First Round Preview of the 2018 MLB Playoffs

The road to the 2018 World Series begins in Chicago on Wednesday night. Here’s a preview of all the first round action, along with our divisional playoff predictions.

It’s early October and that means the Major League Baseball playoffs are set to begin. Here are our predictions for all the first round action.

The Wild Card Games

It’s win-or-go-home as the four lowest seeds swing into action on Tuesday and Wednesday night. In the National League Wild Card game, the Colorado Rockies travel to raucous Wrigley Field to take on the Chicago Cubs. In the AL, it’s the A’s visiting the Yankees in yet another do-or-die game at Yankee Stadium.

In the NL game, both the Rockies and the Cubs need to rebound from losing their divisional tiebreakers. The Rockies have the additional burden of having to travel all the way from Los Angeles. Look for the Chicago bats to give starter Jon Lester just enough early support to eke out a low scoring win.

Over in the American League, two of the best wild card teams in baseball history will square off in Yankee Stadium. With 100 and 97 wins respectively, both the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics have the talent to win it all. This is one of the many reasons that this is a tough game to predict.

The Yankees have more postseason experience on their side, but the A’s come into the game with one of baseball’s best records over the second half of the season. Look for momentum to win out over experience as the A’s advance in a high-scoring game.

The NL Divisional Series

One of the National League’s Divisional matchups is already set, with the Atlanta Braves facing the Dodgers in a five-game series. The two teams come into the series with very different recent histories behind them, and this is a factor that definitely favors the Dodgers.

The Braves might have the narrative on their side– a division win after years of mediocrity– but the Dodgers have too much talent and too much experience to fail in the opening round. They also have enough starting pitching to silent the lively Atlanta bats. Look for the Dodgers to advance in four games.

In the other NL Divisional Series, the Milwaukee Brewers await the winner of the Rockies/Cubs Wild Card game. And no matter which team they get, the Brewers will begin the series with a slight advantage. If Milwaukee gets the Cubs as we’ve predicted, their tie-breaking win over Chicago on Monday could prove to be pivotal.

The Cubs and Brewers are just as evenly matched as their records would indicate. Unfortunately for the Cubs, however, they won’t have the services of pitcher Jon Lester until two or three games into the series. This lack of pitching depth, along with Milwaukee’s home field advantage, should propel the Brewers to a series victory.

The AL Divisional Series

The set matchup in the American League pits the World Champion Houston Astros against the perennially close Cleveland Indians. The Astros come in after winning an incredible 103 games, a dozen more victories than the Indians could achieve. And while anything can happen in a short series, look for the Astros win in four games.

A similar situation promises to unfold in the other AL Divisional matchup. Regardless of who the Red Sox face, they’ll come in as heavy favorites. Dominant in every aspect of the game, the Sox led the league with 108 wins this year and are on the odds-on favorite to win it all. Look for them to make quick work of the A’s or the Yankees.

Predictions aside, the 2018 Major League Baseball postseason could be one for the ages. The league was top heavy this year, with a handful of very good teams missing the playoffs. With the high quality of the teams involved, the baseball in November promises to be electric.

photo via @MLB