MLB Playoff Bracket 2014: Postseason Viewing Info and Divisional Series Picks
The MLB postseason is officially in full effect. Following an exhilarating AL Wild Card Game on Tuesday night, the Kansas City Royals earned the right to continue their bid for a coveted berth in the World Series. Things will only intensify on the first day of October, as the San Francisco Giants meet the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NL's Wild Card Game.
As we await the victor of Wednesday night's matchup, we can begin to take a look at each league's divisional series games. Seven of the eight participating teams are already known, and speculating on these impending contests seems to be the next logical course of action.
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Do any of this year's wild-card teams have a legitimate shot at forcing an upset, or will the favored teams steamroll their competition? Let's take a look at the postseason's remaining schedule, followed by predictions for each divisional series game.
| League | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| National | SF at PIT | Wed., Oct. 1 | 8:07 p.m. | ESPN |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | KC at LAA | Thurs., Oct. 2 | TBD | TBS |
| 2 | KC at LAA | Fri., Oct. 3 | TBD | TBS |
| 3 | LAA at KC | Sun., Oct. 5 | TBD | TBS |
| 4* | LAA at KC | Mon., Oct. 6 | TBD | TBS |
| 5* | KC at LAA | Wed., Oct. 8 | TBD | TBS |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | DET at BAL | Thurs., Oct. 2 | TBD | TBS |
| 2 | DET at BAL | Fri., Oct. 3 | TBD | TBS |
| 3 | BAL at DET | Sun., Oct. 5 | TBD | TBS |
| 4* | BAL at DET | Mon., Oct. 6 | TBD | TBS |
| 5* | DET at BAL | Wed., Oct. 8 | TBD | TBS |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | NL Wild Card at WSH | Fri., Oct. 3 | TBA | FS1 |
| 2 | NL Wild Card at WSH | Sat., Oct. 4 | TBA | FS1 or MLBN |
| 3 | WSH at NL Wild Card | Mon., Oct. 6 | TBA | FS1 or MLBN |
| 4* | WSH at NL Wild Card | Tues., Oct. 7 | TBA | FS1 |
| 5* | NL Wild Card at WSH | Thurs., Oct. 9 | TBA | FS1 |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | STL at LAD | Fri., Oct. 3 | TBA | FS1 |
| 2 | STL at LAD | Sat., Oct. 4 | TBA | FS1 or MLBN |
| 3 | LAD at STL | Mon., Oct. 6 | TBA | FS1 or MLBN |
| 4* | LAD at STL | Tues., Oct. 7 | TBA | FS1 |
| 5* | STL at LAD | Thurs., Oct. 9 | TBA | FS1 |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | TBD vs. TBD | Fri., Oct. 10 | TBA | TBS |
| 2 | TBD vs. TBD | Sat., Oct. 11 | TBA | TBS |
| 3 | TBD vs. TBD | Mon., Oct. 13 | TBA | TBS |
| 4 | TBD vs. TBD | Tues., Oct. 14 | TBA | TBS |
| 5* | TBD vs. TBD | Wed., Oct. 15 | TBA | TBS |
| 6* | TBD vs. TBD | Fri., Oct. 17 | TBA | TBS |
| 7* | TBD vs. TBD | Sat., Oct. 18 | TBA | TBS |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | TBD vs. TBD | Sat., Oct. 11 | TBA | Fox |
| 2 | TBD vs. TBD | Sun., Oct. 12 | TBA | FS1 |
| 3 | TBD vs. TBD | Tues., Oct. 14 | TBA | FS1 |
| 4 | TBD vs. TBD | Wed., Oct. 15 | TBA | FS1 |
| 5* | TBD vs. TBD | Thurs., Oct. 16 | TBA | FS1 |
| 6* | TBD vs. TBD | Sat., Oct. 18 | TBA | Fox |
| 7* | TBD vs. TBD | Sun., Oct. 19 | TBA | FS1 |
| Game | Matchup | Date | Time (ET) | TV Info |
| 1 | NL Champion vs. AL Champion | Tues., Oct. 21 | TBA | Fox |
| 2 | NL Champion vs. AL Champion | Wed., Oct. 22 | TBA | Fox |
| 3 | AL Champion vs. NL Champion | Fri., Oct. 24 | TBA | Fox |
| 4 | AL Champion vs. NL Champion | Sat., Oct. 25 | TBA | Fox |
| 5* | AL Champion vs. NL Champion | Sun., Oct. 26 | TBA | Fox |
| 6* | NL Champion vs. AL Champion | Tues., Oct. 28 | TBA | Fox |
| 7* | NL Champion vs. AL Champion | Wed., Oct. 29 | TBA | Fox |
*Denotes "if necessary" games.
The full postseason schedule can be viewed at MLB.com.
ALDS
Kansas City Royals vs. Los Angeles Angels
The Royals just squeezed past the Oakland Athletics in the Wild Card Round, and far better performances will be necessary against a very talented Angels squad.
Los Angeles finished the regular season with the best record in the majors for a reason—this is a team that can get it done on the mound and at the plate. The team's rotation has been shaken up after losing ace Garrett Richards; however, due to a solid defense and a great hitting lineup, the Angels didn't skip a beat.
Led by the talented Mike Trout, Los Angeles recorded 773 runs in 2014, topping the majors. The team also finished sixth in batting average, seventh in on-base percentage and fifth in slugging percentage. With the likes of Trout and Albert Pujols in the fold, this is a team that can put runs on the board in a hurry.
Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times tweeted more good news for the club:
Kansas City was forced to utilize James Shields in the Wild Card Game, so the team is already in a bit of a hole before this series even begins. That's not a good omen considering the offense they're about to face.
Prediction: Angels in four
Detroit Tigers vs. Baltimore Orioles
Detroit's star-studded roster didn't exactly live up to expectations during the regular season—while gaining 90 wins is an impressive feat, the team was a bit streaky. Still, a talented rotation and power at the plate put the team through to the postseason.
The Tigers were easily one of the best regular-season hitting clubs, finishing second in runs, on-base percentage and slugging percentage while topping the majors in batting average. However, despite good starting pitching, the team's bullpen struggled, dropping its overall ERA to 4.01.
Eye on Baseball tweeted what everyone was thinking heading into the postseason:
While Baltimore doesn't have as impressive of a lineup on paper, this is a team that's produced efficiently both offensively and defensively in 2014. Starters Chris Tillman and Wei-Yin Chen have been solid this season, but the dominance of the team's bullpen has really made the difference.
The Orioles have more than a good enough mix of the aforementioned pitching and reliable batting in Adam Jones, Nelson Cruz and Co. to take a close series against the Tigers and their shaky relief pitching.
Prediction: Orioles in five
NLDS
San Francisco Giants/Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Washington Nationals
Because the NL's Wild Card Game has yet to commence, we really can't delve too deeply into the prediction aspect of this game. However, we can take a look at how the Giants and Pirates match up against the Nationals.
Jordan Zimmermann capped off Washington's season with a franchise-first no-hitter. Stephen Strasburg is getting his first crack at postseason action. Doug Fister and Gio Gonzalez are very capable pitchers to round out a very good rotation that earned the best ERA in the majors this season.
Strasburgh sure impressed during the 2014 regular season, via MLB:
Offensively, the team has seen some nice production from Denard Span, Jayson Werth and Adam LaRoche throughout the season, with a nice mixture of power and the ability to play small ball as the end result.
The Pirates certainly have the bats to keep up with Washington, and they get the added bonus of having a fresh Gerrit Cole for Game 1 of the NLDS. Conversely, San Francisco will have to make do without Madison Bumgarner in the beginning of this series and will need to rely on a heavy veteran presence at the plate.
No matter which team advances to face the Nationals in this series, it will certainly be an underdog. However, anything can happen in the MLB in October.
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers have simply been efficient both on offense and defense this season. That's why they finished atop the NL West, and that's why they are poised to make a run in the postseason.
Clayton Kershaw has been astounding on the mound this year for Los Angeles. With Hyun-Jin Ryu making progress toward his return and the clutch services of Kenley Jansen, this team may have the best rotation and closer in the postseason.
Yes, Kershaw has been this good for years now, per USA Today:
Adding to the Dodgers' dual-threat ability is a nice offensive lineup that finished the regular season ranked sixth in runs scored, third in batting average, first in on-base percentage and sixth in slugging percentage. Los Angeles is coming into the playoffs hot, having scored more runs than anyone in September.
Adam Wainwright gives the Cardinals a chance to compete with Kershaw and the Dodgers, as they will go head-to-head in Game 1. However, while it has Lance Lynn and Michael Wacha in the rotation, St. Louis will need to rely heavily on its bats to compile wins.
The team had a good September but saw a lot of low-scoring games. The Cardinals can't expect to win the majority of that type of contest against this Dodgers rotation.
Prediction: Dodgers in four
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