MLB Playoffs 2014: Full Postseason Schedule and Predictions for Wild Card Games
The drama is slowly being sucked out of Major League Baseball's final weekend because the wild-card contenders have pulled away from the field. However, that doesn't mean the storylines have been washed away completely.
In fact, thanks to the second wild-card spot, there's more incentive for teams to keep their best players in the lineup after wrapping up a playoff berth in order to avoid a one-game playoff or attempt to procure home-field advantage for the Wild Card Game.
Instead of waiting to see what is going to happen over the last four days of MLB's regular season, we are going to tell you how the wild-card races and games will play out as soon as we give you a look at the full playoff schedule.
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| Wild Card Game | Date | Network | Time |
| American League Wild Card: TBD vs TBD | September 30 | TBS | TBD |
| National League Wild Card: TBD vs. TBD | October 1 | ESPN | TBD |
| Division Series | Date | Network | Time |
| American League Division Series, Game 1: TBD vs. LAA | October 2 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 2: TBD vs. LAA | October 3 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 3: LAA vs. TBD | October 5 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 4: LAA vs. TBD (If necessary) | October 6 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 5: TBD vs. LAA (If necessary) | October 8 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 1: TBD vs. Bal | October 2 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 2: TBD vs. Bal | October 3 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 3: Bal vs. TBD | October 5 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 4: Bal vs. TBD (If necessary) | October 6 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Division Series, Game 5: TBD vs. Bal (If necessary) | October 8 | TBS | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 1: TBD vs. Was | October 3 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 2: TBD vs. Was | October 4 | Fox Sports 1 or MLB Network | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 3: Was vs. TBD | October 6 | Fox Sports 1 or MLB Network | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 4: Was vs. TBD (If necessary) | October 7 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 5: TBD vs. Was (If necessary) | October 9 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 1: TBD vs. LAD | October 3 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 2: TBD vs. LAD | October 4 | Fox Sports 1 or MLB Network | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 3: LAD vs. TBD | October 6 | Fox Sports 1 or MLB Network | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 4: LAD vs. TBD (If necessary) | October 7 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Division Series, Game 5: TBD vs. LAD (If necessary) | October 9 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| Championship Series | Date | Network | Time |
| American League Championship Series, Game 1 | October 10 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 2 | October 11 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 3 | October 13 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 4 | October 14 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 5 (If necessary) | October 15 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 6 (If necessary) | October 17 | TBS | TBD |
| American League Championship Series, Game 7 (If necessary) | October 18 | TBS | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 1 | October 11 | Fox | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 2 | October 12 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 3 | October 14 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 4 | October 15 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 5 (If necessary) | October 16 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 6 (If necessary) | October 18 | Fox | TBD |
| National League Championship Series, Game 7 (If necessary) | October 19 | Fox Sports 1 | TBD |
| World Series | Date | Network | Time |
| World Series, Game 1 | October 21 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 2 | October 22 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 3 | October 24 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 4 | October 25 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 5 (If necessary) | October 26 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 6 (If necessary) | October 28 | Fox | TBD |
| World Series, Game 7 (If necessary) | October 29 | Fox | TBD |
Predictions
American League Wild Card Game: Oakland at Kansas City
While neither team has technically clinched a playoff spot yet, it would take a miracle for someone other than Kansas City and Oakland to meet in the American League Wild Card Game. Both teams boast 86-72 records, with Seattle and Cleveland the only two teams alive at three and 3.5 games back, respectively.
The point being that at least one of the Royals and A's will have to get swept this weekend and have one of Seattle or Cleveland sweep their final series in order to throw a wrench into everything.
Since the odds of those scenarios happening isn't likely, Kansas City and Oakland will play at Kauffman Stadium by virtue of the Royals holding a 5-2 season series edge over the A's.
Even though the Athletics' second-half meltdown has been well-documented, the postseason seems like a spot where they will rebound. Their offense has been abysmal since the All-Star Game, posting a .657 team OPS compared to .729 in the first half and averaging one fewer run per game (4.9 to 3.9).
Despite those struggles, Oakland has exactly what we always hear about teams needing in the playoffs to win: a great 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation. Jon Lester has been fantastic since coming over in that trade with Boston.
As Jon Heyman of CBS Sports noted in a recent article, think about where the A's would be without Lester in the rotation.
"The A's' poor second half had nothing to do with Lester, who was as consistently good in Oakland as he was in Boston, and maybe even a little better," Heyman wrote. "He is 6-3 with a 2.20 ERA for the A's, and Oakland is 7-3 in his starts. Meanwhile, in games not started by Lester, they are 13-28."
Lester isn't scheduled to pitch again in the regular season after pitching on Wednesday, though it wouldn't be a surprise if the A's brought him back on short rest Sunday in a must-win scenario. He's the best pitcher on either team, so that automatically gives Oakland an advantage.
Another reason to like Oakland is because Kansas City is about to become one of the weirdest playoff teams we have ever seen. The Royals have hit the fewest home runs in baseball (93). Barring an offensive barrage this weekend, they are going to hit less than 100 homers in a league with the designated hitter.
The Royals generate runs in a way that doesn't often play well in October. They steal bases, leading the league with 150, and put the ball in play as the only team with less than 1,000 strikeouts.
You want to root for Kansas City to win the game, especially in front of the home crowd, because the story would be fantastic, but where is the three-run homer going to come from when it's needed? You need big bats to win in the postseason, and the Royals don't have them.
Prediction: Oakland wins AL Wild Card Game
National League Wild Card Game: San Francisco at Pittsburgh
The Pirates have already clinched a playoff berth while the Giants are one win or a Milwaukee loss from securing their spot. Pittsburgh still has a chance to win the National League Central, trailing St. Louis by one game in the loss column.
The Cardinals are ending the year with a three-game series against the worst team in baseball, Arizona, so odds aren't good for the Pirates to avoid playing in the Wild Card Game for the second straight year.
However, the Pirates are in a great spot to win this game. With their spot in October locked up, manager Clint Hurdle can set up the rotation however he likes. Gerrit Cole would be my choice because he has the best stuff on the staff, and I'm not taking a chance with Edinson Volquez (70 walks in 185.2 innings) or Francisco Liriano (76 walks in 157.1 innings) being unable to find the strike zone.
Regardless of who starts the game, Pittsburgh's offense has taken a huge step forward this year after being an Achilles' heel last year (Andrew McCutchen being an exception). The Pirates are going to finish in the top 10 in runs scored, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
Like the A's, San Francisco has taken a passive approach to getting in the playoffs. September hasn't been particularly kind to the Giants, who own a 10-11 record and have been outscored 102-84 so far. If that holds, it will mark the third time in four months they've finished a month under .500.
Another problem, as noted by Anthony Castrovince of Sports On Earth, is the Giants will be without their lightning rod at the top of the lineup as well as dealing with the always unstable health of Mike Morse:
"Problem is, those daunting odds aren't helped the least by the continuing absence of Angel Pagan (back) and Mike Morse (oblique) from the Giants' lineup. It's never really this simple, of course, but it bears repeating that the Giants have a .615 winning percentage when Pagan starts and a .438 mark when he doesn't. Given the continuing uncertainty surrounding those guys, you have to worry about the Giants' overall October staying power, not just their division fate.
"
There is always a chance the Giants can overcome the odds because Madison Bumgarner, who is going to have his second straight year with an ERA under 3.00 and set a career high with 219 strikeouts, will be on the mound.
The Pirates have struggled against left-handed pitching this season, hitting .257/.321/.369 when southpaws are on the mound.
However, the Giants just don't hit well enough on their own to suggest that a deep October run is in the cards. The Pirates are a better team and are tied with St. Louis for the best home record in the NL (51-30), so for the second straight year, there will be a Division Series in Pittsburgh.
Prediction: Pittsburgh wins NL Wild Card Game
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