The 2022 MLB season is in the sprint to the finish line. When you’re not watching Albert Pujols blast beyond 700 career homers, or Aaron Judge try to set the American League homer record … or win the Triple Crown, it’s all about the playoff push. To keep you up to date on the rush toward the postseason, we’re laying out the playoff picture every day from now until Game 162 on Oct. 5, and highlighting games that might end up making the difference.
What does MLB’s playoff format look like in 2022?
First things first: You might remember that as part of the collective bargaining agreement that ended the lockout, the team owners and players expanded the postseason. There are now six teams from each league, three division winners and three wild cards. That means a new path to the World Series, and different considerations for watching the races come down to the wire.
When each league’s field is set, it will go like this:
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The Nos. 1 and 2 seeds — the two best division winners — get byes into the Division Series, a huge advantage. The other four teams square off in a new three-game wild-card series, replacing the one-game wild-card showdowns, that will be exclusively hosted at the better seed’s park.
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The division winner with the worst record will be the No. 3 seed and host the No. 6 seed, the wild-card team with the worst record. The winner of that series will go on to face the No. 2 seed, regardless of which team comes out on top.
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The two best wild cards, seeds Nos. 4 and 5, will play each other. The winner will advance to face the top seed.
From there, things will look familiar. The Division Series will be best of five. The league Championship Series and World Series will be best of seven, with the team holding the higher seed wielding home-field advantage by hosting Games 1, 2, 6 and 7.
There won’t be any Game 163 tiebreakers. Ties will be settled by the teams’ head-to-head record. If that is also a tie, the league would go through a procession of other in-season records to find a winner, starting with intradivision records.
How does the playoff picture stand now?
If the season were over and the playoffs started Tuesday morning, here’s how the standings would look when turned into the league brackets. After the Phillies clinched their spot Monday night, there are no more spots to be had. This is the field. The only question left is how they line up.
American League
No. 1 seed: Houston Astros (AL West and top seed clinched)
No. 2 seed: New York Yankees (AL East and bye clinched)
Wild-card series: No. 3 Cleveland Guardians (AL Central clinched) vs. No. 6 Tampa Bay Rays (postseason berth clinched)
Wild-card series: No. 4 Toronto Blue Jays (postseason berth and top wild-card seed clinched) vs. No. 5 Seattle Mariners (postseason berth clinched)
National League
No. 1 seed: Los Angeles Dodgers (NL West and top seed clinched)
No. 2 seed: Atlanta Braves (postseason berth clinched)
Wild-card series: No. 3 St. Louis Cardinals (NL Central clinched) vs. No. 6 Philadelphia Phillies (postseason berth clinched)
Wild-card series: No. 4 New York Mets (postseason berth clinched) vs. No. 5 San Diego Padres (postseason berth clinched)
What are the key races remaining?
It’s all about seeding now. And even those races are dwindling. The Blue Jays clinched the AL’s top wild-card seed on Monday night, guaranteeing Toronto will host the wild-card series this weekend against either the Mariners or the Rays.
The Phillies’ playoff drought is officially over, but they still have to jockey for positioning. They are one game back of the Padres for the No. 5 seed, and own the head-to-head tiebreaker should the clubs finish deadlocked. The No. 5 seed will likely face the Mets, while the No. 6 seed would play the Cardinals.
The Braves and Mets are still not technically locked into their slots yet, either. Atlanta dropped a game to the Marlins Tuesday night, leaving the NL East up in the air for at least one more day. Thanks to the Braves’ decisive sweep this weekend, they hold the tiebreaker over the Mets. Any Braves win or Mets loss would seal the deal. However, the Mets have three games left, while the Braves have two. So a string of Braves losses leaves open the chance of a stunning Mets comeback.
What are Tuesday’s important games?
Braves at Marlins, 6:40 ET: All the Braves have to do is win one game of this Marlins series and they clinch the NL East, along with the No. 2 seed and a bye into the Division Series. Tonight, Jake Odorizzi will get the ball to try and finish off a remarkable run to the top of the standings.
Nationals at Mets doubleheader, 4:10 ET: The Mets and Nationals are scheduled for a straight doubleheader after Monday’s game was rained out. The problem? Tuesday also looks like a washout in New York. If the Braves drop another game in Miami and leave the division on the table, things could get dicey for MLB’s schedule-makers.
Tigers at Mariners doubleheader, 6:10 ET: There is a lot of baseball available Tuesday, if you couldn’t tell. This doubleheader gives Seattle the opportunity to nail down the No. 5 seed and book a date with Toronto in the wild-card series. If they win both games, or win one alongside a Rays loss, it’s done.
Giants at Padres, 9:40 ET: San Diego will have to work to nail down its No. 5 seed. The Giants will send Carlos Rodón to the hill to cap off a tremendous season Tuesday night. Ultimately, the Padres need either two wins, two Phillies losses or a win and a loss to take that No. 5 seed. If they wind up tied, the Phillies get the upper hand.
Phillies at Astros, 8:10 ET: Luckily for the Padres … the Phillies might have an even tougher draw. They will stare out at Justin Verlander in his final postseason tune-up.