We are now in the final week of the regular season of the 2020 MLB, and despite the time running out, the National League, in particular, remains surprisingly messy. Thanks to the extended 16-team postseason, we’ve got a lot of playoff spots yet and no tiebreaker games for 2020. So to set the scenario for potential madness to come, let’s run down. The five most important series are always on the schedule of the declining regular season.
These five series will go a long way in determining the final playoff field.
Brewers on the Reds, three games, Sept. 21-23
Going into Monday’s slate, the Reds, Brewers and Giants are all .500 and in essence the N.L. Attached to the eighth and final playoff place in. That “in essence” qualifier is absolutely crucial. As stated, the 2020 Baseball Ball calendar lender does not allow for any tiebreaker games, so the connections for seeding, division titles and final playoff spots will be determined by the following method:
- Head to head record (if applicable).
- Intradivision record.
- Record in the final 20 division games (plus one until the tie is broken)
Now let’s take a look at how these tiebreakers are currently diges bha, in table format for easy digestion:
|
Reds |
4-3 vs. Mill |
19-18 |
|
Boil |
Vs- 3-4 vs C.I.N. |
16-16 |
|
Giants |
N / A |
15-17 |
Teams play a regional schedule in 2020 – 40 games against division rivals and 20 more against the corresponding division in other leagues (e.g., NL East vs. LL East) – Giants have no head-to-head games Reds Or against brewers. So to break such cross-divisional relationships, you go to the intradivisional record. The Giants are coming soon in that regard (although, as we will see soon, they have a chance to change that).
As for the Reds, they too are on edge over the Brewers for winning seven head-to-head games against Milwaukee. That’s why the Reds are now N.L. In the last playoff place is occupied – they win tiebreakers against the Brewers and Giants. The three-game set in Cincinnati between the Brewers and the Reds, however, could change that all obviously. In particular, if the Brewers could take two of the three against the Reds, the script would flip. Depending on how the Giants fare in the four-game home series against the Rockies, Milwaukee will have a one-game lead against the Reds, a season series against Cincinnati, and a tiebreaker between the two teams all the way forward. “Last 20 games +1” level (Reds will still keep the tiebreaker for that moment). If the Reds should take two of the three, then the five-gamer-brewers in St. Louis would be in a bad position going into the final series of the season.
2. Brewers on the Cardinals, Five Games, Sept. 24-27
Speaking of which, yes, the Brewers and Cardinals still have five games left to play, and they will knock them out to finish the regular season. The series includes a Friday doubleheader. The Cardinals are effectively a game that is clear on the field of the three teams fighting for 8th place, so the playoff spot in St. Louis is rarely licked on this writing. Presumably, this series will matter more to brewers. If either the Brewers and the Reds succeed in the above series in Cincinnati, then the St. Louis series becomes less meaningful. Things are as they are, though, as the Cardinals finger to secure the berth, and the Brewers are either doing it or will fight for their playoff lives. Note: Brewers are in the mix, although never more than .500 at any stage in 2020. They are also trying to make the playoffs in three seasons for the first time in franchise history.
3. Pedres on the Giants, Four Games, Sept. 25-27
As noted, the Giants – locked in a deadly struggle with the Reds and Brewers – play a four-game home set against the Rockies. After that, he’s four against the NL’s second-best team, including Friday’s doubleheader. The ex-factor of this is whether Pedres still has anything to play with at the moment. Going into Monday, the magic of the DJs for the NL West title is number three, and they can really wrap up the time before Pedres moves to San France. Also, there is almost zero probability that Pedres N.L. In No. 4 the seed comes down. One thing that could boost the Giants ’hopes in this is if the Padres take some regular rest and make it easy on their starting pitches ahead of the playoffs. Observes the position of Pedres in the context of this series. First, though, the Giants must take care of the Rockies, who are still alive in that last place.
Mar. Marlins on Braves, four games, September 21-24
Cinderella Marlins is currently the 5th seeded seed in the NL, and she still has a shot at the NL East title. They try Brave in the division by three divisions, as you can see above, there are still four head-to-head games to play. Sweep obviously puts the Marlins in front, and takes three of the four to put them together to play a game. So far in 2020, the Marlins are 3-3 against Brave, although they have been outsourced to 411-31 in those games.
From reality, Marlins probably. Wild card is playing to maintain position. After they wrap up in Atlanta, the Marlins will head to the Bronx in three games to end the regular season. Assuming it’s a tough stretch, the Yankees have something to play at the moment. Right now, the Marlins are the second-ranked game in the NL East over the Phillies (remember that second-ranked financiers will get a guaranteed playoff spot this year). Miami is basically 1/2 games ahead of the .500 trio for the No. 8 seed. Sportsline projection model until Monday morning (keeping it all together)SportsLine On Twitter) gives the Marlins an 86.6 percent chance to improve on their unlikely playoff pressure. The figure will be tested by two of the best baseball teams to complete a regular season.
5. At Phillies on Ray, three games, Sept. 25-27
The Phillies are currently the No. 7 seed in the NL at the moment in Giardi’s first season, but only half the game sets them apart from the Reds, Brewers and Giants. Philly ends on the road, first with four against the civilians and then against three rays. A.L. The rays have a magical number of four to catch the east, so it’s possible they’ll be in the “just stay healthy” mode for this series. Of course, given the patchwork approach to depth and excellence of the Tampa Bay roster, would you also notice?
The good news for Philly is that he should have a total of four more starts combined with Aaron Nola and Zac Wheeler for the rest of the way. He has joined TND Aces 2020 for 2.78 IRA. The rest of the Philly starters, meanwhile, have an era of 5.56. Given those numbers and the superfund site that is Phillies Bullpen, they need to take those four wheeler-Nola Trump bumps.
Bonus: Cardinals on Tigers doubleheader, Sept. 28 (maybe)
Now the Cardinals, who were forced off for about two weeks due to a Covid-19 outbreak at the club, have 58 games to play. That’s because the doubleheader against the Tigers in Detroit that was canceled during the outbreak is not currently on the docket. If, however, the seeding or playoff spots are based on the result of that doubleheader, then it will be made on Monday between the end of the regular season and the start of the postseason wild card round. Increasingly, it looks like the Cardinals will have to play that doubleheader to see how hard the back end of the NL playoff field will be run. If they have to make a side trip to Detroit next Monday, it will be the Cardinals’ 12th doubleheader of the season.
