This is an article about the playoff matchups if the season were to end today, which is silly, frivolous and likely stupid. There's still plenty of season left, and something -- almost certainly somethings -- will change. So apologies to Mariners fans. Apologies to Braves and Pirates fans. Heck, there are even some apologies for Marlins fans to be given out. Your season isn't over yet.
That written, this is at least a snapshot of what things would look like, what we could be in for. This is likely going to be the first season without a Yankees or Red Sox playoff team since before the strike. There are new faces. Let's take a gander at how interesting this current playoff pairings would be.
AL Wild Card: Tigers at A's
Oh, right. My other reason for writing this was to troll A's fans by pointing out this one.
You might hate the second wild card. I'm loving the idea of the A's and Angels still scrambling for the division when in years not too far past it would have been easier for either or both of them to hang back a bit, knowing there was a safety net in the form of the wild card if they didn't win the division. At the same time, I hate the idea of one game deciding who moves on in the playoffs. Each team plays about 500 hours of baseball in the regular season, and there's too much weirdness that can happen in the last three.
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This game, though. The potential of this danged game. It would likely be hard for both teams to adjust their rotations optimally. One or both of them would be fighting too hard for the division and/or wild card in the first place to start lining up their starters for a one-game playoff. The beauty of these two teams, though, is that it would be almost impossible for them to screw it up. They have so many good starters between them, the possibility of a Jason Hammel/Robbie Ray matchup is almost nonexistent.
Price vs. Lester
Scherzer vs. Gray
Sanchez vs. Kazmir
Verlander vs. Samardzija
Any permutation thereof. A lesser, mortal Justin Verlander pitching against the A's in the Coliseum would be fascinating to the point of being spiritual. A collision of hired lefties would be amazing theater. A best-of-five or best-of-seven series would also be delightful considering both rotations, but I'm giddy thinking about the A's getting the chance to right recent playoff wrongs against the Tigers and not needing to stress out for a week to do it.
A's fans would probably prefer to skip this step and go straight to the ALDS. They would also probably prefer if the Tigers lost 30 of their next 29 games and were relegated to the International League next year. I don't blame them on either count. But if MLB announced that this game, and only this game, was going to be on pay-per-view, we would start yelling profanities only after getting our wallets out.
Potential matchup grade: A+
NL Wild Card: Giants at Cardinals
This matchup is ... less exciting. The Giants are kinda lousy now, for one. And you've seen these teams recently. You've watched one or the other for the entire month of October for the last four years. The odds are good that you're sick of both of them.
Think of it this way, then: You would have the pleasure of watching one of these teams getting shot into the sun. Moreover, a Madison Bumgarner vs. Adam Wainwright showdown is about as compelling of a pairing as you can create in the National League, so there's potential there, even if you know we'll get Ryan Vogelsong vs. Justin Masterson because the baseball gods are spiteful.
Potential matchup grade: C-
ALDS 1: Royals at Orioles
As Jesse Spector points out, this battle would mean that one of these two teams would be in the ALCS and there wouldn't be a danged thing the Yankees could do to screw it up. It would be heartbreaking to watch a long-suffering team get bounced after getting so close, but that would be eclipsed by the thrill of watching two fresh, spunky teams battle for the pennant against a less-tortured team.
When it comes to the tale of the tape on the two clubs, the pairing is good. The Royals went most of the season without hitting, and the Orioles are unencumbered with dominant starters, so there would be a bit of irresistible force and immovable object going on there. The Royals also have one of the better pitching staffs of the potential playoff teams, so they'll be a delight to watch in a short series, regardless of who they play.
Regardless of who they might play, that is. Let's not get too wacky. Still, this series is another compelling reason to end the season today and set up a 13-game LDS that would lead to a 17-game LCS.
Potential matchup grade: A
ALDS 2: Wild card winner at Angels
A's vs. Angels would be incredible, something with the potential to strengthen their already extant rivalry. It's a rich, crunchy competition, but it certainly doesn't have the feel/press of Red Sox/Yankees, Giants/Dodgers or even Cubs/Cardinals, not yet. A couple of playoff series would help, and starting it right away sounds super to me.
Tigers vs. Angels isn't as compelling. It makes me want to sigh like a teenager and mumble "Ugh, not these teams again," as if they've come together in six of the last seven ALCS grumbleclashes. Except they've never played each other in the playoffs. There has never been a season with both of them in the playoffs at the same time, even. Whenever the Angels have been up, the Tigers have been down, and vice versa, so it wouldn't be the Series With Generic Good American League Teams that it seems like at a glance.
Plus: Mike Trout against Scherzer, Price and Sanchez. Or, even better, Trout against Miguel Cabrera in a short series so everyone can argue about who's better. No one's ever debated that idea before. It's probably time to have that debate.
Potential of A's/Angels: A
Potential of Tigers/Angels: B
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NLDS 1: Dodgers at Brewers
The Brewers can hit. The Dodgers can pitch. I like it. Really, the Brewers are going to match up well with any team, considering we're not sick of them, and the Dodgers are going to match up well with anyone because they have the eminently watchable Clayton Kershaw and Yasiel Puig.
I wonder if there's a way we could start a rumor that gets Carlos Gomez mad at Yasiel Puig, and they can get in a scuffle. I wasn't the kid who would put a bee in a jar with a spider and shake it. Stop looking at me like that.
Potential matchup grade: B+
NLDS 2: Wild card winner at Nationals
Reminder: The Giants aren't very good now. So matching them up with anyone makes the matchup seem dull. But you could say the same thing about the Braves or Pirates, which is why all of these teams are frantically clawing for air. The idea of the Giants flailing against three or four of the best pitchers in the NL for a short series makes me want to record some exhibition football over the next week so I can watch it instead of a Giants/Nationals NLDS.
The Cardinals and Nationals would be quite a bit more interesting, considering recent history, the sick, disillusioning, recent history. The Nationals were there, man. They were right there. And then Pete Kozma, who is literally hitting .239 in Triple-A right now, had to go and ...
Sorry, Nats fans. I didn't mean to get that dark. The possibility of revenge is delightful, though, and it would make us all want to watch. If I were the Cardinals, I'd put Kozma on the active roster, just to troll.
Potential of Giants/Nationals: C
Potential of Cardinals/Nationals: B+
Add all of the matchups, and you get one fine grade-point average. There's almost no way to end up with Cardinals/Red Sox, which was just about the worst matchup possible on so many levels, even if it made for good baseball. This season, though, there aren't that many permutations that ruin everything. Switching out the Braves for the Giants or Cardinals doesn't do much in terms of general interest, but getting the Pirates and Mariners in there would make everything even fresher, so it's unlikely to get much worse. And don't forget the possibility of a Giants/Dodgers NLCS, which would be a can of aerosol madness.
With that, we'll end with a ranking of the best possible World Series matchups if the season were to end today:
- Brewers vs. Royals
- Nationals vs. Orioles
- Nationals vs. Royals
- Nationals vs. A's
- Brewers vs. Orioles
- Brewers vs. A's
- Nationals vs. Tigers
- Brewers vs. Tigers
- Giants vs. A's
- Dodgers vs. Angels
- Dodgers vs. A's
- Cardinals vs. Royals
- Dodgers vs. Tigers
- Giants vs. Royals
- Dodgers vs. Royals
- Dodgers vs. Orioles
- Brewers vs. Angels
- Nationals vs. Angels
- Giants vs. Orioles
- Cardinals vs. Orioles
- Cardinals vs. A's
- Giants vs. Angels
- Cardinals vs. Angels
- Cardinals vs. Tigers
- Giants vs. Tigers
Mostly based on familiarity. Sorry, Giants and Cardinals. The rest of the world doesn't want to see you anymore.
(My real rankings have the Giants in the first five spots, but I'm pretending I'm like regular people.)