MLB Season Finale

By Garrett Athey and Reagan Ahlquist

     The MLB Postseason is coming up soon and the final teams are being decided. The current teams set to play from the American League include the Boston Red Sox, the Cleveland Indians, and the Houston Astros. The National League teams include the Washington Nationals, the Chicago Cubs, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The wild card teams were the New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins in the American League, and the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Colorado Rockies in the National League. However, the Yankees beat the Twins 8-4, and the Diamondbacks beat the Rockies 11-8. These were the best teams from each division as they beat out the rest of the competition. With the World Series taking place in late October, these teams will battle it out to play in the championship game.    

​     In the American League the Cleveland Indians went on a historic run, winning 22 games straight which is the longest streak in the history of the American League. The Minnesota Twins are the biggest surprise to make the playoffs according to Senior Eddie Liembach, “It was a good season for the Twins because they made history by being the only team to lose 100+ games and come back the next season and make the playoffs..” The Houston Astros barely missed the playoffs last year, but have added more depth to their team in the offseason. They acquired ace pitcher Justin Verlander at the trade deadline helping them into the postseason with his stellar pitching. The Boston Red Sox got swept in the playoffs last year by the Cleveland Indians, but hope to prevent another sweep in the playoffs this year. They acquired Cy Young contender pitcher, Chris Sale, who is leading the league in strikeouts and innings pitched. The Cy Young is awarded to the best pitcher in the American and National League every season. The Yankees were carried this year by rookie sensation Aaron Judge who has been a powerhouse all season. Senior Brenden Rose said, “Judge was the most dominant player this season due to his incredible 52 home runs.”

     In the National League, The Dodgers, who finished 104-58, have the MLB’s best record and it is one of the best records in MLB history thanks to rookie sensation Cody Bellinger, who was an all star and led all National League rookies in homeruns. The Washington Nationals have been propelled with their pitching; last year’s Cy Young winner Max Scherzer is having another Cy Young caliber season. Last year’s World Series Champions, the Chicago Cubs, have made the playoffs once again as they hope to repeat. The Arizona Diamondbacks have made the playoffs for the first time since 2011 thanks to ace pitcher Zack Greinke having a comeback year. The Colorado Rockies have finally improved their pitching staff and can make a good run, they were one of the worst in baseball for the past few seasons. Each team had remarkable seasons, but only one can win the World Series in November.

     Fans are in for a treat for the World Series as each team is fun to watch and the star players are on display. The series will be an exciting one no matter who the teams are.