MLB: Wild Card preview and picks

#1 Tampa Bay Rays (40-20) vs #8 Toronto Blue Jays (32-28): Tampa Bay, the top seeded team in the American League with a 40-20 record, will face division rival Toronto in the opening round. The Rays have been one of the most consistent teams in the league all year, finishing with a +60 point differential and a 20-9 home record. Meanwhile, the Blue Jays just snuck into the postseason with a -10 point differential and a 15-19 away record. Tampa Bay is 8-2 in their last 10 games, with Toronto at 6-4. Make sure to keep an eye on Brandon Lowe (14 HR, 37 RBI) and Peter Fairbanks (6-3, 2.70 ERA) for the Rays, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (11 HR, .308 BA) and Hyun-Jin Ryu (5-2, 2.69 ERA) for the Jays. Game 1 is set for Tuesday, September 29 at 5:00 PM.

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Rays (2)

Blake Stoll: Rays (2)

Charles Post: Rays (2)

Raven Martín: Rays (2)

Tyler Taylor: Rays (3)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Tyler Glasnow (Rays, Game 2)

2. Hyun-Jin Ryu (Blue Jays, Game 2)

3. Blake Snell (Rays, Game 1)

4. Peter Fairbanks (Rays, Relief)

5. Matt Shoemaker (Blue Jays, Game 1)

#2 Oakland Athletics (36-24) vs #7 Chicago White Sox (35-25): Oakland, who finished atop the AL West, will go up against the third place AL Central finisher in Chicago. The Athletics have been a top-five team in our power rankings dating back to before the season began, and they finished with a +42 run differential and a 22-10 record at home. On the other side of field, the White Sox have an impressive +60 point differential and a 17-13 road record. Oakland is led by Matt Olson (14 HR, 42 RBI) and right hander Mike Fiers (6-3, 4.58 ERA). Chicago has Jose Abreu (19 HR, 60 RBI), though, who is arguably the best hitter on either team. Dallas Keuchel (6-2, 1.99 ERA) is expected to start Game 1 on Tuesday, September 29 at 3:00 PM.

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: White Sox (3)

Blake Stoll: White Sox (3)

Charles Post: Athletics (3)

Raven Martín: Athletics (3)

Tyler Taylor: White Sox (3)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Dallas Keuchel (White Sox, Game 2)

2. Chris Bassitt (Athletics, Game 2)

3. Lucas Giolito (White Sox, Game 1)

4. Liam Hendricks (Athletics, Closer)

5. Alex Colome (White Sox, Closer)

#3 Minnesota Twins (36-24) vs #6 Houston Astros (29-31): Minnesota came into the season as our pick for second place in the AL Central but after the regular season, the team clinched their second straight division title, and will attempt to dethrone defending AL champions Houston. The Twins recorded a +54 point differential and 6-4 record in their last 10 outings, as the Astros finished an up-and-down campaign with just a +4 run differential. Houston was an abysmal 9-23 on the road so don't expect them to advance unless their postseason experience kicks into overdrive. Keep an eye on Minnesota's Nelson Cruz (16 HR, .303 BA) and Kenta Maeda (6-1, 2.70 ERA), and Houston's George Springer (14 HR, .265 BA), Zack Greinke (3-3, 4.03 ERA).

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Twins (3)

Blake Stoll: Twins (2)

Charles Post: Twins (3)

Raven Martín: Astros (3)

Tyler Taylor: Twins (2)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Kenta Maeda (Twins, Game 1)

2. Jose Berrios (Twins, Game 2)

3. Zack Greinke (Astros, Game 1)

4. Lance McCullers (Astros, Game 2)

5. Michael Pineda (Twins, Game 3)

#4 Cleveland Indians (35-25) vs #5 New York Yankees (33-27): Cleveland was right in the mix in the AL Central all year, too, but were unable to clinch the division and will have to face preseason World Series favorite New York. The Indians had a solid +39 run differential and an 18-12 home record, while the Yankees finished with a +45 difference but an 11-18 road record. This series is going to be hard to pick as Cleveland is 8-2 in their last 10, compared to New York's 4-6. Game 1, set for Tuesday, September 29 at 7:00 PM, could be a pitcher's duel between aces Shane Bieber (8-1, 1.63 ERA) and Gerrit Cole (7-3, 2.84 ERA). Two of the AL home run leaders will also be key in this series: Luke Voit (22 HR, 52 RBI) and Jose Ramirez (17 HR, 46 RBI).

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Yankees (3)

Blake Stoll: Yankees (2)

Charles Post: Yankees (3)

Raven Martín: Yankees (3)

Tyler Taylor: Indians (3)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Gerrit Cole (Yankees, Game 1)

2. Shane Bieber (Indians, Game 1)

3. Masahiro Tanaka (Yankees, Game 2)

4. Aroldis Chapman (Yankees, Closer)

5. Carlos Carrasco (Indians, Game 2)

#1 Los Angeles Dodgers (43-17) vs #8 Milwaukee Brewers (29-31): Los Angeles comes into the postseason as the overall top seed following an eighth NL West championship and a MLB-best 43-17 regular season. The Dodgers were the only team in the league with a run differential (+136) over the century mark, and they were nearly unbeatable at 21-9 at home. Milwaukee is the worst of the 16 playoff teams, finishing with a -17 point differential and a 14-17 road record. This series isn't expected to last long since Mookie Betts (16 HR, .292 BA) and Clayton Kershaw (6-2, 2.16 ERA) should dominate. Game 1 is scheduled for Wednesday, September 30 at 10:00 PM and Corbin Burnes (4-1, 2.11 ERA) is projected to start for Milwaukee.

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Dodgers (2)

Blake Stoll: Dodgers (2)

Charles Post: Dodgers (2)

Raven Martín: Dodgers (3)

Tyler Taylor: Dodgers (2)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers, Game 2)

2. Walker Buehler (Dodgers, Game 1)

3. Kenley Jansen (Dodgers, Closer)

4. Brandon Woodruff (Brewers, Game 1)

5. Dustin May (Dodgers, Game 3)

#2 Atlanta Braves (35-25) vs #7 Cincinnati Reds (31-29): Atlanta won their third straight NL East championship after going 35-25 in the regular season, while Cincinnati finished third in the NL Central at 31-29. The Braves went 19-11 at home and were 6-4 down the stretch, while the Reds made a late push with a 7-3 record in their last 10 games but they went just 15-16 on the road. If Atlanta advances, they'll need Freddie Freeman (53 RBI, .341 BA) to continue scorching and Max Fried (7-0, 2.25 ERA) to stay at a high level. Cincinnati will lean on NL Cy Young candidate Trevor Bauer (5-4, 1.73 ERA) and Nick Castellanos (14 HR, 34 RBI). Game 1 will start on Wednesday, September 30 at 12:00 PM.

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Braves (2)

Blake Stoll: Reds (3)

Charles Post: Braves (3)

Raven Martín: Braves (2)

Tyler Taylor: Reds (3)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Trevor Bauer (Reds, Game 1)

2. Max Fried (Braves, Game 1)

3. Ian Anderson (Braves, Game 2)

4. Sonny Gray (Reds, Game 3)

5. Shane Greene (Braves, Relief)

#3 Chicago Cubs (34-26) vs #6 Miami Marlins (31-29): Chicago has flown under-the-radar for the majority of the year after a hot start. They finished with a +25 run differential and a 19-14 record at Wrigley Field, while Miami struggled with a -41 differential and a subpar 11-15 road record. The Cubs and Marlins both limped into the postseason with a combined 9-11 record in their last 10 outings. However, if Chicago's offense can pick it up then they could make a run. Anthony Rizzo (11 HR, 24 RBI) and ace Yu Darvish (8-3, 2.01 ERA) will be key to their success. Pablo Lopez (6-4, 3.61 ERA) is a possible Game 1 starter for Miami, and first pitch is set for 2:00 PM on Wednesday, September 30.

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Cubs (2)

Blake Stoll: Cubs (3)

Charles Post: Cubs (3)

Raven Martín: Marlins (3)

Tyler Taylor: Cubs (2)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Kyle Hendricks (Cubs, Game 1)

2. Yu Darvish (Cubs, Game 2)

3. Jon Lester (Cubs, Game 3)

4. Sandy Alcantara (Marlins Game 2)

5. Pablo Lopez (Marlins, Game 1)

#4 San Diego Padres (37-23) vs #5 St. Louis Cardinals (30-28): San Diego was the second best team in the National League for the latter half of the season, while St. Louis flirted with .500 for a lot of the year. The Padres finished with the second highest run differential (+84) behind the Dodgers, and dominated on their home field (21-11). Meanwhile, the Cardinals went just 16-15 on the road and are underdogs heading into the postseason. If St. Louis can pull off the upset, it'll likely be because of right hander Adam Wainwright (5-3, 3.15 ERA) and Paul Goldschmidt (21 RBI, .304 BA). Make sure to keep an eye on San Diego's Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. (17 HR, 45 RBI), and Zach Davies (7-4, 2.73 ERA).

Staff Picks:

Ariun Paige: Cardinals (3)

Blake Stoll: Padres (2)

Charles Post: Padres (2)

Raven Martín: Padres (3)

Tyler Taylor: Cardinals (3)

Standout on the Mound:

1. Zach Davies (Padres, Game 1)

2. Adam Wainwright (Cardinals, Game 2)

3. Trevor Rosenthal (Padres, Closer)

4. Andrew Miller (Cardinals, Closer)

5. Drew Pomeranz (Padres, Relief)

Photo Credit: Southside Showdown.