What to see on the last day of the MLB regular season?
Chaos? Not quite. Just a couple of days ago, it looked like we were in for a wild final day of the MLB season. Even heading into Saturday, there was still the possibility of a three-team tie in the American League West, with the Toronto Blue Jays potentially tying the West teams with 89 wins. But then a record was set for most playoff berths earned in a 90-minute span. Quickly, the Miami Marlins got a wild card after beating the Pittsburgh Pirates; The Texas Rangers did it with a victory over the Seattle Mariners. The Blue Jays secured the ticket with the defeat of the Mariners; The Arizona Diamondbacks clinched their developing game with a loss to the Cincinnati Reds, and then the Houston Astros earned their playoff berth by beating the Diamondbacks.
Oh!
So the 12 teams for the 2023 MLB playoffs are already defined, but there are still a couple of things to decide. Here’s what to watch Sunday in the playoff races and elsewhere.
Who will win the American League West?
The Rangers beat the Mariners 6-1 and gave Luis Castillo his shortest outing of the season; The Astros beat the Diamondbacks 1-0 behind Justin Verlander’s five scoreless innings to clinch their seventh consecutive postseason berth. The Rangers, in the playoffs for the first time since 2016, have a one-game lead over the Astros, but the Astros won the season series, so if Houston wins and Texas loses, the Astros take the division title and They are seeded in the classification. position number 2.
The Rangers will likely opt for some type of bullpen play, as they did five days ago. They haven’t announced their starter yet: Cody Bradford started the game but pitched in relief on Saturday. They could go with Martín Pérez, but he last started on July 29, before his banishment to the bullpen. They could also go with Dane Dunning on three days’ rest after he threw 87 pitches in seven scoreless innings against the Angels on Wednesday. The Astros will have Cristian Javier on regular rest.
Both teams will do everything they can to try to avoid the unpredictability of a three-game series, so I doubt either team was partying too late on Saturday night. Remember, last season three of the four road teams won their wild card series. A few extra days of rest for their bullpen and lining up their rotation for the division series is a strong incentive for both teams this Sunday.
How will the classification be played in the American League?
The Rangers enter Sunday with 90 wins; the Astros and Blue Jays have 89. The AL West winner is determined first, so here are the scenarios:
- All three teams finish with 90 wins. The Astros are division champions and second place. The Rangers won the season series over the Blue Jays (6-1), so they are in fifth place and the Blue Jays are in sixth. This is arguably a plus for Toronto, as the Blue Jays would travel to Minnesota while the Rangers head to Tampa Bay.
- The Rangers finish with 91 wins, and the Astros and Blue Jays finish with 89. The Blue Jays won the season series 4-3 over the Astros, so they would be the No. 5 seed and the Astros the No. seed. 6. .
- The Rangers and Astros finish with 90 wins and the Blue Jays with 89. The Astros are division champions, the Rangers are the fifth seed, and the Blue Jays are the sixth seed.
Seattle’s loss that clinched a playoff spot for Toronto was a huge gift for the Blue Jays. With a postseason berth up in the air, they would have been forced to start ace Kevin Gausman (remember, all Sunday games start at the same time), which meant he wouldn’t have been ready to start the series. wildcards. Now he won’t have to pitch and can prepare for Tuesday.
What about the National League wild card race?
The first four seeds are already defined: Atlanta, Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. The Marlins are 84-76 and the Diamondbacks are 84-77. The Marlins have a suspended game against the Mets in which they are leading 2-1 in the ninth inning and which may have to end on Monday at Citi Field. The scenarios for the fifth and sixth favorites:
- The Marlins win and the Diamondbacks lose. The Marlins secure fifth place and will not have to finish the game suspended.
- Both teams lose. The Marlins won the season series against Arizona, so this would also secure them the fifth seed.
- The Diamondbacks win and the Marlins lose. The Marlins would have to complete
