MLB Playoff Preview: Ranking the 12 Teams Heading Into October

You, a Major League Baseball fan, might want to know: Who is going to win the World Series?

You might not be betting money on it, but you at least want to have an opinion. We’re got one.

So when your friends ask, if you want to sound like you’ve been paying attention since March, go ahead and reference this snapshot ranking of the 12 playoff teams who made it to October — well, September 30 — and you can feel like a bit of a big shot.

1. Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies lost ace Zack Wheeler in mid-August, but they still won 96 games (second only to Milwaukee) and they had the best record of any team against the playoff field (31-20). Their starting pitching has been deep enough, and they have a top-five offense led by HR king Kyle Schwarber, but can they overcome a mediocre bullpen?

2. Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers finished with the best regular-season record, plus they went 36-26 against other teams in the playoff field. But they also have multiple key injuries to the pitching staff, notably right-hander Brandon Woodruff, who probably won’t be able to pitch because of a lat strain. Closer Trevor Megill recently returned from a right elbow flexor strain, and left-hander José Quintana has been out with a sore calf. That’s a lot of questions.

3. Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers have endured a lot of post-championship fatigue that comes from playing extra games the season before. They have transcendent star players, they can hit collectively and their starting pitching is strong, but their bullpen is mediocre and their defense is too. They won it all a year ago without a big postseason contribution from Shohei Ohtani but they probably will need him to do something stupidly awesome in order to repeat.

4. Seattle Mariners

Hey, an American League team! The Mariners have run out a top-five offense since Aug. 1, and few teams can beat their starting rotation when it’s on. Cal Raleigh’s master plan is said to include multiple World Series victories. The Mariners franchise has yet to appear in one of those, but this seems like their best chance since 2001.

5. Toronto Blue Jays

Hey, can you name the only AL playoff team to have a winning record against other playoff teams? (It’s the Blue Jays.) The Jays can slug, no matter if Bo Bichette is in the lineup or not. And while their bullpen has been among the strongest in the league, they have some serious question marks with their starting pitching. Shane Bieber looks good to go, and so does rookie (yikes) Trey Yesavage, but is 41-year-old Max Scherzer able to turn a switch and be serviceable? It’s also been a struggle for Kevin Gausman, and don’t ask about José Berríos and Chris Bassitt right now.

6. New York Yankees

They have the best offense in the league led by the best hitter in the league, but we’ll see how many pitches Aaron Judge gets to hit in a playoff series. The Yankees pitching is sound overall, but mostly because of their starters. Devin Williams stepping up in the postseason would fix his narrative in New York.

7. San Diego Padres

Their starting pitching will have to overachieve to get them deep into the postseason, but the Padres have enough hitting and relief to scare anyone in a given series.

8. Boston Red Sox

The back of the bullpen is excellent, as is left-hander Garrett Crochet at the top of the rotation. The lineup is middle-of-the-pack, the starting pitching beyond Crochet is questionable, and so is the pen after Aroldis Chapman and Garrett Whitlock.

9. Cleveland Guardians

Aside from José Ramírez, their lineup is terrible. The Guards have a strong bullpen, pretty good starting pitching, and a belief in themselves. And possibly a voodoo doll of Tarik Skubal. This combination could be enough to advance to the ALDS, but anything more is going to require more voodoo than they can do.

10. Detroit Tigers

They overachieved in the first four or five months, but they were still legitimately one of the best teams in the American League until the biggest collapse in division-era history. Would it be shocking to see them suddenly flip a switch in the Wild Card series? If Skubal can dominate Game 1, all they would need is to win one more. But is this team getting past the Mariners in the ALDS? Can’t see that.

11. Chicago Cubs

The offense has slowed down a lot since August, and not just because Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker have struggled/been hurt. They also recently lost right-hander Cade Horton. Lefties Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga have been running out of steam. Also, having a playoff series against the Padres is just a bad vibe. If you know, you know.

12. Cincinnati Reds

They went 33-32 against playoff teams. They also went 1-5 against the Dodgers during the regular season. They have some of the best starting pitching among anyone in the postseason, with Hunter Greene and Andrew Abbott kicking off their NL Wild Card series. It’s hard to envision a run to the World Series, but a first-round upset of the Dodgers is not impossible.