World Series 2020: Schedule of Dates, Ticket Info and Matchup Predictions

Two vastly different MLB postseason games occurred Wednesday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers scored 11 first-inning runs in their 15-3 win over the Atlanta Braves in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series.

In the American League, George Springer and Jose Altuve each hit homers to help the Houston Astros hold off playoff elimination in a 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 4 of the ALCS.

Tampa is up 3-1 in its best-of-seven ALCS, and Atlanta holds a 2-1 NLCS edge.

The ALCS and NLCS winners will meet in Game 1 of the Fall Classic on Tuesday. Times have not yet been announced for the World Series games, all of which will be played at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

Tickets are available for the World Series amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Approximately 11,500 seats (10,550 in the stands and 950 in the suites) were made available for the matchups, per T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.

Fans can purchase tickets through MLB.com.

Here's a look at the World Series schedule of dates as well as matchup predictions for the remainder of the postseason.

World Series Games and Dates

Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 20

Game 2: Wednesday, Oct. 21

Game 3: Friday, Oct. 23

Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 24

Game 5 (if necessary): Sunday, Oct. 25

Game 6 (if necessary): Tuesday, Oct. 27

Game 7 (if necessary): Wednesday, Oct. 28

ALCS Pick

There's much unknown regarding the remainder of the ALCS. For starters, neither team has announced a Game 5 starter.

Rays skipper Kevin Cash told reporters that his team hasn't picked someone to take the ball Thursday yet.

Astros manager Dusty Baker spoke with media and said that he hasn't made his pick yet but that Lance McCullers Jr. and Framber Valdez will not be options.

One could safely assume that the Rays would go with Game 1 starter Blake Snell for Game 6 and Game 2 starter Charlie Morton for Game 7 if the series goes that far. On the other side, the Astros would likely throw out Valdez and McCullers, respectively.

The guess is this doesn't go the distance. Game 5 is a crapshoot to predict without knowing the probables, but the Game 6 advantage would go to the 2018 AL Cy Young winner in Snell, who had a 3.24 ERA and struck out 63 batters in 50.0 innings last season. Valdez (3.57 ERA, 76 strikeouts in 70.2 innings) is solid as well, but give the edge to the Rays if those left-handers battle each other.

The Rays are massive -1667 favorites ($1,667 bet to win $100) to take the series, per DraftKings Sportsbook. Houston is a better value at +900 ($100 bet to win $900), but Tampa is the pick to take this in six.

NLCS Pick

The Dodgers have the clear Game 4 edge with staff ace and future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw taking the bump. Kershaw went 6-2 with a 2.16 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 58.1 innings this season.

For Atlanta, Bryse Wilson will be taking the mound. He's made just 15 big-league appearances in three seasons but hasn't yet pitched in the playoffs. Wilson has only pitched six full innings once in his career.

Wilson has a lifetime 5.91 ERA but posted a 2.08 ERA and struck out 12 in 13 innings over his final four regular-season appearances in 2020.

Look for the Dodgers to ride Kershaw to a Game 4 win.

Ultimately, the Dodgers are a better team, with a better pitching staff that finished first in the league in ERA and deeper starting lineup that finished first in runs scored. There's a reason they finished eight wins better than anyone else in the NL despite the season lasting just 60 games.

Atlanta's bullpen trumps Los Angeles', with closer Mark Melancon (11 saves) and stud reliever A.J. Minter (0.83 ERA) leading the way, but the Braves could be playing catch-up for much of the rest of this series, negating the bullpen to limiting damage as opposed to preserving leads.

If they do get a lead, chances are it will stay in Atlanta's possession, and look for the Braves to take Game 5 or 6 after getting hot with the bats one day.

But the Dodgers are tough to bet against, even if DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Braves as -134 favorites.

Ultimately, L.A. should be in the driver's seat if Kershaw gets the job done. The pick is for the Dodgers to take the pennant in seven.

World Series Pick

The Dodgers have far more power (118 home runs to 80) than the Rays, which is arguably the most notable on-field difference when comparing the teams.

Tampa Bay only had one player hit more than eight home runs in second baseman Brandon Lowe, while L.A. featured five who accomplished that feat.

However, L.A. also has a better pitching staff (3.02 ERA vs. 3.56 ERA), with a superstar in Kershaw leading the way and likely available to start twice if need be.

Tampa is great in its own right. The Rays sport a dominant starting pitching trio in Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Charlie Morton, who can mow down hitters into the latter frames.

In the bullpen, Nick Anderson (0.55 ERA) is almost unhittable and closer Diego Castilo (1.66 ERA) is unflappable in the postseason (no earned runs in 13.0 lifetime playoff innings).

The rest of the staff can hold its own, with pitchers such as Ryan Yarbrough, Pete Fairbanks and John Curtiss putting in the work.

The pick is for this series to be low-scoring throughout, with both teams struggling to manufacture runs or maintain any sort of consistent offensive threat.

With that being written, the guess is the Dodgers beat the Rays simply because of their powerful bats.

It's not uncommon these days to see few hits and plenty of strikeouts and walks in games, with a key home run or two largely deciding the proceedings.

L.A. simply has a much better ability to change a game on one swing, while the Rays, who are built off their pitching and defense, are not as much even if Randy Arozarena has been on fire with five playoff homers.

In the end, look for Tampa's pitching and defense to do enough to make this series go the distance (or close to it), but the Dodgers will take this one, with the prediction calling for a 4-3 win.