J.P. Crawford of the Seattle Mariners after walking it off against the Texas Rangers on Sep. 28, 2023. Photo via Getty Images.
The final weekend of the 2023 MLB season is upon us. The excitement has only ramped up as fans find themselves in the midst of this tumultuous time. With the regular season officially ending this Sunday, October 1st, it’s time to assess the damage.
First off, the losers. A few teams had high hopes entering this season and have essentially fallen flat on their face. The Cardinals, who made the playoffs the last few seasons, will end up finishing last in the NL Central for the first time in over 30 years. Other expected contenders featuring high payrolls, such as the Yankees, Mets, and Padres, will also miss out.
Fresh Blood
So what does that mean? It means that there is plenty of new blood in the playoffs this year, plenty of fresh faces. These such teams are the Orioles, Twins, and Brewers, all of which did not make the playoffs last season and some in many years. The other teams who have clinched as of this point, the Braves, Dodgers, Rays, and Phillies, were in it last year.
That does not mean the race is over by any means. The Wild Card race is as hot as ever, with a four-game set between the Rangers and Mariners underway. Seattle took game one in dramatic fashion as the Rangers blew their 33rd save of the year. This allowed J.P. Crawford to hit a walk-off double to left field, sending the Mariners to a dramatic 3-2 victory. It should also be noted that the Blue Jays are hot in the mix, though they’re coming off a series loss to the Yankees.
League Chaos
As of this point, Seattle sits one game behind Houston for the final A.L. Wild Card. However, should those teams finish tied, the Mariners would get the tiebreaker, sending a sigh of relief through much of the MLB fanbases. Things are even more wild in the National League, where the Phillies, Diamondbacks, and Marlins own the wild card spots. However, the Cubs only remain a half-game behind Miami as of this point.
All this is to say, the Wild Card race is truly living up to its name. It can only be imagined that the postseason will be equally, if not more, wild. This added drama, combined with the fresh new teams in contention, adds up to be a brilliant equation for baseball.
