The path to the World Series continues to be defined. While in the American League the six guests have already been defined, in the National League there are two tickets and three teams interested in playing games in October: Atlanta Braves, New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks.
Yesterday, the D’Backs They did their part by beating the San Diego Padres 11-2, since not only did they avoid the sweep against the Californians, they also stayed alive and are waiting for what happens today in the doubleheader between Mets and Braves at Truist Park. Two wild cards left, one team will say goodbye.
What can happen
Atlanta and New York are tied with 88 wins and 72 losses, while Arizona is one percentage point behind both teams, with a record of 89-73. After suspensions due to rain, The Braves and the Mets will settle everything in these two games, with a concise formula: the winner of the first game will secure a spot in the playoffs.
The Diamondbacks will pay special attention in the second game, since that will be andwhich defines whether they will be able to play in the playoffs or whether they will already break ranks. If Atlanta and New York split wins, Arizona would be out even though the three teams would finish tied at 89-73, this because they lost the tiebreakers before these two teams.
More than 2.3 million fans through the turnstiles this season. ????
Your support and passion never goes unnoticed; we couldn’t do any of this without you! pic.twitter.com/RjLGHCMWzY
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) September 29, 2024
For Arizona the answer is clear: They need the Braves or Mets to sweep today to get that last playoff spotwhich would allow them to face the Milwaukee Brewers in the wild card round, which is played in the best of three games.
Whether they sweep the series or share wins, the Braves would qualify with fifth place, since they would beat the Mets in the particular series by 7-6. Those from Queens could qualify with fifth place only if they are the ones who sweep Georgiawhich would leave the latter eliminated.
The panorama in the National
Even with their loss against Arizona, the Padres secured their position as the best wild card, meaning they will have home field advantage in this first round and are only waiting to know if their rival will be Atlanta or New York. The Californians have qualified three times in five years, but they hope to surpass their peak in 2022, when they lost in the National League Championship Game against Philadelphia.
In Milwaukee’s case, the list of odds comes down to Mets or Diamondbacks. The Brewers have been a constant guest, as it will be their sixth postseason in seven years.
Besides, Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies They are the two teams that will rest in this first stage, which will begin on October 1. Both teams will have their presentation in these playoffs starting on October 5, the date on which the divisional round will begin.
The situation in the American
Everything is complete in the young circuit. The Kansas City Royals return to the postseason for the first time since 2015when they won the World Series against the Mets in five games. His return will be against the Houston Astros, who won the Western Division for the seventh time in eight years and who have played in the postseason in all those years.
The other crossing faces Detroit and Baltimore. The last time the Tigers played in October was in 2014, where they were swept by the Orioles in the divisional round; the You They will play postseason for the second consecutive yearwhere they also had a short-lived trip to the divisional round when they lost to the Texas Rangers.
The New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians avoided the wild cards. Both teams return after being two big absentees from the playoffs in 2023.
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