

You might have noticed by now, but there are a lot of good teams at the top of this year's playoff bracket.
CIRCULAR LOGIC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CARD 2003 PLUS
Strider's injured oblique might keep him out of the playoffs, but they still have Max Fried, 20-game winner Kyle Wright and October hero of the past Charlie Morton, plus a lineup that led the NL in home runs.Ĥ. From June 1 - the first win in a 14-game winning streak - to the end of the regular season, they went 78-34. Their turnaround from a 10½-game deficit to the division title began when they called up Michael Harris II to play center field in late May and moved Spencer Strider to the rotation.
CIRCULAR LOGIC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CARD 2003 SERIES
No team has repeated as World Series champs since the Yankees won three in a row from 1998 to 2000 the Braves have the power, the pitching and the momentum - after stealing the NL East in the final week with a three-game sweep of the New York Mets - to do it.Īnd it's not just a repeat, the Braves might be on their way to a dynasty here. While manager Dave Roberts told ESPN he "absolutely" considers the Dodgers a dynasty - and four 104-win seasons certainly back that claim up - two titles would definitely secure their place in history as one of the greatest teams of all time.Īfter winning the World Series in 2021, the Atlanta Braves lost Freddie Freeman to the Dodgers - and got younger and better, winning 101 games and their fifth straight division title.

In a sense, they're playing for two championships: 2022 and a validation of 2020. And don't forget that teams were allowed to play with 28-man rosters that postseason, which allowed the Dodgers to use starters as relievers and relievers as starters and do things they might not have been able to do with a 26-man roster.Īlden Gonzalez had a good breakdown of the pressure the Dodgers face this October. It counts - or as a friend of mine who is a longtime die-hard Dodgers fan told me, it counts as one-third of a title. Their sole championship came in the shortened 2020 season, with playoff games played in front of empty stadiums or at neutral sites. Since 2017, the Dodgers have had four 104-win seasons, a remarkably long period of domination.

In addition to a new format that features 12 teams and a three-game wild-card round that is guaranteed to bring drama to October from the very start, there are so many storylines to follow throughout that it has a chance to be an all-time great month of baseball.īelow, we highlight the 12 themes that will dominate the entire sport as the new 12-team format begins. The regular season is officially in the books (OK, maybe there is still a game or two trickling slowly to its finish as you read this) and the 2022 MLB playoffs are set to start Friday - and this year's postseason could be epic.
