MLB 2020 Playoff Picture: Sleepers, Dreamers, and Contenders
The coronavirus impacted all sports leagues in 2020, but no other sport made more changes for its 2020 season than the MLB. After a quick, 60-game season, fans are embracing an October postseason unlike any other in history.
With the shortened season, more teams entered the playoffs this year with eight teams in each league. To make the first round even more interesting, these 16 teams played in a three game series where any team can sneak in a win. This setup puts clear pressure on the top seeds to advance to the divisional round.
The Wildcard Series saw two upsets with the Minnesota Twins, who have now lost 18 straight postseason games, and Chicago Cubs getting ousted by the Miami Marlins and Houston Astros.
In the American League Divisional Series (ALDS), four teams remain: the New York Yankees play the top seed Tampa Bay Rays and the Houston Astros play their division rivals Oakland A’s. In the National League Divisional Series (NLDS), the Los Angeles Dodgers play the San Diego Padres and the Miami Marlins play the Atlanta Braves. The ALDS remain the classic five game format.
This postseason gives the lower seeds a big advantage: no home-field advantage. After the Wildcard Series, the eight remaining teams enter the playoff bubble which has the four teams in each conference playing in neutral stadiums to limit travel and spread of the virus.
The American League neutral stadiums are in San Diego and Los Angeles while the National League teams play in Arlington, Texas and in Houston. These ballparks are not open to the fans which plays to the advantage of the lower seeded teams.
So, who are the sleepers, dreamers, and contenders as we continue in this postseason?
The sleeper teams are the under the radar underdog teams that could make a run in the postseason, including the Marlins, Padres and A’s.
Going into the year, Miami was looking at another rebuilding year with young pitching and limited hitting on the team. In this shortened season, the Marlins made some moves at the trade deadline to acquire hitters such as Starling Marte to bolster their lineup. Now, they enter the ALDS having never lost a postseason series, albeit they haven’t made the playoffs since 2003.
The Padres were an exciting team to watch this year as young star Fernado Tatis Jr. electrified this franchise with his big bat, hitting 17 home runs and recording 62 hits in the 60-game season. After finishing last in their division in 2019, the Padres acquired big-name pitcher Mike Clevinger from the Indians at the trade deadline, helping San Diego to make the postseason for the first time since 2006.
While they won their division, Oakland can still be considered a sleeper team this year, as they have struggled in the postseason in recent years. Third baseman Matt Chapman’s season-ending injury hurt Oakland’s offense and defense as he was considered perhaps the best hitter and fielder. Oakland’s struggles are already showing in the ALDS, down 0-2 to Houston.
Who are the dreamer teams? Rays, Braves and Astros. All have World Series potential, but can’t be counted as favorites just yet.
The Rays and Braves are young teams are on the rise after very strong 2020 regular season campaigns. The Rays finished with the best record in the American League, while the Braves finished as the second seed in the National League, only behind the Dodgers. While both are talented, the Rays and Braves are relatively new to the postseason with their young stars.
After finishing under .500, the Astros slid in at the sixth seed in the American League and swept the Minnesota Twins in the Wildcard Series. The Astros have a lot to prove this year after the cheating scandal that surfaced during the offseason, so don’t automatically pencil them into the World Series.
The contenders: Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees.
The Dodgers put together another fantastic regular season finishing with the best record in baseball once again. With eight consecutive playoffs appearances, the Dodgers have failed to win a World Series, which is why the pressure is on to capitalize on the 2020 season. After signing 2018 MVP Mookie Betts to a long term deal over the offseason, will the Dodgers finally win?
The New York Yankees had a surprisingly underwhelming 2020 season after signing ace pitcher Gerrit Cole in the offseason. New York failed to get past the ALCS in 2017 and 2019 – losing both to the Astros. The Yankees’ lineup began to get healthy late in the season, showing their promise by scoring 22 runs in their Wildcard Series sweep of the Indians.
With a postseason filled with sleepers, dreamers, and contenders, who will be victorious in this unique 2020 MLB postseason?
