MLB Postseason predictions
October 5, 2018
After a 13 inning thriller in Chicago, a blowout in the Bronx and the beginning of the National League Divisional Series (NLDS), the MLB Postseason is in full swing.
In the National League (NL) and American League (AL) wildcard games, there were two incredibly different storylines. In a game that went past midnight, the Colorado Rockies defeated the Chicago Cubs by a score of 2-1 with great pitching from both teams. Whereas in the do-or-die AL wildcard game, the New York Yankees dominated the Oakland Athletics with great pitching and batting to win 7-2.
With the Yankees win, it has set up a marquee matchup, the Yankees versus the Boston Red Sox in the AL Divisional Series (ALDS). The division rivals will duke it out at least three more times this season, with the Red Sox having home field advantage in the best of five series. To me, this series will be determined by whichever team has a better series at the plate, because both teams have stellar starting and relief pitching. I think this series is a toss up with either team winning in a game five, but I give the slight edge to the Yankees because of players like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Didi Gregorius who will give the Bronx Bombers a little more power behind the plate.
In the other series of the ALDS, the defending World Series Champions, the Houston Astros will look to keep the hopes of repeating as Champions alive against the Cleveland Indians. The Astros have a strong offense, with star players such as José Altuve and Carlos Correa at the helm. I believe that the power Altuve and Correa bring will be too much for the Indians to handle and the Astros will win the series in four games.
Heading to the NLDS, the first games of the two series have already been played. The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Rockies by a score of 3-2 on a walkoff single in the bottom of the 10th inning by third baseman, Mike Moustakas last night. After a rally in the 9th inning, the Rockies were able to tie the game at two apiece, but the Brewers were able to fend off the Rockies attempt at a comeback. The Brewers have always had unfortunate luck in the past whether it is the regular season or the postseason, but I don’t think the Rockies will have enough to get past the strength of this Brewers team, losing in five games.
Last but not least, in the other series of the NLDS, the Los Angeles Dodgers are playing the Atlanta Braves. Last night, the Dodgers defeated the Braves by a score of 6-0 with a brilliant outing from starting pitcher, Hyun-jin Ryu. A season ago, the Dodgers lost to a tough Astros team in game seven of the World Series. This year the Dodgers seem poised to make another run at the title, but first they have to get through a difficult Braves team. Even though the Braves are a good team with good pitching, the Dodgers have too many quality hitters and pitchers, which makes me think that this series will be a quick one. My prediction is that the Dodgers will win the series 3-0.
Early on, the Dodgers are the betting favorites with a 25.6 percent chance to win the World Series, the Red Sox with a 20.0 percent chance to win and the Yankees with a 13.8 percent chance to claim the World Series title. These percentages are given via SportsLine according to CBS Sports.
As fans of all teams get ready for the MLB Postseason to continue, they can only wait and see what will transpire. It’s October, anything can happen.
Here are the game times, locations and channels for the next games of the ALDS and NLDS according to SBNATION (All of these games will be played on 10/5):
ALDS Game 1: Indians at Astros, 2:05 p.m. (TBS)
NLDS Game 2: Rockies at Brewers, 4:15 p.m. (FS1)
ALDS Game 1: Yankees at Red Sox, 7:32 p.m. (TBS)
NLDS Game 2: Braves at Dodgers, 9:37 p.m. (FS1)