batters later, Tatis almost virtually ended the game with a two-run shot but came up just a few feet short of the fence in center. The Padres, leading 4-1 after four innings, felt certainly like not only the better team but also the team that would come away victorious.

That score, 4-1, would remain for the following innings as the game became a battle of bullpens. The Cubs’ best shot at an equalizer came in the top of the eighth inning. Adrian Morejon was on his second full inning of work and had surrendered a single to Tyrone Taylor. Seiya Suzuki, one of the only Cubs players to record a hit this postseason and the only Cub to score a run this postseason, came to bat against Morejon. Suzuki got on top of a 99 MPH sinker and grounded into a double play. The inning was over, and the home crowd in San Diego erupted.

San Diego’s home field advantage was on full display this game. I truly believe the home crowd had a profound, negative impact on the Cubs’ offense this series. The team felt soulless, and I refuse to believe that they would have struggled as much as they did if this series had been played at Wrigley Field.

A three-run lead entering the ninth inning has never felt safer than it did for the Padres Wednesday evening. As soon as they cut the lights at Petco Park and the opening guitar riff began blasting over the PA system, it felt as if the Cubs were officially without hope. A team destined to be eliminated. Mason Miller, the best closer in the MLB, had entered the game. After a hard-fought, seven-pitch at-bat, Miller struck out Ian Happ on a 103 MPH fastball to record the first out of the 9th. Nico Hoerner, the Cubs’ most productive batter this postseason, came to the plate and looked absolutely helpless against Miller before somehow pulling a ball to left field against the shifted defense for a one-out double. That brought up Michael Conforto, who fought valiantly before chasing a disgusting slider in the dirt, striking out. Carson Kelly went first pitch and grounded out meekly to Xander Bogaerts, who easily retired Kelly to end the Cubs’ season.

A soft groundball to shortstop is actually a pretty apt metaphor for the Cubs’ performance this series. Their offense looked outmatched when facing San Diego’s elite bullpen. Also, it didn’t help that Chicago’s biggest stars, PCA and Bregman, were total non-factors offensively in both games.

The Padres were clearly the better team and may have been even underrated entering this postseason. Their offense looks solid, although they did disappear in the second half of Game 2, and their bullpen is likely the best in the league and a frightening sight for opposing teams. The gap between California’s best baseball teams might be smaller than initially believed.

Final Score: SDP 4 CHC 1

Game Grade: A-

Day Three (Thursday, October 1st)

Phillies at Braves (8:00 PM EST)

October baseball—is there anything better in the world? Don’t answer that, please. Moving on, my prayers have been answered! The Phillies and Braves are finally playing a primetime baseball game this postseason. The far and away most—well, arguably only—enticing, electrifying, and highly competitive Wild Card series this year has finally escaped the deep, depressing pit that is the 2:00 PM EST start time. Thankfully, there is no other major sporting event happening simultaneously to this game.

Luckily, the Thursday Night Football matchup of the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers was destined to be a frustrating sight for most NFL patrons without a rooting interest in either side. All eyes (alright, at least more than Games 1 & 2) were on Game 3 of the NL Wild Card.

For the first time all series, it felt as if the Braves truly had a home field advantage. From the top of the first inning, the crowd was booming in a way that they hadn’t been in Games 1 and 2. Maybe it was the start time. Maybe it was the heightened stakes of Game 3 being a “winner-take-all” game. Regardless, this series finally had an atmosphere that matched the exhilarating game being played.

With Zach Wheeler on short rest, the Phillies were forced to start their clear-cut “number four” starter: Aaron Nola. The 33-year-old veteran, making his 12th career postseason start for Philly, struggled early, allowing back-to-back walks to Ronald Acuna Jr. and Matt Olson in the 1st inning. Things didn’t get better for Nola (even after a nice chat with catcher JT Realmuto) as the very next batter, Michael Harris, squeaked out a 387 ft home run to right field to give the Braves an early 3-0 lead. Two innings later, Ozzie Albies crushed a no-doubt two-run homer to right off Zach Wheeler to extend the Braves’ lead.

The Braves’ opener, Ray Kerr, pitched an effective 3 ⅓ innings in his first career postseason start before being replaced by Grant Holmes. The Phillies offense was pretty dull the first half of the game, only managing a mere two hits through the first 5 innings. The top of the 6th was more fruitful for Philly as they knocked Holmes out of the game and scored their first run of the game, courtesy of an Alec Bohm groundout, but Robert Suarez was able to stop the bleeding before the Phillies could really cut into Atlanta’s lead.

From that point forward, Philadelphia struggled to get any sort of rally going as they started to run out of gas against the Braves bullpen. The pitchers in relief for Philly were able to keep the lead at only four through the 6⅔ innings until Matt Olson effectively signed the 2026 Phillies’ death warrant with a two-run shot in the bottom of the 7th.

The Phils tacked on another run after a Derek Hill lead-off triple in the 8th; however, the situation remained bleak for the visitors as Chris Sale trotted out of the bullpen with two outs in the top of the eighth inning to face Bryce Harper. Sale only needed four pitches to strike out Harper and bring the Phillies down to their last three outs of their season.

Sale took care of business in the 9th, and the Braves had won the game and the series. The Braves offense was the real leading factor in why they ultimately won the series. While Philly experienced sudden bursts of offensive productivity from their key contributors, all of Atlanta’s batters seemed very confident at bat—especially when facing the Phillies’ subpar relief pitchers.

Atlanta looked very good, especially offensively, in this series; however, nothing short of great will result in an NLDS victory over the defending World Series for the Braves.

Final Score: ATL 6 PHI 2

Game Grade: B

Thank you for reading, everyone! Make sure to stay tuned for more content this postseason and beyond!

Arenado had his best season since 2022, when he came third in NL MVP voting. He hit .250 with 30 home runs and an .806 OPS while being exactly who he’s always been on the defensive side of the ball, picking up 15 Defensive Runs Saved (1st in the majors).

Rodriguez had his first ever season with a sub-3 ERA, and was a winner of 16 games. He drove a rotation that was missing former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes who has been sidelined after having Tommy John surgery in 2025.

However, the Snakes lost a lot of production from switch hitting second baseman Ketel Marte who had been one of the best players in the game since 2023. His OPS fell to .748, the second lowest mark he’s posted in a full season. But the issues with Ketel Marte weren’t just his on-field production: Marte seemed to be the cause of a multitude of issues for the Diamondbacks behind the scenes and in the locker room

In mid-August, Marte was mysteriously missing during a game at Fenway while he was dealing with a knee injury. He wouldn’t have been in the lineup that day, but Marte didn’t even show up to the park. The Diamondbacks were forced to place him on the restricted list, and later the injured list.

Although Marte did apologize for his actions, the apology came many days later, and the media had already caught on to the story. Arenado also spoke about the situation on August 21, 4 days after Marte no-showed, and was very blunt, calling for Marte to own up to his actions and explain himself.

Manager Torey Lovullo also spoke about the situation, saying that he felt “betrayed” and was “extremely frustrated”. This clearly took a toll on him and was another part of the season he had to manage, separate from trying to help his team claw back into a playoff spot. In the most critical month of the season, one might argue that Lovullo had one of the hardest jobs in the game- manager and relationship coach.

Managing a clubhouse and getting everyone to buy into the mission is one of the hardest parts of the job for any leader, but a Major League manager doesn’t typically face this problem. It’s hard to watch when the manager’s professional reputation is being called into question because the expectations for the ballclub aren’t being met, when arguably the most important piece (team cohesion) is disrupted through no fault of his own.

When Marte returned to the field in Arizona, he received a series of boos from the fans- a shocking turn of events for a fanbase that had been singing his praises for the past few years.

It’s hard to say what caused Marte’s actions: maybe it was his sub-par performance compared to his career standards, or a new veteran presence stepping in this offseason in Arenado taking the leadership reigns from Marte who is still the longest tenured Diamondback. Either way, Marte’s actions caused him to fall out of favor with the fans, the clubhouse, and the community, but with 4 more years on his contract, it is unlikely Marte will be repping new threads anytime soon.

Situations like these can be catastrophic. You can’t buy chemistry, and anyone who has played the game will tell you how crucial it is to have. With this being the current dynamic of the Arizona Diamondbacks, many question what direction they will take the team in next year, and the years to follow.

One thing is for sure though: Ketel Marte will have to do a lot on the field to gain back the love of the fans- but what he does off the field might matter even more.

Question 1:
Which 22-year-old Yankees star led the American League with 46 home runs, 151 runs scored, and 418 total bases in 1937, drove in 167 runs, and still finished second in the AL MVP voting to Charlie Gehringer?

Question 2:
Which Brooklyn Dodgers legend won the 1949 National League MVP after batting .342, leading the league with 37 stolen bases and driving in a career-high 124 runs?

Question 3:
Which Giants superstar hit a career-high 52 home runs in 1965, led the National League in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and total bases, won his ninth Gold Glove, and captured his second MVP Award — 11 years after his first?

Question 4:
Which Pirates Hall of Famer batted .414 in the 1971 World Series, recorded a hit in all seven games and homered in Game 7 on his way to winning World Series MVP?

Question 5:
Which Mets ace posted career bests with a 1.76 ERA and 289 strikeouts in 1971, yet finished only second in the National League Cy Young voting?

Question 6:
Which pitcher struck out 383 batters in 1973, threw two no-hitters that season and went 21-16 with a 2.87 ERA — but still finished runner-up for the AL Cy Young Award?

Question 7:
Which Phillies third baseman hit 48 home runs in 1980, became a unanimous National League MVP, and then hit .381 with two homers and seven RBI to win World Series MVP?

Question 8:
Which Hall of Fame shortstop produced an incredible 11.5 bWAR in 1991, hitting .323 with 210 hits, 34 home runs and 114 RBI while playing for a team that lost 95 games — and still won the American League MVP Award?

Question 9:
Which Padres legend was batting .394 through 110 games in 1994, struck out only 19 times all season, and had his pursuit of .400 cut short by the players’ strike?

Question 10:
Which future Hall of Fame left-hander joined Arizona in 1999 and immediately led the majors with 271⅔ innings, 12 complete games and 364 strikeouts, posting a 2.48 ERA and winning the first of four consecutive Cy Young Awards?

STOP RIGHT THERE. Before going down to the answers, make sure to subscribe !

ANSWER KEY

1: Joe DiMaggio — DiMaggio was only 22 in 1937 and produced one of the monster seasons of his career: .346, 46 homers, 167 RBI, 151 runs and 418 total bases. Baseball-Reference credits him with 8.4 bWAR, tops among AL position players, yet Charlie Gehringer won the MVP after batting .371.

2: Jackie Robinson — Robinson hit .342, led the NL with 37 stolen bases and set a career high with 124 RBI in 1949. He received 12 of 24 first-place votes to capture his only MVP Award.

3: Willie Mays — Mays blasted a career-best 52 homers in 1965 while leading the league in OBP (.398), slugging (.645), OPS (1.043) and total bases (360). The award was his second MVP, coming 11 seasons after his first in 1954.

4: Roberto Clemente — Clemente hit safely in every game of the 1971 World Series, batted .414, and homered off Mike Cuellar in Game 7 to give Pittsburgh a lead it never surrendered. He was named World Series MVP.

5: Tom Seaver — Seaver went 20-10 with a 1.76 ERA and 289 strikeouts in 1971, both career bests. Despite that season, he finished second in Cy Young voting behind Cubs ace Fergie Jenkins.

6: Nolan Ryan — Ryan’s 383 strikeouts remain the Live Ball Era single-season record. He also threw two no-hitters, went 21-16 and posted a 2.87 ERA, but Baltimore’s Jim Palmer beat him for the Cy Young.

7: Mike Schmidt — Schmidt’s 48 home runs established a then-record for a third baseman. He received all 24 first-place MVP votes, then batted .381 with two homers and seven RBI as Philadelphia won its first World Series championship.

8: Cal Ripken Jr. — Ripken’s 1991 season was absurd: .323/.374/.566, 210 hits, 46 doubles, 34 homers, 114 RBI and 11.5 bWAR. Baltimore went just 67-95, but Ripken still won his second AL MVP.

9: Tony Gwynn — Gwynn finished the strike-shortened season at .394, the highest MLB batting average since Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941. He had 165 hits in 419 at-bats and struck out only 19 times in 475 plate appearances.

10: Randy Johnson — In his first season with Arizona, Johnson went 17-9 with a 2.48 ERA, struck out 364 batters and led MLB with 271⅔ innings and 12 complete games. He won the NL Cy Young, beginning a run of four straight Cy Young Awards from 1999 through 2002.

Thank you all for reading! Let us know how many you got correct in the comments below.

This one feels closer to what we want for the series: DiMaggio, Jackie, Mays, Clemente, Seaver, Ryan, Schmidt, Ripken, Gwynn and Randy Johnson. Big names, but you still have to know more than the obvious career highlights to get all 10.

If you went 10-for-10, you know your baseball history.

Stay tuned for 20th Century MLB Trivia Part IV.

Hello there, it has been a while since I put out one of my Red Sox blogs. I made that choice about a month ago because of some online discourse I will not dive too deep into. In short, I took a few series reviews off after some toxic messages came in from some Red Sox Twitter trolls. I did a little investigating, and it seems a larger personality was directing these people toward me.

I planned to return to the reviews, but after taking three off, it felt disingenuous just to jump back in. Next season, I will be back to writing my reviews for every series. If these people do come back, I think I have ample evidence to show that a very soft Twitter personality is giving them direction, and I will not have any issue addressing that.

Back to baseball.

This season was fun. At the end of each regular season, I revisit all my series reviews to relive the highs and lows. This season was very different from 2025. The 2025 season was pretty even-keeled compared to 2026. The team was solid all year and made the playoffs by a few games, just like this season.

The 2026 Red Sox, however, decided to make this the most intense roller coaster you have ever been on. From firing Alex Cora to a historic win streak that propelled them into a playoff spot, to a lackluster finish that saw half the team get hurt.

I have no idea how to feel going into the Yankees' Wild Card series, but this blog isn’t about that. Let’s reflect on the last six months first.

What I Loved

• Chad Tracy

  • My feelings have been pretty clear about the previous administration that was running the dugout. So, let’s focus on the positives. I love how calm and even-keeled Chad Tracy is. There are no antics, there are no blow-ups, and nothing is about him; it is all about the team. He doesn’t tinker too much with positions. He plays small ball (bunt king). But most of all, he seems to bring a calming presence to the clubhouse. He trusts his guys, gives them the appropriate amount of rope, and knows when he is needed.

• Aroldis Chapman

  • Despite his age, Aroldis still struck out over 12 batters per 9 innings. It wasn’t as dominant as his 2025, but no one is going to complain about 35 saves and a 1.92 ERA.

• Garrett Whitlock

  • If you go back to some of my earliest Red Sox blogs, you will see me fantasizing about Garrett Whitlock and Tanner Houck being the back end of the Boston bullpen. Everything about it just made sense. Then they decided to ruin his career by forcing him to start. He threw 52.1 innings this season, which is only about 20 less than his career high as a starter. He was the perfect bridge to Chapman and finished the season with a 1.72 ERA. We now have two straight years of him being a VERY good late reliever. Let’s keep it this way.

• Willson Contreras

  • The heart of the team all season. Even when the team was in the gutter, he was ready to light a fire under everyone at any moment. My favorite part of this year is Contreras trying to fight everyone on the opposing team at once. Statistically, he had the best season of his career, whichh is crazy to think about.

  

• Craig Breslow

  • Craig made the, at the time, incredibly unpopular decision to fire Alex Cora after a 10-17 start. Immediately, fans called for his head. Not me. I have been a Craig Breslow defender for years now and personally loved that he had the guts to make this move. By aggressively reshaping the coaching staff and handing the keys to Tracy, the entire season turned around.

• Ceddanne Rafaela

  • Flip a coin for PCA or Rafaela as the best defensive CF in the game. PCA tops in OAA, Rafaela in DRS. Overall, PCA had one of the greatest seasons we have seen, well, ever. Ceddanne, on the other hand, had HIS greatest season. Finally putting it together consistently on offense took him from a below-average hitter with a great glove to an above-average hitter with a great glove. We will take it.

  

• ROTATION

  • TTheir 15-game win streak saved the Red Sox season That win streak came from the starting rotation going absolutely nuclear. They all continued to have great seasons (some bumps with Suarez and Bennett) which is why I have some semblance of confidence going into this Wild Card Series.

What I Was ‘Mid’ About

• Roman Anthony and Trevor Story

  • I have to put Anthony and Story here strictly because of all the time they missed. Anthony has been playing great to end the regular season, Story not as much. Going into next season, one has to think the Trevor Story experiment is over.

  

• All Of The Trades

  • Again, I am a Craig Breslow defender, so I will not make a final determination on these trades right now. Frankly, it is way too early to even try and do so. If Adley Rutschman goes 0-13 this series and doesn’t get an extension this winter, then yeah I probably start to worry a little about the deal.

  • With the Marcelo Mayer deal, I will probably never be upset because he just doesn’t seem to want to work hard. But who knows!

• Brayan Bello

  • Last season, Bello was at the top of my loved page. I was ready for him to be the 1-B to Garrett Crochet. Obviously, that did not happen.

What I Didn’t Love

• All The Injuries

  • This team got banged up. Roman Anthony, Trevor Story, Garrett Crochet, Curis Mead, Masataka Yoshida, and IKF all spent siginficant time on the IL. Not to mention Contreras, Rafaela, Sogard, Slaten, Siegler, Whitlock, and many others who missed time at different points of the year.

  • Part of the game.

• Jarren Duran

  • Personally, I think I have hit my tolerance point for the Duran show. He had a 20-20 season, which is cool I suppose, but it was a roller coaster the entire way. I think I am probably very old school in my mindset that if you are arguably the player on the team struggling the most, you should probably not be a distraction.

  • So, giving middle fingers, yelling at fans, throwing tantrums in the dugout, it just gets old.

  • In no way do I agree with fans chirping players the way they do, but it happens players across the league every day. This is now three straight years that Duran has gotten into it with fans.

  

• Lack of Offense

  • The biggest concern going into the Wild Card round, has been the biggest concern all year, offense.

  • They are a middle of the road offense and have been all year. If Contreras is healthy, and Roman is on a heater, then they have a chance.

Not long after, a clip from an interview surfaced in which Vlad said, in effect, that he was paid for what he had already done, not necessarily for what he was going to do. This comes as the Blue Jays are eliminated from the playoffs after being one out from the World Series.

To his credit, Vlad was critical of his season and how bad he was, but that doesn’t make his comments any less tone-deaf. Even though, in a way, he is right, from a certain point of view…..

Players who play five seasons in a row accumulating less than 1 bWAR a year are not going to get a $200 million contract. Players who produce 5 bWAR a year will. So, by that thinking, Vladdy is right. He is getting paid for what he has done. Fans and teams don’t want to hear that, though, especially as they are falling apart.

So, it got me thinking: who are a few other players who signed big contracts and then seemed to give up on themselves? I pulled seven contracts and ran some data. For each player, I pulled their regular-season line before and after signing. PA, home runs, AVG, OPS, and a few Statcast numbers.

Editor’s Note: I got this data on September 23rd, so it may be slightly off. Also, there are some pretty obvious examples like Anthony Rendon that have been beat to death. So, I avoided him.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. — $500 million, 14 years

Vladdy had 30 homers and a .940 OPS in 2024. Toronto then agreed to the extension that would pay him $500 million over 14 years. He responded with another solid season, though worse than 2024, and helped the team reach the World Series.

Now for the part fans are right to be angry about: He is at nine homers and a .695 OPS in 600 PA in 2026. His barrel rate went 13.8% in 2024 → 12.2% in 2025 → 6.9% in 2026, and expected slugging fell .578 → .506 → .405. We now have three straight years of regression in important categories.

My read: He earned the extension with past production, and Toronto is paying for future production. Both statements can be true. The first contract year is a serious disappointment. One rough year, even one accompanied by a terrible quote, is not evidence that he quit working.

Anthony Santander — $92.5 million, five years

Anthony Santander hit 44 home runs in 2024. A significant jump from his 28 in 2023. Lucky for me, I had him on my dynasty team during his breakout year, but I traded him immediately.

Toronto signed him in January 2025 to $92.5 million over five years. His first Blue Jays season was six homers, a .565 OPS, and 221 PA. His barrel rate dropped 11.7% → 4.5%.

Obviously, huge caveat: he got injured. But when he was healthy, he started off terribly.

My read: The return so far is dreadful. Availability is the central story, which makes this one of the weakest cases for an effort accusation.

Willy Adames — $182 million, seven years

When the Vladdy video came out, Giants fans started chiming in talking about Willy Adames. Similar to Santander, Willy’s 2023 season was mediocre, followed by a Top 10 MVP finish in 2024. He also had some solid seasons prior, which is where we get into the “paid for what we have done” argument.

San Francisco signed him that December of 2024. In his first Giants year, he hit 30 homers in 686 PA. Yes, his OPS fell back to .739, but his barrel rate rose from 12.0% to 12.6%. While his bWAR was also up, all his offensive categories took a dip. Remember, this was the first year of a 7-year deal.

His second year gives the Giants a real concern: 21 homers and a .713 OPS in 505 PA, with his barrel rate down to 8.9% and expected slugging down from .435 to .391. In his age-30 season, injuries began to pile up, and we have not seen Adames on the field since August.

The Giants have Chapman, Devers, and Adames all on big contracts. None are living up to their potential, but Adames stands out amongst the three.

Xander Bogaerts — $280 million, 11 years

This one stings, because I really wanted Xander to succeed after he left the Red Sox. He finished his last two years in Boston with a .863 and .833 OPS. Pretty solid for a shortstop.

San Diego responded with a massive $280 million deal over 11 years. His Padres OPS has gone .790, .688, .719, .664. This current season includes just 12 homers in 596 PA. His barrel rate fell from 9.7% in 2021 to 6.5% in 2022 before San Diego signed him; it is 5.6% in 2026.

Javier Báez — $140 million, six years

The Javier Báez trade and then signing will go down as one of the worst in MLB history. Friendly reminder: the Mets sent Pete Crow-Armstrong to Chicago for Javier.

As for the contract, it fell apart immediately. He hit 29 homers with a .847 OPS in 2019 and 31 with a .813 OPS in 2021, before signing with Detroit. From 2022 through 2024, his OPS went .671 → .592 → .515. His chase rate was already an extreme 44.6% in 2021, before the deal; it did not begin in Detroit.

Lucky for Detroit, they will be out of this contract after next season.

José Abreu — $58.5 million, three years

Abreu is the shortest and sharpest fall, in large part because of his age. His last two White Sox seasons were .832 OPS with 30 homers in 2021 and .824 OPS with 15 homers in 2022. Houston signed him heading into his age-36 season. He gave the Astros a .679 OPS and 18 homers in 2023, then a .362 OPS and two homers in 120 PA in 2024.

The underlying contact went off a cliff: average exit velocity 92.2 mph in 2022 → 89.0 → 87.8; hard-hit rate 51.8% → 41.6% → 33.7%. When the Astros sent him to the minors to work on his swing, he agreed to the assignment. GM Dana Brown described it as a sign of his dedication and commitment; Jeff Bagwell said, “It wasn’t without effort.”

This one is probably more a case of age just catching up with him, but still, a very steep drop-off.

Julio Rodríguez — the deal that tests the premise

This entry is primarily to annoy my partner Brett. However, it is hard to argue that Julio hasn’t regressed since signing his contract a few years ago.

Sure, he has gone 20/20 all five seasons. Personally, I don’t think that’s overly impressive in today's game. His barrel rate has moved from 13.2% in his 2022 rookie season to 8.8% in 2026, and expected slugging has dropped from .473 to .439.

His chase rate has risen from 33.5% in 2022 to 38.5% in 2026. The league average is 28.6%. His OAA went from as high as 11 to -3 in 2026.

This one is a stretch, I know, but I believe it is worth keeping an eye on.

Editor’s Note: All my graphics going forward will come directly from Stat Soldier. Go check it out by clicking here.

It is that time of year again…October baseball.

Postseason baseball is one of the most electric events to happen in all of sports. Anyone can get hot; anyone can win. Typically, all the teams that make the baseball postseason are threats, which I can’t say for all the other Big-4 US Sports. The MLB playoffs are currently the hardest to qualify for across all Big-4 US sports (MLB, NFL, NHL, & NBA).

Big-4 US Sport Teams To Make Postseason:

NBA → 16 of 30 Teams (53.3%)

NHL → 16 of 32 Teams (50%)

NFL → 14 of 32 Teams (43.8%)

MLB → 12 of 30 Teams (40%)

Numbers don’t lie; only teams that have a real chance in October make the postseason. I understand the MLB has the occasional bad team slip through the cracks; look at the American League West this year. Whoever wins the division will have a sub .500 record, which is pitiful.

MLB's higher standards for postseason play are what make these October moments so special. You can make a case for any team to win a World Series as easily as you can make one for them to lose in the postseason.

That is exactly what I am doing here today. Check out my thoughts on why each team can bring home the coveted World Series trophy or go home early.

National League

1) Milwaukee Brewers (103-59)

• The Case For: The Brewers simply have no glaring weaknesses. They are ranked 2nd in ERA (3.51), 2nd in Saves (54), 1st in Wins (102), 4th in WHIP (1.18), 2nd in Average (.258), 1st in Hits (1,412), 2nd in Runs (826), 1st in OBP (.341), 2nd in BB (667), 8th in TB (2,202), and 2nd in RBI (782). How many different categories is this team going to be elite in before we acknowledge that this is the best-rounded team in baseball this season

• The Case Against: If I had to make a case against the Brewers, it would be the fact that they don’t hit the long ball. T-28th overall in Team HR (153), this could be a fatal flaw come postseason play. The pitching is just so good in October that small-ball doesn’t work, and a team might rely on a lucky swing to put up some runs.

2) Los Angeles Dodgers (100-62)

• The Case For: This team has experience. This team has elite talent at almost every position. This team also has the best player in the world (history of the game in my opinion). Very hard to make a “good” case against Los Angeles from three-peating.

• The Case Against: Three in a row is just statistically improbable. The Yankees and Athletics are the only two franchises to 3-peat in MLB history. The Yankees won four straight from 1936–1939, five straight from 1949–1953 (the MLB record), and three straight from 1998–2000. Oakland won three straight from 1972–1974. Don’t get me wrong, I can easily see the Dodgers hoisting the trophy for a third straight year.

3) Atlanta Braves (94-68)

• The Case For: The Braves are rather similar to the Brewers. Neither team has the firepower of the Dodgers, but they are well-rounded all across the diamond. They have their ace in Chris Sale, former MVP Ronald Acuna Jr., and an elite closer in Raisel Iglesias. This team is so much more than that, though; the rotation may not have the flashiest names, but they get the job done. The lineup has contributions from 7-8 different hitters, and the bullpen is able to sustain leads.

• The Case Against: Tyler Mahle is their #2 starter right now. One could argue for Grant Holmes or Bryce Elder, but that is my point. There is no clear-cut guy I would feel confident in to go get me a win in Game 2 of a playoff series right now.

4) San Diego Padres (91-71)

• The Case For: The sky is the limit with this team. AJ Preller has always been aggressive in signing and trading for star power when it becomes available on the market. Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, Fernando Tatis Jr., Ty France, and Jackson Merrill can light up the scoreboard. The bullpen is one of the best in the league and led by arguably the best closer in baseball, Mason Miller.

• The Case Against: Back-end of the rotation. In a short series, I think the Padres could fight off anyone. Going head-to-head in a 5-game or 7-game series, I would assume they would have trouble matching up with teams like Los Angeles or Philadelphia who have multiple trusted starters.

5) Chicago Cubs (89-73)

• The Case For: The offense is loaded. Currently 1st in Runs (844) and Total Bases (2,362). This is the best offense in baseball. Funny enough, this is also the top defense in baseball. They are ranked 1st in Field Percentage (.990). Oh, and I forgot to mention this guy they have named Pete Crow-Armstrong who is going to win the MVP in the National League this year. He is pretty good at baseball.

• The Case Against: Their starting pitching will not be able to get the job done. Pitching overall will be an issue for Chicago, but the rotation just has had so many injuries that it will take a miracle for the Cubs to pull it off without those missing arms.

6) Philadelphia Phillies (88-74)

• The Case For: I feel like the Phillies have either been the hot pick or dark horse candidate to win the World Series for the last several years. They have a stacked lineup, the rotation has a legit 1-2-3 knockout punch with Sanchez, Luzardo, and Wheeler, and an All-Star closer in Jhoan Duran.

• The Case Against: The lineup can feel a bit top-heavy at times, and the bullpen depth isn’t there for me. A bullpen that has a 4.36 ERA doesn’t scream great insurance policy. That is the 22nd-ranked pen in the league. I’m sorry, Philly fans, but this is not a good situation for a deep playoff run.

American League

1) Tampa Bay Rays (98-64)

• The Case For: The Rays have been the clear-cut best team in the American League all season long. I understand that people will read that and think that the American League is down this year, but winning 98 games is no small feat. Not to mention two other teams in their division are also in the playoffs; they manhandled the division and should be respected as the top team in the American League even without the typical star power that some of these contenders possess.

• The Case Against: Similar to the Brewers formula, this is a small-ball team. Ranked 22nd overall (167) in team home runs, they might not have the big swings in them to win a title. That being said, Junior Caminero is on the Rays, and he has hit 42 bombs this season.

2) Cleveland Guardians (85-77)

• The Case For: The Guardians have a very good 1-2-3 punch leading the rotation. Definitely not the best in the league, but Tanner Bibee (4.36 ERA), Parker Messick (2.56 ERA), and Gavin Williams (3.76 ERA) are slept on. Not to mention Joey Cantillo (3.63 ERA) and Slade Cecconi (4.91 ERA) are solid options in the back end of the rotation. The Guardians are just good at pitching overall, to be honest. Seven hitters have north of 12 bombs as well, so there is some pop up and down this lineup.

• The Case Against: Might be a lazy take (I am not spending a ton of time on the Guardians), but they need more talent to be considered “serious” contenders. Go get J-Ram, another star hitter for next year, as this team looks like it will be good for a little bit.

3) Houston Astros (81-81)

• The Case For: I mean, it’s Houston. Players like Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez will always command respect from a Yankees fan such as myself. Listen, I get that 81-81 is nothing to call home to Mom about, but they are now in the dance. They have an ace in Hunter Brown. They have one of the best closers in baseball who has been pretty much dominant since 2019 and capable hitters. Anything can happen.

• The Case Against: They limped into the playoffs, and there are too many holes in the rotation to put up a fight against a playoff team.

4) New York Yankees (93-68)

• The Case For: If you want the short version → they have a loaded lineup with a keyword “healthy” Judge. The rotation is gross, and they have a lockdown closer in Bednar. If you are a Yankee fan, check out my fair yet optimistic view here.

• The Case Against: The bullpen is thin, very thin. Aaron Judge’s health. If he can’t go, this team is cooked.

5) Boston Red Sox (87-75)

• The Case For: Boston can be scary. If I weren’t a Yankees fan, I’d say they could be the team I pick to represent the American League in the World Series. But I am a Yankees fan, so I am taking the boys from the Bronx. That being said, Boston can bang with anyone. Roman Anthony has missed a bunch of time this year, but he is back and hitting .368 over the last week. Why not?

• The Case Against: Honestly, it just doesn’t feel like Boston’s year to me. They are inconsistent, and with Garrett Crochet still out, I don’t like it as a betting man. He can still return for the playoffs, but when?

6) Chicago White Sox (84-78)

• The Case For: +56 positive Run Differential in the regular season. This team is young and exciting but……

• The Case Against: Overall inexperience. I think the South Side fans are just happy to be here. The White Sox have a fun little rotation, but I would tend to think they would struggle with teams like Tampa, New York, and Boston.

Prediction: The New York Yankees

Homer pick, I know. I am basing this on the fact that I think the Dodgers will get knocked out by someone along the way before facing the Yankees.

My thought process is that if the Yankees can face anyone but the Dodgers, they will have the upper hand in talent compared to any of the other National League teams. This is also assuming that Judge and Stanton come back and make an impact!

Editor’s Note: All my graphics going forward will come directly from Stat Soldier. Go check it out by clicking here.

Before you commit to reading this blog, I have to advise you that there will be Yankee fan bias.

I apologize in advance.

Tomorrow I will post a blog with an argument for each team to make a World Series run paired with a reason why that team will fail to host the trophy.

That being said, let’s jump into it.

The Rotation:

Is the rotation the best one in baseball? No. Is it arguably a top-5 rotation with the 2026 American League Cy Young front-runner leading the charge? Yes.

• Cam Schlitter, RHP (1.95 ERA)

• Gerrit Cole, RHP (3.61 ERA)

• Max Fried, LHP (2.80 ERA)

• Carlos Rodon, LHP (2.67 ERA)

• Will Warren, RHP (3.92 ERA)

• Ryan Weathers, LHP {IL} (3.60 ERA)

The Yankees have a deep rotation; there is no doubting that. They also have a healthy balance of lefties and righties to deploy against opposing lineups. Ryan Weathers is currently stashed on the injured list, but he will be back soon. He has been on the injured list since August 23 with a left forearm flexor strain. How soon? I am guessing any day now, as Weathers threw a live batting practice session yesterday.

Say what you want, but it’s very hard to argue against a team that is putting up numbers like these:

• 3.24 ERA (1st MLB)

• 1,450 K (6th MLB)

• 65 QS (4th MLB)

• 1.17 WHIP (3rd MLB)

• 93 Wins (4th MLB)

• .224 OBA (3rd MLB)

There is no argument that this team can’t pitch. With a talented rotation this deep, I have to be enthusiastic that the Yankees can compete with anyone in baseball.

The Bullpen:

Not going to beat around the bush. The bullpen is shaky. I felt a lot better last week when Clarke Schmidt was poised to return from injury as a stretch-bullpen role, but with him going immediately back on the injured list, I worry the pen can get stretched thin quickly. The one thing that is undeniable is that David Bednar is a lockdown closer, and I am confident in his ability to close out games in big moments.

• David Bednar, RHP (2.47 ERA)

• Brent Headrick, LHP (2.18 ERA)

• Paul Blackburn, RHP (1.69 ERA)

• John Schrieber, RHP (1.64 ERA)

• Ryan Yarbrough, LHP (3.69 ERA)

• Tim Hill, LHP (4.60 ERA)

Pair that with the sad news that, despite an attempt to return this season, Fernando Cruz is now ruled out for the entire postseason after the Yankees placed him on the 60-day IL. I want to believe the bullpen can deliver, but I think a large component of their success is based on how many innings the rotation can provide.

The Offense:

Health. Health. Health. I HAVE to look at the current injuries and hope for the best. With Judge saying that he will be back, Jazz coming back yesterday, and Grisham/Giancarlo taking swings, one can only dream of a lineup that looks like this when healthy.

1. 1B: Paul Goldschmidt (R) / Ben Rice (L)

2. DH: Ben Rice (L) / Giancarlo Stanton (R)

3. RF: Aaron Judge (R) {IL}

4. CF: Cody Bellinger (L) / Trent Grisham (L)

5. LF: Heliot Ramos (R)

6. SS: George Lombard Jr. (R)

7. C: Austin Wells (L)

8. 2B: Jose Caballero (R) / Jazz Chisholm Jr. (L)

9. 3B: Ryan McMahon (L)

Bench: Luis Garcia Jr., Spencer Jones, and Amed Rosario.

That is a very deep lineup. It would be a nightmare to game plan for this team when fully healthy. Not to mention if they catch fire. All of this relies on Aaron Judge coming back. He is the cog that makes this machine go, and everyone knows it.

The Conclusion

Do a lot of things have to go right in order for the Yankees to win? Absolutely. They might not beat Boston in the Wild Card series. The fact of the matter is that when you break down the current roster, it is hard not to be optimistic despite some health concerns.

The lineup is loaded and hits bombs. They lead the league in home runs despite Aaron Judge missing a ton of time this season and no Stanton all year long.

The rotation is strong and experienced. The bullpen is led by a veteran closer enjoying himself another fantastic season. The Yankees' success this postseason will come down to Aaron Judge’s health, the rotation giving the bullpen rest, and solid defense.

Do I think people should treat the Yankees as the favorite to win the World Series? No. Do I think they can get there and make it interesting. 100%.

The American League is down this year, and they certainly have the firepower to make a run.

Without further ado, welcome to the inaugural “Greg’s MLB Awards (that do not exist and will never exist and do not make much sense, but just try to follow along and have fun).” The title is still a work in progress.

The “2026 Fernando Tatis Jr. ‘I Think I Got My Swagger Back’” Award:

Winner: Fernando Tatis Jr.

Fernando Tatis Jr. has had a bizarre 2026 MLB season. Through his first 50 games, the former three-time All-Star was slashing .240/.316/.279 and had, remarkably, not hit a single HR. In fact, it took Tatis until May 30th to hit his first HR of the 2026 regular season. Over the next two months, Tatis experienced a marginal increase in productivity leading up to the July All-Star break, but the real leap was yet to come. Despite his slow start and only hitting 5 HRs prior to the All-Star break, Tatis is currently slashing .289/.358/.470 with a 131 OPS+. Tatis has also managed to accumulate 25 HRs and 38 SBs. I won’t dive too deep into Tatis’ remarkable second-half turnaround, as I already have an article on this exact subject that you can read right here on the Skippers View. I debated who the namesake of this award should be, with 1964 Lou Brock and 2008 Manny Ramirez making strong cases; however, those players were traded mid-season and didn’t truly encapsulate a player’s ability to hit for power, seeing such a drastic change in productivity over the course of a single season.

The “David Ortiz ‘Yeah, Listen, uh... We F*cked Up’ Letting This Guy Go” Award:

Winner: Pete Alonso

Now, this is not a perfect 1:1 comparison. David Ortiz had put together six fairly mediocre seasons in Minnesota when the Twins released him to free agency in December of 2002. By contrast, when the Mets let Pete Alonso walk in free agency this past off-season, the 30-year-old homegrown first baseman had already proven his talent by hitting 264 HRs throughout six full seasons (and one shortened 50-game season in 2020), making five All-Star teams, and gifting Mets fans one of the most unforgettable postseason moments of the decade.

Alonso has had an incredible first season as a Baltimore Oriole, leading the AL in both HRs and RBIs with 41 and 110, respectively. Alonso looks to be worth every penny of the $33.5 million annual salary that the O’s will be paying him over the course of the next 4 seasons. And David Stearns has to explain to Uncle Steavie why he let one of the best hitters in baseball walk in free agency in order to sign Bo Bichette and Marcus Semien.

The “John Smoltz ‘How Am I The 3rd Best Pitcher on my Team?’” Award:

Winner: Zach Wheeler

The Phillies still, as of writing this blog, have not clinched a spot in the 2026 postseason despite having three of the best starting pitchers in all of baseball. Zach Wheeler has accumulated 5.5 bWAR so far this season, which has him tied for the 8th best in all of Major League Baseball. Unfortunately, a 5.5 bWAR is only the third highest on his own team. Wheeler has been incredible in 2026, but Christopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo have been sensational. Sanchez leads all pitchers in the MLB in bWAR (7.6) and wins (18). Sanchez has also put up a 154 ERA+ while striking out 221 batters throughout his 200.0 innings pitched. Luzardo has been just as impressive in his own right, putting up the 3rd-best bWAR (6.3) amongst all starting pitchers in the MLB while also striking out 221 batters and putting up a 157 ERA+. When compared to his teammates, Wheeler’s 188 Ks, 147 ERA+, and 3.33 FIP just don’t hit the same. Not unlike John Smoltz in the late 90s for the Braves, Wheeler is likely an “ace” on many MLB teams, but currently, he’s easily the 3rd best starter on his own team.

Thank you for reading, everyone! If you enjoyed this blog, please let me know, and I’ll work on a part two! Make sure to subscribe to the Skippers View and follow us on X.