The MLB regular season is coming to a close and along with that comes the Postseason. October baseball baby!  And due to the new playoff structure, two more teams will be able to have a taste of October and the chance at glory. Along with the change of 10 teams to 12 teams, there is no longer a one-game win or go-home Wild Card round. The Wild Card round is now a best-of-three series AND there are two per league. 12 teams left, who is the best of the best? Well, that question will be answered by us in the form of a Power Rankings list. 

American League: Written by Dante

1. Houston Astros

Congratulations Houston Astros, you’re the number one team in the AL! Winning over 100 games this season, the Astros dominated the American League on multiple levels. Their pitching staff was first in the AL in ERA, Strikeouts, and WHIP. Led by a trifecta of Justin Verlander, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez, the Astros look to have the best starting staff in the AL going into the playoffs, something very important for playoff baseball. However, their offense is just as good. Going into the year, the Astros had some questions on the offensive end after Carlos Correa left the Astros and signed with the Twins. Nevertheless, the Astros replaced him with rookie sensation, Jeremy Pena, and the rest of the offense didn’t suffer. Yordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Kyle Tucker led the offense to a great year. With the Astros heavy playoff experience and one “championship”, the Astros should be the heavy favorites to make the World Series out of the AL. 

2.) Cleveland Guardians  

Okay Yankees fans, before you do anything, just hear me out. The Guardians are the most surprising team in the MLB this year, coming out of nowhere to win the AL Central. The emergence of young players such as Andres Gimenez and Steven Kwan, in addition to the steady amazing play of Jose Ramirez, helped the Guardians offense improve from last year. But, the offense isn’t what makes this

Guardians team special, it is the phenomenal pitching. Similar to the Astros, the Guardians have a trifecta of Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie, and Cal Quantrill. While the Guardians’ trifecta isn’t as strong as the Astros, their bullpen is dominant. Led by Emmanuel Clase with 39 saves, they have 5 relievers with ERAs under 3 including Clase. While the Guardians don’t have the flashy star power as some of the other teams in the AL, the Guardians do pose a great threat to making the World Series.

3.) New York Yankees

After a phenomenal start to the season with a 64-28 record going into the All-Star Break, the Yankees have fallen greatly. While some of their staff has been good, there have been some lowlights as trade deadline acquisition, Frankie Montas has been awful with over a 6 ERA. On the offensive end, the Yankees have been single-handedly carried by the generational performance of Aaron Judge, who is breaking home run records and dominating all offensive categories. However, the performance on the offensive stops and ends with Judge. Players such as Josh Donaldson, DJ Lemahieu, and Aaron Hicks have underperformed on the offensive end, leading to Judge having to carry the offensive load. The Yankees have high expectations going into the postseason, but I feel that Yankees fans will be let down by what happens in the playoffs.

4.) Toronto Blue Jays

Your number one wild card team, the Toronto Blue Jays! Coming into the season, the Blue Jays had high expectations of winning the AL East, and being in contention for the World Series. However, the Blue Jays did not fully live up to these expectations. Their new pitching additions, Jose Berrios and Yusei Kikuchi, vastly underperformed with ERAs over 5. However, pitchers such as Alek Manoah and Kevin Gausman helped make up for the disparities between Berrios and Kikuchi. While Toronto’s offense was good, it wasn’t great like many people thought it would be at the start of the year. Vladimir Guererro JR., George Springer, Bo Bichette, and Teoscar Hernandez all saw regression. The team’s underwhelming performance compared to expectations led to their manager, Charlie Montoyo, being fired, something unheard of for a playoff team. While the Blue Jays’ season seemed like a failure, they can still make up for it in the playoffs. The Blue Jays are one of the most volatile teams this year, and that will show in the playoffs, as they either can be a World Series contender or a first-round exit. 

5.) Seattle Mariners

21 years. That’s how long it’s been since the Mariners made the playoffs. The longest playoff drought in sports history ended, but the Mariners hope to do more than just make the playoffs this postseason. Similar to Cleveland, the Mariners made the playoffs due to the performances of their young players. Players such as Julio Rodriguez, Logan Gilbert, and George Kirby all helped lead the Mariners to such a great season. But, the Mariners don’t have an easy path as they have to play a playoff series against either Cleveland or Toronto. However, their pitching may just lead them to a wild card win. In addition to Kirby and Gilbert, the Mariners also have last year’s Cy Young winner, Robbie Ray. While most people may overlook the Mariners, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them win a playoff series.

6.) Tampa Bay Rays

Concluding the AL portion of the power rankings, we have the Tampa Bay Rays. While they are ranked last out of the AL playoff teams, I would not count out the Rays in a playoff series. With tons of playoff experience, the Rays are a threat to any team. Their pitching staff is headed by AL Cy Young candidate Shane McClanahan, with Drew Rasmussen making them a solid one-two punch. However, this brings us to the weakness of the Rays, their offense. The Rays’ offense underwhelmed this year, not living up to expectations. With the Rays’ anemic offense, I find it hard to see the Rays winning a playoff series. However, I still won’t count out the Rays as you can never be too sure with a team like them.

National League: Written by Nick

1. Dodgers

The Dodgers have been almost unanimously the best team in baseball this season. 100+ wins, 322 run differential, and the lowest team ERA in the majors at 2.81, there is not much that this Dodger team leaves to be desired. Led by Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Trea Turner, their offense is a juggernaut that any pitching staff in the league dreads to face. They will be playing without their ace Walker Buehler who is out due to injury, but are still led by future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw and Cy Young candidate Tony Gonsolin. However, there have been some questions about the health of the Dodgers pitching staff this season, but when fully healthy, it is up there with some of the best in the league. These guys have been here before. They have the experience and they have the talent. They are the team to beat in the National League.

2.) Braves

The reigning and defending World Champions are back in the postseason for the fifth straight season. This team looks very similar to last year’s championship team and some may even say it is even better. You look up and down their lineup and all you see are professional hitters. Pitchers never feel comfortable against them. Headlined by players such as Austin Riley, Dansby Swanson, Ronald Acuna Jr, and rookie sensation Michael Harris II, there is no easy out in this lineup. They aren’t just all offense though, their pitching is elite. The rotation is led by Max Fried, Kyle Wright, and another rookie phenom Spencer Strider. And while Kenly Jansen has at times been shaky, their bullpen can get the job done as well as any team. With a lethal lineup and pristine pitching, no challenge seems difficult to the Braves. Will they be the first repeat champions since the 1999 and 2000 Yankees? Only time will tell, but I wouldn’t count them out.

3.) Mets

Despite holding first place in the NL East for virtually the entire season and winning 100 games, the Mets find themselves in a Wild Card game. The Mets are led by possibly the most deadly one-two punch in the history of the game in Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer. With those two, the Mets are feared opponents by any team. Their offense is led by darkhorse MVP candidate Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, and Jeff McNeil and they will beat your team by way of the death of a thousand cuts. Small ball is the bread and butter of this team. While all of this is great, the true highlight of this team has been all-star closer Edwin Diaz who has been nails all year. With his 50% strikeout percentage, batters shiver in their boots when they hear the melodious trumpets of Narco by Blasterjaxx and Timmy Trumpet. Led by Buck Showalter and a plethora of veteran experience, the Mets are in a prime position to return to the Fall Classic and take home the Commissioner’s trophy. 

4.) Padres

The Padres have played all season without their best player and generational-type superstar, Fernando Tatis Jr, and have still managed to make the playoffs. That alone speaks to the talent and resilience of this team. After a trade deadline for the ages, this offense is in a great spot to do damage. An MVP-caliber year by Manny Machado and the offensive prowess of superstar Juan Soto has carried the offense. While this offense isn’t one of the best of the best, they manage to get the job done. Pitching is where this team excels. Their rotation is headed by Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove, two pitchers that can be aces on almost any team in baseball. And closing out games they have Josh Hader who struggled greatly in his first few games with the team after the trade deadline but has been lockdown ever since and has been for the past couple of years. If this team gets hot, look for them to make a serious run because, at their full potential, the sky’s the limit with this team. 

5.) Cardinals

The Cardinals are one of the most solid teams in baseball. Good on offense, majestic on defense, and solid at pitching. However, the story around this team is the Last Dance for the veteran trio made up of battery mates, Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina, accompanied by one of the top 10 players of all time Albert Pujols. After becoming the fourth player ever to join the 700 home run club and surpassing Babe Ruth for second on the all-time RBI list, “The Machine ” is still producing in his age 42 seasons. But with the end of the old, comes the start of the new and the new on this team have greatly played into the Cardinals’ success this year. Led by the almost unanimous NL MVP  first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and stellar third baseman Nolan Arenado. Simply put these two players are like the Drakes of their positions, they are top two and they’re not two. Their pitching is littered with soft-tossing lefties who know their job and know how to do it well. They have had trouble closing out games, but Giovanni Gallegos has been in the moment and has the most trust out of any man in the bullpen. Can the combination of the old and the new carry the team through the Postseason? 

6.) Phillies

Squeaking in the final Wild Card spot, the Phillies are a sneaky team. No part of the Phillies game overwhelms you, but they can ambush you if given the opportunity to do so. In a Wild Card series, they should be very feared as they have two bonafide aces in the form of Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola. Both are workhorses and overpower their opponents. While their rotation is solid, their Achilles heel has been their bullpen all year. There aren’t many reliable, lockdown relievers on the roster. However, to make up for the bullpen’s shortcomings, the Phillies’ lineup is disgusting. It is headlined by reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper, National League homerun leader Kyle Schwarber, and Jean “The Hit Machine” Segura. If you make a mistake against this team, they will make you pay. If this team gets hot, watch out because it’ll be hard to stop them. 

So many storylines to be told and so many great games to be played. How will this new playoff structure affect the game? Who will take home the gold and who will be sent home to start working on their golf swing? We shall see and we’re excited to watch it all unfold.