After a crazy ending to the regular season that saw an insane battle between the Mets, Braves, and Diamondbacks where only two could make it out, we have finally reached the playoffs. 

Now, we are officially through the Wild Card round of the playoffs. As the MLB playoffs usually are, this round was chaotic, with hopes and dreams being either fulfilled or crushed. 

So how did it go?

Tigers Vs. Astros (2-0 Tigers W)

Around two months ago, if you said the Detroit Tigers were going to the playoffs, tons of people would’ve looked at you crazy. 

But the team got hot, and at the right time, which is always needed for a big playoff push. 

However, the team the Tigers were matched up against wasn’t any pushover, it was the Houston Astros. The Houston Astros have appeared in every ALCS since 2016, and also have a couple of World Series titles during the run. 

Probable AL Cy Young Award Winner, Tarik Skubal started game one, shut out the Astros offense, and went six innings deep. The same can be said for the Tigers’ bullpen as well who didn’t allow the Astros to register a baserunner until the bottom of the ninth. 

With that being said, Houston did make an effort to come back. With runners in the corner in the bottom of the ninth, Yanier Diaz was able to sneak one past the infield and make it a two-run game. 

But it wouldn’t be enough as the Tigers closed the door on them. 

The Tigers had no announced starter in the next game and eventually opted for a bullpen game. 

No runs would be scored until the sixth, where the Tigers struck first with a solo shot by Parker Meadows. Houston answered back though in the seventh and took the lead. 

But Detroit was able to load the bases in the eighth, and thanks to Andy Ibáñez who’s the oldest player on the team, Detroit cashed in three runs, which would ultimately win the game. 

Kansas City Vs. Baltimore Orioles (2-0 Royals W)

Heading into the series, most would’ve thought the Orioles would cruise through the Royals, as Baltimore was one of the best teams all season. 

This series was completely a pitching duel between the two franchises, and the Royals won the battle. 

Cole Ragans dominated the Orioles offense, going six innings with eight strikeouts, and only allowed the O’s to get four hits. Seth Lugo was also a huge factor in the second game, going four innings with five strikeouts. 

The bullpen was a huge help too, as they only allowed the Orioles to get two hits in the span of both games.

But only scoring one run in the two-game series certainly didn’t help the O’s. Although Kansas City didn’t score much more (only three runs total). 

The lack of offense from Baltimore was concerning. In 15 total at-bats, the two stars of Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson totaled one hit.

San Diego Padres Vs. Atlanta Braves (2-0 Padres W)

The battle of who would go to LA and face one of the best teams in the MLB, the Dodgers. 

In game one, the Braves couldn’t get anything going on at the plate, and Michael King diced through the Braves lineup. King, who was moved from the Yankees to the Padres in the Juan Soto trade collected 12 strikeouts through seven innings and only allowed the Atlanta offense to get five hits. 

On the Braves side of pitching, they handed the ball to rookie A.J. Smith-Shawver, who didn’t get past the second inning and gave up three runs. 

Game two started similarly, as the Padres jumped onto a four-run lead in the second. 

Despite the Braves sending out two-time All-Star and former Cy Young runner-up Max Fried, he got rocked, giving up eight hits and five runs through two innings. 

However, Atlanta did make it a game in the eighth, as Michael Harris hit a two-run home run to bring the game within one. 

Padres reliever Robert Suarez was able to shut the door on the Atlanta Braves, ultimately sending San Diego to LA. 

New York Mets Vs. Milwaukee Brewers (Mets 2-1 W)

Coming off the crazy double-header against Atlanta, the Mets continued to play crazy and exciting baseball. 

The first game saw the Mets take the win after a rocky start in the first inning when Milwaukee went up 2-0. But it didn’t take long for the Mets to answer back, scoring three runs from a Jesse Winker triple and Starling Marte sac fly. 

However it wouldn’t be long until that lead was gone as the Brewers tacked on two more runs, which by the way, was the story for this series, no lead is safe. 

The bats for the Mets came back alive in the fifth inning as Jose Iglesias, Brandon Nimmo, Mark Vientos, and J.D. Martinez ran up the score for a final 8-4. 

Game two saw both teams jump out and score in the first, and the Mets stayed hot in the second, chasing in two more runs to make it a 3-1 lead. 

In the fifth, second baseman Brice Turang hit a double, and a Blake Perkins sac fly was able to bring the Brewers within one. Then, in the bottom of the eighth, rookie Jackson Churio launched a home run and tied the game which would act as a catalyst for the Brewers. Following that, Willy Adames hit a single and a Garrett Mitchell home run would launch the Brewers to win the game. 

Now, game three was certainly one of the best games in the Wildcard this postseason. 

No one would score until the seventh when Jake Bauers and Sal Frelick hit back-to-back home runs off of Jose Butto, and now Milwaukee was up 2-0 and had a chance to head to the NLDS. 

Heading to the top of the ninth, this was the Mets’ last chance to do something, and it started with a Fransico Lindor walk. Brandon Nimmo would then get a one-out single, setting the table for Pete Alonso. 

Hedging into this at-bat, Alonso was struggling significantly throughout the whole series, and Pete was 0-3 this game. But after working himself into a 3-1 count, Devin Williams hung a changeup that Alonso crushed, and now the Mets lead 3-2 with all the momentum. 

Then Jesse Winker would come to score later in the inning. David Peterson was able to shut the door on the Brewers, and ultimately sent the Mets to the NLDS. 

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