MLB Playoffs Tickets

The road to the World Series is a long and hard battle otherwise known as the MLB Playoffs. It's an exciting tournament in which the American and National leagues are pitted against each other in three rounds running in a best-of-five format. This has grown since 1969 when there was only one round. The first round is known as the Division Series, and the second is the League Championship Series, the final round is of course the World Series which is a best-of-seven format. The first World Series was played in 1903 and played to a best-of-nine series instead of five. The playoffs start in October and usually run into November depending on how long it takes a team to win each round.

2022 MLB Playoff Preview

American League

Houston Astros – The Astros set the tone early on and have become favorites to reach the World Series. Powered with an elite pitching staff lead by AL Cy Young favorite Justin Verlander, the Astros are poised to make a run at bringing another pennant and World Series back to Houston. Verlander is on the cusp of winning his third Cy Young and the Astros lineup is comprised of All-stars Kyle Tucker, Jose Altuve, Jordan Alvarez, as well as last year’s AL batting champ and Gold Glove recipient Yuli Gurriel. The Astros are serious contenders to make it to the World Series and want redemption after losing to the Atlanta Braves

New York Yankees - A first round bye and MVP favorite Aaron Judge are the two bright spots for the Yankees. Although they finished the season strong and were able to survive late-season runs by the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays, the Yankees are faced with a lot of unknowns. A shaky pitching staff and history of postseason woes have plagued the Bronx Bombers for quite some time. What version of the Yankees will we see this postseason?

Cleveland Guardians - The AL Central winners are a team that could quite possibly go on a deep run. They have an ace pitcher in Shane Bieber, and one of baseball’s top closers in Emmanuel Clase. Their lineup features one of baseball’s best, Jose Ramirez – a 4x All-star and Silver Slugger recipient, as well as a member of the exclusive 30-30 club. The Guardians are one of MLB’s youngest teams; lets see if they can handle the pressure of postseason baseball.

Toronto Blue Jays - The Blue Jays were a preseason favorite in the AL East. They did however underperform for a good part of the season but finished strong, snagging the first AL Wildcard spot. They’ve got the firepower in their lineup from the likes of Vlad Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette, George Springer, and Matt Chapman. Their pitching staff has been some cause for concern; however, All-star ace Alek Manoah and Kevin Gausman surely give the Jays a great chance to win when taking the mound.

Seattle Mariners - It’s been over 20 years since the Mariners last played postseason baseball. A solid pitching rotation of Robbie Ray and Logan Gilbert got a major boost when they acquired veteran ace Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds Their lineup is a little skeptical, but does have some excitement with young rookie phenom Julio Rodriguez, as well as Ty France.

Tampa Bay Rays - Baseball’s favorite oddity. The Rays have a roster without any household names, and yet they find a way to win games without a high payroll. They simply get it done. The Rays could easily win a series while lacking the names on paper. All-star pitcher Shane McClanahan, will be joined by Tyler Glasnow for the postseason, who recently rejoined the team after recovering from Tommy John surgery last year.

National League

Los Angeles Dodgers - One of MLB’s most star-studded teams will have a bullseye on its back this October. With three MVP-caliber players in their lineup (Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, and Freddie Freeman), not to mention a number of other quality hitters, the Dodgers lineup is easily the best in baseball. The Dodgers starting rotation is just as talented. Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, Tyler Anderson, and of course Clayton Kershaw make them not only serious contenders to win this year’s World Series, but also put them into consideration as one of the best teams in MLB history.

Atlanta Braves - The Braves want to be the first team since the 2000 Yankees to repeat as World Champions. They’ve got one of the best hitting lineups in baseball featuring the ever-so-talented Ronald Acuña Jr, Austin Riley and Dansby Swanson. Atlanta’s pitching staff boasts Kyle Wright – a 20-game winner, as well as Cy Young candidate Max Fried.

St Louis Cardinals - The Cardinals lineup not only features two NL MVP candidates in Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, but also a veteran presence of Albert Pujols, Adam Wainwright, and Yadier Molina. The three Cardinals legends have played numerous postseason games throughout their careers and will look to build onto their legacy. A combination of youth, seasoned veterans, quality pitching and defense is what’s helped carry St Louis thus far.

New York Mets - With a starting pitching rotation highlighted by Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom, and one of baseball’s elite closers Edwin Diaz, the Mets are built for the playoffs. They play good defense and have scrappy hitters that get on base. They went through a late season slump which saw the Braves playing catchup, so look for them to rebound and advance into the later rounds.

San Diego Padres - The Padres failed to live up to their preseason expectations. They did manage to acquire slugging outfielder Juan Soto at the deadline who has been red-hot at the plate as of late, and they can always rely on Manny Machado who is putting together an MVP-caliber season. The Padres will rely on veteran hurlers Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove.

Philadelphia Phillies - The Phillies have a great pitching staff lead by Aaron Nola, Kyle Gibson, and Zack Wheeler. Their lineup has some big boppers in Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, and J.T. Realmuto. A late collapse in September almost put their playoff hopes in jeopardy but having won a crucial series against the Washington Nationals and the Milwaukee Brewers fading, the Phillies secured their place in the playoffs.

Memorable Playoff Moments

All great playoff stories involve Babe Ruth, "The Great Bambino" some way or another. This baseball legend threw a 14-inning complete game in the 1916 series that is still known as the longest played World Series game to this day. Ruth pitched 29 1/3 innings without give up a point. There's nothing quite like a good comeback story however, and the 1985 gave history just that. The St. Louis Cardinals were beating the Kansas City Royals three to two, that is until Don Denkinger rallied the Royals dugout to pull through and became the 1985 world champions. Insert the noise of roaring fans here.

Have you ever been at a game when the unthinkable happens? When a team starts to gain momentum over another - especially an underdog team - the stands go wild. Hotdogs, peanuts and cracker jacks all go forgotten in the playoffs. The further teams advance, the more exciting the stands get because people start to think, "We might be able to do this." Stakes and emotions are high during the MLB playoffs as it becomes do or die. Not everyone gets to go to the playoffs, but you can score some cheap tickets and boast that you were there at the same time. Now that is a win-win, which is hopefully what your favorite team will do. Because you can't predict when the next upset will make history, get your cheap MLB playoff tickets today so you won't miss out on a single round.