The MLB postseason will be here soon. The landscape of the playoffs looks quite clear. Some races are tight and won't be decided until the final couple of weeks, but it should be interesting to see just how everything shakes out.
There are some teams though that may end up getting the short end of the stick based on who they're going to play in the postseason. Some teams may be forced to match up with their division rivals, who may have their number. Here are three teams that should be looking to avoid such matchups in October.
3. Seattle Mariners
Both the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros have struggled a bit lately and have made the American League West a very intriguing division to watch. But the Mariners may want to avoid the Astros in the playoffs due to Houston's postseason pedigree.
While the Astros were knocked out in the first round last year, they still have a lot of postseason success to fall back on. They reached the ALCS seven straight years from 2017-23 and have won the AL West every year since then except for 2020.
Houston also swept Seattle in the ALDS in 2022.
2. Philadelphia Phillies
While the Philadelphia Phillies have a five-game lead over the New York Mets in the National League East, they also have stumbled a little bit recently. They head into Wednesday's action having lost their last two games.
Meanwhile, the Mets have fought their way out of their rut and are now 7-3 in their last 10 games, which included a dramatic walk-off win over the Phillies. New York added some key relief pitchers at the trade deadline, and the usage of a bullpen is very important in the postseason. Even though the Mets have had their struggles, facing the likes of Edwin Diaz and Tyler Rogers late in a postseason game won't be easy.
And now, with the Mets hot again, they could have a bit of an edge over their division rivals. It's also important to remember that these two teams met in the NLDS last year. The Phillies had won the NL East, but the Mets ultimately got the last laugh when they ousted their division rivals in four games en route to the NLCS.
It won't be an easy road, and the Mets might now have the inside track after overcoming a recent skid.
1. New York Yankees
The New York Yankees certainly come to mind here because of their recent struggles. They were almost swept at home in a four-game series by their most hated rivals, the Boston Red Sox. Boston has been hot lately and seemingly has New York's number.
If the two teams were to meet in the postseason, Boston would likely have the edge, and as things stand now, the two teams would meet in the Wild Card Series, with Boston having home field advantage for all three games.
The Yankees might not have the pitching to survive that series, as Max Fried has struggled lately and isn't pitching like the ace he usually is. Without Gerrit Cole and with Fried struggling, the Yankees don't really have a starter that can be considered an ace, so it will be hard for them to deal with a team like the Red Sox.
The Yankees don't look like a World Series contender as currently constructed. Anything can happen in the postseason, but the Yankees also make a lot of mistakes fundamentally, so that will be hard for them to overcome in the postseason.
We'll see what ends up happening with the Bronx Bombers down the stretch.