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  David SchoenfieldOct 22, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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  • Covers MLB for ESPN.com
  • Former deputy editor of Page 2
  • Been with ESPN.com since 1995

Here’s a hot take: We’re going to have an epic World Series between the heavily favored Los Angeles Dodgers and the underdog Toronto Blue Jays (who, by the way, won more games and have home-field advantage).

At least, we’re due for one. None of the past five World Series went longer than six games and none would be described as a classic or especially memorable World Series. We’ve had longer no-Game 7 droughts before (including eight years in a row from 2003 to 2010), but after a stretch of four series going the distance in six years from 2014 to 2019, we had grown to expect those drawn-out affairs. Here’s hoping we get one.

The big storyline this year is the Dodgers seeking to become the first repeat champion in 25 years, riding their billion-dollar rotation and coming off Shohei Ohtani’s greatest performance ever to wrap up the National League Championship Series. The Blue Jays are riding the hot bats of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer to make their first World Series since 1993.

In terms of World Series annals, it’s a strong matchup, so let’s rank all the World Series since 2000 to see where Dodgers-Blue Jays fits in. This ranking is based on hype, the quality of the teams and their star power heading into the World Series. It’s not a ranking of the quality of the World Series itself, although we’re going to include a grade on that for each matchup. Let’s get to it.

The Yankees were back in the World Series for the sixth time in eight years while the Marlins had rebuilt after their fire sale following their World Series title in 1997. Trust me when I say: Nobody wanted the Yankees in the World Series yet again. And the Marlins were merely a 91-win wild-card team. Most notably, however, both teams had spoiled the ultimate World Series by knocking off the Cubs and Red Sox — before either team had overcome its curse — in Game 7s in the LCS.

Actual World Series: C. The Marlins won Game 4 in 12 innings, when Yankees manager Joe Torre inexplicably failed to use reliever Mariano Rivera, and then 23-year-old Josh Beckett tossed a five-hit shutout in Game 6.

In an all-wild-card series, the No. 5-seeded Rangers had won 90 games and the No. 6-seeded Diamondbacks won only 84, making this the lowest combined win total in World Series history (for full seasons). The Rangers were going for their first World Series title, so there was that, and there were some fun hitters — Corey Seager, the red-hot Adolis Garcia (who had just driven in 15 runs in the ALCS) and Corbin Carroll — but it was a soft matchup on paper.

Actual World Series: D-. The series turned on Seager’s tying two-run homer off Paul Sewald in the bottom of the ninth of Game 1, which Garcia then won with a home run in the 11th. There wasn’t a single lead change after that and three of those games were blowouts.

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This was the Cardinals team that got hot in September and clinched a wild-card spot on the final day of the season when the Braves blew a lead in the ninth inning and lost in extra innings. St. Louis certainly had star power with the likes of Albert Pujols, Lance Berkman and Matt Holliday but had won a World Series fairly recently (2006) while the Rangers had just been there the year before.

Actual World Series: A.The first two games were one-run games, including the Rangers pulling out a victory with two runs in the ninth. In Game 3, Pujols blasted a record-tying three home runs. Game 6 was the David Freese Game — perhaps the single most exciting baseball game ever played. Game 7 was a bit of an anticlimactic 6-2 Cardinals win.

The second-lowest combined win total in World Series history featured two wild-card teams who won fewer than 90 games. The Royals were at least a good story — in the playoffs for the first time since winning the World Series in 1985 — and had gone 8-0 in the AL playoffs, including an epic win over the A’s in the wild-card game. The Giants, however, had just won the World Series in 2010 and 2012 and this team didn’t seem nearly as good as those two.

Actual World Series: B-. Five of the games were blowouts, but it did at least go seven. It’ll be remembered for Madison Bumgarner’s historic performance: a shutout in Game 5 (the last complete game shutout in World Series history) and then five scoreless innings of relief in Game 7, getting Salvador Perez to pop out with the tying run on third to end it.

The Red Sox were only three years removed from breaking the Curse of the Bambino in 2004, so although they were still a star-laden team with David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and scrappy rookie Dustin Pedroia, they were no longer as interesting. The Rockies were a fun story, winning 14 of their final 15 games, including beating the Padres in a tiebreaker, just to win a wild-card spot. Then they went 7-0 in the NL playoffs and had won 21 of 22 entering the World Series.

Actual World Series: F.A dud. Two of the games were one-run games, but it goes down as one of the least memorable World Series of all time, with a forgettable four-game sweep.

21. 2006: St. Louis Cardinals over Detroit Tigers, 4-1

The Tigers were the story of the season. They had lost 119 games three years before and 91 just the previous year. With rookie starter Justin Verlander winning 17 games, they led the AL Central most of the season — only to lose their final five games and squeak into the playoffs as a wild-card team. The Cardinals won a weak NL Central with only 83 wins — although they at least had Pujols at his absolute peak (.331/.431/.671, 49 home runs). Both teams hadn’t won a World Series in a couple of decades: 1982 for the Cardinals, 1984 for the Tigers. Plus, it did feature two of the original 16 franchises.

Actual World Series: F. The Cardinals won one game in the bottom of the eighth, but it was otherwise a blur of nothing, most characterized by several Tigers fielding miscues by their pitchers. David Eckstein won MVP honors without hitting a home run and driving in only four runs.

The Braves were back in the World Series for the first time since 1999 — they had made 12 playoff appearances in the intervening years without making it to the Fall Classic. Still, this was the weakest of the Atlanta playoff teams of recent vintage, winning only 88 games and missing Ronald Acuña Jr. for the playoffs. The Astros, meanwhile, were back in the World Series for the third time in five years — but the first time since the 2017 sign-stealing scandal had broken in November 2019. Let’s just say not everyone wanted them there.

Actual World Series: D.This was a weird World Series. The Braves ended up going with two bullpen games (who remembers that Dylan Lee and Tucker Davidson started?) after Charlie Morton broke his leg in Game 1. Astros starters kept getting knocked out early (the only starter to go more than five innings for either team was Max Fried in the finale). Four of the games were blowouts.

19. 2012: San Francisco Giants over Detroit Tigers, 4-0

The Giants were back after winning in 2010 while the Tigers were back for the first time since 2006, featuring Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera and a strong 1-2 punch in the rotation with Verlander and Max Scherzer. This was also the last World Series with that season’s MVP winners (at least until this year), with Cabrera and Buster Posey.

Actual World Series: D-. A boring sweep. Pablo Sandoval did hit three home runs in Game 1, but there were two shutouts and chilly weather in Detroit made the final two games unbearable.

18. 2013: Boston Red Sox over St. Louis Cardinals, 4-2

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This one did feature the two best teams from the regular season (both won 97 games), the last time before this year we had that happen in a full season. It was also a classic original-16 matchup, although we had seen this in 2004 — plus, both teams had won recently (2007 for Boston, 2011 for St. Louis). Both were veteran teams, with Ortiz leading the Red Sox, while the Cardinals featured four .300 hitters, plus Carlos Beltran, who hit .296 and led the team in home runs.

Actual World Series: C+. Ortiz was absolutely locked in, hitting .688/.760/1.188 with two home runs and eight walks. The Cardinals were so scared of him by Game 6 that they intentionally walked him three times — with two of those helping lead to rallies and a 6-1 Red Sox victory in the final game.

This one could be No. 25 — it was during COVID after all, and it was played at a neutral site in a half-empty stadium for social distancing reasons. But it was a great matchup between the teams with the best records in each league, albeit over the shortened 60-game season. You had Mookie Betts and Clayton Kershaw and Randy Arozarena in the midst of one of the best individual postseasons ever, plus the small-market Rays trying to beat the big-market Dodgers.

Actual World Series: C+. Because teams were allowed an expanded roster of 28 players, it was a parade of relievers — but there were some fun games, including that bonkers ending to Game 4 and then Rays manager Kevin Cash’s controversial decision to remove Blake Snell in Game 6, which backfired in a big way.

16. 2005: Chicago White Sox over Houston Astros, 4-0

Maybe this should rate higher. After all, at the time, the White Sox were trying to break a World Series drought going back to 1917 and the Astros, born in 1962, had never won. But the White Sox drought never had the same nationwide interest as the ones for the Cubs or Red Sox (fair or not) and these weren’t particularly interesting teams. The White Sox were very good — they won 99 games — but lacked star power, with Paul Konerko their biggest name (Frank Thomas was on the team that year but played only 34 games and was injured for the playoffs). The Astros had Yankees transplants Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, but their two longtime stars, Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio, were at the end of their careers (Bagwell, in his final season, was relegated to DH and pinch-hitting duties).

Actual World Series: C. It’s hard to give a sweep a decent grade, but all four games were exciting, including Scott Podsednik’s walk-off home run in Game 2 (after not hitting a home run all season) and Geoff Blum’s go-ahead home run in the 14th inning to win Game 3.

The Phillies were back in the World Series for the first time since 1993 — and hadn’t won since 1980. They featured a powerful offense with Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell. The Rays were maybe the unlikeliest World Series team ever: In their 10 previous years of existence, they had not only never had a winning season but had lost at least 90 games in each one. They won 97 games that year behind rookie Evan Longoria and power-hitting first baseman Carlos Peña, with speedsters Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton in the outfield.

Actual World Series: D+. Three games were decided by one run, but it was a pretty uneventful World Series. The lasting memory is the cold and rain in Philly that forced the midgame postponement of Game 5, the only time that has happened in World Series history. The game was suspended in the sixth inning and resumed two days later.

14. 2000: New York Yankees over New York Mets, 4-1

A Subway Series — the first since the Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers met in 1956 — was certainly fun for the Big Apple, less fun for the rest of the country (it drew the worst TV ratings at the time). The Yankees were going for a third straight World Series and had officially become the Evil Empire by that point. To make it even worse, they weren’t even that good that season, winning only 87 games. The Mets were back in the World Series for the first time since 1986. There was certainly plenty of star power all around with the likes of Derek Jeter, Roger Clemens and Mike Piazza.

Actual World Series: C+. It was a tight-fought five-game series with all games decided by two runs or fewer. The turning point was the bottom of the ninth of Game 1, when the Yankees tied it off Armando Benitez and went on to win in 12 innings. Game 2 featured the infamous Clemens-Piazza bat-throwing incident, and the Yankees won the clincher with two runs in the ninth off a tired Al Leiter.

13. 2022: Houston Astros over Philadelphia Phillies, 4-2

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I know, the Astros … again. Boo. But this was an absolute powerhouse of a team with 106 wins and stars such as Yordan Alvarez (1.019 OPS) and Verlander (18-4, 1.75 ERA), plus the old standbys Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman. The Phillies, meanwhile, snuck in as a wild-card team for their first playoff trip since 2011 but were an immensely entertaining team with Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber & Co., as well as a rabid fan base cheering them on.

Actual World Series: C. The Phillies won 6-5 in Game 1 on J.T. Realmuto’s home run in the 10th inning. They took a 2-1 series lead but then their bats died. Astros pitchers tossed a combined no-hitter to even the series and Houston won the final two games 3-2 and 4-1, with Alvarez’s three-run blast in Game 6 the deciding blow.

12. 2015: Kansas City Royals over New York Mets, 4-1

The Royals proved their 2014 World Series appearance was no fluke, winning 95 games with a better team that included trade-deadline additions Ben Zobrist and Johnny Cueto. The Mets won the NL East behind a young, powerful rotation that featured Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom. It was a fun matchup of teams trying to avoid lengthy title droughts — 30 years for the Royals, 29 for the Mets.

Actual World Series: C+. It only went five games, but the Royals won the opener in 14 innings, won Game 5 with a three-run eighth inning and then won the clincher in 12 innings — after Mets manager Terry Collins’ ill-fated decision to leave in Harvey to start the ninth with a 2-0 lead.

11. 2010: San Francisco Giants over Texas Rangers, 4-1

This was a super entertaining showdown at the time. The Giants had yet to win a World Series in San Francisco and featured Tim Lincecum (“The Freak,” for his small stature and overpowering stature) and two rookies named Posey and Bumgarner. The Rangers had never won a championship and featured AL MVP Josh Hamilton and veteran DH Vladimir Guerrero. Both teams had pulled off upsets in the LCS, with the Giants beating the Phillies and the Rangers beating the Yankees.

Actual World Series: D. Meh. The Giants won the opener in a blowout as the Rangers made four errors and then tossed shutouts in Games 2 (behind Matt Cain) and 4 (behind Bumgarner). You can test Giants fans by asking them who won World Series MVP honors that year. Answer: Edgar Renteria (he hit .412 with two home runs and six RBIs).

Remember, this happened before the sign-stealing scandal changed how we view this era of the Astros. They had won 107 games behind the pitching duo of Verlander and Gerrit Cole and four players who mashed 30-plus home runs (which didn’t even include Alvarez, a rookie that year). The Nationals were a wild-card team that had overcome a 19-31 season start to win 93 games and featured a starting pitching trio of Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin (and 20-year-old sensation Juan Soto, who hit 34 home runs).

Actual World Series: B-. It went seven games — the road team would win all seven — although five of the games weren’t close. The best game was the last one: The Nationals went ahead 3-2 in the seventh inning on Anthony Rendon’s home run and then Howie Kendrick’s go-ahead home run just inside the right-field foul pole.

9. 2025: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays

Last year in the World Series, we had Ohtani versus Aaron Judge. This year, we have Ohtani versus Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who is perhaps on his way to an all-time postseason after hitting .442 with six home runs through the first two rounds. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts stirred things up after the NLCS when he said during the postgame celebration, “Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball,” a reference to critics saying the Dodgers are ruining baseball with their high payroll. But we also get the vaunted Dodgers rotation and its ability to miss bats against the best-in-business contact ability of the Blue Jays.

Actual World Series: To be determined.

8. 2002: Anaheim Angels over San Francisco Giants, 4-3

The Angels, who joined the majors in 1961, were making their first World Series appearance, while the Giants, in the Bay Area since 1958, were trying to win their first title since moving from New York. You had Barry Bonds at the height of his unstoppable powers — and trying to erase his own postseason demons — while the Angels had a loaded lineup (Troy Glaus, Tim Salmon, Garret Anderson), the Rally Monkey and those deafening ThunderStix (let us pray they never return).

Actual World Series: A. Bonds was a beast, hitting .471/.700/1.294 (yes, that’s a 1.994 OPS), but it wasn’t enough. This series featured four one-run games, including a wild 11-10 contest and the classic Game 6, when the Angels rallied late from a 5-0 deficit to win 6-5. Game 7 was a drab 4-1 contest (Bonds went a harmless 1-for-3).

7. 2009: New York Yankees over Philadelphia Phillies, 4-2

The Yankees had missed the playoffs in 2008 for the first time since 1993, so they went out and signed free agents CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and A.J. Burnett to add to an already stacked roster that included Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Robinson Cano, Hideki Matsui, Jorge Posada and Johnny Damon. Whoa. Yes, they were still the Evil Empire. The Phillies, trying to defend their title, had traded for Cliff Lee and then signed Pedro Martinez in July to bolster their rotation.

Actual World Series: C. It could have been a classic battle, but there were no one-run games and Game 6 — Martinez’s final start of his career — was over early. The crucial contest was Game 4, when the Yankees scored three runs in the ninth off Phillies closer Brad Lidge to win 7-4.

6. 2001: Arizona Diamondbacks over New York Yankees, 4-3

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This one presented conflicting emotions. The Yankees were going for an unthinkable fourth straight title, but in the wake of 9/11, there was a “Win it for New York” angle that the Yankees had never encountered. The Diamondbacks, meanwhile, had the big, bad duo of Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling, with Schilling, when asked on the eve of the World Series about the Yankees’ mystique and aura, giving one of the great quips in World Series history: “Mystique and Aura? Those are dancers at a nightclub.” The Diamondbacks were not going to be intimidated.

Actual World Series: A+. Four one-run games, including three of the most memorable World Series moments ever: Jeter’s Mr. November home run to win Game 4, Scott Brosius’ walk-off home run to win Game 5 and then Luis Gonzalez’s bloop single to beat the invincible Mariano Rivera in Game 7.

5. 2018: Boston Red Sox over Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-1

Two of baseball’s most historic franchises had never met in a World Series, creating the classic showdown with games in Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium. It doesn’t get any better than that. The Red Sox were a 108-win powerhouse — with AL MVP Mookie Betts leading the way, backed up by J.D. Martinez, who hit .330 with 43 home runs that season. Chris Sale and David Price headlined the rotation. The Dodgers actually had a bit of a down year with 92 wins, but they also weren’t lacking in big names, with Manny Machado (a trade deadline acquisition), Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner, with Kershaw and rookie Walker Buehler on the pitching side.

Actual World Series: C-. A letdown. The first two games in Fenway were cold and windy. Game 3 was an 18-inning affair — longest in World Series history — but was more of a slog than a game to remember. Game 4 was the best of the series as the Red Sox rallied with nine runs over the final three innings to win 9-6.

4. 2017: Houston Astros over Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-3

This series had it all: dominant teams (both won over 100 games), long World Series title droughts (never for the Astros, 1988 for the Dodgers) and superstars galore (Altuve, Verlander, Carlos Correa, Kershaw, Seager, Bellinger, Yu Darvish). We didn’t know at the time that both franchises were just kicking off 100-win dynasties — let alone what the Astros were doing behind the scenes — but the anticipation level was off the charts for the first matchup of 100-win teams in the World Series since 1970.

Actual World Series: A-.Game 1, with a start-time temperature of 103 degrees at Dodger Stadium, was a Kershaw 11-strikeout gem. The Astros tied Game 2 in the ninth on Marwin Gonzalez’s home run off Kenley Jansen (1.32 ERA that season), both teams scored twice in the 10th, the Astros scored twice in the 11th on George Springer’s home run and held on for a 7-6 win. Game 4 featured a five-run rally in the ninth by the Dodgers to win. Game 5 was completely bananas, with the Astros finally winning 13-12 in 10 innings. Game 7 was a letdown though, as the Astros won a 5-1 snoozer in which they scored five runs off Darvish in the first two innings.

3. 2024: New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

As mentioned, what’s not to like? Aside from Ohtani and Judge each playing in their first World Series and trying to put a final stamp on their legacy-defining seasons, we have Juan Soto and Mookie Betts, a suddenly rejuvenated Giancarlo Stanton and a hobbled Freddie Freeman (only raising the drama if he hits well), Gerrit Cole and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Aside from the history between the clubs, we have both clubs needing to rewrite their recent history: The Yankees, back in the World Series for the first time since 2009, and the Dodgers trying to add a more legitimate championship to the one they won in the COVID-shortened season.

Actual World Series:C+. The Judge-Ohtani showdown was a flop, as Judge hit .222 with one home run and Ohtani hit .105 without a home run or RBI. The series also went just five games, with the Dodgers winning the first three. The series did produce two forever moments, however: Freddie Freeman’s walk-off, Kirk Gibson-esque grand slam in Game 1 and the Yankees’ fifth-inning defensive meltdown in Game 5.

2. 2004: Boston Red Sox over St. Louis Cardinals, 4-0

The Red Sox were coming off their never-done-before comeback from down 3-0 to beat the Yankees in the ALCS — and still had to beat a 105-win Cardinals team that featured Pujols (.331, 46 home runs), Jim Edmonds (.301, 42 home runs) and Scott Rolen (.314, 34 home runs), plus in-season pickup Larry Walker, who had an OPS over 1.000 that year. The Red Sox had their own ridiculous lineup with Ortiz (.301, 41 home runs), Ramirez (.308, 43 home runs) and Damon (.304, 20 home runs) plus a rotation with Schilling and Martinez. It seems inevitable now that Boston was going to win, but that wasn’t the case at the time, so the buildup was intense.

Actual World Series: D. Blah. I mean, Red Sox fans will rightfully call it the best World Series ever, but after a sloppy 11-9 Game 1 played in a drizzle at Fenway (the Red Sox won despite committing four errors), the Cardinals never led again.

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The Cubs had not only not won since 1908, but they hadn’t even been in a World Series since 1945. The Guardians, meanwhile, had the second-longest drought of the original 16 teams, without a title since 1948. That was enough right there to build up the anticipation, but this also rates high because it was two good teams — Chicago won 104 games while Cleveland won 94. Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant won MVP honors that year and Cleveland was led by 18-game winner Corey Kluber (who would start three times) and young rising stars Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez.

Actual World Series: B.The first six games weren’t anything too special, but Game 7 was one of the greatest in World Series history. Cleveland tied it on Rajai Davis’ three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth, the Cubs scored twice in the 10th — following a stress-filled rain delay — and escaped with an 8-7, curse-ending win when Cleveland had to bat little-used Michael Martinez with its season on the line.

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In an epic contest that will go down as one of the greatest postseason games in Major League history, the Mariners defeated the Tigers, 3-2, in 15 innings at T-Mobile Park on Friday to advance to their first American League Championship Series in 24 years. Awaiting them in Toronto are the Blue Jays, who earlier in the week clinched their first trip to the ALCS in nine years by beating the Yankees in four games.

In the National League, the Dodgers beat the Phillies in four games to advance to the NLCS for the second straight year as they look to defend their World Series title. They will find out which team they will face after Saturday’s NLDS Game 5 between the Cubs and Brewers in Milwaukee.

With one of the LCS matchups set, here’s a breakdown of the series between the Mariners and Blue Jays as we prepare for Game 1 on Sunday at Rogers Centre:

Blue Jays (1) vs. Mariners (2)

Schedule
Game 1 (at TOR): Sunday, 8:03 p.m. ET on FOX
Game 2 (at TOR): Monday on FOX/FS1
Game 3 (at SEA): Wednesday on FOX/FS1
Game 4 (at SEA): Thursday on FOX/FS1
Game 5 (at SEA, if necessary): Oct. 17 on FOX/FS1
Game 6 (at TOR, if necessary): Oct. 19 on FOX/FS1
Game 7 (at TOR, if necessary): Oct. 20 on FOX/FS1

Season series: The Blue Jays went 4-2 against the Mariners in the regular season, losing two of three in Toronto in April before sweeping Seattle at T-Mobile Park in May.

Postseason history: In the only playoff meeting between the two sides, the Mariners swept the Blue Jays two games to none in the 2022 AL Wild Card Series, with both games coming at Rogers Centre. Seattle won 4-0 behind 7 1/3 scoreless innings from Luis Castillo in Game 1, then erased an 8-1 deficit to win Game 2.

Keys to the matchup: A captivating contrast in styles. The Mariners do a little bit of everything – they finished third in MLB in home runs and stolen bases, and sixth in the AL in ERA during the regular season. The Blue Jays donâ€t match Seattleâ€s firepower or pitching depth, so they attack in a different way. Toronto led baseball in on-base percentage and had the second-fewest strikeouts. The Jays can wear down an opponent with long at-bats and pressure a defense by putting the ball in play more frequently than anyone else. On the other side, Toronto boasts an elite defense with top-flight gloves such as Andrés Giménez, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Myles Straw, Daulton Varsho and Alejandro Kirk.

Player to watch: Josh Naylor. The well-traveled Seattle first baseman and Mississauga, Ontario native gets to start this series – and perhaps clinch a World Series berth – in his home province. As if the fiery Naylor needs more motivation. He fit in perfectly in Seattle after a deadline trade from the D-backs, notching an .831 OPS and stealing 19 bases in 54 games without being caught. Naylor is a .314 career hitter in Toronto, though with just one home run. He had five hits in 14 at-bats with Arizona during a three-game series at Rogers Centre in June. Naylor owns a career .642 postseason OPS, with nine extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in 99 at-bats.

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October has delivered for baseball fans, and now we’re down to one Game 5 in the divisional round of the MLB playoffs.

The victor of the Chicago Cubs-Milwaukee Brewers matchup on Saturday (8:08 ET, TBS) will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, which begins Monday. The ALCS between the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays begins Sunday in Toronto.

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Here’s a look at the schedules for the ALCS and NLCS:

ALCS

No. 2 Seattle Mariners vs. No. 1 Toronto Blue Jays

Schedule, TV times, broadcast networks (all times ET)

Game 1: Sunday, Oct. 12 — Mariners at Blue Jays, 8:03 p.m., Fox
Game 2: Monday, Oct. 13 — Mariners at Blue Jays, 5:03 p.m. if Brewers advance to NLCS/4:38 p.m. if Cubs advance to NLCS, Fox and FS1
Game 3: Wednesday, Oct. 15 — Blue Jays at Mariners, TBD, Fox and FS1
Game 4: Thursday, Oct. 16 — Blue Jays at Mariners, TBD, Fox and FS1
Game 5*: Friday, Oct. 17 — Blue Jays at Mariners, TBD, Fox and FS1
Game 6*: Sunday, Oct. 19 — Mariners at Blue Jays, TBD, Fox and FS1
Game 7*: Monday, Oct. 20 — Mariners at Blue Jays, TBD, Fox and FS1

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NLCS

No. 3 Los Angeles Dodgers vs. No. 1 Milwaukee Brewers/No. 4 Chicago Cubs

Schedule, TV times, broadcast networks (all times ET)

Game 1: Monday, Oct. 13 — Dodgers at Brewers OR Cubs at Dodgers, 8:08 p.m. if Brewers advance/7:08 p.m. if Cubs advance, TBS, truTV and HBO Max
Game 2: Tuesday, Oct. 14 — Dodgers at Brewers OR Cubs at Dodgers, 8:08 p.m., TBS, truTV and HBO Max
Game 3: Thursday, Oct. 16 — Brewers at Dodgers OR Dodgers at Cubs, TBD, TBS
Game 4: Friday, Oct. 17 — Brewers at Dodgers OR Dodgers at Cubs, TBD, TBS
Game 5*: Saturday, Oct. 18 — Brewers at Dodgers OR Dodgers at Cubs, TBD, TBS
Game 6*: Monday, Oct. 20 — Dodgers at Brewers OR Cubs at Dodgers, TBD, TBS
Game 7*: Tuesday, Oct. 21 — Dodgers at Brewers OR Cubs at Dodgers, TBD, TBS

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World Series (best of seven)

Game 1: Friday, Oct. 24
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 25
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 27
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 28
Game 5*: Wednesday, Oct. 29
Game 6*: Friday, Oct. 31
Game 7*: Saturday, Nov. 1

(*if necessary)

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  David SchoenfieldOct 6, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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  • Covers MLB for ESPN.com
  • Former deputy editor of Page 2
  • Been with ESPN.com since 1995

It’s still early in the postseason, but it’s never too soon to start to dream about some of the possible World Series matchups we could get later in October.

With eight teams left, there are 16 possible Fall Classic scenarios — a matchup for seemingly every type of fan to enjoy. Well, unless you were really hoping for that Colorado Rockies-Chicago White Sox or Pittsburgh Pirates-Los Angeles Angels World Series. If that’s the case, you probably need to rethink your dreams.

Here are eight of the most exciting potential matchups — one of which a majority of fans might strongly disagree with including. There is something for everyone, from history to star power to longstanding droughts. Let’s get to it.

If you like No. 1 seeds making it: Blue Jays vs. Brewers

The Toronto Blue Jays and Milwaukee Brewers were together in the AL East from 1977 through 1993, when the Brewers moved to the AL Central (and then to the National League in 1998).

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The only year they finished 1-2 was 1992, when the Blue Jays won the division title by four games. The Brewers went 15-2 at one stretch in September to close the gap to two games with two games left to play, but they lost both while the Blue Jays won theirs. The franchises have had a limited trade history, although former longtime Brewers general manager Doug Melvin (still a front office adviser for the club) is an Ontario native and member of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Paul Molitor, Lyle Overbay, Buck Martinez, Roy Howell, Matt Stairs

Combined years without a championship: 75

Why this would be fun: Both teams finished with the best record in their league — well, the Jays tied with the New York Yankees but won the tiebreaker to get the top seed — and since the wild-card era began in 1995, the nature of baseball’s postseason makes it rare for the top seeds to meet in the World Series. It has happened just five times:

If you’re a traditionalist and want the most deserving teams to make it, this is the matchup for you. Even if you’re not impressed with Toronto’s run differential (third best in the American League), the Jays have been excellent since late May. Since May 27, they had the second-best record in the majors — behind just the Brewers.

Best potential drama: Blue Jays’ defense versus Brewers’ defense. These are two of the best defensive teams in the majors, a key reason they ended up with top records. The Blue Jays are led by infielder Ernie Clement, who tied for the MLB lead with 22 defensive runs saved while having started at all four infield positions; second baseman Andres Gimenez, who is playing shortstop with Bo Bichette injured; and center fielders Daulton Varsho and Myles Straw, who combined for 25 DRS. The Brewers are solid across the board and loaded with speed in the outfield with Jackson Chourio (whose status for Game 2 is uncertain after an MRI on his right hamstring came back inconclusive), Blake Perkins and Sal Frelick.

If you like left-handed pitching: Yankees vs. Phillies

The Yankees last won the World Series in 2009 — when they beat the Philadelphia Phillies, who were trying to defend the title they won in 2008, the last time they won it all. The Yankees took the 2009 title in six games with Hideki Matsui hitting .615 (8-for-13) with three home runs and eight RBIs to win MVP honors. The teams also met in the 1950 World Series, when the Phillies’ “Whiz Kids” were the surprise pennant winners in the National League. The Yankees swept in four games.

The obvious current tie-in is Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who served as third-base coach and bench coach with the Yankees from 2008 to 2017 before joining the Phillies as their bench coach in 2018 after the Yankees hired Aaron Boone over Thomson to replace Joe Girardi as manager.

Five players to fill our Immaculate Grid: Bobby Abreu, Oscar Gamble, Kenny Lofton, Andrew McCutchen, Charlie Hayes

Combined years without a championship: 33

Why this would be fun: Lefty pitching against lefty power. The Yankees feature lefties Max Fried and Carlos Rodon, who combined for 37 wins in the regular season, while the Phillies run out Cristopher Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo and Ranger Suarez. The last team to win the World Series with at least four games started by lefties was Atlanta in 2021, but two of those were openers. The Boston Red Sox had three southpaw starters when they won in 2018 (Chris Sale, David Price and Eduardo Rodriguez), as did the Dodgers when they lost in 2017 (Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill and Alex Wood), but prior to the Red Sox, the last team to win with three lefty starters was the 1996 Yankees with Andy Pettitte, Jimmy Key and Kenny Rogers.

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What would make this an intriguing World Series, however, is the left-on-left matchups. The Yankees have righty slugger Aaron Judge but also led the majors in home runs by left-handed batters, while the Phillies, with left-handers Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, ranked fourth. The Yankees’ splits were even, but Boone did bench lefties Jazz Chisholm Jr., Ben Rice and Ryan McMahon against lefty Garrett Crochet in favor of right-handed hitters.

Best potential drama: Judge! Giancarlo Stanton! Schwarber! Harper! If those names don’t get you excited, go watch pickleball.

If you like a never-before-seen historical matchup: Tigers vs. Dodgers

A Tigers-Dodgers matchup would mean Tarik Skubal pitching to Shohei Ohtani. Houston Astros/Getty Images

Of the 16 original franchises that existed when the American League formed in 1901, there have been 44 out of a possible 64 World Series matchups (including franchise relocations). This is the most surprising one not to have occurred because the Dodgers have played in 22 World Series and the Detroit Tigers in 11. Tigers-Phillies would be the other original 16 matchup that could be crossed off this year.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Kirk Gibson, Max Scherzer, Gary Sheffield, Enos Cabell, John Shelby

Combined years without a championship: 41 … that’s 41 for the Tigers and zero for the Dodgers

Why this would be fun: You think the Dodgers might like revenge on A.J. Hinch, Houston’s manager in 2017 when the trash-can-banging Astros beat L.A. in seven games to win the World Series? Yeah, most of the guys from that matchup are gone, but Clayton Kershaw is still here, as is L.A. manager Dave Roberts. And though the Dodgers have won two World Series since then, you know they think they were wronged in 2017.

Aside from that, we would get two classic franchises, two classic uniforms, maybe one last World Series appearance from the retiring Kershaw and the chance for the Dodgers to become the first repeat champions since the 2000 Yankees.

Best potential drama: Tarik Skubal versus Shohei Ohtani. The best pitcher in the AL versus the best player in the world. If the baseball gods are in an especially compassionate mood, they will give us Skubal starting against Ohtani. May the baddest man on the planet win.

If you like a drought-buster World Series: Mariners vs. Brewers

You want history? We have history. The Brewers were born in 1969 as the Seattle Pilots, but the Pilots went bankrupt before the start of the 1970 season and a Bud Selig-led group purchased the team (whose equipment trucks were literally stranded in Utah after leaving spring training waiting on where to go). Indeed, the Brewers’ blue and gold colors are a remnant of the Pilots’ original colors.

The Seattle Mariners came aboard as an expansion franchise in 1977 after the City of Seattle and King County sued the AL for breach of contract. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the teams had a heated rivalry that led to a massive brawl at the Kingdome in 1990. Lately, they have been frequent trade partners. Brewers ace Freddy Peralta came over from the Mariners as a minor leaguer in exchange for Adam Lind, one of Jerry Dipoto’s first trades as Mariners GM.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Gorman Thomas, Chris Bosio, Richie Sexson, Mike Cameron, Yuniesky Betancourt

Combined years without a championship: 104

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Why this would be fun: First off, this is the matchup that gives us the longest combined title drought, with neither franchise having won a World Series (at least Milwaukee has the Braves, who won in 1957, but even that was 68 years ago). The Pilots tie-in is certainly interesting, but mostly this is fun because you can make the argument that the biggest story in the AL this season was Cal Raleigh bashing 60 home runs and the Mariners winning 17 of 18 in September to capture their first division title since 2001, and that the biggest story in the NL was the Brewers finishing with the best record in the majors, winning more games than the superstar-laden Phillies or Dodgers.

The contrast in styles would be intriguing as well. The Mariners — despite playing in a pitcher’s park — finished third in the majors in home runs. It wasn’t just Raleigh, as Eugenio Suarez hit 49 (between the Diamondbacks and Mariners) while Julio Rodriguez (32), Randy Arozarena (27) and Jorge Polanco (26) each topped 25. The Brewers were second in the majors in batting average and stolen bases while ranking fourth in lowest strikeout rate. Don’t, however, view the Mariners as a one-dimensional team: Though they can’t match Milwaukee’s speed up and down the lineup, they did finish third in the majors in stolen bases as Arozarena, Rodriguez and Josh Naylor each swiped at least 30 bags.

Best potential drama: Mariners hitters versus late-game heat. Unsurprisingly, considering his 60 blasts, Raleigh led the majors with 34 home runs against fastballs, and improving against four-seamers up in the zone was a key to his big season. But the Brewers’ bullpen can really dial it up. Abner Uribe throws a 99 mph sinker. Trevor Megill throws 99 mph. Jacob Misiorowski, if he’s in the pen and not starting, throws 99 and reaches triple digits. Aaron Ashby is a lefty with 97 mph gas. Nick Mears sits at 95 with a wipeout slider.

If you like cold weather: Tigers vs. Cubs

These teams have met in four World Series — although the last one was 80 years ago. The Chicago Cubs won in 1907 and 1908, defeating the Ty Cobb-led Tigers. Detroit won in 1935 and 1945. Aside from that, this would give us another original 16 matchup, and those always seem a little special. As long as these two teams have been around, they haven’t had much intertwining history. They didn’t even make a trade with each other from 1987 to 2004.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Bill Madlock, Luis Gonzalez, Keith Moreland, Richie Hebner, Kyle Farnsworth

Combined years without a championship: 50

Why this would be fun: The cold weather joke aside (anybody who was at Games 3 and 4 in Detroit in the 2012 World Series can attest to the possibility of needing to wear their winter parka in late October in Detroit), this looks as if it might be the ultimate battle of the bullpens. So, no, not exactly 1907 when Cubs starters Jack Pfiester, Ed Reulbach, Orval Overall and Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown reeled off four consecutive complete games to defeat the Tigers. This might be the ultimate second-guessing matchup as Cubs manager Craig Counsell would have to know how to deal with Detroit’s two lefty sluggers, Kerry Carpenter and Riley Greene, while Hinch would churn through his relievers in the non-Skubal starts.

Best potential drama: If he gets healthy, Cubs rookie Cade Horton could get his postseason moment. Horton was one of the best starters in the majors in the second half, going 8-1 with a 1.03 ERA in 12 games while allowing a .154 average and just three home runs in 61â…“ innings. He allowed more than one run just once. Horton, however, missed the wild-card series with a right rib fracture and is still out for the NLDS against the Brewers.

Aside from that, we would get Javier Baez, who was part of Chicago’s 2016 title-winning (and drought-breaking) team, going against the team he spent his first eight seasons with, as well as Cubs starter Matthew Boyd facing a Detroit team he was with for seven seasons.

If you like Joe Carter highlights: Blue Jays vs. Phillies

This would be a rematch of the underrated 1993 Fall Classic, which featured the wildest game in World Series history — a 15-14 slugfest in Game 4 that the Blue Jays won — and, of course, Joe Carter’s walk-off, three-run homer against Mitch Williams in Game 6.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Roy Halladay, Scott Rolen, Jose Bautista, Jayson Werth, Juan Samuel

Combined years without a championship: 49

Why this would be fun: Well, all the highlight clips from the 1993 World Series would be worth it by themselves — not just Carter hitting the biggest home run of his life but the star-studded rosters of both teams that included Rickey Henderson, Roberto Alomar, Paul Molitor, John Olerud, Curt Schilling, John Kruk, Lenny Dykstra and Dykstra’s chewing tobacco.

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Aside from that, we would have the Blue Jays in the World Series for the first time since those back-to-back championships in 1992-93 and the Phillies trying to finally win with this roster that is aging and has Schwarber heading into free agency in the offseason. We also would get one of the best uniform matchups in the sport. The Phillies, in my opinion, have the best uniform set in the majors, while the Jays have the classic baby blues to go with their traditional home whites. Do not underestimate the value of a good uni matchup.

Oh, and both fan bases are among the loudest in the sport — Phillies crowds are notoriously loud from the first pitch of games, although Blue Jays fans probably broke the noise meter back in 2015 when Jose Bautista (a different Jose Bautista from the aforementioned one) hit that grand slam against the Rangers.

Best drama: Jeff Hoffman facing his former teammates. Last year with the Phillies, Hoffman was an All-Star who had a dominant regular season before losing two games in the NLDS against the Mets. In 2025, he had an uneven season as the Blue Jays’ closer, allowing 15 home runs — the second most of any reliever — but saving 33 games. Hoffman facing Schwarber and Harper with the game on the line would be the reverse tension of Williams facing Carter in 1993.

If you like center fielders: Mariners vs. Cubs

The Cubs owe a little favor to the Mariners for ending their World Series curse in 2016. Mike Montgomery, whom Chicago acquired from Seattle at the trade deadline in 2016 for Daniel Vogelbach and Paul Blackburn, recorded the final out of the Game 7 victory — certainly one of the most obscure pitchers to get the last out of a World Series.

Lou Piniella managed the Mariners from 1993 to 2002 and the Cubs from 2007 to 2010, making the playoffs four times with Seattle and twice with Chicago, but he couldn’t guide either team to a World Series. The two teams shared another manager in Jim Lefebvre.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid:Jamie Moyer, Goose Gossage, Steve Henderson, Gary Matthews, Heathcliff Slocumb

Combined years without a championship: 57

Why this would be fun: Julio Rodriguez and Pete Crow-Armstrong. They were the two best center fielders this season — and two of the most exciting players in the sport — with Rodriguez ranking fifth among all position players in Baseball Reference WAR and Crow-Armstrong ranking 11th. They also ranked 13th and 15th in FanGraphs WAR. Both finished with 30-30 seasons.

Both provide power, speed and highlight-reel catches in center field. J-Rod got hot in the second half: He hit .290/.341/.560 after the All-Star break with 18 home runs and 45 RBIs in 65 games. Crow-Armstrong looked like the NL MVP in the first half when he had an .847 OPS with 25 home runs and 27 stolen bases before hitting just .216 after the break.

Best potential drama: The Mariners winning the World Series? That’s all the drama some of us need.

If you like villains: Yankees vs. Dodgers

The Dodgers beat the Yankees in fives games in the 2024 World Series. Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

Lots of history between these two teams, with 12 World Series matchups, including last year when the Dodgers won in five games.

Five players to fill out your Immaculate Grid: Rickey Henderson, Willie Randolph, Robin Ventura, Kevin Brown, Darryl Strawberry

Combined years without a championship: 16 (long years for the Yankees)

Why this would be fun: Haters are going to hate, and it would certainly be understandable if you’re not a Yankees or Dodgers fan considering the purchasing power of these two franchises. Indeed, though the Yankees held the “villain” title among the general population of baseball fans for the longest time, the Dodgers have usurped them in recent years with their slew of high-priced free agents (Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Freddie Freeman, Tanner Scott) and big extensions (Mookie Betts, Tyler Glasnow). Heck, even Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner complained in the spring that it is “difficult” for other teams to keep up with the Dodgers — though he didn’t receive much sympathy.

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Still, a rematch would be … dare we say … let’s put this as gently as possible … entertaining! Sure, some of you wouldn’t be able to handle it, but it would be the first World Series rematch since 1977-78, between the … yes, Yankees and Dodgers (the Yankees won both times). The Dodgers would be trying to become that first repeat champion since the Yankees in 2000 to further cement their historical legacy. The Yankees would be trying to end that — for them — long World Series drought since 2009. There would be big stars all over the field. And considering both teams have had bullpen issues, perhaps some late-game drama that could turn this showdown into a seven-game epic.

Best potential drama: Judge vs. Ohtani. This didn’t quite materialize in last year’s World Series when the two MVPs didn’t do much at the plate — Judge hit .222 with one home run (in the fifth game) and three RBIs while Ohtani hit just .105 with no home runs and no RBIs. Of course, now that Ohtani is pitching, it sets the stage for the sport’s two biggest stars going directly head-to-head. That, my baseball friends, is October drama at its best.

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The 2025 MLB division series matchups are starting to take shape with the Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees all moving on one day after the Los Angeles Dodgers became the first team to advance out of the wild-card round.

L.A.’s sweep sets up a division series showdown with the Philadelphia Phillies in one NLDS with the Cubs set to face the Milwaukee Brewers in the other.

Meanwhile, in the American League, the Tigers are headed west to take on the Seattle Mariners, and the Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays will square off in an AL East duel.

What have we learned about each team so far? What does each remaining team need to do to move on to the league championship series? Which players could be October difference-makers? And which favorites should be on upset watch in the round ahead?

ESPN MLB experts Jorge Castillo, Bradford Doolittle and David Schoenfield are here to break it all down as every division series matchup is set.

Key links:Mega-preview | Bracket | Schedule

Jump to a matchup:
NYY-TOR| CHC-MIL | DET-SEA | LAD-PHI

ALDS: New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays

Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire

Upset forecast:(Blue Jays win 47.4% of simulations.) Forecasts like this spur fundamental questions best left to the ancient Greeks, like, “What is the essence of an upset?” The Blue Jays won the AL East, beat the Yankees in eight of their 13 meetings, and earned a first-round bye and the AL’s top seed. But the Yankees more than doubled the Jays’ run differential. The disconnect between runs and wins can be explained easily: Toronto went 43-30 in games decided by one or two runs; New York was 35-36.

The analytical precept is that non-close games are more telling when it comes to team quality. The Yankees went 33-15 in games decided by five or more runs; the Blue Jays were 25-23. Finally, in terms of run differentials, the Blue Jays were the AL’s second-best home team, behind Texas. But the Yankees were the league’s best road team.

All of this is a long way of saying that Toronto has the higher seed and the home-field advantage, but it is not the favorite in this series.

Blue Jays concern level:Red hot. The Jays’ regular season success sent fan expectations soaring. Could the three-decade title drought be quenched at last? — Doolittle

New York Yankees

What has impressed you most about the Yankees this season?

Their power. The Yankees led baseball with 274 home runs this season. The Dodgers were second with 244. New York had seven players hit at least 20. Anthony Volpe fell one short. Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton are all-time sluggers, but Trent Grisham (34 homers), Jazz Chisholm Jr. (31), Cody Bellinger (29) and Ben Rice (26) give the Yankees the deepest power bank in the majors. Hitting the ball over the fence has proven key for postseason success in recent years. And the Yankees have been doing it better than everyone else all year.

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Why will/won’t it continue against the Blue Jays?

It will continue against the Blue Jays because Blue Jays pitchers recorded the highest home run rate among postseason participants this year. Jose Berrios surrendered 25. Chris Bassitt gave up 22. Kevin Gausman yielded 21. Closer Jeff Hoffman gave up 15 — the second most in baseball among relievers. Bassitt is expected to be available for the ALDS after finishing the season on the injured list, but Berríos is unlikely to appear in the series. In October run-scoring environments, a mistake or two could make the difference.

Which one player must deliver for them to keep their run going?

The Yankees reached the World Series last year without Judge performing to his MVP-level expectations, causing a stir for another edition of his postseason struggles. But those Yankees had Juan Soto and a red-hot Stanton working their October magic. While the Yankees’ lineup is deeper than a year ago, Judge is the motor. And his career success against Toronto suggests he should have a huge series. Judge has a career .300/.420/.597 slash line with 41 home runs in 133 games against the Blue Jays. This year, he batted .325 with three home runs and a 1.118 OPS in 56 appearances across 13 games. He has crushed Gausman (1.283 OPS in 61 plate appearances), Berríos (1.195 OPS in 44 plate appearances) and Bassitt (.935 OPS in 28 plate appearances) over his career. This, on paper, is an ideal matchup for a two-time AL MVP looking to exorcise October postseason demons. — Castillo

Toronto Blue Jays

What carried the Blue Jays to an October bye?

A propensity to put the ball in play and strong defense. The Blue Jays’ 17.8% strikeout rate this season was the lowest in the majors and the sixth-lowest by a club since 2015. Two of the five teams with lower rates — the 2015 Kansas City Royals and 2017 Houston Astros — won the World Series.

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Defensively, Toronto ranked fourth in the majors in defensive runs saved and ninth in Outs Above Average. In short, it puts pressure on teams to make plays, and it makes the plays themselves. It’s a sound combination for October when every out is crucial.

Why will/won’t it continue against the Yankees?

It won’t continue against the Yankees because stringing together hits in October, when the pitching rises to another level, is difficult. The Blue Jays tied for 11th in the majors with 191 home runs during the regular season — a solid output with George Springer (32) leading the way followed by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (23), Addison Barger (21) and Daulton Varsho (20). But that pales in comparison to New York. The Yankees blasted 274 homers — 30 more than the second-ranked Dodgers. New York had seven players club at least 20 — and Anthony Volpe fell one short. Power plays in October, and the Yankees have the substantial edge.

Which one player must deliver to put Toronto in the ALCS?

The Blue Jays gave Vladimir Guerrero Jr. a $500 million contract to serve as the franchise’s cornerstone for another 14 years. The assignment includes impressing when it matters most. Guerrero is just 3-for-22 with one extra-base hit, two walks and five strikeouts in six career playoff games divided into two-game slices over three postseasons. It’s a small sample size, but the Blue Jays went 0-6 in those games. Guerrero now has a chance to fuel a deep October run after another strong regular season. — Castillo

NLDS: Chicago Cubs vs. Milwaukee Brewers

Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Upset forecast:(Brewers win 56.2% of simulations) The Hiawatha Series! Yes, we tend to label these geographic rivalries with the interstates that connect them but in this case, let’s go with the Amtrak line that runs back and forth between Milwaukee and Chicago every day.

This is the first postseason edition and the Brewers, who posted baseball’s best record and run differential, are the statistical favorites. But the reasons to pick the Cubs are many: They offset many of Milwaukee’s advantages in speed and defense, and have more power. The Brewers’ pitching staff was better overall but struggled with health down the stretch. The Brewers have youth and the most athletic position group in the majors; the Cubs have more star power, especially if Kyle Tucker gets going.

Upset? The Cubs would be no Cinderella if they knock off Milwaukee, but the good people of Wisconsin would indeed be very upset.

Brewers concern level: Moderate. Losing to the hated Cubs would be a crusher, but this is an unflappable Brewers team, full of the hubris of youth. The clubhouse is upbeat and tightly knit, and this still-overlooked group will be aching to not only dispatch their rivals but also to show the nation why they were baseball’s best during the season. — Doolittle

Chicago Cubs

What impressed you most about them in the wild-card round?

The talk going into the series was how the Padres’ bullpen — which was arguably the best in baseball in the regular season — was dominant enough to maybe carry the Padres all the way to the World Series.

The Cubs’ bullpen? It wasn’t really generating a lot of hype.

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This group has kind of been reconstructed on the fly throughout the season, but it looks really good right now. The secret weapon is veteran journeyman Brad Keller, who only had three saves in the regular season, but had a terrific year after adding 4 mph to his fastball and is now closing after Daniel Palencia got injured in September and missed a couple of weeks. (He’s back now.)

Why will/won’t it continue against the Brewers?

Why not? The numbers are legit. Keller is throwing 98 and had a 2.07 ERA. Palencia hit 100 mph in his Game 1 appearance. Drew Pomeranz, brought in from the Mariners in April, is a good lefty option who had a 2.17 ERA. Andrew Kittredge got a hold in Game 1, started Game 2 as the opener and got the save in Game 3 after Keller’s sudden control issues. Caleb Thielbar gives them a second good lefty. That’s a strong group that Craig Counsell can mix and match with and provide for a Cubs rotation without rookie Cade Horton, one of the best starters in the majors in the second half.

Which one player must deliver for them to keep their run going?

The second-half slides of Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong received a lot of attention, but Seiya Suzuki’s own slump was just as important to the Cubs’ offensive struggles in the second half. Suzuki hit .263 with an .867 OPS through the All-Star break but .213 with a .688 OPS after.

Given that Tucker is playing through some injury issues and Crow-Armstrong has struggled to make adjustments after his big first half, the Cubs need Suzuki to deliver and he did that with a big home run in Game 1 against the Padres. — Schoenfield

Milwaukee Brewers

What carried the Brewers to an October bye?

Pitching, defense, speed and timely hitting. Only the Rangers and Padres allowed fewer runs than the Brewers as Milwaukee had a good balance between starting pitching (third in the majors in ERA) and bullpen (sixth in ERA). The Brewers ranked first in FanGraphs’ baserunning metric and second in the majors with a .279 average with runners in scoring position — two keys to them finishing third in runs scored despite ranking just 22nd in home runs.

Why will/won’t it continue against the Cubs?

The Brewers weren’t a popular pick to reach the World Series precisely because many believe this formula won’t work as well in the postseason as it did in the regular season. Maybe that’s unfair, but the numbers are clear: You have to hit more home runs than your opponents to win in October. That can still happen for Milwaukee, but the Brewers will likely need some non-home run hitters to step up with some power.

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The other concern arose because of a couple key injuries to the pitching staff, with Trevor Megill, the Brewers’ closer most of the season, returning from a lengthy absence and starter Brandon Woodruff battling a lat strain and not pitching since Sept. 17.

Which one player must deliver to put Milwaukee in the NLCS?

Brice Turang could be the guy who proves a surprising source of power. He finished with a solid 18 home runs, but was even better in the second half when he hit .308/.380/.536 with 12 home runs in 63 games. As the production increased, manager Pat Murphy moved Turang into a middle-of-the-order spot in the lineup more often down the stretch. On the other hand, Turang also hit just one home run in his final 23 games. — Schoenfield

ALDS: Detroit Tigers vs. Seattle Mariners

Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Upset forecast:(Mariners win 51.6% of simulations) The Mariners’ baseline is slightly better because of their much better finish to the season than Detroit’s woeful ending but over the full 162-game slate, they had only a five-run edge in differential. In other words, if Detroit were to beat Seattle, it would at best be a very mild upset. The Tigers could get two Tarik Skubal starts in the ALDS on normal rest, Game 2 in Seattle and a potential decisive Game 5 at T-Mobile Park. That, as much as anything, makes Detroit a threat to advance to the ALCS. Their late-season swoon was considerable but what we’ve seen over the past week is a Tigers club that has already shaken that off.

Mariners concern level: Historic. Seattle knows it’s facing a tough opponent but they match up well with the Tigers. But when you’ve never been to the World Series, there is a baseline level of concern that is always going to be kind of high. — Doolittle

Detroit Tigers

What impressed you most about them in the wild-card round?

Give the Tigers credit for turning the page on their near-catastrophic September that saw them blow the biggest final-month lead in MLB history by beating the team that edged them for the division crown in the wild-card round.

Of course, it helped to have the ultimate momentum changer in Tarik Skubal in Game 1. Skubal’s 14-strikeout performance was a postseason masterpiece and sets up this possibility: Can he pull a Madison Bumgarner circa 2014 and put his team on his back for an entire month?

Why will/won’t it continue against the Mariners?

Here’s the good news for the Tigers: Skubal can start in Game 2 of the ALDS on four days of rest. Then, thanks to two off days, if the series goes five games he can start Game 5 on four days of rest. Skubal started back-to-back games on four days of rest only once all season since he generally worked on five or more days, but that one time turned out just fine: In the second of those starts, he allowed one hit with 13 strikeouts.

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So, yes, Skubal’s dominance can continue, but they’ll need others on the staff to step up against a Seattle offense that was the best in baseball in September. The performance against Cleveland was encouraging, but Cleveland’s lineup is not Seattle’s lineup.

Which one player must deliver for them to pull off the upset?

Besides Skubal? Let’s go with a pair here: Jack Flaherty and Casey Mize. The Tigers are in the unique position of having arguably the best pitcher on the planet and also not really having a fourth starter, so it’s crucial they get something from at least one of their other two starters in the games Skubal doesn’t pitch. Neither made it through five innings in the wild-card round and Detroit is going to need more length than that to get past Seattle. — Schoenfield

Seattle Mariners

What carried the Mariners to an October bye?

We all know the Mariners can pitch. The problem in recent years has been the offense. This year was different. The Mariners sprinted past the shorthanded Astros in September to win the AL West with Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez carrying the offensive surge.

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Seattle led the majors in runs scored, home runs and wRC+ in September. They were second in OPS and wOBA. Combined with that potent pitching staff, the Mariners ripped off 11 straight wins and 17 wins in 18 games to comfortably reach the postseason with a bye — and emerge as a trendy pick to reach the World Series.

Why will/won’t it continue against the Tigers?

It will continue against the Tigers because even Skubal struggled to handle the Mariners in their two meetings during the regular season. Skubal didn’t complete six innings in either start, tossing 5â…” innings in Seattle on April 2 and five innings at home on July 11. He combined to allow seven runs on 10 hits. October is another beast, of course, and Skubal is coming off a historic performance in Cleveland. Even if he is dominant, the Tigers’ pitching staff faces a steep challenge. If he’s not, the Tigers’ chances to advance are very slim.

Which one player must deliver to put Seattle in the ALCS?

Raleigh could end up winning AL MVP, but Rodriguez might be the team’s most important hitter in October. Rodriguez made the All-Star team again this summer, but he was a significantly better hitter post-All-Star break — continuing his trend as a late-season performer. The center fielder led the Mariners in batting average, wRC+, OPS and fWAR in the second half. As the man tasked to protect Raleigh in the lineup, a strong showing from Rodriguez could force pitchers to attack Raleigh — and that’s a tough recipe for success for opposing teams. — Castillo

NLDS: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Phillies

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Upset forecast:(Dodgers win more simulations) Why no number in that parenthetical information? We’d have to use too many decimals! The Dodgers did win more sims, but their edge was four — out of 10,000 runs of the forecasting machinery. In that sense, there can’t possibly be an upset in this matchup between, quite possibly, the two strongest teams left in the bracket.

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This feels like a matchup that the bullpens will decide, and even that is a toss-up. The Dodgers led the majors in blown saves during the second half, but their bullpen numbers are better than Philadelphia’s since the start of September. Maybe it’s as simple as this: When in doubt, pick the team that has Shohei Ohtani.

Phillies concern level: Nonexistent. Look, the Phillies know who they are playing. But with Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Cristopher Sanchez and Jhoan Duran on their side, this is not a team that is going to fret about anything. They will just wait for the adrenaline to flow. — Doolittle

Los Angeles Dodgers

What impressed you most about them in the wild-card round?

The Dodgers haven’t really run out their “A” team for most of the season as they babied their starters for much of the season, but now we can see how good this team can be with a healthy rotation. Blake Snell was dominant in the first game until finally tiring in the seventh. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the seasonlong ace for the Dodgers, was solid in Game 2, escaping a bases-loaded no-outs jam in the sixth. The Dodgers were confident enough in those two that they saved Ohtani for what would have been Game 3 — and now is Game 1 of the NLDS. Oh, Ohtani can hit a little, too. Remember, the Dodgers won it all last season with Ohtani having a good-but-not-great postseason at the plate. After his two-homer game in Game 1 this postseason, watch out.

Why will/won’t it continue against the Phillies?

The Dodgers certainly have to love where they are. Ohtani slowly worked his way up to a normal workload and pitched six innings in his final start, throwing 91 pitches. He allowed just one run over his final four appearances and surrendered just three home runs in 47 innings. Thanks to having three potential off days to play five games in this series, Ohtani could start Game 5 on six days of rest.

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After his initial one-inning appearances in June, Ohtani was given at least six days off between starts, and his three starts in September came with eight, 10 and six days of rest, and he will have 10 days before his Game 1 NLDS appearance. The Dodgers will worry about the NLCS if they get there.

Which one player must deliver for L.A. to move on?

This is clearly about players, plural — as in relief pitchers. The sketchy Dodgers bullpen didn’t ease the confidence of Dodgers fans — or Dave Roberts — with a poor showing in Game 1 against Cincinnati, when the Dodgers had a 10-2 lead only to see the bullpen start walking everybody and the Reds load the bases and have the tying run on deck. Who Roberts trusts in the highest-leverage situations — and can deliver — remains a question. But there is hope Roki Sasaki can be a part of the answer after his strong showing in Game 2 against the Reds. — Schoenfield

Philadelphia Phillies

What carried the Phillies to an October bye?

The starting rotation and a monster season from Kyle Schwarber. The rotation led the NL in ERA and led the majors — by 51 innings — in innings pitched. Cristopher Sanchez led the way with an absolute monster season of his own — in fact, it was Sanchez, and not Paul Skenes or Tarik Skubal, who led the majors in Baseball-Reference WAR. Meanwhile, Schwarber led the NL with 56 home runs and 132 RBIs, including setting a major league record with 23 home runs as a left-handed batter against left-handed pitchers.

Will it continue against the Dodgers?

Of course, a large part of that rotation success was Zack Wheeler, but he’s out for the postseason. Ranger Suarez had a terrific season but wasn’t great his final three starts, allowing 12 runs and four home runs in 14â…“ innings. And the fourth starter after Jesus Luzardo is either Aaron Nola, who doesn’t exactly inspire confidence given his 6.01 ERA and mediocre postseason results in his career, or Walker Buehler, who was signed at the end of August after the Red Sox released him. In other words: There are at least some slight concerns here for a rotation that was so good.

As for Schwarber: He has proved before he’s a tough out in October, and coming off his best season, he’s primed for a big postseason.

Which one player must deliver to put Philadelphia in the NLCS?

Trea Turner feels like the key guy here. Schwarber and Bryce Harper have been clutch playoff performers throughout their careers, but the Phillies will need offense from more than just those two — and that’s been a problem the past two postseasons. Turner had his best season with the Phillies but missed most of September with a hamstring injury, returning only for two at-bats in the final game of the regular season. He sets the table for Schwarber and Harper. If he’s getting on base, that’s a very good thing. — Schoenfield

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Once the Wild Card Series round is complete, the 2025 postseason will move on to its next phase: the best-of-five Division Series.

The first Division Series matchup was set on Wednesday night — after sweeping the Reds in the National League Wild Card Series, the Dodgers will face the NL East champion Phillies in the NLDS.

On Thursday, there were three decisive games, and while the Red Sox and Yankees are in action in the Bronx, two other clubs punched their tickets to the next round. The Tigers won the decisive Game 3 of their American League Wild Card Series against the division rival Guardians, meaning Detroit will take on the AL West champion Mariners in the ALDS. And the Cubs held on to beat the Padres — Chicago will face the division rival Brewers in the NLDS.

The winner of the Red Sox-Yankees game will move on to play the No. 1-seeded Blue Jays. All four LDS matchups are scheduled to get underway Saturday.

As the matchups come into focus, weâ€ll be breaking down each series below.

Schedule
Game 1 (at MIL): Saturday on TBS
Game 2 (at MIL): Monday on TBS
Game 3 (at CHC): Oct. 8 on TBS
Game 4 (at CHC, if necessary): Oct. 9 on TBS
Game 5 (at MIL, if necessary): Oct. 11 on TBS

Season series: The Cubs went 7-6 against the Brewers in their head-to-head matchups during the regular season. They last met for five games (including a doubleheader) at Wrigley Field from Aug. 18-21.

Postseason history: This is the first playoff meeting between the Brewers and Cubs.

Keys to the matchup: Freddy Peralta is the only ace-level starting pitcher weâ€ll see in this series, so it could come down to a battle of the bullpens. The Brewers had one of baseballâ€s best relief corps throughout the season, but the Cubs†bullpen is on a heater right now. Chicagoâ€s â€pen struck out 30.8% of the batters it faced in the final month of the season and — not including Shota Imanaga’s outing after Chicago used an opener in Game 2 — the Cubs’ relief corps yielded just one run over 13 2/3 frames vs. San Diego in the NL Wild Card Series.

The Brewers (164) and Cubs (161) ranked first and second, respectively, in the NL in stolen bases this season, so the batteries for both teams will need to be on high alert when someone reaches base. The long ball could also loom large — the Cubs hit 57 more home runs than the Brewers in the regular season, but Milwaukeeâ€s pitching staff ranked among the best at limiting big flies.

Player to watch: Seiya Suzuki. With Kyle Tucker still working his way back into form after missing nearly all of September due to a calf issue and Pete Crow-Armstrong coming off a rough second half (.634 OPS), the Cubs will continue to lean on Suzuki and Michael Busch to drive their offense. Suzukiâ€s bat was ice cold for much of the second half, but he followed up a 38-game homerless drought by going deep in each of his last four regular season games before hitting another dinger in Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series. Weâ€ll see if he can solve Milwaukeeâ€s pitching after going 6-for-50 (.120) with 22 Kâ€s and a .428 OPS in 13 games against the Brewers this season.

(2) Phillies vs. Dodgers (3)

Schedule
Game 1 (at PHI): Saturday on TBS
Game 2 (at PHI): Monday on TBS
Game 3 (at LAD): Oct. 8 on TBS
Game 4 (at LAD, if necessary): Oct. 9 on TBS
Game 5 (at PHI, if necessary): Oct. 11 on TBS

Season series: The Phillies went 4-2 against the Dodgers in the regular season, taking two of three when they played in April and doing so again when they matched up in September.

Postseason history: This will be the sixth postseason matchup between the Phillies and Dodgers and the first in the Division Series. The Dodgers defeated the Phillies in the 1977 and â€78 NL Championship Series, but Philadelphia has gotten the better of Los Angeles in their past three playoff meetings — the â€83 NLCS, the 2008 NLCS and the â€09 NLCS.

Keys to the matchup: This is perhaps overly simplified but this series will likely come down to how the stars on each club perform, and there are plenty of them. Whether itâ€s Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber, Freddie Freeman or Bryce Harper, some of baseballâ€s top names will be facing off in a star-studded NLDS matchup. Even each teamâ€s rotation features top-shelf starters like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Cristopher Sánchez, Blake Snell, Ohtani and many more. For a division series, this is about as good of a matchup as you could ask for.

Player to watch: Trea Turner missed the better part of September with a strained right hamstring. He returned for the season finale but he had missed the previous three weeks which, including the Phillies†first-round bye, means Turner has played in few games over the last month. If he picks up where he left off before the injury, the Phillies could be in great shape. Turner had an excellent ‘25 season, posting an .812 OPS with 6.7 WAR, third among all NL position players. Turner, too, stole 36 bases this season and could provide a valuable element on the bases if heâ€s healthy.

(2) Mariners vs. Tigers (6)

Schedule
Game 1 (at SEA): Saturday on FOX or FS1
Game 2 (at SEA): Sunday on FOX or FS1
Game 3 (at DET): Tuesday on FOX or FS1
Game 4 (at DET, if necessary): Oct. 8 on FOX or FS1
Game 5 (at SEA, if necessary): Oct. 10 on FOX or FS1

Season series: The Mariners went 4-2 against the Tigers in the regular season. Seattle played Detroit at T-Mobile Park in its second series of the year and lost two of three but swept the Tigers at Comerica Park right before the All-Star break, outscoring them 35-14 in that series.

Postseason history: This is the first playoff meeting between the Mariners and Tigers.

Keys to the matchup: The Mariners appear to have the edge over the Tigers in the power department, outhomering Detroit 238-198 during the regular season. The same goes for their pitching depth. Even with questions of Bryan Wooâ€s availability due to a pectoral issue, the Mariners still have more trustworthy starting pitching options at their disposal than the Tigers, and their bullpen should be well rested after a superb September. The Tigers, though, have Tarik Skubal. After striking out 14 batters over 7 2/3 dominant innings against the Guardians in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series, Skubal could make multiple starts on regular rest in the ALDS, including a potential winner-take-all Game 5.

Player to watch: Cal Raleigh. Every step of the way, this has been Raleighâ€s year. He became the seventh player in Major League history with a 60-homer season, setting records for catchers and switch-hitters along the way. He led the AL with 125 RBIs and helped the Mariners win their first division crown in more than two decades. He even won the Home Run Derby. Now, heâ€ll try to carry the Mariners to the ALCS for the first time since 2001.

(1) Blue Jays vs. Yankees (4) or Red Sox (5)

Schedule
Game 1 (at TOR): Saturday on FOX or FS1
Game 2 (at TOR): Sunday on FOX or FS1
Game 3 (at NYY/BOS): Tuesday on FOX or FS1
Game 4 (at NYY/BOS, if necessary): Oct. 8 on FOX or FS1
Game 5 (at TOR, if necessary): Oct. 10 on FOX or FS1

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We made it, baseball fans. It was a chaotic sprint to finish the regular season, but with 162 games on the books, it’s time to kick off the postseason with the wild-card round.

Four best-of-three series begin Tuesday, so let’s jump in. Here’s what you need to know about the wild-card matchups, including projected starters, X-factors and series predictions.

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Yahoo’s picks for the first round of the postseason. (Mallory Bielecki/Yahoo Sports)

No. 6 Detroit Tigers vs. No. 3 Cleveland Guardians

Projected starters

Game 1: Tarik Skubal (DET) vs. Gavin Williams (CLE)

Game 2: Jack Flaherty (DET) vs. Tanner Bibee (CLE)

Game 3: Casey Mize (DET) vs. Slade Cecconi (CLE)

How they got here

Tigers: For most of the first half, Detroit looked like the No. 1 team in the American League. The Tigers entered the All-Star break with baseballâ€s best record, dominating like a souped-up version of the 2024 club that improbably snuck into the postseason. Tarik Skubal was sensational, the other pitching was good enough, the offense of interchangeable pieces was producing. Javy Baéz even made the All-Star team. All was well.

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Then the bottom fell out. Detroit went 28-37 after the break, the worst second-half record of any playoff team. And when the Guards got hot in September, the Tigers couldnâ€t right the ship, coughing up the division crown over the seasonâ€s final week. Only a similarly catastrophic collapse from the Astros kept Detroit in the playoff field. But now the Tigers are in, and they still have the best pitcher on the planet.

Guardians: On the morning of Sept. 5, the Guards were 11 games behind the division-leading Tigers, wallowing in third in the AL Central. Their playoff odds, according to FanGraphs, were 2.9%. Their division odds, understandably, were even lower, comically so, at 0.1%. The last few weeks seemed destined to be a forgettable epilogue to a tumultuous season that included two players being placed on administrative leave as part of a gambling investigation.

Instead, history happened.

Clevelandâ€s pitching staff caught fire, and the Guardians rode their unique brand of crisp defense, aggressive baserunning and unflappable, José Ramírez-style moxie to a comeback of historic proportions. The club finished the season 19-4 over its final 23 games to catch and pass the flailing Tigers.

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Belief is a dangerous thing, and these Guardians have quite a surplus right now.

X-factors

Tigers: Riley Greene

At the break, Greeneâ€s .879 OPS ranked 15th among qualified hitters. Heâ€d seemingly emerged as a young star, the face of Detroitâ€s otherwise anonymous lineup. That earned him the honor of hitting second for the American League in the Midsummer Classic, directly in front of Aaron Judge.

But since the break, Greene has a .694 OPS, a mark that ranks 117th among qualified hitters. This dude is supposed to be this teamâ€s best hitter, its best offensive player, and for the past two months, as the season started to crumble, he turtled. The best version of Greene is dangerous, imposing, a real power threat. The Tigers need that guy to reappear if theyâ€re going to survive one last trip to Cleveland.

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Guardians: Jhonkensy Noel and José Ramírez

The man delightfully known as “Big Christmas†is the only active Guardian to have ever hit a home run off Tarik Skubal. Playoffs included, Clevelandâ€s roster has a collective .311 career slugging percentage in 145 plate appearances against the reigning AL Cy Young. For reference, Clevelandâ€s light-hitting backup catcher, Austin Hedges, has a career .313 slugging percentage.

The righty-hitting Noel is probably going to face Skubal three times in Game 1. Whether he gets a hold of one — and how many runners are on base if and when that happens — could dictate the outcome of the entire series.

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That said, itâ€s really all about Ramírez. Every time he steps to the plate, he exudes swagger and confidence, the flavor of which has spread to the entire Guardians club over the past few weeks. Heâ€s the sparkplug, the heart and soul, the be-all and end-all for this team.

How they win

Tigers: Skubal dominates, and crucially, this time he doesnâ€t longsnap the game away through his legs. Even though Cleveland won the two most recent Skubal showdowns, both of which happened in the past 10 days, the Cy Young-in-waiting allowed just two earned runs across those outings while punching out 17. Itâ€s more than conceivable that the American Leagueâ€s best pitcher storms into Progressive Field, silences the crowd and changes the narrative.

Then what?

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Well, baseball is silly, and Clevelandâ€s offense remains relatively mediocre. The Guardians ranked 14th in OPS while they were chasing down the Tigers in September. Skubal plus a bad day for the Guards†lineup could easily push Detroit through to the ALDS.

Guardians: The way theyâ€ve been winning, baby. That recipe is great starting pitching, mistake-free defense, a few electrifying J-Ram moments, an infield hit or five, and the good graces of the hard-ball gods. Being a Cleveland Guardian right now seems like the most fun, heart-warming job in the entire world. They reaffirm every last cliché about “playing for one another†and “doing the little things right.†And theyâ€re still playing with house money.

Series prediction: Guardians in three

Skubal carves in Game 1, but the Guardians win the next two to keep their magical ride rolling.

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— Mintz

No. 5 Boston Red Sox vs. No. 4 New York Yankees

Projected starters

Game 1: Garrett Crochet (BOS) vs. Max Fried (NYY)

Game 2: Lucas Giolito (BOS) vs. Carlos Rodón (NYY)

Game 3: Brayan Bello (BOS) vs. Cam Schlittler (NYY)

Note: Boston hasnâ€t announced the order itâ€ll roll out Giolito and Bello, but Giolito has been better recently. The Yankees also havenâ€t announced a Game 3 starter; their other two options are Luis Gil and Will Warren.

How they got here

Red Sox:What a roller coaster.

Hereâ€s an incomplete list of notable things that happened to the 2025 Red Sox: They traded away the face of the franchise, Rafael Devers, after a very avoidable, very public kerfuffle about his defensive position. That situation escalated the way it did only because the teamâ€s presumed first baseman of the future, Tristan Casas, suffered a season-ending knee injury on May 2. Big-ticket free agent Alex Bregman missed two months due to a quad issue. A trio of top prospects debuted and then either disappointed (Kristian Campbell) or got hurt (Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony). Garrett Crochet, who will finish second for the AL Cy Young, went to the zoo and saw some pandas. The team appeared magically tethered to .500 before a nine-game winning streak leading into the All-Star break propelled them back into playoff contention.

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It feels like the 2025 Red Sox played five seasons this season. Now they have to play another one.

Yankees: This is the best offense in baseball. The Bombers lead MLB in runs, homers, slugging percentage and OPS. Aaron Judge is either going to win MVP or almost win MVP. Giancarlo Stanton returned from a bizarre series of elbow issues and spent much of the summer putting fans in the outfield at risk. Jazz Chisholm Jr. solidified himself as one of the best second basemen in the sport. Ben Rice and Trent Grisham broke out. Cody Bellinger found his groove. Besides the mysterious capitulation of Anthony Volpe, things were really good for Yankee hitters this year.

The same was true for the rotation, which stepped up big-time after ace Gerrit Cole went down with a torn UCL in spring training. Max Fried was brilliant in his debut season in the Bronx. Carlos Rodón evolved his game, delivering a crucial bounce-back season. Two rookies, Cam Schlittler and Will Warren, emerged as stalwarts. Weâ€ll, uh, talk about the bullpen later.

The Yankees struggled versus playoff-caliber clubs for much of the season before a solid stretch in September against Houston, Toronto, Boston and Detroit. There are still concerns about the defense and the baserunning — those pesky buggers that doomed New York in the 2024 World Series — but this team is playing well at the right time.

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X-factors

Red Sox: The lefty-mashing specialists: Romy González and Rob Refsnyder

New Yorkâ€s two best starters, Fried and Rodón, both throw with their left arm. In 42 plate appearances this season against lefty Yankees, González and Refsnyder are a combined 13-for-35 with six extra-base hits and seven walks. Thatâ€s a .371/.476/.629 line. The other main righty bats in Bostonâ€s lineup — Trevor Story, Alex Bregman, Carlos Narvaez — will be crucial as well, but how Romy and Rob do against Fried and Rodón could swing this series.

Yankees:The bullpen

This has been the clubâ€s weak link all season, and it could be its Achilles†heel in October. David Bednar, acquired from Pittsburgh at the deadline, has been great in the closer role. But the bridge between him and the starters has been shaky at times. The Luke Weaver/Devin Williams tandem hasnâ€t lived up to expectations. Another deadline add, sidewinding righty Camilo Doval, has shown flashes of dominance but doesnâ€t foster supreme confidence. The same is true for Fernando Cruz, whose splitter baffled hitters in the first half but hasnâ€t been as effective recently.

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The names are big, the pedigrees are impressive, but when it gets late and tense in October, does this Yankees ‘pen have what it takes?

How they win

Red Sox: Crochet shoves in the opener, and the Sox win a low-scoring game thanks to a few solo shots off Fried and the Yanks†pen. Then Boston pounces on Game 2 starter Rodón, who struggled in his three starts against the Sox this year, with 10 earned runs in 15â…” innings. Just like that, done and dusted, the Sox send the Yankees on an early vacation while reinvigorating baseballâ€s most historic rivalry.

Yankees: By bludgeoning Boston into submission. The Yankees†lineup is better than the Red Soxâ€s lineup by a pretty significant margin. Of course, anything can happen in a short series, but New Yorkâ€s firepower up and down the lineup feels like a game-changer.

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Series prediction: Yankees in two

Fried keeps it close enough with Crochet in Game 1 for New Yorkâ€s lineup to explode late. The Red Sox canâ€t bounce back and fizzle out quietly in Game 2.

— Mintz

The postseason begins with two rivalry matchups in Tigers vs. Guardians and Red Sox vs. Yankees. (Stefan Milic/Yahoo Sports)

No. 6 Cincinnati Reds vs. No. 3 Los Angeles Dodgers

Projected starters

Game 1: Hunter Greene (CIN) vs. Shohei Ohtani (LAD)

Game 2: Nick Lodolo (CIN) vs. Blake Snell (LAD)

Game 3: Andrew Abbott (CIN) vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto (LAD)

How they got here

Reds: When you hire Terry Francona to be your manager, which the Reds did this past offseason, youâ€re making a statement to your fan base and your organization that expectations are going to be higher. But it appeared for most of the 2025 season that a postseason appearance wasnâ€t in the cards for Cincinnati.

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That is, until the New York Mets left the door open for the third NL wild-card spot. The Reds were able to outplay New York over the final three months of the regular season, reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2020 and their first time in a 162-game season since 2013.

Dodgers: We all went into this season believing the Dodgers would run roughshod through the league after a winter in which they added ace Blake Snell, closer Tanner Scott and international free agent Roki Sasaki. But baseball doesnâ€t work that way, and things were not easy for the Dodgers in 2025. On offense, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman struggled in a way the team couldnâ€t have anticipated, but the good news for L.A. is Shohei Ohtani more than makes up for others†flaws, hitting a franchise-record and career-high 55 home runs and likely winning his third consecutive MVP Award while returning to the mound.

As in the past several seasons, injuries plagued L.A.â€s starting rotation in the first half. But the Dodgers got healthier in the second half, with a rotation of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani coming into view. In the end, like theyâ€ve done 12 times in the past 13 seasons, the Dodgers found a way to capture the NL West title.

X-factors

Reds: Hunter Greene

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If the Reds win this series against the Dodgers, it will be because their ace gets them off on the right foot and helps them get a critical Game 1 victory. When Greene is at his best, like he showed when he nearly tossed a no-hitter against the Cubs on Sept. 18, he is a true difference-maker. If Greene is great in L.A., the Reds have a chance.

Dodgers: Roki Sasaki

We didnâ€t know if we would see Sasaki again this season, as he missed most of the season due to a right shoulder impingement. Even when he was healthy, he didnâ€t show much consistency. But the rookie right-hander has looked like a different pitcher since his recent return to the big leagues in a relief role, with his fastball looking unhittable and his signature splitter keeping hitters off-balance.

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What makes Sasaki the ultimate X-factor is that where the Dodgers are most vulnerable right now is in their bullpen, particularly in high leverage. When heâ€s right, Sasaki probably has the filthiest stuff on the Dodgers†roster, and with Blake Teinen and Tanner Scott both struggling, the Dodgers could make Sasaki their closer this postseason.

Even though Sasakiâ€s stuff has looked electric, the pressure of the postseason is a different animal. But fortune favors the bold, and the Dodgers might not have a better option.

How they win

Reds:Pitching. Pitching. And more pitching. The Reds reached the postseason behind strong starting pitching, and if they hope to beat the juggernaut Dodgers, it will have to be their starters who once again carry them. And Cincinnati will roll out its best in Greene, Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo against L.A. If thereâ€s anything that can stop a world-class lineup like the Dodgers, itâ€s the arms on the Reds.

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Dodgers:Thereâ€s no secret sauce to the Dodgers†success. When their superstars are playing at their best, they are almost impossible to beat. The combination of Ohtani, Betts and Freeman gives them a trio that few teams in MLB history could rival. If just one of them has a big series, that could be enough to carry this team into the next round. But L.A.â€s bullpen is its weak link going into October. The Dodgers will need length from their starters to keep that leaky bullpen from being exposed.

Series prediction: Dodgers in three

The Dodgers are better than the Reds in terms of elite talent, but the equalizer in this series could be the starting pitching. Greene has shown down the stretch that he can be one of the elite aces in baseball, and the Reds have enough to win a 3-2 or 2-1 game. Ultimately, the Dodgers†high-powered offense will be the difference in this series. When you have players like Andy Pages and Teoscar Hernández hitting in the bottom of the order, thatâ€s nearly unbeatable lineup depth.

— Dorsey

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No. 5 San Diego Padres vs. No. 4 Chicago Cubs

Projected starters

Game 1: Nick Pivetta (SD) vs. Shota Imanaga (CHI)

Game 2: Dylan Cease (SD) vs. Matthew Boyd (CHI)

Game 3: Yu Darvish (SD) vs. Jameson Taillon (CHI)

How they got here

Padres:San Diegoâ€s path to the postseason was different than in years past. Usually, itâ€s the offense led by Manny Machado and Co. that drives the Padres. This time around, it was the pitching, as San Diego finished the season top-three in baseball in team ERA and first in bullpen ERA. One of the big turning points for San Diego was the trade deadline, when it made arguably the biggest move in the sport, acquiring fireballer Mason Miller from the Aâ€s. President of baseball operations AJ Preller once again cashed in his chips on a lights-out bullpen — one built to thrive in October.

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Cubs: For the first time since 2018, the Cubs reached the playoffs in a full season, recording their most wins since that year. With a first-half offense that was the best in baseball and breakout years from Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch, the Cubs surged early this year. But after an impressive first half, the second half saw Chicago have to grind to get into the postseason. The offense sputtered, and the Cubs had to lean on their pitching to secure a wild-card spot. But they made it with room to spare, and the Cubs will have an opportunity to face their division rivals in the NLDS if they can get through San Diego.

X-factors

Padres: Jackson Merrill

It hasnâ€t been the easiest sophomore season for Merrill, coming off a phenomenal rookie season. He began the season by signing a massive, seven-year extension, but shortly after, he landed on the injured list due to a hamstring strain. But fast-forward to September, and the 22-year-old not only looks fully healthy but also has locked in at the perfect time, with a .938 OPS and seven homers this month. Merrill hitting in the cleanup spot behind Fernando Tatis Jr. and Machado makes the Padres dangerous when the trio is firing on all cylinders.

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Cubs:Michael Busch

You can make a case that Busch has been the most underrated offensive player in baseball this season. With his 34 home runs, the first baseman has done something that not even Anthony Rizzo did in his time in Chicago, and his tally is the most by a Cub since Kyle Schwarber hit 38 in 2019. Busch has been the most consistent offensive player in the Cubs†lineup, and whichever way he goes, usually Chicagoâ€s offense follows. Busch having a big series vs. San Diego would be huge for Chicagoâ€s hopes to advance.

How they win

Padres:San Diego will advance to the NLDS for the second straight year if its stars come through. Preller built his lineup and roster around star power, and with Machado, Tatis and Merrill leading the way, San Diego has plenty of offensive firepower. Plus, beyond the Padres’ starting pitchers, the power arms in their bullpen become the equalizer. If the Padres can get to the fifth inning with a lead, itâ€ll be difficult for the Cubs to record hits, let alone score, against Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejón, Mason Miller and Robert Suarez.

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Cubs: If the Cubs rediscover the offense from the first half that made them one of baseballâ€s best teams, they can and will get to the NLDS. Chicago has shown glimpses of that with its surge over the last week of the regular season, especially from Seiya Suzuki, who seems to have rediscovered his power stroke. If the Cubs can come through with some clutch hits, theyâ€ll get past San Diego and face Milwaukee in the NLDS.

Series prediction: Padres in two

The biggest blow for Chicago is that it will be without NL Rookie of the Year candidate Cade Horton, who was placed on the injured list due to a rib fracture on Saturday. Horton wouldâ€ve been the Cubs†likely Game 1 starter. Instead theyâ€ll turn to a combination of Imanaga, Boyd and Taillon.

Postseason experience matters, and if thereâ€s one huge advantage for San Diego here, itâ€s that the Padres have been in the playoffs every year since 2022. After they were eliminated in the NLDS last year, when they believed they were the best team in baseball, itâ€s difficult to imagine them getting knocked out early a second straight year. San Diego‘s ability to shorten games with its bullpen gives it the edge in a short series.

— Dorsey

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The best American and European golfers are ready for the 2025 Ryder Cup, which begins this week at Bethpage Black. Here is our complete 2025 Ryder Cup viewer’s guide for the entire tournament, including full TV and streaming schedules and complete Ryder Cup matchups once they are available.

2025 Ryder Cup: What you need to know

The Ryder Cup is finally here, with the anticipation for the biennial event hitting record levels. The European team is coming off a dominant win at the 2023 event in Rome. The U.S. team is hoping to avenge their embarassing defeat this week at Bethpage Black.

‘I really don’t like Bethpage’: Ex-U.S. captain blasts Ryder Cup course, calls it ‘mistake’

By:

Kevin Cunningham

U.S. captain Keegan Bradley and European leader Luke Donald have their star-studded teams prepped and ready for the challenge. The U.S. team features superstars Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau and Xander Schauffele. The 12-man European team is led by World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Tommy Fleetwood.

And the New York crowds are expected to be loud and heavily biased toward to the American team at their beloved municipal course.

Fans without tickets to watch the Ryder Cup in person at Bethpage Black will be able to watch the entirety of this year’s tournament from home. USA and NBC will handle the TV broadcasts, and you can stream Featured Match coverage on Peacock, in addition to simulcasts of NBC’s coverage on Saturday and Sunday. More streaming options can be found via the NBC Sports App.

SIGN UP FOR PEACOCK PREMIUM TO STREAM THE 2025 RYDER CUP

You can view full details about streaming the Ryder Cup online or watching the action on TV below.

TV schedule (ET)

NBC and USA will air the 2025 Ryder Cup on TV. USA will carry the first round on Friday. NBC will provide TV coverage on Saturday and Sunday.

Here’s the full TV schedule for the week (ET):

Thursday, Sept. 25: 4-7 p.m. (Opening Ceremony on Golf Channel)
Friday, Sept. 26: 7 a.m.-6 p.m. (USA)
Saturday, Sept. 27: 7 a.m.-6 p.m. (NBC)
Sunday, Sept. 28:12-6 p.m. ET (NBC)

Want to bet the Ryder Cup? Sign up for Fanatics Sportsbook with code “SUBPAR” to receive a special welcome offer.

Streaming schedule (ET)

Peacock is the main streaming home for the 2025 Ryder Cup. Additional streaming options are available via the NBC Sports App.

SIGN UP FOR PEACOCK PREMIUM TO STREAM THE 2025 RYDER CUP

Here’s the complete Ryder Cup streaming schedule (ET):

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25
Opening Ceremony:4-7 p.m. (NBC Sports App)

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26
Breakfast at Bethpage: 6-8 a.m. (Peacock; plus RyderCup.com, NBC Sports app and YouTube)
Featured Matches: TBD (Peacock; plus free on RyderCup.com and NBC Sports app)
Day 1 Matches: 7 a.m.-6 p.m. (NBC Sports App)

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27
Breakfast at Bethpage: 6-8 a.m. (Peacock; plus RyderCup.com, NBC Sports app and YouTube)
Featured Matches:TBD (Peacock; plus free on RyderCup.com and NBC Sports app)
Day 2 Matches: 7 a.m.-6 p.m. (Peacock; NBC Sports App)

With seven games remaining in the regular season, theMets are looking to hold off a handful of teams for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of play on Sept. 21…

Mets: 80-75, 1.0 game up on Reds for third Wild Card

Next up: vs. Nationals, Sunday at 1:40 p.m. on SNY (Sean Manaea vs. Jake Irvin)
Latest result: 5-3 loss to Nationals on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 vs. WSH, 3 @ CHC, 3 @ MIA
Odds to make playoffs: 75.9 percent
*Mets hold tiebreaker over Giants by virtue of winning the season series, while Reds hold tiebreaker over Mets. The tiebreaker between the Mets and Diamondbacks is TBD, and will likely be based on intradivision record since the two clubs split the season series

Reds: 79-76, 1.0 game back of Mets

Next up: vs. Cubs, Sunday at 1:40 p.m. (Andrew Abbott vs. Jameson Taillon)
Latest result: 6-3 win over Cubs on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 vs. CHC, 3 vs. PIT, 3 @ MIL
Odds to make playoffs: 20.5 percent

Diamondbacks: 78-77, 2.0 games back of Mets

Next up: vs. Phillies, Sunday at 4:10 p.m. (Eduardo Rodriguezvs. Ranger Suarez)
Latest result: 4-3 win over Phillies on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 vs. PHI, 3 vs. LAD, 3 @ SD
Odds to make playoffs: 3.4 percent

Giants: 76-79, 4.0 games back of Mets

Next up: @ Dodgers, Sunday at 4:10 p.m.(Trevor McDonald vs. Emmet Sheehan)
Latest result: 7-5 loss to Dodgers on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 @ LAD, 3 vs. STL, 3 vs. COL
Odds to make playoffs: 0.1 percent

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With eight games remaining in the regular season, the Mets are looking to hold off a handful of teams for…