Oct 13 min read

Open The Classic

Can you sense that smell in the air? The smell of autumn. The smell of a calendar flip; a seasonal flip. October is here, which means the gates to the Fall Classic are finally open. The diamonds are freshly prepped. The air is breezy. The lights are set to beam. The figures of baseball are near moments away of creating thrills on the grandest stage of the sport. 120 is here... time for diamond warfare. Who wants the Commissioner's Trophy more?

This year's bracket is ultra-ultra spicy after a season which saw no 100-win clubs for the first time in a decade. The clubs with the top records have certain weaknesses. Weaknesses that make World Series odds hard to bet on. Anything can happen in this thing. Something we have seen often in recent years; see the Giants and Phillies for examples. We have two AL Wild Card clubs in the Tigers and Royals that have the intent to join those spoken underdogs in baseball history. Both clubs snapped long droughts to return to the Fall Classic; if you ask those "Gritty Tigers", I bet you they say they have far more noise they wish to make.

Detroit is back in the playoffs after nine consecutive seasons missing out. On August 10th, the Tigers had a 0.2% chance to make the playoffs. Detroit has a MLB-best 31-11 record since to claim a ticket past the gates. Tigers are so hot, they are sure to be considered a tough out in the Wild Card round and perhaps beyond. The best part? We also have a NL Wild Card team that is just as fiery, coming off one of the more electric get-in games that we have ever seen; a game that saw an electric rollercoaster spike on the win probability scale. Mets claim a ticket to the Fall Classic for just the 2nd time in 8 seasons after missing out last season. It took an unforgettable 6-run eighth inning and a ninth inning Francisco Lindor go-ahead two-run jack to clinch:

video via @ESPN//X

That game was the perfect teaser for this week's Wild Card round. It also gave us a second hot Wild Card team to join the fray of the Classic. With the games starting here soon, I am going to keep things real short and jump straight into my Wild-Card predictions. No rest for the weary. The action is here and ready to take my full attention. Here are my picks in a visual:

The red Xs are the teams I pick to get the kick. I am rockin' with all the home squads in the Wild-Card round buuuuuuut, those Gritty Tigers in H-Town. AJ Hinch workin' the rotation to execution is why I have the red-hot Tigers upsetting the Astros. That and Yordan Alvarez's injury. Alvarez will not likely miss an at-bat, but will the injury affect his game-breaking swing? There is enough of a question mark formed on Yordan to give the confidence to pick the Tigs in an upset. Skubal will likely outduel Valdez in GM-1. Tigers winning would keep the 'Stros from reaching the ALCS for the first time in eight seasons.

The double-header for the Braves and Mets will play a factor in how each squad plays in the opening games today. That's a tough stretch those two are on, especially when you consider travel and the playoff celebrations last night. For the Braves, not having Sale 100% is a massive factor. In my opinion, I think the Mets have more a chance to prove my predictions wrong, than the Braves do against the Padres. On the other hand, I can see both the Padres and Brewers choking at home... Brew-Crew more so than the Pads.

Can Milwaukee's rotation keep up? In a three-game set against a tired Mets squad, maybe. It helps that the Brewers have the whole set at home. They should survive the opening round. Orioles too. Royals just don't give off any confidence to me. Sure, they woke up, got their sh** together, and won in the final week of the season to forget about the nasty losing stretch, but that losing stretch isn't far in the rear-mirror. I feel the home squads should fare well in the Wild-Card round.

Lets get this thing going! We have a full Tuesday slate of playoff action starting in the middle of the afternoon; it's just beautiful. It really is. The comp' meter is full and should bring off the right noise. The Mets/Braves double-header was too much of a banger to think otherwise. Tigers and Astros are up first. Playoff baseball is back! LFG! Open the Classic.

Open The Classic

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